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Guaranteed Win Night Features First Place Showdown

June 1, 2004 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Bakersfield Blitz News Release


Upcoming games

The Bakersfield Blitz (5-3) return to home turf this weekend to host West Division rivals Hawaii (5-3) in a matchup of first place teams. This is the fifth week out of 10 weeks this season that the Blitz and Islanders have been tied for first place. To stoke the fire, the Blitz are guaranteeing victory over the Islanders, giving fans that come to Saturday's 7:00pm contest a free ticket to the next Blitz home game if they do not win. In addition, the first 2,000 fans will receive a Blitz Beach Towel, courtesy of Bright House Networks and KUZZ 107.9.

The Blitz is also a part of the af2's 5 Millionth Fan Celebration this weekend. The af2 will commemorate surpassing the 5,000,000th fan league-wide this weekend by selecting a fan in each building that will hosts an af2 game. The random winner will pick up two (2) season tickets for the remainder of this season as well as next season, and a special af2/5,000,000th fan jersey from the league office. In addition they will participate in the on-field promotions for Saturday's game and be featured on the league's official website, www.af2.com. More details about the 5 Millionth Fan promotion will come later this week.

Last week

Bakersfield Blitz 41 @ CENTRAL VALLEY COYOTES 25

The Blitz overcame an early nine-point deficit by forcing five Central Valley turnovers and allowing just three touchdowns en route to a 41-25 victory in Fresno on Saturday night. RB/LB Ben McCombs scored twice on the ground, while QB Chad Elliott threw for a pair of scores to WR/LB Eric Mahanke and OS Rennard Reynolds in the win – their second of the year on the road (both in Fresno).

In the huddle

· The Blitz added kicker Ed Romo, on Saturday. Romo, a Chapman University grad, had plenty of opportunity to work, going 5-for-6 on extra points and 0-for-2 on field goals, with one blocked late in the game. Bakersfield native, K Brian Walker, was placed on Short Term IR today.

· DS Delvin Myles sat out Saturday's game with Jay Morris taking his spot in the lineup. Morris responded with two first half interceptions and five tackles on the night.

· Bakersfield entered Saturday's game with just nine takeaways in seven contests. They took the ball from Central Valley five times on Saturday alone (two interceptions and three fumbles).

· Only three teams in the af2 have recorded more sacks than Bakersfield this season (18). Oklahoma City leads the league with 30 sacks. The Blitz have recorded a +10 sack ratio (sacks/sacks allowed), second in the league to only Oklahoma City (+26).

· The Blitz improved to 2-0 against the Coyotes and 4-1 against their own division. They will not travel to Fresno again this season. They are also 2-0 against San Diego and 0-1 against Hawaii.

· On Saturday, the Blitz out rushed their opponent for just the second time this season. They are 2-0 in those games. Ben McCombs put up 26 yards on three carries to lead both teams, and had two touchdowns.

Radio and Television

Tune in each and every Thursday night from the Holiday Inn Select for the "Indoor War Report" with Head Coach Rick Van Horne. The IWR is a weekly live talk show that discusses news and notes from the Blitz and the af2, and airs exclusively on KGEO AM 1230 with the "Voice of the Blitz" Kevin Bartl. Each show features a visit from Blitz players, prizes, and specials from the Holiday Inn Select, which is located next door to Centennial Garden.

All games, home and away, can be heard on KGEO AM 1230 with "Countdown to Kickoff" starting at 6:45pm. All home games are televised live on Bright House Networks Ch. 21, with a replay of the game starting at 1:00pm the following Sunday afternoon.

af2 Individual leader board
Player Stat Rank Category
Kevin Carroll 3 t-2nd Fumbles forced
6.5 t-2nd Tackles for a Loss
Delvin Myles 3 t-2nd Fumbles forced
Brian Walker 6 FG t-3rd field goals made
Chad Elliott 1,979 8th Total offensive yards
246.4 9th Passing yards avg.
Eric Mahanke 58 9th Receptions
Rennard Reynolds 22.5 9th kickoff return avg.
Ahmad Bhatti 5.5 t-8th Tackles for a Loss

This week's matchup: The Blitz rank in the top five in the league in two categories: Missed Field Goal return yardage and sacks. Hawaii ranks in the top five in nine categories, including MFG return yardage, least penalty yards and least sacks allowed, in which they rank first in the af2. The Islanders rank in the top 10 in five additional categories (compared to four more categories for the Blitz).

Blitz Islanders Rank Stat Rank Stat
Scoring Offense 12th 47.1 pts/gm 5th 54.9 pts/gm
Scoring Defense 10th 45.1 pts/gm 18th 53.2 pts/gm
Total Offense 15th 250.1 yd/gm 7th 278.5 yd/gm
Total Defense 20th 274.1 yd/gm 22nd 283.8 yd/gm
Pass Offense 11th 239.8 yd/gm 10th 249.8 yd/gm
Pass Defense 20th 248.8 yd/gm 22nd 262.8 yd/gm
Rushing Offense 23rd 10.4 yd/gm 6th 28.8 yd/gm
Rushing Defense 20th 25.4 yd/gm 14th 21.0 yd/gm
Scoring (Non-kick) t-14th 322 pts 3rd 392 pts
Scoring (Kicking) t-7th 51 pts t-13th 47 pts
Pass Rating 6th 111.9 3rd 113.3
Pass Def. Rating t-19th 114.1 18th 113.1
Kickoff Returns 14th 18.7 yd/ret. 4th 22.2 yd/ret.
MFG Returns t-5th 27.0 yd/ret. 1st 31.3 yd/ret
Turnover Margin 17th - .12 t-9th + .12
Field Goals t-10th 33.3% t-17th 25.0%
PAT Kicking 18th 73.3% t-15th 74.5%
Sacks By 4th 18 t-17th 9
Sacks Against t-11th 8 t-1st 3
First Downs 20th 111 t-3rd 136
Opp. First Downs 18th 123 t-20th 136
Penalties 21st 550 yds 1st 271 yds
Opp. Penalties 21st 547 yds 9th 439 yds
Red Zone Offense 8th 77.6% t-3rd 80.0%
Red Zone Defense 13th 73.5% 14th 75.8%

Pro-rated season tickets and group outings for the Blitz are on sale now by contacting the Blitz office at 716-BLITZ (2548) or by stopping by the Bakersfield Sports Entertainment office located at Centennial Garden. The Garden box office is open Monday through Friday 10:00am – 5:00pm and opens at noon this Saturday. For up-to-date information on the Blitz, log on to www.bakersfieldblitz.com.

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