Depleted Knights Step Up To Trounce Twisters
Keith Murphy
Sunday May 4, 2003
Macon came into the game with players dinged up and ill. Star FB/LB Byron Douzart, whose presence anchors the team’s defense and propels their offense, was playing with the flu. “I had to just suck it up and try to go hard,” said Douzart. “Coach understood what I was going through; so, he was trying to give me some breaks and spells.” Despite his illness, Douzart still managed to pick up another Iron Man award. “When I was out there I was just trying to give it everything I had and that got us through.”
Knights’ head coach Kevin Porter said that the injuries and illnesses were negated by the fact that the Knights have “capable people. If someone gets dinged up or goes down then someone else has to step up. Our guys understand that. It didn’t affect us a whole lot tonight. Tito Hannah came in and played very well and he hadn’t played fullback/linebacker all season, so I’ve gotta keep plugging the right people in.” Hannah is a 6’ 4”, 235 pound FB/LB from South Carolina State who has spent this year as Douzart’s shadow.
At times, Macon looked like the world beaters that spanked a solid Birmingham squad and, on one or two occasions, the Knights looked as if the ball was made of butter and the playbook was written in Aramaic, “and that’s been the story of it all year,” said Porter. “Ten penalties in the first half and eight of them were on us. We’ve just got to bet better at every position. I thought we played very well in spots and I thought we had some critical breakdowns at critical times. We’re just gonna have to keep working. We’ve got a good football team. We just really haven’t been able to mesh them into one unit yet. I think we’re getting close.”
Twisters Unable to Deliver the Death Blow
The Twisters had Macon down but could never seem to apply the coup de grace. Macon gave them a chance to build a big advantage when Jacques Rumph uncharacteristically fumbled the ball on the Arkansas one-yard line. Ricky Hebert turned the mistake into a Twister touchdown and a 14-point turnaround.
The Knights didn’t panic and it was, in the end, having Rumph in the right place at the right time that mattered. Late in the third quarter, the Macon Defense came up with the second of their three critical stops on the night and forced the Twisters to engage in the af2 version of punting: a long field goal attempt. Rumph picked the ball off the net and shredded the Arkansas coverage for a touchdown. Macon was up 49-42 and never looked back.
At times the Knights were able to get a heavy rush on Arkansas quarterback Ricky Hebert and at times the rush seemed ineffective. Knights’ OL/DL Andre Slappey says that the inconsistency was, “nothing they were doing. They wasn’t changing nothing. Sometimes a quarterback’s release is quicker and he was getting it out of there quick. In that case all you do is get off the ball and then turn around and run to it. Sometimes it was just the defensive style where we were spying and then rushing to it. We kept them in the game because we kept making mistakes early. If we minimize mistakes we will be all right.”
Bright Spots
One of the bright spots was kicker Wesley Wilson who was perfect on the night and seems to be getting better each game. “Yeah, I’m not a rookie anymore,” said Wilson. “I know what to expect and I just try to give all I can, work hard and dedicate to the Lord. I’m trying to stay within my leg strength, trying to stay confident and relaxed.” Wilson disagrees however with the popular notion that all kickers are, well, a bit unusual, “I wouldn’t say we were crazy.” He added with a smile, “You try having to be on your own all the time and see how you are.”
Another bright spot was the play of a couple of Knights who were new to the roster or to the limelight. According to Porter: “I thought Eric Sims [5’ 10” 185 pound DS out of Eastern Kentucky University] played great when he got an opportunity to play. Sean Powell [6’ 2” 298 pound OL/DL out of New Mexico State] played terrific and Tito again. We keep trying to make the team better; trying to put the best 19 guys out there and I feel like we’re getting pretty close.”
Next?
With the win, Macon goes to 4-1. Next weekend, the Knights take the 90 minute drive to Columbus, Georgia to take on the revamped Wardogs. If he is healthy, this would be Columbus quarterback Mike Gluski’s first shot at his former team. Gluski was sent to Cape Fear when the Knights acquired John Rayborn last season.
The Columbus game will be the first of three in a row on the road against divisional opponents for the Knights. Sandwiched around a bye, Macon visits division foes Tennessee Valley and Birmingham. A good road trip would put the Knights in the drivers’ seat for their defense of a divisional crown.
With the loss, Arkansas falls to a deceptive 2-3. The Twisters host Memphis next week
Dr. Murphy has nearly 20 years of media experience ranging from radio to the Internet. He has served as webmaster for two AF2 teams and the football team at Fort Valley State University. He is a professor at FVSU and directs www.bunniwerks.org, a non-profit rabbit rescue organization. He has been commissioned as a Kentucky Colonel. Murphy is also serving as a first party editor of af2 stories for ArenaFfan. For more information about Dr. Murphy see: www.keithmurphy.info
