Steamwheelers Weekly Report

Published on July 12, 2004 under arenafootball2 (af2)
Quad City Steamwheelers News Release


Recap: The Quad City Steamwheelers fell just short of knocking off the Tennessee Valley Vipers this past weekend, losing 48-41 at the Von Braun Center in front of 5,780 fans. Vipers offensive specialist Jerrian James hauled in a 25-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Josh Kellett with three seconds remaining in the game to seal the win for the Vipers. The Steamwheelers started off the game with a bang, and were looking to add to a 9-0 lead after offensive lineman/defensive lineman Jamaal Cherry's safety, but quarterback Ronnie Gordon's pass was tipped at the line of scrimmage and picked off by Vipers offensive lineman/defensive lineman Andy Fuller and returned 2 yards for the score. Gordon finished the night 22-of-35 for 229 yards, three touchdowns and the interception. Gordon also rushed for 26 yards and a score. Steamwheelers wide receiver/defensive back Tim Dodge was named U.S. Army Ironman of the Game after catching nine passes for 80 yards and a score to go along with two tackles on defense.

Next Up: The Steamwheelers will continue their tough, final four-game stretch of the regular season this weekend, when they welcome the formerly top ranked Birmingham Steeldogs to town this Saturday night. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. at The MARK of the Quad Cities. The Steeldogs, who were ranked No. 1 in the Coaches' Poll entering this past weekend, fell to the curse of the top ranking and lost 55-28 at Florida.

Last Time: You have to go all the way back to the arenafootball2's inaugural season for the last meeting between these two teams. It was the final game of the regular season with the Steamwheelers looking to go a perfect 16-0 on the season. The Steamwheelers had beaten the Steeldogs 82-21 one-week prior at The MARK and were looking to make it two straight against the Steeldogs. They would turn out to be successful, despite using a different quarterback than they had all season. Backup quarterback Mike Gluski started in place of Billy Dicken, who was given the night off as the Steamwheelers had already locked up the league's top seed for the playoffs. Gluski went 16-of-27 for 221 yards and five scores to lead the Steamwheelers to a 67-37 victory.

Kicking Perfectly: Steamwheelers kicker Ryan Geisler has been hot as of late. Matter of fact he had been perfect entering the Steamwheelers game this past weekend making 19 straight extra points. The streak started with the end of the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton game where he missed his first and made his final three extra points. Geisler was then perfect the next two weekends at Green Bay and Arkansas. Geisler made his only attempt two weeks ago at Peoria. This weekend Geisler made his first against Tennessee Valley to make it 20 straight, but then missed two of his next four.

Ironman: Steamwheelers wide receiver/defensive back Tim Dodge is beginning to make a name for himself and the U.S. Army Ironman of the Game award. For the fifth consecutive week, Dodge was named the game's U.S. Army Ironman of the Game. The streak began on June 12 against the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers and has continued through this past weekend. Dodge caught nine passes for 80 yards and a score to go along with two tackles on defense in the loss to the Vipers. Dodge has won one other game award – Baby Ruth Real Deal Offensive Player of the Game – on April 17 against Tennessee Valley. In that game, he caught eight passes for 119 yards and two touchdowns and had two tackles on defense.

Gordon Breaks Steamwheelers Rushing Records: Steamwheelers quarterback Ronnie Gordon has been running around like a mad man this season. So much so, that the 30-year old from Albany, Ga., has broken almost all of the Steamwheelers rushing records. Gordon has rushed for now 20 touchdowns, which crushed the single season record of 17 set last season by quarterback Tony Zimmerman. In his career, Gordon has rushed for 21 touchdowns, placing him second on the all-time list, two behind Zimmerman. So far this season, he has rushed for 161 yards and 144 net yards. Both are new Steamwheelers single season and career records. The 161 yards is almost twice as many as fullback/linebacker Frank Carter, who rushed for 84 yards in 2001. Gordon has rushed for 185 yards in his almost two-year career, putting a lot of distance between him and former fullback/linebacker Josh Fourdyce, who rushed for 152 yards from 2000-2003. He has rushed for 166 net yards, which betters Carter's career mark of 138 yards. Gordon broke the net yards record this past weekend and the yards gained one week prior.

Upcoming Steamwheelers Appearances: The Steamwheelers will be busy this week starting Monday with the YMCA Football Camp at Bettendorf High School. The camp runs all week until Friday starting at 9 a.m. and wrapping up at 11 a.m. Also on Monday, the team will be having a meet and greet at Golden Corral, which is open to the public. Then on Tuesday or Friday of this week, players will be reading to pre-school children at Skip-a-long Day Care in Moline.

Practice Times: Coach Ingold and the Steamwheelers will take Monday night off from practice and begin the workweek on Tuesday. They will practice Tuesday through Friday at The MARK of the Quad Cities. Tuesday's and Wednesday's practices tend to be longer and Friday's session a brief walkthrough. Practice always begins at 5 p.m. with a film session that usually runs for 20-30 minutes. Practice then runs for about an hour to an hour and a half. Most players begin to arrive at practice around 4:30 p.m. and are around after practice for at least 20 minutes. Interviews are best to be conducted before or after practice. If there are any problems, contact Steamwheelers Media Relations Manager Ryan Holtmann.

Travel Plans: The Steamwheelers be home for the rest of the regular season with only a short trip over the I-74 Bridge to worry about. The last two games of the regular season will be held at The MARK of the Quad Cities.

On the Air: "In the Boiler Room" is back in action after taking last Monday night off for the holiday weekend. Steamwheelers Media Relations Manager Ryan Holtmann will be filling in for "Voice of the Steam" Jim Albracht, who is out for conferences. The show will air as usual on FOX Sports Radio AM 1230 at 7 p.m. Holtmann will be joined Steamwheelers coach Rich Ingold as well as select players. You can also listen in to Q106.5's Dwyer and Michaels every morning as they discuss the ‘Wheelers periodically on the "Mornings with Dwyer and Michaels" show that runs from 5:30 a.m. – 10 a.m. Also, the "Voice of the Steam" Jim Albracht also hosts "Albracht in the AM" from 5:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. on WOC 1420 AM. Throughout the show he discusses a variety of topics as well as the Steamwheelers. Every Sunday night on NBC affiliate KWQC-TV6, following the 10 p.m. news, sports director Thom Cornelis hosts ‘Wheeler Watch" which features highlights of the previous weekend's game and a discussion with head coach Rich Ingold.

Media Requests: Any member of the accredited media that wishes to set up an interview with a Steamwheelers player, coach or staff member may contact Steamwheelers Media Relations Manager Ryan Holtmann at 563-324-4888 (office) or 563-570-0930 (cell phone). Most players are available throughout the day, pending their other profession.

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