Playoff, finally! Xplorers win 37-12
Published on July 24, 2004 under arenafootball2 (af2)
Memphis Xplorers News Release
SOUTHAVEN, MS- The Memphis Xplorers of af2 made franchise history Saturday night, picking up their first playoff berth ever with a 37-12 victory over the Macon Knights before 6,286 excited fans at the DeSoto Civic Center.
QB Michael Wall completed 12 of 23 passes for 164 yards and two touchdowns, winning Baby Ruth Offensive Player of the Game honors for the night, as the Xplorers outdistanced themselves from a determined Knights squad in the second half.
The game couldn't have started out much worse for Memphis, as Macon used a surprise onside kick that gave the Knights the ball at their own 14 yard line. Less than two minutes later, Macon scored their first touchdown of the game, a 27-yard pass from QB Will Burch to WR Miacah cooper. Macon missed the extra point.
The score stayed 6-0 for the remainder of the first half, as neither team's offense could get any rhythm going. The Xplorers finally got on the board a minute into the second quarter, as Wall found a streaking Kevin Prentiss for a 28 yard touchdown completion. Prentiss finished with four catches for 76 yards and two touchdowns.
Kicker Steven Green hit the extra point, then later hit a 25 yard field goal to give the Xplorers a very tentative 10-6 lead going into halftime.
In the second half, the Xplorers watched as Macon took the opening kickoff and drove down the field, again scoring a touchdown on a Burch-to-Cooper connection for a 12-10 lead.
But that would be the last lead of the game for the Knights, as the Xplorers defense turned up the intensity to ludicrous levels, and the Xplorers offense started to find their niche.
WR/LB Ryan Karr, who won Army Ironman of the Game honors, was almost untackleable, gaining 35 of his 52 receiving yards after initial contact by the defenders. Karr scored a crucial touchdown from eight yards out with eight minutes to go in the third quarter, giving the Xplorers a 17-12 lead that they would not surrender again.
The Xplorers outscored Macon in the fourth quarter 20-0, as Kevin Prentiss caught his second touchdown of the night and WR/LB Deumaine Reeder found the endzone twice on runs in short yardage situations.
OL/DL Joseph Crear was named ADT Defensive Player of the Game. Crear recorded a crucial sack in the fourth quarter that thwarted a late Macon offensive drive.
The win was Memphis's 9th of the season, a new team record for victories in a single campaign. With the victory, the Xplorers clinched their first playoff berth in franchise history, guaranteeing themselves a better overall record than the Columbus Wardogs, their opponent for next week.
The Xplorers will likely not host a playoff game in the first or second round due to the seeding process for the af2 playoffs. Memphis's opponent for the first round of the playoffs will be determined in the final week of play.
The Xplorers will play one more regular season game next Saturday, July 31, as they travel to Columbus, Georgia to take on the Wardogs.
Game time is set for 6:35 PM CST. All sixteen regular season Xplorers football games will be heard throughout the Mid-South on SportsPlus 790 WMC, and worldwide on SportsJuice.com. In addition, all home games will be broadcast on X-Cast, a special in-house radio broadcast designed specifically for the DeSoto Civic Center. X-Cast airs on 107.9 FM, and can be received while in the DeSoto Civic Center by using a walkman or other personal radio. Fans can also watch the Xplorers during selected games during the season on AF2TV.com, which offers live streaming video and audio on a pay-per-view basis.
Be sure to tune in this Monday, July 26 at 5:30 pm CST to SportsPlus 790 WMC to listen to the Memphis Xplorers Coach's Show, starring Xplorers head coach Danton Barto and host Forrest Goodman.
For more information, contact the Xplorers office at 662-342-1755.
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