Nighthawks Outlast Wolves 58-51 in OT, Get first Win
May 5, 2002 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Norfolk Nighthawks News Release
Gary Briggs tied two af2 records and accumulated 268 total yards and four touchdowns in leading the Nighthawks (1-3) to a 58-51 overtime victory over the Mohegan Wolves (2-3). The win, in front of 4,882 fans, marked the first for head coach Tony Missick and avenged an earlier loss to the Wolves back in week three in Mohegan.
Briggs returned a kickoff and a missed field goal, each for 58 yards (the longest possible in arena football) and caught eight passes for 85 yards while proving to be too much for the Wolves to handle in Norfolk Saturday night. WR/LB Travis Burns also scored three touchdowns (two receiving and one rushing), including the game-winning score in overtime to propel the Nighthawks to their first win of 2002. All of Burns touchdowns came from the fourth quarter and beyond, making Wolves defenders miss frequently when it counted most.
"Travis and Gary really showed up when we needed them most", Missick commented, "This was a bigger win than I can even say right now, these guys deserve this after the effort they put forth tonight".
Norfolk jumped out to a 30-12 advantage in the second quarter, but Mohegan came back and tied the game 30-30 heading into halftime on a 39-yard Charles Eger field goal. Eger had a chance to win the game with no time on the clock at the end of regulation, but missed a kick from 28 yards to send the game into overtime.
In overtime, quarterback Roy Johnson flipped an end-around to Burns, who scampered nine yards for the go ahead score, making it 58-51 in favor of the Nighthawks. On the ensuing kickoff, K Matt McNew and OL/DL Abdul Shabazz-Wiggins combined to put a hit on Mohegan OS Brandon Burnside and force a game-winning fumble, which was recovered by WR/LB Jay Clarke to seal the victory.
The game featured Briggs and Burnside trading big plays throughout the game. Burnside finished with 142 yards on eight catches and three touchdowns, but it was Burns who scored the final two touchdowns of the game, one to tie and one to get the lead, while finishing with four receptions for 73 yards and rushing for nine yards.
ADT Defensive player of the game, Shabazz-Wiggins, totaled four tackles, one sack and one very timely forced fumble in OT, while applying pressure all night long to the Mohegan signal callers. Briggs earned MVP for his performance and newly signed DS Antwon Robinson returned an interception 31 yards for a touchdown to go along with three break ups and three tackles. WR/DB Dominic Banks finished the game with 2.5 tackles, one big interception in the fourth quarter and 49 yards receiving on six catches.
Norfolk quarterback Roy Johnson had an efficient game, completing 20-of-35 pass attempts for 226 yards and four touchdowns in his first full start of the season. McNew proved to be a valuable asset as he hit on all eight of his extra point attempts, including a 28-yarder due to a penalty, to tie the game and send it into overtime, then forcing a game-winning fumble on the Wolves first overtime possession.
The Nighthawks special teams, or the "Bruise Squad" as named by the Norfolk fans, scored two touchdowns and won the game with a turnover in overtime, while also containing the highly explosive Mohegan return team to limited yardage all night long.
Norfolk sustained 25 unanswered points by Mohegan, but came up with big play after big play to notch their first win of the 2002 season. The Nighthawks travel to Roanoke next week, while Mohegan will play host to the first place Albany Conquest.
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