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Los Angeles Avengers Game Notes

May 13, 2003 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Los Angeles Avengers News Release


QUICK FACTS:
Game: Los Angeles Avengers at San Jose SaberCats
Date: Saturday, May 17, 2003
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. (Pacific)
Site: San Jose, California
Arena: HP Pavilion (14,041)
Television: Fox Sports Net 2 (Bill Macdonald, Artie Gigantino)
Radio: XTRA Sports 690 & 1150 (Larry Kahn, Ed Cunningham)
Web Radio: http://www.xtrasportsradio.com
Series Record: San Jose leads, 5-2
Last Meeting: Los Angeles 73, San Jose 72 -- Feb. 9, 2003, STAPLES Center
Officials: Bill McCabe (R), Doug Wilson (U), Royce Cooley (HL), Gary Cavaletto (LJ), Joe Duncan (BJ)
Head Coaches: Los Angeles -- Ed Hodgkiss (second season, 19-10). San Jose SaberCats -- Darren Arbet (fifth season, 52-19).

THE AVENGERS: In their regular-season finale on the road versus the San Jose SaberCats, the Avengers will be playing their most significant game in franchise history. Not only will the contest determine the Western Division champion, more importantly the winner will receive the No. 1 seed and have home field advantage throughout the 2003 AFL Playoffs. Los Angeles has already been guaranteed a quarterfinal game at home within the friendly confines of STAPLES Center on Sunday, June 1.

One of the most dangerous offensive teams in the league, the Avengers are averaging 61.8 points in their last eight games. L.A. has won three of its last four games, including Saturday's sloppy 45-34 decision over the Colorado Crush. Avenger quarterback Tony Graziani, the leading candidate for AFL "Offensive Player of the Year" honors, has thrown for a league-leading 92 touchdowns in 15 games. Incredibly, he throws for a score once every 3.17 completions (and 5.06 attempts). Offensive specialist Chris Jackson has been on the receiving end of 45 of those touchdown tosses and will set an AFL single-season record with two more. Another star pass catcher, WR/LB Greg Hopkins has recorded his fourth consecutive 1,000-yard season and is in line to repeat as AFL "Ironman of the Year." The Avenger defense has also been playing well as of late, forcing 13 turnovers and allowing just 157 points in its last four outings (39.3 average).

THE SABERCATS: The defending ArenaBowl champions can enter the playoffs as the No. 1 seed for the second consecutive season and capture their third-consecutive Western Division title with a victory over the Avengers. They have lost just once at home this season and have won four games in a row. The SaberCats have won 5-of-7 meetings against L.A., including all three at home.

THE HEAD COACHES: One of the brightest offensive masterminds in the AFL and the leading candidate for "AFL Coach of the Year" honors, Ed Hodgkiss led the Avengers to a franchise-best 8-6 record and No. 5 seed in the AFL playoffs last season in his first year with the club. He became the head coach of the Avengers on Oct. 5, 2001, and signed a five-year contract extension shortly after the 2002 season. Not only did Hodgkiss lead the Avengers into the postseason for the first time in franchise history, he also instantly established the Avenger offense as one of the most feared in the AFL. In the final 2002 league statistics, the Avengers ranked at No. 2 in passing efficiency (115.0), No. 4 in total offense (275.6), No. 4 in rushing yards (20.8) and No. 5 in scoring (52.2). Prior to his arrival in L.A., Hodgkiss served as the offensive coordinator for the Indiana Firebirds for three seasons (1999-2001) ... Darren Arbet led the SaberCats to their first ever ArenaBowl world championship in 2002. In doing so, his team went 13-1 in the regular season and won a total of 16 games, both league records. Arbet was honored as AFL Coach of the Year in 2002, an honor he also earned in 2000, and his overall record in the league now sits at 52-19, which ranks him third in AFL history with a winning percentage of .732.

THE SERIES: San Jose leads the series, 5-2, but lost the previous meeting on Feb. 9, in dramatic fashion at STAPLES Center, 73-72. The Avengers won on FB/LB Mathias Vavao's one-yard touchdown dive as time expired and a successful two-point conversion completion from quarterback Tony Graziani to WR/LB Greg Hopkins. The Avengers have never won a game in San Jose. In fact, they have struggled mightily up north, losing by a combined three-game score of 208-99 (78-25 in 2000, 52-30 in 2001, and 78-44 last season).

THE NEXT GAME: The Avengers have earned a firstround bye in the upcoming 2003 AFL Playoffs. They will host a quarterfinal contest at STAPLES Center on Sunday, June 1. The game will kick off at noon (Pacific).

QUICK STRIKE OFFENSE: Seventy-eight of L.A.'s 119 offensive touchdowns this season have been scored on "drives" of three plays or less. In fact, 24 of them have been one-play "drives," including 10 touchdown catches by offensive specialist Chris Jackson. Ironically, two of the 41 "long" drives are the six-play, 13-yard gamewinning march in the victory over San Jose that consumed 25 of the final 26 seconds (Feb. 9) and the eight-play, 30- yard touchdown drive that killed off the final 34 seconds at New York (March 9). The Avengers have scored on five "zero-play drives" this season, including two in last week's victory over Colorado. Both came on 56-yard returns, with WR/DB Russell Shaw returning a missed field goal for a score and defensive specialist Cornelius Coe taking an interception to the house. The first "zero-play drive" of the season came on a net recovery by WR/DB Siaha Burley while covering a kickoff in the victory at Colorado (Feb. 23). At Indiana (March 16), OL/DL Mike Ulufale recovered a fumble in the end zone for a touchdown. Against Arizona (April 13), WR/LB Greg Hopkins returned an interception for a score for the ninth time in his AFL career, which is a league record.

STEADY IMPROVMENT: With one game remaining, the Avengers have already established a new high for regularseason victories with 11. After combining for eight wins in the franchise's first two seasons, Los Angeles had its first winning season in 2002.

THE "IF" SECTION:

If the Avengers defeat the SaberCats, it would ...
- Clinch the No. 1 seed for the 2003 AFL Playoffs, giving L.A. home-field advantage throughout
- Give the Avengers their first Western Division championship
- Mark the first time that L.A. has swept San Jose in the season series
- Be the first victory for Los Angeles in San Jose
- Give the Avengers a 16-6 record in their last 22 regular-season games, dating back to last season
- Be L.A.'s sixth victory in as many games televised on Fox Sports Net 2 this season

THIS WEEK'S QUOTES:

Avenger head coach Ed Hodgkiss on a sloppy victory over Colorado: "Our defense and special teams played very well and won the game for us. We talked about that earlier in the week and the guys responded. Defensively, we've been playing well the past few weeks and hopefully that will continue. We came out on fire offensively, but after J.J. Washington's unfortunate injury, we got out of sync. We need to get our confidence back on track for a great San Jose team that we are playing this week."

Hodgkiss on the play of WR/DB Russell Shaw: "We have a lot of good players in this program. He has worked hard all year long and took advantage of his opportunity to shine. We are good because we have a lot of guys like him. He deserved to be "MVP" and we are going to need that type of contribution to do something special."

Hodgkiss on being in position for a Western Division title and No. 1 seed: "It's a championship game for us. That is the type of game we want our franchise to be playing in. We need a good week of practice and a win to propel us into the playoffs. It will be a great challenge."

Hodgkiss on the SaberCats: "Until they get knocked out of the playoffs, they are still the defending champs and the team to beat. We were fortunate to beat them on a two-point play at end of game earlier in the season. They are having another outstanding year and are solid in every phase of game. It's a tough task to play up there. They beat a good Tampa Bay team soundly this past week. We are going to have to play flawlessly to stay in the game."

HEART-STOPPING HEROICS: Four of L.A.'s 11 victories in 2003 have come on the final play of the game. On Feb. 9, the Avengers defeated the San Jose SaberCats, 73-72, on a one-yard touchdown blast by FB/LB Mathias Vavao and a two-point conversion pass from Tony Graziani to WR/LB Greg Hopkins with one second left. The following week in a game on the road against the Colorado Crush, L.A. forced overtime with a field goal by Remy Hamilton on the final play of regulation and then won on a TD pass from Graziani to Hopkins. On March 9, the Avengers defeated the New York Dragons, 65-61, on a one-yard touchdown run by FB/LB Kevin Clemens with no time remaining. Their most amazing victory of the season came on March 30, at Orlando, as the Avengers rallied from a 12-point deficit in the final 35 seconds to defeat the Predators, 64-63. The "miracle" occurred as Graziani hit offensive specialist Chris Jackson to cut the lead to five with 19 seconds remaining and defensive specialist Cornelius Coe recovered an onside kick five seconds later. That set up another Graziani-to-Hopkins gamewinning TD on a "Hail Mary" pass off the rebound net as time expired. Three of L.A.'s four losses have also come in the final seconds (at Chicago on Feb. 23, vs. Arizona on April 13, and at Dallas on April 27).

AMONG THE LEAGUE'S HOTTEST: Winners in eight of their last 10, the Avengers are now 15-6 in their past 21 regular-season games. Only the defending ArenaBowl champion San Jose SaberCats, who are 16-5, own a better mark over that span of time. After winning five games in a row, the Orlando Predators are also 15-6.

THE TOUCHDOWN MAKER: Offensive specialist Chris Jackson's streak of scoring at least one touchdown in every game he has played in for the Avengers ended on May 10, 2003 against the Colorado Crush at 47 games.

In 48 games, Jackson has accounted for 117 TDs. All but five of those scores came as a pass receiver. Jackson's other touchdowns were as a runner, kickoff returner and three as a passer. He has caught a touchdown pass in all but one of his games with the Avengers (June 8, 2002, vs. San Jose), but in that contest he ran back the opening kickoff 51 yards for a score, keeping "The Streak" alive.

Jackson is L.A.'s all-time leading receiver and scorer. He has racked up 352 receptions for 4,931 yards and has scored 692 points in his four-year Avenger career. "Touchdown" Eddie Brown of the Indiana Firebirds is believed to be the AFL's record holder for touchdowns in consecutive games, with scores in 65 straight. But, no player in AFL history has scored touchdowns in more consecutive games to begin a career than Jackson.

RECORD "D" DAY: On April 18, the Avengers held the Buffalo Destroyers to just 14 points, establishing a new team record. That eclipsed the record set earlier in the season, when the Avengers limited the Indiana Firebirds to 20 points on March 16. The 24 points allowed by the Avengers in their victory over the Tampa Bay Storm on May 17, 2002, had been the all-time best for the L.A. defense at home. It surpassed the effort in the 2002 season opener, which saw the Avengers defeat the New York Dragons, 43-25, on April 19, 2002, which was Ed Hodgkiss' first game as the Avenger head coach.

WELL BALANCED: The Avengers are the only team in the AFL to have four players with more than 1,000 allpurpose yards this season. Offensive specialist Chris Jackson (1,708), WR/DB Siaha Burley (1,185),WR/LB Greg Hopkins (1,149) and WR/DB Kevin Ingram (1,129) have combined for 5,171 yards in 15 games this season (the equivalent of 2.9 miles). Only four other AFL teams (Arizona, Dallas, Grand Rapids and San Jose) are even close, with three players over 1,000 all-purpose yards.

ALL-PURPOSE AVENGER: Over the past three seasons, L.A.'s new offensive weapon Siaha Burley has racked up the second most all-purpose yards in the league (5,732). That yardage is the equivalent of 3.2 miles. With 282 yards on May 11, 2003, Las Vegas WR/DB Sedrick Robinson surpassed Burley for the top spot. Acquired in a trade with the Orlando Predators, Burley moves to the WR/DB position (he was primarily an offensive specialist with the Predators). His single-game high as an Avenger came against his former team, as he racked up 169 allpurpose yards in L.A.'s victory at Orlando on March 30.

PLAYING SMART: The Avengers are the AFL's thirdleast penalized team, averaging just 5.3 flags per game (33.3 yards). This brings a smile to the face of head coach Ed Hodgkiss, whose motto is "Play Hard, Play Smart." L.A. was especially sharp in the season opener on Feb. 2, getting called for only two penalties for a loss of just a yard, establishing a pair of new team records.

HOT TICKET: Four of the five largest crowds to ever see the Avengers play have come this season. In consecutive games (Feb. 16, at Colorado and Feb. 23, at Chicago), the Avengers played before their two largest crowds in team history. The Avengers are averaging 13,219 fans at home this season in seven games at STAPLES Center.

THE ORIGINAL AVENGER: Offensive specialist Chris Jackson is the only player on L.A.'s 2003 roster who played for the Avengers in their inaugural 2000 season (he was an WR/LB at the time).

ELEVEN WINS: The last professional football team in the Los Angeles area to win 11 or more regular-season games was the 1990 Los Angeles Raiders, who went 12-4 before advancing to the AFC Championship game. (The Los Angeles Rams went 11-5 in 1989, before reaching the NFC Championship game.)

BIG MEN CAN CATCH: While L.A.'s well-known receivers get all the headlines, five Avenger linemen -- Mathias Vavao (converted into a fullback/linebacker), Tony Plantin, Vince Amey, John DeWitt and La'Zerius White -- have quietly made a "heavy" impact in the passing game since the beginning of last season. Those five players, who weigh a combined 1,520 pounds, have caught a total of 26 passes for 329 yards in the past 29 games. That's an average of 12.7 yards per reception for the "big men." This statistical comparison will forever be known as "The Arthur D. Gigantino Key to Success" in honor of Avenger Fox Sports Net 2 color commentator Artie Gigantino, who has been known to say, "Throwing to those big guys always works."

RECORD SETTING SIGNALCALLER: Quarterback Tony Graziani has set 14 team records during his three-year career with the Avengers.

LONG SUNDAY DRIVE: The Avengers put together what might have been the longest drive in the history of the Arena Football League versus the Indiana Firebirds on March 16, using 17 plays to march 47 yards. The touchdown drive consumed an incredible 10 minutes and 14 seconds. Furthermore, 11 plays occurred after L.A. reached Indiana's one-yard line.

DEFENDING THE HOME FRONT: In the "Ed Hodgkiss Era," which began at the beginning of the 2002 season, the Avengers have been particularly stingy on defense at home, allowing just 45.5 points per game at STAPLES Center (683 points in 15 games).

EARLY FIREWORKS: In addition to late-game heroics (four victories on the final play of the game in 2003), the Avengers have also been good at the start, scoring on their first offensive snap of the game four times this season -- in the season opener against Las Vegas (Feb. 2, Chris Jackson), at Chicago (Feb. 23, Kevin Ingram), at Indiana (March 16, Jackson) and against Carolina (April 4, Jackson). On April 4 against Carolina, the Avengers scored touchdowns on their first three offensive plays, the other two going to WR/LB Greg Hopkins.

THE MILLENNIUM'S FINEST: Offensive specialist Chris Jackson and WR/LB Greg Hopkins are not only L.A.'s top pass catchers, they're also the most productive in the AFL since the dawning of the new millennium. Jackson ranks first with 352 for 4,931 and Hopkins is second with a grand total of 399 receptions for 4,919 yards since the 2000 season.

BLOWING PAST THE CENTURY MARK: Although he was held scoreless for the first time in his career in last week's victory over Colorado, offensive specialist Chris Jackson has scored 114 touchdowns in his 48-game AFL career. Only 16 other players in AFL history, including teammate Greg Hopkins (167), are members of the "Century Club." ("C.J." has also passed for three touchdowns, all this season, but they don't count in his official scoring totals.)

Top Scorers in Avenger History
Player TDs Points
Chris Jackson (2000-present) 114 692
Greg Hopkins (2002-present) 59 358
Remy Hamilton (2002-present) 0 274
Travis Hannah (2000-01) 27 162

PERFECT GAME: Avenger quarterback Tony Graziani tossed a "perfect game" against the Las Vegas Gladiators on opening day (Feb. 2). His passer rating of 158.3 from that contest is the highest mark possible and ties an AFL record. In the 60-48 victory, Graziani was 18-of-23 for 288 yards. He threw a 31-yard touchdown pass to offensive specialist Chris Jackson on the first play of the 2003 season and went on to throw for a total of seven scores. Graziani also rushed for a touchdown from three yards out to cap the scoring with 53 seconds remaining.

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