Fury Game Notes

Published on May 21, 2002 under Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Detroit Fury News Release


QUICK FACTS:
Detroit Fury (1-4) at New York Dragons (1-4)
Date: May 24, 2002
Kickoff: 7:00 PM
Site: Nassau Coliseum (11,965)
Officials: Referee: Bill Athan; Umpire: Rick Nelson Head Linesman: Tim Podroza; Line Judge: John Hussey
Back Judge: Rob Vernatchi
Fury Radio: WDFN 1130 AM (Jamie Samuelsen)
Fury TV: None
All-time Regular Season Series Record: Have never met
Streaks: Detroit lost two; New York lost three
Coaches: Mouse Davis (8-11, 2nd)
John Gregory (64-37, 8th)

THE STAKES: Detroit has to find a way to win games and win them now. Desperation for the Fury has to sink in and the players know it. The Fury need to come together as a team and win on the road. They go up against former Fury QB Scott Semptimphelter and the New York Dragons. The Dragons have also hit the skids, matching the Fury's 1-4 record. Both clubs know that if they have any hopes of making a trip to the post season, wins need to come immediately. Last weekend, Semptimphelter did not dress, so as of this release, it is unknown whether the AFL veteran QB will see any game action.

THE SERIES: This is the first time these two clubs have ever played.

THE IFs:

If DETROIT defeats New York, it would ...
· Give DETROIT 2-4 record
· Give DETROIT 1-0 all-time record against NY
· Give Mouse Davis a 9-11 all-time record
· Give DETROIT their first road victory of the season
· Snap DETROIT'S two-game slide

HEAD COACHES:

Mouse Davis returns to right the ship for Detroit. Davis led a first-year team to a 7-7 record last season, coupled with the 10th seed in the AFL playoffs. Davis vows that the Fury will compete for the ArenaBowl Championship this season and feels that he has many of the pieces to the puzzle to accomplish that.

John Gregory is considered a lock for the AFL Hall of Fame. The only coach in the Dragons/Iowa Barnstormers history, Gregory has produced and guided several star players, including the most prolific NFL player to have ever played in the league-Kurt Warner. His starting QB from last season, Aaron Garcia, was signed during the offseason by San Francisco. Gregory boasts a 64-37 all-time coaching mark in the AFL. Despite the slow start, many know that if anyone can turn around a desperate team, it's Gregory.

2001 REVIEW: Detroit capped off a successful freshman season in the AFL in 2001. The Fury finished with a 7-7 record and the 10th seed in the ArenaBowl playoffs. Robert Gordon led the team in virtually every offensive category, finishing the year third in the AFL in scoring.

PRESEASON HISTORY: Detroit completed the 2002 preseason with a 47-37 loss to the Arizona Rattlers at The Palace on April 9. The Fury sank the Buffalo Destroyers on March 30 32-27, winning their first-ever preseason game. In the 2001 season, Detroit dropped both contests.

LAST WEEK: AUBURN HILLS, MICH. – Raymond Philyaw passed for 262 yards and Eddie Brown scored four touchdowns, as the visiting Indiana Firebirds defeated the Detroit Fury 55-34. The Firebirds improved their record to 3-2, while the Fury slipped to 1-4. Philyaw spread the wealth in the game, as four different receivers scored touchdowns. Brown, Van Johnson, Jay Jones and Terrence Davis and all found the paint. Chuck Winters had a career night for the Fury, returning two kickoffs for touchdowns before pulling in a 39-yard strike from rookie quarterback Drew Miller. Ty Grovesteen and Bernard Williams each scored their first TDs of the season for Detroit. Detroit's offense obviously missed their most prolific scorer in offensive specialist Robert Gordon, who fractured his arm in last week's game at Buffalo. Gordon is likely to miss the remainder of the season.

DETROIT INJURY REPORT:
Pos. Name Injury Status
OS Robert Gordon Fractured arm Out

THIS WEEK'S QUOTES:

Mouse Davis on the Dragons: "Well last weekend was pretty much a shootout for the Dragons. They look to be getting better. They've played in some close games and have played well in their home arena. We expect a full-fledged effort out of them."

Mouse Davis on the Dragons QBs: "They are still searching for what they want to do at QB. I think they'd like to get Kannell plugged in and Scott familiarized with what they are doing."

DETROIT NEXT WEEK: 6/1-June is rolling around and it hardly feels like spring in Detroit, as snow flurries were spotted today. The Georgia Force will make their first appearance ever at The Palace at 7:30 PM.

FURY NOTES/TRENDS:

Warm Winters: With Robert Gordon out for the season, Chuck Winters is looked to pick up the production level and so far, he has. Last weekend he had a fantastic game, returning two kickoffs for TDs and catching a 39-yard pass for six points.

Welcome Back: Late last week, the Fury inked QB Charles Puleri for the back-up role. Puleri played for the Fury last season following the conclusion of the XFL. Although he did not see any game action, Puleri is familiar with the offense is looked to help Drew Miller and be the locker room

Miller Time: In his first pro start, Drew Miller played a solid game last weekend against Indiana. Miller went 17-of-31 for 185 yards and three TDs. He was picked off once and sacked twice. Miller knows that his performance needs to be better if the Fury are to slay the Dragons.

Well Hello Again: The Fury get a chance to catch up with quarterback that they passed for this season, Scott Semptimphelter. "Semp" led the Fury to the postseason last year and a 7-7 regular season record. Semptimphelter passed for 3,508 yards, going 287-for-479 and 76 TDs. Semptimphelter's downside was throwing 21 interceptions, which tied him for the all-time mark in a season.

Road Kill: Many are wondering when Detroit will get their next road victory. The last time the Fury won a road was just over 11 months ago, when they knocked off the Rush in Chicago 47-37 on June 23. Detroit is 0-3 on the road this year and sports a 2-8 all-time road record.

PLAYERS/MATCHUPS TO WATCH:

Fury WR/DB Chuck Winters: Chuck Winters was the man last weekend. End of story. He returned two kickoffs for TDs, breaking the previous team record of which he held and also pulled in a 39-yard pass for a score. The Dragons special teams have not been so special this year, so look for Winters to have another solid game this weekend.

Fury QB Drew Miller: Drew Miller can look at last weekend's game and say ‘OK, got that one out of the way.' Now its time or business. It's time for the youngster to lead the Fury to victory. The Detroit organization knows that if they continue at the pace they are on, the post season will be spent watching from various TV sets around the United States.

New York QB ???: So who is going to start for these guys? Will it be the unproven and so far erratic Matt Nagy? Will it be the former Detroit QB Scott Semptimphelter? Or will it be former NFL product Danny Kannell? The safe bet is Nagy, and the word on the street is that Kannell is getting slowly introduced to the system, possibly leaving Semptimphelter on the outside looking in. Whoever it will be, will have to come to play. Detroit is an angry team right now and several linemen, R-Kal Truluck and Kelvin Kinney in particular, are foaming at the mouth at a chance to drill the QB.

New York K Clay Rush: It's not often that a kicker is considered a make-or-break kind of guy. That does however hold true with Clay Rush. Rush has proven himself to be the best kicker in the game. He ranks in the top ten in overall scoring in the league with 54 points, five more points than the Fury's leading scorer Chuck Levy has. Rush is on pace for great things. Extra points are a lock and field goals are also consistent for him.

BUILT FORD TOUGH AWARD (selected by coaches) The Built Ford Tough Award is a national recognition award given after every game to the player or players on each team best demonstrating determination and toughness in that game. The award honors the players, who made a game-saving tackle or score-saving tackle, threw a key block on the big play or exhibited physical sacrifice or consistent tough blocking and tackling on both sides of the ball.

Week Opp. Player
5 IND Bernard Williams
5 IND Chuck Winters
5 IND Harry Deligianis
5 IND Kelvin Kinney
5 IND Toran James

GAME MVP AWARD (selected by media)
Week Opp. Player
5 IND Eddie Brown

GAME IRONMAN AWARD (selected by media)
Week Opp. Player
5 IND Chuck Winters

RECENT ROSTER MOVES:
Date Action Player
5/16 Signed Charles Puleri

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Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from May 21, 2002


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