Red Hot Firebirds Hit The Road

June 17, 2009 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Albany Firebirds News Release


The Firebirds have won five of their last six games to climb into sole possession of second place in the East Division. Albany set an af2 record with 11 interceptions in their 62-28 win over the Mahoning Valley Thunder at the Times Union Center last Saturday night. Peoria Head Coach Mike Hohensee took over for the Pirates in Week 9 and immediately led them to their second win of the season, but Peoria has since dropped their next two games and stand at 2-8 on the season. Hoensee guided the original Albany Firebirds from 1994-1996, compiling a 27-11 record and making the playoffs in each year.

PLAYERS TO WATCH:

Albany defense corps collected an af2 record 11 interceptions in their Week 12 home victory against the Mahoning Valley Thunder. The previous league mark was seven, recorded on July 22, 2006 by the Tulsa Talons' defense.

WR/LB Alvin Ray Jackson enjoyed a career night last week, collecting an af2 record five interceptions and returning them for 120 yards, including one for a 53-yard touchdown return. On the other side of the ball, Jackson recorded a team-high seven receptions good for 76 yards with two touchdowns. On the season Jackson leads the team in total tackles (43), interceptions (7) and fumble recoveries (4). The playmaker also leads the team in scoring with 19 touchdowns, good for 114 points. He's also hauled in 57 receptions for 526 yards (2nd on the team) and Jackson is one of three Albany players who have started in all 11 games so far this season.

DB EJ Whitley snagged three interceptions last week in just his second career af2 contest. Two weeks ago in his first game, Whitley forced a goal-line fumble to help Albany defeat Manchester. He's recorded 5.5 tackles in those two games and the UNLV product and former Rough Rider (CFL) has become a regular in the Albany secondary.

DB Jamel Ramsay led the team with 9.5 tackles and added two more picks in the contest, returning one for a touchdown. In six games this season, Ramsay has recorded 33 tackles, six pass break-ups and forced two fumbles.

DB Kenneth Williams returned from a five week stint on the IR and caught his first interception of the season in the win over the Thunder. The three-year vet. has 33.5 tackles and seven pass break-ups in six games during the 2009 campaign.

QB Stephen Wasil threw for 302 yards with seven touchdowns last week against Mahoning Valley, marking the fifth straight game in which he has thrown for at least 300 yards and six TDs. In seven starts this season, the second-year pro has a 114.1 passer rating with 1,897 passing yards and 40 passing touchdowns with only seven interceptions.

WR Jared Jones has scored a touchdown in each of his three games played. Jones paced the team with 85 yards on five catches with one touchdown last week. QB Adam Bednarik also continued to contribute from the wide receiver position as the athletic rookie caught two fourth-quarter touchdowns against the Thunder.

C Junior Ramos, G Chris Scanzano, TE Jon Leible and FB Norman Bauer anchored a Firebirds O-Line that allowed just one sack in Week 12 and has allowed only two sacks over the past three games. G Aaron Meredith also saw reps on the solid front line.

DE David Tash notched his fifth sack of the season last week and he now has 24.5 tackles and a team-high four forced fumbles in eight games this season with Albany after coming over from division rival Manchester in a trade.

Week 8 Schedule:

All games are broadcast LIVE on af2TV free streaming video at www.albanyfirebirds.com

Saturday, June 20th - 8:00 pm - Peoria Civic Center - Peoria, IL

vs. Peoria Pirates (2-8)

- Albany and Peoria have met twice before with the home team winning each meeting. Peoria defeated Albany 44-24 at home on May 29, 2004 and Albany evened the score on April 13, 2008 with a 55-54 win at the Times Union Center. The Pirates visit Albany next week to complete a home-and-home series.

- Leading Passers: QB - Luke Drone - (120-209-10, 1,327yds, 29TD)

- Leading Rusher: QB - Kent Smith - (27att-55yds-5TD)

- Leading Receivers: Brian Albrooks - (45rec-502yds-16TD), Dante Ridgeway - (42rec-562yds-9TD), Darren Paige - (30rec-325yds-6TD)

Firebirds Pecks:

- Week 12 Records: Albany broke two league records and four franchise records last week against Mahoning Valley:

New AF2 Records:

Most Interceptions in a Game (team): 11 - Albany (was Tulsa, July 22, 2006)

Most Interceptions in a Game (individual): 5 - Alvin Ray Jackson (was Deon Giddens, July 6, 2002)

New Albany Records:

Most INTs in a game (individual): Alvin Ray Jackson - 5 (was seven players tied - 2)

Most INT return yards in a game (individual): Alvin Ray Jackson - 120 (was Travis Coleman - 60 on April 30, 2005)

Most INTs in a game (team): 11 (was 4 - April 8, 2006 at Macon)

Most Points scored in first quarter: 28 (was 24 from July 9, 2004 at Green Bay)

- Wasil's Would-Be Ranks: Quarterback Stephen Wasil's seven games played leave him ineligible for the af2 leaderboard, but he may be close to qualifying as several stat-leaders have just eight games under their belts. If he were to qualify, Wasil's 271.0 passing yards per game would rank sixth in the league (despite missing all except the opening series of Week 1) and his 114.09 passer rating would be good for 10th.

- Standing Update: Manchester lost to Wilkes-Barre/Scranton last week, allowing the Firebirds to claim sole possession of second place in the East Division. At 5-6, the Firebirds have a full game lead on the 4-7 Wolves and they hold the first tiebreaker with a 4-4 division record to Manchester's 2-5 record in the East.

- Upcoming Schedule: Albany's remaining opponents have a combined record of 21-32. In their last five games of the regular season the Firebirds only face one team that's currently .500 or better: they'll play the 9-2 Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers in Week 17.

- Coin Toss: Last week's win vs. Mahoning Valley marked the first time all season that Albany won a game after losing the opening coin toss; they had been 0-4. The Firebirds are 4-2 when winning the toss.

- Line Play: Albany's O-Line has allowed just two sacks over the last three games. Over that span the Firebirds D-line has taken down the opposing quarterback five times.

East Division Standings:

(AMERICAN CONFERENCE)

Team W L PCT Home Road Streak

WB/Scranton 9 2 0.818 6-0 3-2 W1

Albany 5 6 0.455 3-3 2-3 W2

Manchester 4 7 0.286 3-3 1-4 L3

Mahoning Valley 1 10 0.091 1-4 0-6 L10

The Firebirds head to Peoria this Saturday for the front end of a home-and-home series with the Pirates at the Peoria Civic Center in an 8:00 pm. kick off. There next home game is set for June 26th against Peoria at 7:00 pm. in a special Friday night match-up on June 26, 2009. Partial season ticket packages are now on sale; for more information please contact the Firebirds at (518) 487-2244 or online at www.albanyfirebirds.com.



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