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Grand Rapids Rampage game notes

May 4, 2004 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Grand Rapids Rampage News Release


RAMPAGE QUICK FACTS
Grand Rapids Rampage (1-11) vs. Chicago Rush (8-4)
Date: Saturday, May 8, 2004
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. (EST)
Site: Van Andel Arena (10,594)
Officials: Referee: Bill LeMonnier; Umpire: Rick Podraza; Head Linesman: Allen Baynes; Line Judge: James Mello; Back Judge: Billy Beckett

Series Record: Tied 4-4; CHI won last 2

Coaches:
Rick Frazier, GR – 5th season (24-33)
Mike Hohensee, CHI – 11th season (81-75)

Radio: WBBL 1340 AM with Joe Parson and Tom Sullivan.

2004 Rampage Schedule/Results
Feb. 8 at Chicago L 30-50 *
Feb. 14 COLORADO L 37-55
Feb. 22 LAS VEGAS L 14-51
Feb. 29 at San Jose L 31-62
March 6 at Dallas L 50-66
March 14 LOS ANGELES L 33-48 *
--- BYE ---
March 26 at Indiana L 42-45
April 4 ARIZONA L 41-51
April 10 at Detroit W 49-45
April 17 INDIANA L 49-67
April 23 at Colorado L 30-69
May 1 AUSTIN L 27-40
May 8 CHICAGO 7:30
May 15 at Columbus 7:30
May 22 at Carolina 7:30
May 29 DETROIT 7:30

* indicates a game broadcast on NBC

All times are Eastern, in the PM and subject to change.


ON YOUR RADIO DIAL
All Rampage games can be heard live on WBBL 1340 AM with Joe Parson & Tom Sullivan calling all the action. Pre-game starts twenty minutes before kickoff.

Join radio Analyst Tom Sullivan and Interim Head Coach Rick Frazier for Rampage Roundup each Wednesday night from 6-7pm at THE STACK at the American Seating Park for all the news on the Rampage straight from the Coach.

THIS WEEK
The Rampage look to get back on the winning track when their Windy City rivals – the Chicago Rush – rumble into town this Saturday night. Grand Rapids has lost three straight and their last ten at home. Chicago comes into this week after a 57-40 win over Detroit. Backup Rush QB Chad Salisbury got his first start against the Fury and tossed four scores.

The all-time series record between the two teams is 4-4. In Chicago's 2001 inaugural season, Grand Rapids beat the Rush three times: a regular season series sweep and a 53-21 blowout in the playoffs. However, Chicago has dominated the series since, winning four of the last five games. The lone Rampage victory came at Van Andel Arena on March 29, 2003. Grand Rapids intercepted Chicago quarterback Billy Dicken four times – two by Mark Ricks - en route to a 48-34 victory.

Arena Football is traditionally a game won through the air. However, this week's game may be decided on the ground as the game features the league's second and third leading rushers. Chicago's Bob McMillen (197 yards, 14 TDs) and Grand Rapids' Chris Avery (182 yards, 5 TDs) are having career seasons on the ground. Avery will look to take advantage of Chicago's 17th ranked rushing defense. Grand Rapids' defense ranks seventh versus the rush.

NEXT GAME: Friday, May 14 at Columbus Destroyers (7:30pm)
Grand Rapids renews one of their best rivalries with the Destroyers – though the venue has switched from Buffalo, New York to Columbus, Ohio. The Rampage have won all four games in the series. This will be the Rampage's first ever game in the state of Ohio.

CECIL DIESELS TO TWO NEW TACKLE MARKS
Last week against Austin, Cecil Doggette set shattered team marks for single game tackles and became the Rampage's all-time leader in tackles. Here's a look at the top five single-season and career tackle leaders in Rampage history. He also is the all-time leader in tackles and pass breakups with two Arena teams – Grand Rapids & the Arizona Rattlers.

TACKLES – GAME TACKLES – CAREER
Cecil Doggette 5/01/04 vs. AUS 15.0 Cecil Doggette 2003-04 125.5
Anthony Bridges 6/05/99 vs. TB 10.5 Michael Baker 1998-02 114.0
Joseph Todd 4/27/02 vs. IND 10.0 Jo Jo Polk 2001-02 103.5
Cecil Doggette 3/16/03 at DAL 9.5 Raphael Ball 98-99, 01, 04 102.5
Jamal Ellis 7/01/99 vs. NAS 9.5 Anthony Bridges 1998-99 90.5

RUNNING WILD – ARENA STYLE
In the last six games alone, Chris Avery complied 166 rushing yards (most in the AFL in that time) and shattered his own single-season rushing mark last week against Austin thanks to 41 yards, which puts him at 182 on the season. He needs just 24 rushing yards to pass Chris Ryan as the team's all-time leading rusher and 13 rushes for most career rushing attempts. With 18 yards, Avery will gain 200 yards and it will be just the 29th time a player has rushed for that many yards in a season.

RUNNING WILD PART II
The Rampage rushing game has become one of the best in the AFL. As a testament to that, five of the top eleven individual single-game rushing marks have occurred this season (four by Avery, one by QB Michael Bishop). Avery had games of 47, 41, 36 and 29 yards, while Bishop ran for 36 yards in the loss to Arizona.

SMITH BREAKS 2,000 YARD MARK
Last week, Steve Smith racked up 204 all-purpose yards and became just the second Rampage player to reach 2,000 all-purpose yards (Thomas Bailey had 2,504 yards in 1999). With four games left, Smith needs to average just 102.5 all-purpose yards per game to pass Bailey.

AVERY THIRD IN RUSHING
Chris Avery has propelled himself from 39th in rushing after Week Five to third in the league thanks to 166 yards over his last seven games. His 4.9 yards per rush is tops in the AFL.

PLAYER RUSHES YARDS AVG TDs
Dan Curran, NO 61 272 4.5 17
Bob McMillen, CHI 53 197 3.7 14
Chris Avery, GR 37 182 4.9 5
M. Moye-Moore, ORL 42 179 4.3 6
A. McPherson, IND 50 161 3.2 15

SMITH SEASON RECAP
Steve Smith has had a career year in returns and all-purpose yards. Here's a look at the numbers and where they rank in team single-season history. NOTE: numbers is parenthesis are how far away Smith is from the team record.

CATEGORY RAMPAGE SINGLE SEASON RANK STAT
Kickoff Returns 1st 55
Kickoff Return Yards 1st 1,325
Kickoff Returns for TDs 1st 5
Combined Returns 1st 62
Combined Return Yards 1st 1,487
Combined Returns for TDs 1st 5
All-Purpose Yards 2nd 2,095 (409)
Missed FG Returns 3rd 7 (3)
Missed FG Return Yards 3rd 162 (61)

SMITH STILL TOPS/NEAR THE TOP IN THE AFL
Despite missing last week's contest with food poisoning, Steve Smith still ranks at the top or near the top in numerous AFL categories.
Categories AFL Rank Stats
All-purpose Yds/Game 2nd 190.0
Kick Return Yards 2nd 1325
MFG Return Yards 1st 162
All-purpose Yards 2nd 2095
Kick Returns 2nd 55
Kick Return for TDs 1st 5
Kick Return Yds/Avg. 2nd 23.6
MFG Return Yds/Avg. 1st (min 5 ret) 23.1
MFG Returns T-2nd 7

BUICH NOW THIRD IN ALL PASSING CATEGORIES
Anthony Buich stands as the third all-time leader in team history in completions, attempts, yards and touchdowns in just ten games played.

Completions Attempts Yards TDs
Dolezel – 1,065 Dolezel – 1,625 Dolezel - 12,260 Dolezel – 248
Kusick – 552 Kusick – 851 Kusick – 6,210 Kusick – 109
Buich - 155 Buich – 261 Buich – 1,736 Buich – 27

BAILEY'S BACK AND GETS 300TH RAMPAGE CATCH
Thomas Bailey re-signed with the Rampage on Wednesday and made an immediate impact on defense by recording 4.5 stops. He had just one reception for seven, however, that grab was his 300th as a member of the Rampage. Only Michael Baker's 353 is more.



LOOKING TO GET OFFENSIVE
Rick Frazier inherited statistically the AFL's worst offense. Aside from the highly-ranked rushing game, the Rampage ranks last in the AFL in seven major offensive categories. Here's a look at what the offense did under Cortese and what it has done with Frazier. In parenthesis are the categories that have changed in rank since Frazier has been head coach and their new ranking.

Offensive Category CORTESE - 11 gms FRAZIER - 1 gm
Total Yards/Game 224.6 237
Total Yards/Play 5.2 6.2
Pass Yards/Game 199.8 194
Pass Yards/Play 5.9 7.5
Passes Intercepted 13 0 (18)
Points Scored 36.9 27.0

RAMPAGE DEFENSE TOPS INSIDE THE TEN
Over the last month and a half, the Rampage defense has improved by leaps and bounds. One of the most dramatic of these improvements have been inside their own ten, where they came from 12th just six weeks ago to top the AFL today. Here's a look at the top five defenses in the AFL inside their own ten.

Rank Team Pos Pts TD FG TDPct
1) Grand Rapids 53 270 36 9 67.9
2) Philadelphia 52 258 36 4 69.2
3) San Jose 50 261 35 5 70.0
4) New York 60 302 43 2 71.7
5) Orlando 53 276 38 5 71.7

BUSH & DUTCHER EXPECTED BACK
The Rampage offense is expected to get back two of their top receivers this week when Josh Bush and Jeremy Dutcher return to the starting lineup. Without them last week, only three players caught passes. Together, they account for 75 receptions for 932 yards and 14 TDs.

OH MY JOSH
It took a month, but since then rookie WR/DB Josh Bush has become the team's go-to receiver. Over his last seven games, he's caught more passes for more yards and touchdowns than any other player on the team.

GAMES REC YDS AVG TD 10+ GAINS
1st 4 gms 10 82 8.2 0 2
Last 7 31 462 14.9 8 13

DUTCHER IS IN THE CLUTCH
Since being signed from the practice squad in week four, Jeremy Dutcher has become the starting WR/LB for the team. The Ottawa Hills grad is the most prolific receiver to have spent time on any AFL practice squad this season.

REC YDS AVG TD
34 388 11.4 6









DEFENSIVE DUOS
Cecil Doggette and Mark Ricks are two of the most veteran defensive specialist in the league. No other defensive specialist tandem has more tackles, interceptions, breakups or games played in the AFL.

STATS DOGGETTE RICKS
AFL Games Played 98 114
Tackles 447.0 (8TH) 448.5 (7TH)
Interceptions 28 42 (T-3rd)
Pass Breakups 131 (2ND) 114 (4TH)

DOGGETTE TOPS AFL IN PASS BREAKUPS
Cecil Doggette ranks third all-time (tops active) in AFL pass breakups and currently the 10-year vet leads the AFL in the category. Additionally, he lists as the all-time leader in pass breakups in Rampage and Rattlers history.

1. Cecil Doggette, Grand Rapids 23
2. Joseph Todd, Philadelphia 18
3. Monty Montgomery, New Orleans 18
4. Anthony Derricks, Indiana 17
5. Jonathan Ordway, Tampa Bay 16
6. Rashad Floyd, Colorado 16

DAWGMAN TWO BREAKUPS AWAY FROM AFL RECORD
Cecil Doggette needs two pass breakups to tie former Orlando Predator Chris Barber as the AFL's all-time leader in pass breakups. Here's a look at the top six breakup artists in league history. Last week, he added four and is the single-season all-time leader with the Rampage.

PLAYER PASS BREAKUPS
Chris Barber 133
Cecil Doggette - GR 131
Tracey Perkins 130
Mark Ricks - GR 114
Derek Stingley - DAL 106
Barry Wagner - SJ 104

DOGGETTE GETTING BETTER WITH AGE
In his tenth season, Cecil Doggette is on pace for career highs in tackles and pass breakups. This despite missing an entire game with an injury and another when he was banged up on the first play of the game

Category 2004 pace Career high
Tackles 68.0 83.5 – 2000
Breakups 32 23 - 2000

RICKS TIED FOR THIRD ALL-TIME IN INTs
With his game-saving interception against Detroit, Mark Ricks recorded his 42nd career interception. That mark is tied with Arena legend Barry Wagner for third all-time.

1 Kenny McEntyre 52
2 Durwood Roquemoore 50
3 Mark Ricks 42
3 Barry Wagner 42

RAMPAGE INJURY REPORT
Player Position Injury Status
Josh Bush WR/DB Hip Probable
Cecil Doggette DS Hip Probable
Jeremy Dutcher WR/LB Ribs Probable

AFL ALL-TIME LEADERS - DEFENSE (Italics = active)
PLAYER TACKLES
Barry Wagner, SJ 658.0
Darryl Hammond, AUS 578.0
Damon Mason, ORL 571.0
Cedric Walker, AUS 522.5
Carlos James, TB 466.0
D. Roquemore 462.5
Mark Ricks, GR 448.5
Cecil Doggette, GR 447.0
Derek Stingley, DAL 430.0
Shea Showers, TB 426.0
Adrian Lundsford, DET 424.0

STATISTICAL COMPARISON: Here's a breakdown of where the two teams stand compared to each other and to the rest of the AFL. Note: 19 = last in the AFL.

Statistical RUSH RAMPAGE
Category Rank Stat Rank Stat
Scoring Offense 4 53.3 19 36.1
Scoring Defense 6 46.5 18 54.1
Total Offense 15 250.6 19 225.7
Total Defense 6 258.2 13 269.0
Pass Offense 17 220.4 19 200.3
Pass Defense 3 229.2 14 252.3
Rushing Offense 3 30.2 6 25.3
Rushing Defense 17 28.8 7 16.8
Kick Returns-Avg. 6 18.4 1 22.0
Turnover Margin 4 +11 19 -19

SMITH DOES IT "ALL"
In nine of his eleven games this season, Steve Smith has posted some of his highest yardage marks in terms of all-purpose yards. Here's a look at his top eleven all-purpose yardage games. Italics = 2004 game.

Rank Game All-purpose Yards
1. 3/06 at DAL 252
2. 2/14 vs. COL 250
3. 4/17 vs. IND 224
4. 5/01 vs. AUS 204
5. 2/08 at CHI 193
6. 2/22 vs. LVG 192
7. 5/11/02 vs. ORL 176
8. 4/04/04 vs. AZ 169
9. 3/26 at IND 163
10. 2/28 at SJ 162
11. 3/14 vs. LA 161

HOT ROD OUT FOR SEASON
Through 12 games, the 2004 season was a banner year for Rod Manuel, who equaled his career total for tackles and more than doubled his sack total this season. However, he injured his ACL in the Rampage's 40-27 loss to Austin. He was placed on injured reserve on Tuesday. Here's a look at his 2004 season compared to his previous three AFL seasons.

2001-03 2004
Games Played 28 12
Tackles 20.0 20.0
Sacks 1.0 2.5
Pass Breakups 6 3
Forced Fumbles 0 2
Fumble Recoveries 0 1

2004 RAMPAGE GAME AWARD WINNERS

Wk Offensive Defensive IRONMAN
1 Philyaw, CHI Sawyer, CHI Fleshman, CHI
2 Dutton, COL Floyd, COL McKenzie, COL
3 Dolezel, LVG TJ Hill, LVG D. Robinson, LVG
4 Grieb, SJ C. Thomas, SJ Wagner, SJ
5 Gauntt/Sippio, DAL C. Moore, DAL Weatherington, DAL
6 Graziani, LA R. Manuel, GR Ingram, LA
8 McPherson, IND Doggette, GR Hlavacek, IND
9 Bonner, AZ Doggette, GR Gatewood, AZ
10 Avery, GR Ricks, GR Avery, GR
11 McPherson, IND Derricks, IND Penright, IND
12 Harrell, COL Floyd, COL Marshall, COL
13 Kaleo, AUS Doggette, GR Chiaverini, AUS

2004 AFL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Wk Offensive Defensive IRONMAN
1 M. Nagy, Car O. Smith, SJ W. Holder, NY
2 M. Cooper, Geo K. Ingram, LA K. McKenzie, COL
3 N. Browder, Phi J. Moyer, Chi R. Davis, SJ
4 C. Dolezel, LV L. Samuels, TB H. Cooper, AZ
5 A. Garcia, NY L. Moore, NO J. Smith, ORL
6 Grieb/Nash D. Burks, GEO L. Dupree, NY
7 T. Fontaine, AUS B. McMillen, CHI J. Hillery, CAR
8 T. Davis, DET R. Floyd, COL J. Roe, SJ
9 C. Jackson/J. Roe C. Ryan, PHIL J. Polk, CLB
10 J. Hamilton, ORL M. Ricks, GR K. McKenzie, COL
11 S. Bonner, AZ M. Montgomery, NO TT Toliver, TB
12 T. Graziani, LA K. McEntyre, ORL C. Blaylock, LVG
13 M. Grieb, SJ C. Johnson, NY S. Robinson, CLB

RAMPAGE PLAYER MILESTONES IN REACH
Player MILESTONE NEEDS
Chris Avery Most career – rush yards 24
Steve Smith Most team history – TDs Scored 5
Cecil Doggette Most PBUs – AFL history 2

BUICH CONTINUES TO IMPROVE
In the past five games, Anthony Buich has tossed 101 straight passes without an interception. Since that second-quarter interception at Indiana (3/26), Buich has completed 69-of-113 passes (61.1%) for 788 yards with nine touchdowns for a 101.94 rating. He also has three rushing scores. His numbers are not very high on TDs or yards, but he is playing much effectively as the graphic below shows.

Comp% Yds TD INT Rating
First 5 games 57.0 1,103 18 6 87.92
Last five 64.1 633 9 0 110.37
THOSE PESKY TURNOVERS
The Rampage enter this week's contest having turned over the ball 27 times. Sadly, those turnovers have resulted in 140 points for Grand Rapids' opponents. Seven of the turnovers have been returned for scores, while only four turnovers have not resulted in points.

Category Rampage Opponents
Turnovers by (points off) 27 (140) 8 (30)
Score resulting from turnover 5 23
TDs resulting from turnover 4 20
Games with at least one turnover 11 of 12 5 of 12
Games with 2 or more turnovers 8 of 12 3 of 12
Games with 3 or more turnovers 5 of 12 None
Games with 4 or more turnovers 3 of 12 None



Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from May 4, 2004


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