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New York Dragons game notes

March 7, 2006 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
New York Dragons News Release


The Dragons are back on the road for the next two weeks and they start in Austin when they take on the Wranglers Sunday at 3:00 PM. The Dragons have a record of 3-3 and are 2-1 on the road. Austin has a record of 5-1 this season and are 1-0 at home. This is Austin's third year in the league but there has only been one meeting between the two clubs leaving the Dragons 0-1. The game will take place at the Frank Erwin Center.

LAST WEEK'S RECAP
Last Sunday the Dragons took on the Columbus Destroyers at the Nassau Coliseum for their third home game of the season. Despite the Dragons first half efforts, the Destoyers came back for the win after trailing 31-17 at the half. This makes the Dragons home record 1-2 and regular season record 3-3.

NEXT WEEK'S PREVIEW
The Dragons hit the road for the second consecutive week and their fifth away game of the season as they take on the Tampa Bay Storm. The two clubs have met six times and the Storm leads the all-time series 4-2 which includes their win when the franchises met in ArenaBowl X.

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DRAGONS' WEEK SEVEN PRACTICE SCHEDULE
Tuesday (3/7): 10:30-12:30 at Mitchel Field Practice Facility
Wednesday (3/8): 12:00-2:00 at Mitchel Field Practice Facility
Thursday (3/9): 12:00-2:00 at Mitchel Field Practice Facility
Friday (3/10): 10:00 AM Walk Through at Mitchel Field Practice Facility

To confirm the Dragons' practice schedule/time or to receive directions, please contact Kerri Griesbeck at 516-501-6889.

IF THE DRAGONS WIN, IT WOULD GIVE...
- The team a 4-3 record for the season and a 3-1 record on the road.
- The Dragons their 97th regular season victory and their 103rd of all-time.
- The team their 42nd victory since moving to Long Island in 2001.
- The Dragons a regular season and all-time record of 1-1 against the Wranglers.

DRAGONS BACK ON THE ROAD
The Dragons head back on the Road for Week Seven and Week Eight when they take on the Austin Wranglers followed by the Tampa Bay Storm. The Dragons will look to improve their road record from 2-1 to 4-1 over the next two weeks and their season record from 3-3 to 5-3.

DEFENDING THE EAST
The Dragons are currently 0-2 in the Division after their loss to Philadelphia in Week Three and Columbus in Week Six. The Dragons will face both teams again and have yet to face Dallas, the fourth division rival currently in first place in the division. Last season, the Dragons won the Eastern Division for the third consecutive season (2003-2005). The Dragons swept all of their Eastern foes (Columbus, Dallas and Philadelphia) with a perfect 6-0 record in divisional play.

GARCIA OUT FOR THE SEASON
In Week Five versus the Orlando Predators, QB Aaron Garcia suffered a fractured tibia in the third quarter. He underwent successful surgery last Wednesday and will be out for the season.

OBERT LEADS IN WEEK 5 AND WEEK 6
Rookie Kicker Jesse Obert was the leagues top kicker in week five, recording 2 field goals and going seven for seven on extra points. In Week Six he went 7-7 on PAT kicks and 1-1 on the field goals, giving him the highest field goal percentage among kickers in the league with 80.0 percent . His current season total for field goals is 4-5 and he is 37-40 on PAT kicks.

WOOD CONTINUING AT QB
Rookie QB Juston Wood started in Garcia's place for Friday's game vs. Columbus and will start in Austin as well. Before filling in for Garcia, Wood had previously seen playing time on the kickoff team, as well as holder, wide receiver and defensive back. He recorded his first touchdown on a 17-yard pass to Kevin Swayne when he subbed in for Garcia in the third quarter of Week Five. In Week Six versus Columbus, Wood recorded three touchdown passes and two rushes for three yards and two touchdowns.

BACKGROUND ON WOOD
Juston Wood attended Portland State University where he was two-time ADA Academic All-American and team captain as a junior and senior. He ended his college career ranked sixth in school history with 5,681 yards of total offense and was ranked in the top-ten in career passing yards (5,653), touchdown passes (37), completions (414) and 300-yard passing games (6).

In April 2003, Wood signed on as a free agent with the NFL's Minnesota Vikings and was later released after training camp. In 2004, he spent 18 weeks on the Los Angeles Avengers practice squad and later that year he joined the af2's Central Valley Coyotes where he also spent 2005. Wood was named second-team All-National conference at quarterback. He led the af2 in total offense with 282.4 yards per game and finished second in the league in passing yards per game with 272.6. In 2005 he posted a 106.92 passer rating in 16 games with the Coyotes, completing 60.5 percent of his throws for 4,361yards, 89 touchdowns and 19 interceptions. He also led the team in rushing with 158 yards on 34 carries, scoring 12 touchdowns.

DRAGONS AND BLAZE SET NEW AFL RECORD
Garcia and Germaine also greatly added to the 24-combined touchdown total, breaking the old record of 23 combined touchdowns in a game. The four remaining touchdowns were scored by Utah's Kevin Moffett on a net recovery with :03 left in the second quarter, Utah's Justin Skaggs on a one-yard run with 2:48 left in the third quarter, Dragons OS Kevin Swayne with a 54-yard kickoff return with 1:53 remaining in the third quarter, followed by FB/LB Bruce Blue scoring on a one-yard run with :00 left in the third. The previous records of 23 touchdowns was set on April 13, 2003 when Arizona (12) faced Los Angles (11) as well as on April 3, 2004 when Los Angeles (12) faced Austin (11).

GARCIA AN ALL-TIME GREAT
It was already known by most, but QB Aaron Garcia is now enshrined as one of the top-20 all-time great players in AFL history. During training camp, the league came out with their top-20 players from the first 20 years of the AFL. Garcia ranked 11th, one spot ahead of fellow former Iowa Barnstormer QB Kurt Warner. After Warner left the franchise, Garcia supplanted him as the franchise's star quarterback and the Dragons - or Barnstormers - have never looked back.

RETURNING DRAGONS
The Dragons have 11 players on their roster from their final 2005 roster. QB Aaron Garcia is the longest tenured Dragon at eight seasons. The complete list includes: WR/LB Chris Anthony, OL/DL Jamaal Cherry, DS DaShane Dennis, WR/DB Angel Estrada, OL/DL Stacy Evans, WR/LB Mike Horacek, WR/DB Will Holder, OL/DL Joe Laudano, OL/DL Marcus "Snowball" Owen, OL/DL Steve Scifres and OS Kevin Swayne along with Garcia.

DRAGONS WITH af2 EXPERIENCE
The Dragons have 10 players on their roster who have played in af2 at one point in their career. The list includes: WR/LB Chris Anthony, WR/LB Maurice Brown, OL/DL Jamaal Cherry, WR/DB DaShane Dennis, OL/DL Jon Hall, OL/DL Joe Laudano, FB/LB Richard McCleskey, K Jesse Obert, DS Dahnel Singfield, OL/DL Andrew Tippins, OL/DL Paul White and QB Juston Wood.

SITUATIONAL RECORDS
At Home 1-2 Opponents Scored First 1-1
On The Road 2-1 Ahead At Half 2-1
Friday Games 1-1 Tied At Half 0-0
Saturday Games 2-1 Behind At Half 1-2
February 3-2 Ahead After Three Quarters 1-1
National Conference 1-2 Tied After Three Quarters 1-0
Eastern Division 0-2 Behind After Three Quarters 1-2
Southern Division 1-0 Outcome 6 pts or Less 1-0
American Conference 2-1 Outcome 3 pts or Less 1-0
Central Division 1-1 Outcome 7 pts or More 1-3
Western Division 1-0 Outcome 4 pts or More 0-0
Garcia Throws Fewer Than 5 TD's 1-1 Overtime 0-0
Garcia Throws 5 TD's 0-0 Plus Turnover Margin 3-0
Garcia Throws 6 TD's 1-0 Even Turnover Margin 0-0
Garcia Throws 7 TD's 0-0 Minus Turnover Margin 0-3
Garcia Throws 7+ TD's 1-1

INSIDE THE HEADSET:
Every week, Dragons head coach Weylan Harding lets the fans get inside his headset in an open question and answer forum. Here's this week's journal.

Juston Wood looked great against Columbus this week, and the rest of the team made some stellar plays, despite a disappointing loss. What challenges and opportunities do you see for Wood and the team to make wins for the rest of the season?
WH: Consistency from all contributors will make or break our season. This team has the capabilities both physically and mentally to be a great team. Consistency is the key.

The team really let down in the second half which is a problem we haven't really seen this season. What do you feel was the main cause of this?
WH: I believe our team thought Columbus was going to lay down or something. We did not start that second half of play as if we had something to prove. You have to play hard from start to finish and leave no doubt when you have a team down. Our mistakes along with their consistent play did us in. Over confidence is the deadliest sin in sports.

Does it raise any concerns, coming off a loss to Columbus only to head back on the road for two straight?
WH: First of all, lets give Columbus their due. This is descent football club. They played hard throughout and forced that win. I feel indifferent about whether the next game is at home or on the road. We are concentrated on whatever it takes to win this game. Home or away doesn't matter.

Knowing that Austin is a strong team and the challenges you will have to face, What is your main focus this week?
WH: The focus is to get that football team that showed in the first half of the Columbus game to play a whole four quarters!

NY-AUSTIN CONNECTIONS:
New York's OL/DL Richard McCleskey played for the Wranglers in 2005 where he recorded 14 solo tackles and four assists and had 10 rushes for 33 yards and one touchdown. He also recorded three receptions for 18 yards.

Austin's DS Donvetis Franklin played for the Dragons from 2002-2004 where he recorded 230 solo tackles and 75 assists. He also had 62 returns for 1222 yards.

Austin's WR/LB Sir Mawn Wilson played for the Dragons in 2005 where he recorded 20 receptions for 287 yards and four touchdowns.

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GARCIA FIRST IN TD'S, SECOND IN COMPLETIONS AND YARDS:
Although he's currently injured, here is where Dragons QB Aaron Garcia stacks up against other quarterbacks in the league. Garcia remains one of the league's top passers. He's first all-time with 757 touchdowns and is second in all-time passing yards with 36,074 and in completions with 3,062. His recent injury will prevent him from reaching 800 touchdowns this season.

The All-Arena QB became the first player to reach the 700-touchdown plateau last season on April 29 at Dallas.

LIVING YOUNG:
The Dragons are led by one of the great defensive coaches in the AFL and he also happens to be the youngest in professional football. Weylan Harding enters the 2006 season at 34 years old -- 14 months and 13 days younger than the second-youngest head coach - Los Angeles' Ed Hodgkiss. However, Harding does not hold the distinction of being the youngest coach in league history. That honor goes to Kevin Guy of the 2000 New Jersey Red Dogs, who was 27 years old.

Team Coach DOB Age
NYD Harding 1/5/1972 34
LAA Hodgkiss 10/23/1970 35
PHI Munsey 8/19/68 37

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ARENA-BRED COACHES
The Dragons are the only team in the league to have their entire coaching staff comprised of former AFL players. In total, the Dragons' coaching staff has a combined 22 years of AFL playing experience and another combined 18-plus years as coaches.

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SWITCHING POSITIONS
DaShane Dennis and Jamaal Cherry have switched positions from 2005 and will now line up at DS and OL/DL, respectively. Bruce Blue began training camp as a lineman and has since converted to FB/LB. Although Cherry was listed at FB/LB last season, he played primarily as a defensive lineman in his rookie season.

THREE DRAGONS TO WATCH:

OL/DL Marcus "Snowball" Owen: An All-Ironman selection in 2005, Owen will once again anchor the offensive and defensive line of the Dragon. Linemen sometimes go unnoticed, but watch out for Owen's contributions on the offensive side.

OS Kevin Swayne: When he remains healthy, Swayne is one of the best receivers in the league. He's a big target for Garcia and one of his favorites, too. In Week One, Swayne caught three of the four touchdowns thrown by Garcia.

DS Dahnel Singfield: Singfield is off to a strong start in his rookie season. He has recorded 41.0 tackles in the first five games with 11 solo tackles in Week Two vs. Chicago. He also recorded five interceptions so far this season for a gain of 95 yards and one touchdown.

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ORIGINAL DRAGONS

QB Aaron Garcia is a New York Dragon through thick and thin. He is the only player to be a part of the team for each of its first five seasons on Long Island. Garcia made the move when the Iowa Barnstormers relocated to New York prior to the 2001 season. Garcia was traded to Iowa from New Jersey on June 2, 1998 for WR/DB Chris Spencer and OL/DL John Dixon. This is Garcia's 12th AFL season and ninth with the franchise.

OS Kevin Swayne has been the property of the Dragons for all six seasons, however he spent two seasons on the exempt list from 2002-2004. After a successful 2001 campaign, he was signed by the NFL's New York Jets and stayed there for three seasons. He returned to the Dragons mid-way through the 2004 season. Swayne also suited up for the Barnstormers from 1998-1999.

WR/LB Mike Horacek is the only other player to have played for both the Barnstormers and the Dragons. From 1997 to 2000, Horacek split time as a WR/DB and an OS with Iowa. He was the AFL's Offensive Player of the Year in 2000, his last with the team until he was selected in 2004 Dispersal Draft. The 2006 season is his second with the Dragons, but sixth with the franchise.

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