Fire Set For 2004

Published on April 6, 2004 under arenafootball2 (af2)
Louisville Fire News Release


It has been a long winter but Louisville Fire head coach Tommy Johnson and his team is ready to get the 2004 season underway. The Fire will open their fourth season Saturday night at 7:30 pm in Freedom Hall against the Hawaiian Islanders (1-0).

"We're excited to have a chance to hit someone else on the field besides ourselves. These guys have worked hard through camp and are ready to go," said Coach Johnson.

After opening camp with a 35-man roster, Coach Johnson and his staff have cut it down the af2 limit of 21 players. The 2004 roster includes many players who played at U of L or UK and guys who are from Louisville. The Louisville alums include defensive specialists Justin Thomas and Corey Wallace, WR/DB Damien Dorsey, WR/DB Zeke Parker and OL/DL Jonta Woodard. Former Ballard and University of Kentucky Kicker Marc Samuel returns for his second year with the Fire. Former Campbellsville standout and three-time NAIA All-American Demetrius Forney will return to the Fire for his third season at FB/LB. OS Cornell Craig, a former Central High School standout and 2002 ArenaCup MVP, will be joining the Fire for the 2004 season.

The Fire will also feature two guys U of L head coach Bobby Petrino is familiar with in QB Matt Sauk and OL/DL Brandon Dyson. Petrino was the offensive coordinator at Utah St. when Sauk and Dyson were playing there. Both helped in leading the Aggies to a Humanitarian Bowl appearance in 1997.

The 2004 roster will feature af2 veterans OL/DL Derrick Shepard, OL/DL Vic Vrabel, OS James Scott and Fire fan favorite WR/LB Dennis Fryzel. The roster also features a few rookies in former EKU fullback and 2002 Roy Kidd Award winner Chad Culver, OL/DL Nick Myers, who spent time with the New York Giants, and FB/LB Sam Crenshaw. A complete numerical roster is attached.

The Fire will be practicing in Freedom Hall Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday at 7:00. Coach Johnson and the team will be available for interviews before and after practice. Fire owner/operator Will Wolford will be available for interviews on Thursday night.

Single game ticket prices for the 2004 season start at $5 for kids and $8 for adults.

TEAM NUMERICAL ROSTER
No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. ;College Exp.
4 Marc Samuel K 5'10 180 Kentucky 3
5 Ryan Russell WR/DB 5'10 180 West Liberty St. 2
6 Justin Thomas WR/DB 6'0 195 Louisville 2
7 Matt Sauk QB 6'1 225 Utah St. 3
8 Dennis Fryzel WR/DB 6'1 192 Valdosta St. 2
9 James Scott OS 6'2 200 Cincinnati 4
10 Sam Crenshaw WR/LB 6'3 225 Penn St. 2
11 Mike Mills DS 6'3 225 Western Kentucky 2
12 Corey Wallace DS 6'0 190 Louisville 2
18 Anthony Payton WR/LB 6'2 220 Kentucky Wesleyan 4
21 Tony Stallings WR/DB 5'11 205 Louisville 2
36 Antwon Lawrence OL/DL 6'1 285 Grambling St. R
40 Demetrius Forney FB/LB 6'0 288 Campbellsville Univ. 3
44 Marvin Constant FB/LB 6'2 241 Alabama R
45 Chad Culver FB/LB 5'11 255 Eastern Kentucky R
47 Jason Ferguson OL/DL 6'4 270 Emporia State 2
55 Jonta Woodard OL/DL 6'5 325 Louisville 2
56 Nick Myers OL/DL 6'3 265 Michigan St. R
59 Brandon Dyson OL/DL 6'3 295 Utah St. R
77 Vic Vrabel OL/DL 6'3 295 Kent St. 2
90 Derrick Shepard OL/DL 6'3 330 Georgia Tech 3
INJURED RESERVE
81 Cornell Craig OS 6'1 188 Southern Illinois 2
26 Damien Dorsey WR/DB 5'7 170 Louisville 2
25 Zeke Parker WR/DB 5'10 210 Louisville R
35 Mark White DS 6'2 213 West Virginia R
INTERNATIONAL ROSTER
15 Kenta Yagi QB 6'1 205 Doshisha Univ. (Japan) 2
20 Takuya Furutani WR/DB 5'9 185 Kansai (Japan) R

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