Speed, Bees light up the scoreboard on the Pioneers
Michael Balakier
Monday April 15, 2002
Although the Pioneers struck first, taking an early 7-0 lead on a 26-yard pass from Tyler Tomich to Amam Abye, the Speed scored touchdowns on each of their first 9 possessions, which ultimately spelled disaster for the Pioneers.
After the Pioneers opening score, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton kicker Jimmie Kibble, who was just signed on Wednesday, booted the kickoff off one of the low rafters in the First Union Arena, setting Richmond up with excellent field position on their own 20 yard line.
It didn’t take Speed quarterback Bob Bees very long to heat up, as he completed his first pass to Kevin Harvey for 26 yards taking Richmond down to the Pioneers 3-yard line. Two plays later, Bees scored on a quarterback sneak with 10:34 left in the opening quarter to knot the score at 7-7.
After a failed field goal attempt on Wilkes-Barre/Scranton’s next possession, the Speed were faced with a 4 & 5 on the Pioneers 10 yard line, but an offside call on Wilkes-Barre/Scranton gave Richmond a first down. Bees connected with Harvey on the very next play for a 5-yard TD pass to give Richmond a 14-7 lead.
Bees continued the Richmond air attack to start off the second quarter, connecting with Nian Taylor on a 22-yard pass down to the Pioneers 14 yard line. Bees then hit Taylor 3 plays later for a 10-yard score to stretch the lead to 21-7.
Kibble added a field goal for the Pioneers with 8:06 left in the first half, but Richmond answered right back, as Bees threw a 17-yard TD pass to Jeff Townsley with 6:25 left in the second quarter to make the score 28-10.
On the Pioneers next possession, Kibble’s field goal attempt would have been dead center good, but the ball struck a set of speakers that are positioned just in front of the field goal posts.
Richmond was faced with a 4 & 3 on the Pioneers 23, but Bees converted it into a first down on a 9-yard pass to Harvey. The Speed then drove the ball all the way down to the Pioneers 1 yard line before Bees hit a wide open Al Ford in the end zone on a beautifully executed play action fake, making the score 35-10 at the half.
After another quick score by Richmond to open the third quarter, Pioneers quarterback Tyler Tomich, who was making his first start, hit Matt Jackson for a 29-yard touchdown pass to make the score 42-17 in favor of Richmond.
After adding another score to make the lead 48-17, Richmond brought in backup quarterback Jimmie Miles, who made an impression on Pioneers fans with his first play. Miles hit a wide-open Al Ford for a 37-yard TD pass down the left sideline, then connected with Kevin Harvey on a 46-yard TD pass later in the fourth quarter.
The Pioneers added two late scores, a 25-yard TD pass from Tomich to Terrence Tillman and an Elly Salamo 2-yard touchdown run, respectively, but it was too late to mount any type of comeback.
After the game, Pioneers head coach Terry Karg expressed his thoughts on the tough defeat.
“We’re making to many mental errors on the field,” Karg said. “I would be extremely frustrated if we had given up, but we didn’t. Most teams give up; this team didn’t. They played hard all night. We just have to clean up the errors.”
Karg also believes that a loss of this magnitude is not something that should be forgotten.
“I don’t forget about it,” said Karg. “I look at it and I analyze it. I compliment about the good and correct the bad.”
The Pioneers now play their next 2 games on the road as they open up divisional play against Albany on Saturday, April 20 and travel to Greensboro to avenge an opening season loss to the Prowlers on April 27.
The Pioneers then return home to face the Roanoke Steam on May 4.
Karg believes that when Wilkes-Barre/Scranton returns home in 3 weeks, that fans can expect to see a new and improved Pioneers football team.
“I think we’re going to get better every week,” Karg said. “I’d be disappointed if we didn’t. I think we’ll be a lot better across the board and in three weeks we should be better than we are now. “There are some things that we can really get better at and make strides on. And it’s hard to see right now, but there’s a lot of good football players in that locker room and I feel in time that it’s going to show.”
Making their debut
There were four Pioneers that were making their debut for the team on Friday night. Quarterback Tyler Tomich, kicker Jimmie Kibble, and center Phil Yziek each made their arena football debut.
Tomich, who backed up John Knust last week against Greensboro, completed 17 of 29 passes for 230 yards and 3 TDs.
Karg commented on deciding to play Tomich against Richmond.
“It was a chance for us to play a guy who I think is a little more sound of a passer, a little more discipline and a little more rhythmic,” said Karg.
It also appears that at the moment, the quarterback job may belong to Tomich. Karg said that he was comfortable with Tomich and that Knust could be used elsewhere in addition to his back-up role (Kunst made a nice tackle where he took out the legs on one of the Richmond players on a missed Pioneers field goal attempt and Knust was also taking some passes from Tomich during warm-ups, so who knows where he might fill it).
FB/LB LaMonte Coleman was also making he debut for the Pioneers. Coleman was forced to sit out last weeks game against Greensboro because of a contract problem.
Coleman, who said that he was playing with a lot more emotion this week because of having to sit out against Greensboro, commented on what fans should expect to see when the Pioneers return home on May 4.
“They’re still going to see a hard working Pioneer team,” Coleman said. “Hope is not over. We have a great shot to do what we have to do in our division and prepare for playoffs. We’re going to get our offense together and defense together and show teams that we belong in this league.”
Pioneers kicker Jimmie Kibble was another Pioneer who was making his debut in arena football on Friday night as well. Kibble, who was signed on Wednesday after the Pioneers released kicker Mark Kiefer, joked about his professional debut.
“It was a baptism by fire,” laughed Kibble.
After the game, Kibble was conferring with Speed kicker Geoff Groshelle. When asked what they were talking about, Kibble explained that they were just discussing strategies on kicking.
“We were joking how low this ceiling is and how in Richmond he has an advantage,” Kibble said. “Kickers don’t have much to fight about during the game.”
A kicker’s arena?
The First Union Arena is probably one of the hardest arenas in the af2 for a kicker to play in. Because of the unusually low scoreboard and the awkward position of the speakers and steel beams that cross just above the scoreboard, kickers are forced to kick line drives instead of a higher arching kick.
Kibble, who hit obstructions 3 times including one on a field goal attempt that would have been good, commented on what he would change about the First Union Arena.
“Get rid of the speakers in front of the uprights and move the scoreboard up,” Kibble said. “But, I’m not an architect and I’m sure they didn’t design this with kickers in mind.”
Michael Balakier first discovered a knack for writing during his senior year in high school while reporting for his school`s newspaper. Aside from being an Arenaball fan, Michael is an avid Syracuse University athletics follower, which poses a problem for him, as he attends the University of Pittsburgh. Michael plans on using what he has learned through his Arenafan experience to remain as impartial as he can during future Syracuse/Pitt events. Michael also serves as co-Editor of the af2 section of Arenafan Online.
