Post by Banana Cat on Mar 28, 2011 4:00:10 GMT -5
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Grizzlies beat Venom on the road
by Renee Thony / Fairbanks Daily News Miner
Mar 27, 2011
FAIRBANKS—The Fairbanks Grizzlies picked up their second win in as many weeks and did so in entertaining fashion. The Grizzlies, now 2-3 in the Indoor Football League, beat the Wenatchee Valley Venom, 50-43, Saturday night in Washington.
“This was a big win for us,” Grizzlies head coach Robert Fuller said after the game. “Playing the top team in our division, on the road, in front of a rowdy crowd, that’s a great win for our guys and our fans back home.”
The first drive set the tone for the Pacific Division game as John Halman scored on a pass from quarterback Ryan Ratekin. Paired with Rett Thibodeaux’s extra point, the Grizzlies took a 7-0 lead. By the end of the first quarter, after Eric Taylor put another six points on the board, the Grizz were ahead 13-0.
Fairbanks opened the second quarter with a seven-play drive, but fumbled on the Venom’s 4-yard line. Wenatchee recovered, getting their first drive of the second quarter five minutes in.
The first score of the second quarter, adding to the entertaining tempo of the game, came when Ratekin was sacked in the Fairbanks end zone on a delayed safety blitz from Joshua Anderson.
Fairbanks’ lead was trimmed to 11 (13-2) with 6 minutes, 16 seconds left to play in the first half. The sack was a sort of momentum shift as the Venom scored next, with a little under 2 minutes remaining, on a Devin Hollins touchdown pass.
Phillip Goodman ran a crossing route to the end zone, leaving Fairbanks’ James Romain burnt and narrowing the Venom’s deficit to 13-8 as teams headed into the break.
The Grizzlies had thrown the ball the majority of the first half, but changed things up and put the ball on the ground in the second.
“Coming in, we wanted to run the football. The teams that beat them (Wenatchee) prior rushed the ball really well,” Fuller said, “and we knew that with their aggressive man defense, we would have to run the football in order to win the game.”
In addition to a change in the schematics, the Grizzlies also changed their attitude in the second half, something Fuller said benefited his team most.
“It may sound funny, but one of the biggest differences was that we started to tighten up in the first half,” he said, “and at halftime, we talked about how we play our best football when we’re loose and having fun. We decided that no matter what happened in the second half, we were determined to fly around, have fun and execute.”
Considering there were only three touchdowns scored in the entire first half, the three touchdown scored in the first three drives of the second half continued to set the tone for an intense game.
Halman scored on a 17-yard, play-action pass from Ratekin, putting the Grizzlies ahead 20-8.
Wenatchee answered back on the kickoff, as Vincent Joseph ran along the boards, untouched to the end zone. The Venom were within five, 20-15.
Taylor, who had a spectacular night, according to Fuller, threw a halfback pass to Halman four minutes later, putting the Grizzlies’ last six points of the quarter on the board, edging their lead to 26-15.
Goodman brought Wenatchee within five before the start of the fourth quarter, yanking down a pass between two Grizzlies defensive backs.
The defensive backs that got burned in the third quarter were the difference makers in the fourth for Fairbanks.
“Up front, we got good pressure on their QB and kept the passing lanes really tight,” Fuller said, “which made our D-backs play a phenomenal football game.”
Taylor put up three touchdowns in the fourth quarter — one with just over 10 minutes left, to put the Grizzlies ahead 36-29; one kickoff return with 8:21 to play; and lastly, at 4:18, giving the Grizzlies their final score and putting them ahead 50-35.
“Eric has really emerged as a real spark plug for our offense,” Fuller said. “He’s a very savvy veteran. He’s emerging as a quiet leader for us, and when we put the ball in his hands, great things happen.”
Timothy Simmons narrowed the gap near the end of the game, scoring on Hollins’ fourth pass of the second half and helping his team convert on the two-point attempt.
With just under 3 minutes to play, the Venom were inching closer, 50-43.
“Against that offense, we knew we had to get points and eat up as much of the clock as we could,” Fuller said of where his head was at in the final minutes of the game. “We wanted to keep the ball on the ground and just grind it out, try to use up as much clock as we could to keep it away from their offense.”
Ratekin took to his knee to seal the Venom’s fate.
“There’s no question we’re still growing as a football team and still have a lot of improving yet to do, but we’re definitely going in the right direction,” Fuller said, “and that’s really a tribute to our guys.”
In addition to giving credit to his football team, Fuller also patted the backs of the Fairbanks faithful.
“We’re playing for Grizz Nation, the city of Fairbanks and everybody that’s fighting to keep the organization alive,” he said.
The Grizzlies play in Kent, Wash., against the Predators at 6 p.m. Friday.
by Renee Thony / Fairbanks Daily News Miner
Mar 27, 2011
FAIRBANKS—The Fairbanks Grizzlies picked up their second win in as many weeks and did so in entertaining fashion. The Grizzlies, now 2-3 in the Indoor Football League, beat the Wenatchee Valley Venom, 50-43, Saturday night in Washington.
“This was a big win for us,” Grizzlies head coach Robert Fuller said after the game. “Playing the top team in our division, on the road, in front of a rowdy crowd, that’s a great win for our guys and our fans back home.”
The first drive set the tone for the Pacific Division game as John Halman scored on a pass from quarterback Ryan Ratekin. Paired with Rett Thibodeaux’s extra point, the Grizzlies took a 7-0 lead. By the end of the first quarter, after Eric Taylor put another six points on the board, the Grizz were ahead 13-0.
Fairbanks opened the second quarter with a seven-play drive, but fumbled on the Venom’s 4-yard line. Wenatchee recovered, getting their first drive of the second quarter five minutes in.
The first score of the second quarter, adding to the entertaining tempo of the game, came when Ratekin was sacked in the Fairbanks end zone on a delayed safety blitz from Joshua Anderson.
Fairbanks’ lead was trimmed to 11 (13-2) with 6 minutes, 16 seconds left to play in the first half. The sack was a sort of momentum shift as the Venom scored next, with a little under 2 minutes remaining, on a Devin Hollins touchdown pass.
Phillip Goodman ran a crossing route to the end zone, leaving Fairbanks’ James Romain burnt and narrowing the Venom’s deficit to 13-8 as teams headed into the break.
The Grizzlies had thrown the ball the majority of the first half, but changed things up and put the ball on the ground in the second.
“Coming in, we wanted to run the football. The teams that beat them (Wenatchee) prior rushed the ball really well,” Fuller said, “and we knew that with their aggressive man defense, we would have to run the football in order to win the game.”
In addition to a change in the schematics, the Grizzlies also changed their attitude in the second half, something Fuller said benefited his team most.
“It may sound funny, but one of the biggest differences was that we started to tighten up in the first half,” he said, “and at halftime, we talked about how we play our best football when we’re loose and having fun. We decided that no matter what happened in the second half, we were determined to fly around, have fun and execute.”
Considering there were only three touchdowns scored in the entire first half, the three touchdown scored in the first three drives of the second half continued to set the tone for an intense game.
Halman scored on a 17-yard, play-action pass from Ratekin, putting the Grizzlies ahead 20-8.
Wenatchee answered back on the kickoff, as Vincent Joseph ran along the boards, untouched to the end zone. The Venom were within five, 20-15.
Taylor, who had a spectacular night, according to Fuller, threw a halfback pass to Halman four minutes later, putting the Grizzlies’ last six points of the quarter on the board, edging their lead to 26-15.
Goodman brought Wenatchee within five before the start of the fourth quarter, yanking down a pass between two Grizzlies defensive backs.
The defensive backs that got burned in the third quarter were the difference makers in the fourth for Fairbanks.
“Up front, we got good pressure on their QB and kept the passing lanes really tight,” Fuller said, “which made our D-backs play a phenomenal football game.”
Taylor put up three touchdowns in the fourth quarter — one with just over 10 minutes left, to put the Grizzlies ahead 36-29; one kickoff return with 8:21 to play; and lastly, at 4:18, giving the Grizzlies their final score and putting them ahead 50-35.
“Eric has really emerged as a real spark plug for our offense,” Fuller said. “He’s a very savvy veteran. He’s emerging as a quiet leader for us, and when we put the ball in his hands, great things happen.”
Timothy Simmons narrowed the gap near the end of the game, scoring on Hollins’ fourth pass of the second half and helping his team convert on the two-point attempt.
With just under 3 minutes to play, the Venom were inching closer, 50-43.
“Against that offense, we knew we had to get points and eat up as much of the clock as we could,” Fuller said of where his head was at in the final minutes of the game. “We wanted to keep the ball on the ground and just grind it out, try to use up as much clock as we could to keep it away from their offense.”
Ratekin took to his knee to seal the Venom’s fate.
“There’s no question we’re still growing as a football team and still have a lot of improving yet to do, but we’re definitely going in the right direction,” Fuller said, “and that’s really a tribute to our guys.”
In addition to giving credit to his football team, Fuller also patted the backs of the Fairbanks faithful.
“We’re playing for Grizz Nation, the city of Fairbanks and everybody that’s fighting to keep the organization alive,” he said.
The Grizzlies play in Kent, Wash., against the Predators at 6 p.m. Friday.