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Georgia Force game notes

February 8, 2006 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Georgia Force News Release


QUICK FACTS

Georgia Force (1-1) at Tampa Bay Storm (1-1)

Date: February 10, 2006
Kickoff: 7:30 pm (ET)
Site: St. Pete Times Forum (19,200)
Television: FSN South (Rick Peckham: play-by-play, James Bates: color analyst)
Radio: WQXI 790 AM The Zone (David Hubbard: play-by-play, Chuck Oliver: color analyst)
Coaches: Doug Plank, Georgia (14-7, 2nd Year)
Tim Marcum, Tampa Bay (178-69, 18th Year)
Series Record: Tampa Bay leads regular season series
6-2
Georgia leads postseason series 1-0

THE OPPONENT

The Tampa Bay Storm have played their first two games of the season on the road, a 52-34 loss at Philadelphia and a 51-43 win at Grand Rapids. Tampa Bay finished 8-0 at home last season propelling them to their 15th consecutive playoff appearance.

The Storm are coming off a 51-43 victory in Grand Rapids where QB Shane Stafford completed 26-of-37 passes for 271 yards, four touchdowns and one interception. Tampa's leading receiver through two games is WR/LB Lawrence Samuels, who has hauled in 16 catches for 192 yards and three touchdowns.

THE GAME

The Georgia Force will travel to Tampa to face the Storm in their first game away from Philips Arena this season. This will be the Force's second Southern Division game of the season when they face the Storm on Friday, February 10 at 7:30 pm in the St. Pete Times Forum. It will be the first of two meetings with the Storm this year, with Tampa Bay returning to Atlanta on Sunday, March 26.

Last season the Force defeated the Storm in two of three meetings, including a 62-46 win in the divisional round of the playoffs. In all three meetings, the home team was victorious.

With the Force's 61-59 loss to the Colorado Crush last week, Georgia fell to 1-1, matching their record from last year through two weeks. In 2005, after losing to Los Angeles in Week 2 the Force put together four consecutive wins, including two wins on the road (at Las Vegas 38-13, at Austin 66-63). The winning streak paved the way for the Force's first Southern Division crown.

The first two games of the Force's season have been decided in the final 40 seconds of the game. Georgia defeated Orlando 48-31 in week one with two interceptions in the final 40 seconds that were returned for touchdowns by DS Nate Coggins and WR/DB Nick Ward. Last week, the Force was unable to convert a two-point conversion with 19 seconds remaining, suffering their first loss of the year.



CONNECTIONS

Georgia's sponsorship sales executive Jorge Cimadevilla was a kicker for the Storm in 1995-1996 and won two Arena Football Championships with Tampa Bay...Storm Head Coach Tim Marcum was a defensive assistant coach for the Atlanta Falcons during the 1994 season.

GEORGIA FORCE NEXT WEEK

The Force will make play their second consecutive road game as they travel to Las Vegas to face the Gladiators.

Last year, the Force traveled to Las Vegas on February 17, and defeated the Gladiators 38-13. The 13 points the Force allowed against the Gladiators established a franchise record for fewest points allowed in a game in Georgia Force franchise history.

THE SCHEDULE

GEORGIA FORCE (1-1)

Date OPPONENT RESULT SCORE
Jan. 28 ORLANDO W 48-31
Feb. 5 COLORADO L 61-59
Feb. 10 @ Tampa Bay
Feb. 17 @ Las Vegas
Feb. 24 KANSAS CITY
March 4 AUSTIN
March 10 @ Columbus
March 17 @ San Jose
March 26 TAMPA BAY
April 1 @ Kansas City
April 9 @ Austin
April 14 @ Orlando
April 22 DALLAS
April 29 CHICAGO
May 6 @ New York
May 13 PHILADELPHIA

STATISTICS

A look how Georgia and Tampa Bay match-up on both sides of the ball based on statistics through Week 2 of the 2006 AFL season:

Statistical GEORGIA TAMPA BAY
Category Rank Stat Rank Stat
Scoring Offense 5th 53.5 10th 42.5
Scoring Defense 8th 46.0 10th 47.5
Total Offense (yds/g) 11th 256.5 6th 290.0
Total Defense (yds/g) 6th 261.0 10th 265.5
Pass Offense 9th 247.5 5th 274.0
Pass Defense 6th 233.0 8th 240.0
Rushing Offense 16th 9.0 8th 16.0
Rushing Defense 14th 28.0 11th 25.5
Pass Rating 4th 120.4 10th 95.8
Pass Def. Rating 8th 92.8 11th 99.2
Kickoff Returns 6th 18.4 7th 18.1
MFG Returns t-8th 0.0 5th 16.0
Interceptions (int-yds) 10th 2-19 14th 1-6
Turnover Margin 4th +2 16th -3
Field Goals 7th 2-3 14th 0-4
PAT Kicking 15th 11-14 7th 11-12
Sacks By (sks-yds) t-14th 0-0 8th 1-5
Sacks Against (sks-yds) 13th 2-13 8th 1-8
First Downs 11th 34 8th 36
Opp. First Downs 17th 43 5th 32
Penalties (yds/gm) 16th 48.5 5th 28.5
Opp. Penalties (yds/gm) 13th 29.5 8th 36.0
Red Zone Offense 7th 6-7 t-9th 4-5
Red Zone Defense 10th 9-11 15th 9-10
Time of Possession 14th 27:56 9th 30:31

HEAD COACHES

DOUG PLANK, Georgia (14-7, 2nd Year): Doug Plank enters his second season as head coach of the Georgia Force in 2006. In his first season as an AFL head coach, he led the Force on a magical ride to ArenaBowl XIX. Plank was voted 2005 AFL Coach of the Year after leading the Force to a league best 11-5 regular season record and a 13-6 record overall.

The 11-5 mark was the best record in franchise history (previous best 8-8 in 2003), and secured the Force's first Southern Division Championship and the number one seed in the playoffs. The Force went on to win the inaugural National Conference Championship game by defeating the Orlando Predators 60-58. The victory secured the Force's place in ArenaBowl XIX.

Plank has coached in four straight ArenaBowls. He helped lead the Arizona Rattlers to three previous ArenaBowls as their defensive coordinator. In his final season with the Rattlers, the team finished with an 11-5 record and earned the top seed in the AFL playoffs.
A former member of The Ohio State University football team, Plank played in three consecutive Rose Bowls (1973-75). While at Ohio State, he played for legendary coach Woody Hayes.
Plank brings with him a wealth of football experience that includes an impressive career in the NFL. He was selected by the Chicago Bears in the 12th round of the 1975 NFL Draft and started at safety for eight seasons. The "46 Defense" created by Buddy Ryan was named for Plank's jersey number and aggressive style of play. Plank was also the first Bears rookie to ever lead the team in tackles.
He has prior broadcasting experience with the Sports USA Radio Network, Arizona Cardinals, Arizona State University Football, Fox Sports Net, and Westwood One.

Plank and his wife, Nancy, have two children, Andrea and Michael.

TIM MARCUM, Tampa Bay (178-69, 18th Year): Marcum is the winningest head coach in Arena Football history. He enters the 2006 season having won seven ArenaBowl championships and has coached in 10 of the league's 19 ArenaBowls. Marcum is the only coach in Arena Football history to lead three different teams to ArenaBowl championships (Denver, Detroit and Tampa Bay), and is the AFL career-coaching leader in victories (176), winning percentage (.718), games coached (245) and postseason victories (25).

After Storm owner Woody Kern purchased the team prior to the 1995 season, Kern brought four-time ArenaBowl champion Marcum aboard as his head coach. The Storm proceeded to put together a record-breaking two-year stretch, winning back-to-back ArenaBowls in 1995-1996. The team combined for a 28-4 mark during that stretch, and put together an AFL record 17-game winning streak from July 1, 1995, to June 29, 1996.

Marcum resides in Apollo Beach, FL. He is married to Lynn, who has two daughters, Kendra and Carly. Marcum also has two daughters, Mitzi and Michelle, and three grandchildren, Austin (10), Bryce (5), and Max (3).

LAST TIME THESE TEAMS MET

ATLANTA, GA - Rob Carey's 47-yard interception return for a touchdown as time expired sealed a 62-46 victory for the Georgia Force (12-5) over the Tampa Bay Storm (10-6) in the Divisional Round of the AFL Playoffs. The win kept the Force's perfect record at home intact at 9-0 on the year and the National Conference Championship game at Philips Arena versus the Orlando Predators.

Georgia offensive specialist Troy Bergeron led the way for the Force with three receiving touchdowns on eight catches for 85, adding four returns for 102 yards, including a 56-yard missed field goal return for a score. For Tampa Bay, offensive specialist Freddie Solomon finished with a game-high 102 receiving yards on five receptions and two touchdowns.

The story in the first half for both teams was defensive stops and special teams as there were four missed PATs, three interceptions, a blocked field goal and a kickoff return for a touchdown. On Tampa Bay's opening possession, Georgia's Kevin Gaines, returning from a six-game absence, intercepted a Shane Stafford pass. The Force took only one play to score when Matt Nagy hit Bergeron for a 27-yard touchdown strike and an early 7-0 lead. The Storm scored the game's next 13 points on touchdown rushes from David White and Shane Stafford. On Georgia's ensuing drive, Clif Dell picked Nagy and returned it down to the Force four-yard line. The Storm would not hold onto the ball for long as on their first play Stafford fumbled the center exchange which was recovered by Georgia.

Both teams traded another score and each had a missed field goal attempt as the score stood tied 19-19 with a little over one minute remaining in the half. With five seconds left before the break, Tampa Bay kicker Matt George came on to attempt a 39-yard field goal. George's kicked sailed left as time expired setting up a 56-yard missed field goal return by Troy Bergeron giving the Force a 26-19 halftime lead.

The third quarter opened and closed with more big special teams plays. The opening second half kickoff hit the rebound net bars, which the Storm's Jonathan Ordway recovered and drove into the end zone to again tie the score. Each team traded a pair of touchdowns throughout the quarter, before Chris Jackson ended the third session with a 53-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to put Georgia up 46-39.

Force kicker Nelson Garner connected on a 30-yard field goal with 10:31 remaining in the game to give the Force the first two possession lead by any team and a 49-39

Georgia advantage. Ronney Daniels added a final score for the Storm on a 30-yard touchdown reception, as the Force would go on to score the contest's final 13 points and advance to the next round of the AFL playoffs.

Score 1 2 3 4 Final
Tampa Bay 6 13 20 7 46
Georgia 7 19 20 16 62

LEADERS
PASSING:
GA- Matt Nagy, 21-38-223-5
TB- Shane Stafford, 19-34-304-3

RECEIVING:
GA- Troy Bergeron, 8-85-3
TB- Freddie Solomon, 5-102-2

RUSHING:
GA- Robert Thomas, 2-16-1
TB- Shane Stafford, 4-4-2

Offensive Player of the Game: Troy Bergeron, Georgia
ADT Defensive Player of the Game: Kevin Gaines, Georgia
U.S. Army Ironman of the Game: Chris Jackson, Georgia


LAST WEEK

Georgia vs. Colorado (10,431)

ATLANTA, GA- The Georgia Force suffered their first home loss in the last 14 games, falling to the Colorado Crush 61-59. The rematch of ArenaBowl XIX lived up to the hype as the game was decided in the final seconds when the Force failed to convert a two-point conversion.

At the end of the first quarter, Colorado led Georgia 14-13. The two teams traded scores throughout the first quarter, with both quarterbacks throwing for two scores. Force QB Matt Nagy completed touchdown passes to WR/LB Rob Carey from 25-yards out and OS Chris Jackson on a 14-yard completion. Crush QB John Dutton connected with OS Damian Harrell twice. The difference in the first quarter was a missed PAT by Force K Nelson Garner after the score by WR/LB Carey.

The Force produced the first defensive stop of the game at the beginning of the second quarter, when DS Nate Coggins deflected a fourth down pass intended for OS Damian Harrell in the corner of the end zone. The teams traded scores until the final minute of the half. The Crush recovered an on-side kick with one minute remaining in the first half. Six plays later, Crush QB John Dutton connected with OS Damian Harrell for his third receiving touchdown in the first half. Colorado's WR/LB Ahmad Hawkins returned a missed field goal 56 yards as time expired in the first half, giving the Crush a 34-20 lead heading into halftime.

A total of 38 points were scored between the two teams in the fourth quarter. Force QB Matt Nagy connected with WR/LB Derek Lee on an eight yard score with 25 seconds remaining. The Force attempted a two-point conversion which failed and sealed the Colorado victory.

Score 1 2 3 4 Total
Colorado 14 20 7 20 61
Georgia 13 7 21 18 59

LEADERS

PASSING:
GA- Matt Nagy, 21-32-256-6-0
COL- John Dutton, 29-42-277-6-0

RECEIVING:
GA- Derek Lee, 10-92-2
COL- Damian Harrell, 11-132-5

RUSHING:
GA- Kevin Aldridge, 2-10-1
COL- Saul Patu, 2-21-1

OFFENSIVE MVP: Damian Harrell, Colorado
DEFENSIVE MVP: Rob Carey, Georgia
IRONMAN: Willis Marshall, Colorado

THE FORCE THIS SEASON ARE

1-1 at home
0-0 on the road

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

0-0 on Fridays
1-0 on Saturday
0-1 on Sundays

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

1-1 in televised games

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

1-0 when leading after 3 quarters
0-1 when tied after 3 quarters
0-0 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
0-1 when opponent scores first

THINGS TO WATCH

Nagy vs. Stafford- Round 4

The Force-Storm match-up will feature two of the best quarterbacks in the AFL with Georgia's Matt Nagy facing Tampa's Shane Safford.

After two weeks into the 2006 season, Nagy is the fourth ranked quarterback in the league with a QB rating of 120.4. Nagy has completed 44 of 70 passes for 508 yards, 10 touchdowns and zero interceptions in two games. Last season, in three games against the Storm, Nagy connected on 68 passes for 765 yards and 14 touchdowns, finishing with a 2-1 record vs. Tampa Bay in 2005.

Tampa Bay's Shane Stafford is the ninth ranked quarterback in the AFL through Week 2, with a 95.8 QB rating. In two weeks Stafford has thrown for 556 yards, nine touchdowns and three interceptions while completing 49 of 79 passes. In 2005, against the Force Stafford threw for 960 yards, 14 touchdowns and five interceptions, while going 1-2 vs. Nagy and the Force.
Nagy vs. Storm
Comp. Att. Yards TDs INT Score
4/2/05 23 39 273 4 1 L 48-38
5/8/05 24 37 269 5 0 W 52-40
5/29/05 21 38 223 5 0 W 62-46
Totals 68 114 765 14 1

Stafford vs. Force
Comp. Att. Yards TDs INT Score
4/2/05 24 36 319 5 1 W 48-38
5/8/05 22 42 337 6 2 L 52-40
5/29/05 19 34 304 3 2 L 62-46
Totals 65 112 960 14 5

Action Jackson- By the Numbers

It is amazing to look how much Chris Jackson has done in just over six seasons. Here is a look at what he has accomplished in his 79 career regular season AFL games.

77 games with at least one TD
76 games with at least one receiving TD
55 games with at least two TDs
35 games with at least three receiving TDs
16 games with at least four receiving TDs
41 100-yard receiving games
21 games with 10+ receptions

Playing Take Away

Georgia closed out the 2005 regular season ranked 11th in the AFL in turnovers, finishing a -2 in turnover differential. Through two weeks the Force are ranked fourth in the league in turnovers with a +2 differential.

Turnover Margin in 2006

TEAM RANK MARGIN
Nashville 1 +5
Austin 2 +4
Utah 3 +3
Georgia 4 +2




WEEKLY GAME AWARD WINNERS


Baby Ruth Offensive Player of the Game

WK TEAM PLAYER
1 GA Chris Jackson
2 COL Damian Harrell

ADT Defensive Player of the Game

WK TEAM PLAYER
1 GA Kevin Aldridge
2 GA Rob Carey

U.S. Army Ironman of the Game

WK TEAM PLAYER
1 GA Derek Lee
2 COL Willis Marshall

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