Sports stats



IFL Indoor Football League

Fifth Week of Play Concludes Tonight on National TV

March 29, 2010 - Indoor Football League (IFL) News Release


Richmond, VA: After nine electrifying league games over the weekend, Week Five of the IFL season is almost in the books. The IFL's Game of the Week is set for Monday Night when visiting Wichita Wild (2-1) take on the Omaha Beef (1-1) on National TV. The game is the first of five scheduled nation telecasts for the 2010 IFL season. The game can be seen on Direct TV, Dish Network, and One World Sports network. IFL fans are encouraged to contact their local cable providers for listings.

Week Five began on Friday night as the Green Bay Blizzard hosted the Bloomington Extreme in a Central North Division battle. The Blizzard (3-1) avenged a Week Three loss to the Extreme (2-2) with a 35-21 victory. The Blizzard were powered by a swarming defense which held the Extreme to 167 yards of offensive. QB Jake Phillips turned in another solid performance as he completed 14 of 24 passes for 194 yards and 2 TD's, adding 30 yards rushing and a TD. Next week the Extreme will have a bye while the Blizzard will travel to take on the Maryland Maniacs.

The action picked back up on Saturday as the Abilene Ruff Riders traveled to face the Arkansas Diamonds. The Diamonds (3-1) proved to be too much as they defeated the Ruff Riders (0-3), 53-34. The Diamonds were led to victory by QB James Pinkney. The former East Carolina University standout passed for 139 yards and 3 TD's in his first game of the season. With the win the Diamonds now sit alone atop the Lonestar East Division. Next week the Diamonds will host the Corpus Christi Hammerheads while the Ruff Riders will continue to look for their first win of the season as they travel to face the San Angelo Stampede Express.

The San Angelo Stampede Express (2-1) have achieved back to back wins as they edged the Corpus Christi Hammerheads (2-2), 45-31. The Stampede Express relied on a potent ground game as they punished the Hammerheads defense to a tune of 110 yards rushing. The charge was led by RB Derrick Ross who rushed 15 times for 102 yards and 4 TD's. The Stampede Express will look to carry momentum into next week as they host the Abilene Ruff Riders. The Hammerheads will travel to take on the Arkansas Diamonds in a Lonestar East Division battle.

The Amarillo Venom (2-0) were victorious in their home opener 55-33 over the visiting West Texas Roughnecks (1-3). The game was a rematch of Week Three but the outcome was the same as the Venom overwhelmed the Roughnecks with a balanced offensive attack. QB Julian Reese completed 13 of 18 passes for 139 yards and a TD while RB Dontrell Moore carried the ball 13 times for 105 yards, adding 4 TD's. The Venom will look to continue on their winning ways as they travel to take on the Austin Turfcats while Roughnecks will have a week to regroup with a bye in Week Six.

After three heartbreaking losses by a combined score of 8 points, the Chicago Slaughter (1-3) earned a hard fought victory over the Alaska Wild (2-2), 34-33. This matchup turned out to be the most competitive game on the Week Six schedule. After trailing 27-6 in the first half, the Wild battled back to take the lead late in the fourth quarter 33-27. With 30 seconds remaining in the game, Slaughter RB Jarrett Payton, son of Chicago Bear great Walter Payton, gave his team the lead and eventual victory with a 1 yard TD plunge. Next week the Slaughter will have a bye and the Wild will host the Fairbanks Grizzlies.

The Sioux City Bandits (2-2) got back on the winning track with a 55-28 victory over the Colorado Ice (0-4). Colorado's offense continues struggle in 2010 as they only gained 167 yards. The Bandits were led by Week One Offensive Player of the Week QB James McNear. McNear was very efficient, completing 12-18 passes for 125 yards and 4 TD's, adding 55 yards on the ground. Both teams will have byes in Week Six.

In Saturday's nightcap, The Kent Predators (1-3) earned the first victory in the franchise's brief history as they outlasted the Tri-Cities Fever (0-3), 55-49. The Fever had no answer for the Predators offensive attack as they allowed 371 yards of total offensive. Predators QB Charles McCullum was sensational, completing 10 of 13 passes for 164 yards and 4 TD's and rushing 30 times for 124 yards and 3 TD's. Both teams will have byes in Week Six.

Week Five resumed Sunday afternoon in Sioux Falls as the Storm (4-0) dominated the La Crosse Spartans (0-3), 45-13. Veteran QB Terrance Bryant continued his impressive season accounting for 4 TD's. The undefeated Storm, coming off a victory over the defending United Bowl Champion Billings Outlaws, look very impressive in the early part of the 2010 season. The Spartans battled valiantly but were overmatched by the Storm. Both teams will back in action next week as the Storm host the Wichita Wild and the Spartans host the Omaha Beef.

In the final game of the weekend, the West Michigan ThunderHawks improved to 3-0, tied for the Atlantic East Division lead, after defeating the Rochester Raiders 57-51. The Raiders drop to 1-2 after back to back losses to the ThunderHawks in Grand Rapids. ThunderHawks QB Brad Iciek, reigning Offensive Player of the Week, turned in another tremendous performance as he torched the Raiders secondary for 269 yards and 6 TD's. The ThunderHawks will take their unblemished record into a bye in Week Six while the Raiders will look to rebound as they host the 3-0 Richmond Revolution.

Week Five is not complete as the Omaha Beef host the Wichita Wild tonight for Monday Night Football, IFL style. The game will be the first of five nationally televised games on the 2010 IFL schedule. The Beef will lean on QB Ben Sanky to lead the team to victory while the Wild will rely on explosive RB Darius Fudge to make big plays in the ground game. The outcome of this game will have major bearing on the playoff race as the season progresses. IFL fans can view the game on Direct TV, Dish Network, and One World Sports network. The game can also be view online at www.b2tv.com.

Week Five Vidswap.com IFL Players of the Week will be announced on Wednesday. The IFL season will continue in Week Six on Thursday April 1st when the Fairbanks Grizzlies travel to face the Alaska Wild.

• Discuss this story on the Indoor Football League message board...

Indoor Football League Stories from March 29, 2010


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.


Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central