NIFL Week Eight Preview

Published on April 28, 2006 under National Indoor Football League (NIFL) News Release


Some key division and conference match-ups, and a battle of the undefeated... all this week in the NIFL.

The Montomery Maulers (1-4) will have a whole new look this weekend when the team travels to meet the Osceola in a 7pm game at the Silver Spurs Arena. Both of Osceola's losses this year have come against the unbeaten Fayetteville Guard; by a combined 6 point margin. An inexperienced defense may find Osceola star wide receiver James Panui having a career day.

Savvis Center in St. Louis will be noisy when the RiverCity Rage (4-1) return home to take on the expansion Arkansas Stars (2-3) on Friday night. Kick-Off is 7pm. The Rage is beset with injuries as starting quarterback Clay Groefsema, wideout Hurtis Chinn and defensive back Clarence 'CJ' Jones will be sidelined. Back-up QB Anthony Fisher will lead the Rage, number two across the board in NIFL Scoring Offense, Passing Offense and Total Offense in 2006. The Stars are led by former Arkansas Razorback running star Chrys Chukwuma, who had 10 carries, 94 yards and scored 3 TD's in his team's win last week over the Twin City Gators.

The Lincoln Capitols (0-5) will be looking for NIFL win number one in 2006 when the team heads north to tangle with the Wyoming Cavalry (3-3) in a 7pm game Friday night at the Casper Events Center. One bright spot for the Caps is special teams player Dennis Short, averaging 25.6 yards per kickoff return this year. Wyoming is coming off a big Pac Conference win over Beaumont last week and features quarterback Frank Borba, in the Top 10 in NIFL Passing Average and Total Offense.

And it's a battle of unbeaten this Friday night, when the Fayetteville Guard (5-0) take on the Lakeland Thunderbolts (5-0) in a 7pm shootout at the Lakeland Center. The Guard has the 2nd leading NIFL rusher in Odest Shannon, averaging 69.8 yards per game. Lakeland has the 3rd leading Scoring Offense with 53.8 ppg, while Fayetteville is fourth, averaging 50.2 ppg. Common opponents beaten by both teams include Greensboro, Montgomery and Florida. In the NIFL Massey Ratings, Fayetteville is first, Lakeland is third.

The NIFL action swings over to Saturday night when the West Palm Beach Phantoms (0-2) swing back into action to take on the Cincinnati Marshals (2-3) at the U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati. The Marshals are coming off a tough home loss to division rival RiverCity and will have either Deontey Kenner or Seth Ellis starting at quarterback. West Palm Beach features wide receiver Darnelius Jones, who has 12 catches for 173 yards and 3 touchdowns in the two games thus far.

The Beaumont Drillers (3-2) are coming off a bye week to travel to Monroe to take on the winless Twin City Gators (0-5) in a 7pm match-up on Saturday night in a Pacific South division game at the Monroe Civic Center. The Drillers feature linebacker Shane Winchester, 2nd in tackles in the NIFL, while the Gators give the home town fans something to cheer about, with most of the roster taken up with players from local Louisiana colleges and universities.

Another huge game with Pacific North division implications takes place on Saturday night when the Tri-Cities Fever (4-1) head to the MetraPark Arena to hook up with Billings (5-1), with both teams coming off victories last weekend. Billings has a 4 game win streak, Tri-Cities counters with 3 victories in a row, and the Fever can tie for the top spot in the Pac North with a win. Kick-Off is 7:05pm.

In the Atlantic North, the Dayton Bulldogs (1-3) will get another chance against the Tennessee Riversharks (2-3), this time on the road in a 7pm game Saturday night at the Camp Jordan Arena. Tennessee defeated Dayton 56-52 in week 6 action and now can claim inner-division honors with a win at home this weekend.

There's action in the NIFL on Sunday, when the Big Sky Thunder (0-5) look to get in the win column in a 3:05pm game against the Katy Copperheads (4-3) at the Merrell Center in suburban Houston. The Thunder is feeling the brunt of a first year NIFL team, while the Copperheads are hampered at the running back position.

And finally, the full weekend of games rounds out on Monday night, when the expansion Charleston Sandsharks (2-2) travel south to meet the Florida Frenzy (1-3) in a 7pm contest scheduled for the Seminole Hard Rock Café.

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National Indoor Football League Stories from April 28, 2006


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