Lions Host Hammers On Military Appreciation Night
March 29, 2012 - Professional Indoor Football League (PIFL)
Columbus Lions News Release
COLUMBUS, GA (March 29, 2012) - Riding a current two-game winning streak, the Columbus Lions (2-1) of the Professional Indoor Football League (PIFL) look to make it five straight over the Alabama Hammers (0-2) when they host them at 7:30 PM this Saturday night for "Military Appreciation Night."
Over the years, "Military Appreciation Night" has become one of the biggest spectacles to look forward to each and every season. Unfortunately for their opponents, the past four years the spectacle has not gone so well getting outscored 249-78 with the Lions 5-0 all-time when hosting "Military Appreciation Night."
"I always tell fans if you must miss a game, make sure it's not this one," says Columbus Lions Head Coach Jason Gibson. "The atmosphere in the building is always electric and this year should be no different as we expect around 1,500 soldiers from Ft. Benning to be in attendance."
Last Saturday, Columbus found themselves behind the Hammers on two different occasions including at one point down by three with just eight minutes remaining. Behind two fourth quarter interceptions, one by David Smith and Anthony Merritt, along with two offensive touchdowns the Lions defeated the Hammers 56-43.
After their first two games, the Lions defense silenced some of their critics on Saturday coming up with six total turnovers including two interceptions by defensive back Jeff Lemon along with one interception and fumble recovery by defensive back David Smith.
In spite of being in the midst of a two-game winning streak, Head Coach Jason Gibson is not easily amused especially considering his two wins have come against opponents that are winless.
"Every game so far has been a battle to the end, and we easily could be 0-3 right now" continues Gibson. "We have to continue to get better and minimize our mistakes because each week is going to be a dog-fight not matter the opponent."
In four previous meetings, Columbus has outscored the Hammers 265-147 owning the series 4-0. Alabama has had to overcome deficits of 21 and 15 in their first two games coming back to tie the Swashbucklers in their first game and even took the lead this past Saturday on different occasions against the Lions. Despite averaging 209 passing yards, Alabama has thrown a league-leading eight interceptions and has the second worst turnover margin (-6).
On Saturday with kickoff at 7:30 PM, the first 1,500 fans in attendance will receive a free Koozie courtesy of Cable TV of East Alabama.
Saturday's game against the Hammers can be heard live by logging on to www.columbuslions.net and clicking on the Listen Live icon.
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