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Las Vegas Gladiators game notes

February 3, 2004 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Las Vegas Gladiators News Release


GLADIATORS VS. CRUSH: THE FACTS
Date: Friday, February 6, 2004
Kickoff: 6:00 PM PT
Site: Pepsi Center (Denver, CO)
Officials: Referee: Bill Athan, Umpire: Rick DiBernardo, Head Linesman: Tim Podroza , Line Judge: Al Riveron, Back Judge: Rob Vernatchi, Supervisor: Bob Mantooth

THE GAME CAN BE HEARD...

On ESPN in Las Vegas with Andrew Siciliano handling play-by-play and Mike Pritchard with color commentary.

THE SERIES – GLADIATORS VS. CRUSH

This will be the second meeting between the Gladiators and the Crush. The Gladiators took the first meeting 68-34 in Las Vegas on April 5, 2003.

WHAT'S AT STAKE

Getting off to a fast start is essential for the Gladiators, who now compete in the AFL's Western Division along with San Jose, Arizona and Los Angeles.

If the Gladiators win, it would...

· Give Las Vegas a 2-0 record against the Crush

· Give Las Vegas an 1-0 overall record

· Give Las Vegas a 1-0 road record

GLADIATORS LAST SEASON

2003 SEASON WRAP-UP

With a new location and a new front office, the Gladiators took great strides in 2003. Las Vegas, led by head coach Frank Haege, finished their first season outside of New Jersey with a record of 8-8 and a first round playoff game against the Arizona Rattlers.

The Gladiators named Jeroid Johnson the MVP of the 2003 season and Sedrick Robinson as the Ironman. With two seasons under his belt with the Gladiators, Frank Haege will look to build on an already solid foundation.

On opening day in Los Angeles, Las Vegas QB Jay McDonagh threw for six touchdowns and ran for another, but it was his three turnovers that did him in, as the Los Angeles Avengers defeated the Gladiators 60-48. The next weekend, the Gladiators where defeated by the Arizona Rattlers 46-42. The Gladiators had a chance to win on the last play of the game, but McDonagh's pass to George Williams was tipped and picked off as time ran out.

In the third week, the Gladiators had their first home game in Las Vegas. The red and black faced the Tampa Bay Storm in front of 12,521 raucous fans. The Gladiators got down by as many as 21 points, but did not give up. With 11:45 to play in the game, the Gladiators began to create a storm of their own. McDonagh found Jamarr Ward for a touchdown and brought them within 14. Behind two interceptions by the games MVP, Jeroid Johnson, Las Vegas was able to tie the game up and go into overtime with all the momentum. The red and black capitalized and went on to win their first game of the season 61-55. The Gladiators then went on the road to face the New York Dragons, led by QB Aaron Garcia. The game went back and forth throughout and came down to the Dragons' kicker, Kenny Stucker . He was given the chance to win the game with a 41-yard field goal attempt, but the kick sailed wide left and sealed Las Vegas' first road victory of the season. The ensuing week was to be the defending Arena Football League Champion, San Jose SaberCats time to shine. Las Vegas was unable to hang on to the football as they turned the ball over four times and were out scored 65-30 from the second quarter on. The final was 72-37 and dropped the Gladiators to a 2-3 record. The following week was in Carolina where the Gladiators faced the Cobras. Using big plays on offense and a stingy defense, Las Vegas moved into a first-place tie in the Eastern Division after defeating the Carolina Cobras 51-41. Sean Riley and Frank Carter each scored two touchdowns and Todd Hammel, starting for the first time in two years, threw for 206 yards and three touchdowns to lead Las Vegas back to .500 at 3-3. With the opportunity to take over sole possession of first place in the Eastern division, the Gladiators were unable to capture a victory at home as they fell to the Chicago Rush 68-48. In an ugly game in almost every sense of the word, the teams combined for eight turnovers and 34 penalties between them, setting an Arena Football League record. The red and black took a shot in the arm when Mike Horacek and his 14 receptions for 182 yards and three touchdowns led Las Vegas over the Buffalo Destroyers 50-32.

Gladiators' WR/LB Sedrick Robinson was a red and sliver blur on the Thomas & Mack Center carpet as he willed his team to a victory against the Georgia Force. He returned six kickoffs for 208 yards, three touchdowns; catching 10 passes for 116 yards, two touchdowns and rushing for a four-yard score. Robinson recorded 185 return yards to capture the Ironman of the Game. He had 228 all-purpose yards and returned his fourth kick of the year for a touchdown and he also caught four passes for 39 yards and ran for one touchdown. The big play of the game came down to Jeroid Johnson, the ADT Defensive Player of the Week, when he stepped in front of a Donnie Davis pass with :19 seconds left to play to seal victory for the Gladiators over the Force 46-41. Las Vegas claimed sole position of first place in the Eastern Division by defeating the Colorado Crush 68-34. Jay McDongah threw five touchdowns passes and ran for two more to lead the Gladiators to their largest margin of victory of the 2003 season. The Gladiators ran their record to 6-4. Las Vegas then headed north to take on Grand Rapids and WR Sean Riley's former team. Riley was a member of the Rampage to start the season before being released. The Grand Rapids Rampage came out of the gates wanting to prove a point to Riley and the rest of the Gladiators team. That point was that they were the real deal and a team to be reckoned with. The Rampage did just so by outscored Las Vegas 41-0 in the second and third quarters en route to a 69-21 victory. After each team scored two first-quarter touchdowns, everything came undone for the Gladiators. Las Vegas went scoreless for the next 31 minutes, turning the ball over three times.

In the following week Las Vegas took its show to Disney World, but did not have a good performance. While in Orlando, Las Vegas was given their second pounding in a row. Two goal-line stands in the second quarter and three first half turnovers by Las Vegas led the Orlando Predators to a 56-31 victory. After being outclassed two weeks in a row, the Gladiators got to go home and face a familiar foe in a divisional rivalry against the Detroit Fury. In one of the bigger games of the season, the red and black scored the first 20 points of the game and never looked back en route to a 58-45 victory. Jay McDonagh threw for 248 yards on 20-of-29 completions with six touchdowns and no interceptions as the Gladiators took over sole possession of first place in the Eastern Division. The Gladiators stayed in Las Vegas for their second home game in a row to face the Dragons. Things did not turnout as planned for the Gladiators as they fell 43-42. For New York, Walter Church hit Todd Doxzon on a two-point conversion with :39 seconds remaining in the game to give them the lead and never look back. Las Vegas had a chance to win the game on the final play, but Steve Videtich's 36-yard field goal with :04 seconds remaining hit the right upright and bounced away. The loss dropped the Gladiators (7-7) back into a first place tie with Detroit in the Eastern Division. New York (6-8) moved to within one game with two games remaining. The Gladiators visited a few old friends in Detroit the following week that led to a defeat to the Fury and lose their second straight game. The game was a battle for first place that went bad in the fourth quarter. The red and black were outscored 28-3 during that time, turning what was a see-saw game into a blowout. The Gladiators went into the fourth quarter with a 49-48 lead, but after an Andy Kelly to John Kaiser pass to give the Fury the lead and Gladiator field goal by Steve Videtich, Detroit scored the final 21 points of the game to seal the victory 76-52. In the final game of the regular season, the Gladiators played host to the Destroyers. Points were hard to come by for Las Vegas until, game MVP, Todd Hammel came off the bench to spark Las Vegas to a 55-38 victory over the Destroyers.

Las Vegas finished the regular season 7-3 against the National Conference, 4-2 in the Eastern Division and their final record of 8-8 earned them the 11th seed in the "Drive to ArenaBowl XVII Playoffs." They traveled to Arizona to take on the 6th seeded Rattlers in the wild card round, but the Gladiators took a quick exit after the Rattlers played one of their best games of the season. The final score was 69-26 to end the Gladiators otherwise successful first season in Las Vegas.

GLADIATORS NEXT WEEK

The Gladiators will open their 2004 home schedule as they take on new Western Division Rival Los Angeles at the Thomas & Mack Center on February 14. Kickoff is scheduled for 12:00 PM PT and the game will be televised live on NBC.

THE COACHES



Frank Haege (Third Season 17-13, 0-2 in playoffs)

The Las Vegas Gladiators third-year head coach can look back upon his first two seasons in the AFL and boast about his wide array of accomplishments. Haege led the Gladiators to the fourth-best record in the AFL and their first-ever playoff berth in franchise history in 2002.

Haege believes that there is still a lot of work to do and will not rest until the job is complete. Haege also serves as the offensive coordinator, quarterbacks, and wide receivers coach.

The 2003 season was the first for the Gladiators in Las Vegas and Haege led them to a second consecutive playoff appearance and an 8-8 record.

In 2002 the Gladiators 9-5 record and first place finish in the Eastern Division of the National Conference was the biggest turnaround in AFL history. The Gladiators finished the 2002 regular season with seven more victories than the previous season.

Haege was named the second head coach of the New Jersey Gladiators on August 23, 2001. Haege brought with him six players and an assistant coach from the Steamwheelers.

Previously, he spent two years as the head coach and director of football operations with the Quad City Steamwheelers (af2) in 2000 and 2001. Haege posted a remarkable 37-1 record, including an undefeated 2000 season.

On August 10, 2001, Frank Haege made his mark in the af2 record books by leading the Quad City Steamwheelers to a 55-51 win over the Richmond Speed to secure a second-straight championship.

In 2000, his 19-0 Steamwheelers defeated the Tennessee Valley Vipers 68-59 to win the first-ever ArenaCup, played on August 10, 2000. This completed the perfect season.

Haege is in his tenth season in the Arena Football League. Prior to the Gladiators moving to Las Vegas, Haege coached in the AFL with the New Jersey Red Dogs (1997-99) under John Hufnagel (1997-98), now the quarterbacks coach for the New England Patriots.

Prior to joining the Red Dogs in New Jersey, Haege was the defensive coordinator for the Minnesota Fighting Pike, a former AFL franchise in 1996. In 1994, while with the Milwaukee Mustangs, he served as the team's special teams coordinator and FB/LB coach.

Haege earned a bachelor's degree in marketing education from UW-Stout in 1992, before completing his master's degree in physical education at Bemidji in 1995.

Haege was born on Oct 11, 1968 in Two Rivers, Wisconsin. He is married (Michele) and has one child (Frank Jr.) while residing in Las Vegas.

Mike Dailey (Eighth Season, 1st with Crush, 63-46 record)

Mike Dailey joined the Crush on June 26, 2003, becoming the team's second head coach. He is one of the most successful coaches in the history of the Arena Football League and clearly one of the most knowledgeable about the indoor game.

Dailey joined the Crush after seven seasons as head coach of the Indiana Firebirds, where his teams compiled a 63-46 record, a winning percentage of 57.8. In 1999 Dailey led the Firebirds to their only ArenaBowl championship and a regular season-playoff record of 14-3, best in firebirds history. He was named AFL Coach of the Year following that standout campaign.

"The opportunity to join such a dynamic organization as the Colorado Crush has been tremendous," Dailey said. "The entire Arena Football League knows how special the fans are in Colorado and it is our goal to reward those great fans with a winning team they will be proud to support. Ultimately, of course, our goal is to bring the ArenaBowl championship to Colorado."

Dailey's experience in the AFL is unsurpassed. Before being named head coach of the Firebirds in 1997, Dailey served as an assistant for five seasons under then-head coach Mike Hohensee. He spent three seasons as the team's offensive coordinator, during which the firebirds led the league in scoring, with an average of 60.4 points per game.

Dailey also coached the other side of the ball, serving as Firebirds defensive coordinator in 1992 and 1993. During the 1993 season the Firebirds recorded 13 forced fumbles and recovered 14 fumbles and had 16 interceptions.

Starting his coaching career as offensive coordinator at Montgomery College-Rockville (Md.), Dailey also served as an assistant at Towson State University before beginning his AFL coaching career as an assistant with the Washington Commandos, whom he served as offensive and defensive line coach. He joined the Firebirds organization in 1991.

GLADIATORS' NOTES AND TRENDS



Out With the Old & In With the New

The 2004 season will begin with a new look for the Gladiators. The Gladiators revamped their team by adding 15 new players, including quarterback Clint Dolezel, OS Terrill Shaw and WR/LB Marcus Nash. The new faces are not the only new feature of the 2004 Gladiators, who will don new uniforms in a new division. The former Eastern Division franchise will now be wearing white jerseys with red stripes on the road and red jerseys with black stripes at home. Both jerseys will be worn with black pants. The team has also moved to what is arguably the AFL's toughest division, the West. The Gladiators will now face the Arizona Rattlers, Los Angeles Avengers and San Jose SaberCats each two times.

Specially Offensive

Offensive Specialist Terrill Shaw begins the 2004 season after a career year in Grand Rapids where he had 10 games with more than 100 yards receiving. Shaw completed the 2003 season as the Rampage's Team MVP and recorded career-highs in receptions (105), yards (1,658) and touchdowns (41). He also ranked among the league leaders in receptions (5th), receiving yards (2nd) and receiving touchdowns (3rd). In his only game against Colorado, Shaw had nine receptions for 134 yards and two touchdowns. Shaw is also entering the 2004 season with at least one touchdown reception in 16 consecutive games.

No Controversy

Every week during the 2003 season for the Gladiators asked the question of who was going to be the starting quarterback. The 2004 season finds the Gladiators as solid as any team in the league at quarterback with former ALL-AFL QB Clint Dolezel. In 2003, Dolezel threw for 4,430 yards on 362-of-546 completions and 89 touchdown passes for the Grand Rapids Rampage.

Milestone Watch

When the Red and Black enter Colorado on February 6th for the first time they will be starting a season with a few milestones on the horizon. QB Clint Dolezel is closing in on 25,000 passing yards and 500 touchdowns. He currently has 24,425 yards and 482 touchdowns. OS Terrill Shaw eyes 100 receiving touchdowns and 4,000 yards. He currently stands at 83 receiving touchdowns and 3,806 receiving yards. Kicker Daron Alcorn is one field goal from reaching 100 for his career.

Reunion

Former NFL superstar and current color commentator for the Gladiators, Mike Pritchard starred at the University of Colorado. He earned team Most Valuable Player honors during the Buffaloes 1991 National Championship season and later entered the NFL as the 13th overall selection in the first round of the 1991 NFL draft by the Atlanta Falcons. For his career, Pritchard played 10 years in the NFL, logging time with the Denver Broncos and Seattle Seahawks as well as the Atlanta Falcons. During his stints in both Denver and Seattle, Pritchard had weekly radio and television appearances, including his weekly "Pritchard's Picks" in Denver.

Receivers Connection

When you thought of the Gladiators receivers in 2003 there was only one name that stood out, Mike Horacek. This season, the Gladiators are Armed & Dangerous with one of the most prolific receiving corps in the league, headed by Terrill Shaw, Marcus Nash and Cornelius Bonner. The trio combined for 226 receptions and 75 touchdowns in 2003.

Double Dippin'

Going into his second season with the Gladiators, WR/DB T.J. Hill plans to see action on both sides of the ball. In 2003, Hill played strictly on the defensive side and finished second on the team with 63.5 tackles and tied for first on the team with 17 pass breakups. He also recorded four interceptions and two fumble recoveries.



Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from February 3, 2004


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