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Week 1 - Matadors start the season off with a bang
Albuquerque's road to a championship started off smoothly as the Matadors cruised to a 17-6 victory over division rival California. Kelly Wheat and new RB Casey Gaines combined for 157 yards and a touchdown and the defense, led by SLB Arlen Weise held the Heroes to 7 first downs and 128 total yards.
Albuquerque's opening drive started strong, but ultimately ended on a sour note. The Matadors drove into Hero territory, but a false start stalled the drive and K Haywood Tate missed a 50 yard FG attempt, giving the Heroes strong field position. The Heroes took advantage and drove into FG range, taking a 3-0 lead on a 40 yard field goal by K Gene Savage.
The Matador offense couldn't get it done on the next drive, punting after 5 plays when an illegal shift penalty erased a first down. P Michael Curry pinned the Heroes deep into their territory on their own 6 yard line. The Matadors then seized momentum as Hero QB Rob Richardson threw an INT to Matador all-time INT leader S Herman Almeida. After a few key runs by RB Kelly Wheat, David Humphrey found FB Felton Bartel in the endzone for a 6 yard touchdown pass. Tate's extra point gave the Matadors a 7-3 lead.
The Heroes couldn't recover from Richardson's mistake in the first half. They were held to 15 yards in the 2nd quarter. Albuquerque had no such trouble though as their next drive took them 81 yards down the field for another touchdown, this time coming from recently acquired RB Casey Gaines. Gaines broke out on the left side for a 22 yard touchdown run, pinning California into a 14-3 hole. The next Matador drive saw Haywood Tate add on 3 more points on a 22 yard FG and the Matadors led at halftime 17-3.
The 2nd half saw the Hero defense step up. The Matadors wouldn't score again. On the Matadors 2nd drive of the half, an errant throw from David Humphrey was picked off by Darren Bruner and returned to the Matador 25. The Hero offense couldn't capitalize though. Three plays later CB David Brown came on a blindside blitz and leveled Hero QB Rob Richardson. Richardson fumbled and Matador DT Robert Senter recovered.
After stopping Albuquerque two more times, the Heroes finally put more points on the board in the 4th quarter. 35 yard drive led to a 46 yard Gene Savage field goal closing the gap to 17-6 with 8 minutes to play. The Heroes never touched the ball again. The Matadors drove 51 yards on 14 plays to run out the clock, securing the victory. David Humphrey was chosen as the game's MVP.
News and Notes: Matador LT Miles Perkins left the game in the 2nd quarter with a foot injury. He's expected to miss next week's game against Columbia.....Hero TE Deangelo Alvarez left the game in the 3rd quarter with a serious knee injury. He's expected to miss at least 2 months....The last time California hosted the Matadors on opening Day in 2005, the Heroes, then the Chaos, won 13-10......Albuquerque hosts Columbia next week. Their only previous matchup was in 2005. The Fire won 31-6.
Albuquerque's road to a championship started off smoothly as the Matadors cruised to a 17-6 victory over division rival California. Kelly Wheat and new RB Casey Gaines combined for 157 yards and a touchdown and the defense, led by SLB Arlen Weise held the Heroes to 7 first downs and 128 total yards.
Albuquerque's opening drive started strong, but ultimately ended on a sour note. The Matadors drove into Hero territory, but a false start stalled the drive and K Haywood Tate missed a 50 yard FG attempt, giving the Heroes strong field position. The Heroes took advantage and drove into FG range, taking a 3-0 lead on a 40 yard field goal by K Gene Savage.
The Matador offense couldn't get it done on the next drive, punting after 5 plays when an illegal shift penalty erased a first down. P Michael Curry pinned the Heroes deep into their territory on their own 6 yard line. The Matadors then seized momentum as Hero QB Rob Richardson threw an INT to Matador all-time INT leader S Herman Almeida. After a few key runs by RB Kelly Wheat, David Humphrey found FB Felton Bartel in the endzone for a 6 yard touchdown pass. Tate's extra point gave the Matadors a 7-3 lead.
The Heroes couldn't recover from Richardson's mistake in the first half. They were held to 15 yards in the 2nd quarter. Albuquerque had no such trouble though as their next drive took them 81 yards down the field for another touchdown, this time coming from recently acquired RB Casey Gaines. Gaines broke out on the left side for a 22 yard touchdown run, pinning California into a 14-3 hole. The next Matador drive saw Haywood Tate add on 3 more points on a 22 yard FG and the Matadors led at halftime 17-3.
The 2nd half saw the Hero defense step up. The Matadors wouldn't score again. On the Matadors 2nd drive of the half, an errant throw from David Humphrey was picked off by Darren Bruner and returned to the Matador 25. The Hero offense couldn't capitalize though. Three plays later CB David Brown came on a blindside blitz and leveled Hero QB Rob Richardson. Richardson fumbled and Matador DT Robert Senter recovered.
After stopping Albuquerque two more times, the Heroes finally put more points on the board in the 4th quarter. 35 yard drive led to a 46 yard Gene Savage field goal closing the gap to 17-6 with 8 minutes to play. The Heroes never touched the ball again. The Matadors drove 51 yards on 14 plays to run out the clock, securing the victory. David Humphrey was chosen as the game's MVP.
News and Notes: Matador LT Miles Perkins left the game in the 2nd quarter with a foot injury. He's expected to miss next week's game against Columbia.....Hero TE Deangelo Alvarez left the game in the 3rd quarter with a serious knee injury. He's expected to miss at least 2 months....The last time California hosted the Matadors on opening Day in 2005, the Heroes, then the Chaos, won 13-10......Albuquerque hosts Columbia next week. Their only previous matchup was in 2005. The Fire won 31-6.
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