Blog: Raeder of the Lost Blog
Stampede-Express/Grizzlies running blog
Published Saturday, May 3, 2008
(11:18) All right, lets put the finishing touches on this one.
There's a lot of frustration around this team right now. Even with Bo Barik out, this seemed like one they should have one. And the first half played it out.
Second half, well, they made a winless team look like a powerhouse.
Everyone talked about bouncing back, but after this loss it's hard to see the Grizzlies winning too many more.
With their next three games still in the Grizzly Cave, they have to hope it proves to be more hospitable than it was tonight, other wise the rest of the season could get ugly.
Thanks for playing along with us and have a great night. And check out the stories in Sunday's News-Miner! (Woo, shameless plugs!)
(9:56) The fans are clearing out.
Ward lost a fumble and this one looks over, folks.
53-37 San Angelo with 1:55 left and the Stampede-Express about to score.
I'm going to head down to the field now, so I'm out. I'll post a wrap up later. Thanks for following along.
(9:47) 53-37 San Angelo
Flanagan found the end zone for the second time tonight, this time scampering in from 4 yards out.
6:25 left to play.
(9:35) Yikes.
Vinson connected on his eighth touchdown pass, this one a 14-yarder to Williams.
All of a sudden this is a San Angelo blowout. 53-31 with 12:10 to play.
Updates might be a little slower from here on out as I try to do some "real" writing. But I'll still make sure you're getting updates.
(9:29) We have no clue where this rule came from, but we have an explanation for that mysterious point.
We're told that when Jones had his troubles in the end zone on the kickoff, eventually getting tackled in the end zone, it wasn't a safety but was something called a one-point "rouge." Whatever the heck that is.
It's sound very made-up to us at the Lost Blog, and the San Angelo radio guy has never heard of it. But it is what it is.
So it IS 46-31 San Angelo.
(9:26) The Grizzlies now have their work cut out or them.
Perine found a hole in what appeared to be a cover two zone the Grizzlies were trying to play, streaking down the left boards for a 45-yard score.
Perine got behind the shallow zone and Dawkins didn't rotate over from his spot in the middle of the field quick enough.
45-31 San Angelo with 45 seconds left in the third.
(9:16) And this last point came from?
Everyone is so confused right now, because the scoreboard has San Angelo with 39 points.
Since they missed the last extra point try, they should have 38.
We have a timeout right now and the cheerleaders are teaching kids how to Soulja Boy. This. Song. Will. Not. Die.
(9:12) We're told we've just made up a rule. Neat!
On the ensuing kickoff, Jones had a terrible time trying to hang on to the ball, fumbling it twice to himself. By the time he was in control, he was stacked up in the end zone by San Angelo.
Now, it would seem like that should be a safety, but Fairbanks got the ball at their own 5, forcing the San Angelo radio guy to exclaim that the referees just made up a rule.
(9:09) Well, Fairbanks fans take heart, at least San Angelo's kicker is back to his old ways.
Riley missed another extra point after Vinson found Perine for a 13-yard touchdown strike on a free play.
A Fairbanks defender was offside and it looked like the rest of the defense just quit on the play, setting up the easy score.
38-31 with 6:07 in the third.
(9:04) John Fourcade said that Ward had the arm and the feet to make it in this league.
I think Ward just proved him right.
With his team facing a 4th-and-inches from the San Angelo 12, Ward scampered around the end and up the left boards for a touchdown. The extra point was good and it's a one-point game.
32-31 San Angelo, 8:30 left in the third.
(8:55) That, my friends, is your traditional 14-point swing.
After Jones fumble cost Fairbanks what seemed to be a sure touchdown, the Stampede-Express answered with a touchdown of their own.
Dawkins fell down in coverage and Vinson hit a wide-open Anthony Perine for the score. Perine had time to stop, catch the ball and play a game of cribbage on that one. (He, sadly, didn't bust out the cribbage board, though.)
32-24 San Angelo with 11:23 to play in the third.
(8:53) This will go down as Solomon Jones' worst drop of the night.
On Fairbanks' ensuing possession after San Angelo's score, Ward hit Jones 8 yards from the line of scrimmage. Jones made two defenders miss and had nothing but green in front of him.
But he just dropped the ball. No one hit him, he just lost his grip and San Angelo recovered.
(8:49) San Angelo strikes quickly in the second half.
An opening kickoff and two 16-yard passes from Vinson and the Creamsicles are right back on top.
Vinson hit Williams on a short comeback near the right boards and Williams sliced between Fairbanks tacklers to scamper the final 10 yards for the score.
The extra point is good! Stop the presses!
13:05 third quarter, 25-24 San Angelo.
(8:31) Your halftime stats:
San Angelo- Vinson, 8-of-17 passing for 116 yards and 3 TDs. 2 Rushes, 4 yards.
Courington, 4 rec for 60 yds, 0 TD
Williams, 2 rec for 32 yds, 2 TD
Perine, 2 rec for 23 yds, 0 TD
Fairbanks--Ward, 12-of-19 passing for 113 yds and 2 TDs. 2 rushes, 13 yards.
Parks, 4 rec for 59 yds, 2TD. 1 rush, -6 yds.
Jones, 5 rec for 38 yds, 0 TD, 3 drops. 1 rush, 8 yds.
Flanagan 2 rushes, 11 yds, 1 TD.
(8:24) Stuvek had the leg, just no the accuracy.
With time winding down, Stuvek tried a 32-yard field goal, missing wide left.
At halftime, 24-18 Fairbanks.
We'll try to get you some halftime stats soon.
(8:22) One last chance for the Grizzlies.
In the first half, that is.
Fairbanks forced a turnover on downs, taking over at the San Angelo 23 with less than 20 seconds left.
(8:10) Grizzlies back on top.
Ward found Parks on an absolute bullet of a pass to put Fairbanks back head 24-18 with 3:10 to go in the second.
Facing a 3rd-and-10 from the 11, Ward hit Parks on what seemed to be an out (maybe a drag?) route, with a defender nipping right at Parks' heels.
(8:03)No harm, no foul.
The Grizzlies escaped unscathed from their turnover when San Angelo turned the ball over on downs.
The Fairbanks defensive line, a weak spot the past few games, has come to play today, getting pressure on Vinson to force him out of the pocket. They're the reason for his last three incompletions.
5:30 left in the second quarter, 18-17 SA.
(7:59) Fairbanks fumble.
Ward pulled away from the center too quick and never got the ball. San Angelo recovers at the Fairbanks 22.
(7:54) Well, the refs missed one on that penalty.
Ward sent an ill-advised pass deep into double coverage. The defender behind Jones pushed him from behind and into the defender in front of him, who was in position to make an interception.
They called Jones for interference, even though the only reason he contacted the guy in the first place was because the defender pushed him.
9:03 left in the second, still 18-17 San Angelo.
(7:50) Well, that was quick.
Vinson hit Williams for the second time today on the Creamsicles' first play from scrimmage.
Vinson's pass on the post was long, but Williams made a leaping catch.
The San Angelo kicker decided to miss wide right this time. At least he's keeping us on our toes in terms of direction.
18-17 San Angelo. 10:50 left in the second quarter.
(7:46) From a touchdown to a field goal.
The Grizzlies seemed to have hit paydirt once again when Ward and Donny McCumby connected on a beautiful pass near the right boards. Ward threw over two jumping San Angelo defenders to a leaping McCumby.
But a hold called it all back, and the Grizzlies had to settle for a field goal.
Brian Stuvek connected on a 29-yarder.
17-12 Fairbanks, 11:56 left second quarter.
(7:38) The good new for Fairbanks is that San Angelo's kicker has a hook and a slice.
Shawn Riley missed this point after try wide right, following Antwon Courington's 25-yard touchdown reception.
Courington had a step and a half on defender Devin Dawkins. With the pass from Vinson too high, Dawkins had enough time to deliver a crushing hit on Curington but he held on.
End of 1st, 14-12 Fairbanks.
(7:34) Jeff Flanagan could have crawled into the end zone on that one.
Flanagan scored on an 11-yard draw that saw absolutely none of the Creamsicles near him.
The Extra point is good, 14-6 Fairbanks with just under a minute to play in the first.
Though he didn't get the touchdown, Ward has looked strong so far this game, completing 6 of his 8 tries.
(7:28) A missed extra point later, the Grizzlies are up by one.
After Fairbanks turned the ball over on downs at their own 13, Vinson connected with Tavarres Williams on a corner route for the touchdown. But the point after try went wide right.
4:31 left in the first, 7-6 Grizz. 1st-and-10 Fairbanks at their own 14.
(7:23) The Grizzlies get some help from San Angelo.
With the Stampede-Express deep in Fairbanks territory, San Angelo QB Davon Vinson saw the ball slip backwards out of his hand and Augustine Nepo recovered it at the Fairbanks 8.
Fairbanks now has the ball 4th-and-4 at their own 14-yard line.
5:09 left in the first quarter. 7-0 Grizz.
(7:16) OK, I need to get this off my chest, the Stampede-Express uniforms are ugly.
Really ugly.
They're pretty much white and cream yellow, with an all-yellow helmet that has the Stampede-Express logn on it and a maroon stripe down the middle.
I may or may not call them the Creamsicles the rest of this blog.
http://www.candle-licious.com/assets/images/creamsicle2.jpg
9:14 left in the first quarter, with the Creamsicles down to the Fairbanks 4.
(7:12) The Grizzlies took two plays to get on the board first.
After Damion Ward opened the game with a five-yard strike to Solomon Jones, Ward found Anthony Parks on a flag route in front of the defender for a 20-yard score.
After the XP, 7-0 Fairbanks, 14:10 first quarter.
(7:06) The scoreboard is telling us that there's just under 2 minutes left until kickoff.
The cheerleaders were out dancing earlier, though the lights in the "Grizzly Cave" were off at, so I really don't think anyone could see them.
The Grizzlies mascot is also wandering about the field. If you want to know what he looks like, click the link below and just imagine him in a Grizzlies jersey. (One of these days I'll learn how to include images in my blog)
http://images.businessweek.com/ss/06/09/popular_toys/image/teddy_ruxpin.jpg
As far as the game goes, the Grizzlies need to win this one. Not because of the playoffs, or any noble thoughts like that, but simply because San Angelo comes in as the worst team in the league, having traveled thousands of miles to get here.
Simply put, if the Grizz can't win this one, it will be hard to find another game on the schedule that looks like a win.
After going on a bit of a roller coaster ride at the start of the season, with a bad loss then two strong games after the addition of Fourcade and Bo Bartik, it's been like the Tower of Terror since, with any momentum the Grizzlies had bottoming out.
They need this one. Bad.
Fairbanks will receive to start the game.
Adam, do you think you could put some lines --- or asterisks *** to separate the posts?
can do
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