"Dragon Breath" A UAB Dynasty (NCAA12)

[Equinox831]

Quote: Originally Posted by gorillapittpray

But like I said earlier Florida is terrible in my dynasty they're 1-4 with three home losses....

It's weird that you said that. It seems like if a Top 25 team losses in the first week of there season they do terrible. I beat Oregon with LSU in my dynasty and Oregon is 0-4 at this point..

[gorillapittpray]

BLAZER WEEKLY

BRAGGING RIGHTS!

UAB Leaves Troy celebrating for another year of Bragging rights
as they defeated the Trojans 45-7. Running back D. Pryor
rushed for a season high 130 yards and A. Sharpe had
four total touchdowns blowing out Troy. Mr. Williams had
another solid defensive game at free safety for the Blazer
and the defense recorded three turnovers in the
impressive win.

"THEY SAID IT"
"We made it our mission to shut down their offense. Not because it was a rivalry game but because we felt as if we were exposed by ECU last week.
Linebacker #43 Tom Slaughter

"I was in the zone today. Havent felt this good since the Florida game. It did help to have a dominate run game however."
QB #10 Andre Sharpe

"We physically dominated them upfront today. I'm glad coach let us pound them. I mean we rushed for over 200 yards on those guys."
LG #54 Chase Chavis

"After the pre game scuffle, I knew it was time for business, all the talking was done and we walked all over them"
SS #36 Eugene Jackson

RECRUITING NEWS!
Its a big recruiting weekend for the Blazers as they welcome five recruits for the Mississippi State game. Out of the five recruits three are also considering Mississippi State including four Star Middle Linebacker Keron Jackson. The star from Piedmont Alabama has Mississippi State #1 and UAB #2 has his top choices. Jackson stated earlier this week that this game as well as his treatment on the visit will greatly affect who he chooses.

Other Attendees:
#19 *** FS Scott Austin (6'3 209- Houston Mississippi)
#38 *** OLB Jay Jackson (6'5 213- Foley Alabama)
#31 *** QB Brandon Gould (6'2 177 Hamilton Alabama)
#18 **** MLB Patrick McFadden (6'2 228 Richland, Mississippi)

Head coach Travis Rhatigan had his weekly press conference with Blazer Weekly on Wednesday and reflected back on last Saturday's game against Troy as well as looked ahead to the huge game at home vs Mississippi State (2-3).

Opening comments:
"As I do every week before moving to our next opponent I wanted to recognize some of the players that really had incredible games in last weeks win. Offensively, Matthew Scott had a huge game and is starting to show why we have him in our two back system. Andre Sharpe, anytime you throw the ball like that against a fast defense like Troy you're really playing well. Danny Pryor is showing us the kid we saw during spring ball with his all-purpose yards over 100. I tell yeah, another guy, Ian Wilson, quietly makes plays for us. He had like five catches on third downs and all were against a great corner for Troy. He just had some huge plays when we really needed them and has a TD reception in every game this year.

"Defensively, we came up with three turnovers. The interception on the first drive was a huge play in the game. Eugene Jackson is getting real comfortable at that strong safety position and is coming up real well stopping the run. He's becoming really special. Stephens really had a great night covering along with several other guys. Then it was positive to see Nate Williams help calm the guys after that mid field scuffle then come in the game and grab 7 tackles and a pick, a true leader that kid.


On this week of practice:

"So far we have had a good few days of practice. I tell them to focus and not to let these wins get in the way of our goals. Miss St. is a very good football team but so are we. Our players will practice tomorrow we'll have a walk through and its game.



On Mississippi State's defense:
"They're a lot like our defense, they try to get after the quarterback and get sacks. They dont sit back they like to come right at you and force you to make a mistake. Cornerback #13 Kevin Brown is a guy we hae to be careful with, he'll bait you into some throws that you shouldnt make. He even leads the team in sacks so he's very athletic. Their backers are big and can run. Its important to get a body on them if we expect to generate any kind of run game.


On what they need to do to stop Miss St. Run game:
"Just like on defense they remind me of us on offense, very somple play at quarterback and a two headed monster at running back. #28 Doug Ward and #27 Terrell Ross bring that thunder and lightning affect to the game top it off with the QB Will Thomas and these guys are real tough to stop They do a great job of getting those guys the ball in space. We're gonna need DJ Williams to have a huge game controlling the A and B gaps this week. We need guys like McCrary and Slaughter to fly around and we need our secondary to keep their eyes open for the playaction.

BIG GAME WEEK!

Matchup Preview | October 8, 2011
	@
Mississippi State Bulldogs (2-3, 1-2 Away)		UAB Blazers (4-0, 1-0 Home)
Injury Report Game Notes Big Big game for UAB to get on the national scene. If they can win they would have beaten two SEC schools in the same season for the first time in school history. They'll need their No. 1 ranked rush defense this week as they are facing a three headed monster from Miss St. Lead by tailbacks D. Ward (429 1 td) and T. Ross (263 1 td) not mention quarterback W. Thomas (423 6td). Thomas also has over 800 yards passing with 8 touchdowns and two interception a true dual threat. Dont over look UAB's offensive attack. With all this talk about how good of a defense thay have led by FS N. Williams (4 int's) the offense has a great bunch of playmakers. They'll need there rush attack to be successful from Scott and Pryor to open up the pass for A. Sharpe. Sharpe has been efficient to this point (11td 3int) and often times he looks for leading receiver I. Wilson (314 6td) who has a receiving touchdown in every game this season. CB K. Brown will have the duties of handling Wilson. PREDICTION: Miss St run attack may prove to be to much even if the Blazers have the #1 ranked rush defense. Mississippi State 28 UAB 17

[gorillapittpray]

GUNS A' BLAZING!

BLAZERS FIGHT BACK FOR HISTORICAL HOME WIN

~AP~ BIRMINGHAM, AL--- UAB was down by as much as 17 before storming back to a 34-30 win. Despite throwing four interceptions Andre Sharpe led a resilient fourth quarter comeback. Will Thomas got the Bulldogs down to the four yard line with 18 seconds left but UAB got the goal line stand and pulled off the win.

~RECAP~

A crowd of 32,000 welcomed UAB back for home coming as they squared off with SEC West foe Mississippi State. A crowd that doubled since their first home game was rowdy as can be before festivities kicked off. Joining the crowd was 6 of the regions hottest recruits to see action in Birmingham. UAB won the toss and elected to kick. Back up running back Terrell Ross made the Blazers pay as he returned the games opening kickoff 97 yards for the score. Rose started right and bursted down the middle after a cutback showing off world class speed for the score. A smattering of boo's joined his celebration as he jogged off the field in excitement. The rest of the first quarter was a stalemate as both teams play a chest match with equal field goals to end the quarter. 10-3 Miss State.

(T. ROSS RETURNS THE OPENING KICKOFF 97 YARDS, FOR THE SCORE)

The second quarter started bad for the Blazers, after a huge thirty yard catch by R. Rawls got the Blazers in the red zone the very next pass was intercepted by D. Moore who ended the drive and starting the Doug Ward show. Ward would cap that drive off with a 19 yard touchdown run. Up 17-3 a fired up Mississippi State defense forced a quick three and out by the Blazers and tacked on three more points for themselves putting the score 20-3 in the second quarter. Sharpe would get the Blazers on the board with a 52 yard bomb to leading receiver Ian Wilson. Wilson ran a out and up getting wide open down the sideline. With momentum forming the Blazers were down 20-10. Thats when D. Ward went back to work. Word took a toss to the left side of the field before breaking both McCrary and Slaughters tackles then speeding down the sideline for a 65 yard touchdown run giving the Bulldogs a 27-10 lead with under two minutes left in the quarter. An excited Mississippi state defense took the field eager to forget that last touchdown pass they had given up. After a quick first down run by tailback D. Pryor the Bulldogs held the Blazer to a three and out, the next play may have been the momentum turning point of the game when Alston the punter for UAB kicked a High hanging punt allowing the coverage to get down the field. Gunner #21 Baker unleashed a viscous hit on returner T. Payne jarring the ball loose as the Blazers recovered. Two plays later Sharpe connected with Moses for a 34 yard score. On the Play Moses jumped over the defender before reaching the end zone and putting the Blazers down 10 at the half 27-17.

(after not getting a carry in the opening quarter Ward got 84 yards and two touchdowns on just two carries in the second quarter)


(I. WILSON GAVE THE BLAZERS ON THE BOARD WITH THIS TOUCHDOWN GRAB) (BAKER'S HARD HIT GAVE BLAZERS MOMENTUM HEADING INTO THE HALF)


With momentum heading into the half UAB received the second half kickoff and drove the distance of the field getting great looking runs from D. Pryor as he juke and broke tackles during four carries gaining 45 yards on the drive. The Blazers reached the eight yard line facing a third and goal. Sharpe made another mistake tho as he tried to fit the ball into a small gap for Ross and Safety B. Hamilton jumped the pass stalling the drive. Mississippi State would grab a field goal after the interception to go up 30-17. Just when you thing it was bad things got worse for UAB as Sharpe threw his fourth interception of the game trying to hit Moses who seemed to have a step on his defender but a vary bad under thrown pass was picked by #4 Townsend stalling UAB once again and ending the third quarter with Miss St up 30-17.

(INTERCEPTIONS LIKE THESE HALTED DRIVES IN THE THIRD QUARTER FOR THE BLAZERS)

Heading into the fourth quarter the game seemed all but over as Miss St was on the move to put the game out of reach. Quarterback Will Thomas turned up a option and took off to the races if he wasn't gonna score he was gonna at least get to the red zone. Backside corner Stephens made the defensive play of the game he hit Thomas seemingly just trying to push him out of bounds, but Thomas fumbled the ball and Free Safety Nick Williams recovered for the Blazers and putting life back into the crowd. A rejuvenated Sharpe led a three play drive resulting in 26 yard touchdown pass by receiver Ross. The pass looked well on its way to being intercepted but Ross cut on the jets and snagged it out of a waiting Kevin Brown's grasp and ran in for the score to put the Blazers down six 30-24.

(#2 STEPHENS NO QUIT ATTITUDE RAN DOWN THOMAS AND FORCED THIS FUMBLE) (AFTER THE TURNOVER SHARPE WAS ABLE TO HIT ROSS TO BRING THE BLAZERS WITHING SIX)

Despite the score the Blazers defense was having a phenomenal second half. They held Ward in check, in fact after giving up 84 yards on two carries to Ward they held him to 9 carries for only 13 yards. After three stops that saw them sack Thomas as well as stop Ward the Blazers got the ball back and ended the next drive with a field goal getting the score within reach 30-27. This was the closes the game had been since it was 10-3 in the first quarter. Now the crowd was alive and the stadium was jumping. RE J. Bowser picked the right time to step up has he sacked Thomas on back to back play forcing Miss St into a third and long situation with under three minutes to go in the game. On third down Bowser again came with pressure and Thomas threw the ball right to the hands of dime back N. Davis who grabbed the pick and gave the Blazers a chance as he picked it off and got stopped on the Blazer 35 yard line. A ruckous crowd let it be known of their happiness a timeout by head coach Travis Rhatigan gave the thunderous crowd a few more minutes to celebrate Davis' interception. For the first three quarters Sharpe struggled but in the fourth he was shinning. He brought the Blazers back against Florida to start the season, He kept them from losing against a furious ECU comeback and now he had a chance to bring salvage his game as well as the Blazers perfect season all he need was a field goal but a touchdown could give them the win. A poised Sharpe stood in the pocket and hit Wilson on a crosser for a 8 yard gain, a no huddle offense saw him hit Ross for a 20 yard game on a deep dig route. With a first down at 47 yard line in Bulldog territory and the clock running now under two minutes. Sharpe would find Moses for 12 yard gain on a quick slant, trying to catch Miss St off guard he called a draw from the no huddle that saw Pryor only get three yards. A quick timeout Saw the Blazers facing a first down with 1:40 remaining.
Sharpe came out after the time out and took his shot for the end zone, S. Brown was running down the seam with a step on Townsend, Sharpe fired it and brought caught it getting pulled down in the end zone and giving the Blazers a 34-30 lead. Brown was smothered as his teammates mobbed him in the end zone and on the sideline. The Blazers grabbed their first lead and was 1:35 seconds away from the come from behind win.

(ANDRE SHARPE HAD A TREMENDOUS 4TH QTR AS HE LED THE BLAZERS TO 17 4TH QTR POINTS)

Down 34-30 the bulldogs needed a touchdown to win, a field goal wasn't going to do it. Alston used a squib kick so return man Terrell Ross wouldn't have a chance to create lightning but it backfired as the upback got the ball to midfield. With 1:28 remaining the bulldogs were at midfield and three plays later they were at the four yard line. A first down in-completion ran the clock down to 48 seconds. A wide toss to Ward saw him get swarmed by this Blazer defense, he managed to get back to the line of scrimmage. The Bulldogs had to use their final time out. On third down the Bowser grabbed his third sack of the game thanks to the great coverage by the Blazer secondary, Thomas had all day but no one to throw to, with a spy on him he couldn't take off and Bowser beat a double team and reach him. The sack moved the Bulldogs back to the 14 yard line and on fourth down Thomas threw a in completion as the Blazers completed the comeback win.

(#79 GRABS HIS THIRD SACK OF THE GAME THIS TIME ON THIRD DOWN LATE IN THE FOURTH)

PLAYS OFF THE GAME

SHARPE FINDS BROWN DOWN THE MIDDLE OF THE FIELD FOR THE LEAD


BOWSER BEATS THE DOUBLE TEAM TO GET HIS THIRD SACK OF THE DAY, THIS ONE WITH UNDER A MINUTE TO GO.


TOP PLAYERS
UAB
QB A. Sharpe 14-27 372 yards 4 touchdowns 4 interceptions
WR M. Ross 4 rec 155 yards 1 touchdown
DE L. Bowser 4 tackles 3 sacks

MISS ST
D. Ward 11 car 97 yards two touchdowns
FS B. Hamilton 9 tackles 1 int
KR T. Ross 3 ret 152 yards 50.6 avg 1 touchdown

Oct 8, 2011 - MSU at UAB
TEAM	1ST	2ND	3RD	4TH	SCORE
Miss St (2-4)	10	17	3	0	30
UAB (5-0)	3	14	0	17	34

Team Stats Comparison
MSU		UAB
288	Total Offense	435
142	Rushing Yards	63
146	Passing Yards	372
7	First Downs	12
	Punt Return Yards
	Kick Return Yards
562	Total Yards	580
3	Turnovers	4
2-9	3rd Down Converstion	2-10
0-1	4th Down Conversion	0-0
	2-Point Conversion
4-1-2	Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals	3-0-1
3-25	Penalties	0-0
10:30	Posession Time	17:30

[gorillapittpray]

YOUR HOME FOR NCAA NEWS!

HOOK WHO?
SOONERS USE TOUGH DEFENSE AND KEY OFFENSIVE PLAYS TO BEAT LONGHORNS 16-8

TOP STORIES

FROGS SHOCKED:
AZTECS THROW ALL OVER TCU
FOR MAJOR UPSET 41-27

NO ADVANTAGE:
NEBRASKA'S FIRST EVER BIG 10
HOME GAME IS A LOSS TO BUCKEYES
38-24

****-A-DOODLE:
GAMECOCKS KEEP WINNING
THIS TIME AGAINST SEC FOE
KENTUCKY 35-27

ALL'S WELL IN AGGIE LAND:
AGGIES PROVE TO TOUGH FOR
UNDEFEATED RED RAIDERS 37-21

TOP SCORES
#21 BOSTON COLLEGE STAYS UNBEATEN AGAINST CLEMSON 13-10
#24 PENN STATE HANDS IOWA FIRST LOSS 24-17
3-3 GEORGIA UPSETS UNBEATEN VOLS IN OT 19-16
#6 LSU ROUTES GATORS GIVING THEM FIVE LOSSES FOR SECOND STRAIGHT YEAR 59-19
HURRICANES UPSET #23 HOKIES 44-34

SPORTING NEWS NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK
OFFENSE
QB JASON HUGHES (BOISE) 34-43 430 YARDS 5 TOUCHDOWN IN A WIN AT FRESNO STATE

DEFENSE
SS JEFF WHITE 6 TACKLES FORCED FUMBLE, INTERCEPTION IN A UPSET WIN VS TCU

TOP 10

1. ALABAMA 6-0
2. OKLAHOMA 5-0
3. SOUTH CAROLINA 6-0
4. TEXAS A&M 5-0
5. BOISE STATE 5-0
6. LSU 5-1
7. OHIO STATE 5-1
8. STANFORD 4-1
9. NOTRE DAME 6-0
10. OREGON 4-1

TOP GAMES
#7 OHIO STATE (5-1) @ ILLINOIS (5-1)
#6 LSU (5-1) @ #25 TENNESSEE (4-1)
#1 ALABAMA (6-0) @ OLE MISS (4-1)
#5 BOISE STATE (5-0) @ COLORADO STATE (4-1)
MICHIGAN (4-2) @ #13 MICHIGAN STATE (4-1)

[gorillapittpray]

BLAZER WEEKLY

COMEBACK COMPLETE:

BLAZERS USE 17 POINT FOURTH QUARTER
TO COME FROM BEHIND AND UPSET THE
MISS ST BULLDOGS. J. BOWSER GRABBED
3 SACKS AND N. DAVIS GOT A INTERCEPTION
IN THE FOURTH QUARTER TO FUEL THE COMEBACK.
SHARPE SHRUGGED OFF A TERRIBLE FIRST THREE
QUARTERS TO LEAD THE WAY AS THE BLAZERS WON
34-30

"THEY SAID IT"
"I CONSIDERED BENCHING HIM, BUT OUR DEFENSE WAS PLAYING WELL AND I KNEW HE WOULD GET MORE CHANCES TO REDEEM HIMSELF."
HEAD COACH TRAVIS RHATIGAN

"WARD WAS AS ADVERTISED, AFTER HE BROKE OUR TACKLES ON THAT LONG SCORING RUN I THOUGHT TO MYSELF, OH BOY THIS MIGHT BE A LONG AFTERNOON LOL"
MLB TOM SLAUGHTER

"WITH THE FOCUS STARTING TO GO TO WILSON'S AND MOSES' WAY ITS TIME FOR ME TO START STEPPING UP, IM JUST FORTUNATE SHARPE CAME TO ME ON THE BIGGER DOWNS"
WR MICHAEL ROSS

"WHEN THEY GOT INSIDE OUR FIVE AT THE END OF THE GAME, I TOLD OUR DEFENSE ITS NOW OR NEVER DEPEND ON EACH OTHER."
FS NATE WILLIAMS

RECRUITING NEWS:
Blazers got word that four star receiver Ian Moore would be on hand for UAB net home game against UCF. The speedy receiver from West Hattiesburg, MS recently announced his top three and UAB is the third team behind Clemson and West Virginia. UAB also got word that the #18 and #20 rated Middle linebackers in the country Patrick McFadden and Keron Jackson gave UAB B ratings on their official visits last weekend. McFadden was stated to have said "It was a great weekend topped off by some big time football, Rhatigan seems to be a great coach to play for but my concern is I dont want to help build a team I want to come right in on the national spotlight and play. My decision will be tough."

Birmingham, AL--- Head coach Travis Rhatign and UAB players met with the media Tuesday to preview this weekend's matchup with the Tulsa Hurricanes.
No. 22 Tulsa faces off against UAB Saturday evening in Tulsa. The game is set to kick off at 5 p.m. (CT) with a split regional telecast on ABC.

Opening statement:
"It's an exciting week as our team and Tulsa get together here this weekend, it's just exciting with the current media blitz since beating Miss St. But we're past last weeks game as exhausting as it was talking about is more exhausting. We're ready for Tulsa.
We have to be at our best going down there this week to meet that challenge. I think Bill Blankenship and his staff are doing a great job there and continues to build that program, a first year coach like myself at this level he has those guys already buying into his system. When I watch them I see really explosive and talented players across all phases of the game. We have to meet that challenge with hopefully explosive plays and players on our side."

On Tulsa's offense:
"They throw the football very well, they have excellent receivers and physical players up front. But then they do an excellent job throwing it. Everybody has been talking about the Lawson injury, and rightfully so but the Cummings kid has this team playing well, I think he has done a great job and is a great player.
It's exciting, it's a major challenge. To go up against a team that in the first couple of games was very explosive and productive. I think it's fair to say that their situation and the circumstances on the road at Boise were difficult to handle. They played the #5 team in the country on the road and went up 20 points, thats tough to do, so I know in that lost they saw a win. OU was the only team to really man handle them. So its gonna be a challenge.

On Defensive linemen DJ Washinington and J. Bowser
"They have been very consistent and very good, they do get unnoticed and they are playing well. There are two big things with them. One is that I think they are very observant and smart. They recognize plays as they develop really well and they understand schemes. They don't bust, it's very rare. The other thing is that they are very talented. They are guys that can run and and have no problem hitting, we'll need them to step up big time this week. Also congratulations on Bowser getting Conference player of the week."

WR Ian Wilson joined the Press Conference:

On UAB's progress through the season:
" I think we've been doing a good job. We're just trying to be consistent every weekend and cut down the mistakes. We just want to be better than the week before. That's our goal every week; to just try to get better and just make sure we're in a position to win."

Defensive back Nate Williams:

On if the defense is improving:
"I feel like we're making strides each week, trusting each other more and holding another more accountable. We're pushing each other more, kind of just forming more of a brotherhood together so it's there's more trust to play hard and together."

Defensive end Jerry Bowser:

On Tulsa offensive line and keys to stop them:
"They're really good up front. They're athletic big guys. Both of their tackles are around 6-4 6-5. They do a good job of protecting. I think he (Cummings) has only been sacked once in the first few games. They're really athletic and really good up front. It's going to be a battle. We'll need to provide immense amount of pressure to help our secondary slow down those fast guys they have out there"

A STORMS BREWING!

Matchup Preview | October 15, 2011
	@
UAB Blazers (5-0, Away)		#22 Tulsa Golden Hurricane (3-2, Home)
Injury Report QB I. LASWON 3 WKS Game Notes Coming off a huge win against Mississippi State, UAB will need to refocus for a very good Tulsa team. Tulsa is 3-2 but a one point loss to #5 Boise could easily have the golden hurricanes 4-1 with their only sure lost to OU to start the season. Back up quarterback Cummings has been the immediate spar Tulsa needed when starter I. Lawson went down. Since coming in Cummings has passed for 1300 yards and 13 touchdowns to only 5 interceptions, he's done most his damage on the ground however rushing for 400 yards nd another four scores. When he's not running he's passing to speed demon C. Wilson. Wilson only has three touchdown receptions but is avg 16 yards a catch. UAB will need that pressure up front NCAA leading sack master Jerry Bowser (7). Bowser came on strong last week after former leader DJ Washington (4) received numerous double teams. Pressure along with the hard hitting from Nick Williams and cover corner Marcus Stephens should slow this Tulsa offense down. Offensively quarterback Andre Sharpe needs to be more consistant, UAB has proven they have weapons at wideout with six different receivers catching a pass but Sharpe needs to patient and find the open men. A two back system has helped the Blazers out tremendously but as of late Pryor has been getting the most carries and deserving so. PREDICTION: This could be another barn burner with these offenses but I think UAB has it figured out on defense and pulls off the road win 34-20

[gorillapittpray]

CONFERENCE USA NAMES UAB DEFENSIVE END JERRY BOWSER DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

BOWSER HELPED LEAD UAB TO A COME FROM BEHIND UPSET OVER MISSISSIPPI STATE. HE GRABBED FOUR TACKLES AND THREE SACKS INCLUDING A HUGE SACK ON THIRD DOWN WITH UNDER A MINUTE IN THE GAME AS MISSISSIPPI STATE WAS KNOCKING ON THE DOOR TO SCORE.
THIS MARKS THE THIRD STRAIGHT WEEK A UAB DEFENDER WAS NAMED DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK

[Deuce2223]

Good luck landing Jackson. Getting a couple 4* in Year 1 would be a great boost for your program.

[gorillapittpray]

Quote: Originally Posted by Deuce2223

Good luck landing Jackson. Getting a couple 4* in Year 1 would be a great boost for your program.

Man I wish I could him,, my fours star recruits have their number one team wayyyy in front of me, but im just glad the interest is their...