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Rio Grande Valley Dorados game notes

July 6, 2006 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Rio Grande Valley Dorados News Release


Rio Grande Valley Dorados (6-7) vs. Birmingham Steeldogs (6-6)

Date: Saturday, July 8, 2006

Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. CST

Site: Obra Homes Field at Dodge Arena

Coin Toss: Head Official

Dorados Radio: ESPN Radio 1240 (KSOX); free online audio at doradosfootball.com

TV: Televisa XERV-9 (cable 19); streaming video feed at af2tv.com

Season Series Record: 1-0 RGV

Streaks: RGV won 1, BIR lost 1

RGV Head Coach: Marty Hammond (1st Season)

THE SCENARIO: The Dorados continue to fight for a playoff spot and earned their first road win since April 14 with a victory at Bossier last week...The Dorados only road wins were at Birmingham in Week 3 and last week...The win snapped a two-game losing skid...Rio is still in the playoff hunt...Essentially, they need to win their remaining games while getting some help from other teams losing...The 6-7 Dorados are chasing 7-5 Bakersfield for the final playoff spot in the National Conference...Birmingham holds the final playoff spot in the American Conference

THE SERIES: The series is tied 1-1...Birmingham defeated Rio Grande, 59-58, in the first-ever meeting between the two teams on June 26, 2004 at the BJCC Arena.

LAST MEETING: The Rio Grande Valley Dorados took home a 44-43 overtime win over the Birmingham Steeldogs Friday night at the Birmingham Jefferson Civic Center. The Valley squad had a 24-point lead going into the final quarter, but Birmingham came back to tie up the game sending the contest into an extra session. In overtime, Dwight Counter collected the eventual game-winning touchdown reception giving the Dorados the lead. Birmingham came within one point of RGV as they followed up with their own overtime touchdown. The Steeldogs chose to go for the win by attempting a two-point conversion rather than an extra point, but Brent Withers knocked down the pass giving the Dorados (2-1) their second consecutive victory. Rio Grande Valley Quarterback Josh Kellett completed 23-of-48 passes for a total of 222 yards. He also threw four touchdowns and two interceptions.

OFF THE NET

- Dwight Counter needs 10 receptions to tie a Dorados season and career-high for catches. Marquis Floyd holds the record with 101. He is six TD's short of tying the franchise and career mark of 29 held by Floyd.

- Curtis Jeter needs four sacks to tie Spencer Conley's season record of eight set in 2004.

THIS WEEK'S QUOTES courtesy of themonitor.com

Josh Kellett, prior to last week's win at Bossier

"I just bring experience, being on two very successful teams that have gone deep in the playoffs," Kellett said. "That's just going to help. And I think it's a confidence boost. The team knows what they're getting with me. They know what to expect out of me."

Curtis Jeter, prior to last week's win at Bossier

"Everything that could go wrong this year has been going wrong," Dorados lineman Curtis Jeter said. "You lose your quarterback, balls bounce off the net (and are recovered by the opponent for touchdowns), onsides kicks (are recovered by the opponent). It's hard to fight with everything going against you, but that's the only thing you can do."

Dwight Counter, on Kellett's return

"It was a little easier," said wide receiver Dwight Counter, who had eight receptions for 161 yards and three TDs. "Everyone had a little different swagger with Josh back."

SPOKANE RETAKES TOP SPOT IN WEEK 15 COACHES POLL

CHICAGO - The expansion Spokane Shock have reclaimed the No. 1 ranking in the Weekly Coaches Poll, the arenafootball2 (af2) league office announced today. Spokane collected 251 of a possible 264 points and 14-of-23 first place votes in securing the top position. The Shock clinched a playoff spot in just their first season of play thanks to an impressive, 46-23, road win Saturday night at Arkansas. Spokane leads the National Conference's West Division with a league-best 10-2 record.

The Florida Firecats (9-3, 221 points, 5 first place votes) slipped slightly this week from their No. 1 spot to No. 2 after losing at home on Saturday to the Green Bay Blizzard, 48-47. The Firecats loss was their first at home this season. The Memphis Xplorers (9-4, 198 points) also slid in the rankings from No. 2 to No. 4 after a, 38-33, road loss to Macon. Filling out the top five in this week's poll are the Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz (9-3, 218 points, 4 first place votes) at No. 3 and the Green Bay Blizzard (8-5, 154

points) at No. 5.

The Week 15 schedule features three matchups of Top 12 teams. All three games are on Saturday as No. 2 Florida plays at No. 7 W-B/Scranton, No. 4 Memphis plays at No. 9 Louisville and No. 3 Oklahoma City plays at No. 6 Tulsa.

Each week during the season af2 coaches will vote for the Top 12 teams in the league by ranking them one through 12 on a ballot. Teams ranked first receive 12 points with the point value decreasing by one for each place below first, meaning a team ranked 12th would receive one point. Total points will determine the Top 12 list. In the event of a tie in total points, the team with the greater number of first-place votes will be ranked higher. The af2 Coaches Poll will be announced every Wednesday during the regular season. Coaches are not allowed to vote for their own team and the poll results have no bearing on postseason qualification.

The complete Top 12 is listed below. The number in parentheses indicates the number of first place votes the team received.

WEEK 15 TOP 12

RANK TEAM PTS

1 Spokane 251 (14)

2 Florida 221 (5)

3 Oklahoma City 218 (4)

4 Memphis 198

5 Green Bay 154

6 Tulsa 148

7 W-B/Scranton 133

8 Central Valley 126

9 Louisville 105

10 Arkansas 86

11 Bakersfield 74

12 Birmingham 28

Other teams receiving significant votes this week include the Rio Grande Valley (25).

COMING AND GOING

OL/DLPatrick Afif was assigned to the team prior to Week 15 vs. Birmingham. He spent time with Spokane this season but did not play... DS Ricke Davis was released prior to Week 15... QB Ryan Porter was released prior to Week 14...The Dorados had FB/LB RJ Luke assigned to the lineup prior to Week 13's game. He met up with the team in Little Rock after Week 12's loss and accompanied the team on the bus back to the RGV....OL/DL Ahmad Bhatti and Frank Henson arrived prior to Week 11's game vs. Amarillo, while Will Goodloe and Tony Agee were released...Goodloe was re-assigned to the Dorados prior to Week 12's game at Arkansas after Landrick Brody was released.

DORADOS QB REPORT

Josh Kellett returned to the lineup July 1 at Bossier and tossed six TD's. He has been out since injuring his right throwing hand at Bakersfield on May 13. He was among the leaders in af2 stats at the time of his injury. Kellett was first in pass attempts (261), 8th in pass TD's (32), and 3rd in completions (142).

JR Davies matched Josh Kellett's Week 3 performance with 27 completions vs. Amarillo in Week 11. Davies threw seven TD passes, including a 37-yard bomb to Chris Canty to win the game with 53 seconds left in regulation. Davies is 88-for-142 with 15 TD's and seven INTs.

DORADOS RECEIVING LEADERS

Dwight Counter leads the team with 91 receptions and is among af2 leaders in that category. His 23 TD's are also a team high and in the af2's top-10. Mel Long has 65 receptions and 15 TD's. while Travis McAlpine has 55 receptions and 12 TD's.

DORADOS DEFENSIVE LEADERS

Brent Withers leads the team with 52 tackles, 45 of which are solo...Mel Long leads the team with four interceptions, including a 49-yard return for a TD at Bossier July 1...Corl Bucknor's seven pass breakups lead the team. Bucknor sat out Games 8 and 9, but suited up for Game 10 due to Withers being out with a bruised knee...Curtis Jeter has 4.5 sacks.

DECEIVING KICKING STATS

Dustin Bell is 4-for-17 on field goal attempts this season...11 of those chances have been from 40 yards out or more...He is 2-for 11 from 40 yards or more...Bell set a team record with a 52-yard kick at Arkansas on June 17, 2006...He also hit a 47-yard field goal at Bakersfield on May 13, 2006.

SECOND HALF BLUES

The Dorados have been outscored in the second half 314-206, including a 164-103 margin in the fourth quarter...They were outscored 29-0 in the second half in Week 10 at OKC...The Dorados were shut down 28-0 in the second half vs. OKC in Week 13...Their biggest comeback of the season, however, happened in the second half vs. Amarillo in Week 11. The Dorados outscored the Dusters 21-10 after coming back from a 28-7 deficit in the second quarter. The Dorados won 49-45.

COUNTER TIES FRANCHISE MARK

Dwight Counter's four TD receptions at Bossier in Week 14 tied a franchise record set by himself and teammate Mel Long. He hauled in four TD's on June 11, 2005 vs. Tulsa, a feat duplicated by teammate Mel Long in Week 2 of this season vs. Tulsa.

KELLET THROWS FOR 345 YARDS VS. ARKANSAS

Josh Kellett went 27-for-44 vs. Arkansas in Week, throwing for 345 yards and six TD's. He nearly tied two of his own franchise single-game records (390 yards, eight TD's).

IF THE SEASON ENDED TODAY - af2 PLAYOFF PICTURE: AMERICAN CONFERENCE STANDINGS

1. Florida (9-2) - Current South Division Leader

2. W-B/Scranton (8-4) - Current East Division Leader

3. Memphis (9-3)

4. Louisville (7-5) - Currently holds HTH advantage over GBB

5. Green Bay (7-5)

6. Birmingham (6-6)

7. Quad City (5-7) - Currently has better win % in HTH with MAN and ALB

8. Manchester (5-7) - Currently has point differential advantage in HTH with ALB

9. Albany (5-7)

10. Macon (4-7)

11. Tennessee Valley (2-10)

12. South Georgia (1-11)

NATIONAL CONFERENCE STANDINGS

1. Spokane (9-2) - Current West Division Leader

2. Oklahoma City (9-3) - Current Midwest Division Leader

3. Central Valley (8-4) - Currently has better win % over common opponents than TUL and ARK (AMA, BOS, RGV)

4. Arkansas (8-4) - Currently has HTH advantage over TUL

5. Tulsa (8-4)

6. Bakersfield (7-5)

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7. Stockton (5-7) - Currently has better win % over common opponents than RGV (BAK, BOS, CVC, OKC)

8. Rio Grande Valley (5-7) 9. Amarillo (4-8)

10. Everett (3-9)

11. Bossier-Shreveport (2-9)

IF THE SEASON ENDED TODAY

AMERICAN CONFERENCE STANDINGS

1. Florida (9-3)

2. W-B/Scranton (8-4)

3. Memphis (9-4)

4. Green Bay (8-5)

5. Louisville (7-5)

6. Birmingham (6-6)

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7. Albany (5-7) - Currently has better win % over common opponents than MAN, MAC and QCS (GBB, WBS)

8. Manchester (5-7) - Currently has better win % over common opponents than MAC and QCS (ALB, GBB, WBS)

9. Macon (5-7) - Currently has better win % over common opponents than QCS (ALB, ARK, GBB, TVV, WBS)

10. Quad City (5-7)

11. Tennessee Valley (2-10)

12. South Georgia (1-11)

NATIONAL CONFERENCE STANDINGS

1. Spokane (10-2) - y

2. Oklahoma City (9-3)

3. Central Valley (8-4) - Currently has better win % over common opponents than TUL (AMA, BOS, RGV)

4. Tulsa (8-4)

5. Arkansas (8-5)

6. Bakersfield (7-5)

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7. Rio Grande Valley (6-7)

8. Stockton (5-7)

9. Amarillo (4-8)

10. Everett (3-9)

11. Bossier-Shreveport (2-10)

* Teams in bold currently lead their respective division y - clinched playoff spot

PLAYOFF SCENARIOS FOR WEEK 15:

American Conference:

Florida can clinch a playoff spot with a win against W-B/Scranton.

Memphis can clinch a playoff spot with a win against Louisville.

National Conference:

Oklahoma City can clinch a playoff spot with a win against Tulsa.

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