Post by David on Mar 31, 2016 19:41:20 GMT -8
Iowa Barnstormers at Spokane Empire
What: After back-to-back bye weeks, Spokane returns to take on the Barnstormers.
When: Friday, April 1, 7 p.m. (PT).
Where: Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena, Spokane, Washington
Empire Media: Radio - 700/1080 AM ESPN
National Media: Stream (paid subscription) - IFL Live TV
Series History: First Meeting (as Empire); Spokane led series 5-3 (2-1 in Spokane)
Note: Spokane plays its first game at home since February 27.
Forum: To comment, please login or register.
HELPFUL LINKS
Indoor Football League Rules
Indoor Football League Schedule and Results 2016
Spokane Empire Schedule 2016
IFL Franchises and Links
The Barnstormers are 3-1 overall, 2-1 on the road and 2-0 in inter-conference play. Iowa is coming off a 38-27 road win over the Billings Wolves on March 26. They are averaging 63.0 points per game (4th in IFL) and are allowing 43.0 points per game (2nd). The Barnstormers are tied for second in the United Conference.
The Empire are 2-1 overall, 1-0 at home and 1-0 in inter-conference play. Spokane is coming off a 22-30 road loss to the Billings Wolves on March 12. They are averaging 49.3 points per game (6th) and are allowing 48.7 points per game (6th). The Empire are first in the Intense Conference.
BREAKDOWN
Total Yards per Game - Barnstormers 251.5; Empire 252.0
Pass Yards per Game - Barnstormers 188.0; Empire 162.0
Rush Yards per Game - Barnstormers 63.5; Empire 89.0
3rd Down Conversion - Barnstormers 43.8%; Empire 40.0%
4th Down Conversion - Barnstormers 0.0%; Empire 37.5%
Total Tackles - Barnstormers 166.5; Empire 130
Tackles for Loss - Barnstormers 16; Empire 19
Total Sacks - Barnstormers 7.0; Empire 9.0
Fumble Recoveries - Barnstormers 6; Empire 2
Interceptions - Barnstormers 4; Empire 4
IOWA BARNSTORMERS
Barnstormers WR Lemans Casimier (image credit: Indoor Football League / GoIFL.com)
ROSTER
# - name (pos)
1 - Johnny Thomas (WR)
3 - Lemans Casimier (WR)
4 - Michael Johnson (WR)
5 - Keonte White (WR)
6 - DaeJohn Love (DB)
7 - Brion Carnes (QB)
8 - Alex Bartlett (DB)
9 - Robbie Rouse (RB)
11 - Brady Roland (WR)
12 - Lucas Hefty (WR)
14 - Tony Grimes (DB)
15 - Donovan Porterie (QB)
18 - Reshard Simmons (DL)
19 - Lebron Daniel (DL)
20 - Monte Gaddis (LB)
21 - Ter'Ran Benton (DB)
35 - Manfred Johnson (DB)
41 - Josh Gable (K)
52 - Will Harris (OL)
55 - Phil Lewis (DL)
72 - Rocco Manfre (OL)
77 - Tyler Ahrens (OL)
79 - Peter Evans (OL)
90 - Tim McGee (DL)
91 - Danny Farr (DL)
Joe Brannen - Head Coach
Jason Simpson - Defensive Coordinator
Dean Picotte - Assistant Coach
Tyrone Tyler - Assistant Coach
Jason Vos - Assistant Head Coach
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Passing Yards - Donovan Porterie 671
Passing TDs - Donovan Porterie 15
Rushing Yards - Robbie Rouse 312
Rushing TD's - Robbie Rouse 5
Receptions - Lemans Casimier 22
Receiving Yards - Lemans Casimier 246
Receiving TDs - Lemans Casimier 7
Tackles - Tony Grimes 29.0
Sacks - Lebron Daniel 2.0
Interceptions - Tony Grimes 2
KO Return Ave - Robbie Rouse 18.0
SPOKANE EMPIRE
Empire DB/KR Demetruce McNeal (image credit: David Stufflebeam / Spokane Empire)
ROSTER
# - name (pos)
2 - Lorenzo White Jr. (DB)
3 - Josh Ferguson (DB)
4 - Carl Sims (WR)
5 - Tyree Robinson (DB)
6 - Darryl Thompson (WR)
7 - Demetruce McNeal (DB/KR)
8 - Aaron Aiken (QB)
11 - Charles Dowdell (QB)
12 - Toby Jackson (DL)
13 - Brady Beeson (K)
16 - Robert Brown (DB)
17 - Pasquale Vacchio (LB)
18 - Trevor Kennedy (OS)
19 - Alex Wheat Jr. (WR)
44 - Brett Bowers (DL)
47 - Nick Haag (LB)
56 - Dave Lefotu (OL)
62 - Dominique Duster (DL)
72 - Kyle Fischer (OL)
76 - Michael Boyefio (OL)
78 - Brandon Haskin (OL)
79 - Mike Trice (OL)
80 - Jefferson "JJ" Hayes (WR)
88 - Justin Helwege (WR)
92 - Dillon Quinn (DL)
93 - Benjamin Perry (DL)
Adam Shackleford - Head Coach
Cleveland Pratt - Assistant Head Coach
Ameer Ismail - Defensive Coordinator
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Passing Yards - Charles Dowdell 502
Passing TDs - Charles Dowdell 13
Rushing Yards - Trevor Kennedy 169
Rushing TD's - Trevor Kennedy 6
Receptions - JJ Hayes 18
Receiving Yards - JJ Hayes 219
Receiving TDs - JJ Hayes 5
Tackles - Nick Haag 19.5
Sacks - *Byron Bennett 3.5
Interceptions - Demetruce McNeal 2
KO Return Ave - Demetruce McNeal 12.2
* Not on Active Roster
DAVID'S TAKES
IOWA:
The Barnstormers are no stranger to playing in hostile environments this season, as three of their first four games have been played on the road. Iowa hasn't been intimidated while playing away from home; they've gone 2-1 on road record this season, including a 38-27 road victory over Billings last Saturday.
However, records can be deceiving. While Iowa may have a 3-1 overall record, their victories have come over teams that are below currently .500. Their victories include a 6 point win over the winless Colorado Crush in Week 1, blowing out the now 1-4 Green Bay Blizzard team by 52 points in Week 2, and a 11 point win over an up-and-down Billings team that's anemic on offense last weekend. Their lone loss came at the hands of the Wichita Falls Nighthawks, who demolished the Barnstormers 74-47.
While some may look at the numbers and suspect the Barnstormers don't have a chance against an Empire team that managed to defeat Wichita Falls back in February, the Barnstormers have an opportunity to silence the doubters. Iowa has immense talent on offense, led by 5-year IFL veteran QB Donovan Porterie, who has thrown 671 pass yards on the year with 15 TDs and only 1 INT. While Porterie hasn't been as big of a threat in the ground game this season, he's got a dual rushing/receiving threat RB Robbie Rouse (208 rushing yards, 5 TDs; 66 receiving yards) and leading wide receivers Lemans Casimier (312 yards, 7 TDs) and Brady Roland (251, 6 TDs), who both rank in the Top 10 in receptions per game, receiving yards per game, total receptions, total receiving yards, and total receiving touchdowns. The Empire have struggled to stop the pass in through three games this season, ranking last in the IFL (10th). The Barnstormers have to take advantage of this if they're going to succeed, and could result in big days from both Casimier and Roland.
Defensively, the Barnstormers will have to contain the rushing threat of RB Trevor Kennedy and WRs Carl Sims, Justin Helwege and JJ Hayes. Tasked with shutting down Spokane's offensive weapons will be DBs Tony Grimes and Ter'Ran Benton, both of whom lead the Barnstormers in total tackles (Grimes - 29.0, Benton - 20.5). Grimes and Benton also share the team lead in interceptions, with a total of 3 picks between them, and are important for the Barnstormers defense, which has struggled in getting to the quarterback this season. That's not to say Iowa's pass rush is awful; DL LeBron Daniel, this week's IFL Defensive Player of the Week, exploded against the Wolves last week. He recorded 2 sacks and notched 5 total tackles, 3 tackles for loss of yardage. If he disrupts the Empire's backfield, he could free up Grimes and Benton to take a risk and jump at pressured passes.
Player to Watch: Lemans Casimier (WR)
Casimier and Brady Roland are part of Iowa's dynamic duo at the wide receiver position. Both players rank in the Top 10 in 6 receiving categories and are the clear 1-2 punch in Iowa's offensive scheme. Casimier ranks first on the team in receptions (22), yards (312), and touchdowns (7), but Roland is right behind him. Both receivers make each other better, and a headache for opposing defenses to figure out which one to cover.
Between the two, Casimier's statistics indicate he's the team's primary #1 receiver compared to Roland (21 receptions, 251 yards, 6 TDs). Spokane's defense is ranked last in the IFL in passing defense, and if they're not careful, Casimier and Roland could have tremendous game.
SPOKANE:
After two weeks off, the Empire finally return to the field and hopefully are well prepared for the visiting Barnstormers. During that time off, the Empire players and staff have had plenty of time to prepare for Iowa as well as study what went wrong in an 8-point loss to the Billings Wolves.
In the game, Spokane jumped out to a 7-0 lead on a 2-yard rush by Trevor Kennedy midway through the first quarter. However, the Empire struggled mightily through the first 3 quarters of the game. The Empire's first ten drives, aside from Kennedy's touchdown, resulted in 2 interceptions, 3 lost fumbles, 3 turnovers on downs, and a missed field goal attempt. The costly turnovers and failed conversions resulted in Billings leading 30-7 going into the 4th Quarter. But the Spokane defense managed to keep the game within reach; lead by rookie DL Benjamin Perry (2.5 sacks), Spokane managed to sack Billings QB Dak Britt a total of 5 times. DBs Josh Ferguson and Demetruce McNeal also picked off Britt a total of 3 times, two by McNeal, who saw his first game action since coming off Short-Term IR.
The momentum swung on Spokane's side early in the 4th Quarter. The Empire's offense would finally awaken; on the very first play from scrimmage, veteran WR Carl Sims would finally break through and put the Empire on the board with a 31-yard TD pass from Charles Dowdell. A key defensive stop by the Empire would get Spokane the ball back, eventually scoring on a 4-yard pass to leading receiver JJ Hayes. Spokane would convert on the 2-point conversion, trailing Billings 22-30. Newly signed kicker Taylor Russolino would come through on the onside kick attempt, giving Spokane life with 1:25 left to go. Spokane would march down to the Billings 18-yard line, but Charles Dowdell fumbled the ball on a 4th down sack. The Wolves would recover the fumble and seal the victory.
Despite the valiant effort by Spokane to climb back into the game, the Empire dug themselves into a massive hole from the start. Spokane's offense was sloppy for the majority of the game, fumbling the ball a total of six times and throwing two interceptions. The Empire's penalty problems carried over from the Wichita Falls game, committing a total 8 penalties for 54 yards. The penalties were down from the prior week (19 for 134), but was enough to stall drives in which the Empire could resulted in crucial points in a game that was dominated by both defenses. Hopefully, the Empire have committed enough time during the back-to-back bye weeks addressing these issues. Spokane's defense managed to overcome the offensive struggles to keep the Empire in the game, but the offense has to score points early in the game and not rely on a 4th quarter comeback down 20.
Spokane has the weapons on offense to succeed, with a strong dual-threat rushing attack by RB Trevor Kennedy (169 rush yards, 6 TDs) and QB Charles Dowdell (97 yards, 2 TDs). The Empire have one of the best receiving corps in the IFL in leading WR JJ Hayes (229 yards, 5 TDs), Carl Sims (192 yards, 4 TDs) and Justin Helwege (92 yards, 3 TDs). However, those weapons can't be properly utilized if Dowdell can't get protection from his offensive line, which gave up 5 sacks in the loss to Billings.
On defense, leading overall tackler LB Nick Haag will lead the charge of keeping Porterie in check. DL Byron Bennett, who leads the team in sacks with 3.5, will be missed as he transfers to the new Major League Football spring league. The Empire will have to compensate for that loss and crank up the pressure on Porterie into making bad decisions to provide opportunities for Demetruce McNeal, Josh Ferguson, and Robert Brown to succeed in covering Iowa's top two wide receivers. Spokane gets an added bonus of LB Pasquale Vacchio, who returns from an injury suffered against Wichita Falls on February 27.
Player to Watch: Demetruce McNeal (DB/KR)
McNeal was a major factor in keeping the Empire in the game against Billings, notching two interceptions on Wolves QB Dak Britt and finished 2nd on the team with 6 total tackles. This was a huge performance for McNeal, who rejoined the team after suffering an ankle injury against the Tri-Cities Fever in Week 1.
The Empire clearly missed McNeal in the Week 2 victory against Wichita Falls, which gave up 65 points and 288 total yards. In the two games with McNeal in the lineup, that number is significantly lower (Tri-Cities - 235; Billings - 138). In addition to his presence in the defensive backfield, McNeal's the team's best threat in the kick return game. In the two games he played, McNeal has averaged 12.2 yards per return.
McNeal, along with Robert Brown, Josh Ferguson, and Lorenzo White Jr, are going to have their hands full with Iowa's dual receiving threats in Lemans Casimier (312 yards, 7 TDs) and Brady Roland (251 yards, 6 TDs). Watch for McNeal to try and make the Barnstormers one-dimensional in the passing game by shutting down either Casimier or Roland. If the Empire can contain both receivers, Porterie will have to throw to his lesser productive receivers and could result in big-play chances for McNeal to add to his team lead in interceptions (2).
QUOTABLE
Empire DL Benjamin Perry's post-game comments following the loss to Billings.
“Don’t panic. We work, we fight, we move one-game one-day at a time. We’re going to look at the film, learn from our mistakes, and we’re going to move on. We’re going to show them on April 1st, when we come home, how we’re going to get the next win.”
Empire HC Adam Shackleford on the team having 3 byes in the past 4 weeks.
"The bye weeks provided us a great opportunity to get healthy. Three weeks is a long time to go without a game, so we’re ready to get back out there and couldn’t ask for a better way to do it then at home in front of the 9th Man at Spokane Arena."
Shackleford weighs in on the bye weeks affecting Empire players being only paid for 1 game in March.
"You have one game in a month. These guys only have one paycheck in a month. That doesn't make me very happy, but that's the rules and we abide by them here."
Empire DB Robert Brown on playing for the first time since the March 12 loss to Billings.
"That bad taste is still in our mouths. We're just ready to get back out there."
Barnstormers VP & CEO John Pettit on the contributing factor for Iowa's move to the IFL.
"We probably started looking at it back in 2013 because of the problems we were having with the AFL. Teams were constantly folding, the league would keep taking them over and we would have to pay for them. We couldn't afford to pay for everybody else's bills. They were looking for big-market teams. In Iowa, we didn't fit their plan."
Empire QB Charles Dowdell reflecting on the narrow loss to Billings.
"For us to have a chance at the end says a lot about our team and the fight we have."
FEATURED TWEETS
IFL SCHEDULE THIS WEEK
April 1 - Iowa Barnstormers (3-1) at Spokane Empire (2-1), 7 p.m.
April 1 - Colorado Crush (0-4) at Tri-Cities Fever (1-3), 7 p.m.
April 2 - Billings Wolves (2-3) at Nebraska Danger (3-2), 5 p.m.
April 2 - Green Bay Blizzard (1-4) at Cedar Rapids Titans (3-2), 5 p.m.
Byes - Sioux Falls Storm (4-1), Wichita Falls Nighthawks (3-1)
EXTRA
When the Empire and the Barnstormers take the field on Friday, the teams will be renewing acquaintances.
Iowa and Spokane are two of four current IFL organizations that have spent time in arenafootball2. Spokane, Iowa, Tri-Cities and Green Bay were all members of the af2 during the league's final season in 2009. When the AFL & af2 folded and re-formed into a new version of the AFL (known at the time as Arena Football 1), Green Bay and Tri-Cities opted to go to the IFL while Iowa and Spokane made the leap to the AFL.
After the conclusion of the 2014 AFL season, the Barnstormers announced that they would be moving to the IFL. The Barnstormers became the first team to directly leave the AFL for a new league (not counting the Austin Wranglers' move from the AFL to the af2 prior to 2008). Despite having a team identity that has been associated with Arena Football since 1995, the Barnstormers were able to keep their trademarks, their logos and their team history. To reflect the team's move to the IFL, the team removed the word "arena" from their primary logo, as they are no longer members of the AFL.
A year later, Spokane would follow the Barnstormers path, leaving the AFL for the IFL. Unlike Green Bay, Tri-Cities and Iowa, Spokane was unable to keep its trademarks and logos when moving from the AFL to the IFL, forcing the team to abandon the Shock name and take up the Empire.
In total, five teams have moved from the AFL/af2 to the IFL since 2009. The fifth team, the Arkansas Twisters, are currently re-branded as the Texas Revolution and moved from the IFL to the CIF in 2015.
Will more AFL teams defect to the IFL? There have been rumors that former AFL owner Terry Emmert could take his Portland Thunder brand to the IFL should the AFL's Portland Steel fold after the 2016 season, but that remains to be seen.
Image Courtesy of Dan Pelle / The Spokesman-Review.
To comment on this thread and others on this forum, please login or register.
