Venom Give Alabama a 'Good' Hammering
April 21, 2014 - Professional Indoor Football League (PIFL)
Nashville Venom News Release
NASHVILLE-A rare shutout in a quarter keyed the Nashville Venom's (3-0) 59-29 defeat over the Alabama Hammers (0-4) on Good Friday at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Professional Indoor Football League action. From the last 28 seconds of the first half until late in the fourth quarter, the Venom outscored Alabama 38-0 keyed by a 14-yard interception return for a touchdown by the Player of the Game linebacker, Will Johnson on the first play in the second half. The stingy Venom defense grabbed four interceptions, two by Scooter Rogers.
"It was close in the first half but we came out with fire in our butts in the second," said Venom Head Coach Billy Back. "Will's pick six got us on a roll. Our defensive front made it tough for their quarterback to be comfortable. I was impressed with our sense of urgency in the second half."
The first half was nip and tuck as the Hammers answered each time the Venom scored a touchdown. Then the Hammers took a 22-21 lead on an "uno" by kicker Armando Cuko with 1:35 left in the half. That would turn out to be the final time Alabama would score until late in the fourth quarter. The Venom also excelled on offense as quarter Alex Carter threw for 297 yards and five touchdowns. George Murray caught 11 passed for 121 yards and two touchdowns. Phillip Barnett added six catches for 124 yards and Mack Ogletree also had a touchdown receiving.
"We had a nice balance tonight," said Back. "Alex threw the ball pretty well. His percentage would have been better if it wasn't for a couple of drops. We ran for two touchdowns and got one on defense. Even our kicker was pretty good tonight. Those two "unos' were big for us. All together we played well. Not much more than I can ask of them."
Snake Bites:
Corry Stewart grabbed his fourth interception of the season.
Kicker Garret Morgan made all seven of his extra point attempts and kicked two "unos'. He also recorded touchbacks on all of his kickoffs. He missed a 58-yard field goal but ran down field and made the first hit on the returner.
Venom linebacker Will Johnson was named Player of the Week. He will be featured on The Venom Show that airs on and WTNTribune Radio online.
Two Nashville high school products played well for the Hammers. A. J. Johnson of Glencliff High School caught four passes for 51 yards and Nathan Wade of Montgomery Bell Academy four total tackles and a pass break up.
The Venom are 2-0 versus the PIFL defending champion Alabama Hammers on the season.
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Professional Indoor Football League Stories from April 21, 2014
- Trenton Re-Visits the Hawks Nest - Lehigh Valley Steelhawks
- Venom Give Alabama a 'Good' Hammering - Nashville Venom
- Lions Suffer Narrow Defeat at Trenton - Columbus Lions
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