Post by Banana Cat on Jun 4, 2011 17:37:34 GMT -5
Riggs said on an interview that one sack has been surrendered, but it wasn't O-Line's fault...still counts dude.
www.argusleader.com/article/20110604/SPORTS0305/106040325/These-guys-won-t-let-opposing-defenses-cross-line?odyssey=mod|newswell|img|Sports|p
www.argusleader.com/article/20110604/SPORTS0305/106040325/These-guys-won-t-let-opposing-defenses-cross-line?odyssey=mod|newswell|img|Sports|p
These guys won't let opposing defenses cross the line
Storm offensive line hasn't allowed a sack in entire 12-game season
Jun. 3, 2011
www.siouxfallsbusinessjournal.com / Written by Mick Garry
In a season where the Storm scores points seemingly at will, the team's most impressive offensive stat comes from guys who don't pass the ball, catch it or run with it.
Amazingly, the Sioux Falls offensive line has not given up a single sack during a 12-0 season in Indoor Football League action.
Quarterback Chris Dixon, a teammate of all three of his starting linemen last season with the Billings Outlaws, has technically been tackled behind the line once this year, but it was not the fault of the big men.
Getting through one game without giving up a sack is cause for celebration for most football teams, regardless of level. For the Storm, who visit Chicago tonight, what would be a gaudy 60-minute feat for most teams has become standard operating procedure.
"A lot of it has to do with pride," says 6-foot-7, 330-pound Myniya Smith, a former Southern University player who came to Sioux Falls, along with fellow linemen Charlie Sanders (6-1, 325) and Gerald Davis (6-4, 320), from the now-defunct Billings franchise.
"I've never heard of an offensive line not giving up a sack this far into the season - I was on a college team that gave up 19 sacks in three games," adds Smith, 29, nicknamed "Granddaddy" by his younger colleagues. "We've taken a lot of pride in what we've done - Charlie, Gerald and Big Daddy (Anthony Thomas) feel the same way."
All but Thomas were on the Billings team that defeated the Storm for the IFL title last year, so Sioux Falls coach Kurtiss Riggs knew what he was getting.
Though it wasn't precisely a package deal - the four players signed with the Storm separately - the offensive line is definitely looking like a package now. That includes Thomas, a veteran holdover from the Storm who backs up starters on both the offensive and defensive lines.
"It's something special to see these guys work," says Thomas, a former three-year starter at the University of Arizona who is also an assistant coach at Briar Cliff.
"(Dixon) has been in the league a while and we knew he could really move around, using his legs as much as his arm if he wanted to. This year he spends a lot of time in the pocket with all the time in the world. It shows that this offensive line is for real."
Storm offensive line hasn't allowed a sack in entire 12-game season
Jun. 3, 2011
www.siouxfallsbusinessjournal.com / Written by Mick Garry
In a season where the Storm scores points seemingly at will, the team's most impressive offensive stat comes from guys who don't pass the ball, catch it or run with it.
Amazingly, the Sioux Falls offensive line has not given up a single sack during a 12-0 season in Indoor Football League action.
Quarterback Chris Dixon, a teammate of all three of his starting linemen last season with the Billings Outlaws, has technically been tackled behind the line once this year, but it was not the fault of the big men.
Getting through one game without giving up a sack is cause for celebration for most football teams, regardless of level. For the Storm, who visit Chicago tonight, what would be a gaudy 60-minute feat for most teams has become standard operating procedure.
"A lot of it has to do with pride," says 6-foot-7, 330-pound Myniya Smith, a former Southern University player who came to Sioux Falls, along with fellow linemen Charlie Sanders (6-1, 325) and Gerald Davis (6-4, 320), from the now-defunct Billings franchise.
"I've never heard of an offensive line not giving up a sack this far into the season - I was on a college team that gave up 19 sacks in three games," adds Smith, 29, nicknamed "Granddaddy" by his younger colleagues. "We've taken a lot of pride in what we've done - Charlie, Gerald and Big Daddy (Anthony Thomas) feel the same way."
All but Thomas were on the Billings team that defeated the Storm for the IFL title last year, so Sioux Falls coach Kurtiss Riggs knew what he was getting.
Though it wasn't precisely a package deal - the four players signed with the Storm separately - the offensive line is definitely looking like a package now. That includes Thomas, a veteran holdover from the Storm who backs up starters on both the offensive and defensive lines.
"It's something special to see these guys work," says Thomas, a former three-year starter at the University of Arizona who is also an assistant coach at Briar Cliff.
"(Dixon) has been in the league a while and we knew he could really move around, using his legs as much as his arm if he wanted to. This year he spends a lot of time in the pocket with all the time in the world. It shows that this offensive line is for real."