VooDoo Seek Win On Road

Published on May 1, 2013 under Arena Football League (AFL)
New Orleans VooDoo News Release


NEW ORLEANS (May 1, 2013) - The New Orleans VooDoo (1-4) will travel to the Tampa Bay Storm (4-2) to begin their three game road stint for an American Conference South Division matchup.

A victory over Tampa will put the VooDoo at 2-0 in the South Division and 1-1 on the road. This will be the thirteenth meeting between these two rivals.

Tampa Bay comes as no stranger to Head Coach Pat O'Hara as he was the backup quarterback for the Storm in 2003, where he replaced John Kaleo after an injury in ArenaBowl XVII. O'Hara helped the Storm find its fifth ArenaBowl Championship in 2003. O'Hara later became player-coach for the Storm under former Storm Head Coach Tim Marcum. O'Hara and Marcum were reunited in New Orleans in 2012 with O'Hara as head coach for the Voodoo and Marcum as his assistant.

In their last meeting, Tampa Bay clinched an overtime victory (78-77) over the VooDoo inside the Tampa Bay Times Forum. However, VooDoo quarterback Kurt Rocco added a new page to the VooDoo record book that night becoming the first VooDoo quarterback to throw over 100 touchdowns in a single season.

Last week, the VooDoo failed to grasp the victory over the San Jose SaberCats (57-38) during the VooDoo debut in the Mercedes Benz Superdome, while Tampa Bay handed Spokane their first loss of the season (70-62) on Shock home turf, last Saturday night. In the VooDoo's loss, former back-up quarterback Eskridge finished the night 7 of 18 for 67 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. Newly acquired quarterback Bill Stull checked into the game during the fourth quarter and led the way with 8 of 14 passes for 97 yards and a touchdown.

Against the Shock, Tampa Bay quarterback Adrian McPherson completed 21-of-36 passes for 310 yards, seven touchdowns and zero interceptions. He also rushed for three touchdowns. A familiar face to the VooDoo, former VooDoo WR Greg Ellingson, has had his third consecutive game with the Storm where he has 40+ receiving yards. While with the VooDoo, Ellingson recorded 33 receptions for 475 yards and eight touchdowns.

The VooDoo defense will once again have to step up to the plate as they face off against league rushing leader Adrian McPherson who totals 233 yards for 17 touchdowns and Joe Hills who leads the League with 769 receiving yards and 19 touchdowns.

To be able to match the powerful Storm offense, the VooDoo will have to be healthy and on their "A" game to make this game a scoring match. WR Chris Duvalt has once again joined the VooDoo receiving forces after being injured in Week 1 against Orlando. Duvall took no time making his presence known by hauling in an amazing nine yard touchdown catch and ending the game with 5 receptions for 90 yards and one touchdown. Leading VooDoo receiver Courtney Smith has totaled 23 receptions for 304 yards and five touchdowns so far this season.

As Tampa Bay looks to continue their winning streak, New Orleans looks to gain their first win away from home. Kick -off is set for 8 p.m. CT on "Net10 Arena Football Saturday Night" on CBS Sports Network this coming Saturday, May 4. Tune in to Ken Trahan and Dan Newman live from Tampa Bay on Rush Radio 99.5 FM WRNO or at www.wrno.com.

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