This week we face a grudge match against the Denver Dynamite, our opponent in last year's Western Conference championship. They will, no doubt, be looking to avenge their 35-25 loss and extend their 5-3 advantage in this rivalry. They're well-positioned to do so, as they're fairly healthy and have Marcus Garibaldi under center. That man can completely carry a team when needed. I'm a fan of his, but as an opponent I hate him. I suppose that's a sign of respect.
We're still without Drew Holliday, but that's our only injury worth noting heading into this game. His loss puts us at a disadvantage to be sure, but his backup Hayakawa has played well so far. We'll need him to keep that up if we're to stand a chance in this one.
Code:
Box Score: Denver at Tucson
Tucson, AZ.
Week 3, 2012
Attendance: 66,000 (69,800).
Weather: 81 degrees, fair.
1Q: 09:10 DEN - Gary Hutchins 39 field goal.
2Q: 12:30 TUC - Demetrius Higginbotham 8 pass from Kent Goodwin.
2Q: 12:30 TUC - Hugo Eckard extra point.
2Q: 06:23 DEN - Gary Hutchins 27 field goal.
4Q: 09:02 TUC - Demetrius Higginbotham 5 pass from Kent Goodwin.
4Q: 09:02 TUC - Hugo Eckard extra point.
Game MVP: TUC 19 Kent Goodwin
Denver 3 3 0 0 - 6
Tucson 0 7 0 7 - 14
Team Statistics DEN TUC
First Downs 14 14
Total Rushes 25 27
Rushing Yards 77 132
Yards Per Carry 3.0 4.8
Pass Attempts 42 24
Completions 23 10
Passing Yards 208 158
Yards Per Attempt 4.9 6.5
Sacked 3 3
Yards Lost 26 26
Interceptions 0 0
Fumbles/Lost 2/1 0/0
Total Plays 70 54
Total Yards 259 264
Yards Per Play 3.7 4.8
3rd Down Plays 9/20 2/12
Avg. YTG on 3rd 6.8 11.2
4th Down Plays 0/1 0/0
Penalties 3 3
Penalty Yards 25 25
Avg. Drive Start OWN 35 OWN 20
Time Of Possession 33:31 26:29
Tucson Individual Statistics
Rushing Att Yards Avg Long TD
33 Hayakawa 21 111 5.2 41 0
25 Edwards 4 16 4.0 5 0
19 Goodwin 2 5 2.5 7 0
Passing Att Comp Yards Yd/Att Long TD Int Sckd
19 Goodwin 24 10 158 6.5 35 2 0 3
Receiving Catch Yards Avg YAC Long TD
80 Higginbotham 6 81 13.5 12 23 2
81 Hodges 2 27 13.5 4 19 0
82 Torres 1 15 15.0 4 15 0
87 Emerson 1 35 35.0 0 35 0
Punt Returns Att Yards Avg TD
87 Emerson 3 10 3.3 0
Kick Returns Att Yards Avg TD
35 Giles 2 50 25.0 0
81 Hodges 1 14 14.0 0
Punting Punts Yards Avg Long In20
15 Winters 8 340 42.5 52 3
Kicking FG FGA Long PAT Att
12 Eckard 0 1 0 2 2
Defense Tackle Assist Sack Int IntYds IntTD
31 Enoch 11 0 0.0 0 0 0
44 Visser 6 2 0.0 0 0 0
90 Jarrard 4 4 0.0 0 0 0
72 Bernard 4 1 0.0 0 0 0
58 Watford 4 0 0.0 0 0 0
97 Horn 3 0 0.5 0 0 0
70 Neubauer 3 1 0.0 0 0 0
95 Stoltzfus 2 2 1.5 0 0 0
52 Wash 2 0 1.0 0 0 0
37 Rosenberry 2 2 0.0 0 0 0
55 Trujillo 2 2 0.0 0 0 0
34 McGarrity 2 1 0.0 0 0 0
27 Callis 2 0 0.0 0 0 0
26 Jeffries 2 0 0.0 0 0 0
54 Reeves 2 0 0.0 0 0 0
75 Grier 1 4 0.0 0 0 0
35 Giles 1 1 0.0 0 0 0
93 King 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
43 Jenkins 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
68 Kudrow 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
77 Van Brocklin 1 0 0.0 0 0 0
96 Muranaka 0 1 0.0 0 0 0
Miscellaneous Fumb FForc Recov MiscTD KeyRBlk SckAlwd
68 Kudrow 0 0 0 0 0 2
60 Poplawski 0 0 0 0 3 0
62 Tollefson 0 0 0 0 1 1
90 Jarrard 0 1 1 0 0 0
64 Connell 0 0 0 0 2 0
71 Franck 0 0 0 0 1 0
97 Horn 0 1 0 0 0 0
82 Torres 0 0 0 0 1 0
54 Reeves 0 0 0 0 1 0
Hoo boy - another ugly game, but we were able to snag the win. I'm not sure either team really deserved to win this game, as it was a generally ugly offensive performance/beautiful defensive struggle (depending on your point of view). We caught a huge break (so to speak) when Marcus Garibaldi suffered a separated shoulder in the 1st half. His replacement had minimal success, and that injury was probably a major reason why we were able to win. Of course, another big reason for this win was Monty Boyd's generosity, as he fumbled away the ball at our 5 yard line. Thanks, Monty.
Yet another major reason was Hayakawa, who had his 2nd 100-yd game in 3 tries. He now has carried the ball 58 times for 303 yds and 2 TDs since taking over for Holliday. Not too shabby. Goodwin also chipped in at times, but was generally ineffective against a tough Denver pass defense.
We suffered two injuries of note: G Kelvin Connell strained an adductor muscle and is out for 5 weeks, and S Mitchel Enoch strained a tricep muscle and is Questionable for next week. We've finally got some O-line depth, so we should be OK without Connell. Enoch - I'm not sure if I'll play him or not next week.
Speaking of next week: we play at Santa Cruz.