Post by David on May 19, 2016 15:27:49 GMT -8
Tri-Cities Fever at Spokane Empire
What: Spokane looks to rebound off a disappointing loss by sweeping the season series with Tri-cities.
When: Friday, May 20, 7 p.m. (PT).
Where: Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena, Spokane, Washington
Empire Media: TV - SWX; Radio - 700/1080 AM ESPN
National Media: Stream (paid subscription) - IFL Live TV
This Season: February 20 - Empire 60, Fever 51; April 23 - Empire 52, Fever 39; April 29 - Empire 53, Fever 51
Series History: Empire lead 3-0 (1-0 in Spokane).
Note: Since their meeting on April 23rd, the Fever have lost 4 straight.
HELPFUL LINKS
Indoor Football League Rules
Indoor Football League Schedule and Results 2016
Spokane Empire Schedule 2016
IFL Franchises and Links
The Fever are 3-8 overall, 1-4 on the road and 3-5 in conference play. Tri-Cities is coming off a 44-49 home loss to the Billings Wolves on May 14. They are averaging 40.0 points per game (9th in IFL) and are allowing 46.2 points per game (2nd). The Fever are fourth in the Intense Conference.
The Empire are 8-2 overall, 5-0 at home and 5-1 in conference play. Spokane is coming off a 50-63 road loss to the Sioux Falls Storm on May 14. They are averaging 58.3 points per game (3rd) and are allowing 48.4 points per game (5th). The Empire are first in the Intense Conference.
BREAKDOWN
Total Yards per Game - Fever 209.4; Empire 270.8
Pass Yards per Game - Fever 152.9; Empire 173.0
Rush Yards per Game - Fever 56.5; Empire 97.8
3rd Down Conversion - Fever 34.0%; Empire 48.7%
4th Down Conversion - Fever 52.6%; Empire 54.2%
Total Tackles - Fever 378; Empire 406
Tackles for Loss - Fever 45; Empire 49
Total Sacks - Fever 11.0; Empire 20.0
Fumble Recoveries - Fever 9; Empire 8
Interceptions - Fever 20; Empire 17
TRI-CITIES FEVER
Fever RB Rob Brown (image credit: Sarah Gordon / Tri-City Herald)
ROSTER
# - name (pos)
1 - Chris Gant (WR)
2 - Bradley Njoku (DB)
3 - Stephen Godbolt (DB)
4 - Pat McCain (QB)
6 - Brent Michaels (RB)
7 - Rob Brown (RB)
8 - Akeem Foster (WR)
10 - Aaron Ray (DB)
11 - Hunter Wanket (QB)
12 - Daniel Zeidman (K)
14 - Austen Alber (DL)
17 - Sheldon Galloway (WR)
20 - Dee Maggitt (DB)
21 - Boubacar Cissoko (DB)
22 - Brandon Wilson (LB)
24 - DeJuan Miller (WR)
40 - Brandon Rankin (DL)
50 - William Harris (OL)
56 - Viondy Merisma (OL)
59 - Jarius Spain (OL)
60 - Jarad Martin (OL)
72 - Rodrick Gladney (OL)
90 - Maurice Chavis (DL)
91 - Roosevelt Holliday (DL)
96 - Omoniyi Adebayo (DL)
Ryan Lingenfelder - Head Coach
Brian Schmidt - Offensive Coordinator
Shon King - Defensive Backs & Special Teams
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Passing Yards - Pat McCain 904
Passing TDs - Pat McCain 21
Passing INTs - Pat McCain 10
Rushing Yards - Pat McCain 291
Rushing TDs - Pat McCain 11
Receptions - DeJuan Miller 48
Receiving Yards - DeJuan Miller 617
Receiving TDs - Akeem Foster 12
Tackles - Boubacar Cissoko 45.0
Sacks - Brandon Wilson 4.0
Interceptions - Dee Maggitt 7
KO Return Ave - Rob Brown 22.4
KO Return TDs - Rob Brown 2
SPOKANE EMPIRE
Empire WR Samuel Charles (image credit: KHQ)
ROSTER
# - name (pos)
1 - Samuel Charles (WR)
2 - Lorenzo White Jr. (DB)
3 - Josh Ferguson (DB)
4 - Carl Sims (WR)
5 - Tyree Robinson (DB)
7 - Adrian James (DB)
8 - Aaron Aiken (QB)
11 - Charles Dowdell (QB)
13 - Brady Beeson (K)
16 - Robert Brown (DB)
17 - Pasquale Vacchio (LB)
18 - Trevor Kennedy (RB/WR)
19 - Diondre Borel (WR/QB)
44 - Brett Bowers (DL)
47 - Nick Haag (LB)
52 - D.J. Yendrey (LB)
56 - Dave Lefotu (OL)
62 - Dominique Duster (DL)
70 - Mike Trice (OL)
72 - Kyle Fischer (OL)
76 - Michael Boyefio (OL)
78 - Brandon Haskin (OL)
80 - Jefferson "JJ" Hayes (WR)
88 - Justin Helwege (WR)
93 - Benjamin Perry (DL)
95 - Bryon Bennett (DL)
Adam Shackleford - Head Coach
Cleveland Pratt - Assistant Head Coach
Ameer Ismail - Defensive Coordinator
STATISTICAL LEADERS
Passing Yards - Charles Dowdell 1,093
Passing TDs - Charles Dowdell 44
Passing INTs - Charles Dowdell 12
Rushing Yards - Trevor Kennedy 666
Rushing TDs - Trevor Kennedy 26
Receptions - JJ Hayes 49
Receiving Yards - JJ Hayes/Carl Sims 565
Receiving TDs - Carl Sims 14
Tackles - Nick Haag 62.5
Sacks - Benjamin Perry 7.5
Interceptions - Robert Brown 4
KO Return Ave - Trevor Kennedy 18.5
KO Return TDs - Trevor Kennedy 1
DAVID'S TAKES
TRI-CITIES:
Tri-Cities has to be feeling rather feverish over their team's play over the last month. The Fever entered their April 23rd game against Spokane with a 3-4 record and looking to make a run at securing a playoff position in the Intense Conference. Since then, the Fever have lost 4 straight, including a crushing loss to the Billings Wolves last weekend. The Fever led the Wolves 36-26 at the half, only to give up 20 consecutive points in the 3rd Quarter. Down 44-49 in the game's final seconds, the Fever were in position to take the lead, but a critical interception by QB Pat McCain with 0:26 left in the 4th sealed the win for Billings.
With a 3-8 record, the Fever enter their Friday night game with their playoff hopes hanging on a thread. There are 5 games left in the regular season for Tri-Cities, which means they're not technically eliminated from playoff contention. However, the Fever have not done themselves any favors, and face an uphill battle when they play the Empire. Historically, the odds aren't kind to the Fever; including their games in the af2, the Fever are 0-5 all-time when playing at Spokane.
Tri-Cities is inconsistent on offense, which ranks 9th in the IFL in scoring with 40.0 points/game. The focus of the inconsistency comes from the most important position: quarterback. The Fever are still switching back and forth between QBs Hunter Wanket and Pat McCain. McCain got the start the last time Tri-Cities played Spokane, and he performed reasonably well going 16-of-26 for 224 yards, 5 TDs and 2 INTs. However, the following week against Cedar Rapids, McCain couldn't find his groove, completing 3-of-9 passes for 22 yards and 3 INTs. Wanket came in relief and performed reasonably well, but McCain got the start once again the following week against Billings. Statistically, McCain leads the Fever with 904 passing yards and 21 touchdowns, but has a woeful 46.3% completion rate and 10 INTs. Wanket has similar passing yards (889 yards) but has a higher completion percentage (51.5%). Based on the last 3 games, head coach Ryan Lingenfelder will likely start McCain, but it should come as a surprise to nobody if Wanket makes an appearance or takes over at times during the game.
Despite the constant shuffle at QB, Fever WRs DeJuan Miller and Akeem Foster are both having relatively solid years. Miller leads the team with 48 receptions for 617 yards, but ranks 2nd in scoring with 10 TD receptions. Foster doesn't trail that far behind, ranking second with 45 receptions for 553 yards, but 1st in scoring with 11 TD passes. They're consistent in the Fever's 7th ranked passing offense (152.9 yards/game), and make up for the team's rushing offense that ranks last in the league (56.5 yards/game). The Fever will have to hope their offense can take advantage of Spokane's 8th ranked pass defense (184.4 yards/game) and that it can open up their run game against Spokane's 3rd ranked rush defense (69.4 yards/game). Assuming McCain is named the starter, his presence will affect the success of RB Rob Brown. McCain leads the Fever in rushing with 291 yards and 11 TDs, and his success in the ground game will help the effectiveness of Brown.
All season, the success of the Fever have been determined by the play of their defense, which ranks 3rd in the IFL in points allowed (46.2 points/game) and 3rd overall in total defense (243.2 yards/game). Despite the worst rushing defense in the IFL, the Fever thrive from their pass defense, which ranks 2nd in the league (137.5 yards/game). Last time Spokane and Tri-Cities met, the Fever's defense managed to contain the Empire's offense in the first half, holding a 31-18 lead at halftime before letting the lead slip away in the 2nd half. The Fever are going to have to hope for that success for both halves of the game if they want to pull off the upset, and the success of the defense stems from talented DBs Dee Maggitt (7 INT), Stephen Godbolt (44.5 total tackles, 3 INT) and Boubacar Cissoko (45.0 total tackles, 5 INT). Maggitt has seen success in the last 2 games against Spokane, picking off QB Charles Dowdell twice. LB Brandon Wilson ranks 2nd on the team with 44.5 total tackles and leads the team with 4.0 sacks.
Player to Watch: Rob Brown (RB)
Tri-Cities has the worst rushing offense in the IFL, but it has begun to improve with the addition of Brown. The twin brother of Spokane DB Robert Brown, Rob Brown joined the Fever in Week 7 against the Colorado Crush. He's slowly begun to find success in the Fever's running game, with 56 rushes for 192 yards and 6 TDs in 7 games this season. He also has had success in the Fever's passing game, hauling in 25 passes for 163 yards and 2 TDs.
The Fever have also benefited greatly of Brown's presence in the kick return game. Since he's become the team's primary returner, Brown is tied for first in the IFL in kick return average (22.4 yards/return). Only Waymon James of Cedar Rapids has as many average yards on kickoff returns.
Although he didn't gain much yardage in the last 2 games against Spokane (28 and 27 net yards, respectively), he did manage to score 3 touchdowns in both games. If he can have success running the football with Spokane, it could benefit the Fever's offense in scoring on a consistent basis, something the Fever are going to need if they wish to upset the Empire.
SPOKANE:
After a disappointing loss to the Sioux Falls Storm, Spokane had plenty of opportunities to pull off an upset of the Storm, but crucial false start penalties and 4 costly interceptions made life difficult for the Empire. Two of those interceptions came in the red zone, which cost the Empire a possible 14 points and could have resulted in a vastly different end to the game. Now, Spokane returns home with an opportunity to bounce back by sweeping the season series away from in-state rival Tri-Cities.
The 3-8 Fever aren't pushovers by any means, as they've played Spokane tough in all three games they've played this season. In the last meeting, Spokane's offense struggled against the Fever's defense, finding themselves down 18-31 at the half. Spokane manged to climb back, jumping out 53-42 lead in the 4th Quarter. However, the Fever fought back to narrow the gap within 2 points, but the Empire made just enough positive plays to escape with the win. Spokane has to avoid digging itself into a hole and keep their feet on the Fever's throat if they want to get on a winning streak before the highly anticipated rematch with Sioux Falls in June.
Last week, QB Charles Dowdell had a season high in completions (24), pass attempts (42) and passing yards (291) but threw 4 costly interceptions. He's going to have to bounce back, especially in the red zone, against a stingy Fever pass defense that managed to get pressure on him in the last two meetings. He'll likely have the pressure taken off him with RB Trevor Kennedy, who leads the IFL with 666 rushing yards and 26 rushing TDs. Tri-Cities ranks last in the league in rushing defense, which favors Kennedy, who ran wild with 110 rushing yards and 4 TD. WRs JJ Hayes (49 receptions, 565 yards, 12 TDs) and Carl Sims (47 receptions, 565 yards, 14 TDs) remain Dowdell's top two weapons. Sims was hot last week, catching 7 passes for 129 yards and 2 TDs, and the emergence of WR Samuel Charles will be crucial against the Fever's 3rd ranked pass defense.
On defense, Spokane has to be licking its chops at pressuring McCain and/or Wanket. DL Benjamin Perry leads the Empire with 7.5 sacks and 11.5 tackles for loss. Last time these two teams met, Perry got in McCain's face for a game high 3.0 sacks. LB Nick Haag, who leads the Empire with 62.5 total tackles, will look to add to his tackles for loss total (10.5) and sack totals (3.0) by disrupting the Fever's backfield. LB Pasquale Vacchio (58 total tackles, 2 INTs, 7 pass breakups) will look to cover the middle of the field and disrupt Tri-Cities' pass game, making life easier for DBs Robert Brown and Josh Ferguson. Brown leads all Empire DBs with 4 interceptions, 8 pass breakups and 45.5 total tackles, while Ferguson ranks second with 36.5 total tackles, 3 interceptions and 5 pass breakups. Although the Empire gave up 137 rushing yards last week against Sioux Falls, expect the defense to put a heavy emphasis on containing McCain and Brown to force them into throwing the football, which McCain has struggled at times as he's completing 46.3% of his passes.
All eyes will be on special teams this week as the Empire has changed its kicker for the 6th time this season. Brady Beeson, who played in the Week 7 win over Iowa, replaces Steve Wakefield, who struggled on extra points this season (10-of-17), including 2 misses last week that forced the Empire to go for 2-point conversions after each score. Beeson was 6-of-6 on extra points in his short stint with the Empire, so don't be surprised if Empire fans cheer enthusiastically when Beeson makes the XPs.
Player to Watch: Samuel Charles (WR)
Since returning from a finger injury in April, Charles has seen his production take off as he becomes more involved in the Empire's passing attack.
Prior to his injury against Wichita Falls, Charles caught 4 passes for 41 yards and 2 TDs. Due to the Empire having 3 bye weeks in March, he only missed one game. Since returning from injury, Charles has found his role elevated in the Empire's offense. In the last 6 games he's played, Charles has caught 16 passes for 253 yards and 7 touchdowns. On the season, Charles has 20 receptions for 284 yards and 9 TDs, and the production has seen him awarded with more playing time over WR Justin Helwege. His 9 TDs rank 3rd on the team behind JJ Hayes (12 TDs) and Carl Sims (14 TDs), and he's become a deep threat for the Empire, leading the team with an average of 14.2 yards per reception.
His presence has resulted in increased production for WR Carl Sims, who has been on fire 2 of the past 3 games. Charles had only 1 reception for 28 yards in the last game against Tri-Cities, but it was a 28 yard bomb that resulted in a touchdown to begin the game. With the Fever's talented defensive backfield, his deep threat ability offers plenty of chances for Hayes, Sims, and Kennedy to get short passes and rip off positive yardage. If the Fever focus on shutting the short pass game down, look for Dowdell to throw the long ball to Charles and gain chunks of yardage and potential scores.
QUOTABLE
Fever LB Brandon Wilson on the team's fading playoff chances during a 4-game losing streak.
“We will fight to the finish. We need to take care of what we can. But that’s the plan: to keep fighting."
Empire HC Adam Shackleford on the Empire's disappointing loss to Sioux Falls.
"In nine months this organization has found a way to catch up to the five-time champions. We're on their heels."
Empire QB Charles Dowdell remaining positive about Spokane's standing in the Intense Conference.
"I think we're still pumped about the season and have the same mindset as far as a championship. We have the team and talent to make this happen if we do things we need to do."
Empire LB Nick Haag on the loss to Sioux Falls.
"Obviously, they're the front-runners, we have to respect that, but there are definitely other good (United) teams over there. We have to plug away and keep doing our jobs."
Empire DB Robert Brown on playing against his twin brother, RB Rob Brown.
"It was tough going against him. I wasn’t holding back, but I wasn’t myself on the field. To have your twin on the other side playing running back and you play defense and knowing you have to hit him, you want to take care of him and punish him at the same time. It’s a win-lose situation."
Shackleford on the potential to sweep Tri-Cities in the season series.
"Playing our rival and the opportunity to go 4-0 against them, that’s going to give us as coaches a huge recruiting tool in the offseason. They’re very good on defense, their secondary is extremely talented. They’ve struggled on offense but seem to have put it together at times against us."
FEATURED TWEETS
IFL SCHEDULE THIS WEEK
May 20 - Tri-Cities Fever (3-8) at Spokane Empire (8-2), 7 p.m.
May 21 - Iowa Barnstormers (4-6) at Cedar Rapids Titans (8-4), 5 p.m.
May 21 - Green Bay Blizzard (3-8) at Sioux Falls Storm (10-1), 5 p.m.
May 21 - Nebraska Danger (5-6) at Wichita Falls Nighthawks (6-4), 5 p.m.
May 21 - Colorado Crush (2-9) at Billings Wolves (5-6), 6 p.m.
EXTRA
Trevor Kennedy is having an incredible rookie season for the Empire. Originally a walk-on wide receiver in training camp, Kennedy was converted to running back by head coach Adam Shackleford. The gamble has clearly paid off, as the Empire have a Top 3 rushing offense in the IFL.
Image courtesy of Dan Pelle/Spokesman-Review
In 10 games this season, Kennedy has rushed 127 times and leads the IFL with 666 rushing yards and 26 rushing touchdowns. He has 240 more yards than Sioux Falls QB Lorenzo Brown (426 yds) and 9 more rushing touchdowns than QB Jameel Sewell (17 rushing TDs).
With 6 games left in the regular season, Kennedy has a chance to break the IFL single season records for most rush yards and rushing touchdowns. Kennedy needs 375 yards and 7 rushing touchdowns to break RB LaRon Council's single-season records (1,040 yards, 32 TDs).
It should be noted that from 2009-2015, the IFL had a 14 game regular season schedule. The league moved to 16 games starting with the 2016 regular season.
Despite playing in 2 more games, it should not take away an otherwise incredible rookie season for Kennedy, who should be unanimous IFL Offensive Rookie of the Year.
Statistics provided by The StatGuys & the IFL's Record and Fact Book.