Post by David on Sept 7, 2015 11:08:38 GMT -8
Spokane Shock History
2014 Season: The Season of Defense
Year Nine
Regular Season Record: 11-7
Playoff Record: 0-1
Coaches: Andy Olson (Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator), Travis Crusenberry (Defensive Coordinator/Line Coach), Ruschard Dodd-Masters (DB Coach)
After a bitter end to one of the best offensive seasons in Shock history, Spokane retooled its roster to take the next step by dethroning Arizona as division champs and get home field advantage to the ArenaBowl.
The league remained at 14 teams, but with two teams (Portland Thunder, Los Angeles KISS) coming in to take the place of the Utah Blaze and Chicago Rush, which was a result of the AFL taking control of both teams during the 2013 season. Chicago and Utah would both cease operations. With the departure of two mid-west teams and the addition of two west coast teams, the AFL announced a new divisional alignment to have an even number of teams.
While the Rattlers remained in the West Division, the Shock and SaberCats moved to the new Pacific Division, which featured the relocated Milwaukee Mustangs, now known as the Portland Thunder.
Logos, Colors, and Uniforms
The Shock modified their road jersey and added an alternate jersey and helmet (image credit: Spokane Shock)
The team added an alternate jersey for the first time in franchise history. In the same style as their orange jerseys and pants, the team brought back the blue jerseys as an alternate. The team also introduced an alternate white helmet with an orange facemask. The right side of the helmet had an orange S with shock marks on both corners outlined in blue, while the left side had the player’s number (which matched the jersey’s in Monolith number font) colored in orange and outlined in blue.
The white jerseys were also tweaked, changing the blue away numbers and “SHOCK” wordmark from blue outlined in orange to orange outlined in blue.
With two helmets, three jerseys, and three sets of pants, the Shock have the ability to mix-and-match 18 different uniform combinations, one of which includes an all-white that makes the players look like the stormtroopers from Star Wars.
Season Summary
DE James Ruffin led the way with 14.0 sacks (image credit: Zach Edwards Photography)
The 2014 AFL season had premonitions of being the “Year of the Shock” as Spokane was set to return the league MVP, Receiver of the Year, and a number of experienced veterans to the mix as the team fielded one of the most talented rosters in franchise history.
The Shock would open the regular season and win three of their first four games with a notable road victory over division rival San Jose in Week 3 by a score of 73-62. After suffering a loss to the Cleveland Gladiators on a Hail Mary net-ball with time exoring at home, the Shock were able to win their next two on the road against Tampa Bay and L.A.
The win against the KISS on May 4 came at a price as quarterback Erik Meyer broke his collar bone in the second quarter. With no backup quarterback on the travel roster, wide receiver Rashaad Carter took over under center for the Shock with a 28-0 lead. On his first drive at quarterback since high school, Carter completed a 45-yard pass to Brandon Thompkins for the Shock score. Helping the Shock to a 70-21 win, Rashaad Carter passed for two touchdowns and added four scores on the ground.
The Shock would go on to lose their next five out of six games before Meyer’s return just six weeks after having surgery on his collarbone. Back under center against San Antonio, Meyer would lead the Shock to a 70-30 win at Spokane Arena and begin a five-game winning streak en route to a playoff berth. In the first round match up on the road against San Jose, the Shock would fall to the SaberCats by a final score of 28-55 to end their 2014 season. Despite the early exit from the playoffs, a highlight for the Shock in 2014 came from the defense as James Ruffin set a franchise record and lead the league with 14 sacks as part of a defense that posted a league leading 40 total sacks.
2014 REGULAR SEASON RESULTS
The 2014 AFL schedule was set up so that all 14 teams played 18 games in 20 weeks with each team getting one Bye week.
The following is the results of Spokane's 2014 schedule (bold orange denotes home games).
MARCH:
Week 1 -- Sat., March 15th – Iowa Barnstormers (W 64-35)
Week 2 -- Sun., March 23rd – at Arizona Rattlers (L 49-68)
Week 3 -- BYE
APRIL:
Week 4 -- Fri., April 4th – at San Jose SaberCats (W 73-62)
Week 5 -- Sat., April 12th – Portland Thunder (W 55-27)
Week 6 -- Sat., April 19th – Cleveland Gladiators (L 50-52)
Week 7 -- Sat., April 26th – at Tampa Bay Storm (W 53-41)
MAY:
Week 8 -- Sun., May 4th – at Los Angeles KISS (W 70-21)
Week 9 -- Fri., May 9th – Pittsburgh Power (L 41-52)
Week 10 -- Sun., May 18th – at Arizona Rattlers (L 38-70)
Week 11 -- Fri., May 23rd – San Jose SaberCats (L 34-52)
Week 12 -- Fri., May 30th – Portland Thunder (W 58-48)
JUNE:
Week 13 -- Sat., June 7th – at Jacksonville Sharks (L 28-34)
Week 14 -- Sat., June 14th – at San Jose SaberCats (L 37-47)
Week 15 -- Fri., June 20th – San Antonio Talons (W 70-30)
Week 16 -- Sat., June 28th – at Los Angeles KISS (W 64-46)
JULY:
Week 17 -- BYE
Week 18 -- Sat., July 12th – Arizona Rattlers (W 73-66)
Week 19 -- Mon., July 21st – Tampa Bay Storm (W 55-52)
Week 20 -- Sat., July 26th – at Portland Thunder (W 45-40)
PLAYOFFS
AUGUST:
National Conference Semifinals -– Sat., August 2nd – Spokane Shock at San Jose SaberCats (L 28-55)
AWAY VENUES
Arizona Rattlers - US Airways Center; Phoenix, Arizona
Jacksonville Sharks - Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena; Jacksonville, Florida
Los Angeles KISS - Honda Center; Anaheim, California
Portland Thunder - Moda Center at the Rose Quarter; Portland, Oregon
San Jose SaberCats - SAP Center at San Jose; San Jose, California
Tampa Bay Storm - Tampa Bay Times Forum; Tampa, Florida
Individual Statistic Leaders
Passing
Erik Meyer – 236/354, 2,519 yards, 54 TD, 9 INT
Brian Zbydniewski – 106/183, 1,257 yards, 17 TD, 8 INT
Donovan Porterie – 34/66, 346 yards, 7 TD, 7 INT
Rashaad Carter – 6/12, 114 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing
Erik Meyer – 48 attempts, 112 yards, 20 TD
Rashaad Carter – 21 attempts, 52 yards, 6 TD
Rory Nixon – 15 attempts, 36 yards, 3 TD
Donovan Porterie – 4 attempts, 17 yards, 1 TD
Brian Zbydniewski – 21 attempts, 9 yards, 5 TD
Receiving
Mike Washington – 106 receptions, 1,356 yards, 23 TD
Rashaad Carter – 74 receptions, 780 yards, 17 TD
Adron Tennell – 58 receptions, 574 yards, 14 TD
Brandon Thompkins – 54 receptions, 626 yards, 12 TD
Nick Truesdell – 32 receptions, 350 yards, 7 TD
Nichiren Flowers – 32 receptions, 301 yards, 4 TD
Kick Returns
Terrance Sanders – 79 returns, 1,687 yards, 4 TD
Paul Stephens – 14 returns, 134 yards
Kicking
Taylor Rowan – 5/13 FG, 117/131 XP, 132 points
Defensive
Terence Moore – 85 total tackles, 0.5 sacks, 5 pass breakups, 1 forced fumble, 7 fumble recoveries, 5 INT
Paul Stephens – 79 total tackles, 27 pass breakups, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery, 4 INT
Terrance Sanders – 72 total tackles, 16 pass breakups, 11 INT
Bryant Nnabuife – 49 total tackles, 1.0 sacks, 7 pass breakups, 1 forced fumble, 6 INT
Derrick Summers – 44 total tackles, 12.0 sacks, 1 pass breakup, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery
James Ruffin – 39 total tackles, 14.0 sacks, 3 pass breakups, 4 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, 1 INT
Terrance Taylor – 20.5 total tackles, 7.0 sacks, 2 forced fumbles
Jeremy Geathers – 19 total tackles, 3.0 sacks, 1 pass breakup, 1 fumble recovery
Diyral Briggs – 19 total tackles, 1.5 sacks, 2 fumble recoveries, 1 INT
Bryson Kelly – 12 totalt ackles, 2.5 sacks, 1 forced fumble
Honors & Awards
Krossover AFL Defensive Lineman of the Year: James Ruffin (DE)
J. Lewis Small AFL Playmaker of the Year: Terrance Sanders (DB/KR)
First Team All-Arena: James Rufffin (DE), Terrance Sanders (KR)
Season Summary provided by the Spokane Shock in the Season Ticket Holder 2015 Pre-Season program.
