af2 Green Bay Blizzard

Green Bay Blizzard game notes

July 6, 2004 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Green Bay Blizzard News Release


QUICK FACTS:
Green Bay Blizzard (4-7) @ Albany Conquest (4-7)
Date: Friday, June 25, 2004
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. CST
Site: The Resch Center
National Anthem: TBA
Coin Toss: TBA
Officials: Pat Miles (referee), Fred Bryan (Umpire), Rick Kruger (Headlinesman), Matt Kukar (Line Judge), Tom Wohlleber ( Back Judge)
Radio: None
Series Record: 0-1
Streaks: Green Bay L3, Albany W1
Coaches: Green Bay Brian Noble (4-8, first season), Albany Rick Buffington (5-3, first season)

THE STAKES: The winner would keep their playoff hopes alive.

THE SERIES: 0-1, Albany defeated the Blizzard in week 13 of 2004 with a score of 59-26.

THE IFs:
If Green Bay wins, it would ...
· Give Green Bay their first victory against Albany
· Give Green Bay a 5-8 record in 2004
· Give Brian Noble his fifth win as Blizzard Head Coach
· Keep the Blizzard's playoff chances alive
· Give the Blizzard 4 wins at home in 2004


GREEN BAY (4-8, Lost 3)
Date Opponent Streak Result Score
4/9 @ San Diego Won 67-49
4/16 WILKES B/S Lost 39-75
4/24 @ Wichita Lost 53-68
5/1 @ Quad City Lost 26-47
5/8 CENTRAL VALLEY Won 50-32
5/14 OKLAHOMA CITY Won 71-53
5/22 LOUISVILLE Lost 54-59
5/28 @ Manchester Lost 61-66
6/5 PEORIA Won 57-29
6/12 @ Birmingham Lost 54-56
6/18 QUAD CITY Lost 53-62
6/25 @ Albany Lost 26-59
Date Opponent Time Streak Series
7/9 ALBANY 7:30 L1 0-1
7/17 SAN DIEGO 7:30 W3 2-1
7/24 @ Louisville 6:30 L1 1-2
7/31 @ Peoria 7:00 W1 1-2

Albany Conquest (5-7, Won 1)
Date Opponent Result Score
4/10 @ Cape Fear Lost 55-70
4/16 MANCHESTER Lost 34-47
4/24 LOUISVILLE Lost 56-62
4/30 @ Manchester Lost 34-51
5/8 W-B/SCRANTON Won 52-45
5/15 @ Louisville Won 60-56
5/22 MACON Won 56-37
5/29 @ Peoria Lost 24-44
6/6 CAPE FEAR Lost 51-78
6/12 @ Arkansas Won 66-54
6/18 W-B/SCRANTON Lost 43-69
6/25 GREEN BAY Won 59-26
Date Opponent Time Streak Series
7/9 @ Green Bay 7:30 L1 1-0
7/17 @ W-B/Scranton 6:00 W3 0-4
7/23 MANCHESTER 6:30 L3 5-3
7/31 @ Cape Fear 6:30 W4 0-4
All times are CST.

HEAD COACHES: Green Bay's Brian Noble steps into the position of Head Coach of the Green Bay Blizzard, this popular former Packer brings along an impressive resume of NFL experience, leadership skills and community service. Coach Noble's responsibilities are to prepare the team for success on the field, and draw upon his media knowledge to contribute to the organization in other ways as well.
For nine years, Noble was a ferocious hitter and defensive leader who roamed the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field as an inside linebacker for the Green Bay Packers. After being drafted in the fifth round by Green Bay in 1985, he jumped into the starting lineup in only his second regular season game and went on to scoop up the Packers' "Rookie of the Year" award. During his tenure with the Green and Gold, Brian led the team in total tackles four times and also displayed his toughness as a solid special teams player. Prior to his pro career, Noble was a standout football player at Arizona State University and Fullerton Junior College.
During and subsequent to his playing days, Noble worked in both television and radio. As an analyst for the Packers post-game radio show, fans across Wisconsin are familiar with his keen insight on the game and no-holds-barred commentary. In addition to other media ventures, he developed and produced the syndicated television show "Hitting the Outdoors," which has reached millions of households throughout the Midwest.

Rick Buffington is the Head Coach of the Albany Conquest. He has a strong football resume, having become a part-time scout for the New York Jets in 1976 before joining the New England Patriots coaching staff from 1978-1981. With the Patriots he worked along side numerous notable coaches, including Bill Parcells. Buffington was the first head coach of the former Albany Firebirds, having served in that role from 1990 to 1993, leading the Firebirds to the playoffs in three out of four seasons. Buffington has also served as head coach for four other arena football teams. He was Head Coach and General Manager of the the Arena Football League's Connecticut Coyotes in 1995. Buffington was Head Coach and Director of Football Operations for the Charlotte Rage of the Arena Football League in 1996. He was Head Coach of the AFL's Florida Bobcats in 1998 and GM in 2000. He also served as Head Coach and General Manger of former arenafootball2 team, the New Haven Ninjas (2002)

LAST SERIES MEETING: Albany defeated the Blizzard 69-26 in week 13 in Albany, NY. QB Chris Greisen missed the game due to a neck injury.

FAMILIAR FACES:
LEAGUE TOP 10s: Players from this week's match up who rank among af2's statistical leaders:
BLIZZARD
Player Rank Category Stat
Robert Garth 7 Scoring 164
Robert Garth T7 TDs 27
Randall Lane 7 Receiving YDS 1144
Randall Lane 1 Receiving yds/gm 143.0
Chris Greisen 5 Pass Rating 113.7
Greg Krauss 9 Scoring Kick 73
Chris Greisen 2 Passing Yards/gm 271.8
Chris Greisen 3 Passing TD 61
Greg Krauss 8 PAT KICKING 61-80
CONQUEST
Player Rank Category Stat
Tony Locke 4 Scoring 186
Tony Locke 4 TDs 31
Rashon Burns 7 Rushing 158
Tony Locke 9 Receiving yds 1118
Tony Locke 5 All Purpose 2116
Travis Coleman 3 Passes Defended 22

TALE OF THE TAPE:

Statistical BLIZZARD CONQUEST
Category Rank Stat Rank Stat
Scoring Offense 9 50.9 11 49.2
Scoring Defense 24 54.5 22 53.2
Total Offense 4 276.7 5 272.4
Total Defense 22 286.4 24 289.1
Pass Offense 3 269.3 10 242.9
Pass Defense 25 269.6 T21 265.9
Rushing Offense 25 7.3 4 29.5
Rushing Defense 11 16.8 19 23.2
Scoring (Non-Kick) 9 538 11 514
Scoring (Kicking) 12 73 T10 74
Pass Rating 18 101.4 16 103.4
Pass Def. Rating 22 115.7 20 111.7
Kickoff Returns 22 17.7 10 20.0
MFG Returns 25 4.0 24 4.2
Turnover Margin 21 -7 T15 -3
Field Goals 14 .308 16 .292
PAT Kicking 12 .762 15 .722
Sacks By T23 7 T20 9
Sacks Against T8 10 15 14
First Downs T10 169 3 192
Opp. First Downs T18 182 25 199
Penalties 11 53.5 16 60.6
Opp. Penalties 13 58.5 24 69.7
Red Zone Off 8 79.4 21 64.6
Red Zone Def 24 82.0 20 80.3

BLIZZARD INJURY REPORT:
Pos. Name Injury Status
WR/LB Quentin Ware Bey Hamstring SIR
OS Randall Lane Knee LIR
DS Quincy Roe Leg SIR
DS Roosevelt Williams Knee LIR
DS Terrence Wood Ankle LIR
DS Kenny Williams Knee LIR
WR/DB Terrence Banks Ankle LIR
DS Lemont Hudgins Knee LIR

DROPBACK: The Blizzard lost to the Quad City Steamwheelers 62-53 after holding a 10 point halftime lead.

FORWARD MOTION: The Blizzard/Conquest hold a home and away series with a bye week in between the two games.

TEAM NOTES/TRENDS:
Robert Garth: Garth is second on the Blizzard with 57 receptions for 744 yards and 25 touchdowns.

WR/DB DeRonn Finley: Finley has become a force on both sides of the ball. Finley is third in receptions (43), yards (525), and touchdowns (16).

Turnovers: When the Blizzard win the turnover game, they win the game as their record shows (4-5). The Blizzard is -3 for the year.

PLAYERS/MATCHUPS TO WATCH:
Blizzard QB Chris Greisen: Greisen has proven to pick up the arena game very quickly as he has thrown for 2,718 yards and 61 touchdowns. Greisen has become the Blizzard's franchise leader in Touchdowns with 61.

KEY DATES IN TEAM/LEAGUE HISTORY:
March 30, 2003 – The Blizzard played their first game in franchise history against the Hawaiian Islanders.
April 19, 2003 – The Blizzard played their first home game at the Resch Center against the Wichita Stealth.
June 28, 2003 – The Blizzard recorded their first franchise win against the San Diego Riptide.
April 9, 2004 – The Blizzard recorded their first franchise road win against the San Diego Riptide.
May 18, 2004- QB Chris Greisen and WR/DB DeRonn Finley took two out of three weekly awards given out by the af2.

BABY RUTH REAL DEAL OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME (selected by media)
Week Opp. Player
1 BYE
2 SD Randall Lane GB
3 GB Leroy McFadden WBS
4 GB Damon Thompson WIC
5 GB Jeff Hewitt QC
6 CV Chris Greisen GB
7 OKC Chris Greisen GB
8 GB Matt Sauk LOU
9 GB Chris Sanders MAN
10 PEO Chris Greisen GB
11 GB Carlos McNeary BIR
12 GB Ronnie Gordon QC
13 GB D Bryant ALB

ADT DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME
Week Opp. Player
1 BYE
2 GB Brad Greetis SD
3 GB Leroy McFadden WBS
4 GB Brian Livingston WIC
5 GB Danny Thomas QC
6 GB VonKeith Spencer CV
7 OKC Roosevelt Williams GB
8 LOU Joe Rivard GB
9 GB Alli Sebastien MAN
10 PEO Mike Mills GB
11 GB Jerry Turner BIR
12 GB Matt Forbes QC
13 GB Travis Coleman

ARMY IRONMAN AWARD (selected by media)
Week Opp. Player
1 BYE
2 SD Robert Garth GB
3 GB Leroy McFadden WBS
4 GB Ty Ardoin WIC
5 GB Brian Berg QC
6 CV Joe Rivard GB
7 OKC DeRonn Finley GB
8 LOU DeRonn Finley GB
9 GB Reggie Robinson MAN
10 PEO Robert Garth GB
11 GB Dontae Walker BIR
12 GB Tim Dodge QC
13 GB Jeff Higgins ALB

RECENT ROSTER MOVES (most recent first):
Date Action Player
6/23 Assigned Terrance Simms
6/23 Activated from LIR Terrence Wood
6/23 Assigned Harbert Briscoe
6/23 Re-assigned Gary Jenkins
6/23 Re-assigned Quincy Roe
6/23 Placed on SIR Jerry McCloud
6/17 Activate from SIR Quincy Roe
6/17 Place on SIR Quentin Ware Bey
6/16 Assign Chris Martin
6/16 Re assign Mike Mills
6/10 Assign Ross Moline
6/10 Assign Albert Poree
6/10 Placed on LIR Joe Rivard
6/10 Placed on Suspension Nate Lehman
6/3 SIR Randall Lane
6/3 SIR Quincy Roe
6/3 Re assign Taalib-Din Smith
6/3 Re assign Mike Rhone
6/3 Assign Max McCoy
6/3 Assign Gary Jenkins
6/3 Assign Jerry McCloud
6/3 Assign Torrey Day
5/13 Assigned Mike Mills
5/13 Re-Assigned Tony Ebeling
5/6 Assigned Tony Ebeling
5/6 Re-assigned Dennis Gile
4/29 Assigned Matt Bunyan
4/29 Assigned Taalib-Din Smith
4/29 Re-assigned John Humphries
4/29 Short Term IR Terrence Wood
4/21 Assigned Dustin Sagedahl
4/21 Placed on League Exempt Dave Sherrod
4/15 Activated From SIR Quentin Ware Bey
4/15 Reassigned Tony Ebeling
4/7 Activated from RTR Brett Wetten
4/7 Recallable Re assign Dustin Sagedahl
4/7 Reassignment Ben Arnold
4/7 Assigned Ronnie Washburn
4/2 Assigned Patrick Heard
4/2 Assigned Terrence Wood
4/2 Assigned Reggie Poole
4/2 Activated from RTR Greg Krauss



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