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UIF Sioux Falls Storm

UIF's Top Two Teams to Collide on Saturday

July 6, 2007 - United Indoor Football Association (UIF)
Sioux Falls Storm News Release


The Sioux Falls Storm of United Indoor Football (UIF) will do battle with the Rock River Raptors (10-4) this Saturday night at the Sioux Falls Arena. Saturday's game may be a preview of United Bowl III. The Raptors have won eight of its last nine games. The one loss came to Bloomington in overtime on May 25. The Raptors trounced the Lexington Horsemen last Saturday 70-47 and officially locked up the #1 seed in the Eastern Conference. The Storm is currently riding a 33-game winning streak. Their 33 wins in a row tied the 1971-72 Los Angeles Lakers for the most consecutive wins in professional sports history. The Storm will look to gain sole possession of the record this weekend. The game is scheduled for a 7:05 PM kickoff. The game can be heard LIVE on 1320 KELO AM or by logging on to www.siouxfallsstorm.com and clicking on "Listen LIVE."

The last time these two teams met was opening week on March 24 in Rockford, IL. The Storm jumped out to an early 14-point lead. Rock River made it a game however outscoring the Storm 34-30 after the first quarter, but fell short as the Storm pulled out the victory 44-34.

The Storm offense wasn't its explosive self last Saturday vs. Colorado, but the team still put up 49 points. Terrance Bryant did not throw a touchdown pass for the first time this season. The Storm still holds on to the #1 ranking in scoring offense in the UIF with 51.6 points per game. The offense controlled much of the game with its ground game led by Marques Smith. Smith ran for 66 yards on 21 carries. Smith has carried the ball 20 or more times twice this season. Smith also broke the team's single season rushing record as he now has 741 on the season. The record was formally held by Justin Bivins, who ran for 723 yards back in 2003. The Storm is averaging 79.5 rushing yards per game, which ranks third in the UIF.

The Storm defense was absolutely dominating last Saturday vs. Colorado. If it weren't for a Deric Yaussi 28 yard field goal very late in the second quarter, the Storm would have forced its second shutout in team history. Defensive back Justin Landis had another phenomenal night picking off two passes. Landis has produced six interceptions in the past three games. The defense has intercepted 22 passes and forced 13 fumbles this year. The defense has played a gigantic part in the team being ranked #1 in turnover margin (+23). Defensive end Nate Fluit recorded two sacks last Saturday and is now just two sacks from tying the team's single season sack record, which he holds with 15.5 sacks. Leif Murphy also added a sack and scored his second touchdown of the season off a fumble recovery.

The Raptors have been an offensive power-house this year ranking #1 in both passing (200.3 passing yards/game) and total offense (258.6 yards/game). The Raptors offense has been especially explosive as of late as the team has put up 70 points each of the last two weeks. Quarterback Ben Sankey is piling up the passing yards like no other this season. Sankey has thrown for 2,723 yards this season, which leads the UIF. The UIF record for passing yards in a season is 2,849, which Sankey hopes to break Saturday night. While the offense racks up 200.3 passing yards per game, they are only rushing for 58.4 yards per game. Wide receiver Lawrence Bady is having a phenomenal season as he is only six catches away from becoming the first player in the UIF history to catch 100 balls in a season.

The Raptors defense has been very solid as well. The Raptors defense only ranks behind the Storm in total defense (198.0 yards/game) and they are allowing 36.9 points per game, which ranks fifth in the league. Linebacker Maurice Simpkins currently leads the league in total tackles with 101.5. Simpkins also leads the team in interceptions with four. The defense has done a great job of pressuring the quarterback tallying 30 sacks. Only the Storm has accumulated more with 34. Defensive end Darius Jones is the team leader in sacks with nine.

The Storm will host the Billings Outlaws on July 14th at the "Storm Shelter" in what will be the last game of the 2007 regular season. The game theme will be "Back When I Played Night." Individual tickets can be obtained by visiting the Arena Box Office or any Ticketmaster outlet, calling Ticketmaster at 334-8181, or purchasing from ticketmaster.com. Join "The Biggest Show in Town" as the Storm look for three championships in a row in 2007.

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