AFL I Arena Football League (1987-2008)

Second Place Up for Graps in Roanoke

May 24, 2002 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I) News Release


ROANOKE, Va. - The Cape Fear Wildcats (4-2) and Roanoke Steam (4-3) both have playoff fever. One of them might get left out in the cold.

ArenaCup 2001 finalist Richmond (7-0, with two wins over Roanoke and one win over Cape Fear) has the inside track on the Atlantic Division's top seed at this point, meaning the Wildcats and Steam may end up duking it out for second place and, with it, the division's other playoff spot opposite the Speed, which is idle this week. The postseason hopefuls meet for the first time Saturday in Roanoke.

Cape Fear, winner of two straight games, looks for its longest win streak of the season, while the Steam hopes to get back on track after having a four-game winning streak snapped in Albany last weekend. MIKE GLUSKI will make his third start for the 'Cats and try to improve to 6-0 as a starter this season. In his af2 career, Gluski is 7-0 when starting at home. Since joining the Wildcats four weeks ago in a trade from Macon, Gluski has tossed eight touchdown passes and no interceptions in 10 quarters of work. NORMAN MASON leads all Wildcat receivers with 37 receptions for 396 yards and six scores, but the 'Cats do a good job of spreading the ball around ‚¬Â¦ nine different receivers have caught touchdown passes.

MIKE VOLARICH most likely will get the start under center for the Steam for the second week in a row. QB CHRIS SANDERS, who was 4-0 for Roanoke, is expected to sign a contract with the NFL's Tennessee Titans this weekend and is not likely to return to the Steam this season. Last week, Volarich started a perfect 14-of-14 passing on his way to a 243-yard, four-touchdown night. ANTHONY HINES and KENYAN McWHORTER provide the deep threats for the Steam, having accounted for nearly half of Roanoke's receiving totals this season. The duo has combined for 72 catches, 842 yards and nine touchdowns.

On the other side of the ball, the Wildcats boast the top total defense in af2. The Wildcats allow 37.6 points per game and hold opponents under 162 yards per contest. Cape Fear also has the league's top pass rusher in E.J. BURT.. His league-leading 10.5 sacks have him on pace to break the single-season league record of 20 (ERNEST CERTAIN, Tallahassee 2000). Roanoke's defense gives a little more than the 'Cats, allowing 43.4 ppg and 234.6 ypg, but the Steam is tied with Cape Fear for third in the league with 19 total sacks. Lineman JOSE WHITE leads the Steam with four sacks.

This is the first of back-to-back battles between these clubs, the only scheduled meetings this season. The game was originally set for 7:30 p.m., but has been moved to 2:30 p.m. as the Steam plans to pay tribute to heroes from across America and at home in the Roanoke Valley. In conjunction with the Julian Stanley Wise foundation, the Steam will honor EMS and rescue workers from Somerset, Pa. In addition, the Steam will honor JESSE, a retired police dog who worked at Ground Zero, as well as other individuals who devoted time and resources to the rescue effort stemming from the 9/11 tragedy. There will be a pregame and halftime fireworks show, courtesy of Zambelli Fireworks. The Steam has offered a special discounted ticket rate to EMS workers and their families.

Macon (5-2) faces the Columbus Wardogs (2-4) Saturday at the Columbus Civic Center in the first of two games this season between the Eastern Division rivals. The Knights hold a 2-0 all-time advantage over Columbus, having won both meetings between the teams last year. The Wardogs snapped a three-game losing streak last weekend with a 34-31 victory over Louisville. The Knights remain in second place in the Eastern Division after last weekend's 80-65 win over Pensacola. Macon boasts af2's fourth-ranked scoring offense (52 points per game) and will look to crack a solid Columbus defense that has yielded only 186 yards per game. Columbus' offense has struggled, scoring just 30.2 points per contest. CHUCK LITTLE leads the Wardogs' front three with four sacks on the season, while DS BYRON PLUMMER leads the league with three fumble recoveries. Macon's QUESUAN WIGFALL has picked off four passes and has returned one for a score. On offense, the Knights' JACQUEZ RUMPH (51 receptions) is on pace to eclipse the team record of 75 catches in a season. Rumph is fourth in the league in all-purpose yards with 1,345.

Carolina and Norfolk meet Saturday with both teams desperate for a win in the out-of-division battle. The visiting Rhinos will rally behind rookie QB CALEB SLOVER, who has thrown 20 touchdowns while only being intercepted six times. While scoring has not been a problem for Carolina this season, the Rhinos' defense has struggled, allowing 50.5 points per game. Norfolk's defense has allowed 54.5 points per contest. DOMINIC BANKS, GARY BRIGGS and TRAVIS BURNS have been a three-man show for the Nighthawks, catching 72 of the team's 94 pass completions. Briggs leads the threesome with nine touchdown receptions. Former Rhinos QB CHRIS WALLACE should make his second start for the Nighthawks after passing for 213 yards and five touchdowns in last week's loss to Cape Fear. DS ARKEE THOMPSON will make his second appearance of the season for the Rhinos and will look to regain his form of a year ago. Thompson's eight interceptions and 49 passes defended helped Tennessee Valley go 14-2 and advance to the league semifinals in 2001.

Wilkes-Barre/Scranton goes to Northeast Division foe Albany Saturday in search of its second consecutive victory. Despite having af2's 25th-ranked offense, Albany has posted a 5-1 record so far this season. The Pioneers are ranked 26th and 28th in offense and defense, respectively, but have averaged 49.5 ppg the last two weeks. The Conquest defeated Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 34-28 in its home opener April 20 to take a 1-0 lead in the all-time series between these expansion teams. MATT VITTENGL and ALEX HOUSTON have combined to help Albany's defense hold opponents to just 29.5 points per game. Vittengl and Houston each have recovered three fumbles for the Conquest. Houston ranks fifth in the league with seven sacks and first in the league with seven tackles for a loss. On offense, COREY HILL is second in the league with 55 receptions, catching 11 passes for touchdowns. Two recent signings have keyed the offensive turnaround for the Pioneers. BOBBY WASHINGTON has caught nine passes for 117 yards and two scores in two games while QB BRYAN SNYDER has totaled 391 passing yards and seven TDs in his two outings. RODRICK PRAYER leads the Pioneers' defensive efforts with 33 tackles, including 3.5 for a loss, and two interceptions.

Tennessee Valley travels to National Southern Division rival Pensacola Saturday looking to remain undefeated this season. The Vipers have opened the year 6-0 and have not dropped a regular-season game since losing last July to Bossier City. Tennessee Valley also has won 11 straight road games, the longest such streak in af2 history. Pensacola will try to break that streak and break out of a two-game losing slump in the process. Both the Barracudas' and Vipers' offenses have been potent this season, with both teams scoring 50.8 points per game. On defense, however, Tennessee Valley holds opponents to just 33.2 points a game, while Pensacola is allowing 48.3. KELLY SNELL leads a Vipers secondary that has limited opposing quarterbacks to just a 54.2 passer rating. Snell leads the league in interceptions with eight, picking off at least one pass in an af2-record six straight games; KENNY BAILEY has snagged another five INTs for the Vipers. The Barracudas have a ballhawk of their own in WILL PETTIS, who also has picked off five passes. ROBERT STROMAS looks to become Pensacola's all-time leading receiver Saturday and needs just three yards and one touchdown to surpass RODNEY WOODHAM's career receiving marks of 1,074 yards and 23 TDs. The Barracudas travel to Tennessee Valley next weekend to conclude the season series.

Fresh off of a nail-biting 60-54 overtime victory in Bakersfield last weekend, Peoria returns home to face the 0-6 Louisville Fire. Louisville also comes off of an emotional game, losing 34-31 to Columbus last weekend. Peoria (5-2) is on a three-game winning streak. Fueled by the league's eighth-ranked offense, the Pirates have scored 186 points during their roll. OS CORNELL CRAIG leads the Pirates in receiving with 54 catches for 751 yards. On defense, FRANK WEST and LINCOLN DUPREE rank in the league's top 10 with 36 and 32 tackles, respectively. ERIC JOHNSON has recorded a team-high 8.5 sacks for Peoria, ranking third in the league. The Pirates lost TODD KURZ, one of the league's leading kickers, to a knee injury last week, but have replaced him with his brother, SCOTT KURZ, the former punter at Purdue University. The Fire looks to win its first game of the season and end a nine-game losing skid dating back to last year. QB MATT PIKE leads the Louisville offense, contributing 230.4 yards per game. ANTHONY PAYTON is Pike's leading target and has caught 34 passes for 515 yards and nine touchdowns, scoring in every contest. Louisville hosts Peoria in the return game on July 20.

Bossier City hosts Memphis Saturday in a crucial Central Division game that potentially has major playoff implications. With both the Battle Wings and the Xplorers tied with Arkansas for second place in the division with 4-3 records, the stakes are high. Bossier City rides a two-game winning streak into the matchup while Memphis has dropped its last two contests. The Battle Wings want revenge on their home turf after losing 61-51 earlier this season at Memphis. The Xplorers will be without leading receiver RUSSELL COPELAND, who suffered an ankle injury in last weekend's loss to Arkansas. However, TIM LESTER leads the Xplorers' fourth-ranked offense with a league-high 1,845 passing yards. On defense, the Battle Wings have been stingy, allowing only 30..3 points per game (fourth in the league). Memphis has given up 43.3 points per game. BILL BORCHERS leads the Xplorers' defense with 4.5 sacks while GENO HENDERSON has made his presence felt in the secondary with five interceptions. SHERARD POTEETE has been getting stronger as the season has progressed for the Battle Wings. He leads the league with 178 rushing yards and 10 rushing touchdowns.

Saturday's game between Quad City (5-1) and host Wichita (1-6) may be a good barometer of what kind of difference a quarterback can make. This week, the Stealth signed seven-year Arena Football League veteran RON LOPEZ, who ranks among the AFL's career passing leaders and is less than a year removed from a 10-touchdown performance that tied a then-AFL single-game record. The Steamwheelers, meanwhile, lost starting QB TONY ZIMMERMAN (1,415 passing yards, 35 TDs through six games) to a fractured leg and will start untested DAN McMULLEN in his place. McMullen has attempted just one pass this season, but it was a 38-yard touchdown in Quad City's 68-31 win over Wichita last week. The weapons at McMullen's disposal include CHRIS ANTHONY (597 receiving yards, 13 TDs), who had 124 yards and four touchdowns through the air against the Stealth in Week 8, and IRA GOOCH (566 receiving yards, 14 TDs), who set an af2 record last week with 288 return yards, including four runbacks of 50 yards or more. The Stealth defense ranks eighth in the league, led by lineman BRYAN HENDERSON, af2's second-best sacker with 9.0 this season.

San Diego welcomes Bakersfield to the San Diego Sports Arena for the second time this year after surrendering a 24-point lead and losing to the Blitz 49-43 in overtime in the season opener. In that contest, Riptide OS MARTY GRAHAM set the af2 record for all-purpose yards in a single game with 400. Graham caught seven passes for 197 yards and four touchdowns in the loss and has 528 yards and 11 TDs overall despite missing two games. It tends to be a shootout when the Riptide plays ‚¬Â¦ San Diego's offense puts 50.6 points on the board while allowing 50.9. Bakersfield averages fewer points on offense per game with 45.7, but yields just 41.7 points on defense. RICO CURTIS has established himself as a defensive stalwart for the Riptide and is on pace to break the af2 record of 117 tackles in a season. The linebacker has recorded 52.5 tackles so far this year. Bakersfield's CHAD ELLIOTT has made an impressive start in his first af2 season, passing for 1,706 yards (leading af2 with 284.3 ypg) and 26 touchdowns. Elliott has hooked up with STEVE WOFFORD (610 receiving yards, 12 TDs) for a score in every game this year. Defensively for the Blitz, J'SHARLON JONES has emerged as a leader, recording 35 tackles and four interceptions.

Hawaii travels to Fresno Saturday in a rematch of one of two games from af2's opening weekend. The Islanders (1-6) earned their only win of the season in that contest, prevailing 50-47 on the strength of six touchdowns (three rushing, three passing) by QB DARNELL ARCENEAUX (nine rushing TDs overall - third in af2). The Frenzy went on to lose its first five games before reeling off a pair of wins the past two weeks, including a 49-37 win over San Diego last Saturday. This game features two of the best all-purpose athletes in the league: Hawaii's DARRELL JONES and Fresno's LAMONT WEBB. Webb is second in af2 with 809 total yards, including 580 as a receiver. He is third in the league in scoring (104 points) and his 46 catches rank ninth. Jones has 1,188 all-purpose yards, good for seventh in af2.



Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from May 24, 2002


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