Phantoms Laying Down the Law on Opponents
Jim Parcels
Sunday April 28, 2002
Unlike last year, when the Phantoms struggled to a 3-6 start, the sophomore team has made an early statement to the rest of the AFL with wins over Tampa and Detroit.
“These wins are huge,” said Phantoms WR/LB Ty Law after Thursday’s 50-30 thrashing of the Detroit Fury, “We’ve been great on offense, defense and special teams and I hope it continues.”
Law, 30, has had an increased role as the Phantoms starting WR/LB by filling in the hole left by the injury to Kerry Brown.
The native of Florida has collected 8 receptions, 2 for TD’s on offense as well as making two huge interceptions in each of the first two games to salt away victories.
In the fourth quarter of the opening game in Tampa Bay, Law intercepted Storm QB John Kaleo to seal a 51-37 victory for the Phantoms in Florida.
On Thursday at the home opener, Law returned an errant Rickey Foggie pass 42 yards to the end zone to give the Phantoms a huge 36-12 lead early in the second half.
The most noticeable improvement on the Phantoms is the play of their offensive line and defense.
“Our guys up front are playing really well,” said Law, “Chad has been given lots of time and we are getting a great push up front – which has caused turnovers.”
In the two games, Salisbury and veteran back-up Pat O’Hara have yet to be sacked. Meanwhile the Phantoms actually have a rushing game – their 40 yards on the ground vs. Detroit was a single-game team record.
The Phantoms have out-gained the opposition 63-2 in yards rushing over their first two games – a direct result of a good up-front push.
Defensively, the line has been outstanding as well, recording 7 QB hurries, 2 sacks and 3 tackles for losses.
After two games the Phantoms have allowed only 67 points in two games – a league-leading average of just 33.5 points per game.
This weekend the Phantoms face another daunting road task when they head to the America West Arena on Saturday for a date with the Rattlers.
“Its going to be great going back to the Snake Pit”, said Phantoms veteran OL/DL Kelvin Ingram, a former Rattler who caught a TD-pass vs. the Fury.
Tales from the Crypt:
The line tandem of G/DE Steve Konopka and TE/DE Jason Walters has been outstanding over the first two games. Both have been strong on both sides of the ball… C/NT Doug Lytle missed his first football game of any kind on Thursday vs. Detroit when he sat out due to a concussion suffered late in the Tampa game. “I’ve never missed a game in high school or college and it was tough to watch,” said the native of Lusk, WY (Pop. 1,500)… A surprise deletion from the Phantoms lineup vs. Detroit was newly acquired DS Tommy Henry. There was no indication of an injury, however, it was a surprising omission from the roster… FB/LB Jermaine Younger played a strong game on both sides of the ball on Thursday. The veteran back had 10 yards on 4 carries and a TD while also recording 3 QB hurries, 2 tackles and a pass defended vs. the Fury… QB Pat O’Hara mopped up on the game’s final two drives for the Phantoms, throwing just 1 pass for 13 yards… Rookie FB/LB Phil Glover may be the quickest back in the league. The former Tennessee Titan prospect rushed for 17 yards on just two carries… OL/DL Connell Spain indicates he’ll be ready for the game in Arizona this weekend… WR/LB Kerry Brown is also expected to play… DS Delphine Lee is maybe the Phantoms most improved player over last year… K Matt George has been struggling a bit to start the season… Is it just me or is DS/KR Anthony Derricks struggling on kick returns? The third-year back looks tentative on his returns since hurting his knee late last year. He hasn’t had a 100-yard return game since June 30th of last year vs. Carolina – he had 6 return TD’s in his rookie season in ‘2000 with New England… The surprising receiving leader for the Phantoms after two games? No, its not OS Damien Harrell – its 7-year veteran WR/DB Charlie Davidson who has 12 receptions and 3 majors… Despite being smothered by media coverage of the Leafs and Raptors playoff runs, the Phantoms still surprised many with another good crowd of 7,000 plus… Defensive Coordinator Rick Frazier may be the most competitive coach in the league – taking great pride in the game of shutting down Fury OS Robert Gordon.
Jim Parcels was a writer for ArenaFan Online during the 2002 season.
