Post by David on Jul 9, 2015 16:19:38 GMT -8
Spokane Shock History
2009 Season: A ‘Ship for the Road
Year Four
Regular Season Record: 15-1 (West Division Champions)
Playoff Record: 4-0; National Conference Champions, ArenaCup X Champions
Coaches: Adam Shackleford (Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator), Alex Sirianni (Defensive Coordinator), Rob Keefe (DB & Special Teams Coach), Tom Ackerman (O-Line Coach), Steve Emtman (D-Line Coach)
After suffering a heart breaking loss in overtime, and on home field, the 2009 Spokane Shock felt they had unfinished business. Many players stated their desire to come back for this season. They believed they should have won ArenaCup IX and were determined to redeem themselves.
The af2 saw more teams going out as well as two teams facing a re-brand (Albany Conquest became Albany Firebirds; Lexington Horsemen became Kentucky Horsemen) and one new expansion team (Milwaukee Iron), dropping the total number of teams in the af2 to 25.
The Shock played in the West Division of the National Conference, which consisted of the Central Valley Coyotes, Boise Burn, Stockton Lightning, and Tri-Cities Fever.
This would be the final season of af2 football.
Logos, Colors, and Uniforms
QB Nick Davila steps back to pass in a 2009 game against the Tri-City Fever (image credit: The Spokesman-Review)
The blue pants the Shock unveiled in the 2008 playoffs became a mainstay for the home uniforms in the 2009 season, while the white pants were mainly associated with the road uniforms.
Season Summary
The Shock would return in 2009 on a mission after a devastating overtime loss in the championship game the previous season. In a dominating fashion, Spokane would open the regular season with 12 straight wins, including an 88-27 Week 11 victory over Stockton, setting new franchise records for points in a game and margin of victory (61).
The Shock’s only loss of the regular season would come in Week 14 in Des Moines, IA to the Barnstormers, ending the team’s longest winning streak on the road at 16 games.
The following week against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton, the Shock and Pioneers would trade scores throughout. With the Shock down 49-52 in the final moments of the game, wide receiver Markee White made a game winning touchdown catch with less than 30 seconds remaining to secure a 56-52 Spokane Victory.
Spokane’s 15-1 regular season record would secure their fourth straight West Division title and the number one seed in the 2009 playoffs. The Shock would go on to win all three of their playoff matchups and a National Conference title before an ArenaCup X rematch in Las Vegas against Wilkes-Barre/Scranton that would result in a 74-27 Shock win.
Johnie Kurton (left) and Caesar Rayford celebrate the Shock's 74-27 ArenaCup victory over Wilkes-Barre/Scranton (image credit: Ethan Miller/Getty Images North America)
2009 REGULAR SEASON RESULTS
The 2009 af2 schedule was set up so that all 25 teams played 16 games in 17 weeks with each team getting one Bye week.
The following is the results of Spokane's 2009 schedule (bold blue denotes home games).
APRIL:
Week 1 -- Fri., April 3rd – Stockton Lightning (W 59-42)
Week 2 -- Sat., April 11th – Tri-Cities Fever (W 62-32)
Week 3 -- Sat., April 18th – at Boise Burn (W 63-45)
Week 4 -- Sat., April 25th – at Stockton Lightning (W 71-50)
MAY:
Week 5 -- Sat., May 2nd – Iowa Barnstormers (W 49-30)
Week 6 -- Sat., May 9th – Boise Burn (W 64-62)
Week 7 -- Sat., May 16th – at Florida Firecats (W 49-38)
Week 8 -- Sat., May 23rd – Central Valley Coyotes (W 43-22)
Week 9 -- Sat., May 30th – at Tri-Cities Fever (W 61-20)
JUNE:
Week 10 -- BYE
Week 11 -- Fri., June 12th – at Stockton Lightning (W 88-27)
Week 12 -- Sat., June 20th – Tri-Cities Fever (W 69-22)
Week 13 -- Fri., June 26th – Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz (W 61-28)
JULY:
Week 14 -- Sat., July 4th – at Iowa Barnstormers (L 48-54)
Week 15 -- Sat., July 11th – Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers (W 56-52)
Week 16 -- Sat., July 18th – at Central Valley Coyotes (W 74-26)
Week 17 -- Sat., July 25th – at Boise Burn (W 56-51)
PLAYOFFS
AUGUST:
Round 1 -- Sat., August 1st – Stockton Lightning (W 62-21)
National Conference Semifinal -- Sat., August 8th – Boise Burn (W 59-35)
National Conference Championship -- Sat., August 15th – Tulsa Talons (W 79-49)
ArenaCup X -- Sat., August 22nd – Spokane Shock at Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers (Orleans Arena, Las Vegas, NV) (W 74-27)
AWAY VENUES
Boise Burn - Qwest Arena; Boise, Idaho
Central Valley Coyotes - Selland Arena; Fresno, California
Florida Firecats - Germain Arena; Estero, Florida
Iowa Barnstormers - Wells Fargo Arena; Des Moines, Iowa
Stockton Lightning - Stockton Arena; Stockton, California
Tri-Cities Fever - Toyota Center; Kennewick, Washington
Individual Statistic Leaders
Passing
Nick Davila – 349/491, 3,863 yards, 86 TD, 9 INT
Casey Hanson – 42/58, 543 yards, 13 TD, 0 INT
Rushing
Harrison Nikolao – 59 attempts, 182 yards, 8 TD
Nick Davila – 26 attempts, 70 yards, 12 TD
Charles Dillon – 6 attempts, 15 yards, 3 TD
Receiving
Raul Vijil – 116 receptions, 1,415 yards, 36 TD
Andy Olson – 108 receptions, 1,124 yards, 16 TD
Charles Dillon – 75 receptions, 868 yards, 18 TD
Markee White – 57 receptions, 602 yards, 18 TD
Kick Returns
Raul Vijil – 54 returns, 1,119 yards, 1 TD
Virgil Gray – 8 returns, 219 yards, 2 TD
Kicking
Brian Jackson – 9/11 FG, 110/128 XP, 137 points
Defensive
Stanley Franks – 96 total tackles, 16 pass breakups, 2 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery, 8 INT
Kevin McCullough – 70 total tackles, 2.5 sacks, 8 pass breakups, 2 fumble recoveries, 10 INT
Sergio Gilliam – 53 total tackles, 16 pass breakups, 1 forced fumble, 2 fumble recoveries, 13 INT
Justin Warren – 45 total tackles, 9 sacks, 2 pass breakups, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery
Lee Foliaki – 28.5 total tackles, 1 sack
Ben McCombs – 25.5 total tackles, 15.5 sacks, 3 pass breakups, 4 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery
Frank Morton – 12.5 total tackles, 3.0 sacks, 4 pass breakpus, 2 forced fumbles, 1 fumble recovery
Honors and Awards
First Team All-af2: Nick Davila (QB), Raul Vijil (WR), Kyle Young (OL), Ben McCombs (DL)
Second Team All-af2: Ryan Belcher (OL), Sergio Gilliam (DB)
Season Summary provided by the Spokane Shock in the Season Ticket Holder 2015 Pre-Season program.
