Post by MizzouTiger on Mar 6, 2008 18:03:53 GMT -5
www.kansascity.com/sports/brigade/story/513341.html
Brigade falls to Tampa Bay 51-49 in season opener
By TEREZ A. PAYLOR
The Kansas City Star
There was a lot of optimism surrounding the Brigade’s season opener Saturday. That’s not surprising, considering 14 players return from a team that won 10 games last year.
However, plenty of questions loomed before the Brigade’s 51-49 loss before a crowd of 13,356 at Sprint Center.
For example, what would the offense look like under new offensive coordinator Ricky Foggie? Could new quarterback John Fitzgerald, who last played the position in 2006, execute it? And what about that all-important secondary, which has three new starters?
And that was just the on-the-field stuff. The Brigade was also playing its first game in a brand-new arena, and team officials and fans alike wondered what the game-day experience would be like — and how many people would show up.
Well, some of those questions were answered. But the biggest reason for the loss on Saturday wasn’t any of those pre-game uncertainties. Instead, it was a familiar culprit from last year — turnovers and missed opportunities.
“We just made too many mistakes to overcome,” said Brigade coach Kevin Porter, whose team committed three turnovers on Saturday. “Anytime you turn the football over, you’re shooting yourself in the foot.”
Things started off well enough for the Brigade, which took a 21-14 lead in the second quarter on a touchdown pass from Fitzgerald to new receiver Mike Horacek. And the Brigade had a chance to increase its lead when it recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff. But Fitzgerald threw an interception a few plays later that set up a Tampa Bay touchdown.
That was just the first of several crucial mistakes made by the Brigade. Tampa Bay took a 30-28 lead in the third quarter after recovering a Charles Frederick fumble, and the Storm extended its lead to 44-35 in the fourth quarter when it capitalized on Fitzgerald’s second interception of the game.
Fitzgerald, who completed 25 of 40 passes for 296 yards and five touchdowns (in addition to two rushing TDs), said he was disappointed with the way he played in his first Arena game in over a year.
“I don’t want to chalk it up to rust, because I was ready to play,” Fitzgerald said. “It’s just I played poorly on a couple of plays.”
The Brigade didn’t go down easily, scoring a couple of touchdowns that made the score 51-49 with 2 minutes, 59 seconds left in the game.
After a huge goal-line stand by the Brigade’s defense gave the offense the ball at its own 3 with 35 seconds left, Fitzgerald led the team on a drive that set up a 37-yard field-goal attempt by Peter Martinez. His kick sailed wide as time expired.
Despite the loss, the Brigade did find some answers Saturday. Under Foggie, the offense showed a few imaginative quirks (Fitzgerald even lined up at wide receiver for a play), and Horacek (seven catches, 149 yards and two touchdowns) proved that he can be a downfield threat.
And as far as the atmosphere goes, even though the crowd was smaller than last year’s home opener (there were about 300 less fans), Brigade general manager Brad Likens didn’t seem to be too bothered by it.
“Overall, it’s good for a first game,” he said. “I think the fans will spread the word that this is a good entertainment package.”
But for that for happen, the Brigade knows it will have to play a little smarter.
“I learned we’ve got a lot of work to do,” Porter said. “We’ve got a good group of guys, a good group of players — we just can’t make mistakes and expect to win.”
Brigade falls to Tampa Bay 51-49 in season opener
By TEREZ A. PAYLOR
The Kansas City Star
There was a lot of optimism surrounding the Brigade’s season opener Saturday. That’s not surprising, considering 14 players return from a team that won 10 games last year.
However, plenty of questions loomed before the Brigade’s 51-49 loss before a crowd of 13,356 at Sprint Center.
For example, what would the offense look like under new offensive coordinator Ricky Foggie? Could new quarterback John Fitzgerald, who last played the position in 2006, execute it? And what about that all-important secondary, which has three new starters?
And that was just the on-the-field stuff. The Brigade was also playing its first game in a brand-new arena, and team officials and fans alike wondered what the game-day experience would be like — and how many people would show up.
Well, some of those questions were answered. But the biggest reason for the loss on Saturday wasn’t any of those pre-game uncertainties. Instead, it was a familiar culprit from last year — turnovers and missed opportunities.
“We just made too many mistakes to overcome,” said Brigade coach Kevin Porter, whose team committed three turnovers on Saturday. “Anytime you turn the football over, you’re shooting yourself in the foot.”
Things started off well enough for the Brigade, which took a 21-14 lead in the second quarter on a touchdown pass from Fitzgerald to new receiver Mike Horacek. And the Brigade had a chance to increase its lead when it recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff. But Fitzgerald threw an interception a few plays later that set up a Tampa Bay touchdown.
That was just the first of several crucial mistakes made by the Brigade. Tampa Bay took a 30-28 lead in the third quarter after recovering a Charles Frederick fumble, and the Storm extended its lead to 44-35 in the fourth quarter when it capitalized on Fitzgerald’s second interception of the game.
Fitzgerald, who completed 25 of 40 passes for 296 yards and five touchdowns (in addition to two rushing TDs), said he was disappointed with the way he played in his first Arena game in over a year.
“I don’t want to chalk it up to rust, because I was ready to play,” Fitzgerald said. “It’s just I played poorly on a couple of plays.”
The Brigade didn’t go down easily, scoring a couple of touchdowns that made the score 51-49 with 2 minutes, 59 seconds left in the game.
After a huge goal-line stand by the Brigade’s defense gave the offense the ball at its own 3 with 35 seconds left, Fitzgerald led the team on a drive that set up a 37-yard field-goal attempt by Peter Martinez. His kick sailed wide as time expired.
Despite the loss, the Brigade did find some answers Saturday. Under Foggie, the offense showed a few imaginative quirks (Fitzgerald even lined up at wide receiver for a play), and Horacek (seven catches, 149 yards and two touchdowns) proved that he can be a downfield threat.
And as far as the atmosphere goes, even though the crowd was smaller than last year’s home opener (there were about 300 less fans), Brigade general manager Brad Likens didn’t seem to be too bothered by it.
“Overall, it’s good for a first game,” he said. “I think the fans will spread the word that this is a good entertainment package.”
But for that for happen, the Brigade knows it will have to play a little smarter.
“I learned we’ve got a lot of work to do,” Porter said. “We’ve got a good group of guys, a good group of players — we just can’t make mistakes and expect to win.”