Dorados Make Moves for Birmingham
June 25, 2004 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Rio Grande Valley Dorados News Release
HIDALGO, TX: June 25, 2004 â The arenafootball2's (af2) Rio Grande Valley Dorados look to end a six-game winless streak Saturday night in Birmingham, Alabama and they made their final roster moves heading into the contest against the Steeldogs by activating Donté Wells from the injured reserve list and placing lineman Diego Saenz on re-assignment.
Wells, a wide receiver/defensive back from Dallas, has been with the squad since training camp, but missed the last two games due to injury. The Midwestern State product has appeared in eight games with the Dorados this season and has 21 receptions for 230 yards and 3 touchdowns on offense and has 11 tackles (9 solo) and a fumble recovery on defense in the eight games. Wells has 285 all-purpose yards (230 receiving, 55 kickoff return yards), which ranks fifth on the team, and his 21 receptions is the second most on the squad. His single-game best so far this season was in Central Valley, as he collected a pair of touchdowns and had 8 receptions for 94 yards. Leaving the Dorados roster is local youngster Diego Saenz (synz). The 21-year old native of Mission, Texas and graduate of Mission High School appeared in 7 games with the Dorados this season and had 1.5 tackles in those contests, including a half-sack in the season opener against Laredo on April 3rd. Saenz was an af2 rookie lineman out of Texas A&M University - Kingsville.
The 3-7 Rio Grande Valley Dorados are currently in Birmingham preparing for their non-divisional road contest against the Steeldogs. The 8-3 Steeldogs are coming off a high scoring 67-64 loss at Tennessee Valley, and a game that the Dorados can relate to as the Steeldogs lost on the last play of the game. Birmingham is 6-0 at home this season at the Birmingham-Jefferson Convention Complex (BJCC) and has just edged past their opponents in their last two home games, winning those contests by an average margin of 4 points. The Steeldogs are led offensively by quarterback Kenton Evans, who ranks second in the af2 with a 119.6 pass rating, and by fullback Dontae Walker, who ranks third in rushing in the af2 with an average of 19.3 yards. On the defensive side, Anthony Jordan leads the af2 with 8 interceptions and Jerry Turner co-leads the af2 with 8 tackles for a loss and is ranked second in sacks with 7.5. The âDogs are coached by former University of Alabama standout and former NFL'er Bobby Humphrey, who is the af2's all-time wins leader and member of the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame. His ties with the Crimson Tide has led to the scheduling of University of Alabama head coach Mike Shula, who is also the son of legendary head coach Don Shula, to serve as the honorary game captain on Saturday and he will handle the game's coin toss. Saturday's contest is scheduled for a 7:35 PM kickoff and can be heard live on ESPN Radio 1240 AM (KSOX) with Chris Due calling the play-by-play action.
It will be a patriotic celebration when the Dorados return home to the Dodge Arena on July 3rd for their rematch with the Wichita Stealth. Airastar national recording country music artist and Alice, Texas native Kelly Kenning will be performing at the BudZone FanZone outside the Dodge Arena beginning at 4 PM and he will play until the Dorados 7:30 PM kickoff against the Wichita Stealth, in which the Dorados will be wearing special commemorative patriotic themed jerseys. The jerseys are made possible by the United States Border Patrol and they will be auctioned off to the fans immediately following the game. 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 ordering 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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