Dorados Make Final Roster Moves Before Battling Talons
June 11, 2004 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Rio Grande Valley Dorados News Release
HIDALGO, TX: June 11, 2004 â The Rio Grande Valley Dorados of the arenafootball2 (af2) made additional moves today as they make their final roster preparations for their Saturday night contest against the Tulsa Talons at the Dodge Arena by welcoming assigned lineman Raymond Baylor and wide receiver/defensive back Cordell Thornton. The Dorados also placed offensive specialist Gary Briggs, wide receiver/defensive back Mike Duncan and lineman Tim Cook on re-assignment, activated offensive specialist Craig Cole and lineman Marco McGee from the injured reserve list and placed Donte Wells on the short-term injured reserve list.
Baylor, a 29 year-old lineman from Houston, reunites himself with Dorados Head Coach Gary Gussman after the two were with the Arena Football League's Houston ThunderBears during the 2000 season. The 6'2" 290-pound lineman will be seeing his first action in the af2 with the Dorados. He was a product of Houston's Willowridge High School and played under the late Jim Wacker at the University of Minnesota. His final season with the Golden Gophers was in 1997 and Baylor played in all 12 games and collected 30 tackles (19 solo) and 3 sacks, which ranked tied for third on the squad. Thornton joins the Dorados roster just in time to face his former squad. The 5'11" 185-pound Desoto, Texas native played one game with the Tulsa Talons earlier this season and had one reception for 15 yards. Thornton was a track and football standout at Dallas' Lake Highlands High School, rushing for 780 yards on 40 carries as a senior on the gridiron while earning three consecutive "District 11-5A Outstanding Hurdler" honors in track and won the district high hurdles competition as a senior. The 26 year-old took his two-sport talents to Southern Methodist University (SMU). He played in one game in 1996 with SMU before being redshirted and was on the team in 1997, but did not see any action. Thornton sat out the 1998 season to concentrate on track before eventually transferring to Hofstra University, where he combined for 2 receptions for 38 yards in limited action during the 1999 and 2000 seasons.
Leaving the Dorados are Gary Briggs, Tim Cook and Mike Duncan. Briggs had played in 24 af2 games prior to joining the Dorados, but he only played in two games with the Dorados this season. Originally signed prior to the season, Briggs had failed to report until joining the squad prior to their game on May 22nd against Laredo. In two contests, the New Carrollton, Maryland native grabbed 5 receptions for 21 yards and had one kickoff return for 37 yards. Cook, a lineman from Pflugerville, Texas, played in all 8 games with the Dorados and combined for 9 tackles (5 solo, 8 assisted) and contributed 3.5 sacks and 1 blocked kick. Duncan, who missed the last two games due to injury, leaves with 281 receiving yards off 17 catches and 6 touchdowns on offense, 13 tackles (8 solo, 10 assisted) on defense, and 4 kickoff returns for 113 yards on special teams. The Oceanside, California native ranks second on the squad in all-purpose yards (394) and holds the Dorados record for the longest touchdown pass reception, with an af2 all-time co-leading 49-yard grab from Abel Gonzalez.
Returning to the Dorados active roster is Craig Cole and Marco McGee. Cole registered the first touchdown in Dorados history in the season opening 37-6 win over Laredo, catching 3 passes (2 touchdowns) for 49 yards and had 2 kickoff returns for 60 yards. He suffered a lingering injury in the contest, which has kept him on the injured reserve list since. The Arlington, Texas native and Abilene Christian University standout has 129 catches in his af2 career for 1619 yards and 28 touchdowns. He also averages 20.4 yards per kickoff return. McGee is another player that saw time with the Tulsa Talons. He played in two games with the Talons this season before be re-assigned and assigned to the Dorados roster. The Magnolia, North Carolina born lineman played in the Dorados contest against Laredo on May 22nd, but missed their contest in Tulsa due to injury. Heading to the injured reserve list is defensive specialist and receiver Donte Wells. The Dallas Carter High School star is second on the squad in receptions (21), fourth in all-purpose yards (230 rec, 55 kor, 285 tot.) and has 11 tackles (9 solo) on defense.
The Dorados face an important game this week, hosting Tulsa, as they seek to end a four game winless streak. Rio Grande Valley has been snake-bit in the previous four games, losing three of the contests within the game's closing minute. The Dorados were trailing in their last contest in Tulsa 38-45 with less than 20-seconds remaining and fumbled a first-and-goal rush inches from the goal-line, which resulted in a Bjorn Barre fumble recovery and a 49-yard Tulsa touchdown. The 3-5 Dorados find themselves in fourth place of the National Conference's Southwest Division and falling away from the Sooner state's Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz and Tulsa, who has each riding three-game winning streaks. The Dorados do have a game-in-hand over each of their division foes and still have three of their five remaining divisional contest at home. The Talons fly in with a 6-3 record and are coming off of a 62-49 win over the Wichita Stealth. They collected the victory without star receiver Mitch Allner, who has 22 receiving touchdowns. Allner was injured against the Dorados and has since been placed on the long-term injured reserve list. Saturday's contest will be televised live on Televisa's XERV Ch. 9 (19-cable) with Chris Due, Al Guerra and Jeffrey Salcedo calling the action and also carried live through the radio airwaves on ESPN Radio 1240 AM (KSOX) with Josh Bogorad. Fans are encouraged to arrive early for the tailgating excitement at the BudZone FanZone located outside of the Dodge Arena. Tailgaters should bring their own food, drinks and grills to take part in the cook-off. The talgaters serving up the best sausage will be awarded and there will be other activities for fans to enjoy, including the "Fun in the Sun" inflatable games and live music provided by Big Richard thanks to Clear Channel Communications.
The Talons come to the Dodge Arena this Saturday to battle the Dorados and individual tickets are currently on sale and may be purchased by stopping by the Dodge Arena offices (2600 N. 10th St. in Hidalgo, Tx) or contacting them by phone at 956-843-7825. Additional ticket information and corporate opportunities are available by contacting the Dorados offices at 956-843-7825 or visit the Dorados online at www.doradosfootball.com.
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