Rio Grande Valley Dorados game notes
Published on July 28, 2006 under arenafootball2 (af2)
Rio Grande Valley Dorados News Release
Rio Grande Valley Dorados (7-8) vs. Spokane Shock (13-2)
Date: Saturday, July 29, 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
Series Record: 1-0 RGV
Streaks: RGV won 1, SPO 5
RGV Head Coach: Marty Hammond (1st Season)
DORADOS MEDIA CONTACT:
Dorados: Rich Bocchini (O: 956-843-7825, C: 956-227-4940), media@doradosfootball.com
THE SCENARIO: The Dorados close out the 2006 season tonight vs. the af2-leading Spokane Shock...RGV was eliminated from postseason contention by virtue of Bakersfield's win last week.
THE SERIES: This is the first all-time meeting.
LAST WEEK: The Rio Grande Valley Dorados held on to defeat the South Georgia Wildcats, 52-46, Saturday night at Obra Homes Field at Dodge Arena in front of 4,561 fans. OS Dwight Counter caught three touchdowns from QB Josh Kellett and set a franchise season record with 11 total receptions. Counter now has 108 catches this season, breaking Marquis Floyd's previous mark of 101 set in 2005. Kellett was 22-for-31 passing for 230 yards with five touchdowns. R.J. Luke's 47-yard interception return turned the momentum in Rio Grande Valley's favor for good with 1:35 left in the fourth quarter. Luke earned the U.S. Army Ironman of the Game Award for his strong two-way play, which included 19 rushing yards, one fumble recovery and the above-mentioned interception return for a touchdown.
OFF THE NET
- Dwight Counter broke Marquis Floyd's record of 101 receptions in a season last week. He has 108 entering tonight's game...
- Counter needs four TD's tonight to tie Floyd's record of 33 in a season.
- Counter needs 130 receiving yards tonight to break Floyd's record of 1452 in a season...Counter had 143 last week and 161 vs. Bossier on July 1.
- Josh Kellett surpassed the 10,000 yard career mark in his July 8 vs. Birmingham. He had 304 yards in the loss. He now has 10,441 entering the final week of the season.
- Spokane has won five in a row and has not lost since June 10 at Louisville.
DORADOS DROPBACK: JULY 30, 2005
HIDALGO, Tx - The Rio Grande Valley Dorados closed out the regular season by jumping out to a franchise best 17-0 lead and cruised to a 38-27 victory over the Bakersfield Blitz to end the regular season with a 10-6 record. Josh Kellett closed out the regular season with an 16 for 31 passing performance for 172 yards and a pair of touchdowns. The 172 yards places Kellett over the 8-K plateau with 8,014 career passing yards. 74 of the passing yards in the contest were directed to Floyd, who claimed the Offensive Player of the Game honor with a pair of receiving touchdowns and a rushing tally for a three-touchdown night. Stephan Lewis, playing in just his third game, filled in for Dwight Counter as the offensive specialist and filled in admirably with a game high seven receptions for 57 yards.
THIS WEEK'S QUOTES courtesy of themonitor.com
Mel Long on not making the playoffs
"Everybody knows the situation," wide receiver/linebacker Mel Long said. "We put ourselves in this situation and we have to live with whatever happens."
Kevin Lacey on winning the last two regular season games
"We want to win the games regardless of if Bakersfield wins or not," Dorados lineman Kevin Lacey said. "We'd rather go .500 than have a losing season. The next game is the most important game, especially at this point. Regardless of what Bakersfield does or doesn't do, we still want to go out there and play our best."
John Bradley on missing the playoffs
"It feels like a relative died to me," Dorados lineman John Bradley said. "I never in my professional career or in football have ever had to worry about not making a postseason game."
DORADOS QB REPORT
Josh Kellett returned to the lineup July 1 at Bossier and tossed six TD's. He had 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 108 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 64.5 tackles, 55 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 and Mel Long'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 6-for-21 on field goal attempts this season...13 of those chances have been from 40 yards out or more...He is 2-for 13 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.
COUNTER SETS NEW FRANCHISE HIGH
Dwight Counter's 11 receptions vs. SGW in Week 17 pushed his season mark to 108 receptions. He broke the previous season mark of 101 set by Marquis Floyd in 2005,
COUNTER TIES FRANCHISE MARK FOR TD'S/GAME
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.
COUNTER EARNS CATCH OF THE WEEK
Rio Grande Valley offensive specialist Dwight Counter (6-2, 200, New Mexico), who is in his second af2 season, is the Week 17 recipient of the Cutters Catch of the Week Award, a weekly honor that has emerged this year to highlight the player who makes the best catch of the week. Counter's catch was a spectacular, one-handed 31-yard touchdown grab early in the first quarter of the Dorados' 52-46 home win against South Georgia. The former Lobo finished with a game-high 11 catches for 143 yards and three touchdowns. He now has 108 catches on the season, which is a new team record. Others receiving consideration this week included Macon's Chavis McCollister, Arkansas' Jon Schoonover, Quad City's Kris Peters, Birmingham's Terrell Browden, Central Valley's Marvin Brown, Amarillo's Donta Bright, Albany's Thomas Anthony, Florida's Magic Benton, Spokane's Kevin Beard and Bakersfield's George Williams.
KELLETT 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).
KELLETT REACHES 10,000 CAREER YARDS
Josh Kellett surpassed the 10,000 yard career mark in his July 8 vs. Birmingham. He had 304 yards in the loss. He now has 10,441 entering the final week of the season.
FRANCHISE RECORDS BROKEN
Receptions/season - Dwight Counter (108)
Net Yards Rushing/season - Chris Canty (66)
Longest Interception Return - Mel Long, 49 yards, July 1 at BOS
Longest Fumble Return - RJ Luke, 47 yards, July 22 vs. SGW
Passes Caught Season/team - 34
Total Tackles/season - Brent Withers (64.5)
Unassisted Tackles/season - Brent Withers (55)
Assisted Tackles/season - Brent Withers (19)
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