Post by fwp on Apr 22, 2010 21:45:22 GMT -5
www.albanyherald.com/sports/headlines/91782324.html
ALBANY — It may be getting to be a habit for Panthers quarterback Cecil Lester, but at least it’s not going to his head.
Lester, who won his second Offensive Player of the Week award in the Southern Indoor Football League on Wednesday, had little to say about his performance against Lafayette.
“I had a horrible game,’’ said Lester, who threw for 412 yards and scored the winning touchdown on a 1-yard run with 45 seconds left to beat Lafayette 70-64.
Horrible? What about the stats?
“It happens like that sometimes,’’ Lester said. “We didn’t execute like we should have. I have to be a lot better. I won the award, but I have to thank my offensive line and my receivers. They should have given it to them.’’
Lester, who won the same award after the Panthers’ first game — a 54-41 win vs. Columbus — has thrown for 723 yards and 15 touchdowns in the first two games of the season for the unbeaten Panthers (2-0).
Still, he was down on himself for his performance against Lafayette, and Panthers coach Lucious Davis said quite bluntly he felt Lester’s performance was good, but not great.
“It’s good that he got the Player of the Week, but he forced some balls he shouldn’t have and I thought he could have done much better,’’ Davis said. “Overall, he played good enough for us to win. He didn’t play good enough to win a championship, and that’s what we want to do.’’
Davis was pretty upset after the game Saturday, saying: “We won, but we were awful,’’ and he was still talking at practice Wednesday about how far the team still had to go.
“I’m not pleased with the way we’re playing,’’ he said. “There were times (on Saturday) that we looked good on both sides of the ball, but there were times we didn’t look good. That’s what we have to improve on. We’ve got to get better if we want to win a championship.’’
The Panthers, who were down, 64-56, late in the game, had to storm back in the final minutes to beat Lafayette (0-2). John Harris caught a 45-yard TD pass from Lester with 2:52 left before Lester scored the winner in the final minute.
“It was an exciting game, but ... we’ve got to be more consistent. And we have to stop turning the ball over,” Davis said.
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THREE CHEERS FOR BEER?:
The Panthers have an extra day to get ready for the Greenville Force (2-1) this week, because they are playing a rare Sunday game. All of their other home games are played on Saturday with 7:30 p.m. starts. The Panthers have received permission from the city to sell beer at Sunday’s game, which will start at 5 p.m.
It will be interesting to see how the early starting time and the Sunday game affect the attendance. The Panthers have drawn a little more than 8,000 for their first two games.
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IT’S A KICK-A-THON:
The Panthers’ most glaring weakness is their kicking game.
Kicker Andrew Jensen managed to kick just one extra point all night against Lafayette, and Davis was forced to go for two-point conversions after every touchdown in the fourth quarter.
That’s why Davis has brought in two kickers this week, meaning the job is now wide open.
“It’s a kick-a-thon,’’ he said. “We’re going to have them kick (Wednesday and today) and decide who will be the kicker this week.’’
Jensen is still in the mix, but the Panthers are taking a hard look at James Terry, a veteran arena league kicker, and Juan Bongarra, who kicked for Albany State last fall.
ALBANY — It may be getting to be a habit for Panthers quarterback Cecil Lester, but at least it’s not going to his head.
Lester, who won his second Offensive Player of the Week award in the Southern Indoor Football League on Wednesday, had little to say about his performance against Lafayette.
“I had a horrible game,’’ said Lester, who threw for 412 yards and scored the winning touchdown on a 1-yard run with 45 seconds left to beat Lafayette 70-64.
Horrible? What about the stats?
“It happens like that sometimes,’’ Lester said. “We didn’t execute like we should have. I have to be a lot better. I won the award, but I have to thank my offensive line and my receivers. They should have given it to them.’’
Lester, who won the same award after the Panthers’ first game — a 54-41 win vs. Columbus — has thrown for 723 yards and 15 touchdowns in the first two games of the season for the unbeaten Panthers (2-0).
Still, he was down on himself for his performance against Lafayette, and Panthers coach Lucious Davis said quite bluntly he felt Lester’s performance was good, but not great.
“It’s good that he got the Player of the Week, but he forced some balls he shouldn’t have and I thought he could have done much better,’’ Davis said. “Overall, he played good enough for us to win. He didn’t play good enough to win a championship, and that’s what we want to do.’’
Davis was pretty upset after the game Saturday, saying: “We won, but we were awful,’’ and he was still talking at practice Wednesday about how far the team still had to go.
“I’m not pleased with the way we’re playing,’’ he said. “There were times (on Saturday) that we looked good on both sides of the ball, but there were times we didn’t look good. That’s what we have to improve on. We’ve got to get better if we want to win a championship.’’
The Panthers, who were down, 64-56, late in the game, had to storm back in the final minutes to beat Lafayette (0-2). John Harris caught a 45-yard TD pass from Lester with 2:52 left before Lester scored the winner in the final minute.
“It was an exciting game, but ... we’ve got to be more consistent. And we have to stop turning the ball over,” Davis said.
---------------------------
THREE CHEERS FOR BEER?:
The Panthers have an extra day to get ready for the Greenville Force (2-1) this week, because they are playing a rare Sunday game. All of their other home games are played on Saturday with 7:30 p.m. starts. The Panthers have received permission from the city to sell beer at Sunday’s game, which will start at 5 p.m.
It will be interesting to see how the early starting time and the Sunday game affect the attendance. The Panthers have drawn a little more than 8,000 for their first two games.
---------------------------------------
IT’S A KICK-A-THON:
The Panthers’ most glaring weakness is their kicking game.
Kicker Andrew Jensen managed to kick just one extra point all night against Lafayette, and Davis was forced to go for two-point conversions after every touchdown in the fourth quarter.
That’s why Davis has brought in two kickers this week, meaning the job is now wide open.
“It’s a kick-a-thon,’’ he said. “We’re going to have them kick (Wednesday and today) and decide who will be the kicker this week.’’
Jensen is still in the mix, but the Panthers are taking a hard look at James Terry, a veteran arena league kicker, and Juan Bongarra, who kicked for Albany State last fall.