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Destroyers Game Notes

July 3, 2007 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Columbus Destroyers News Release


DIVISIONAL ROUND

Columbus Destroyers (1-0) at Dallas Desperados (0-0)

July 7, 2007, 8 p.m. (ET)

American Airlines Center (15,978) Dallas,TX

Referee: Riley Johnson, Umpire: Al Granado, Head Linesman: Julian Mapp Line Judge: RG Detillier, Back Judge: Jim Buchannon

DESTROYERS/DESPERADOS PREVIEW

The Destroyers (1-0) will take on the Desperados (0-0) in the team's third meeting this season and ninth meeting in history. The Desperados hold a 7-1 advantage over the Destroyers all-time. Although, the Destroyers lost to the Desperados by a combined margin of 11 points in games played during the 2007 season. The first meeting on Apr. 5, the Destroyers lost 53-51. With 3.3 seconds remaining in the game a field goal by Desperados kicker Todd Sievers from 16-yards sealed the Destroyers fate. The Destroyers jumped out to a 37-7 lead with 0:30 seconds left in the second quarter and did not score again until the 14:58 mark of the fourth quarter. The Desperados came out of the half a brand new team as they scored on all-six possessions, outscoring the Destroyers 39-14 in the final 30-minutes of the contest. In the teams' second meeting on May 26, down 42-41 in the fourth quarter, the Destroyers and Desperados traded touchdowns and a Nagy interception with 0:31 seconds remaining thwarted a Destroyers comeback. The Desperados won 56-47. The Desperados come into the contest with a 15-1 record, the most wins by any AFL team in the regular season, in the 20-plus year history of the league. Over the course of two-consecutive seasons, the Desperados sport a 29-3 record. A season ago, the Orlando Predators defeated the Desperados, 45-28, in the National Conference Championship Game. The Desperados offense is led by Second-Team All-Arena quarterback Clint Dolezel. The East Texas State Graduate, finished the season in the top-10 amongst all quarterbacks in the AFL in completions (375, 6th), completion percentage (70.4, 3rd), passing yards (4,475, 4th), touchdowns passes (107, t-2nd) and quarterback rating (128.2, 2nd). Dolezel, is the only quarterback in AFL history to pass for consecutive 100+ touchdowns in a season (106 - 2006). Among Dolezel's targets is wide receiver Will Pettis who has caught 130 passes (6th) for 1,471 yards (10th) and 40 touchdowns (5th). The offensive front for the Desperados has allowed the least amount of the sacks in the league with four. The Desperados defense finished the regular season 6th in the AFL giving up 50.4 points per contest while the Destroyers finished 5th surrendering 49.6 points per game.

TV: ESPN Mark Jones, play-by-play Merril Hoge, color analyst

Radio: The WINK107.1 FM, Steve Sefner, play-by-play Rob Blackman, analyst

Web: AFLNet at www.ArenaFootball.com

2007 Destroyers Schedule/Opponents

3/1 at Nashville Kats W, 58-56

3/9 at New Orleans VooDoo L, 45-52

3/24 vs. CHICAGO RUSH L, 47-55

3/30 vs. GEORGIA FORCE W, 62-61

4/5 at Dallas Desperados L. 53-51

4/14 vs. AUSTIN WRANGLERS W, 72-49

4/23 vs. PHILADELPHIA SOUL W, 44-21

4/29 at Tampa Bay Storm L, 34-32

5/4 vs. NEW YORK DRAGONS W, 51-42

5/11 vs. GRAND RAPIDS RAMPAGE W, 59-56

5/18 at Colorado Crush L, 58-40

5/26 vs. DALLAS DESPERADOS L, 56-47

6/2 at Georgia Force L, 54-33

6/8 vs. KANSAS CITY BRIGADE L, 47-34

6/16 at Philadelphia Soul L, 56-53

6/23 at New York Dragons W, 74-43

WILD CARD ROUND

6/30 at Tampa Bay Storm W, 56-55*

DIVISIONAL ROUND

7/7 at Dallas Desperados 8 p.m.

ALL TIMES EST AND SUBJECT TO CHANGE

* AFL on ESPN

The Series:

Overall Record: Desperados lead 7-1

Regular Season: Desperados lead 7-1

Playoffs: First Meeting

Last Meeting: Dallas won 56-47 on

5/26/07 in Columbus.

TALE OF THE TAPE

2007 FINAL AFL RANK

DESTROYERS DESPERADOS

50.1 (16) Scoring Offense 63.5 (1)

49.6 (5) Scoring Defense 50.4 (6)

256.9 (18) Total Offense 311.3 (5)

284.4 (7) Total Defense 279.7 (4)

22.9 (4) Rushing Offense 20.4 (9)

17.1 (8) Rushing Defense 13.2 (4)

233.9 (19) Passing Offense 290.8 (4)

267.3 (7) Passing Defense 266.5 (6)

DESTROYERS/STORM RECAP

The Destroyers defeated the Tampa Bay Storm 56-55 in a Wild Card Round match-up last Saturday afternoon in front of 10,221 fans at St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa. With 1:06 remaining in regulation, quarterback Matt Nagy led the charge as he capped off a 7-play drive culminating with a oneyard touchdown run. Kicker Peter Martinez nailed the point after attempt and the Destroyers led 56-55 with :07 seconds remaining in the game. After the ensuing kickoff, Storm kicker Seth Marler missed a 56-yard field goal wide left with no time left. Nagy finished the contest 19-of-26 for 260 yards and five touchdowns. Destroyers leading receiver Damien Groce hauled in seven passes for 96 yards and two touchdowns. Defensive back B.J. Barre earned Defensive Player of the Game honors when he intercepted a Brett Dietz pass and returned it 50 yards for a touchdown to give the Destroyers their first lead of the game in the second quarter. Doug Kay coached and won his first AFL playoff game as a head coach. The Destroyers were victorious in their first playoff game in three attempts.

"TAKE IT TO THE HOUSE": Destroyers defensive back B.J. Barre is the 26th player in Arena Football League playoff history to intercept a pass and return it for a touchdown. His 50-yard return is the second-longest in the 20-plus years of AFL playoff games. The longest interception return for touchdown belongs to Shalon Baker of the San Jose SaberCats who returned a 51-yard effort against the Oklahoma Wranglers (8/4/2000 - Quarterfinal Round).

WHEN YOU'RE HOT, YOU'RE HOT: Destroyers kicker Peter Martinez has converted on his last 19 point after touchdown attempts, including the game winning PAT against the Storm. His last successful attempt vaulted the Destroyers to their first postseason victory in franchise history. Martinez' longest streak this season, prior to his current streak, is 13 PAT's (Apr. 5 at Dallas - Apr. 14 vs. Austin).

RUSHING TO VICTORY: The 2007 Destroyers have an 8-3 record when they rush for 20+ yards in a contest. Including the one-yard touchdown run by quarterback Matt Nagy that tied the score at 55-55, Destroyers leading rusher Harold Wells carried the ball six times for 15 yards and B.J. Barre scored on a two-yard handoff before halftime. The Destroyers rushed for

END OF YEAR AWARDS

Destroyers center Will Rabatin was selected to the 2007 AFL All-Rookie Team on June 27. Defensive lineman Ken Jones was named to the First- Team All-Arena on June 28. Wide receiver/linebacker B.J. Barre and fullback/linebacker Harold Wells were named to the AFL's All-Ironman team on June 29.

MR. RELIABLE

Wide receiver David Saunders finished second on the team with 68 receptions for 550 yards and 18 touchdowns in 2007. Against the Brigade in Week 15, his streak of 19 consecutive games with a touchdown reception ended. The streak started on Mar. 3, 2006 against the New York Dragons, Saunders had amassed 119 receptions for 1,180 yards and 33 touchdowns during the streak. Ironically, Saunders' streak ended on the same week that the longest touchdown reception streak in AFL history ended. Colorado Crush wide receiver Damien Harrell ended his streak at 78 games against the Utah Blaze on June 4.

GROUND CONTROL

The Columbus Destroyers ground game took off this season as they put up an average of 22.9 yards per contest, the fourth best mark in the AFL. In fact, when the Destroyers rush for over 20 yards in a game they have a record of 7-3 in 2007 during the regular season. The rushing attack is led by fullback Harold Wells who has set career-highs with 73 carries for 197 yards (5th in the AFL) and 13 touchdowns.

HOME COOKIN

The 2007 Columbus Destroyers set a single-season franchise record with five wins on Huntington Field at Nationwide Arena. The team has a record of 5-3 at home, including a five game consecutive streak that spanned Mar. 30 vs. Georgia - May 11 vs. Grand Rapids. The team bested the 2006 squad and the 2002 Buffalo Destroyers whom both won four games at home in their respective seasons. The 2002-03 Buffalo Destroyers put together a string of seven consecutive wins at home over the course of two seasons.

DYNAMIC DUO

The tandem of Matt Nagy and Damien Groce has sparked the Destroyers offense in 2007. The two combined for 26 touchdowns through the air. Nagy passed to Groce for 1,342 yards on 118 receptions, consisting for a third (32.7%) of the Destroyers offensive output in 2007. Groce was accountable for 27% of the Destroyers scoring this season with 31 total touchdowns (26 receiving, 3 rushing, 2 kick off returns).

HAIL TO THE CHIEF

Head Coach Doug Kay signed a contract extension on May 16 that will keep him at the helm of the Columbus Destroyers through the 2008 season. Now in his second season with the Destroyers, Kay has accumulated a overall record of 16-17 with the club. Columbus finished in third place in the Eastern Division with a record of 7-9. In 2006, the Destroyers posted an 8-8 mark and missed the playoffs by one game just one year removed from a 2-14 finish during the 2005 campaign. Kay has over 40 years of football coaching experience, including 13 years in the AFL. His AFL teams have made the playoffs in 10 of 13 years. He has won ArenaBowl championships as a defensive coordinator with the Tampa Bay Storm (ArenaBowl VII - 1993) and Arizona Rattlers (ArenaBowl XI - 1997) and has also served as a head coach with the Charlotte Rage (1995) and Carolina Cobras. (2000-01).

2007 DESTROYERS GAME HIGHS

SCORING 30, Damien Groce, April 14 vs. Austin

PASSING YARDS 326, Matt Nagy, April 14 vs. Austin

PASSING TOUCHDOWNS 9, Matt Nagy, April 14 vs. Austin

RECEPTIONS 14, Damien Groce, May 18 at Colorado

RECEIVING YARDS 168, Damien Groce, May 18 at Colorado

RECEIVING TOUCHDOWNS 5, Damien Groce, April 14 vs. Austin

RUSHES 10, Harold Wells, May 4 vs. New York

RUSHING YARDS 34, Harold Wells, May 4 vs. New York and June 8 vs. Kansas City

RUSHING TOUCHDOWNS 2 (four times), Matt Nagy, March 24 vs. Chicago and March 30 vs. Georgia; Damien Groce, April 23 vs. Philadelphia; Harold Wells, May 4 vs. New York and June 8 vs. Kansas City

KICKOFF RETURN YARDS 147, Damien Groce, May 26 vs. Dallas

MFG RETURN YARDS 17, B.J. Barre, March 9 at New Orleans

ALL-PURPOSE YARDS 307, Damien Groce, May 26 vs. Dallas

TACKLES 12.5, Brandon Hefflin, June 30 at Tampa Bay

FUMBLE RECOVERIES 1 (eight times), Ken Jones, March 30 vs. Georgia; Jerald Brown, David Saunders and Harold Wells, April 5 at Dallas; Michale Spicer and Leroy Thompson, April 23 vs. Philadelphia; Jason Shelley, May 11 vs. Grand Rapids; Ken Jones and Marcus Knight, May 26 vs. Dallas; Bernard Riley, June 8 vs. Kansas City

SACKS 2.0 (three times), Ken Jones, March 24 vs. Chicago, April 23 vs. Philadelphia, May 4 vs. New York

TACKLES FOR LOSS 4.0, Ken Jones, April 23 vs. Philadelphia

INTERCEPTIONS 2, Jerald Brown (twice), March 30 vs. Georgia and April 14 vs. Austin

JOLTING JONES

Ken Jones is the all-time franchise leader in sacks with 17.5 (16UT-3AT) to his credit. Last season he eclipsed the mark of Kerwin Hairston by leading the Destroyers with five sacks in 2006. He led the team and set a franchise singleseason record with 9.5 sacks (9UT-1AT).

WEEK Vs. QB SACKS

2 New Orleans VooDoo Andy Kelly 1

4 Chicago Rush Matt D'Orazio 2

5 Georgia Force Chris Griesen 1.5

8 Philadelphia Soul Clint Stoerner 2

10 New York Dragons Aaron Garcia 2

16 Philadelphia Soul Tony Graziani 1

TOUCHDOWN MACHINE

Destroyers' wide receiver Damien Groce set an all-time AFL record with eight consecutive touchdowns scored spanning two games. He scored the final four touchdowns against the Austin Wranglers on Apr. 14 and led the game off with the first four Destroyers touchdowns Apr. 23 against the Soul. The previous record for consecutive touchdowns was held by Derek Lee of the Georgia Force in 2005 (Week 7-8) with seven. The previous franchise record was held by Sedrick Robinson in 2004, who scored four-straight against the Dallas Desperados on May 22. Groce torched the Wranglers secondary in Week 7, as he caught 13 passes for 129 yards and set a franchise record with five touchdown receptions. In Week 12 against the Colorado Crush he hauled in a career-high 14 passes for 168 yards and two touchdowns. In 2007 he lead the team with 118 receptions (12th in the AFL) for 1,342 yards (18th in the AFL) and 26 touchdowns. He also is 10th in the league with a 20.6-yard average per kickoff return (40 KOR, 825 KOR yards), giving him 2,253 all-purpose yards, which ranks him sixth in the AFL.

BRINGIN THE "D"

The Destroyers defense is holding its opponents to an average of 49.6 points per contest, fifth best in the AFL. In 2006, the defense held its opponents to 44.8 points, second best scoring defense in the AFL.

THE MAGIC NUMBER

The Destroyers put 74 points on the scoreboard, the second most points in franchise history, in a win over the New York Dragons in Week 17. Since the Destroyers have moved to Columbus, they hold a perfect 8-0 record in games in which they score 60-plus points. Including 3-0 this season (Week 4 vs. Georgia, 62-61; Week 7 vs. Austin 72-49). The franchise record for most points scored in a game is held by the Buffalo Destroyers, who scored 79 on June 25, 2000 at New Jersey.

2007 PLAYERS OF THE GAME

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME

Week 1: CLB, Matt Nagy

Week 2: NO, Kenny Henderson

Week 4: CHI, Matt D'Orazio

Week 5: CLB, Matt Nagy

Week 6: DAL, Marcus Nash

Week 7: CLB, Matt Nagy

Week 8: CLB, Damien Groce

Week 9: TB, Terril Shaw

Week 10: CLB, Matt Nagy

Week 11: GRA, Timon Marshall

Week 12: COL, John Dutton

Week 13: DAL, Willis Marshall

Week 14: GEO, Chris Greisen

Week 15: KCB, Raymond Philyaw

Week 16: PHI, Larry Brackins

Week 17: CLB, Matt Nagy

Wild Card: TB: Terril Shaw

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME

Week 1: CLB, Jerald Brown

Week 2: NO, Alex Wallace

Week 4: CHI, DeJuan Alfonzo

Week 5: CLB, Ken Jones

Week 6: DAL, Duke Pettijohn

Week 7: CLB, Jerald Brown

Week 8: CLB, Leroy Thompson

Week 9: TB, Khalid Naziruddin

Week 10: CLB, Ken Jones

Week 11: CLB, Brandon Hefflin

Week 12: COL, Rashad Floyd

Week 13: DAL, Will Pettis

Week 14: GEO, Hamin Milligan

Week 15: KCB, Travis Coleman

Week 16: PHI, Mike Brown

Week 17: CLB, Jerald Brown

Wild Card: CLB, B.J. Barre

IRONMAN OF THE GAME

Week 1: CLB, Damien Groce

Week 2: NO, Tyronne Jones

Week 4: N/A

Week 5: N/A

Week 6: DAL, Will Pettis

Week 7: CLB, David Saunders

Week 8: N/A

Week 9: TB, Lawrence Samuels

Week 10: CLB, B.J. Barre

Week 11: CLB, B.J. Barre

Week 12: COL, Jason Harmon

Week 13: N/A

Week 14: GEO, Jarrick Hillery

Week 15: KCB, B.J. Cohen

Week 16: CLB, B.J. Barre

Week 17: CLB, Josh Bush

Wild Card: TB: Lawrence Samuels

2007 WEEKLY AFL AWARDS

Ironman for Week 11: CLB, B.J. Barre

Offensive Player of the Week

Wild Card Round: CLB, Matt Nagy

AERIAL ATTACK

In Week 7 against the Wranglers, Destroyers QB Matt Nagy threw for a team record and set a personal best with nine touchdown passes. Nagy bested the previous Destroyers record set by Ryan Vena who threw for eight scores on May 22, 2004 against the Dallas Desperados.

DEFENDING THE CROWN

Reigning AFL Defensive Player of the Year Jerald Brown picked up right where he left off 2006 as he's intercepted five passes this season (tied for 19th in the AFL), including two in Destroyers' victories over the Georgia Force in Week 5 and two in Week 7 against the Austin Wranglers. A season ago, Brown finished second in the league with 11 interceptions and 133 interception return yards, including two for touchdowns.

In addition to the five interceptions, Brown has amassed 65.5 tackles (57UT-17AT), one fumble recovery and is the team leader with 16 pass breakups (tied for 13th in the AFL).

DÉJÀ VU

In Week 5 against the Georgia Force the Destroyers kickoff returners were all over the field as they returned two the length of the field for touchdowns. In the second quarter Josh Bush returned his second in as many games from 56- yards and in the third quarter Damien Groce returned a Xavier Betita offering 56-yards for the score.

It was the first time the Destroyers have had two kickoff returns for touchdowns in a game since May 9, 2004 vs. Georgia Force. In history, the Destroyers have accomplished the special teams feat four times including Week 5, three of those have been at the hands of the Georgia Force.

SPREADING THE LOVE

Quarterback Matt Nagy found five different receivers for touchdowns against the Dallas Desperados in Week Six. Damien Groce, Tony Locke, David Saunders (2), Josh Bush and Howard Duncan were the recipients of the scoring strikes.

Nagy has now accomplished this feat twice in his career. The first coming on March 7, 2004, as a member of the Carolina Cobras. He threw for six touchdowns in the game to five different receivers including current teammate, Damien Groce.

THE TOLEDO TACKLER

Toledo graduate, Brandon Hefflin, led the team (4th in the AFL) with 105.0 tackles (88UT-34AT) in 2007. Now in his third year with the Destroyers, Hefflin also led the team in tackles in 2005 (76.5) and 2006 (84.5).

Hefflin is the all-time franchise leader in tackles with 256.5 (214UT-85AT). He eclipsed the mark of JoJo Polk (177.5) on Mar. 9 at New Orleans. Hefflin has also set the all-time franchise record for tackles in a season in 2007. O-H-I-O Five Destroyers players have ties to the Buckeye state.

Defensive Back B.J. Barre

- Grew up in Toledo, attended Whitmer High School and played at The Ohio State University one season.

Quarterback Josh Harris

- Prepped at Westerville High School and played quarterback at Bowling Green State University

Defensive Back Brandon Hefflin

- Attended the University of Toledo

Wide Receiver Cole Magner

- Played quarterback and wide receiver at Bowling Green State University.

Offensive Lineman Juan Porter

- Prepped at St. Ignatius High School (Cleveland) and played at The Ohio State University

YEARS OF EXPERIENCE

The Destroyers 2007 coaching staff brings with it 37 years of coaching experience in Arena Football. Collectively the Destroyers coaches have won three ArenaBowl Championships (Head Coach Doug Kay, Tampa Bay Storm - ArenaBowl VII and Arizona Rattlers - ArenaBowl XI; Coach Mitch Matuska, Tampa Bay Storm - ArenaBowl XVII) Offensive coordinator Skip Foster (2003) won an ArenaCup in arenafootball2 as head coach of the Tulsa Talons.

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