Well the last time I updated it we were getting ready to head to Birmingham to take on the Steeldogs. A team we should have beat, but we came up short. It wasn't the last time that this would happen either. .
This is what has happened since I've last updated.
We went on the road to Birmingham and lost 63-60. That was a dumb game because we knew we should have won that game, but it proves that you need to play twice as good on the road to win.
The very next week we travel to play Quad City who only had one win. It was one of them most bizarre game I have ever played in my life. It had so many twists and turns, with crazy bounces and bad calls. We even had a guy running a 2 point conversion back with no one in front for an easy score and he tripped on the turf and fumbled the ball out of bounds. I didn't have a great game but did throw a touchdown as time expired to send the game into overtime. Then we kicked the extra point for the win made it, but called a false start penalty on us. So they moved the ball back five yards then we missed the kick. In overtime, we traded possessions, and unlike outdoor football after each team has one possession the next team that scores wins, so they had an extra possession scored and lost the game. So now we are 2-4 and really got to get our butts in gear.
Next we came back home to play a good Albany team that was currently 4-2. At this point we know that we have to play a good game on offense every week in order to win. Arena is not like the NFL where you can still win a lot of games with just a good defense (Baltimore Ravens). You have to have a good offense that can produce. Our offense finally kicked it in. I played well and threw 8 touchdowns with 0 interceptions. We won that game 51-38. Record: 3-4
The next week we went on the road to Huntsville, AL to take on the Tennessee Valley Vipers. This is another team that was struggling that we had to take advantage of and get our first road win. Our offense came out on fire in the first half as I threw 5 touchdowns in the first half. Then I don't know what really happened but we only had one possession in the third quarter and they shut us out. As soon as the fourth quarter started our offense was back and scoring again. We had some defensive breakdowns that kept them in the game way longer than they should have been. They came back in the end and made it too close for comfort, but we won 62-56. I had 7 TDs and 1 int. Record: 4-4.
Then we came back home to take on a team that we've been dying to play again, the Wilkes Barre/Scranton Pioneers. They have one of the top two defenses that I have played and we did okay against them in the first half. The game was tied I think. Then for some reason we laid another egg in the third quarter. We had some injuries to some of our lineman and the Pioneers took advantage of it. I was never really comfortable all game and we ended up losing by 3 in the end. I don't want to talk about this game any more... Moving on.
We had another home game the following week. This time we were taking on the number 1 team in the league in the coaches poll, the Spokane Shock. This was a time where our team was pretty mad that we lost to the Pioneers and we were determined to win this game. Well we came out ready to play and we torched the Shock. This game was pretty fun because our offense was dominating the game. I threw for 8 touchdowns and 0 interceptions and had two rushing touchdowns. Plus, we scored our season high 79 points. This win was a big confidence booster for our team and I'm hoping that this ends up being the turning point to the season when we go on our late season run. I ended up being the offensive player of the week for the league. Score: 79-69. Record: 5-5.
We just got done playing Albany, a team that we had beaten previously at home. They are a dangerous team especially on offense. However, our offense came out ready to play. Our special teams really stepped it up, recovering two onside kicks. That helps out a lot because we end up getting 2 more possessions than Albany. I couldn't even tell you how I did it but I ended up throwing 12 touchdowns! My previous high was 8 and I knew that I could break double digits, but twelve is a lot. The sad thing is that I should've probably had another, but I over threw him. We also had a rushing touchdown.
We ended up setting a Louisville Fire record for points scoring 86. That is a great team accomplishment that the whole team can enjoy from the lineman, receivers, and special team players.
After the game, the QB for the Chicago Rush (the team that just won the Arena Bowl) Matt D'Orazio came down and congratulated me on a great game and my 12 touchdowns. He said he and his head coach Mike Hohensee were very impressed with me. I thought that was awesome that he came up to me after the game. I was on cloud 9. I also got to see my good buddy Jesse Obert from last year. Obert was the kicker for our Marshals' team. He was the kicker from the New York Dragons (AFL) this year. He had a great year and is getting ready to move back to cincy. Obert, it was great to see you again and we have to play golf again sometime.
I hope our team can keep this momentum going. Next week we play another red hot team in the Manchester Wolves, who we lost to earlier in the year. They just beat one of the better teams in the league by a lot. So we have our hands full next week. But I think we've never been more ready to play these guys than now.
I just found out that I was the offensive player of the week again for the second straight week. I also found out my 12 passing touchdowns was an AF2 and AFL record! It was previously held by Jon Nielson of the Arkansas Twisters with 11 in 2000. So I'm pretty pumped about that and I think that my performance will get the attention of some of the AFL coaches and hopefully get the attention of some NFL guys too.
Tonight we get on the sleeper bus again to make the 16 hour trip up to Manchester, New Hampshire. I'm looking forward to facing this team again because I played so bad against them the first time. This will be a big win for us vaulting us towards the playoffs with two home games coming up. However, next week there will be no games played because it is a bye week for the entire league. This game will be huge heading into the two game homestand.
I'm doing good in the stats too. I'm in first place in the league in Passing completion percentage (71.5), Passing TDs (71), Passing efficiency (127.9), and total touchdowns (76). But I don't want it to jinx me so right now these aren't a big deal.
I promise I'll update it more frequently...