Game Preview: Tulsa Oilers vs San Antonio Gunslingers
April 18, 2025 - Indoor Football League (IFL)
Tulsa Oilers News Release
Tulsa, Okla. - Tulsa Oilers Football, a proud member of the IFL and powered by Community Care, hosts the San Antonio Gunslingers for their home opener on April 19.
LAST TIME OUT... Tulsa looked for a response on the road after a tough loss in Fishers, Indiana, needing to put on a show in Wisconsin against the Green Bay Blizzard. Green Bay would open up the game with the first touchdown but it was followed up by JuJu Augustine, who returned the following kickoff for a touchdown on a run from the back of his own endzone, a missed extra point would set the score at 7-6 Blizzard. It was all offense from then on as the first half would conclude at a score of 40-38 in favor of Tulsa, after touchdown catches from Phazione McClurge, Cole Blackman and Augustine. Tulsa received the ball to start the second half and began the third quarter scoring with a touchdown catch from McClurge to go up 47-38. TJ Edwards II added three straight rushing touchdowns throughout the second half to keep the game tight, leading up to a 68-61 Oilers lead with 0:43 to go in the game. Green Bay would tie it and force overtime where the Oilers had their field goal attempt blocked, leading to an eventual touchdown by the Blizzard on the following drive to end the night 74-68 in favor of Green Bay.
FOCUS AHEAD... A win to open up the season over San Antonio is simply history on a piece of paper at this point, for both the Oilers and the Gunslingers. It is well recognized that despite the victory in Week One over San Antonio, the Oilers internally know it was not their most complete effort. With a sparkling offense on display coming off of a 68-point effort, Tulsa is confident they can continue that kind of momentum. Defensively, this game is an opportunity to trend in the right direction once again. The Oilers are seeking a more consistent effort on that side of the ball and will look to have a strong defensive effort in the hopes of pushing back to a 2-2 record. TJ Edwards II is entering this week with a record to his name. The new Oilers' QB now holds the franchise record with nine all-purpose touchdowns in a single game, as he recorded six through the air and three on the ground. This broke Andre Sale's previous record of seven all-purpose touchdowns, set back on June 15, 2024 at home against Sioux Falls with seven passing scores. With the home opener final upon us, we look back at last year's 39-31 win over Iowa in 2024's home opener. Tulsa will look to capture back-to-back home openers for the first time in what is just year three of the team's history.
HOW TO "SLING PAST THE GUNS" AT HOME... Tulsa was marvelous on defense in their opening game against San Antonio on March 22; they only gave up 20 points in a 28-20 win and also produced two turnovers via interception. The run game for the Gunslingers is not their strong suit, just look to your left on this piece of paper...the numbers show just 83 yards on the ground in three games. Keeping San Antonio to this kind of production could put the success in the hands of the throwing arm of QB Malik Henry, the former "Last Chance U" star of the reality Netflix series. Henry was not great in the first matchup between these two, in part due to Tre Harvey's two picks. The Oilers needed improvement in their running game after Week One, they have started to find that jump with the addition of Hasan Rogers at RB. A standout game from JuJu Augustine last week helped the Oilers keep pace and eventually set the pace at points in the game against Green Bay. With a double-down effort by Augustine, the Oilers may run away with a game if they play their cards right early.
Tulsa will see their home opener on April 19th, against the San Antonio Gunslingers, kickoff is set for 7:05pm CT at the BOK Center.
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