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Kentucky Horsemen Notes

May 1, 2009 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Kentucky Horsemen News Release

DROPBACK: First-year Kentucky Horsemen receiver Lonnell DeWalt set a franchise record with six touchdown receptions, including four consecutive that broke open a close game to give the team a 56-38 win against the Milwaukee Iron in an arenafootball2 game at Rupp Arena.

The Horsemen (2-2), who trailed 10-0 to begin the game, improved to 2-0 when playing at home this season.

Kentucky quarterback Jared Lorenzen completed 15-of-26 passes for 195 yards with six touchdown passes, while also rushing four times for 18 yards with a score. DeWalt, the team's leading receiver, caught 11 passes for 149 yards with six touchdown catches.

Jonathan Hawks added seven catches for 68 yards, while Harry Lewis hauled in four catches for 41 yards with a touchdown.

The Horsemen, who trailed 10-0 at the 7:16 mark of the first half, before Lewis caught a 10-yard pass from Lorenzen to get Kentucky on the board. DeWalt followed with a 9-yard pass from Lorenzen to put the Horsemen ahead 14-10 at the 12:30 mark of the second quarter. After a Milwaukee touchdown, the Horsemen commenced a five-touchdown flury, including five by DeWalt to put the Horsemen ahead 49-17 with 4:24 left in the third quarter.

Milwaukee (1-4) was led by signal-caller Tyler Donovan, who finished 10-of-24 for 125 yards with two touchdowns. Wide receiver Scott Burnoski had 10 catches for 170 yards with five scoring grabs.

The Horsemen defense forced four interceptions on the evening. Matt Forbes led Kentucky 's defensive effort with seven solo tackles, one interception and one sack.

Saturday's game marked the first-ever meeting between Kentucky and Milwaukee .

Kentucky returns to action Saturday when it travels to Peoria , Ill. , to take on long-time rival Peoria . Kick-off is slated for 8 p.m. EST and the game will be carried live on Supertalk 96.1 FM with Gary Ball and Randy Wilson.

FORWARD MOTION: The Horsemen travel to South Georgia on May 9.

LAST TIME VS. PEORIA: The Lexington Horsemen turned in one of their finest defensive performances of the season on Saturday en route to a 61-33 win against Peoria in the Peoria Civic Center .

The Horsemen (8-5) maintain sole possession of second place in the arenafootball2 American Conference Midwest Division. Lexington is now just a game behind division leader Green Bay after the Blizzard dropped a 66-41 decision to Quad City also on Saturday.

Lexington quarterback Eddie Eviston, in his second game back from injury, completed 24-of-40 passes for 285 yards. Wide receiver John Cooper had 10 catches for a team-leading 141 yards with three touchdowns.

The Horsemen, who led 21-13 at halftime after an 11-yard scoring strike from Eviston to receiver Harry Lewis, improved to 4-1 this season in bounce-back games (games following a loss).

Lexington improves to 4-1 all-time vs. Peoria in the history of the two franchises.

TEAM NOTES/TRENDS:

Veteran and Local Stand-out Quarterbacks Assigned to Horsemen The af2 has assigned two quarterbacks to join the Kentucky Horsemen arenafootball2 franchise for the 2009 season. Former University of Kentucky standout Jared Lorenzen and former Peoria Pirates signal-caller Justin Rascati have signed with the team.

The duo will compete for the starting quarterback spot for the Horsemen, who begin their second year as a member of arenafootball2 under the direction of head coach Mike Harmon.

Lorenzen, a native of Ft. Thomas, Ky., is best known to Lexington residents for his notable accomplishments as a quarterback for the

Wildcats from 2000-03. Lorenzen holds Kentucky's career records in pass completions (862), pass attempts (1,514) and net passing yards (10,354), and is second for most touchdown passes thrown in a career (78).

Named Kentucky's Mr. Football his senior year of high school, Lorenzen, 6-foot-4, helped lead the University of Kentucky to a 7-5 record in 2002. Lorenzen was a member of the NFL's New York Giants from 2005-07 and was a back-up quarterback on the team's 2007 Super Bowl Champion squad.

Rascati, a former University of Louisville back-up quarterback who later led James Madison to the finals of the NCAA Division I-AA Championship, spent the 2008 campaign as the primary quarterback for the Peoria Pirates, also of af2. In his year with the Pirates, Rascati completed 219-of-363 passes for 2,354 yards with 37 touchdown strikes. The versatile Rascati, 6-foot-4, also ranked fifth in the league in rushing with 21.4 yards per game as part of the af2's top rushing offense in 2008.

Rascati, a Gainesville, Fla., native, started at quarterback for James Madison in each of his last three seasons and, in 2006, set team records for season (20) and career (51) touchdown passes. He was a finalist for the Walter Payton Award that has been presented by

The Sports Network to the Division I-AA offensive player of the year, a first-team All-Division I honoree, and a second-team All-Atlantic-10 Conference choice. As a collegian, he completed 487-of-728 passes for 5,912 yards with 51 scoring strikes.

Horsemen No. 16 in Week 1 Coaches' Poll The Kentucky Horsemen of arenafootball2 have been ranked No. 16 in the af2 Preseason Coaches Poll, announced Monday morning by the league offices in Chicago.

Each week during the season, af2 coaches will vote for the top 16 teams in the league by ranking them one through 16 on a ballot. Teams ranked first receive 16 points with the point value decreasing by one for each place below first. Total points determine the top-16 list. Coaches are not allowed to vote for their own teams. The af2 Coaches Poll will be announced each Wednesday during the regular season.

2009 af2 PRESEASON COACHES POLL 1. Spokane 2. Tennessee Valley 3. W-B Scranton 4. Tulsa 5. Bossier-Shreveport 6. Arkansas 7. Green Bay 8. Manchester 9. Central Valley 10. Oklahoma City 11. Quad City 12. South Georgia 13. Boise 14. Milwaukee 15. Iowa 16. Kentucky

Horsemen Operate Under Innovative Model in 2009 The Horsemen are following an innovative path to the team's operation beginning in 2009. The team will now be owned by the Horsemen Charitable Foundation, which will run the af2 franchise as a non-profit, community-based organization. The model, which has also been used by minor-league baseball franchises in Memphis and Michigan, will ensure the stability of the football team and strengthen its commitment to philanthropic and community efforts.