Lions sign receiver Slye, head to Augusta
March 23, 2007 - World Indoor Football League 2 (WIFL 2)
Columbus Lions News Release
COLUMBUS, GA, March 23 -- Back in action after a bye week, the Columbus Lions (2-0) resume World Indoor Football League action Saturday at 7:30 p.m. on the road against the Augusta Spartans (1-1), featuring newly signed wide receiver Jordan Slye out of the University of Hawaii.
The 22-year-old Slye, 6'4" and 210 pounds, played quarterback at Franklin High School in Seattle and Compton Jr. College, before being recruited to the University of Washington by then-head coach Rick Neuheisel, only to spend time at safety and later receiver. He transferred to June Jones' high-powered Hawaii Rainbows offense for his junior and senior seasons.
"Jordan's a big receiver, which we didn't have," said Lions head coach Jason Gibson. "He's got great hands, knows how to make catches and hang onto the ball. He doesn't have blazing speed, but we're excited to have him, especially with Jarwarski Pollock completely heathy for the first time. Throw in Silas Daniels and Juval Winston, and we've got four receivers as good as anyone in the league."
Another Lion returning from injury is linebacker Roshard Gilyard, previously hampered by a banged-up knee. Defensive lineman Omar Billy is back from a two-day tryout with the Arena Football League's Georgia Force, who elected not to sign him after he had prior looks with the Colorado Crush and Kansas City Brigade. Gibson is also giving a start to rookie DL Michael Stewart, whom he describes as "deserving of this chance, showing a lot of passion and heart since the beginning of training camp".
The Spartans pose a challenge in several ways for the undefeated Lions, says Gibson. "They've got a great defensive line and two of the best receivers in the league in Anthony Young and Marvin Stone. We just want to contain them and hope to be in the game with a chance to win late.
"Truth be told," continued Gibson, "What I want to see is continued improvement each game, watching our team get better and better, learning the indoor game, staying healthy and executing the offense. The good defense and special teams are expected. We need (quarterback) Andrew McKay to make good reads and regain the accuracy he had in our first road game. If these things happen, I'm not as worried about wins and losses right now, as we'll be better off in the long run with consistent improvement."
Placekicking, which has provided the three-point margins of victory in both Lions wins, will be handled tomorrow by Wes Wilson, who missed the last home game to be with his Jordan High School basketball team as they won the Georgia 3A state championship. Wilson teaches and coaches at Jordan, and the kicking position was ably handled last game by Gene Davis, who kicked for a WIFL-high ten points and the winning field goal with two seconds left in the March 10 win over Osceola.
World Indoor Football League 2 Stories from March 23, 2007
- Lions sign receiver Slye, head to Augusta - Columbus Lions
- Spartans starting quarterback still up in air - Augusta Colts
- GhostRiders get well-deserves rest after big win - Osceola Ghostriders
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