Tennessee Valley Vipers Game Notes
Published on April 28, 2003 under United Indoor Football Association (UIF)
Tennessee Valley Raptors News Release
QUICK FACTS:
Bossier City Battle Wings (2-2) at Tennessee Valley Vipers (3-0)
Date: May 3, 2003
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. CST
Site: Von Braun Center (6,642)
National Anthem: Heather Batchelor
Coin Toss: TBA
Officials: (Referee), (Umpire), (Head Linesman), (Line Judge), (Back Judge)
Radio: WUMP 730 (Doug Franz)
TV: None
Series Record: Series even at 1-1
Last Meeting: The Battle Wings won the last meeting 60-56 in Huntsville on July 14, 2001.
Streaks: Vipers W3, Battle Wings L1
Coaches: Kevin Guy (16-3; 0-1 playoffs, Second season) Chad Carlson (2-2, First Season)
THE STAKES: The Vipers have a chance to go 4-0 on the season and 2-0 at home. They can stay in the lead in the South Division and remain the only undefeated team in af2.
THE SERIES: This will be the third meeting between the two teams. The two teams have split the previous meetings with each winning on the road. The Vipers won 74-44 in Bossier City on June 16, 2001 and the Battle Wings won in Huntsville on July 14, 2001.
THE IFs:
If Tennessee Valley defeats Bossier City, it would ...
· Give Tennessee Valley a 2-1 record vs Bossier City
· Give Tennessee Valley a 2-0 home record in 2003
· Give Kevin Guy a 17-3 record as a coach
· Keep Tennessee Valley as the only undefeated in af2
HEAD COACHES: Viper head coach Kevin Guy is in his second season and the helm. He has led the Vipers to a 15-3 regular season record. He is 8-1 on the road and 7-2 at home.
Bossier City's Chad Carlson is 2-2in his first season as head coach of the Battle Wings.
LAST SERIES MEETING: The Vipers led 50-31 in the fourth quarter in Huntsville on July 14, 2001 before the Battle Wings rallied and pulled out a 60-56 win. It was only the second loss of the season for the Vipers in 2001. During a nine minute stretch in the fourth quarter, Bossier City scored 29 straight points. Matt Sauk finished the game 16-34 for 162 yards and four touchdowns while Sherard Poteete was 18-32 for 192 yards and five touchdowns.
SERIES NOTABLES: The Vipers are 1-1 against the Battle Wings. Both teams have won on the road. The Vipers won 74-44 in Bossier City on June 16, 2001 and the Battle Wings won in Huntsville on July 14, 2001.
TENNESSEE VALLEY INJURY REPORT:
Pos. Name Injury Status DS Kenny Bailey Broke Right Foot Out
THIS WEEK'S QUOTES:
Kevin Guy, on the running ability of Sherard Poteete: "Honestly, I don't ever go into an arena football game worrying about the other team running the football. That is something that our pass rush has done a good job of is filling the escape lanes. We have got to take care of that this week and make it difficult for him to find those lanes."
MILESTONES:
Reggie Worthy needs four yards rushing to reach 200 yards for his career. He reached the 1,000 yard receiving mark two weeks ago at Louisville. When he gets 200 yards rushing, he will become the first Viper to have 1,000 yards receiving and 200 yards rushing and just the third player in af2 history to reach both marks.
Jerrian James needs 126 yards receiving to reach 1,000 for his career.
DROPBACK: The Vipers fell behind in the first quarter at Louisville but outscored the Fire 41-14 over the final three quarters to come home with a 55-27 victory. Matt Sauk completed 21-30 passes for 261 yards and six touchdowns in the win. Eight different receivers caught passes and five different ones caught touchdowns.
FORWARD MOTION: The Vipers will travel to Bossier City on May 9 and host Macon on May 17.
RECENT ROSTER MOVES (most recent first):
Date Action Player
4/16 Reassigned Derek Fuqua, FB/LB
4/16 Activated from Short-Term IR Michael James, OS
AFL Experience: Eleven members of the 2003 Vipers have experience in Arena Football League, either in a game, in training camp or on the practice squad.
We're Not Worthy: WR/DB Reggie Worthy pickup up where he left off in the 2002 season. He now has 196 yards rushing, 1,007 yards receiving and is now second in Viper history with 23 touchdown receptions. He needs just four yards rushing to become the first Viper to have 200 yards rushing and 1,000 receiving.
Sack Prevention: Viper quarterback, Matt Sauk, was only sacked only five times in 2001 and two of those he tripped and fell. He has not been sacked this season.
JJ is "Dynamite": Wide Receiver/Defensive Back, Jerrian James has been dynamite in his first two games as a Viper. He has rushed for one touchdown, caught nine passes for 152 yards and three touchdowns and recorded 8.0 tackles and a fumble recovery. He missed the Louisville game with a sprained ankle.
FB/LB Production: The Tennessee Valley Vipers are getting plenty of production from the fullback/linebacker position. The trio of Jimmy Freeman, Marvin Strong and Dedric Maffet has rushed for 33 yards and two touchdowns, caught two passes for 41 yards, recorded 9.5 tackles, 1.0 sack, two pass break ups, four quarterback hits, one fumble recovery and three forced fumbles.
Ronney is dandy: Wide Receiver/Linebacker, Ronney Daniels caught six passes for 119 yards and two touchdowns. He has also recorded 2.5 tackles, one fumble recovery and one forced fumble in his Viper debut.
Secondary Experience: Both Viper defensive backs have AFL experience, Chazz Moore (Los Angeles) and Ernest Ross (Detroit).
Road Sweet Road: The Tennessee Valley Vipers have only lost one road game in the past three seasons compiling a 16-1 record over that time. Matt Sauk is a perfect 10-0 on the road as the Vipers quarterback, 8-0 in 2001 and 2-0 this season.
Center of Attention: David Sucura and Chris Bell are the first Viper centers in three years to return although both almost didn't. Bell went to camp with the Carolina Cobras and Sucura went to camp with the Buffalo Destroyers earlier this season.
"X" Factor: Xavier Patterson is in his fourth year in af2 but will be in his first season playing the offensive specialist position. The former Steamwheeler and Stealth WR/DB has now caught 103 passes for 2,577 yards and 57 TDs and returned 24 missed field goals for 367 yards and 57 kickoffs for 1,180 yards and two touchdowns. He played in his first game as a wide receiver/defensive back at Louisville and intercepted a pass.
Hall's Career Day: Calvin Hall had a career day at Florida catching seven passes for 97 yards and two touchdowns. The receptions and receiving yards are both career highs. He also broke the Viper record for the longest reception with a 49-yard touchdown reception in the first quarter. He currently leads the Vipers in receptions (17), receiving yards (216) and receiving touchdowns (4).
Ross makes immediate impact: In his first three games with the Vipers, defensive specialist Ernest Ross made an immediate impact on the game. He has recorded 12.5 tackles and intercepted two passes. He returned an interception 49 yards for a touchdown against Quad City.
Playmaker is back: After almost deciding not to play in the 2003 season, Andy "Playmaker" Fuller changed his mind and joined the Vipers before the Florida game. The Vipers would have missed the following numbers, 40 receptions, 397 yards, 22 touchdowns, 56.0 tackles and 11.5 sacks. He has recorded 1.0 tackle, one pass break up and two quarterback hits in two games.
Big Shoes to Fill: Viper kicker, Mark Lewis has big shoes to fill in replacing all-af2 first team kicker, Todd Latourette. Lewis has converted 20-23 extra points in the season opener and missed his only field goal attempts all have been from over 50 yards.
Fumble!!!: The Vipers have fumbles the ball seven times and lost three this season. They are -3 in the turnover margin.
Flag on the Play: After being penalized 12 times for 71 yards in the opening win at Florida, Vipers have lowered that number. They have only been penalized 11 times for 59 yards in their last two games and second in the league in penalties.
Third Down: Here is a break down of third and fourth down on the season:
Player Third Down Fourth Down
Vipers 8/18 (44%) 3/6 (50%)
Opponents 8/20 (40%) 0/6 (0%)
The Red Zone: The Vipers converted 18-24 opportunities will all 18 scores being touchdowns. They turned the ball over on downs, threw three interceptions and fumbled twice. They have held their opponents to 11-19, intercepting three passes and holding on downs three times.
Sack Record: Two Vipers are chasing the current Viper sack leader Eugene Phillips:
Player Sacks
Eugene Phillips 14.0
Heath Springer 12.5
Andy Fuller 11.5
Curtis Jeter 11.0
Completion Record: Matt Sauk broke the Viper career completions record at Florida. He now owns every Viper passing record including the longest completion, which he broke with a 49-yd touchdown pass to Calvin Hall. Two weeks ago at Louisville he completed his 400th pass, went over the 5,000 yard mark in passing and went over the 100 touchdown mark.
Michael Makes Presence Known: Michael James played in his first game at Louisville two weeks ago and let everyone know he was here to play. The former Alabama receiver played the offensive specialist position for the Vipers and caught five passes for 41 yards and two touchdowns.
Viper Records Broken in 2003:
Most Completions in a career: Matt Sauk 393. Old Record: Bryan Snyder 354.
Longest Completion: Matt Sauk 49-yards at Florida 4/5/03
Longest Reception: Calvin Hall 49-yards at Florida 4/5/03
PLAYERS/MATCHUPS TO WATCH:
Vipers Offense and Battle Wings Offense: This is a battle of two of the best offenses in af2. The Battle Wings lead the league in scoring offense at 57.8 points while the Vipers are fourth at 52.7. Both quarterbacks, Matt Sauk and Sherard Poteete are two of the top QBs in the league.
Vipers WR/LBs vs Bossier City QB, Sherard Poteete, Vipers WR/LBs, Calvin Hall and Ronney Daniels could have their hands full with Battle Wings QB, Sheard Poteete. Poteete leads the league in rushing averaging 29.0 yards per game and he has rushed for nine touchdowns. If he scrambles, it will be the responsibility of Hall and Daniels to containe him.
KEY DATES IN VIPER HISTORY:
March 31, 2000: Vipers get first ever win with a 59-18 victory over Birmingham.
April 8, 2000: Vipers get their first home win over Norfolk 48-15.
August 10, 2000: Vipers fall 68-59 to the Quad City Steamwheelers in the ArenaCup Championship.
April 7, 2001: Vipers get their first win in the 2001 season with a 55-14 win over Memphis.
July 21, 2001: Vipers rally from a 34-point deficit in the 4th quarter to beat Arkansas 56-55.
July 30, 2001: Vipers beat Tallahassee 70-52 in the first round of the af2 playoffs.
August 4, 2001: Vipers fall 51-50 to the Richmond Speed in overtime in the af2 semifinals.
April 6, 2002: Vipers beat Arkansas 37-28 for their first win of the 2002 season.
April 11, 2002: Vipers win their 11th straight road game 57-46 at Memphis to break the af2 record.
United Indoor Football Association Stories from April 28, 2003
- Tennessee Valley Vipers Game Notes - Tennessee Valley Raptors
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