Grand Rapids Rampage game notes

Published on February 17, 2005 under Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Grand Rapids Rampage News Release


RAMPAGE QUICK FACTS
Grand Rapids Rampage (0-2) vs. Austin Wranglers (0-3)
Date: Saturday, February 19, 2005
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. (EST)
Site: Van Andel Arena (10,594)
Officials: Referee: Jerome Boger; Umpire: Rick Nelson; Head Linesman: Kavin McGrath; Line Judge: Darrel Leftwich; Back Judge: Rich Wilborn

Series Record: Austin leads 1-0: last game: 5/01/04 – Austin 40, Grand Rapids 27

Coaches:
Sparky McEwen, GR – 1st season (0-2)
Skip Foster, AUS – 2nd season (8-11)

TV: None
Radio : WBBL 1340 AM with Joe Parson & Tom Sullivan (LIVE).
Webcast: AFL Net Game of the Week. Log onto ArenaFootball.com for more details.

2005 RAMPAGE SCHEDULE/RESULTS
Jan. 28 ARIZONA (inHD) L 38-58 (FSN)
Feb. 5 at Colorado (Comcast) L 56-72
--- BYE ---
Feb. 19 AUSTIN 7:30pm
Feb. 27 COLUMBUS 3:00pm
March 6 at Tampa Bay 12:00pm
March 13 CHICAGO 12:00pm (NBC)
March 18 at San Jose 10:30pm (FSN)
March 27 at Philadelphia 3:00pm (FSN)
April 3 NASHVILLE 3:00pm (FSN)
April 8 at Las Vegas 10:30pm (FSN)
April 15 at Georgia 7:30pm
April 23 NEW ORLEANS 7:30pm
April 30 COLORADO 8:00pm (FSN)
May 7 at Nashville 8:30pm (FSN)
May 15 at Chicago 1:00pm (NBC)
May 21 LOS ANGELES (inHD) 7:30pm (FSN)

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


ON THE TELEVISION
A record eleven Rampage games will be televised this season in Grand Rapids. Eight games will be broadcast on Fox Sports Detroit (Channel 48 on Comcast Cable in the Grand Rapids area) and two others will be on WOOD-TV Channel 8. The regular season opener and finale will also be aired in high definition on inHD. Comcast Channel 20 in G.R. televised the 2/05 game at Colorado.

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.

AT YOUR FINGERTIPS
The Grand Rapids Rampage maintains a comprehensive website, featuring the latest information on everything Rampage related.

THIS WEEK
The Rampage (0-2) return home to the comforts of Van Andel Arena after a bye week to take on the Austin Wranglers (0-3). This will be the second meeting between the two teams. The first happened on May 1 of last year when the expansion Wranglers beat Grand Rapids 40-27 in the first game of Rick Frazier's reign as interim head coach. Rampage DS Cecil Doggette set a career-high, team-high and third-best in AFL history mark with 15.0 tackles in the loss.
PRACTICE SCHEDULE
Monday: 8:45-11am (practice)
Tuesday: 8:45am-11am (practice) 6:30-7pm Rampage Rap Radio Show on WBBL
Wednesday: 8:45-11am (practice)
Thursday: 8:45-11am (practice)
Friday: 10-11am (walk-thru)
Saturday: game vs. Austin at Van Andel Arena (7:30pm)

All at the Soccer Spot, located at 3701 32nd Street in Kentwood unless indicated
LAST GAME: at Colorado (Feb. 5, 2005)
John Dutton fired a franchise-record eight touchdown passes as the Colorado Crush beat the Grand Rapids Rampage 72-56 at Pepsi Center, but Grand Rapids quarterback Michael Bishop made history by becoming the first player to run for 100 yards in an Arena Football League game.

Bishop, making just his third AFL start, ran for 100 yards on just six carries. He scored on runs of 34 and 31 yards. The 31-yarder came with 17 seconds left in the third period and pushed him over the century mark. He lost 3 yards on one carry in the fourth quarter to place him at his final total.

Major Harris established the previous single-game standard of 95 yards for the Columbus (Ohio) Thunderbolts during a 1991 game against the Denver Dynamite. Until Bishop's big day, no one had even gained more than 75 yards in an AFL game since the Milwaukee Mustangs' Jeff Savage gained 78 yards against the Anaheim Piranhas on June 9, 1996.

BISHOP ATOP AFL SINGLE-GAME BIG RUSHERS
Michael Bishop's 100-yards rushing ranks as the most by a single player in a game in AFL history. There have been just ten times in AFL history that a player has ran for 70 or more yards in a single game. The Rampage now have two of those marks.

PLAYER ATT YDS Avg. TDs
1. Michael Bishop, Grand Rapids (2/05/05) 6 100 16.7 2
2. Major Harris, Columbus (7/06/91) 17 95 5.6 4
3. Bernard Hall, St. Louis (6/01/96) 14 86 6.1 4
4. Mark Mason, New Orleans (6/08/91) 14 79 5.6 0
5. Jeff Savage, Milwaukee (6/09/96) 7 78 11.2 3
6. Bernard Hall, St. Louis (5/01/96) 10 75 7.5 5
7. Major Harris, Columbus (7/26/91) 12 72 6.0 2
7. Craig Taylor, Milwaukee (6/16/95) 9 72 8.0 3
9. Chris Avery, Grand Rapids (3/16/03) 5 71 14.2 1
10. Chad Dukes, Albany (6/05/98) 10 70 7.0 3

BISHOP FIRST PLAYER WITH 100-YARD RUSHING GAME
Former Heisman Trophy runner-up Michael Bishop became the first player in AFL history to rush for 100 yards in a game and he did it on just six carries. Here's a breakdown of those six rushes.

QUARTER DOWN & DISTANCE RESULT TOTAL RUSH YARDS
1st 2-3 at Crush 24 11 yards to the Crush 13 11
1st 2-1 at Crush 4 No gain 11
2nd 2-10 at Rampage 16 34 yard touchdown 45
3rd 4-3 at the Rampage 12 27 yards to the Crush 11 72
3rd 1-10 at the Rampage 19 31 yard touchdown 103
4th 1-G at the Crush 4 3 yard loss to the Crush 7 100


NOTES & NEWS TABLE OF CONTENTS
SECTIONS QUICK REFERENCE INDEX – THIS SECTION
Game Notes/Opponent Profile A Notes of the Week 1-3
Additional Player Bios (not in media guide) B Rampage-Wranglers history 4-5
Last Game: 2/05/05 at Colorado C Quotes 6
2005 AFL Stats & Standings D Rampage Quick Hitters 7-8
Record Book E Rampage Roster/Depth Chart 9-11
All-time Rampage recaps (1998-2004) F Transactions 12
Rampage Playoff Records & Recaps G The Last Time 13-14
Rampage News Clippings H 2005 Player Mini-Bios 15-25
2005 Rampage Stats/Recaps 26-38

A YEAR LATER
The Rampage offense has dramatically improved from the 2004 team through two weeks.

Statistical 2004 2005 DIFF.
Category Rk Stat Rk Stat
Scoring Offense 18 33.5 12 47.0 +13.5
Scoring Defense T15 52.5 17 65.0 -12.5
Total Offense 19 162.5 6 299.5 +137.0
Total Defense 13 270.0 11 286.5 -13.5
Pass Offense 18 146.0 12 230.0 +84.0
Pass Defense 13 245.0 11 273.0 -28.0
Rushing Offense 14 16.5 1 69.5 +53.0
Rushing Defense 13 25.0 5 13.5 +11.5
Kick Returns-Avg. 4 22.4 2 23.3 +0.9
Turnover Margin T17 -4 14 -3 +1
Field Goal % 9 2/5 T6 3/5 +1
First Downs 19 14.5 T9 19.0 +4.5
Opp. First Downs T9 18.0 T7 19.0 -1.0
Penalties/yards 19 13/71 1 9/53 +4/18
2005 AFL RUSHING LEADERS
Despite playing just one game and the Rampage having a bye week, the team has two of the top five rushers in the AFL. Bishop's 100 yards against Colorado have propelled him to the top of the AFL in rushing. With just five rushes, Chris Avery ranks fifth running the ball with 44 yards on the ground.

PLAYER ATT YDS TDs
1. Michael Bishop, Grand Rapids 6 100 2
2. Danton Alexander, Nashville 18 61 3
3. Luke Pettijohn, Dallas 15 48 2
4. Leon Murray, Nashville 11 46 4
5. Chris Avery, Grand Rapids 5 44 1

TOP TEAM RUSHING YARD GAMES
The Rampage's 122-yard rushing outburst not only set a team record, but ranks second all-time in AFL history by just six yards to the Columbus Thunderbolts.

RK YDS TEAM
1. 128 Columbus at Denver, July 26, 1991
2. 122 Grand Rapids at Colorado, February 5, 2005
3. 106 Orlando at Portland, May 23, 1997
4. 102 Iowa vs. Portland, May 17, 1997

TOP QB RUSHING SEASONS
Quarterbacks in the AFL have rushed for 100 or more yards in a season just 17 times in league history. Major Harris and Connell Maynor did it three times each and Mike Hold did it twice. Here's a look at the 12 quarterbacks in league history to record 100 yards or more in a single season.

PLAYER ATT YDS TDs
1. Major Harris, Columbus (1991) 88 424 14
2. Major Harris, Cleveland (1992) 65 364 7
3. Adrian McPherson, Indiana (2004) 64 259 19
4. Ryan Vena, Columbus (2004) 65 229 14
5. Connell Maynor, Orlando (2000) 60 200 6
6. Mike Hold, Denver (1991) 62 188 13
7. Joe Hamilton, Orlando (2004) 40 157 8
8. Connell Maynor, Orlando (2003) 34 148 7
9. Connell Maynor, New Jersey (2001) 43 135 4
10. Mike Hold, Denver (1990) 40 133 5
11. Major Harris, Cleveland (1994) 18 119 2
12. Aaron Garcia, Iowa (1999) 53 115 15
13. Art Schlichter, Detroit (1990) 41 109 5
14. Jay McDonagh, Las Vegas (2003) 42 101 15
15. Michael Bishop, Grand Rapids (2004) 6 100 2
15. Robert Hall, Houston (2000) 30 100 10
15. John Fitzgerald, Houston (2001) 19 100 6

TOP QB RUSHING CAREERS
Michael Bishop ranks 18th all-time in AFL history in rushing despite playing just six AFL games. Here's a look at all 18 players. Players in italics are active.

PLAYER ATT YDS TDs
1. Major Harris 171 832 23
2. Mike Hold 209 696 29
3. Connell Maynor 182 677 20
4. Aaron Garcia, New York 199 429 41
5. Todd Hammel, Chicago 230 349 63
6. John Kaleo, Los Angeles 166 302 44
7. Leon Murray, Nashville 76 298 19
8. Adrian McPherson 64 259 19
9. Raymond Philyaw, Chicago 115 243 28
10. Ryan Vena 65 229 14
11. Art Schlichter 85 210 20
12. Robert Hall 81 185 21
13. Mike Pawlawski 93 181 19
14. John Fitzgerald, Austin 57 176 15
15. Jay McDonagh 69 176 22
16. Joe Hamilton, Orlando 49 175 12
17. Donnie Davis 46 158 15
18. Michael Bishop 14 151 3

BISHOP TOPS AMONG FOURTH QUARTER PASSERS
Michael Bishop had a impressive fourth quarter showing against the Crush that propelled him to being the best rated QB in the fourth quarter. Bishop was 8-of-11 for 127 yards with 3 TDs and no interceptions.

PLAYER RATING
1. Michael Bishop, Grand Rapids 150.4
2. Tony Graziani, Philadelphia 138.5
3. Nick Browder, Grand Rapids 133.7
4. Mark Grieb, San Jose 127.1
5. Shane Stafford, Tampa Bay 121.9


BISHOP CROWNED FANTASTY FOOTBALL KING
Through three weeks, Michael Bishop is the top rated player in AFL Fantasy football.

PLAYER Fantasy Pts/Game
1. Michael Bishop, Grand Rapids 67.0
2. Etu Molden, Chicago 35.3
3. Andy Kelly, New Orleans 35.0
3. James Roe, San Jose 35.0
5. Sherdrick Bonner, Arizona 34.0
5. Henry Douglas, Chicago 34.0

GOLDEN GRAHAM
Despite only getting one kickoff in the loss to Colorado and having a bye week, Derin Graham still leads the AFL in average yards per return with 29.4. Here's a look at the top five players.

PLAYER RET AVG TDs
1. Derin Graham, Grand Rapids 5 29.4 2
2. Damien Groce, Columbus 4 29.3 1
3. Will Holder, New York 4 25.8 1
4. Markeith Cooper, New York 5 24.2 1
5. Troy Bergeron, Georgia 14 21.6 0

DOUBLE DERIN
In the season opener, Derin Graham became jus the second Rampage player ever to return to kickoffs for touchdowns in the same game. He joined former teammate Steve Smith (4/17/2004 vs. Indiana). Here's a look at the five players in team history with multiple kickoff return for scores in their Rampage careers.

Rampage
PLAYER KOR TDs
1. Steve Smith 8
2. Thomas Bailey 3
3. Ricky Ross 3
4. Derin Graham 2
5. Willis Marshall 2

JACKSON TOPS OVER LAST FIVE YEARS
Since entering the AFL in 2000, Chris Jackson has grabbed more receptions or scored more touchdowns than any other player in the AFL. Here's a look the top four players since 2000.

PLAYERS REC YARDS TDs
Chris Jackson, RAMPAGE 497 6,961 159
Greg Hopkins, Los Angeles 483 5,785 118
Damian Harrell, Colorado 478 6,987 146
Mike Horacek, New York 407 5,385 125

ACTION JACKSON – BY THE NUMBERS
It's pretty amazing to look at how much Chris Jackson has done in just five seasons. Here's a look at what he's done in his 66 career AFL games.

64 games with at least one TD
63 games with at least one receiving TD
44 games with at least 2 receiving TDs
28 games with at least 3 receiving TDs
15 games with at least 4 receiving TDs
6 games with at least 5 receiving TDs
2 games with at least 6 receiving TDs
1 games with at least 7 receiving TDs
34 100-yard receiving games
17 games with 10+ catches

* Only player to win the AFL Rookie of the Year, then capture the AFL Offensive Player of the Year.


* 8th all-time in AFL history in receiving touchdowns

* 1,200+ yards in 4 of 5 seasons

* 11th all-time in AFL history in scoring

"DOG" GONE IT
Cecil Doggette is the all-time leading tackler and leader in pass breakups for the Rampage. He is also all-time leader in pass breakups in AFL history.

AFL CAREER LEADERS - PASS BREAKUPS
Cecil Doggette, Grand Rapids 143
Chris Barber (retired) 133
Tracey Perkins (retired) 130
Mark Ricks (retired) 116

Despite having a bye, Doggette is tied for second in the AFL in pass breakups. Through two weeks, he was leading the league.

2005 AFL PASS BREAKUP LEADERS
Kenny McEntyre, Orlando 6
Cecil Doggette, Grand Rapids 5
Rashad Floyd, Colorado 5
Eddie Moten, Philadelphia 5

CECIL THE DIESEL
With 5.0 stops last week, Doggette moved past former teammate Mark Ricks into sole position as the fifth all-time leading tackler in AFL history. Here's a look at the top tacklers all-time in league history.

PLAYER TACKLES
1. Barry Wagner, San Jose 676.5
2. Damon Mason, Orlando 605.0
3. Darryl Hammond, Nashville 590.0
4. Cedric Walker, Austin 541.5
5. Cecil Doggette, Grand Rapids 475.5

TEAM CAPTAINS
The Rampage team captains for the season are...

Chris Avery Tony Bowick Cecil Doggette
Chris Jackson Otis Moore

LOOKING FOR A ‘SPARK'
Sparky McEwen's offenses over the past four seasons have scored more points and gained more yards than any team in Arena Football. After an offensive-anemic 2004 season, where the Rampage finished last in total yards and points scored. Here's a look at McEwen's averages from 2001-04 as an offensive coordinator and the Rampage's 2004 season.

SPARKY RAMPAGE
STAT 00-04 avg. 2004 Difference
Points Scored 56.5 36.3 30.2 ppg
Total Yards 294.3 228.4 65.9 ypg
Passing Yards 276.1 205.5 70.6 ypg
Offensive TDs 108 74 34 TD per season

HEAD COACHING CLASS OF 2005
Sparky McEwen is one of seven coaches that will be the head coach of new teams this season. Five of these seven will be making their head coaching debuts this season (Shell and Sperduto have previous head coaching experience).

COACH TEAM 2005 Record
Weylan Harding New York Dragons 1-1
Ron James Las Vegas Gladiators 2-1
Sparky McEwen Grand Rapids Rampage 0-2
Doug Plank Georgia Force 2-1
Todd Shell Arizona Rattlers 1-2
Pat Sperduto Nashville Kats 1-2
Chris Spielman Columbus Destroyers 0-2

HARD ROAD AHEAD
Despite having the worst record in 2004, the Rampage have the fifth hardest schedule based on 2004 records. To figure this out, you must take the amount of wins from the previous year's regular season record of the teams each team is scheduled to play and divide by 16. Those playing Nashville get a 0 for the games scheduled, since they are an expansion team. In contrast, the Crush are tied with Chicago for the easiest schedule.

TEAM Avg. wins by opponent (2004 records)
1. Orlando 8.938
2. Georgia 8.563
3. Los Angeles 8.188
3. Nashville 8.188
5. Grand Rapids 8.063
5. Austin 8.063
---------
16. Chicago 6.875
16. Colorado 6.875

THIS WEEK IN RAMPAGE HISTORY: Feb. 14-20
February 16, 2003: The Rampage come back from a team record 25 points behind to beat the New York Dragons 66-63.
February: 14, 2004: The Rampage lose 55-37 to the Colorado Crush in the home opener of the 2004 season.

NEXT OPPONENT – Columbus Destroyers
Next Sunday, the Rampage take on the Columbus Destroyers at Van Andel Arena at 3pm. The Destroyers are 0-2 and host the 2-1 Chicago Rush this Saturday night. Last season, the Rampage lost 59-28 to the Destroyers. The Rampage lead the all-time series 4-1. All four wins came when the team called Buffalo, New York home.

HEAD COACHES THIS WEEK

Skip Foster
Austin

Foster, led the Wranglers to an 8-8 record in his first year as an AFL coach after completing three seasons in the af2 with the Tulsa Talons compiling a 44-10 record including an ArenaCup Championship.
In the team's inaugural season performance, Foster's offense scored 104 touchdowns, an average of 47.8 points per game, led the AFL in total offense for five weeks and remained one of the League's top three total offenses for a total of fifteen weeks in 2004.
Prior to joining the Wranglers, Foster served as the head coach for the 2003 af2-Champion Tulsa Talons. Foster lead the team to a 13-3 regular season record while accumulating 3,995 yards in total offense, 3,679 yards passing and 316 yards rushing.


Sparky McEwen
Grand Rapids

McEwen became the Grand Rapids Rampage's fourth head coach in team history on August 13, 2004. He was the Rampage's offensive coordinator during the team's best three years on the field (2001-03), which included winning ArenaBowl XV in his first season. During those three years, the Rampage's offense scored more points and gained more yards and points than any other team in the AFL.

For 2004, McEwen was the assistant head coach/offensive coordinator for the Okalahoma City Yard Dawgz of arenafootball2. The Yard Dawgz (10-6) finished with the af2's second-best scoring team, the third-best offensive unit and third-ranked passing offense in the 25-team league. His starting quarterback led the af2 in passing touchdowns (84) and finished fifth in passing yards.

RAMPAGE INJURY REPORT

PLAYER POS. INJURY STATUS
Raphael Ball DS Wrist Out – on I.R.
Chris White OL/DL Ankle Out – on I.R.
Josh Bush WR/DB Hip Flexor Probable
Teto Simpson OL/DL Wrist Probable
Travis Reece FB/LB Low Back Probable


TEAM STATISTICAL COMPARIONS
Both teams enter the game without a win. Here's a look at how these teams matchup compared with their stats through the first three weeks. Note that 17 or T16 means last in the AFL. First or last in the AFL is indicated in BOLD.
Statistical WRANGLERS RAMPAGE
Category Rank Stat Rank Stat
Scoring Offense 14 43.7 12 47.0
Scoring Defense 16 64.0 17 65.0
Total Offense 4 306.7 6 299.5
Total Defense 15 310.0 11 286.5
Pass Offense 3 288.0 12 230.0
Pass Defense 12 285.7 16 273.0
Rushing Offense 9 18.7 1 69.5
Rushing Defense 12 23.3 5 13.5
Kick Returns-Avg. 12 15.1 2 23.3
Turnover Differential T15 -4 14 -3

AROUND THE ARENA FOOTBALL LEAGUE
Here's a look at the AFL games being played this week.

Thursday, February 17
Orlando at Dallas 8:30

Saturday, February 19
Chicago at Columbus 7:00
Nashville at New York 7:00
Austin at RAMPAGE 7:30

Sunday, February 20
Philadelphia at New Orleans 12:00 - NBC
San Jose at Los Angeles 6:00 – NBC**
Georgia at Las Vegas 6:00
Colorado at Arizona 6:00
BYE: Tampa Bay

2005 RAMPAGE GAME AWARD WINNERS

Wk Offensive Defensive IRONMAN
1 Bonner, ARZ W. Gaines, ARZ D. Graham, GR
2 Dutton, COL Floyd, COL McKenzie, COL

2005 AFL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Wk Offensive Defensive IRONMAN
1 S. Stafford, TB D. Mason, ORL S. Scott, PHI
2. A. Kelly, NO J. Ordway, TB S. Scott, PHI
3. A. Kelly, NO F. Carter, LV I. Price, ORL

SERIES HISTORY: GRAND RAPIDS-AUSTIN

May 1, 2004: Austin Wranglers 40, Grand Rapids Rampage 27
Van Andel Arena; Grand Rapids, MI (5,878)

Two fumbles by FB/LB Chris Avery deep in Austin territory ended potential Rampage scoring drives resulting in a pivotal touchdown for the Wranglers as Grand Rapids dropped its third in a row and first under Interim Head Coach Rick Frazier.

The game looked to be an old-fashioned Arena Football shootout as the teams traded scores throughout most of the first half. After Avery's first fumble, Austin jumped out to a 20-13 lead, but Grand Rapids bounced right back to tie it at twenty when rookie Travis Burns snagged a 22-yard bullet from Anthony Buich through two defenders.

Though the defense forced two field goals to conclude the first half, the Rampage offense failed to score until ten minutes left in the game when Steve Smith grabbed his second touchdown of the night. Austin would score once more ending any Rampage rally.

Offensive Player: John Kaleo
Defensive Player: Cecil Doggette
Ironman: Darrin Chiaverini

RAMPAGE QUOTES


Head Coach Sparky McEwen...

On Bishop
He is a gentleman that is a tremendous athlete and we knew that coming in. He is bringing excitement to arena football. What he brings to the arena game is what Mike Vick brings to the NFL. Having Bishop on the team brings athleticism while he has a history of winning championships. Knowing we had Browder here as a veteran, we knew that we could bring Bishop in when he got a better understanding of the arena game. We have thrown him into battle now, and he has done well, but there is still a lot of experience that is left to give Bishop.

On Bishop's Rushing
Anytime you reach a milestone where you are setting a record, it is a great honor. He is capable as a runner and a thrower. He brings another threat to our offensive attack, and it will be important that he is doing what he does as we move forward.

On Bishop's Passing
I think he did pretty good having 258 yards through the air. He is a threat as a runner and a passer and when he puts together his entire game, he will be dangerous each time he touches the ball in the future.

Coach McEwen's Key Points
Offense
We made a couple of key mistakes offensively early. The interception thrown by Bishop, a turnover on downs, and a sight adjustment made by a receiver led to our struggles early on. We need to start to take care of the ball during the game better.

Defense
I am very disappointed about our defensive play. We need to play better here in order to compete. We are going to do everything we can to make our defense better.

Special Teams
I am very pleased with our special teams play currently. Our rookie kicker Peter Martinez has done a solid job for us, and we are ranked high in this category.

Overall
All around we are taking strides to be more successful in the win and loss category. I stressed two points coming in, that we need to be the least penalized team and that we can't turn the ball over. In penalties we are the least penalized in the league, which demonstrates that as coaches we have instilled discipline to our players, and so we are winning the penalty battle. We are dead last in the turnover ratio at this point and in order for us to be successful, we will have to improve in this category.

Tony Bowick
On Playing His Former Team - Austin Wranglers
I have a lot of good friends on the team still like Charlie Davidson, Cedric Walker and Tom Briggs. It's still very much a competitive thing between us. We both have mutual motivations for this game, both looking for our first win. We're going to be out on the field competing, but after the game we'll be out getting dinner.

On The Rampage Record
We're throwing the record out the door. We want to put ourselves in a good situation with a win. For both teams it's a must win game, and we know that. We can't look at our record, we just need to go out and compete.

Keys to a Win
We need to create turnovers and not make any as a team. We need to keep up the excitement as a team and starting making some more plays.

RAMPAGE QUICK HITTERS
Fast informative nuggets on Rampage players, coaches and the team
Note: bullet points in parenthesis with plus sign (+) indicate what that player needs to attain that note.

FB/LB Chris Avery
· all-time leading rusher in Rampage history
· all-time Rampage leader in rushing attempts (+13)
· 2nd all-time in Rampage sacks (+2.0)
· 6th career 30+ yard rushing game (+1) – rest of Rampage history has 6 total
· holds 3 of top 5 single-game rush yardage marks

QB Michael Bishop
· only player in AFL history to rush for 100 yards in a game (100 at Colorado, 2/05/05)
· all-time single-season Rampage record for rushing yards (+94)
· 5th all-time Rampage leader in passing touchdowns (+2)
· 5th Rampage QB to pass for 300 yards in a game (+1)
· 5th all-time Rampage leader in completions (+34)
· 5th all-time Rampage leader in pass attempts (+58)
· 5th all-time Rampage leader in passing yards (+294)
· 3rd all-time Rampage leader in rushing yards (+132)
· all-time Rampage leader in rushing yards by a QB
· 1-2 as an AFL starting quarterback
· Was the starter for the Rampage's lone 2004 win (4/10/2004 at Detroit)
· won a Grey Cup championship ring with the 2004 Toronto Argonauts
· 1999 7th round draft pick of the New England Patriots
· 1998 Heisman Trophy runner up (Ricky Williams, Texas)
· 1998 Davey O'Brien Award winner (Division I-A top collegiate QB)
· 1998 Big XII Offensive Player of the Year

QB Nick Browder
· 12th QB in Rampage history to start a game
· 4-7 career AFL record as starting QB (3-5 with Philadelphia, 2004; 0-1 with Detroit, 2002; 1-0 with Buffalo, 2000; Grand Rapids with 0-1)
· 9th all-time in Rampage passing yards (+56)
· 5th Rampage QB to pass for 300 yards in a game (+1)

WR/DB Josh Bush
· 4th Rampage player with at least 2 kickoff returns for touchdowns (+1)
· 7th all-time in Rampage all-purpose yards (+56)
· 9th all-time in Rampage receiving touchdowns (+2)
· 1,000 career receiving yards (+131)
· 2nd career 100+ yard receiving game (+1)

DS Cecil Doggette
· 5th all-time in AFL tackles
· 30 career interceptions (+2) – also would give him 7 with Rampage (Tied with Mark Ricks for 2nd most in team history)
· all-time Rampage leader in interception return yardage (+41)
· 50 pass breakups with the Rampage (+2)
· AFL all-time leader in pass breakups (143)
· 2-time AFL All-Arena team selection
· has led his team last 7 years in tackles
· Rampage all-time leader in tackles and pass breakups
· Has appeared in three ArenaBowls (1993 with Detroit Drive; 1997, 2001 with Arizona)
· Has won an ArenaBowl title (Arizona, 1997) and NFL Europe title (Frankfurt, 1995)
· 29 pass breakups in 2004 (career high & 4th best in AFL single-season history)
· 15.0 tackles vs. Austin on May 27, 2004 – 3rd most in AFL history (career high/most in Rampage history)

OS Chris Jackson
· Catch a TD in 64 of 67 AFL career games (+1)
· Score a TD in 65 of 67 AFL career games (+1)
· 44th 100+ yard receiving game (+100)
· 11th player in AFL history with 1,000 career points scored (+28)
· 13th player in AFL history with 7,000 career receiving yards (+209)
· 18th ten+ reception game (+10)
· 15th player in AFL history with 500 career receptions (+11)
· 1,200+ yards receiving in 4 of 5 AFL seasons
· 2000 AFL Rookie of the Year
· 2003 AFL Offensive Player of the Year
· Only player in AFL history to be named the Rookie of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year
· 8th all-time in AFL receiving touchdowns

OL/DL Otis Moore
· play in his 133rd consecutive AFL game (+1)

FB/LB Travis Reece
· 25th player in AFL history with 500 career rushing yards (+26)

Head Coach Sparky McEwen
· 4th head coach in Rampage history
· Over last 4 seasons, no other team has scored more points or gained more yards than the offenses coached by McEwen (includes af2)
· 1 of 5 minority head coaches in the AFL (Arbet, San Jose; Harding, New York; Hohensee, Chicago; McClay, Dallas)
· 1 of 7 head coaches that are coaching with new teams this season
· 1 of 5 rookie AFL head coaches
· had a 2-1 record as starting QB of the Rampage in 1998
· still holds the team single-game record for rushing touchdowns (3, done twice)

SERIES HISTORY: Rampage vs. Austin
· Austin leads series 1-0
· Cecil Doggette recorded a team-record 15.0 tackles in last meeting (3rd most in AFL single-game history)

TEAM NOTES
· No players on active roster have every had a MFG return for the Rampage
· 13 straight home losses (including playoffs) – 2nd longest steak in AFL history (16 by Carolina from 2002-04)
· 1-3 all-time on Fox Sports Detroit
· 0-7 all-time on NBC (includes one playoff game)
· Tied for 5th hardest 2005 strength of schedule

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Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from February 17, 2005


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