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Quad City Steamwheelers game notes

April 30, 2004 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Quad City Steamwheelers News Release


QUICK FACTS:
Green Bay Blizzard (1-2) vs.
Quad City Steamwheelers (3-1)
Date: Saturday, May 1, 2004
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m.
Site: The MARK of the Quad Cities (9,437)
National Anthem: Nancy Fox
Coin Toss: Judy Christenson of John Deere
Officials: Gus Golembiewski (Referee), Pat Bayers (Umpire), Donald Rager (Head Linesman), Robert Smith (Line Judge), Larry Orrico (Back Judge)
Radio: WFXN 1230 AM and KWPC 890 AM (Jim Albracht – Play-by-Play, John Furlong-Color)
TV: None
Series Record: Quad City leads the all-time series 2-0 as the Blizzard joined the af2 last season.
Last Meeting: The last time these two teams hooked up, it was in Green Bay, Wis., and it was Quad City putting a Blizzard of points on the board, as they hammered Green Bay 75-29.
Streaks: Last weekend the Steamwheelers suffered their first loss of the season and first loss in 18 regular season games. The Blizzard also fell last week to the
Coaches:
Quad City — Rich Ingold (3-1; 27-10, Third season)
Green Bay — Brian Noble (1-2; 1-2, First Season)

THE STAKES: This game will have a major impact on the National Conference Midwest Division standings. The two teams will be battling for room atop the division standings.

THE SERIES: With the Blizzard joining the arenafootball2 league last season as an expansion team, this will mark only the third meeting between the two teams. The ‘Wheelers took both contests last season.

THE IFs:
If Quad City defeats Green Bay, it would ...
· Give Quad City a 3-0 all-time series lead
· Give Quad City an 10-game regular season home winning streak
· Give Rich Ingold a 28-10 record as a coach

QUAD CITY STEAMWHEELERS (3-1, Lost 1)
Date Opponent Result Score
4/3 Manchester 7:30 WIN 71-32
4/10 @Manchester 7:30 WIN 45-42
4/17 Tennessee Valley 7:30 WIN 47-29
4/24 @W-B Scranton 6:00 Loss 40-27
Date Opponent Time Streak Series
5/1 Green Bay 7:30 L-1 QC leads 2-0
5/7 @Peoria 7:00 L-2 QC leads 4-2
5/15 Wichita 7:30 W-4 QC leads 4-1
5/22 @San Diego 9:00 W-1 QC leads 2-0
5/29 BYE
6/5 @Louisville 6:30 W-3 QC leads 4-0
6/12 W-B Scranton 7:30 W-3 QC leads 1-0
6/18 @Green Bay 7:30 L-2 QC leads 2-0
6/25 @Arkansas 7:30 L-2 QC leads 4-1
7/2 Peoria 7:30 L-2 QC leads 4-2
7/10 @Tenn. Valley 7:30 W-1 QC leads 6-2
7/17 Birmingham 7:30 W-3 QC leads 2-0
7/24 BYE
7/31 Louisville 7:30 W-3 QC leads 4-0

GREEN BAY BLIZZARD (1-2, Lost 1)
Date Opponent Result Score
4/9 @ San Diego Won 67-49
4/16 WILKES B/S Lost 39-75
4/24 @ Wichita Lost 53-68
Date Opponent Time Streak Series
5/1 @ Quad City 7:30 L1 0-2
5/8 CENTRAL VALLEY 7:30 L3 0-0
5/14 OKLAHOMA CITY 7:30 W2 0-0
5/22 LOUISVILLE 7:30 W3 1-1
5/28 @ Manchester 6:30 L1 0-0
6/5 PEORIA 7:30 L2 0-2
6/12 @ Birmingham 7:30 W3 0-0
6/18 QUAD CITY 7:30 L1 0-2
6/25 @ Albany 6:30 L3 0-0
7/3 BYE
7/9 ALBANY 7:30 L3 0-0
7/17 SAN DIEGO 7:30 W1 2-1
7/24 @ Louisville 6:30 W3 1-1
7/31 @ Peoria 7:00 L2 0-2

HEAD COACHES: Rich Ingold is in his third season as the Steamwheelers head coach after guiding them to a 2003 National Conference Midwest Division championship. Ingold has a 27-10 record in his two-plus seasons at the helm and has posted nine straight regular season home victories.
Green Bay's Brian Noble is a popular former Packer, who brings an impressive resume of NFL experience, leadership skills and community service. For nine years, Noble was a ferocious hitter and defensive leader as a linebacker for the Green Bay Packers and even earned "Rookie of the Year" honors. Brian led the team in total tackles four times and also displayed his toughness as a solid special teams player. Prior to his pro career, Noble was a standout football player at Arizona State University and Fullerton Junior College.

LAST SERIES MEETING: The Steamwheelers and Blizzard last met on July 5, 2003 in Green Bay with the Steamwheelers handing the Blizzard a 75-29 loss in front of 2,649 fans at the Resch Center.

SERIES NOTABLES: The last time these two teams met in The MARK of the Quad Cities, the Blizzard almost pulled off a major upset only falling 64-55. The ‘Wheelers had to hold off the Blizzard's attempts at a comeback.

LEAGUE TOP 10s: Players from this week's matchup who rank among af2's statistical leaders:
STEAMWHEELERS' LEADERS
Player Rank Category Stat
Tim Dodge 9 Scoring 48
Ryan Geisler 7 Scoring (Kick) 22
Tim Dodge 5 Receptions/Game 6.5
Tim Dodge 1 Rec. Yds./Game 122.2
Jeff Hewitt 7 Kickoff Ret. Avg. 25.2
Ronnie Gordon 9 Passing Yards 245.5
Jeff Hewitt 2 All-Purpose Yds. 205.8
Ronnie Gordon 3 Total Offense 248.8
Ryan Geisler 6 PAT Kicking 19-24
Matt Forbes 1 Fumbles Forced 2
Danny Thomas T-9 Fumbles Rec. 1
Carmelo Ocasio T-9 Fumbles Rec. 1
Danny Thomas 10 Tackles 18.0
Matt Forbes 16 Tackles 16.5
LaRico Cole 26 Tackles 13.0
Tim Dodge 35 Tackles 11.5
Fred Barr T-28 Sacks 1.0
Brian Berg T-28 Sacks 1.0
Harvie Herrington T-28 Sacks 1.0
Bear Brown T-28 Sacks 1.0


FAMILIAR FACES: The return of offensive specialist Randall Lane to the Quad Cities is here. Last season, Lane opened the season as the starting offensive specialist for the ‘Wheelers but after the first game was moved to wide receiver/linebacker. Lane played limited action the rest of the season as he battled injuries. In seven games he caught 17 passes for 190 yards, three going for touchdowns. He also had two kickoff returns for 36 yards.

TALE OF THE TAPE: Here's how the Steamwheelers and Wolves stack up:
Statistical Steamwheelers Blizzard
Category Rank Stat Rank Stat
Scoring Offense 15 47.5 7 53.0
Scoring Defense 4 35.8 T23 64.0
Total Offense 12 263.5 15 251.0
Total Defense 5 216.2 24 312.3
Pass Offense 9 253.2 12 248.0
Pass Defense 6 200.5 24 309.3
Rushing Offense 20 10.2 24 3.0
Rushing Defense 11 15.8 2 3.0
Scoring (Non-Kick) 6 164 10 146
Scoring (Kicking) T8 22 T18 13
Pass Rating 15 99.2 18 94.6
Pass Def. Rating 4 89.5 22 113.0
Kickoff Returns 7 21.6 21 16.2
MFG Returns T10 20.5 T23 0.0
Turnover Margin T5 +3 T15 -1
Field Goals T18 1 T21 0
PAT Kicking 10 .792 18 .650
Sacks By T5 9 T9 5
Sacks Against T16 5 T7 3
First Downs 10 50 19 39
Opp. First Downs 17 52 11 45
Penalties 23 237 T6 141
Opp. Penalties T23 246 12 175

STEAMWHEELERS INJURY REPORT:
Pos. Name Injury Status
OL/DL Harvie Herrington Leg STIR
OL/DL Pete Traynor Foot LTIR
OL/DL Brandon Williams Knee LTIR
OL/DL Brandon Graves Ankle STIR
OL/DL Jason Weite Hand STIR

MILESTONES: A system that Steamwheelers coach Rich Ingold has mastered is spreading the wealth to his receivers. He is mastering that again this season as Jeff Hewitt (347 yards), Tim Dodge (489 yards) and LaRico Cole (162 yards) have all been at the receiving end of quarterback Ronnie Gordon's passes. The trio is looking to match last year's record of thee 1,000-yard receivers.


DROPBACK: The Steamwheelers hit a major speed bump last weekend when they made the 13.5-hour trip to Wilkes-Barre, Pa., to take on the Pioneers. Despite trailing 20-14 at halftime the Steamwheelers could not get anything going in the second half and lost for the first time in 18 regular season games. ‘Wheelers quarterback Ronnie Gordon only complete 14 of 38 passes and took a beating as he was sacked once and hurried four times. The loss also dropped the ‘Wheelers from their No. 1 ranking in the coaches poll.

FORWARD MOTION: The Steamwheelers will hit the road to battle Midwest Division rival Peoria Pirates for the rights to the "Ruler of the River" trophy. The game will take place on Friday night at the Peoria Civic Center, with kickoff set for 7 p.m. The game will be televised on Mediacom Ch. 2.

TEAM NOTES/TRENDS: The Steamwheelers streak of 17 consecutive regular season victories was snapped last weekend when they fell to the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers 40-27. Their streak of nine consecutive regular season home victories is still in tact and will be put to the test this weekend against the Blizzard.

DODGE CONTINUING CONSISTENCY: Despite passing up numerous opportunities in the AFL and even a shot at the NFL, Tim Dodge returned to the Steamwheelers for a second season. After a stellar rookie season, Dodge's second season has been no different. Oh the season, the wide receiver/defensive back has caught 26 passes for 489 yards, eight going for touchdowns. He has a league best average of 122.2 receiving yards per game. On defense he has 11.5 tackles. Dodge still continues to live up to his nickname as the "60-Minute Man," as he is still playing almost every minute of every game.

WHERE DID THE "O" GO?: Last season the Steamwheelers were one of the league's top offenses. Things started off that way this season until the Steamwheelers ran into the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers. The 27-point output tied the lowest scoring total for any Steamwheelers team. The difference between the two games — the Steamwheelers won the last time they put up 27 points when they beat the Bakersfield Blitz in 2002. This time, the ‘Wheelers were on the losing side of the deal.

GORDON ON PACE TO BREAK ZIM'S RECORD: In the 2003 season, former Steamwheelers quarterback Tony Zimmerman broke an af2 record for touchdown passes in a season with 93. What many may have not noticed is that he rushed for 17 touchdowns as well. The 17 touchdowns is a Steamwheelers single season record. Through four games this season, quarterback Ronnie Gordon has accounted for 14 passing touchdowns and seven rushing touchdowns. If Gordon continues at this pace, he will crush Zimmerman's rushing touchdown total and tie the league record of 28.

THE ‘GOLD' TD RUSH:
Player Games Rush TD's Pace
Tony Zimmerman 16 39 17
Ronnie Gordon 4 16 7 28

PLAYERS/MATCHUPS TO WATCH:
‘Wheelers OL/DL Jamaal Cherry: Returning after an off season that included trips to the AFL and CFL, Cherry is back to add more to a line that struggled last weekend. Last season, Cherry had 6.5 tackles, two sacks, two tackles for losses, and two quarterback hurries in seven games. This will be the first game of the season for Cherry.

‘Wheelers K Ryan Geisler: So far this season, Geisler has been perfect on the road. In both road games, Geisler has made all nine point-after-touchdown attempts. He is 19-24 on the season and has a game winning field goal on his resume. Geisler is looking to go perfect at home for the first time this season tonight.

KEY DATES IN TEAM/LEAGUE HISTORY: May 2, 2003, the Steamwheelers defeat rival Peoria 55-52 to take back the "Ruler of the River" trophy. The "War on I-74" takes place twice a season and only 100 miles separate the two teams. In the game, quarterback Tony Zimmerman threw for 317 yards as he completed 22 of 30 passes, seven went for touchdowns. He also rushed for another.

GETTING TO KNOW A NEW STEAMWHEELER: This week's featured player is wide receiver/linebacker LaRico Cole. Cole hails from Memphis, Tenn. and has four children. They are TaQuita (10), LaRico, Jr. (7), Kayla (7) and Ayiana (4).He attended Westwood High School in Memphis where he was a three-sport star in football, basketball and track. In college at the University of Indianapolis, Cole was named Rookie of the Year and Defensive MVP.

af2 BABY RUTH REAL DEAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Week Team Player
4 Wichita Aaron Sparrow

af2 U.S. ARMY IRONMAN OF THE WEEK
Week Team Player
4 Tulsa Bjorn Barre

af2 ADT DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Week Team Player
4 Louisville Demetrius Forney

Trivial Pursuit
Oldest player: 32, Harvie Herrington – 2/4/72
Youngest player: 23, Brian Eyerman – 3/25/81
Tallest Player: 6'8" – Bear Brown
Shortest Player: 5'10" – Four Players
Heaviest Player: 350 – Bear Brown
Lightest Player: 175 – Matt Forbes
Native Iowans: 3
Colleges represented: 23
Iowa Colleges: 4
Illinois Colleges: 3
Players 300+ pounds: 3
Players 6'5" or taller: 1
2004 Roster Breakdown
By College/University
California-Lutheran Purdue
California-Berkley Cal. St. – Northridge
St. Ambrose Duquesne
San Diego State Eastern Kentucky
Simpson Southern Illinois
Grand Valley State SW Missouri State
Illinois Tenn. – Chattanooga
Indiana (PA) –2 Vanderbilt
Indianapolis Western Illinois – 2
Iowa – 4 William Penn
Wis. – Stevens Point Louisville

QC Home Baby Ruth Real Deal Offensive Player of the Game (selected by media)
Week Opp. Player
1 Manchester Jeff Hewitt
3 Tenn. Valley Tim Dodge
5 Green Bay
7 Wichita
11 Wilkes-Barre
13 Peoria
15 Birmingham
17 Louisville

QC Home GAME U.S. Army IRONMAN AWARD (selected by media)
Week Opp. Player
1 Manchester Harvie Herrington
3 Tenn. Valley Bear Brown
5 Green Bay
7 Wichita
11 Wilkes-Barre
13 Peoria
15 Birmingham
17 Louisville

QC Home GAME ADT DEFENSIVE PLAYER AWARD
Week Opp. Player
1 Manchester Danny Thomas
3 Tenn. Valley Matt Forbes
5 Green Bay
7 Wichita
11 Wilkes-Barre
13 Peoria
15 Birmingham
17 Louisville
Steamwheelers "When" Stats
2-0 at The MARK of the Quad Cities
1-1 on the road

0-0 vs. National Conference
3-1 vs. American Conference

2-1 vs. American Northeast
0-0 vs. American South
1-0 vs. American Mid-South
0-0 vs. National Southwest
0-0 vs. National Midwest
0-0 vs. National West

0-0 on Fridays
3-1 on Saturdays

3-1 in April
0-0 in May
0-0 in June
0-0 in July

3-0 when leading after the first quarter
0-1 when trailing after the first quarter
0-0 when tied after the first quarter

3-0 when leading at halftime
0-1 when trailing at halftime
0-0 when tied at halftime

3-0 when leading after the third quarter
0-1 when trailing after the third quarter
0-0 when tied after the third quarter

2-1 in games decided by 10+ points
0-0 in games decided by 4-9 points
1-0 in games decided by 3 points or less

0-0 when opponent scores more than 50 points
3-1 when opponent scores less than 50 points

1-0 when the ‘Wheelers scores more than 50 points
2-1 when the ‘Wheelers scores less than 50 points


2-0 when the ‘Wheelers scores first
1-1 when the opponent scores first



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