Post by 50yardfan on Jun 23, 2011 23:14:29 GMT -5
Panthers defensive backs Demetrie McCray and Levance Richmond have been a force to be reckoned with toward the end of the season, combining for 11 interceptions in the last two games as the duo now looks to shut down Columbus quarterback Chris McCoy in Saturday’s SIFL Eastern Conference title game.
www.albanyherald.com/sports/headlines/Double_trouble_124396924.html
ALBANY — The more interceptions Panthers defensive backs Demetrie McCray and Levance Richmond catch, the cleaner their shoes get.
They call it the shoe-shine celebration.
And with a combined 11 interceptions over the last two games — six for Richmond and five for McCray — their shoes are as clean as a whistle.
“Whoever catches the interception, they get the shoe shine (right after it happens),” McCray said with a laugh before Wednesday’s practice.
McCray and Richmond, who are as close off the field as their on-the-field celebration indicates, shine the other’s shoes when their teammate picks off a pass. The tradition, which began earlier this season, gives the players a chance to have fun — something they said they are trying to do as they prepare for Saturday’s SIFL Eastern Conference Championship game at Columbus.
“I don’t know where they get it from,” Panthers coach Lucious Davis said. “When they do stuff like that, I just laugh and let it go … I’ve been telling them to (have fun and play loose) since I met them. You can’t expect them to play well playing uptight.”
Based on their stats, the duo has been having all kinds of fun this season.
McCray, who played at Albany State, is third in the league with 10 interceptions for 114 yards, while Richmond, who played at Southern Mississippi, is fifth with eight interceptions for one touchdown and 98 yards. The tandem has given the Panthers the fifth-best pass defense (194.5 yards per game) in the league and the second-best pass defense efficiency (95.8).
McCray, Richmond and the rest of the Panthers (11-2) enter Saturday’s game against the Lions (12-1) with redemption on their minds. The two teams have already played each other three times this season, including a June 4 matchup at Columbus, where the Lions ran away with a 58-39 victory.
Albany’s defensive backs had little success against McCoy in that game as the Lions’ signal caller threw for four touchdowns and 267 yards and wasn’t picked off. McCray and Richmond said it was their lack of focus that enabled McCoy to have just his second interception-free game of the season.
“I think we were caught up in the hype (of the rivalry game) more than anything,” Richmond said. “We were on edge and didn’t want to mess up. That’s not our game. We like to have fun; that’s what we do. When we have fun, we make plays.”
McCray and Richmond have each had three-interception games this season. McCray’s was June 11 against Alabama, and Richmond’s was June 18 against Erie in the opening game of the playoffs.
“There was a lot of shoe shining going on,” Richmond laughed.
Richmond likes to gamble and is more aggressive than McCray, who tends to sit back and “play center field.” This is the third straight year the two have played together in the secondary, and they say they have developed a chemistry with one another on the field.
“I don’t have to say too much to him,” McCray said. “We can just look at each other, and I know what he is going to do and he knows what I am going to do.”
McCray, who graduated from Albany State in 2005, is the older of the two. He serves as the leader of the secondary, a role that Davis and Richmond said he manages very well.
“I really haven’t been as comfortable with another defensive back like I am with him,” Richmond said. “I look at him like he is the general in the secondary. He makes the calls, and I just do what he says.
“I kind of look at him as a mentor. When I first came in, I was a rookie in the game. He basically told me where I needed to be and showed me a lot of things I didn’t understand about the game. What I like about him is that he is a film junkie, just like me. Like he said, I really don’t have to think twice about what he is going to do.”
In fact, Davis said that Richmond is lost without his teammate and friend. Toward the end of the season, McCray was forced to miss a practice because of an injury to his ribs, and Davis said Richmond looked like an “outcast” on the field.
“(Richmond) was alone. He couldn’t function. He didn’t practice well. He didn’t say anything. And it was all because McCray wasn’t there,”
Davis said. “The next day McCray got out there, and Levance was a totally different kid. Without one another, I don’t think they would be as successful as they are with one another.”
On Wednesday, they were both healthy and practicing in the Civic Center, complementing each other with their different styles of defense. And like the rest of the Panthers, they were staying relaxed and trying not to stress out about the biggest game of their young arena football careers.
“We just need to have fun,” McCray said about what the Panthers need to do to get into the league championship on July 2.
Looking Ahead
WHO: Panthers (11-2) at Lions (12-1).
WHAT: SIFL playoffs, semifinals.
WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
WHERE: Columbus Civic Center.
RADIO: 98.1-FM.
LIVE UPDATES: Log onto: twitter.com/AlbHeraldSports.
IF WIN: Will play winner of Houston-Louisiana on July 2.
www.albanyherald.com/sports/headlines/Double_trouble_124396924.html
ALBANY — The more interceptions Panthers defensive backs Demetrie McCray and Levance Richmond catch, the cleaner their shoes get.
They call it the shoe-shine celebration.
And with a combined 11 interceptions over the last two games — six for Richmond and five for McCray — their shoes are as clean as a whistle.
“Whoever catches the interception, they get the shoe shine (right after it happens),” McCray said with a laugh before Wednesday’s practice.
McCray and Richmond, who are as close off the field as their on-the-field celebration indicates, shine the other’s shoes when their teammate picks off a pass. The tradition, which began earlier this season, gives the players a chance to have fun — something they said they are trying to do as they prepare for Saturday’s SIFL Eastern Conference Championship game at Columbus.
“I don’t know where they get it from,” Panthers coach Lucious Davis said. “When they do stuff like that, I just laugh and let it go … I’ve been telling them to (have fun and play loose) since I met them. You can’t expect them to play well playing uptight.”
Based on their stats, the duo has been having all kinds of fun this season.
McCray, who played at Albany State, is third in the league with 10 interceptions for 114 yards, while Richmond, who played at Southern Mississippi, is fifth with eight interceptions for one touchdown and 98 yards. The tandem has given the Panthers the fifth-best pass defense (194.5 yards per game) in the league and the second-best pass defense efficiency (95.8).
McCray, Richmond and the rest of the Panthers (11-2) enter Saturday’s game against the Lions (12-1) with redemption on their minds. The two teams have already played each other three times this season, including a June 4 matchup at Columbus, where the Lions ran away with a 58-39 victory.
Albany’s defensive backs had little success against McCoy in that game as the Lions’ signal caller threw for four touchdowns and 267 yards and wasn’t picked off. McCray and Richmond said it was their lack of focus that enabled McCoy to have just his second interception-free game of the season.
“I think we were caught up in the hype (of the rivalry game) more than anything,” Richmond said. “We were on edge and didn’t want to mess up. That’s not our game. We like to have fun; that’s what we do. When we have fun, we make plays.”
McCray and Richmond have each had three-interception games this season. McCray’s was June 11 against Alabama, and Richmond’s was June 18 against Erie in the opening game of the playoffs.
“There was a lot of shoe shining going on,” Richmond laughed.
Richmond likes to gamble and is more aggressive than McCray, who tends to sit back and “play center field.” This is the third straight year the two have played together in the secondary, and they say they have developed a chemistry with one another on the field.
“I don’t have to say too much to him,” McCray said. “We can just look at each other, and I know what he is going to do and he knows what I am going to do.”
McCray, who graduated from Albany State in 2005, is the older of the two. He serves as the leader of the secondary, a role that Davis and Richmond said he manages very well.
“I really haven’t been as comfortable with another defensive back like I am with him,” Richmond said. “I look at him like he is the general in the secondary. He makes the calls, and I just do what he says.
“I kind of look at him as a mentor. When I first came in, I was a rookie in the game. He basically told me where I needed to be and showed me a lot of things I didn’t understand about the game. What I like about him is that he is a film junkie, just like me. Like he said, I really don’t have to think twice about what he is going to do.”
In fact, Davis said that Richmond is lost without his teammate and friend. Toward the end of the season, McCray was forced to miss a practice because of an injury to his ribs, and Davis said Richmond looked like an “outcast” on the field.
“(Richmond) was alone. He couldn’t function. He didn’t practice well. He didn’t say anything. And it was all because McCray wasn’t there,”
Davis said. “The next day McCray got out there, and Levance was a totally different kid. Without one another, I don’t think they would be as successful as they are with one another.”
On Wednesday, they were both healthy and practicing in the Civic Center, complementing each other with their different styles of defense. And like the rest of the Panthers, they were staying relaxed and trying not to stress out about the biggest game of their young arena football careers.
“We just need to have fun,” McCray said about what the Panthers need to do to get into the league championship on July 2.
Looking Ahead
WHO: Panthers (11-2) at Lions (12-1).
WHAT: SIFL playoffs, semifinals.
WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
WHERE: Columbus Civic Center.
RADIO: 98.1-FM.
LIVE UPDATES: Log onto: twitter.com/AlbHeraldSports.
IF WIN: Will play winner of Houston-Louisiana on July 2.