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Wolves Move on in 2003 af2 Playoffs

August 5, 2003 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Mohegan Wolves News Release


NEW LONDON, Conn. (August 5, 2003) – The Mohegan Wolves (arenafootball2) will play an American Conference semifinal playoff game this Friday night (Aug. 8) in Huntsville, Ala. against the South Division Champion Tennessee Valley Vipers. The sixth-seeded Wolves (11-6) earned the right to play the top-seeded Vipers (14-2) after defeating the Cape Fear Wildcats on Saturday, Aug. 2, 50-47. Tennessee Valley had a first round bye based on the strength of its stellar regular season in which the team won its first 14 games.

"Our team is playing with a lot of confidence right now thanks to the big win at Cape Fear," Mohegan Coach Mark Stoute said. "Tennessee Valley is another quality football team though. You can't win 14 games in a row without having some serious talent. If we hang tough with them in the early going, I think it's gonna be a dogfight.

If the Wolves defeat Tennessee Valley, they will move on to American Conference Championship game and play either at Albany (Saturday, Aug. 16) or at Macon (Friday, Aug. 15).

This week's game at a glance – Wolves (11-6 overall, Streak: Won 1) vs. Vipers (14-2 overall, Streak: Lost 2)

Friday's game is the first all-time meeting between the Wolves and Vipers. Tennessee Valley boasts one of the most explosive offenses in af2. The Vipers are led individually QB Matt Sauk. Sauk is one of the top passers in the league, ranking among the af2 leaders in total offense (3rd – 4,058 yds), passing yards (3rd - 4,098) and touchdown passes (3rd – 84). Sauk hasn 't had one go-to receiver, however. Six different Viper receivers have hauled in more than 30 catches in 2003, led by Ronney Daniels. Daniels leads the six-pack with 57 grabs for 868 yards and 24 touchdowns. In contrast, the Wolves are led by their defense. Mohegan's stingy defense finished the regular season allowing just 38.7 points per game, a league-low average. In addition, a year after recording just 18 sacks in 16 games, Mohegan ranked fourth among the af2's elite with 29 sacks in 2003. Offensively, the Wolves will look for another solid showing from rookie QB Greg Smith. Smith threw for 259 yards and five touchdowns in Mohegan's first-ever playoff victory at Cape Fear on Aug. 2. His main target in the win over the Wildcats was OS Mel Long, who was named Game MVP after catching a game-high 10 passes for 148 yards and four touchdowns. Smith finished the regular season ranked among the league's sharpest passers, tying for second in pass rating at 118.0. He also threw 35 touchdowns with just seven interceptions. Long had a fantastic first season as well, leading the team in receptions (81), receiving yards (1,277) and TDs (29).



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