Firebirds Weekly

April 29, 2009 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Albany Firebirds News Release


2009 Record:

0-5 (0-2 Home, 0-3 Road) - Streak: Lost 5 - Fourth Place, East Division, American Conference

The Stakes

The Albany Firebirds are looking to snap their five-game losing streak and to earn the first win of the 2009 campaign. Albany looked strong in each of its first four games of the season, but took a step back in Week 5 against the division-leading Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers with a 70-26 loss. Mahoning Valley won its season-opener against Albany, but has struggled ever since, dropping their next four. Last week the Thunder dropped a 30-66 home decision to the Tulsa Talons, which marked their third straight loss by thirty points or more. This will be Brennan Booth's first game as head coach since replacing Mike Hold, who was relieved of his duties on Tuesday, April 28, 2009.

PLAYERS TO WATCH:

G Chris Scanzano made his first career professional start for the Firebirds in Week 5. The Rookie joined C Junior Ramos and TE Jon Leible to help Albany concede a season-low one sack to the Pioneers defense. Heading into the contest the Firebirds had allowed a league high 16 sacks through their first four games, including six in their previous meeting with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton.

QB Adam Bednarik started his fourth straight game for the Firebirds and threw for 273 yards with three touchdowns; the rookie also rushed for his team-leading fifth touchdown of the season. Opening-Day starting quarterback Stephen Wasil has been out with a lower body injury since Week 1, but was cleared this week to participate in team drills and is expected to compete for snaps as early as Week 6.

WR Christian Wise continued to lead Albany's offense in Week 5, posting 139 yards and one touchdown. Wise tops the team with 116 receiving yards per game (good for 7th in the league), 40 total receptions and five receiving touchdowns on the year.

WR/LB Alvin Jackson caught another touchdown pass on Saturday against the Pioneers to increase his total to four touchdown receptions on the year. Jackson's two fumble-return touchdowns pushes him ahead of all Firebirds scorers with six total touchdowns during the 2009 campaign.

DS Kenneth Williams has led the team in tackles in three straight games after his seven tackle performance in Week 5. He is now 20th in the league in total tackles with 29. LB Charles Bryant and DE Reggi Paramoure shared Albany's only sack of Pioneers quarterback Ryan Vena last week; Paramoure leads the team with 2.5 sacks on the season.

Week 6 Preview:

Mahoning Valley beat the Firebirds for their first and only win of the season in Week 1. That 44-34 contest is all that separates the two teams in the East Division standings. Albany is looking to earn its first win of the season and to move into a tie for third place in the East, while the Thunder view this game as a prime opportunity to double the club's win total.

Week 6 Schedule:

All games are broadcast LIVE on af2TV free streaming video at www.albanyfirebirds.com

Saturday, May 2nd - 7:00 pm - Times Union Center - Albany, NY

vs. Mahoning Valley Thunder (1-4)

- This is the seventh all-time meeting between Albany and Mahoning Valley and the second of three meetings during the 2009 season. The Thunder lead the all-time series 5-1 and went 3-1 against Albany in 2008. Albany's lone win came in their only home match-up against Mahoning Valley last season.

- Leading Passer: QB - Davon Vinson - (57-1101-6, 617 yds, 9TD)

- Leading Rusher: FB - Blake Powers - (14att-52yds-4TD)

- Leading Receivers: Quorey Payne - (34rec-529yds-9TD), George Murray - (18rec-164yds-1TD), C.J. Brewer - (15rec-153yds-3TD)

Firebirds Pecks:

- Wasil Likely to Return: Week 1 starting Quarterback Stephen Wasil is participating in full team drills this week and is expected to be available for this weekends game against the Thunder. In his only action of the season, Wasil completed five passes on five attempts for 65-yards and one touchdown against Mahoning Valley before leaving the game with a lower-body injury.

- DeBerry's Debute: Harry DeBerry returned from IR and made four catches for 81-yards in his first career pro game. DeBerry now leads the team with 20.25 yards per catch. The rookie receiver was a starter last week and is expected to be a big part of the Firebirds going forward.

- Season-Long Starters: Seven players have started all five of Albany's games this season: DB Patrick Horne, WR/LB Alvin Ray Jackson, DE Reggie Paramoure, K Brian Umstead, DB Lawrence Wade, DS Kenneth Williams and WR Christian Wise.

- Injury watch: DB Patrick Horne and WR Christian Wise exited last week's game in the second half with injuries. Both players have started all five Firebirds games this season and Wise leads the team in receiving yards. It is unclear weather or not either player will be available to play this weekend.

East Division Standings:

(AMERICAN CONFERENCE)

Team W L PCT Home Road Streak

WB/Scranton 4 1 0.800 3-0 1-1 W2

Manchester 3 1 0.750 2-0 1-1 W3

Mahoning Valley 1 4 0.250 1-2 0-2 L4

Albany 0 5 0.000 0-2 0-3 L5

The Albany Firebirds 2009 season is underway and their next home game is set for May 2nd against the Mahoning Valley Thunder. Next week the Firebirds will head to Bossier-Shreveport for an 8:00 p.m. kickoff with the Battle Wings. There next home game will be on Saturday, May 16th against the Manchester Wolves at 1:00 p.m. Partial season ticket packages are now on sale; for more information please contact the Firebirds at (518) 487-2244 or online at www.albanyfirebirds.com.



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