Tag: nebraska

Danger Control Struggling River Kings 66-42

Eric Thomas returns the opening kickoff for a Touchdown in the Nebraska Danger’s victory over the Cedar Rapids in Week 10.
Photo credit to Jimmy Rash of The Grand Island Independent

DOMINANT FROM THE START

From the opening kickoff Eric Thomas was a thorn in the side of the River Kings as the Danger handed the Cedar Rapids squad their sixth consecutive loss. Thomas returned the opening kickoff 52 yards for a touchdown before returning a missed Philip Nwosu field goal 58 yards for a touchdown. The Danger held Cedar Rapids out of the endzone the entire first half, heading into the break up 31-9.

RIVER KINGS MISS PALANDECH

In a season where there haven’t been many bright spots for the River Kings Quarterback Kurt Palandech has been a rare reason for optimism. Unfortunately for CR fans Palandech was not with the team in Grand Island tending to a family emergency. This meant Ben Wilkerson would earn his first career start. Wilkerson did not impress, going 7-14 for 65 yards with 2 touchdowns to go along with 2 interceptions. The IFL rookie was also sacked 5 times.

SECOND HALF FIREWORKS

Both teams woke up offensively in the final thirty minutes. The River Kings had their best offensive half of the season, putting 32 points on the scoreboard. Unfortunately the Danger outscored their visitors scoring 35 points.

FINAL THOUGHTS

Things are bad in Cedar Rapids. Really bad. You can’t help but feel bad for a player like Marquel Wade who most likely will one day enter the IFL Hall of Fame. Wade caught just 3 passes for 29 yards Friday. The River Kings have somehow gotten worse every week, 9 weeks after losing by 3 points to the Sioux Falls Storm they have gone from a dark-horse United Bowl contender to a difficult spectacle to watch. Ben Wilkerson was miserable, he sported the awareness of a dead fish in the pocket and looked visibly uncomfortable from the opening kickoff. I don’t think any team in the league wants to play the Danger. Tommy Armstrong Jr. is a top 3 or 4 Quarterback in the league when he is playing well and Davonte Sapp-Lynch is at times unstoppable. This team is getting hot at the right time and could surge to earn themselves a home playoff date. The Danger head to the desert next week to take on the Arizona Rattlers while the River Kings head to Des Moines to battle the in-state rival Barnstormers.