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Georgia Force game notes

February 24, 2004 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Georgia Force News Release


QUICK FACTS:

Georgia Force (1-2) at Los Angeles Avengers (2-1)

Date: March 1, 2004
Kickoff: 10:30 ET
Site: Staples Center (17,942).
Radio: WQXI 790 AM The Zone (David Hubbard: play-by-play, Chuck Oliver: color analyst).
Coaches: Marty Lowe, Georgia (15-15 overall, 1-1 postseason, 3rd Year).
Ed Hodgkiss, Los Angeles (21-12, 3rd Year).
Series Record: Series is tied 1-1
@ Georgia 53, Los Angeles 74 (5/24/02)
Georgia 46, Los Angeles 35 (3/2/03)



THE GAME:

The Georgia Force head back out on the road when they travel to Los Angeles to face the L.A. Avengers on Monday, March 1st at 10:30 p.m. ET at the Staples Center. Over the last two seasons, the road team has claimed victory in each contest. The Monday night game will be the first played on that night in the Force's three-year history. In 2003, Georgia went 4-1 in the month of March.

The Force welcome the sites of the road as they are currently riding a three-game road winning streak going back to last season. In contrast, Georgia has dropped six straight home games dating back to 2003. As the Force goes so does quarterback Leon Murray, who is 4-1 on the road and 0-6 at home as a starter.

In their last meeting on March 2, 2003, the Force relied on their league-leading defense to hold the Avengers to a season-low 35 points and season-low 232 yards of total offense.

Los Angeles will be playing their first non-division game of the season after defeating Arizona 51-32 and Las Vegas 62-55 to open the year and then falling to San Jose 55-61 last week. The Avengers offense is led by former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Tony Graziani and
offensive specialist Chris Jackson, who won the AFL's Offensive Player of the Year award in 2003. Also adding to L.A.'s offensive firepower is wide receiver/linebacker Greg Hopkins, who was the AFL's 2002 Ironman of the Year.


GEORGIA FORCE NEXT WEEK:

The Force return home to host their second straight Western Division opponent, the Las Vegas Gladiators, on Sunday, March 7th at 12:00 p.m. in the Arena at Gwinnett Center on NBC. Last season, the Force fell to the Gladiators 41-46 in the teams first ever meeting. Las Vegas is off to a 1-2 start after capturing their first win of the season last week in Grand Rapids 51-14.

THE SCHEDULE:

GEORGIA FORCE (1-2)

Date OPPONENT RESULT SCORE
Feb. 7 NEW YORK L 28-54
Feb. 13 @ Tampa Bay W 70-62
Feb. 22 NEW ORLEANS L 52-55
March 1 @ Los Angeles
March 7 LAS VEGAS
March 12 @ Orlando
March 20 @ Indiana
March 27 TAMPA BAY
April 1 @ Detroit
April 11 @ Austin
April 18 ORLANDO
April 25 SAN JOSE
BYE
May 9 @ Columbus
May 15 @ New Orleans
May 23 AUSTIN
May 30 CAROLINA


HEAD COACHES:

MARTY LOWE, Georgia (15-15 overall, 1-1 postseason, 3rd Year): Marty Lowe concluded his second season and first full year as Head Coach with the Georgia Force in 2003, guiding the team to a record eight wins and leading the club to its first postseason appearance. At 32 years old (9/21/71), Lowe is the second youngest head coach in the Arena Football League.

Despite being hampered by injuries all season in 2003, the Force jumped out to a 6-2 mark to start the year and was able to ride the strength of its league-leading defense to advance to the Quarterfinal Round of the playoffs. Lowe, a former AFL quarterback himself, helped pave the way for rookie Leon Murray to emerge as one of the league's rising stars after the loss of two starting quarterbacks during the year. Following the season, Murray was named to the AFL's All-Rookie Team.

In 2002, Lowe replaced Robert Lyles, who was relieved of his duties following the Force's 1-4 start. Under his direction, the Force finished the year winning five of their last eight games in the team's inaugural season.

Prior to joining the Force, Lowe served as running back coach for the University of Texas-El Paso. Lowe's coaching career in the Arena Football League started when he joined the Nashville Kats as an offensive assistant in March 2000 after spending three seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Louisville. With the Kats, Lowe had Nashville's offense clicking on all cylinders in the 2000 playoffs, scoring more than 50 points in each of the team's first three post-season contests to quality for Arena Bowl XIV. Lowe went on to serve as the Kats offensive coordinator and assistant coach, where his duties included creating and implementing the offensive game plan and coaching the team's wide receivers and quarterbacks.

Lowe, who played quarterback at the University of Louisville from 1991-95, spent two seasons in the Arena Football League. He played quarterback for the St. Louis Stampede in 1996 and joined the Texas Terrors. He was a starter at Texas until a knee injury ended his playing career.

In college, he started 22 consecutive games for the Cardinals, passing for 2,268 yards and 16 touchdowns as a senior in 1995. He is one of only four passers in Louisville history to throw for more than 2,000 yards in back-to-back seasons. Lowe joined the Louisville coaching staff in 1997, breaking down practice and game tape. A native of Chattanooga, Lowe was Mr. Football in Tennessee as a senior at Red Bank High School in 1990. Marty and wife Michelle have two children, son Bryce and daughter Reece.



ED HODGKISS, Los Angeles (21-12, 3rd Year): Ed Hodgkiss, one of the brightest offensive masterminds in the Arena Football League, is in his third season as the head coach of the Los Angeles Avengers. In his first two seasons at the helm, he directed the Avengers to a 19-11 record. No head coach in AFL history has won more games in his first two seasons than Hodgkiss, who was the runner-up for the 2003 AFL "Coach of the Year" award.

Last season, the Avengers won a franchise-best 11 games and earned a first-round bye in the AFL Playoffs. Hodgkiss oversaw the league's most efficient offense, which scored 122 touchdowns (most in the AFL) on only 619 total plays (least in the AFL). Particularly lethal through the air, the 2003 Avengers averaged a league-leading 13.8 yards per reception.

Hodgkiss became the head coach of the Avengers on Oct. 5, 2001, and signed a five-year contract extension shortly after a 2002 season that saw him adroitly pilot the team to an 8-6 mark. In 2002, Hodgkiss not only led the Avengers into the postseason for the first time in franchise history, he also instantly established the Avenger offense as one of the most feared in the AFL. In the final 2002 league statistics, the Avengers ranked at No. 2 in passing efficiency (115.0), No. 4 in total offense (275.6), No. 4 in rushing yards (20.8) and No. 5 in scoring (52.2).

Prior to joining the Avengers, Hodgkiss had been with the Indiana Firebirds since 1997. He was the team's offensive coordinator for three seasons (1999-2001). In each of those campaigns, Hodgkiss proved to be the architect of one of the AFL's most prolific offenses, ranking among the league leaders in most statistical categories. During the 1997 and 1998 seasons, Hodgkiss served as the wide receiver and special teams coach for the Firebirds.

In previous offseasons (1997-2000), Hodgkiss served as the offensive coordinator at Randolph-Macon College (Ashland, Va.). Other coaching duties have included being a wide receiver coach at Morehead State University (Morehead, Ky.) in 1995-96, and the offensive coordinator at Montgomery-Rockville Junior College (Rockville, Md.) in 1994.

Born on Oct. 23, 1970, Hodgkiss is a native of Laurel, Md., where he attended St. Vincent Pallotti High School. He went on to graduate from Fairmont State College (Fairmont, W.V.) in 1992 with a degree in physical education and health (he later added a Master's degree in those same disciplines from Morehead State in 1995). He also was a wide receiver for the Falcons and later began his coaching career at his alma mater.

STATISTICS:

A look how Georgia and Los Angeles match-up on both sides of the ball based on 2004 regular season statistics:

Statistical GEORGIA LOS ANGELES
Category Stat Stat
Scoring Offense 50 56
Scoring Defense 57 49.3
Total Offense (yds/g) 264.0 259.7
Total Defense (yds/g) 278.3 252.0
Pass Offense (yds/g) 232.3 247.7
Pass Defense (yds/g) 256.7 242.7
Rushing Offense (yds/g) 31.7 12.0
Rushing Defense (yds/g) 21.7 9.3
Kickoff Returns 21.7 16.8
Field Goals 1-5 5-7
PAT Kicking 21-21 21-22
Sacks By (sks-yds) 3-12 5-32
Sacks Against (sks-yds) 3-20 5-27
First Downs 58 55
Penalties (#/yds) 20-117 19-103
Turnover Margin -1 +4
Time of Possession 29:36 31:36


GAME AWARD WINNERS

Baby Ruth Offensive Player of the Game

WEEK TEAM PLAYER
1 New York Aaron Garcia
2 Tampa Bay Freddie Solomon
3 New Orleans Aaron Bailey

ADT Defensive Player of the Game

WEEK TEAM PLAYER
1 New York William Holder
2 Tampa Bay Rod Williams
3 Georgia Kevin Gaines

Army Ironman of the Game

WEEK TEAM PLAYER
1 Georgia Andy McCullough
2 Georgia Markeith Cooper
3 New Orleans B.J. Cohen



AFL ON NBC:


WEEK 3 AFL ON NBC SCHEDULE, Sat., Feb. 29th.

New York at Arizona, 3 pm
Chicago at Indiana, 3 pm
Phila. at Tampa Bay, 3 pm
Dallas at Columbus, 3 pm
New Orleans at Las Vegas, 3 pm

(all times are Eastern)







CONNECTIONS:

Force DS Cliff Green was selected by Los Angeles as the first overall pick in the 2000 expansion draft...Los Angeles WR/DB Scott Thomas played two seasons for the Force (2002-2003)...Avengers QB Tony Graziani was drafted by the Atlanta Falcons in the seventh round of the 1997 NFL Draft (204th overall). He played in 18 games in three seasons (1997-99) with the Falcons.


THE FORCE THIS SEASON ARE:

0-2 at home
1-0 on the road

0-0 vs. Central Division
0-1 vs. Eastern Division
1-1 vs. Southern Division
0-0 vs. Western Division

1-0 on Fridays
0-0 on Saturday
0-2 on Sundays
0-0 on Mondays

1-2 in February
0-0 in March
0-0 in April
0-0 in May

0-2 in televised games on NBC

0-0 when leading at the half
1-0 when tied at the half
0-2 when trailing at the half

0-0 when leading after 3 quarters
1-0 when tied after 3 quarters
0-2 when trailing after 3 quarters

0-0 outcome 7 points or less
0-1 outcome 3 points or less
0-0 overtime games

1-0 when the Force scores first
0-2 when opponent scores first









LAST WEEK VS. NEW ORLEANS:

DULUTH, GA – The New Orleans VooDoo upped their perfect start to the season to 3-0 after claiming a 55-52-road victory over the Georgia Force. The home loss was the sixth straight for the Force dating back to March 15, 2003. New Orleans, who never trailed in the contest, used two fumbles by the Force offense in the first half to keep their lead throughout the game and remain atop the Southern Division.

New Orleans offensive specialist Aaron Bailey, who was named the Offensive Player of the Game, paced the VooDoo with a game-high three receiving touchdowns and 52 receiving yards on five catches. Bailey also added 82 yards on five kickoff returns. Both teams displayed strong rushing attacks as each registered three touchdowns on the ground. New Orleans FB/LB Dan Curran and Georgia FB/LB Robert Thomas each had two scores, while VooDoo FB/LB Jason Bratton and Force QB Leon Murray added one apiece.

Each team was held scoreless on their first drive of the game. New Orleans was able to use a second Georgia fumble by Murray to jump out to a 27-10 advantage. After their first four possessions, the Force only came away with 10 points. Georgia finished the game strong scoring touchdowns on their final six drives, but it was not enough as New Orleans held on for the victory.


Score by Quarters 1 2 3 4 Score
New Orleans 14 13 7 21 55
Georgia Force 3 14 14 21 52

LEADERS

PASSING:
NO- John Fitzgerald- 15-26-237-5
GA- Leon Murray- 18-26-236-4

RECEIVING:
NO- Aaron Bailey- 5-52-3
GA- Morris Anderson- 6-61

RUSHING:
NO- Dan Curran- 7-20-2
GA- Robert Thomas- 3-17-2

OFFENSIVE MVP: Aaron Bailey, New Orleans
DEFENSIVE MVP: Kevin Gaines, Georgia
IRONMAN: B.J. Cohen, New Orleans





THINGS TO WATCH:

GROUND ATTACK

Averaging 31.7 yards a game rushing, the Force currently rank third in the league in rushing offense. QB Leon Murray leads all quarterbacks with 45 yards rushing on 11 carries scoring four touchdowns on the ground. Murray stands fourth overall in the AFL in rushing. In addition, FB/LB Robert Thomas currently leads all rookies in rushing with 39 yards on eight carries and four scores. Thomas ranks sixth in the league in rushing.

ALL-AROUND GAME

Offensive Specialist Markeith Cooper set a new Force team record for most single game all-purpose yards with 270 at Tampa Bay (2/13). Cooper had 132 receiving yards on five receptions and four touchdowns through the air and added 138 kickoff return yards on five returns against the Storm. With eight seconds remaining in the first half, Cooper returned a kickoff 55 yards to tie the score at 35-35 at the break and keep the Force in the game. For his efforts, Cooper was named the game's Ironman of the Game and later honored as the AFL's Offensive Player of the Week.

Cooper is currently tied for second in the AFL for leading scorer with 42 points through two games. He is also tied for the AFL lead for most points scored in a game with 30.

FINISHING TOUCH

Kicker Steve McLaughlin is a perfect 21-for-21 this season on PAT kicks. Last year, McLaughlin began the season connecting on his first 18 PAT attempts before his first miss. Later that season, he strung together a streak of 13 straight PATs made including a Force single-game record 11-for-11 at Indiana (5/4/03).


DID YOU KNOW:

Head Coach Marty Lowe:
- At age 32, is the second youngest head coach in the Arena Football League.

- Played two seasons in the AFL with St. Louis and Texas before knee injuries ended his career short.

- Played quarterback at the University of Louisville with current Force DS Kevin Gaines and Atlanta Falcon Ray Buchanan.

- Marty's son, Bryce Elway Lowe, is named after NFL great and Colorado Crush co-owner John Elway.

UGA Athletic Director Vince Dooley:
- Serves as Chairman of the Georgia Force Advisory Board.

- "Arena Football is one of the fastest growing sports in America and here in Georgia," said Dooley. "I have been impressed with the great longevity of the AFL as it is entering into its 18th season and I am pleased that I'll have the opportunity to advise and consult with the Force as I continue my primary responsibility as Athletic Director at UGA for the next six months. The AFL has passed the test of time and that is what differentiates it from the other football leagues that have come and gone."

Dooley added, "I know the passion that this state and community has for football and the Georgia Force is very attractive as a quality family oriented sports option. When I look at the Georgia Force, I see all the characteristics of a first-class winning organization. I am happy to now have the opportunity to be involved with the Force as I continue my role of Athletic Director at the University of Georgia."

OL/DL Bruce Adrine:
- Adrine is one of 14 former University of Georgia defensive players from the 2000 roster playing professional football. Included in that group are New England Patriot Richard Seymour, Pittsburgh Steeler Kendrell Bell and Jacksonville Jaguar Marcus Stroud.

WR/LB Dialleo Burks:
- Played his first two seasons in the AFL with the Dallas Desperados and this past offseason signed with teammate Andy McCullough with the Force. Andy and Dialleo made up two-thirds of the Desperados offensive attack that finished the 2003 season ranked first in total offense and fifth in scoring.

- In 2003 established new team records for catches, receiving yards and touchdowns for a season.

- Finished last year with a career-high and team-record 102 catches for a career-high and team-record 1,226 yards and a career-high and team-record 28 touchdowns.

- Missed the final six games of the 2002 season with a fractured wrist after putting up numbers that would have made him a strong candidate for AFL Rookie of the Year.

OL/DL William Carr:
- Owns and operates his own clothing line named "Will-O Wear", which designs and creates all lines of clothing including outfitting high school football teams.





OS Markeith Cooper:
- Listed at 5'7", Cooper is one of the shortest players in the Arena Football League.

- Earned a roster spot with the team from the club's open player tryouts in 2002. Was working for UPS at the time loading trucks, and impressed the coaching staff running a 4.2 40-yard dash at the tryouts.

- In the Force's Quarterfinal Round playoff game at San Jose last season, he racked up 153 yards on five kickoff returns including a 56-yard touchdown return. His efforts helped Georgia establish a new AFL playoff record for kickoff return yards in a game with 312 yards.

- Only one of two players (other Cliff Green) remaining from the Force's 2002 roster.

- Is the younger brother of Lamont Cooper, one of the best AFL players in the league's history and two time AFL Don't Blink! Player of the Year.

K Steve McLaughlin:
- Named Kicker of the Month for March 2003.

- Set Force team record for the longest field goal, 51-yarder at Las Vegas (3/29) and most single-game PATs made with 11 at Indiana (5/4).

- Led all kickers in 2001 with 152 points, which also put him ninth overall in scoring.

- Heading into the 2004 season, stood sixth overall in AFL history for career points by a kicker with 668, sixth in AFL history for most one point PAT's with 407, ranked sixth in AFL history for most three-point field goals with 87, stood sixth in league history in most one-point PAT attempts with 449, sits fourth in the league record books for most three-point field goal attempts with 190.

- Was a third round selection by the St. Louis Rams in 1995.

- Fronts an alternative band named "Pet the Fish", which has opened for The Dave Matthews Band and appeared in FOX's television show "Party of Five".

QB Leon Murray:
- Burst on to the Arena Football League scene after starting the season as the Force's third string quarterback. Up until his first AFL start, had not started a game in three years since being named the Ohio Valley Conference Offensive Player of the Year at Tennessee State.



- Despite only playing in eight games, finished the regular season ranked seventh in the league in passer rating with a 115.9 rating and ranked ninth in the AFL in pass completion percentage at 62.1.

- Led the Force to their first-ever postseason appearance and victory over of the Dallas Desperados on the road.

- Was named to the AFL's All-Rookie team and was voted the Force's Co-Offensive Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year by the players and coaches.

- Established new team single game records for passing yards (354) and touchdowns (8) last season.

WR/DB Dameon Porter:
- Was named the AFL's Ironman of the Year and Breakout Player of the Year after the 2001 season.

- Is a two-time first-team all-Arena selection.

- Had 22 interceptions over the 2002 and 2001 seasons, breaking the league record for highest two-year total (previously 21 by Orlando's Kenny McEntyre in 2000-2001).

- His 156 interception return yards in 2002 represented the 2nd-highest mark for a season in the league's record book.

- Is only the second player in history to lead the league in interceptions two consecutive years (2001-2002). Orlando's Kenny McEntyre led the AFL in 1999 (7) and 2000 (11) Durwood Roquemore, a member of the AFL Hall of Fame, also led the league in interceptions twice (1990, 1994).

FB/LB Robert Thomas:
- Longtime NFL veteran with the Dallas Cowboys (1998-2002), who played both fullback and linebacker during his NFL tenure.

- Helped lead the way as Emmitt Smith ran for 109 yards on 24 carries and became the NFL's all-time leading rusher with an 11-yard run in the fourth quarter versus Seattle (10/27/02).

- Made a name for himself as a rookie free agent with small school experience, but he has also survived a major career change, moving from linebacker to fullback. In a very short period of time, he went from being a reserve middle linebacker to the lead blocker for Emmitt Smith as the Cowboys starting fullback.

- Is an avid bowler and averages a score of 205. He once rolled a 275 (300 is a perfect game).



Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from February 24, 2004


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.

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