Firecats Head to Birmingham for First Place Showdown

Published on May 12, 2004 under arenafootball2 (af2)
Florida Firecats News Release


Estero, FL- The Florida Firecats (3-2) head out tonight for Birmingham, Alabama, for a Friday night matchup with the first place Steeldogs (4-1).

"Birmingham has great athletes and a lot of speed," Cainon Lamb, Firecats' career leader in touchdown receptions, said in regards to the Steeldogs. "We have to really get at their quarterback in order to be successful in this game."

The Firecats will have to get into the Birmingham backfield without two key members of their defensive line. Dante Booker, who was tied for the af2 lead with five tackles for a loss, headed to Canada to play in the Canadian Football League (CFL) this past week. Lineman Victor Hall will also miss this weekend's game. Heading up the defensive front for the Firecats will be Comone Fisher, Keith Drayton, and Dunstan Anderson.

Cainon Lamb, Steve Gorrie, and Chris Morant head up the linebacker corps for the Firecats. Filling the defensive backfield will be Quincy Sorrell, Roy Stabler, and Desmond Washington. Brent Burnside, who leads the team with two interceptions, will also see action. Sorrell is currently fifth in the league with 28.5 tackles.

On offense, quarterback Ken Mastrole, who has the third ranked quarterback rating in the af2 (116.7), leads the attack. In the backfield, fullback Steve Gorrie will get the nod with Chris Morant seeing some time. Gorrie currently leads the league with 147 yards rushing. Morant is ninth in the league with 64 yards rushing. The offensive front will consist of Comone Fisher, Joe Fantigrassi, and Dunstan Anderson.

Heading up the deep receiving corps for the Firecats will be receiver Cainon Lamb. Lamb moved into first place on the Firecats all-time touchdown reception list last week by catching two scores against the Columbus Wardogs. Lamb has 44 touchdown receptions in a little over one season, and he has 12 touchdown receptions on the year. Not far behind Lamb is offensive specialist Magic Benton. Benton has a team leading 472 yards receiving, and he has found the end zone nine times. Filling out the receiving corps are Brent Burnside and Anthony Snead. Burnside has caught a touchdown in each of the past three games, and Snead has scored every-other time he has touched the ball on offense. He has ten receptions for five touchdowns.

Handling the kicking duties will be Brandon Kornblue. After a rough opening night, Kornblue has kicked 21 of his 24 extra point attempts. He has also booted a 24-yard field goal. Holding for Kornblue will be the versatile Cainon Lamb. Lamb will also handle the kick returns with Magic Benton.

Kickoff for the game is slated for 7:40 CST. The Firecats head to Huntsville, Alabama, to take on American Conference powerhouse, the Tennessee Valley Vipers, the following week. The Firecats will finally return home on Saturday, May 29, to take on the Memphis Xplorers at TECO Arena. Special group rates are available by calling (239) 390-2287.

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