Post by fwp on Apr 10, 2010 7:36:05 GMT -5
www.pantagraph.com/sports/football/professional/arena/extreme/article_5a8ea652-4430-11df-a5f5-001cc4c002e0.html
BLOOMINGTON - A bye week gave the Bloomington Extreme extra time to prepare for a rematch with one division rival. But it also created a longer wait to erase the pain from a critical loss to another.
Two weeks after dropping a first-place showdown at Green Bay, the Extreme returns to action Saturday in a 7:05 p.m. meeting with the Chicago Slaughter at U.S. Cellular Coliseum.
"It feels a lot longer than that," Bloomington coach Kenton Carr said of the gap between contests. "But we needed it; we had some guys nicked up."
Quarterback Luke Drone remains nicked up after taking a hit to his non-throwing shoulder on the final play of a 27-26 win at Chicago on March 21. With Drone missing a second straight game, Rocky Hinds will get his first start at quarterback for Bloomington.
"We're eager to get back after the bye week and get on the field," said Hinds. "If we want to be a championship caliber team, we have to win all these divisional games."
At 2-2, the Extreme sits 1½ games behind Green Bay in the Indoor Football League's Central North Division. The Blizzard moved to 4-1 last week with a 46-45 win over Maryland last week and Carr says his team cannot afford to lose any more ground.
"This race is so tough in this division and Green Bay has a step on us now," he said. "We've got some making up to do. We've got good players here and we feel we've got a championship team, we've just got to put the pieces together."
Chicago (1-3), also coming off a bye, won its last game by one point after losing its first three by a combined eight points. Running back Jarrett Payton and receiver De'Cody f*gg are the main threats in an offense that has looked better since Randy Hutchinson replaced Mike Donato at quarterback.
"Chicago could easily be 4-0 and they've gotten better with their quarterback, he's outstanding," said Carr. "They think we snuck one on them and got lucky last time, but we're ready."
The Slaughter believes the addition of defensive lineman Ron Ellington will bolster a unit that's allowing 34.8 points per game. Carr had hoped the Extreme would get Ellington, a first-team All-IFL pick who totaled 11½ sacks and 50½ tackles in 14 games with the El Paso Generals last year.
Instead, Bloomington brought in Larry Luster to ease the loss of Quince Holman. Luster, a 320-pound defensive lineman from Southern Illinois, was released by Green Bay on March 31 after appearing in two games, including the Blizzard's 35-21 win over Bloomington on March 26.
With Bernard Payton in complete control of the running back duties, the Extreme released season-opening starter Derrick Brown this week. Brown scored two touchdowns in the first game but hadn't played since.
While Johnny Gray and Harry Lewis have been Bloomington's main targets in the passing game, Carr would like to get John Cooper, Adam Kesler and Charles Sullivan more involved.
"It's hard because we've got a lot of good receivers and we're still figuring out who can play," he said. "Guys can do all they want in practice but I need to see who's a gamer."
Carr has decided to keep defensive back Terrill Mayberry inactive after his temper led to a critical unsportsmanlike conduct penalty in the loss to Green Bay.
Back in action
Slaughter at Extreme
Site: U.S. Cellular Coliseum
Time: 7:05 p.m. Saturday
Broadcast: wjbc.com
BLOOMINGTON - A bye week gave the Bloomington Extreme extra time to prepare for a rematch with one division rival. But it also created a longer wait to erase the pain from a critical loss to another.
Two weeks after dropping a first-place showdown at Green Bay, the Extreme returns to action Saturday in a 7:05 p.m. meeting with the Chicago Slaughter at U.S. Cellular Coliseum.
"It feels a lot longer than that," Bloomington coach Kenton Carr said of the gap between contests. "But we needed it; we had some guys nicked up."
Quarterback Luke Drone remains nicked up after taking a hit to his non-throwing shoulder on the final play of a 27-26 win at Chicago on March 21. With Drone missing a second straight game, Rocky Hinds will get his first start at quarterback for Bloomington.
"We're eager to get back after the bye week and get on the field," said Hinds. "If we want to be a championship caliber team, we have to win all these divisional games."
At 2-2, the Extreme sits 1½ games behind Green Bay in the Indoor Football League's Central North Division. The Blizzard moved to 4-1 last week with a 46-45 win over Maryland last week and Carr says his team cannot afford to lose any more ground.
"This race is so tough in this division and Green Bay has a step on us now," he said. "We've got some making up to do. We've got good players here and we feel we've got a championship team, we've just got to put the pieces together."
Chicago (1-3), also coming off a bye, won its last game by one point after losing its first three by a combined eight points. Running back Jarrett Payton and receiver De'Cody f*gg are the main threats in an offense that has looked better since Randy Hutchinson replaced Mike Donato at quarterback.
"Chicago could easily be 4-0 and they've gotten better with their quarterback, he's outstanding," said Carr. "They think we snuck one on them and got lucky last time, but we're ready."
The Slaughter believes the addition of defensive lineman Ron Ellington will bolster a unit that's allowing 34.8 points per game. Carr had hoped the Extreme would get Ellington, a first-team All-IFL pick who totaled 11½ sacks and 50½ tackles in 14 games with the El Paso Generals last year.
Instead, Bloomington brought in Larry Luster to ease the loss of Quince Holman. Luster, a 320-pound defensive lineman from Southern Illinois, was released by Green Bay on March 31 after appearing in two games, including the Blizzard's 35-21 win over Bloomington on March 26.
With Bernard Payton in complete control of the running back duties, the Extreme released season-opening starter Derrick Brown this week. Brown scored two touchdowns in the first game but hadn't played since.
While Johnny Gray and Harry Lewis have been Bloomington's main targets in the passing game, Carr would like to get John Cooper, Adam Kesler and Charles Sullivan more involved.
"It's hard because we've got a lot of good receivers and we're still figuring out who can play," he said. "Guys can do all they want in practice but I need to see who's a gamer."
Carr has decided to keep defensive back Terrill Mayberry inactive after his temper led to a critical unsportsmanlike conduct penalty in the loss to Green Bay.
Back in action
Slaughter at Extreme
Site: U.S. Cellular Coliseum
Time: 7:05 p.m. Saturday
Broadcast: wjbc.com