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Locos Shoot For United Football League Championship Three-Peat

October 19, 2011 - United Football League (UFL 1) News Release


Friday night at the Virginia Beach Sportsplex will feature the old championship hands against the new kids on the block to determine who wins the 2011 United Football League Championship Game.

On Friday at 8pm Eastern, the two-time defending UFL champion Las Vegas Locomotives will play the Virginia Destroyers for the league's third title after both teams finished the regular season with 3-1 record.

Virginia and Las Vegas already faced each other once at the Sportsplex, with the Destroyers coming out on top, 34-17, in Week 2. In that game, Virginia quarterback Chris Greisen was 18-for-23 for 204 yards and two touchdowns, and veteran running backs Dominic Rhodes and Adrian Peterson each ran for a score. Locos backup quarterback Brian Brohm came off the bench in the second half to throw a pair of touchdown passes.

Rhodes, an eight-year National Football League veteran and former Super Bowl hero for the Indianapolis Colts, has been a standout in the UFL since day one. In 12 regular-season games, Rhodes has scored at least one touchdown in 11 of them, and he is the UFL all-time touchdown leader with 16.

Also on Friday night, the Omaha Nighthawks (1-3) will play host to the Sacramento Mountain Lions (1-3) in a second UFL postseason game that will effectively earn the winner third place at 7pm Central (8pm Eastern) at TD Ameritrade Park.

Omaha and Sacramento played at Hornet Stadium in Week 3, and the Nighthawks prevailed at the final gun, 33-30. Nighthawks kicker Jeff Wolfert had the best game for a player at his position in league history in that contest as he hit the game-winning 39-yard field goal as time expired, his 56-yard field goal in the third quarter was the longest in league history and he became the first player to hit two field goals of 50 or more yards in a game (56 and 54).

Omaha leads the all-time series with Sacramento by 2-1.

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HERE WE GO AGAIN ‚¬Â¦

Some players from both the Las Vegas Locos and Virginia Destroyers are playing in their third UFL Championship Game. For the 16 Locos three-timers, it is an opportunity to add a third ring to their collection, while for the seven former Florida Tuskers now on the roster of the Destroyers, it is about hoping third time is a charm and they can banish the heartache of two previous postseason losses. Locos defensive end Josh Cooper suffered a UFL Championship Game defeat with Florida in 2009 then tasted success with the Locos in 2010.

Las Vegas Locos players: Branndon Braxton, T; Jesse Boone, C; Adam Bergen, TE; Andrae Thurman, WR; Marcel Shipp, RB; Lauvale Sape, DT; Eric Henderson, DE; Brandon Moore, LB; Teddy Lehman, LB; Wale Dada, CB; Danny Baugher, P; Trey Young, CB; Marcus Riley, LB; Rigo Morales, LS; Samie Parker, WR; DeDe Dorsey, RB; Josh Cooper, DE ( ‚¬Ëœ09 with Florida, ‚¬Ëœ10 with Las Vegas)

Virginia Destroyers player (all former Florida Tuskers): Anthony Davis, G; Chris Greisen, QB; McKinley Boykin, DT; Terrence Melton, LB; Jerome Carter, S; Darius Vinnett, CB; Seth Wand, T

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UFL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME HISTORY

In the inaugural UFL Championship Game in 2009, the Locos topped the Florida Tuskers in overtime, 20-17, in front of 14,801 fans at Sam Boyd Stadium. The winning points came off the foot of Las Vegas kicker Graham Gano, who hit a 33-yard field goal just 1:43 into the extra period. Locos nickel back Isaiah Trufant picked off Tuskers quarterback Brooks Bollinger to set up the game-winning points. Las Vegas running back DeDe Dorsey was named the game's Most Valuable Player after scoring two fourth-quarter touchdowns (runs of 38 and 1 yards) which twice gave the Locos the lead. Dorsey finished the game with 66 yards on 11 carries and 32 yards on four catches.

The 2010 UFL Championship Game was played in front of 15,310 fans at venerable Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha, and, once again, the Locos and Tuskers clash came down to the final snap. A blocked field goal by Las Vegas defensive tackle Alfred Malone allowed Las Vegas to come away with a 23-20 win. The eventual game-winning points were scored with 5:53 left in the third quarter, as Locos running back Hakim Hill scampered 37 yards down the right sideline for a touchdown. Las Vegas quarterback Chase Clement was the game's MVP, going 15-for-24 for 239 yards, two touchdowns and an interception, and running for 30 yards on five carries.

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WEEK 5 PLAYERS OF THE WEEK

Offense - McLeod Bethel Thompson, QB, Sacramento Mountain Lions

Defense - Angelo Crowell, LB, Omaha Nighthawks

Special Teams - Aaron Woods, WR, Sacramento Mountain Lions

Bethel-Thompson made his first professional start in Saturday night's 27-20 overtime home win over the Virginia Destroyers. He finished the game going 25-for-46 for 260 yards, two touchdowns and one interception, and he ran four times for 18 yards.

Crowell was a defensive standout in the Nighthawks' 13-6 loss at home to the Las Vegas Locomotives on Saturday night, posting five total tackles, 2 1/2 tackles for a loss and two sacks.

Woods once again set the UFL record for longest kickoff return with a 47-yarder in Saturday's victory. He returned three kickoffs for 97 yards and two punts for 21 yards in the win.

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TIME FOR A POSTSEASON SUCCESS

It shouldn't come as any surprise that a Marty Schottenheimer-led team would succeed at home. The 2006 San Diego Chargers went 8-0 at home during the regular season, meaning Schottenheimer has won his last 10 regular-season home games. Schottenheimer's last home win in the postseason, however, came on January 8, 1994 - a 27-24 overtime win over the Pittsburgh Steelers while coaching the Kansas City Chiefs.

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The game will air live on Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic in the Hampton Roads region and on the [2]www.UFL-Football.com webcast powered by Veetle and sponsored by ConAgra Foods as DAVE JOHNSON and JERRY GLANVILLE call the game in the booth. Comcast SportsNet California will also air the game in to Mountain Lions fans back in Sacramento.

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FINAL 2011 UFL STANDINGS

TEAM W L PCT. PF PA HOME ROAD

Virginia Destroyers 3 1 .750 105 63 2-0 1-1

Las Vegas Locomotives 3 1 .750 83 67 1-0 2-1

Omaha Nighthawks 1 3 .250 62 96 0-2 1-1

Sacramento Mountain Lions 1 3 .250 80 104 1-2 0-1

UFL POSTSEASON SCHEDULE (All times local)

CHAMPIONSHIP GAME - Friday, October 21

Las Vegas at Virginia, 8 p.m. EDT

CONSOLATION GAME - Friday, October 21

Sacramento at Omaha, 7 p.m. CDT

UFL POSTSEASON PREVIEWS

Third UFL Championship Game - Las Vegas Locomotives (3-1) at Virginia Destroyers (3-1), Friday, 8 p.m. Eastern

ALL-TIME SERIES: Virginia 1, Las Vegas 0.

LAST MEETING: Virginia 34, Las Vegas 17 (September 24, 2011).

BROADCAST:

Live TV: Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic with Brent Harris and Jerry Glanville

Live web stream: UFL web stream powered by Veetle and sponsored by ConAgra Foods, [3]www.UFL-Football.com

Live Destroyers Radio: ESPN 94.1 [4]http://www.espnradio941.com/

Live Locos Radio: FOX Sports Radio 920 AM; [5]http://werlv.com/

NOTES: Las Vegas is looking for a rare alternative football three-peat... Locos quarterback CHASE CLEMENT was the 2010 UFL Championship Game MVP and threw one interception during the 2011 regular-season... Las Vegas cornerback MARQUIS FLOYD had eight total tackles and a fumble recovery in Week 5... Locos kicker CLINT STITSER has five field goals in the last two games... Las Vegas is 8-3 all-time in road / neutral-site games... Virginia is looking to become the second UFL team to win a league title at home (Las Vegas in 2009)... Destroyers quarterback CHRIS GREISEN is 6-2 all-time as a UFL starting quarterback... Virginia defensive end STYLEZ G. WHITE had a sack, two tackles for loss and three solo tackles in his UFL debut in Week 5... Destroyers kicker DELBERT ALVARADO is 7-for-8 on field goals this season... This is Destroyers Head Coach/General Manager MARTY SCHOTTENHEIMER's 14th professional postseason as a Head Coach.

Sacramento Mountain Lions (1-3) at Omaha Nighthawks (1-3), Friday, 7 p.m. Central

ALL-TIME SERIES: Omaha 2, Sacramento 1.

LAST MEETING: Omaha 33, Sacramento 30 (October 1, 2011).

BROADCAST:

Live Nighthawks Radio: KOZN 1620AM; [6]http://1620thezone.com

Live Mountain Lions Radio: KHTK Sacramento [7]http://sacramento.cbslocal.com/

NOTES: Sacramento has posted two of the top five scoring games in the UFL this season (30 and 27 points)... Mountain Lions rookie quarterback McLEOD BETHEL-THOMPSON threw for 260 yards and two touchdowns in his first professional start in Week 5... Sacramento linebacker MICHAEL TAUILIILI had nine total tackles, two tackles for loss and a fumble recovery last week... Mountain Lions return specialist AARON WOODS once again set the league record for longest kickoff return (47 yards) in Week 5... In the last two seasons, Sacramento is 4-2 on or after October 15... Omaha is looking to snap a four-game home losing streak... Nighthawks rookie quarterback JEREMIAH MASOLI passed for 154 yards and ran for 52 in Week 5... Omaha safety STUART SCHWEIGERT had two total tackles and an interception last week... Nighthawks kicker JEFF WOLFERT has made seven field goals this season... Omaha is 3-0 all-time in games decided by 3 points or less.



United Football League Stories from October 19, 2011


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