Wichita Stealth game notes
May 25, 2004 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Wichita Stealth News Release
QUICK FACTS:
Laredo Law (2-5)
At Wichita Stealth (5-2)
Date: Saturday, May 29, 2004
Kickoff: 7:30 p.m. CST
Site: Kansas Coliseum (9,686)
National Anthem: Heather Arnette
Coin Toss: Joe Pester
Officials: Joe Pester (Referee),
Mike Wilmoth (Umpire), Frank Whitmer (Head Linesman), Rick Smith (Line Judge), Craig Helser (Back Judge)
Radio: All Stealth games can be heard live on 96.3 KRZZ FM. Jay Sanderson and C.J. will be calling the action all season long for the Stealth.
Series Record: Wichita Leads the series 1-0
Last Meeting: Wichita 44, Laredo 22
Streaks: Laredo W-2, Wichita L-2
Coaches: LAR: Scot Maynard (2-5 1st season)
WIC: Sean Ponder (5-2 in 2004, 9-7-1 overall 2nd season)
TEAM WEBSITES: Law: www.laredolaw.com
Stealth: www.wichitastealth.com
THE STAKES: Wichita is looking to bounce back from a two-game skid and stay tied atop the Southwest Division standings. Laredo is looking for their third straight victory and first ever over the Stealth.
THE SERIES: The Stealth lead the series 1-0 over the Laredo Law. This will be the second of three meetings between the two teams this season. They will face each other next on July 24th in Laredo.
THE IFs:
If Wichita defeats Laredo, it would ...
· Give Wichita a 2-0 series record with Laredo
· Give Wichita a 4-0 home record in 2004
· Give Sean Ponder a 10-7-1 career record as head coach
· Give Wichita a one game win streak
WICHITA STEALTH (5-2, L-2)
Date Opponent Result Score
4/3 PEORIA W 33-13
4/10 LAREDO W 44-22
4/16 @ Peoria W 47-26
4/24 GREEN BAY W 68-53
5/8 @ Rio Grande W 35-28
5/15 @ Quad City L 39-73
5/22 @ Oklahoma City L 25-53
Date Opponent Time Streak Series
5/29 LAREDO 7:00 W-2 WIC 1-0
6/5 @ Tulsa 7:30 W-1 TUL 5-1
6/12 OKLAHOMA CITY 7:00 W-1 OKC 1-0
6/19 TULSA 7:00 -- --
7/3 @ Rio Grande 7:30 L-3 WIC 1-0
7/10 @ Tulsa 7:30 -- --
7/17 OKLAHOMA CITY 7:00 -- --
7/24 @ Laredo 7:30 -- --
7/31 RIO GRANDE 7:00 -- --
LAREDO LAW (2-5, W-2)
Date Opponent Result Score
4/3 @ Rio Grande L 6-37
4/10 @ Wichita L 22-44
4/23 TENNESSEE VALLEY L 43-68
5/1 RIO GRANDE VALLEY L 38-58
5/8 @ Oklahoma City L 48-79
5/15 TULSA W 57-48
5/22 @ Rio Grande Valley W 42-40
Date Opponent Time Streak Series
5/29 @ Wichita 7:00 L-2 WIC 1-0
6/5 OKLAHOMA CITY 7:30 W-1 OKC 1-0
6/11 BOSSIER CITY 7:30 L-3 First Meeting
6/19 @ Oklahoma City 7:30 -- --
7/3 TULSA 7:30 -- LAR 1-0
7/9 ARKANSAS 7:30 L-6 First Meeting
7/17 @ Florida 7:30 W-1 First Meeting
7/24 WICHITA 7:30 -- --
7/31 @ Tulsa 7:30 -- --
(All times are Central)
STEALTH HEAD COACH AT A GLANCE: Sean Ponder begins his second season in arena football. He took over the Stealth last season after seven games. Ponder led the Stealth to their second consecutive playoff berth in af2. He brings over five years of college coaching experience to Wichita. He previously served as the offensive coordinator at Orange Coast Community College in California. At Orange Coast, he helped turn around a program that had not won over two games the past three seasons into a junior college powerhouse.
LAREDO HEAD COACH AT A GLANCE: Scot Maynard brings over 20 years of experience at all levels of coaching to the Law, which will be his first head coaching position. The 41-year old Maynard worked the past two seasons as the defensive coordinator of the New York Dragons in the Arena Football League. While in New York, he worked with John Gregory, who coached such notables as Kurt Warner during his AFL days. Scot is also the son of NFL Hall of Fame wide receiver Don Maynard
THE LAST TIME WE MET (A recap of the last meeting): The last time these two teams met, the Stealth defense was at the top of their game and held the Law scoreless for the first half and cruised to a 44-22 victory at the Kansas Coliseum. For the Stealth, quarterback Aaron Sparrow was 13-of-24 for 199 yards and four touchdowns on the night.
Score by Quarters 1 2 3 4 Score
----------------- -- -- -- -- -----
Laredo Law.......... 0 0 7 15 - 22 Record: (0-2)
Wichita Stealth..... 14 10 7 13 - 44 Record: (2-0)
Scoring Summary:
1st 13:14 WIC - HIGHSHAW, Christophe 40 yd pass from SPARROW, Aaron (POHLMAN, Dylan kick), 2-45 1:46, LAR 0 - WIC 7
07:43 WIC - JACKSON, Jonathan 7 yd pass from SPARROW, Aaron (POHLMAN, Dylan kick), 3-28 1:53, LAR 0 - WIC 14
2nd 14:54 WIC - POHLMAN, Dylan 27 yd field goal, 7-6 4:23, LAR 0 - WIC 17
09:04 WIC - GRIFFIN, Anthony 3 yd run (POHLMAN, Dylan kick), 4-35 3:02, LAR 0 - WIC 24
3rd 11:16 LAR - BROWN, Sedrick 6 yd run (HEGNAUER, Brian kick), 5-27 3:44, LAR 7 - WIC 24
05:37 WIC - BACOTE, Marc 39 yd pass from SPARROW, Aaron (POHLMAN, Dylan kick), 2-39 1:04, LAR 7 - WIC 31
4th 12:20 LAR - HEGNAUER, Brian 22 yd field goal, 4-5 2:33, LAR 10 - WIC 31
09:08 LAR - WINSTON, P.J. 10 yd pass from ROGERS, Josh (HEGNAUER, Brian kick failed), 3-45 1:55, LAR 16 - WIC 31
05:42 WIC - GRIFFIN, Anthony 4 yd run (POHLMAN, Dylan kick failed), 4-27 3:26, LAR 16 - WIC 37
04:09 LAR - WINSTON, P.J. 40 yd pass from ROGERS, Josh (HEGNAUER, Brian kick failed), 1-40 1:33, LAR 22 - WIC 37
00:53 WIC - JACKSON, Jonathan 13 yd pass from SPARROW, Aaron (POHLMAN, Dylan kick), 3-45 3:16, LAR 22 - WIC 44
LAR WIC
FIRST DOWNS................... 9 13
RUSHES-YARDS (NET)............ 6-23 8-40
PASSING YDS (NET)............. 174 193
Passes Att-Comp-Int........... 38-18-0 26-13-2
TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS..... 52-197 36-233
Fumble Returns-Yards.......... 0-0 0-0
Kickoff Returns-Yards......... 5-83 3-75
Interception Returns-Yards.... 2-15 0-0
Fumbles-Lost.................. 2-0 3-2
Penalties-Yards............... 9-48 8-51
Possession Time............... 33:13 26:47
Sacks By: Number-Yards........ 2-3 8-55
RUSHING: Laredo Law-WINSTON, P.J. 1-9; ROGERS, Josh 3-7; BROWN,
Sedrick 1-6; MINOR, Terrance 1-1. Wichita Stealth-RICHARDSON, Carl 2-34;
GRIFFIN, Anthony 3-10; BEASLEY, Jonathan 1-2; JACKSON, Jonathan 1-1;
SPARROW, Aaron 1-minus 7.
PASSING: Laredo Law-ROGERS, Josh 18-38-0-229; TEAM 0-0-0-minus 55.
Wichita Stealth-SPARROW, Aaron 13-24-1-199; BEASLEY, Jonathan 0-1-0-0;
GRIFFIN, Anthony 0-1-1-0; TEAM 0-0-0-minus 6.
RECEIVING: Laredo Law-WINSTON, P.J. 6-115; PHILLIPS, Melvin 6-68;
THEUS, Martino 2-27; JONES, B'Jay 2-13; MINOR, Terrance 2-6. Wichita
Stealth-JACKSON, Jonathan 4-43; GRIFFIN, Anthony 3-42; HIGHSHAW, Christophe
2-49; BACOTE, Marc 2-47; RICHARDSON, Carl 2-18.
INTERCEPTIONS: Laredo Law-RACHAL, Traco 2-15. Wichita Stealth-None.
FUMBLES: Laredo Law-TEAM 2-0. Wichita Stealth-TEAM 2-2; SPARROW,
Aaron 1-0.
HEY, DON'T I KNOW YOU? (A look at some familiar faces)
Newly acquired Stealth offensive/defensive lineman Anthony Knutson played in six games with the Law at the start of the season...Law wide receiver/linebacker Melvin Phillips played in seven games with the Stealth last year...Law offensive/defensive lineman, John Amaro began the 2004 season in training camp with the Stealth.
LEAGUE TOP 10s: Players from this week's matchup who ranked among af2's statistical leaders in 2004:
STEALTH
Player Rank Category Stat
David Hurst T-1st Fumbles Forced 3
Cliff Holloman T-7th Tackles For Loss 4.0
LAW
Player Rank Category Stat
Rocky Perez 6th Rushing 103 yds
Traco Rachal T-3rd Interceptions 3
Brian Hegnauer T-2nd Field Goals 5
Traco Rachal T-4th Passes Defended 13
Traco Rachal T-5th Tackles 36.5
LOOKING BACK: Last week the Stealth ran into a determined Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz team. The Yard Dawgz entered the game with the #1 ranked offense, but it was their defense that stole the show on this night. The Stealth surrendered six sacks on the night and fell to 5-2 after the 53-25 loss. This was the lowest scoring output of the season by the Stealth.
Score by Quarters 1 2 3 4 Score
----------------- -- -- -- -- -----
Wichita Stealth..... 6 6 0 13 - 25 Record: (5-2)
OKC Yard Dawgz...... 13 10 9 21 - 53 Record: (5-2)
Scoring Summary:
1st 13:38 OKC - Peters, Kris 29 yd pass from Strickland, Cra (Martinez, Peter kick), 2-45 1:22, WIC 0 - OKC 7
08:30 OKC - Peters, Kris 9 yd pass from Strickland, Cra (Strickland, Cra rush failed), 3-9 1:43, WIC 0 - OKC 13
00:53 WIC - GRIFFIN, Anthony 2 yd run (LIVINGSTON, Brian pass failed), 9-45 7:37, WIC 6 - OKC 13
2nd 10:24 OKC - Hunt, Al 19 yd pass from Strickland, Cra (Martinez, Peter kick), 7-45 5:29, WIC 6 - OKC 20
00:42 WIC - WILLIAMS, Daren 2 yd run (POHLMAN, Dylan kick failed), 12-47 9:42, WIC 12 - OKC 20
00:13 OKC - Martinez, Peter 20 yd field goal, 5-0 0:29, WIC 12 - OKC 23
3rd 14:33 OKC - Landers, James safety, , WIC 12 - OKC 25
05:18 OKC - Hunt, Al 23 yd pass from Strickland, Cra (Martinez, Peter kick), 2-28 1:02, WIC 12 - OKC 32
4th 10:40 WIC - GRIFFIN, Anthony 2 yd run (POHLMAN, Dylan kick failed), 6-31 4:09, WIC 18 - OKC 32
09:36 OKC - Hunt, Al 44 yd pass from Strickland, Cra (Martinez, Peter kick), 1-44 1:04, WIC 18 - OKC 39
03:57 WIC - BACOTE, Marc 7 yd pass from SPARROW, Aaron (POHLMAN, Dylan kick), 6-45 5:39, WIC 25 - OKC 39
02:24 OKC - Marshall, Timon 6 yd pass from Strickland, Cra (Martinez, Peter drop-kick), 3-17 1:33, WIC 25 - OKC 47
00:43 OKC - Hunt, Al 4 yd pass from Strickland, Cra (Martinez, Peter drop-kick failed), 3-9 0:17, WIC 25 - OKC 53
WIC OKC
FIRST DOWNS................... 17 11
RUSHES-YARDS (NET)............ 10-8 4-5
PASSING YDS (NET)............. 199 240
Passes Att-Comp-Int........... 39-19-0 29-17-1
TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS..... 55-207 33-245
Fumble Returns-Yards.......... 0-0 0-0
Kickoff Returns-Yards......... 7-51 2-33
Interception Returns-Yards.... 1-5 0-0
Fumbles-Lost.................. 2-1 1-0
Penalties-Yards............... 6-54 11-94
Possession Time............... 41:30 18:30
Sacks By: Number-Yards........ 0-0 6-28
RUSHING: Wichita Stealth-GRIFFIN, Anthony 5-10; WILLIAMS, Daren 1-2;
SPARROW, Aaron 2-1; HAMILTON, Jimmy 2-minus 5. OKC Yard Dawgz-Toney, Chris
1-5; Strickland, Cra 1-0; Richardson, Dar 1-0; Balous, Johnnie 1-0.
PASSING: Wichita Stealth-SPARROW, Aaron 19-39-0-227; TEAM 0-0-0-minus
28. OKC Yard Dawgz-Strickland, Cra 17-29-1-240.
RECEIVING: Wichita Stealth-THOMPSON, Damon 8-98; GRIFFIN, Anthony
4-45; BACOTE, Marc 4-29; HIGHSHAW, Christophe 1-26; HAMILTON, Jimmy 1-16;
WILLIAMS, Daren 1-13. OKC Yard Dawgz-Hunt, Al 6-137; Marshall, Timon 6-31;
Peters, Kris 5-72.
INTERCEPTIONS: Wichita Stealth-HIGHSHAW, Christophe 1-5. OKC Yard
Dawgz-None.
TALE OF THE TAPE: Here's how WICHITA and LAREDO stack up:
Statistical STEALTH LAW
Category Rank Stat Rank Stat
Scoring Offense 17th 41.6 21st 36.6
Scoring Defense 4th 38.3 21st 53.4
Total Offense 15th 257.4 20th 221.6
Total Defense 5th 210.3 14th 263.4
Pass Offense 11th 244.1 20th 202.1
Pass Defense 4th 195.6 12th 231.3
Rushing Offense T-20th 13.3 12th 19.4
Rushing Defense 7th 14.7 23rd 32.1
Scoring 18th 262 22nd 216
Scoring (Kicking) 20th 29 15th 36
Pass Rating 8th 110.7 17th 105.0
Pass Def. Rating 4th 96.7 21st 114.9
Kickoff Returns 20th 16.2 21st 15.7
MFG Returns 18th 12.9 8th 22.2
Turnover Margin T-8th 0 13th -5
Field Goals % T-16th .200 9th .333
PAT Kicking % 20th .684 23rd .600
Sacks By 3rd 18 T-8th 10
Sacks Against T-11th 15 16th 41
First Downs T-7th 109 11th 101
Opp. First Downs 1st 81 T-8th 102
Penalty Yards 7th 360 3rd 332
Opp. Penalty Yds 5th 350 21st 491
Red Zone Offense 8th 76.3% 21st 58.5%
Red Zone Defense 4th 63.9% 14th 76.2%
WICHITA STEALTH INJURY REPORT:
Pos. Name Injury Status
OL/DL Dustin Fish Leg Long Term IR
OL/DL Ervin Holloman Knee Long Term IR
WR/LB Herman Gordon Leg Long Term IR
WHAT THEY'RE SAYING: (Notable quotes):
SEAN PONDER, On quarterback Jonathan Beasley starting his first af2 game: "Jonathan is very capable of leading this team. He has shown it in practice and he is a #1 quarterback who has just been sitting in a #2 role."
ADVANCE BOOKING: (A look at upcoming Stealth games):
The Stealth take to the road once again for a trip to face the Tulsa Talons next Saturday, June 5th. The Stealth will return home on June 12th to face the Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz and on June 19th to face the Tulsa Talons.
FLY-BY's: (A look at team trends and tidbits):
STEALTH RETURNERS: The Stealth return eight members from a team that recorded the franchise record for wins last season. They return defensive specialist Ty Ardoin, offensive/defensive lineman Dustin Fish, offensive/defensive lineman Cliff Holloman, wide receiver/defensive back Brian Livingston, fullback/linebacker Jeff Macrea, fullback/linebacker Daren Williams, offensive/defensive lineman Markevius Woods, and offensive specialist Michael Dritlein.
GETTING DEFENSIVE: After finishing the 2003 season ranked near the middle of the af2 in almost every defensive category, the Stealth have started the 2004 season off with a bang on the defensive side of the ball. Assistant Head Coach/Defensive Coordinator Troy Biladeau has his defense near the top of every defensive category. The Stealth rank 4th in scoring defense (only allowing 38.3 points per game), 5th in total defense (210.3 yards per game), 4th in pass defense (195.6 yards per game), and 4th in pass defense rating (96.7 rating).
HOME SWEET HOME: The Stealth come home this week after a three game road swing that saw them drop two of three. The Stealth welcome the friendly confines of the Kansas Coliseum where they have an all-time home record of 18-8-1.
TOP GUNS: (A look at players and match-ups to watch):
NOW UNDER CENTER: Stealth quarterback Jonathan Beasley will make his first af2 career start this week versus the Law. Beasley played college fotoball at Kansas State University and has seen limited action with the Stealth this season.
NEW KID ON THE BLOCK, Stealth offensive specialist Damon Thompson: The Stealth offense was strengthened the week of the Green Bay game when they were assigned offensive specialist Damon Thompson. Thompson played last season with the Richmond Speed and finished the season fourth in the af2 in receiving yardage with 1,569 yards and 27 touchdowns. In four games with the Stealth, Thompson has caught 27 passes for 322 yards and seven touchdowns.
Stealth WR/DB Brian Livingston: Livingston returns to Wichita for his second straight year. Last year, Livingston led the Stealth in tackles, interceptions, and forced fumbles. This season he leads the team in tackles and is tied for the team lead in interceptions thus far. Earlier this season versus Rio Grande Valley, he was named the Baby Ruth Real Deal Offensive Player of the Game.
Stealth defensive line versus Laredo offensive line: This week the Stealth defensive line may be able to get some pressure on the Law quarterbacks. The Stealth are ranked third in the af2 in sacks with 18 so far on the season and the Law have given up 41 sacks thus far (5.8 per game), the most in af2.
STEALTH FLIGHT PLAN: (A look at the Stealth schedule this week)
Wednesday: 6:30 a.m. â 8:30 a.m. PRACTICE (The Sports Zone)
Thursday: 6:30 am â 8:30 am PRACTICE (The Sports Zone)
Friday: 8:00 am PRACTICE (The Sports Zone)
Saturday: 7:00 p.m. KICKOFF!!! (Kansas Coliseum)
RECENT STEALTH ROSTER MOVES (most recent first):
Date Action Player
5/13 ACTIVATED FROM SHORT TERM IR Jimmy Hamilton
5/13 ACTIVATED FROM SHORT TERM IR Michael Dritlein
5/13 PLACED ON SHORT TERM IR Ronald Pou
5/13 PLACED ON SHORT TERM IR Herman Gordon
5/13 PLACED ON RE-ASSIGNMENT Antoine Williams
5/13 ACTIVATED FROM LONG TERM IR Antoine Williams
GAME AWARD WINNERS
BABY RUTH REAL DEAL OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME (selected by media)
Week Opp. Player
1 Peoria Aaron Sparrow-Wichita
2 Laredo Anthony Griffin-Wichita
3 @ Peoria Michael Dritlein-Wichita
4 Green Bay Damon Thompson-Wichita
6 @ Rio Brian Livingston-Wichita
7 @ Quad Ronnie Gordon-Quad City
8 @ OKC Craig Strickland-Oklahoma City
ARMY IRONMAN AWARD (selected by media)
Week Opp. Player
1 Peoria Daren Williams-Wichita
2 Laredo Marc Bacote-Wichita
3 @ Peoria Brian Livingston-Wichita
4 Green Bay Brian Livingston-Wichita
6 @ Rio Manwell Talbert-Rio Grande
7 @ Quad Bear Brown-Quad City
8 @ OKC Al Hunt-Oklahoma City
ADT DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME
(selected by media)
Week Opp. Player
1 Peoria Cliff Holloman-Wichita
2 Laredo Cliff Holloman-Wichita
3 @ Peoria Marc Bacote-Wichita
4 Green Bay Ty Ardoin-Wichita
6 @ Rio Marc Bacote-Wichita
7 @ Quad Jamaal Cherry-Quad City
8 @ OKC James Landers-Oklahoma City
af2 WEEKLY AWARD WINNERS
Week Offensive Defensive Ironman
1 Jeff Hewitt-Quad City Karleton Thomas-Rio Grande Valley Jerrian James-Tennessee Valley
2 Randall Lane-Green Bay Jerry Turner-Birmingham Al Hunt-Oklahoma City
3 Matt Burstein-Cape Fear Justin Thomas-Louisville Leroy McFadden-Wilkes-Barre
4 Aaron Sparrow-Wichita Demetrius Forney-Louisville Bjorn Barre-Tulsa
5 Chris Sanders-Manchester Matt Forbes-Quad City Steve Gorrie-Florida
6 Bo Smith-Bossier Takuya Furutani-Louisville Anthony Jordan-Birmingham
7 Chris Greisen-Green Bay Deronn Finley-Green Bay Ricky Leung-Wai-Central Valley
8 Brian Jones-Memphis Terence Samuel-Columbus Joshua Robinson-Hawaii
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