Rage back at Savvis Friday
April 26, 2006 - National Indoor Football League (NIFL)
RiverCity Rage News Release
Asked if he like to play golf, RiverCity Rage Head Football Coach Mike Wyatt on Wednesday shook his head and replied "I've never played, never much cared for it, and now I have a new reason to dislike it altogether."
Fore!
RiverCity Rage starting quarterback Clay Groefsema was injured on Monday afternoon when he jumped off a golf cart to avoid a ball hit in his direction, landed the wrong way, suffered a dislocated ankle and fractured bone, had surgery on Tuesday morning, and will be sidelined a minimum of 6 to 8 weeks.
But Wyatt says that when the team faces the Arkansas Stars on Friday night at Savvis Center "our offense won't miss a beat, because whenever Anthony Fisher has been called on to perform for this football team, he's done just that. Clay's advantage is more on field experience, but 'Fish' has the ability to step in and get the job done."
With success staring him square in the eye, Fisher hasn't blinked so far. In 2005, he completed 22 of 40 passes, good for 294 yards and 7 touchdowns. He was intercepted 7 times.
This season the 6' 240lb Southern University grad has a Pass Rating of 146.78, with 7 completions in 11 attempts, good for 98 yards and 3 TD's. He's rushed for 11 yards in 3 attempts, scoring one touchdown.
He'll take over an offense rated at the top of the National Indoor Football League, with 430 rushing and 975 passing yards on 260 plays for a total of 1,405 total yards. The team has scored 43 touchdowns and averaged 281 yards per game.
The team moves the chains, 2nd overall in First Downs, 24 passing and 60 rushing. The Rage has converted 50% of it's Fourth-Down attempts (8 of 16) and is the top team in the NIFL in Red-Zone Offense (35 of 39 attempts, 34 TD's, 19 passing, 15 rushing, 89.7%)
It may come down to a game of possession and both the Rage and the Stars are on the plus side in turnover margin. The Rage (+8) and Arkansas (+5) won't give up the game by giving up the football and Wyatt says " I look for Arkansas to take advantage of their premier running back (former Razorback star Chrys Chukwuma) and with us being one of the elite teams in the league, we'll get their 'A' game much the same way we do from every other team in the league. They're coming off a win last week, but both of their wins have been against teams that haven't won a game. Our only common opponent is the Katy Copperheads. We beat Katy by 36 points, they lost to them by 28. They've got a new head coach (Marshal Foreman), we've got a new quarterback, plus a star wide receiver (Hurtis Chinn) and a defensive captain and starter (defensive back Clarence "CJ' Jones) out with injuries. Friday should be fun."
Better than a bad day at golf, for sure!!
QUOTES FROM RAGE HEAD FOOTBALL COACH MIKE WYATT
On the team overall so far in 2006-04- 26
"We're 4-1 and I'd rather be 5-0. But having a two game lead in the Atlantic North division is a bit of a cushion. Focus is the key for this football team, and we can't sit back and coast. We need to keep winning games to maintain that lead for playoff implications."
On the injuries to Groefsema, Chinn and Jones
"Clay's was a freak mishap, for certain, and not that I'd feel any better if it had happened on the football field, but it may have made it a bit more palatable to my coaching reasoning, so to speak. Hurtis has a high ankle sprain and will be lost this week. His status is week to week, and CJ is out for 6 to 8 weeks. I've brought in players that we are evaluating, and I've coached 28 years and never had a season where injuries didn't play a part in what went down week after week. It's part of the game."
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