Quad City Steamwheelers game notes

June 29, 2004 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Quad City Steamwheelers News Release


QUICK FACTS:
Peoria Pirates (5-6) vs.
Quad City Steamwheelers (8-4)
Date: Friday, July 2, 2004
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. CDT
Site: The MARK of the Quad Cities (9,437)
National Anthem: TBA
Coin Toss: TBA
Officials: Tony Canella (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: The Steamwheelers hold a 5-2 edge over the Pirates. The Steamwheelers have won the last three games against the Pirates, including this season's first contest at Peoria 47-20.
Last Meeting: The Quad City Steamwheelers entered the Peoria Civic Center with the "Ruler of the River" traveling trophy. After 60 minutes of football in front of 5,278 fans, against the Peoria Pirates, the Steamwheelers retained the rights to the trophy with a 47-20 victory.
Streaks: The Steamwheelers are on a two game winning streak after losing three games in a row. The Pirates are also on a two game win streak, beating Louisville two consecutive weeks in a row.

Coaches:
Quad City — Rich Ingold (8-4; 31-13, Third season)
Peoria — Bruce Cowdrey (5-6; 32-21, Fourth Season)

THE STAKES: The Steamwheelers are in first place in the Midwest Division standings after another ‘Wheelers win this past weekend in Arkansas. The Pirates are looking for their third consecutive win on the season.
THE SERIES: The Steamwheelers hold a commanding 5-2 series lead, and defeated the Pirates earlier this season in Peoria.
THE IFs:
If Quad City defeats Peoria, it would ...
· Give Quad City a 6-2 all-time series lead
· Give the Steamwheelers their 12th regular season home victory in 13 games.
· Give Rich Ingold a 33-13 record as a coach

QUAD CITY STEAMWHEELERS (8-4, Won 2)
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
5/1 Green Bay 7:30 WIN 47-26
5/7 @Peoria 7:00 WIN 47-20
5/15 Wichita 7:30 WIN 73-39
5/22 @San Diego 9:00 Loss 62-52
5/29 BYE
6/5 @Louisville 6:30 Loss 62-61
6/12 W-B Scranton 7:30 Loss 46-39
6/18 @Green Bay 7:30 WIN 62-53
6/25 @Arkansas 7:30 WIN 54-29
Date Opponent Time Streak Series
7/2 Peoria 7:30 W-2 QC leads 5-2
7/10 @Tenn. Valley 7:30 L-1 QC leads 7-2
7/17 Birmingham 7:30 W-1 QC leads 2-0
7/24 BYE
7/31 Louisville 7:30 L-3 QC leads 4-1

PEORIA PIRATES (5-6, Won 2)
Date Opponent Time Result Score
4/3 @ Witchita 7:00 Loss 33-13
4/9 Arkansas 7:00 WIN 22-13
4/16 Wichita 7:00 Loss 47-26
4/23 @Tulsa 7:30 Loss 66-47
5/1 @Central Valley 9:30 WIN 34-33
5/7 Quad City 7:00 Loss 47-20
5/15 WB/Scranton 7:00 Loss 33-30
5/22 BYE
5/29 Albany 7:00 WIN 44-24
6/5 @ Green Bay 7:30 Loss 57-29
6/12 Louisville 7:00 WIN 35-31
6/19 @Louisville 6:30 WIN 51-50
6/25 BYE
Date Opponent Time Streak Series
7/2 @ Quad City 7:30 L-1 QC leads 5-2
7/9 @Bossier City 7:00 W-1 BOS leads 3-0
7/17 Columbus 7:00 L-2 PEO leads 2-0
7/24 @Birmingham 6:30 W-3 BIR leads 2-1
7/31 Green Bay 7:00 L-3 PEO leads 2-0

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 32-13 record in his two and a half seasons at the helm and has posted 11 of 12 regular season home victories.
Peoria's Bruce Cowdrey is in this fourth season as the head coach of the af2's Peoria Pirates. He also coached the Pirates to a perfect 17-0 record in 2000 when they were members of the semi-pro National Indoor Football League. Cowdrey has a storied coaching history as he has coached with the 1991 Grey Cup Champion Toronto Argonauts of the CFL as the offensive line coach. He was an assistant at Indiana State, Fort Hays State, Oklahoma State, Purdue, Northwestern, South Carolina, and Missouri.
LAST SERIES MEETING: The Quad City Steamwheelers entered the Peoria Civic Center with the "Ruler of the River" traveling trophy. After 60 minutes of football in front of 5,278 fans, against the Peoria Pirates, the Steamwheelers retained the rights to the trophy with a 47-20 victory. The Steamwheelers jumped out to a 27-0 lead with 4 minutes, 24 seconds remaining in the second quarter. Quarterback Ronnie Gordon threw for two of his four touchdowns; one each to offensive specialist Jeff Hewitt and the other to wide receiver/defensive back Tim Dodge. Gordon also rushed for a score.
SERIES NOTABLES: The Steamwheelers have swept the season series in three of four seasons. The Pirates swept the 2002 series. If history holds true, the Steamwheelers will sweep this season's series as they won the first meeting this season.
LEAGUE TOP 10s: Players from this week's matchup who rank among af2's statistical leaders:
STEAMWHEELERS' LEADERS
Player Rank Category Stat
Redoing Stats
From game
@ Arkansas
Will fix by
Wednesday













FAMILIAR FACES: Entering this Friday night's game, there are nine current Steamwheelers who have played for the Peoria Pirates at one time or another. Included in the list of former Pirates turned Steamwheelers are: quarterbacks Ronnie Gordon and Matt Pike, wide receiver/defensive back Billy Cook, wide receiver/linebacker Charles Sheffield, offensive linemen/defensive linemen Bear Brown, Rasche Hill, Jon Verdegan, Brandon Williams, and defensive specialist Chazz Moore. All will be looking to get revenge on their former team.

TALE OF THE TAPE: Here's how the Steamwheelers and Pirates stack up:
Statistical Steamwheelers Pirates
Category Rank Stat Rank Stat
Scoring Offense 8 52.1 25 31.9
Scoring Defense 4 40.0 2 39.5
Total Offense 5 276.6 25 189.4
Total Defense 9 248.2 6 232.0
Pass Offense 5 259.8 25 159.4
Pass Defense 15 253.3 7 214.5
Rushing Offense 16 16.8 2 30.0
Rushing Defense 3 12.8 12 17.5
Scoring (non-kick) 4 542 25 292
Scoring (kicking) 7 75 20 59
Pass Rating 5 113.2 25 85.9
Pass Def Rating 4 95.1 2 94.2
Kickoff Returns 9 20.0 12 19.8
MFG Returns 12 19.0 22 9.0
Turnover Margin 2 +10 18 -4
Field Goals 22 3-12 19 9-31
PAT Kicking 6 66-82 9 32-41
Sacks BY 6 20 16 12
Sacks Against 13 13 22 22
First Downs 13 175 25 137
Opponent 1st downs 12 176 3 155
Penalties 16 58.6 3 46.7
Opponent Penalties 20 59.8 19 64.5

STEAMWHEELERS INJURY REPORT:
Pos. Name Injury Status
FB/LB Elly Salamo Shoulder STIR
OL/DL Pete Traynor Foot LTIR
OL/DL Brandon Williams Knee LTIR
DS Michael Lewis Knee STIR
OL/DL Harvie Herrington Arm Questionable
MILESTONES: Three Steamwheelers are knocking on milestone doors — QB Ronnie Gordon, WR/DB Tim Dodge and OS Jeff Hewitt. Gordon broke the Steamwheelers single season rushing touchdown record and is adding to it with his season total climbing to 19. Dodge (1,273) and Hewitt (1,193) have both eclipsed the 1,000 receiving yards plateau.
DROPBACK: The Steamwheelers have rebounded nicely from a three-game losing skid with two consecutive victories, both coming on the road. The first a come from behind 62-53 win over the Green Bay Blizzard and the second coming at Arkansas. The Steamwheelers avenged last season's 63-61 ArenaCup playoff loss to the Twisters with a 54-29 thumping this past Friday. Offensive specialist Jeff Hewitt caught nine passes for 115 yards and three scores to go along with quarterback Ronnie Gordon's 16-of-31 for 256 passing yards, five touchdowns performance. Gordon rushed for a score.

FORWARD MOTION: The Steamwheelers will make their final road trip of the regular season and it may be the toughest one to date. They will have to travel by bus all the way down to Huntsville, Ala. to take on the Tennessee Valley Vipers. The biggest rivalry in the af2 kicks off at 7:30 p.m.

TEAM NOTES/TRENDS: The Steamwheelers only need one thing to happen, and they will walk away with a victory. Offensive specialist Jeff Hewitt just needs to catch three or more touchdowns and the Steamwheelers will walk away winners. At least that has held true in five games this season. The Steamwheelers have not lost a game when Hewitt hauls in at least three touchdowns. On the contrary, if he is limited to one or less, the Steamwheelers are 2-3.

KNOCKING ON HISTORY'S DOOR: In 2002, Steamwheelers offensive specialist Jeff Hewitt, then wide receiver/linebacker, watched as offensive specialist Ira Gooch and wide receiver/linebacker Chris Anthony both caught over 100 passes for over 1,000 yards and 30-plus touchdowns a piece to become the first duo in Arena Football history to do so. This season, both have already gone over the 1,000 receiving yards plateau. Dodge has 86 receptions for 1,273 yards and 20 touchdowns. Hewitt played a little catch-up this past weekend and is not far behind and has 79 receptions for 1,193 yards and 23 touchdowns. Right now, Dodge is on pace to finish with 115 receptions for 1,697 yards and 27 scores, while Hewitt is on pace for 105 receptions for 1,591 yards and 31 touchdowns.

CAREER RECORDS, TOO: Quarterback Ronnie Gordon is on a Steamwheelers record breaking pace this season. At the young age of 30, Gordon has already broken the Steamwheelers rushing touchdown record (below) and is not far off of setting other Steamwheelers career marks. Gordon needs three more rushing touchdowns to break the Steamwheelers mark of 22 set by Tony Zimmerman. He only needs 17 more rushing yards and 19 net rushing yards to break the Steamwheelers career records in both marks. In last weekend's game alone, Gordon rushed for 25 total yards and 24 net yards in a win over Arkansas. Gordon has rushed for a touchdown in every game so far this season as well.

GORDON ON PACE TO BREAK af2 RECORD: In the 2003 season, former Steamwheelers quarterback Tony Zimmerman rushed for 17 touchdowns, a Steamwheelers single season record. Through 12 games this season, quarterback Ronnie Gordon has accounted for 55 passing touchdowns and has now broken the Steamwheelers single season record as he now has 19. He will need to average two rushing touchdowns a game to tie the af2 single season record.
THE ‘GOLD' TD RUSH:
Player Games Rush TD's Pace
Tony Zimmerman 16 39 17
Ronnie Gordon 12 53 19 25

PLAYERS/MATCHUPS TO WATCH: Offense vs. Defense
Steamwheelers'/Pirates' Offense: The Quad City Steamwheelers has been one of the best this season, while the Peoria offense has struggled. The Steamwheelers are putting up 52.1 points per game, eighth best in the deuce. The Pirates are not fairing as well, scoring 31.9 points per game, ranking last in the af2. In order for the Pirates to win this game, they will need a big offensive night and hope that their defense can keep the ‘Wheelers out of the endzone and the points off of the board.

Steamwheelers'/Pirates' Defense: The Steamwheelers defense has ranked among the best in the league in scoring defense all season and are fourth after 13 weeks of play, giving up an average of 40.0 points per game. The Pirates are a half point better on defense, giving up an average of 39.5 points per game. The Pirates defense will need a big night to stop the ‘Wheelers eighth ranked offense.

KEY DATES IN TEAM/LEAGUE HISTORY: In June of 1987, the Arena Football League was officially born, with its first ever game taking place. The four-team league began with the Chicago Bruisers, Denver Dynamite, Pittsburgh Gladiators and Washington Commandos.

GETTING TO KNOW A STEAMWHEELER: This week's featured player is defensive specialist Matt Forbes. Forbes is a Davenport, Iowa, native and has a 5-year old son named Tyus. In his spare time, he loves to play video games and spend time with his son. He is the shortest and lightest player on the team. He loves pizza and hates seafood. Before games, the Davenport Assumption graduate likes to relax before hitting the field. He has played for the Oakland Athletics farm system prior to playing football.

af2 BABY RUTH REAL DEAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Week Team Player
13 Columbus Troy Bergeron

af2 U.S. ARMY IRONMAN OF THE WEEK
Week Team Player
13 Columbus Adrian Cockfield

af2 ADT DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Week Team Player
13 Macon Marcus Bradley

Trivial Pursuit
Oldest player: 39, Flint Fleming – 3/17/65
Youngest player: 23, Fred Barr – 1/5/81
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: 7
Players 6'5" or taller: 4
2004 Roster Breakdown
By College/University
California-Lutheran Purdue
California-Berkley – 2 Cal. St. – Northridge
Northern Illinois San Diego State Eastern Kentucky Simpson North Dakota State Grand Valley State SW Missouri State Illinois Indiana (PA) Vanderbilt Western Illinois – 2 SUNY-Morrisville Iowa – 4 William Penn Wis. – Stevens Point Louisville Northern Iowa

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 Jeff Hewitt
7 Wichita Ronnie Gordon
11 Wilkes-Barre J.R. Thomas (WBS)
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 Brian Berg
7 Wichita Bear Brown
11 Wilkes-Barre Tim Dodge
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 Danny Thomas
7 Wichita Jamaal Cherry
11 Wilkes-Barre Jamie Hattley (WBS)
13 Peoria
15 Birmingham
17 Louisville
Steamwheelers "When" Stats
4-1 at The MARK of the Quad Cities
4-3 on the road

4-2 vs. National Conference
4-2 vs. American Conference

2-2 vs. American Northeast
0-0 vs. American South
2-0 vs. American Mid-South
0-0 vs. National Southwest
3-1 vs. National Midwest
1-1 vs. National West

3-0 on Fridays
5-4 on Saturdays

3-1 in April
3-1 in May
2-2 in June
0-0 in July

4-1 when leading after the first quarter
2-3 when trailing after the first quarter
2-0 when tied after the first quarter

7-1 when leading at halftime
1-3 when trailing at halftime
0-0 when tied at halftime

8-1 when leading after the third quarter
0-3 when trailing after the third quarter
0-0 when tied after the third quarter

6-2 in games decided by 10+ points
1-1 in games decided by 4-9 points
1-1 in games decided by 3 points or less

1-2 when opponent scores more than 50 points
7-2 when opponent scores less than 50 points

4-2 when the ‘Wheelers scores more than 50 points
4-2 when the ‘Wheelers scores less than 50 points

4-2 when the ‘Wheelers scores first
4-2 when the opponent scores first



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