Post by 50yardfan on Jun 29, 2011 13:14:33 GMT -5
It’s been more than three months since Albany opened up the regular season with a come-from-behind win against the Louisiana Swashbucklers, but a lot remains the same for the Panthers, who will once again host the Swashbucklers this weekend — only this time with the SIFL title at stake.
www.albanyherald.com/sports/headlines/Deja_vu__124688469.html
ALBANY — Quarterback Cecil Lester became a leader; his defense did the unthinkable; and the Albany Panthers discovered their identity.
It all happened during the team’s season opener March 19 against the Louisiana Swashbucklers, which set the tone for the entire year, Panthers coach Lucious Davis said at practice Tuesday.
Down, 27-7, at halftime, the Panthers’ defense pitched a shutout in the second half and Lester came off the bench to throw three second-half touchdowns and lead Albany to a 30-27 come-from-behind victory that was capped by a Wes Virgilio last-second field goal.
“That (set the tone) for our season,” Davis said about the win against the Swashbucklers, who eliminated Albany from the playoffs last season. “From that point on, we have been a second-half team. Our second halves have always been great.”
The Panthers (12-2) used one of their customary second-half comebacks to win Saturday’s SIFL semifinal game against bitter rival Columbus, setting up a rematch with the Swashbucklers (10-4) in Saturday’s SIFL Championship game at the Albany Civic Center.
In both the semifinal game against Columbus and the season opener against Louisiana, Albany’s defense made big plays down the stretch. Linebacker Corey Rue, who had a team-high 45 tackles entering the playoffs, remembers that season opener and how the Panthers were able to turn things around.
“We saw what they were doing on offense, and we adjusted,” said Rue, who was playing cornerback at the time. “They were throwing screens, doing zone read and hitting us deep with play action, but we adjusted to it.
“We went from winning that game to winning six more after that, and the team chemistry is just amazing now. We are really like a family now. You can’t break that.”
And you can’t break the team’s momentum on defense — a force that began some three months ago in front of a Civic Center crowd of more than 5,000.
“It showed the character that a lot of the guys have on this team,” Davis said of the poise it took to hold Louisiana scoreless for two quarters — on a 50-yard field, no less. “We made some good plays. (The defense) just played well, and offensively we took care of the ball. That’s how you do it. It’s a team effort.”
Lester, who was the SIFL MVP last season, entered the locker room at halftime back in March as the team’s backup to quarterback A.J. McKenna and emerged as Albany’s saving grace.
During Tuesday’s practice, however, Lester — who hasn’t talked much during the playoffs, rather choosing to remain focused on the task at hand of winning a championship — once again didn’t have much to say about how far he and the Panthers have come since he hit John “Ochocinco” Harris for a 15-yard touchdown pass on his first offensive drive of the season.
But Davis didn’t shy away from talking about his star quarterback, who has racked up 64 touchdowns and just 15 interceptions in the regular season.
“It says something for Cecil to watch A.J. play the first half and sit and wait, and then be thrown into the mix down 20 points,” Davis said. “(Lester) was in a bad position, and to come out that way speaks a lot of his character and maturity from last year to this year.”
Nineteen of Lester’s regular-season touchdowns were caught by Antwone Savage, who said Tuesday that Round 2 with the Swashbucklers should be higher scoring than the season opener where both squads scored season-lows. The Swashbucklers scored at least 60 points in their next 10 games, and the Panthers scored only below 40 once the rest of the regular season.
“We have progressed since that game in everything from the play calling to the line blocking to the receivers going out and catching balls. Cecil is making great reads right now, and we are clicking on all cylinders,” Savage said. “I am sure they are going to come in and try to put up points, and every time we touch the ball it will be the same way. Last game, we stalled on the one-yard line. But if we get to the one this game, we are going to put it in (the end zone).”
Will it be déjà vu for the defensively-strong, Lester-led Panthers in their rematch against the Swashbucklers? Or will three months and more than a dozen games since then make this matchup totally different?
Whatever it takes, Rue said he just wants to hoist up that championship trophy in front of a home crowd — something he has never been able to do at any level of football.
“We are ready to ball and ready to bring this championship back home,” Rue said. “It’s going to stay in Georgia. We don’t want it going anywhere else.”
Looking Ahead
WHO: Louisiana Swashbucklers (10-4) at Albany Panthers (12-2).
WHAT: SIFL Championship game.
WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
WHERE: Albany Civic Center.
LIVE UPDATES: Log onto twitter.com/AlbHeraldSports.
And Davis said his team hasn’t been the same since — in a good way — especially in the second half.
www.albanyherald.com/sports/headlines/Deja_vu__124688469.html
ALBANY — Quarterback Cecil Lester became a leader; his defense did the unthinkable; and the Albany Panthers discovered their identity.
It all happened during the team’s season opener March 19 against the Louisiana Swashbucklers, which set the tone for the entire year, Panthers coach Lucious Davis said at practice Tuesday.
Down, 27-7, at halftime, the Panthers’ defense pitched a shutout in the second half and Lester came off the bench to throw three second-half touchdowns and lead Albany to a 30-27 come-from-behind victory that was capped by a Wes Virgilio last-second field goal.
“That (set the tone) for our season,” Davis said about the win against the Swashbucklers, who eliminated Albany from the playoffs last season. “From that point on, we have been a second-half team. Our second halves have always been great.”
The Panthers (12-2) used one of their customary second-half comebacks to win Saturday’s SIFL semifinal game against bitter rival Columbus, setting up a rematch with the Swashbucklers (10-4) in Saturday’s SIFL Championship game at the Albany Civic Center.
In both the semifinal game against Columbus and the season opener against Louisiana, Albany’s defense made big plays down the stretch. Linebacker Corey Rue, who had a team-high 45 tackles entering the playoffs, remembers that season opener and how the Panthers were able to turn things around.
“We saw what they were doing on offense, and we adjusted,” said Rue, who was playing cornerback at the time. “They were throwing screens, doing zone read and hitting us deep with play action, but we adjusted to it.
“We went from winning that game to winning six more after that, and the team chemistry is just amazing now. We are really like a family now. You can’t break that.”
And you can’t break the team’s momentum on defense — a force that began some three months ago in front of a Civic Center crowd of more than 5,000.
“It showed the character that a lot of the guys have on this team,” Davis said of the poise it took to hold Louisiana scoreless for two quarters — on a 50-yard field, no less. “We made some good plays. (The defense) just played well, and offensively we took care of the ball. That’s how you do it. It’s a team effort.”
Lester, who was the SIFL MVP last season, entered the locker room at halftime back in March as the team’s backup to quarterback A.J. McKenna and emerged as Albany’s saving grace.
During Tuesday’s practice, however, Lester — who hasn’t talked much during the playoffs, rather choosing to remain focused on the task at hand of winning a championship — once again didn’t have much to say about how far he and the Panthers have come since he hit John “Ochocinco” Harris for a 15-yard touchdown pass on his first offensive drive of the season.
But Davis didn’t shy away from talking about his star quarterback, who has racked up 64 touchdowns and just 15 interceptions in the regular season.
“It says something for Cecil to watch A.J. play the first half and sit and wait, and then be thrown into the mix down 20 points,” Davis said. “(Lester) was in a bad position, and to come out that way speaks a lot of his character and maturity from last year to this year.”
Nineteen of Lester’s regular-season touchdowns were caught by Antwone Savage, who said Tuesday that Round 2 with the Swashbucklers should be higher scoring than the season opener where both squads scored season-lows. The Swashbucklers scored at least 60 points in their next 10 games, and the Panthers scored only below 40 once the rest of the regular season.
“We have progressed since that game in everything from the play calling to the line blocking to the receivers going out and catching balls. Cecil is making great reads right now, and we are clicking on all cylinders,” Savage said. “I am sure they are going to come in and try to put up points, and every time we touch the ball it will be the same way. Last game, we stalled on the one-yard line. But if we get to the one this game, we are going to put it in (the end zone).”
Will it be déjà vu for the defensively-strong, Lester-led Panthers in their rematch against the Swashbucklers? Or will three months and more than a dozen games since then make this matchup totally different?
Whatever it takes, Rue said he just wants to hoist up that championship trophy in front of a home crowd — something he has never been able to do at any level of football.
“We are ready to ball and ready to bring this championship back home,” Rue said. “It’s going to stay in Georgia. We don’t want it going anywhere else.”
Looking Ahead
WHO: Louisiana Swashbucklers (10-4) at Albany Panthers (12-2).
WHAT: SIFL Championship game.
WHEN: 7:30 p.m. Saturday.
WHERE: Albany Civic Center.
LIVE UPDATES: Log onto twitter.com/AlbHeraldSports.
And Davis said his team hasn’t been the same since — in a good way — especially in the second half.