Steamwheelers Upset Blizzard, Defeating Green Bay 37-27
June 28, 2024 - Indoor Football League (IFL)
Quad City Steamwheelers News Release
The Steamwheelers went home happy with a huge upset win over the number one team in the Eastern Conference, the Green Bay Blizzard.
Early in the first quarter, the Wheelers didn't waste any time at all and they scored quickly as Judd Erickson connected with Ka'Ron Ashley. Kyle Kaplan lined up for the extra point and kicked up through the uprights to make it a 7-0 lead.
Kaplan ended the game 3/4 on field goal attempts and 3/3 on PATs.
The Steamwheeler defense did well making stops and causing turnover after turnover throughout the matchup. They showed up ready for a Blizzard they only had to deal with light snow.
Later in the quarter, Erickson found Ashley again for another touchdown, extending their lead and adding to the momentum they already accumulated. After a failed two-point conversion, Kaplan took the kickoff and turned it into a deuce, nabbing those two points anyway and putting the Steamwheelers up 14-0.
Before the quarter was up, Dreko Statham recovered a fumble in the endzone after the ball was ripped out of the Blizzard's hands by KeShaun Moore. The call was reversed after Green Bay challenged that the runner was downed before the fumble, which the replay showed his knee was indeed down.
Green Bay was first to put points on the board in the second quarter with a good field goal attempt, making it an 11-point game where it was 14-3 with the Steamwheelers still leading.
Also during the quarter, a great ball from Erickson found Ashley again for a hat trick, picking up three touchdowns in the first half with an insane diving grab as he fell into the endzone. Ashley ended the night with three touchdowns on four receptions with 56 receiving yards.
The Wheeler lead became 21-3 before the Blizzard moved quickly and struck for their first touchdown of the night, making it 21-10.
The Blizzard defense ended up catching Erickson off his game as they picked off a bomb from the Steamwheelers quarterback and ran it in for a touchdown, Quad City challenged this play of the runner being down before he scored the touchdown, and the call was overturned.
Green Bay said they were "leaving here with something," then kicked a field goal to chop down the deficit to 21-13. Kaplan saw this and was not happy and kicked a field goal of his own, giving the Steamwheelers a 24-10 lead going into the half.
After halftime, the third quarter saw both sides were stonewalls that made stops on anything and everything in the quarter.
Green Bay did get one in the end zone, however, scoring to make it 24-20 going into the last quarter of the game.
The fourth quarter saw Kap extending the lead to a touchdown and a PAT, and soon after, the Blizzard tied the game up at 27 with exactly that.
The two newest Steamwheeler additions to the defense made an enormous impact on the defensive end in their debuts, Brian Hughes caused a pass break-up that if caught would've put the Blizzard within one point. And a giant pass knockdown by Dreko Statham, both newcomers showed up huge in back-to-back plays.
The cherry on top was Kaplan sending another field goal through the uprights to make it a 10-point lead with under a minute left. As the clock ran out and time expired, the Quad City defense forced a fumble and recovered it to seal the Upset and home victory.
This 37-27 win brings the Steamwheelers to 6-6 on the year and batting .500 as a unit. It also drops Green Bay to 10-3 on the year, tying them with the Frisco Fighters, who are also 10-3, fighting for the number one spot in the Eastern Conference.
The next battle for the Steamwheelers will be against the Massachusetts Pirates in a big road matchup on July 1st.
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