Firebirds Weekly
June 3, 2009 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Albany Firebirds News Release
2009 Record:
3-6 (2-3 Home, 1-3 Road) - Streak: Lost 1 - Third Place, East Division, American Conference
The Stakes
The Firebirds three game winning streak came to a close last week in 66-63 loss to the Milwaukee Iron at the Times Union Center. A late score gave Albany the lead in the final minute of play, but the Iron had the final say by responding with the decisive touchdown with 40 seconds left. Manchester also dropped their Week 10 contest, falling to 1-4 in their last five games. The Wolves most recent loss, a 69-53 decision against the Florida Firecats, kept the team just one game ahead of the Firebirds for second place in the East Division.
PLAYERS TO WATCH:
QB Stephen Wasil threw for 304 yards with seven touchdowns last week, marking his third consecutive game with at least 300 yards and 6 TDs. Wasil also added his third rushing score of the year. In four starts since his return from the IR Wasil has completed 98-of-153 pass attempts for 1230 yards and 26 touchdowns, good for a 122.23 passer rating on the season.
WR/DB Christian Wise once again led the Firebirds on offense in Week 10 with nine catches for 163 yards and three touchdowns. Wise also led the Firebirds defense, posting a game-high five pass break-ups at defensive back. In eight games this year, Wise leads all Albany receivers with 1,062 receiving yards and his 132.8 per game are fourth in the af2. His 13 touchdowns rank second on the team.
WR/LB Alvin Ray Jackson caught three more touchdowns last week to increase his total to a team-high 14 this season. Jackson also led the team in tackles with 7.5 and now tops all team defenders with 34.5 tackles during the 2009 season. The linebacker saw time at defensive back for the first time all season when Albany's starting DB, Lawrence Wade, went down with an injury. Jackson's performance earned him his second consecutive JLS IronMan of the Game award and his third in four weeks.
DE Reggie Paramoure recorded the first multi-sack game of the year for the Firebirds with two in Week 10. Paramoure's five sacks this season lead the team, as do his nine QB-hurries.
DE Antone Lindsay's sack was his second in two games. His 6.5 tackles for loss lead the team and the defender is third overall in tackles with 22.5.
DE David Tash added his fourth sack and his fourth forced fumble of the year in just his sixth game last week with the Firebirds. The pass-rusher ranks first in the league in fumbles forced per game with 0.67.
Week 8 Schedule:
All games are broadcast LIVE on af2TV free streaming video at www.albanyfirebirds.com
Saturday, June 5th - 7:30 pm - Verizon Wireless Arena - Manchester, NH
vs. Manchester Wolves (4-5)
- This is the 25th all-time match-up between Albany and Manchester and the third of four meetings in 2009. The Wolves lead the all-time series 15-9 and the teams have split the first two meetings of the 2009 campaign. The Wolves won the first contest in Manchester by a 74-53 score on April 18 and Albany evened the score in Week 8 with a come-from-behind 53-51 home win on May 16.
- Leading Passers: QB - James Pinkney - (186-301-6, 2,375yds, 49TD)
- Leading Rusher: FB - Paul Jefferson - (37att-169yds-5TD)
- Leading Receivers: Emery Sammons - (53rec-760yds-16TD), Steve Savoy - (51rec-647yds-19TD), Deyon Williams - (36rec-393yds-7TD)
Firebirds Pecks:
- Bednarik on "D": QB Adam Bednarik continued to demonstrate his versatility and athleticism in Week 10. In addition to seeing reps at wide receiver for the third straight game, the back-up signal caller saw reps at linebacker against Milwaukee. Bednarik filled in for WR/LB Alvin Ray Jackson, who shifted to defensive back when DB Lawrence Wade left the game with an injury.
- Comeback Kids: Albany is 0-4 in games when they score first and 0-3 in games when they lead at halftime. In their three wins this year the Firebirds have battled back from halftime deficits of 12, 2 and 24 points respectively. The comeback theme does not carry over to the first contest of each game as Albany has won the coin-toss before each of their victories.
- Season Highs: Last week's loss to Milwaukee saw the Firebirds record season highs in both sacks and points. Defensive linemen Reggie Paramoure (2 sacks), Anton Lindsay (1) and David Tash (1) took down Milwaukee QB Todd Hammel four times in the contest. Albany's 63 points eclipsed their former mark of 54 points scored in Week 7 at Bossier City.
- Roster Moves: Albany fielded the same squad in Week 10 that it had in Week 8 to go a season-high two weeks without a roster move. This week coach Bowick ended the streak by signing DB EJ Whitley, activating OL Tim Johnson from the IR, and placing LB/FB Derek Adams Jr. on team suspension.
- Injury Report: DB Patrick Horne and DB Kenneth Williams have returned to full-contact drills in practice and may be available to return within the next two weeks. WR Johnnie Butler is still limited to individual drills, but hopes to return to team-drills next week. DB Lawrence Wade has been held out of practice after going down last weekend; he will be unavailable for this weekend's game, but hopes to avoid the IR.
• Discuss this story on the arenafootball2 message board...
arenafootball2 Stories from June 3, 2009
- June 6 - Game Preview - Tulsa Talons
- Firebirds Weekly - Albany Firebirds
- Talons Stay at #3 in Coaches Poll - Tulsa Talons
- Dusters quarterback Reese to rejuvenate Amarillo - Amarillo Venom
- McClinton Defensive Player of the Week - Tulsa Talons
- Shock Top Coaches Poll For 12th Straight Week - af2
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.
