The Curse of the #1 Ranking
David Speakman
Sunday May 21, 2006
Don’t be surprised if Wilkes-Barre/Scranton is the latest team to rise to #1 in the coach’s poll after an uninspiring 38-22 victory for the Pioneers over Macon at the Macon Coliseum.
A win is a win but they didn't put them away until late after being up by 21 at the half. Knights Jamaal Garman stepped in front of a Mike Granieri pass and returned it for a touchdown to pull Macon to within nine but that was as close as they would get.
The Pioneers could/should have gone for two midway through the fourth quarter to go up by three possessions. They didn’t. No matter, the Pioneers stopped a late Knights drive at the one yard line to preserve the 16 point victory to make their 13 hour bus ride back home a little more tolerable—at least it's a sleeper coach.
A member of the Pioneers staff mumbled, "It’s something to build on"
Tulsa ended the Pioneers previous stint at #1 with a convincing 53-37 win May 13 at the Wachovia Center. About the loss, Pioneers quarterback Mike Granieri offered "We just didn’t execute as well as we should…I think we beat ourselves"
Pioneers Head Coach Rich Ingold isn’t overly concerned with rankings. When asked about obtaining the American Conference top seed I was provided with these gems. "I’m not even worried about that. We just try to take one game at a time. Last week we got upset by Tulsa. We didn’t play a complete game; we didn’t make plays down the stretch. We’re just looking to get back on track and knock ‘em down one at time and that all takes care of itself at the end of the season"
I swear they teach these guys this stuff in coach school. Speaking of coaches…
Drop a Fog Dog from Everett and he lands on his feet in Macon. A very happy and relaxed looking Coach Foggie will be taking over the Macon offense for their next game. Look for even more from WR/DB James Hickenbotham. "He’s special" beamed Foggie.
David Speakman lives in Roswell, GA. He is the owner of Speakman Collectibles and is an inline hockey player/coach/ref when he isn't chasing down an interview. Speakman Collectibles is the exclusive manufacturer of arenafootball2 helmet collectibles. Big Game, Little Helmets.
