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Stockton Lightning game notes

May 11, 2007 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Stockton Lightning News Release


QUICK FACTS:

Stockton Lightning (1-4)

at Everett Hawks (1-4)

Date: May 14, 2007

Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. PT

Site: Everett Events Center (8,300) - Everett, WA.

Radio: None

Internet: www.stocktonlightning.com - courtesy of SportsJuice.com and B2 Networks (Mike Benton)

Officials: Referee - Steve Kovac; Umpire - Mike Murff; Head Linesman - Danny Short; Line Judge - Gavin Anderson; Back Judge - John Morton

Series Record: Everett leads, 2-1

Last Meeting: Everett 50 - Stockton 41 (6/17/06)

Coaches: Doug Murray (Stockton - 1-4, 1st season)

Cedric Walker (Everett - 1-4, 1st season)

THE STAKES: The Stockton Lightning face their top receiver from last season, Phil Goodman, for the first time since dealing the receiver to the Cincinnati Jungle Kats in a three-team trade during the offseason. The Lightning have gone through a bumpy stretch with a three-game losing skid that aims to be broken in a special Monday night matchup at Everett, giving the Lightning eight full days to prepare since their 57-44 loss at Tri-Cities on May 5. The Lightning are also looking to jet ahead of the Hawks, who have caught up to them in the West Division standings and are 2-1 vs. the Lightning in the all-time series. Additionally, the Lightning aim for their first road victory this season and their first since June 10, 2006 at Green Bay. This is the third time in the first seven weeks the Lightning travel into the state of Washington for a road game.

THE IFs:

If Stockton defeats Everett, it would ...

- Give the Lightning their first road win this season

- Break a five-game road losing streak

- Break a three-game losing streak

- Give the Lightning a 2-4 record

- Give the Lightning a 2-2 all-time record against Everett

- Give the Lightning a 1-1 all-time record at Everett Events Center

- Give the Lightning their first win against Everett since 5/6/06

STOCKTON (1-4)

Date Opponent PT Result Score

3/31 @ Spokane 5 p.m. L 35-51

4/14 CENTRAL VALLEY 7 p.m. W 50-47

4/21 @ Bakersfield 7 p.m. L 42-45

4/28 SPOKANE 7 p.m. L 55-58

5/5 @ Tri-Cities 5 p.m. L 44-57

5/14 @ Everett 7:30

5/19 CENTRAL VALLEY 7 p.m.

5/26 @ Boise 6 p.m.

6/2 TRI-CITIES 7 p.m.

6/15 @ Amarillo 5:30

6/23 BAKERSFIELD 7 p.m.

6/30 EVERETT 7 p.m.

7/7 @ Central Valley 7 p.m.

7/14 BOISE 7 p.m.

7/21 @ Bakersfield 7 p.m.

7/28 CORPUS CHRISTI 7 p.m.

EVERETT (1-4)

Date Opponent Time Result Score

3/31 @Tulsa 7:00 L 30-61

4/07 @Central Valley 7:00 L 31-74

4/21 @Boise 6:00 L 34-70

4/30 @Tri-Cities 7:00 L 39-48

5/6 Central Valley 3:00 W 43-41

5/14 Stockton 7:30

5/18 @Quad City 5:30

5/27 Bakersfield 3:00

6/2 @Spokane 5:00

6/9 Boise 7:30

6/23 Arkansas 7:30

6/30 @Stockton 7:00

7/7 Tennessee Valley 7:30

7/14 @Bakersfield 7:00

7/21 Tri-Cities 7:30

7/28 Spokane 7:30

American West Division - 2007

Overall Points

Team W L T For Opp Pct

---- - - - --- --- ---

Boise Burn.......... 4 1 0 282 248 .800

Spokane Shock....... 3 2 0 273 239 .600 Tri-Cities Fever.... 3 2 0 239 223 .600 Bakersfield Blitz... 3 2 0 248 269 .600

Cen. Valley Coyotes. 2 3 0 267 215 .400

Stockton Lightning.. 1 4 0 226 258 .200

Everett Hawks....... 1 4 0 177 294 .200

HEAD COACH PROFILES:

Doug Murray - Stockton: Doug Murray was hired as the second head coach in Lightning history during the off-season and was introduced to the media as the at a September 15, 2006 news conference at Stockton Arena. He will oversee all on and off-field matters related to football operations.

A longtime resident of the Northern California area, Murray's defensive knowledge has been instrumental to the collegiate successes of Chabot College, Menlo College and the University of California at Davis, having then moved to the pro ranks with the Spring Football League (a precursor to the XFL), the Central Valley Coyotes of the af2 and then the Lightning.

In last season's stint as the Lightning's defensive backs coach, the Lightning ranked third in the af2 with 16.4 yards per interception return, tied for10th in red-zone defense with a 79.4 percent opponent conversion rate, and tied for eighth in the af2 with 26 sacks. Murray will continue to have a hands-on approach in this year's defense, doubling-up as the team's defensive coordinator.

Currently in his second tour of duty within the af2, Murray served on coaching staff with the Central Valley Coyotes in 2004 as defensive coordinator. Murray guided the Coyotes defense to finish third in the af2 with a 33.3 percent opponent fourth-down conversion rate, seventh in the af2 with 56 fumble return yards, 10th in the af2 with 226 first downs allowed, 11th in the af2 with 3,584 passing yards allowed and 12th in the af2 with 3,939 total defensive yards allowed.

Previously, Murray spent two years in the college football ranks as the defensive backs coach at the University of California-Davis, helping guide the Aggies to the NCAA Division-II quarterfinal playoff game in 2002 and helping the program earn their 34th consecutive winning season in UC Davis' first year of NCAA Division-I status in 2003.

Murray's ties to the Northern California-area are also linked to his college football playing career, where he earned two letters (1978-79) as a receiver at Cal State Hayward (NCAA).

Murray received his B.A. degree in Sociology from Hayward in 1986, followed by earning his master's in public administration in 1990. Murray currently resides in Stockton with his wife Natalia, daughter Naje, and son Nicolas.

Cedric Walker - Everett: Cedric Walker comes to the Hawks for his first season as Head Coach with experience and success as both an Arena Football player and coach.

In 2006, Coach Walker served as Defensive Coordinator for the Bakersfield Blitz, who advanced to the second round of the American Conference playoffs on the strength of Walker's top-ranked defense.

Walker's Blitz "D" was the finest in the af2 last year, finishing the season #1 in pass defense, holding opposing offenses to the fewest total yards (3,116), the fewest yards per game (194.8), the fewest completions (263), lowest completion percentage (50.8%), and fewest yards per completion (6.0). Additionally, they finished in the top 5 in numerous other categories, including most interceptions (26, T-2nd), fewest opponent TD passes (65, T-3rd), and fewest opponent pass attempts (518, T-4th).

But more impressive than their statistics was their performance down the stretch last season. The Blitz won their final 2 regular season games, at home against the Stockton Lightning and Everett Hawks, and then hit the road for the playoffs. As the #6 seed in the National Conference, they were looking at a long haul to ArenaCup7 in Puerto Rico. Their first opponent was the #3-seeded Central Valley Coyotes, who had beaten the Blitz in 2 of their 3 regular season meetings. The Blitz shut down the high-powered Coyotes offense and won 45-37. They then went on to Spokane, where only a last-second TD by the Shock kept them from winning. The Blitz fell 50-47 to the Shock, who would go on to win ArenaCup7.

Coach Walker comes to the Hawks after his first season as a coach, but he has plenty of Arena Football experience. During a 10-year AFL career as a DS, Walker played for the Charlotte Rage, Orlando Predators, Arizona Rattlers, Indiana Firebirds, Chicago Rush, Austin Wranglers and Las Vegas Gladiators. The highlight of his career came in 1997, when he won an Arena Bowl Championship as a member of the Rattlers.

Cedric and his wife Shameka are the proud parents of two children, Semaj and Mariah.

THIS WEEK'S QUOTES: (courtesy of The Record)

Head Coach DOUG MURRAY, on the prospects of playoffs in spite of a three-game losing streak:

"We're going to continue to shoot for (the playoffs). Until we're mathematically out of it, we're still in it. That's how we see it."

Defensive back Ty Johnson, on having fellow Northern California B'Jay Jones on the same team:

"He's my best friend. It's a joy playing on the same team as him."

2007 LEAGUE TOP 10s: Players from the Lightning and Hawks who rank among the af2's statistical leaders:

LIGHTNING

Player Rank Category Stat

Kenyatte Morgan 6th Kick return avg 22.5

Kenyatte Morgan 2nd Kick return yds 496

Kenyatte Morgan T-6 Kick returns 22

Kenyatte Morgan 4th All-purpose 954

Kenyatte Morgan T-7 Receptions 43

Kenyatte Morgan T-7 Rec./ game 8.6

Sale' Key 2nd Receptions 49

Sale' Key 9th Reception yds 530

Sale' Key 2nd Rec./ game 9.8

Derrick Crudup 6th Rushing yds 88

Maurice Bowers 10th Rush attempts 20

Jason Hunt T-4 Sacks 4.0

Alex Walls 6th Scoring (kick) 42

Alex Walls 4th PAT kick pct 90.0(27-30)

HAWKS

Player Rank Category Stat

Vai Notoa 3rd Rush attempts 28

Vai Notoa 7th Rushing yds 84

LaMonte Jones 8th Kick returns 21

DROPBACK: The Tri-Cities Fever scored 20 first-quarter points off three Stockton Lightning turnovers, as the Fever led wire-to-wire to send the Lightning to a 57-44 loss in week 6 action of arenafootball2 play, before 4,122 at Toyota Center last Saturday.

Lightning rookie quarterback Evan Gray threw for five touchdown passes in his first af2 start, completing 25-of-50 tosses for 222 passing yards and now has 12 passing scores in his last two games. J.R. Thomas led Tri-Cities' offense with 10 catches for 148 yards and two touchdown receptions, garnering Schutt Offensive Player of the Game honors. The Lightning are now 0-3 all-time against Head Coach Tony Wells.

Tri-Cities capitalized on a deflected pass by Gray on the first play of the game for a Mike Hodges interception, which was followed by a two-yard touchdown run by FB Lamar Johnson and J.R. Thomas' nine-yard reception for a 13-0 Fever lead. Gray followed with his first touchdown toss of the game, a 38-yard bomb to WR Sale' Key with 7:05 left to cut the Tri-Cities cushion to 13-7.

QB Brian Baker, leading the af2 in passing yardage heading into the game, uncharacteristically capitalized with the ground game on a one-yard keeper off the right tackle with 2:05 left in the first to push Tri-Cities' lead to 20-7.

Fever kicker Wes Virgilio followed with a 33-yard field goal early in the second quarter to give the Fever their biggest lead at 16 points. Virgilio's field goal was a season-long and capped a night where he went 6-of-8 in point-after attmepts after going 11-of-20 on PAT's heading into the contest.

The Lightning swung back to cut the deficit to 30-23 at halftime, highlighted by a 13-0 run on Kenyatte Morgan's 27-yard touchdown reception from Gray on a fourth-down conversion and a nifty nine-yard receiving score by B'Jay Jones, beating a defender to the shallow left corner of the end-zone.

Both teams traded scores for the remainder of the game, as Key and Jones added their second touchdown reception each for the Lightning offense, while Tri-Cities countered with Robert Garth's spinning 12-yard touchdown reception at the 3:40 mark of the third quarter, Baker's second touchdown run on a bootleg in the fourth quarter, and Emery Beckles' six-yard touchdown reception with 2:20 left in the game.

Key led all Lightning receivers with 13 catches and 118 yards along with his two touchdown receptions. Morgan, the af2's all-time leader in return yards heading into the week, suffered his first game shy of the 100-yard return yards mark this season as he was allowed just one return on 12 yards.

FORWARD MOTION: The Lightning enter the bulk of the 2007 af2 schedule with a home matchup against the Central Valley Coyotes on May 19, just five days after their Monday tilt at Everett. After taking on the high-powered offense of the Coyotes, the Lightning head back on the road for a May 26 (week 9) matchup against the red-hot Boise Burn, an af2 expansion franchise this year.

THE LIGHTNING EXPERIENCE(D): Below is a look at the players on this year's Lightning roster with AFL experience:

- JAJUAN HUDDLESTON (San Jose SaberCats)

- SALE' KEY (Utah Blaze)

- KENYATTE MORGAN (Portland, Oklahoma, Buffalo, Grand Rapids)

- TRAVIS SEATON (Philadelphia, San Jose)

- TUPO TUUPO (San Jose, Las Vegas)

TALE OF THE TAPE:

(A look at the Lightning vs. Hawks through week 6)

Statistical STOCKTON EVERETT

Category Rank Stat Rank Stat

Scoring Offense 21st 45.2 26th 35.4

Scoring Defense 22nd 51.6 27th 58.8

Total Offense 13th 261.6 20th 246.2

Total Defense 10th 240.8 4th 216.2

Pass Offense 17th 230.8 19th 229.0

Pass Defense 9th 217.6 4th 206.4

Rushing Offense T-4 30.8 18th 17.2

Rushing Defense 21st 23.2 2nd 9.8

Scoring (Non-Kick) 21st 45.2 26th 35.4

Scoring (Kicking) 6th 42 30th 7

Pass Rating 20th 92.4 26th 77.7

Pass Def. Rating 24th 113.9 22nd 110.3

Kickoff Returns 2nd 21.6 28th 12.9

Turnover Margin T-19 -0.40 29th -2.40

Field Goals T-4 .714 T-20 .167

PAT Kicking 4th .900 30th .308

Sacks By 6th 14 T-16 7

Sacks Against T-17 8 T-15 7

First Downs 18th 87 11th 92

Opp. First Downs T-20 92 T-9 84

Penalties 10th 259 NL NL

Opp. Penalties 14th 55.6 3rd 76.0

PLAYERS TO WATCH:

Evan Gray (QB, Stockton) - Since being inserted into the quarterback role two weeks ago against Spokane, Evan Gray has erupted for 12 touchdown passes in his first two games. Gray tallied a whopping 7 touchdown passes through only the first three quarters against, while amassing a 20-for-34 effort, along with 237 yards and no interceptions. Gray's TD marks against Spokane finished one off the Lightning single-game passing record, set twice by former QB Josh Blankenship in 2006. Gray left his college career at NCAA Division-II Missouri Rolla as the holder of 17 individual program records.

Derrick Crudup (QB, Stockton) - Despite missing the last three quarters to the red-hot play of QB Evan Gray, Crudup is still a viable option for this week's tilt against Everett. The second-year af2 signal caller jumped out to three impressive starts to begin this season, throwing for 653 yards and has tallied an average quarterback rating of 103.70 through two the first two games, despite being held to only two touchdown passes last week at Bakersfield. In the week 2 victory over Central Valley, Crudup threw for 23-for-39, 241 passing yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions.

Kenyatte Morgan (WR/DB, Stockton): One of the most celebrated returners in af2 history is back for his second season in Stockton, as Kenyatte Morgan is in a neck-and-neck race with Manchester's Jarrail Jackson for the all-time af2 lead in kick-return yardage. Morgan currently leads Jackson by 207 yards.

ALL-TIME af2 LEADERS - KICK RETURN YARDAGE

PLAYER TEAM YARDS

1. Kenyatte Morgan* STK 4,250

2. Jarrail Jackson* MAN 4,043

3. Kevin Prentiss MEM 3,681

4. Shadrick McAfee LAF, BOS 3,572

5. Travis Burns NOR, QC 3,386

* Active

Morgan led the league last season in kick return avg.(23.2), kick return yards(1793), kick return touchdowns(4) and was 2nd in all -purpose yards(2644).

Morgan led all Lightning receivers with three touchdown receptions in a week 1 loss at Spokane and posted 235 all-purpose yards, leading the team. Through four games this season, Morgan has not been held under the 100-yard mark for kick returns and compiled 106 yards on just three runbacks vs. Spokane last week. Below is a look at Morgan's top-five games for return yards in 2006:

KENYATTE MORGAN'S TOP-5SINGLE-GAME RETURNS IN 2006

OPPONENT DATE YARDS

1. vs. Memphis 6/3 227

2. vs. Everett 6/17 222

3. @ Bakersfield 5/20 186

4. vs. Central Valley 7/29 171

5. @ Everett 5/27 160

SALE' KEY (WR) - A late newcomer to the Lightning roster shortly before the start of training camp and a former veteran of the AFL's Utah Blaze, Key brings ArenaCup championship experience after getting in the last four regular season games with Memphis in 2005, and all 3 ArenaCup playoff games. Key hauled in 6 catches for 81 yards in the ArenaCup title game vs. Louisville.

Key leads all Lightning receivers with 49 catches and 530 receiving yards, additionally tallying a team-high 9 TD receptions. Key's 12-catch, 149-yards receiving game in week 2 against Central Valley currently ranks as the top receiving performance (yards) of the year.

MANASE HOPOI (DL) - A burly lineman who enjoyed a decorated college football career with the Washington Huskies, Manase Hopoi returns to his college hometown state after four years of play with the Huskies and preseason NFL experience with the Minnesota Vikings. Hopoi has earned ADT Defensive Player of the Game honors twice this season, the first coming in week 2 against Central Valley and the most recent coming last week vs. Spokane.

JASON HUNT (FB/LB) - After returning this season from a previous training camp stint with the Lightning in 2006, Jason Hunt currently ranks fourth on the team with 19 tackles, and tallied a career-high 9 take-downs in last week's game against Tri-Cities, which included a franchise-record tying three sacks (Lyndell Hawkins, 2006).

B'JAY JONES (WR) - Playing in his first game with the Lightning two weeks ago, B'Jay Jones shook off the rust with a career-high and Lightning game-high four touchdown receptions, additionally amassing five catches for 87 yards.

Jones followed up with a two-touchdown effort in last week's game against Tri-Cities.

2007 LIGHTNING ROSTER MOVES:

Date Action Player

3/15 Placed on "refused to report" Clyde Surrell

3/15 Placed on "refused to report" Antwone Young

3/15 Acquired from Cincinnati in exchange for WR Phil Goodman Brian Baker

3/15 Acquired from Tri-Cities in exchange for QB Brian Baker Evan Gray

3/15 Acquired from Tri-Cities in exchange for QB Brian Baker Antar Brame

3/15 Assigned to Lightning Manase Hopoi

3/15 Assigned to Lightning Sale' Key

3/25 Placed on injured reserve Chris Stallworth

3/26 Placed on injured reserve York Frierson

3/26 Placed on injured reserve Mason Mitchell

3/26 Placed on injured reserve Cornelius Lambert

3/26 Placed on re-assignment Antar Brame

4/14 Placed on injured reserve Clarence Cunningham

4/21 Assigned to Lightning Tupo Tuupo

4/21 Placed on "Left team" Michael Ng

4/27 Assigned to Lightning Amadeo Novella

4/27 Placed on "refused to report" James Newson

4/27 Placed on injured reserve Vernon Smith

4/27 Activated off injured reserve Chris Stallworth

4/27 Placed on re-assignment York Frierson

4/27 Placed on re-assignment Cornelius Lambert

5/3 Assigned to Lightning York Frierson

5/3 Placed on "refused to report" Chris Stallworth

5/11 Activated off injured reserve Clarence Cunningham

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