VooDoo Fall Hard to Sharks
Saturday April 13, 2013
NEW ORLEANS (April 12, 2013) – The New Orleans VooDoo (1-2) fell victim to the Jacksonville Sharks (4-0) on Friday, April 12 in the Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena in front of 8,330 fans.
Jacksonville got on the scoreboard first in their opening possession against New Orleans. The Sharks played a very dominant first quarter with a sack against New Orleans quarterback Kurt Rocco. New Orleans failed to connect early in the game, while Jacksonville continued to control the ball.
The second quarter led to back up quarterback Zack Eskridge making his VooDoo debut with a pass completion to WR Donovan Morgan to put the VooDo on the board with a score of 35-6. The VooDoo offensive continued to struggle offensively despite changing quarterbacks.
Starting quarterback Kurt Rocco returned to the game to start off the second half. Rocco managed to connect with WR Derek Lee for a 10-yard pass completion and a VooDoo score. VooDoo defense managed to keep the Sharks to one score in the third quarter.
The VooDoo completed their drive to score quickly in the fourth quarter to help lessen the scoring gap. However, Jacksonville responded quickly with a 31-yard touchdown pass to WR Markee White to maintain their hefty lead.
Although the VooDoo struggled on both sides of the ball, WR Courtney Smith led the VooDoo receiving core with 8 catches for 150 yards and one touchdown. Also, WR Donovan Morgan recorded a game high of three touchdown passes while DB Eddie Moten led the defense with seven tackles. Kurt Rocco connected on 13 of 28 passes for 172 yards and three touchdowns. While, Zack Eskridge’s brief appearance netted him 71 yards on six completions with two touchdowns.
The VooDoo struggled early on in the game on both sides of the ball. However, the second half revealed a stronger team, but with the Sharks scoring machine in tune, it was difficult to close the scoring gap. The New Orleans VooDoo fell to the Jacksonville Sharks with a final score of 76-30.
Media Awards
Russell Athletic Offensive Player of the Game: Rendrick Taylor
Riddell Defensive Player of the Game: Terrance Smith
J. Lewis Small Playmaker of the Game: Jeff Hughley
Cutters Catch of the Game: Markee White’s 31-yard, fourth quarter touchdown in the corner of the end zone
AFL Highlight of the Game: Jeff Hughley’s 52-yard missed field goal return touchdown
Score by Quarters 1 2 3 4 Final
New Orleans VooDoo 0 12 6 12 30
Jacksonville Sharks 28 27 7 14 76
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About the New Orleans VooDoo
The New Orleans VooDoo will play in the New Orleans Arena, an SMG managed facility directly across the street from the Mercedes-Benz Superdome. Single game tickets for VooDoo regular season home games are on sale now by calling 504-875-3900. For more information call (888) 277-5526 for Vice President and Director of Operations, Jason Coffel. To shop all things VooDoo, visit www.voodoostuff.com and get your gear today.
About the AFL
Since its inception in 1987, the Arena Football League has showcased their fast-paced and exciting game to millions of fans in a myriad of markets across the country. CBS Sports Network will broadcast an AFL National Game of the Week on Saturday nights for the entire regular season and postseason through the semifinal round. The ArenaBowl XXVI Championship Game will air on the CBS Television Network on August 17, 2013.
