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Dorados Weekly Notes

June 6, 2005 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Rio Grande Valley Dorados News Release


DORADOS FACE FAMILIAR DIVISION LEADING TALONS

GAME #10 SATURDAY CHASE FIELD AT DODGE ARENA 7:30 PM VS. TULSA TALONS (7-2)

BROADCAST: TV: TELEVISA RADIO: ESPN RADIO 1240 AM VIDEO WEBCAST: www.af2tv.com

The Rio Grande Valley Dorados will look to rebound from their turnover filled loss to Oklahoma City by hosting their Sooner State brothers from the east... the Tulsa Talons. The Talons join the Dorados as the only two teams that transferred to the West Division this season after playing in the Southwest Division last season. The Dorados bring in a 3-0 division record from this season and 9-6 all-time, but they are 0-3 all-time against the Talons. Rio Grande Valley needs to win two in a row if they want a chance to be in first place in the division. The tied for second place Dorados sit two-wins back from the first place Talons and are tied with next week's opponent, the Central Valley Coyotes. Tulsa is riding a four-game winning streak and holds a 4-1 record. They rank second in the league with a scoring average of 54.8 points a game and lead the league with 72 touchdowns. Tulsa is led in the scoring department by Donovan Morgan, who has a league high 32 touchdowns. Tulsa has several Dorados connections, as Dorados former Defensive Coordinator Lucious Davis serves the same capacity with the Talons and Tulsa's Spencer Conley, Chris McIver and Nick Davis are former Dorados.

DORADOS DROPBACK

The Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz forced seven Rio Grande Valley Dorados turnovers to runaway with a 59-35 win Saturday night in front of 5,111 at the Ford Center, ending the Dorados franchise-high four game winning streak.

It was a sign of a long night to come for the Dorados when their first play from scrimmage resulted in a fumble by Dwight Counter. They eventually had three turnovers in the first half (all fumbles), but were still in the contest. Dorados quarterback Josh Kellett was 13 for 20 in the first half and touchdown passes to Travis McAlpine, Marquis Floyd and two to Dwight Counter allowed the Dorados to keep pace with the outstanding first half display by Yard Dawgz quarterback Craig Strickland, who tossed four touchdowns in the half.

The Dorados, trailing 26-24 at the half, were not able to improve their 4-1 record when trailing at the half. The offense gained 12 yards on their first play of the second half, but could not produce another play of positive yardage until less than five-minutes remained in the game. Norman Mason and Counter each fumbled consecutive kickoff returns and Kellett tossed a pair of interceptions to Oklahoma City's Jeromy Flowers. Kellett's first interception thrown ended a span of 132 passes without an interception. While the Dorados were turning the ball over, the 'Dawgz were scoring. Oklahoma City scored in their first six drives with four touchdowns and a pair of field goals by Jason Ball. They even received production from quarterback Josh Stewart after Strickland was ejected along with Chuck Little of the 'Dawgz and Dorados Antoine Murphy and Gathan McGinnis after a post-touchdown scuffle. Oklahoma City was led offensively by Baby Ruth Offensive Player of the Game Jarrail Jackson, who caught 11 passes for 178 yards. In the quarterback department, Strickland finished 18 of 25 with 2 interceptions, 6 touchdowns and 233 yards. His fill-in Stewart finished 5 of 7 with 2 touchdowns and 75 yards, while Kellett finished 18 of 34 with 4 touchdowns and 2 interceptions and 182 yards in the losing cause. BJ Barre was named the US Army Ironman of the Game and Jeromy Flowers was awarded the ADT Defensive Player of the Game with his two interceptions.

TALONS REPORT (a look at the opponent's previous game) Courtesy of Central Valley Coyotes

Tulsa WR/DB Donovan Morgan caught a two-point conversion on the last play of regulation to give the Tulsa Talons (8-2) a 54-53 victory over the Central Valley Coyotes (5-4) in front of a crowd of 2,638 at Selland Arena.

The Talons needed a 21-yard Robert Reed touchdown reception as time expired to bring Tulsa within one, 53-52. Without hesitation, Tulsa head coach David Alexander kept his offense out on the field to go for the win.

Tulsa QB Josh Blankenship was able to find Morgan up against the goaline wall to solidify the Talon victory and give them a two-game lead in the West Division.

The Coyotes, who were down 34-10 with 1:20 to go in the first half, scored 28 unanswered points to take a 38-34 lead, one minute into the fourth quarter.

Three of the four touchdowns were to WR/LB George Williams, who earned "Offensive Player of the Game" honors with 11 catches for 126 yards and three touchdowns.

Central Valley held the Talons scoreless in the third quarter with the help of two defensive stops.

The second was a fourth-and-eleven pass attempt from the Tulsa 19-yard line intended for Morgan. Coyote defensive specialist Tierre Sams was able to knock down the ball and give Central Valley possession as they trailed 34-31.

Sams earned "Defensive Player of the Game" with 11 and a half tackles and one deflection.

Tulsa took an early 13-0 lead after DS Chris Canty recovered a ball off the net on their first kickoff after opening the game with a 13-yard touchdown to OS Robert Reed.

The Talon defense set the tone early, forcing the Coyotes into two field goal attempts in the first half.

Coyote kicker John Gockman was successful on a 42-yarder which made the score 13-3 with 5:14 left in the first quarter, but later missed a 25-yarder before the period ended.

QB Juston Wood was 27-of-45 for 266 yards and five touchdowns and rushed another in for a score. His last touchdown pass was a 16-yard strike to WR/DB DeRonn Finley which was followed by a successful two-point conversion that gave the Coyotes a 53-46 lead with 22 seconds left.

RECORD THIS

The following team records were set in the Dorados loss Saturday night in Oklahoma City:

Individual
Most Interceptions Return Yards in a Game: Marquis Floyd (45)

Team
Most Kickoff Returns in a Game: 10 (third time)
Most Kickoff Return Yards in a Game: 244

Misc.
QB Josh Kellett eclipsed the 2,000-yard mark this season in passing yards
Kicker Eric Houle booted his franchise single-season and career best 12th field goal of the season

SPECIAL GUESTS

There will be some special guests appearing at the Dorados contest Saturday night against Tulsa, as the Sideswipe Performance Team featuring Matthew Mullins will perform at halftime. The Sideswipe Performance Team has performed in front of motion video cameras and in front of many sporting audiences, including halftime performances for the Chicago Bulls and Dallas Mavericks. The martial art stunt group is led by competitor/actor and entertainer Matthew Mullins, who serves as Sideswipe's proprietor. Mullins has performed in many national commercial spots, including Nike and Pepsi, and on several television shows including "The Wayne Brady Show" and "The Best Damn Sports Show Period." Their appearance is being made possible by FastSigns. Additional info on Sideswipe can be found by visiting Mullins' official website (www.matthewmullins.com).

PLAYOFF PICTURE

With seven games remaining, we take a look at the playoff picture in the af2's National Conference. In the af2, the top six teams in the conference qualify for the playoffs, with division-leading teams receiving first round byes.

1. Memphis 8-1
2. Tulsa 7-2
3. Amarillo 6-3
4. Rio Grande Valley 5-4, Oklahoma City 5-4, Central Valley 5-4

af2 WEEK 10 REVIEW

Friday, June 3
W-B/Scranton 38, GREEN BAY 24 (3,072)
Saturday, June 4
ALBANY 68, Bossier-Shreveport 53 (4,354)
MANCHESTER 74, Macon 49 (6,528)
FLORIDA 56, Birmingham 40 (5,122)
Memphis 35, ARKANSAS 33 (5,949)
AMARILLO 69, South Georgia 63 (3,703)
OKC 59, Rio Grande Val. 35 (5,111)
QUAD CITY 47, Louisville 41 (5,523)
SAN DIEGO 59, Bakersfield 54 (2,864)
Tulsa 54, CENTRAL VALLEY 53 (2,638)

af2 WEEK 11 PREVIEW

Friday, June 10
Arkansas at Bakersfield 9:00 p.m.
Saturday, June 11
Albany at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 6:30 p.m.
Bossier-Shreveport at Macon 6:30 p.m.
Florida at South Georgia 6:30 p.m.
Louisville at Birmingham 7:00 p.m.
Manchester at Green Bay 7:00 p.m.
Quad City at Memphis 7:00 p.m.
Tulsa at Rio Grande Valley 7:30 p.m.
Amarillo at Oklahoma City 7:30 p.m.
San Diego at Central Valley 9:30 p.m.

ON THE MENU

At each home game, the Rio Grande Valley Dorados will have tailgating outside the Dodge Arena sponsored by Budweiser, Clear Channel, and Dodge beginning at 4PM on game-days. Each tailgate event will feature live musical acts and will feature a marquee food item for grillers and tailgaters to cook. Judges will give out prizes for the best of the selected food item prepared by fans. For Saturday, fans are encouraged to prepare the best "drunken chicken" for judging.

NEXT HOME GAME

The Dorados next home game will be Saturday, June 11, as the Dorados host the Tulsa Talons at Chase Field inside the Dodge Arena. Individual tickets for the game and all other home games are already on sale. Season ticket packages and advertising opportunities are still available by contacting the Dorados offices at 956-843-7825. Additional info can also be found by visiting the Dorados online at www.doradosfootball.com.

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

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