af2 arenafootball2

Wildcats Hope to Slow Down Speed

Published on May 2, 2002 under arenafootball2 (af2) News Release


RICHMOND, Va. - NASCAR's heroes may be in Richmond this weekend, but they won't be the only high-octane show in town, as the Richmond Speed sends its super-charged offense against the visiting Cape Fear Wildcats tonight at the Coliseum. Richmond sits 5-0 with a commanding lead in the Atlantic Division, while Cape Fear (2-1) is coming off a bye and looking to gain some ground on the Speed.

This game pits the league's top offense against af2's top defense. The Speed leads the league in scoring (65.4 PPG) and ranks No. 2 in passing offense (314 YPG) and total offense (350 YPG). The Wildcats' defense, however, is ranked first in af2 in total defense, limiting foes to 149.3 yards and 28 points per game.

QB BOB BEES commands the Speed offense and has completed 67 percent of his passes for 1,100 yards and 26 touchdowns. When he steps back to throw, chances are OS JEFF TOWNSLEY or WR/DB KEVIN HARVEY will be on the other end. The deadly duo has combined for 57 receptions, 780 yards and 19 scores.

Cape Fear's QB VIC PENN has been the man for the 'Cats thus far, throwing for 630 yards and 10 touchdowns. But that may change with the newly-acquired MIKE GLUSKI looming on the bench. Gluski joined the Wildcats last week in a trade from Macon, where he helped the Knights jump out to a 3-0 start behind 626 passing yards and 14 touchdowns.

Defensively, the Speed and Wildcats both thrive on getting to the quarterback. Richmond is tied with Arkansas for the league lead with 17 sacks, while the Wildcats have brought down opposing signal-callers 10 times in two fewer games. OL/DL E.J. BURT leads Cape Fear with 4.5 sacks and FB/LB CHRIS FIELD has 3.5 for the Speed. They'll try to bust through two of the toughest offensive lines around. Richmond has allowed only two sacks this season; Cape Fear just four.

Domination is the key for these two teams. To put it in perspective, they have both played and beat Norfolk and New Haven. The combined score for those four games: 244-71. This is the first of two regular season meetings between these divisional foes. The second game is scheduled for July 19 in Fayetteville, N.C.

The Tallahassee Thunder welcomes the Charleston Swamp Foxes to the Leon County Civic Center on Friday night. With a win, the Thunder improves to .500 and ties the Swamp Foxes for second place in the Southern Division. These teams met two weeks ago in Charleston with the Foxes coming out on top 53-44. One certainty about the Thunder offense is that it will have a Chris under center. QB CHRIS WINDSOR has been the starter for Tallahassee, but struggled in his last game, giving way to CHRIS PERKINS in the second half. Perkins made the most of his opportunity, completing 13-of-25 for 117 yards and two scores. The Swamp Foxes hope to rebound from a disheartening loss at Jacksonville last week. WR/DB DWAYNE WILMOT, who has accounted for more than half of the team's receiving touchdowns, may be hindered by a knee sprain he suffered last week. This is the final meeting of the regular season between these two clubs.

Friday's forecast for Estero, Fla., calls for sunshine, but inside TECO Arena it'll be raining 'Cats and 'Dogs, as the Birmingham Steeldogs test the Florida Firecats in a marquee interconference tilt. Both teams have won three straight, including two wins each over common opponents (Mobile and Columbus). Birmingham boasts the league's No. 2 offense, averaging 57.0 points a game, but it has to go up against a Florida defense that is holding opponents under 30 points a game. Last week the Firecats' defense kept Memphis in check, allowing only 25 points to a team that was averaging 56. With an offense that has produced just 14 touchdowns in three games, the Firecats will need another strong defensive effort. To do that, the Florida defense will have to contain Birmingham's MONTRESSA KIRBY and WAYNE THOMAS. The second-year QB and third-year OS have connected 24 times for 376 yards and 11 touchdowns so far this season.

The New Haven Ninjas look for win No. 2 on Friday as they head back to Rochester for the second of three meetings with the Brigade. New Haven finally broke into the win column last week, getting by Mohegan 51-38. The Brigade also won last week, handing expansion Albany its first loss of 2002. These teams first met on April 6, with the Brigade claiming a 61-34 win. The biggest difference for the Ninjas since their first meeting with Rochester is the improved play of the offensive line. After allowing 12 sacks in the first three games of the season, the solidified line only gave up one sack last week against Mohegan. That's good news for new QB JARROD ROUANZOIN, who, in his first start in place of NFL-bound PHIL STAMBAUGH, threw for 102 yards and two scores with no interceptions. The Brigade counters with QB MATT D'ORAZIO, who has thrown 12 touchdown passes thus far in 2002. OS MARTINO THEUS has caught seven of those strikes, tallying 417 yards on 35 receptions overall. The Brigade and Ninjas wrap up their series in New Haven on the final weekend of the regular season.

Peoria hosts Wichita Friday in a rematch of the Pirates' 30-21 win in Kansas back on April 4. The 1-3 Stealth broke a seven-game losing streak last Saturday, twice coming from behind to beat Hawaii 31-27. Wichita, which scored just 47 points combined in its first three games, may have found a quarterback in MATT HICKS, who passed for 270 yards and four touchdowns against the Islanders. The Pirates have used both WALTER CHURCH and RONNIE GORDON under center the past two weeks with mixed success, routing Fresno 55-12 win in Week 4 and losing 45-36 at Bossier City last week. Whoever's running the show, the showstopper is OS CORNELL CRAIG, who ranks third in the league with 448 receiving yards (34 receptions, seven TDs).

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



arenafootball2 Stories from May 2, 2002


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.


Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central