Post by Canton Cougar Fan on Mar 14, 2007 12:15:09 GMT -5
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
By Jim Thomas
Courtesy: The Repository
CANTON The past week has not been a good one for the Canton Legends.
The team lost its best pass rusher, its quarterback and its kicker. Canton lost its first AIFA game of the season, too.
The Lakeland (Fla.) Thunderbolts kicked a 30-year field goal as time expired Sunday to beat the Legends, 39-36, and drop Canton to 4-1.
Legends kicker J.R. Cipra did not travel with the team because of illness, and QB Kevin Mason was injured on the opening drive. Earlier in the week, defensive end Ron Washburn left for a job in the Arena Football League.
"Kevin took a real vicious hit," Legends Head Coach Bobby Olive said. "He strained a muscle in his upper back but kept playing for three more possessions. You could see he was hurting, gritting his teeth."
Olive turned to Scott McMullen, but it took the former Ohio State quarterback a couple of series to get into the flow of the game. Canton led, 13-8, at halftime but without Cipra was forced to go for it on every fourth down.
Combined with a lack of booming kickoffs when they did score, it gave Lakeland great field position, Olive said.
"They ran a kickoff back (for 6 points) and got the ball on our 5-yard line after a kickoff," he said. "Despite all that, with 30 seconds left, it was a tie game. We were right there."
Olive said Mason is considered day-to-day. The Legends entered Sunday 12-0 with Mason starting under center, including the 2006 league title.
"We've got a bye this week. That's a good thing," Olive said. "I won't know until sometime next week (if Mason can go). But we have all the confidence in the world in Scotty."
Canton hosts the Reading Express at 7 p.m. March 23.
By Jim Thomas
Courtesy: The Repository
CANTON The past week has not been a good one for the Canton Legends.
The team lost its best pass rusher, its quarterback and its kicker. Canton lost its first AIFA game of the season, too.
The Lakeland (Fla.) Thunderbolts kicked a 30-year field goal as time expired Sunday to beat the Legends, 39-36, and drop Canton to 4-1.
Legends kicker J.R. Cipra did not travel with the team because of illness, and QB Kevin Mason was injured on the opening drive. Earlier in the week, defensive end Ron Washburn left for a job in the Arena Football League.
"Kevin took a real vicious hit," Legends Head Coach Bobby Olive said. "He strained a muscle in his upper back but kept playing for three more possessions. You could see he was hurting, gritting his teeth."
Olive turned to Scott McMullen, but it took the former Ohio State quarterback a couple of series to get into the flow of the game. Canton led, 13-8, at halftime but without Cipra was forced to go for it on every fourth down.
Combined with a lack of booming kickoffs when they did score, it gave Lakeland great field position, Olive said.
"They ran a kickoff back (for 6 points) and got the ball on our 5-yard line after a kickoff," he said. "Despite all that, with 30 seconds left, it was a tie game. We were right there."
Olive said Mason is considered day-to-day. The Legends entered Sunday 12-0 with Mason starting under center, including the 2006 league title.
"We've got a bye this week. That's a good thing," Olive said. "I won't know until sometime next week (if Mason can go). But we have all the confidence in the world in Scotty."
Canton hosts the Reading Express at 7 p.m. March 23.
