SOME NOTES ABOUT THE NEW ENGLAND "CITYHAWK" SERIES
The New Jersey Red Dogs (3-4), left looking for answers following Saturday night’s heartbreaking loss to the Albany Firebirds, now turn their sights toward the surprising New England Sea Wolves (5-2) who play the Red Dogs on June 18, 1999 at the Continental Airlines Arena. This will mark the first-ever meeting between the Red Dogs and the Sea Wolves, who last year were known as the New York CityHawks. The last time the Red Dogs and the CityHawks met, a four-yard pass from quarterback Rickey Foggie to offensive specialist Larry Ray Willis with 3:32 left proved to be the difference as the Red Dogs held on for a 39-32 victory. Foggie, who threw five touchdown passes and ran for another, hit Willis for Larry Ray’s second touchdown of the game in breaking the 32-32 tie. New York, which came back in the second half behind the play of QB Mike Perez and K Mike Black, then had two chances to tie the game in the final minute, but came away empty. An interception by New Jersey’s Kevin Guy at the Red Dog one-yard line with 0:50 to play stopped the CityHawks momentarily, but Foggie fumbled two plays later to give New York one last shot. Alvin Ashley put the game on ice with another interception in the end zone with 0:25 remaining. It looked like a runaway in the first half as the ‘Dog built up a 26-16 lead by half-time. Foggie, who threw for 288 yards on 20-of-34 passing, was named the game’s MVP. Alvin Ashley was selected as the Ironman of the game.
SPOTLIGHTING DIMITRIOUS STANLEY
Ohio State. Big 10 football. A winning tradition. This is the background that first-year Red Dog wide receiver/defensive back Dimitrious Stanley brings to the Red Dogs organization. Although he got off to a slow start this season, the former Buckeye has come on strong in recent weeks as he has accounted for 9 of his 18 receptions and 133 of his 199 receiving yards in the last two games. He also had a huge return game versus Milwaukee, gaining 72 yards on five returns. While at Ohio State, Dimitrious was a member of the winningest senior class in OSU history. Although the Red Dogs may be mired in a mini-slump, Stanley’s play has raised hopes that he can energize the offense and take some of the pressure off of #1 receiver Alvin Ashley.
THE RED DOGS LAST GAME
ALBANY, N.Y. - In Emile Zola’s Germinal, a contingent of impoverish workers looked deep within their souls to rise up and overcome adversity. On Saturday, June 12, at the Pepsi Arena in Albany, New York, the New Jersey Red Dogs came out firing and appeared to have found it within themselves to overcome their current slump. However, a lackluster second half turned out to be the downfall of the ‘Dogs as the Firebirds put up a late rush and defeated New Jersey 38-34 before 11,452 wild and screaming fans. The Red Dogs, coming out of their bye week, looked strong in the first half as the formerly nonexistent running game came on to score three rushing touchdowns, two by Ron Perry and one by Jermaine Younger. QB Rickey Foggie (23-37-1 for 276 yards and one touchdown) was once again adept at spreading the ball around to his receivers as six different 'Dogs caught passes. Leading the way once again was Alvin Ashley, who hauled in eight balls for 110 yards. The loss, the third in a row for New Jersey, puts them at 2-3 on the season. They now look for some answers as the host the New England Sea Wolves next Friday, June 18, at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
GAME NOTES
The Red Dogs are now 3-4 on the season... Alvin Ashley picked up his 6th 100-yard receiving game of the season... Ashley’s 30 game consecutive touchdown streak ends... The 'Dogs defense accounted for three interceptions... New Jersey managed only 3 points in the entire second half... The two teams accounted for 23 penalties on the night... Eddie Brown broke the 8,000 yard mark with a total of 68 yards on the night...
ALVIN ASHLEY WATCH
Alvin Ashley had his streak of scoring one touchdown in 30 consecutive games broken Saturday night. Alvin did put up good numbers, though, as he hauled in eight passes for 110 yards, as well as accounting for 102 return yards. To date, Ashley has racked up 856 yards and 17 touchdowns off of 69 receptions. The next closest Red Dog is Manny Pina who has 299 yards receiving. Alvin is currently 3rd in the League in Receptions with 69, 4th in Receiving Yards (856) 6th in Scoring (102 points) and Touchdowns (17), 5th in All-Purpose yards with 1,465 yards. Alvin is also averaging 12.4 yards per catch as well as 209.3 All-Purpose yards per contest.
THE DOMINATING DEFENSE
Despite the Red Dogs current slump, the defense once again turned in a stellar performance, allowing under 40 points for the 4th time this season. On the year, the Red Dogs are 3rd in scoring defense (45.4 points per game), 3rd in pass defense (226.6 yards per game), 3rd in total defense (254.3 yards per game), 3rd in sacks (11), and are a +1 in turnover margin. Individually, Jermaine Younger is 2nd in the league in both forced fumbles (3) and fumbles recovered (3); Robert Stewart is 3rd in the league in sacks (3); and Latish Kinsler is 21st in the league in total tackles (33).
SOME MORE GAME NOTES
Alvin Ashley’s streak of 30 consecutive games with a touchdown was snapped, but he did go over the 100 yard receiving mark for the sixth time in seven games... Ricky Foggie threw for 276 yards and one touchdowns on 23-of-37 passing... Foggie now stands sixth in the league in total offense with 1,805 total yards (257.9/gm) and is tied for 4th with 32 touchdown passes... Manny Pina added to his receiving total by bringing down four passes for 35 yards... Dimitrious Stanley enjoyed his second consecutive strong game by catching four passes for 45 yards... He also had one touchdown called back... Through seven games this season, the Red Dogs have been outscored by the opposition 318-297...
PLAYERS TO WATCH FOR THE RED DOGS
Alvin Ashley, WR/DB, Southwest State: The Red Dogs’ leading receiver this season, Ashley has racked up 856 yards and 17 touchdowns off of 69 receptions. Alvin is currently 3rd in the League in Receptions with 69, 4th in Receiving Yards (856) 6th in Scoring (102 points) and Touchdowns (17), 5th in All-Purpose yards with 1,465 yards. Alvin is also averaging 12.4 yards per catch as well as 209.3 All-Purpose yards per contest. Ashley got off to a flying start in Week 1 when he exploded with 11 receptions for a team-high 158 yards, five touchdowns, and 101 return yards. A favorite target of QB Rickey Foggie since the two were united last season, Ashley is accounting for more than 50% of the Red Dogs’ offense. Last season saw him named to the First Team All-Arena league squad.
Rickey Foggie, QB, University of Minnesota: In his second season with the Red Dogs and fourth in the AFL, Foggie has led the Red Dogs to a 3-4 start. To date, he has passed for 1,799 yards (257.9game) on 163-of-276 passing. His 32 touchdowns through the air rank him tied for fourth in the league. Last season, Foggie led New Jersey to the semifinals of the AFL playoffs, including a record-setting performance against Albany in the first round where he threw for 446 yards and 9 touchdowns on 39-of-59 passing (all post-season AFL records).
Latish Kinsler, WR/DB, University of Cincinnati: In his first season with the Red Dogs, Kinsler has made his presence known by compiling 33 tackles (24 solo, 9 assists), good for the team lead and 21st in the league overall. Before joining the Red Dogs, Kinsler played for the Pittsburgh Steelers (‘94), Philadelphia Eagles (‘96), and the New York Jets (‘97). He finished his career at Cincinnati with 9 interceptions, good for 5th all-time on the Bearcats list.
PLAYERS TO WATCH FOR THE SEAWOLVES
Mike Perez, QB: One of the AFL’s all-time greatest players, Perez ranks second all-time in yardage, completion’s, and attempts. In 1996, he became the first AFL QB ever to throw for 4,000 yards in a season. That year, he also set a league record with 84 touchdown passes. This season, Perez has been solid once again as the Sea Wolves enjoy a 5-2 record, good for second place in the Eastern Division. To date, he has gone 124-of-221 for 1,525 yards and 30 touchdowns. His 104.0 QB ratings ranks him 10th in the league overall.
Millard Hamilton, WR/DB: Although he has only appeared in five games this season, the explosive Hamilton has put up impressive numbers. His nine kickoff returns this season have gone for 232 yards and two touchdowns, an average of 25.8 yards per return. While at Clark Atlanta University, Hamilton was a Division II All-American and a three-time all-conference selection. Drafted by the Buffalo Bills in 1991, he has spent time with the New England Patriots (1991) and New York Giants (1992-94).
Billy Mitchell, DS: A defensive specialist out of Texas A & M, Mitchell leads the Sea Wolves with 41 total tackles (30 solo, 11 assists), good for 8th in the league the category. While with the Aggies, Mitchell was the special teams’ captain his final two seasons. He also appeared in a Holiday Bowl and three Cotton Bowls. Last season, he recorded 74 total tackles (54 solo, 20 assists), 12 pass breakups, two forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, and one interception.