Week 2 Game Preview: BIRMINGHAM THUNDERBOLTS (0-1) @ NY/NJ HITMEN (0-1)
       
 


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BIRMINGHAM THUNDERBOLTS (0-1) @ NY/NJ HITMEN (0-1)
Sunday, February 11, 2001 – 4:00 p.m. (ET)
Giants Stadium 
TV: TNN 


BIRMINGHAM THUNDERBOLTS NOTES 

- Gerry DiNardo’s team will look to break into the win column on Sunday with a visit to 0-1 NY/NJ to face the Hitmen at Giants Stadium. Birmingham was the sole team in the XFL to drop its home opener last weekend, falling 22-20 to Memphis and a big day from RB Rashaan Salaam. 

- The Bolts’ running defense will look to bounce back against a Hitmen team which managed only 61 yards on 14 carries in an opening loss at Las Vegas. 

- The Bolts had no such problems on offense, racking up a league-leading 358 yards on offense against the Maniax Sunday. QB Casey Weldon leads the league in passing yardage after putting up a 306-yard day in the opener. 

- Coach Gerry DiNardo has said from almost day one that James Willis is the heart of the Birmingham defense from his middle linebacker spot. Willis lived up to the billing last week, making 12 tackles against Memphis. Defensive end Charles Preston rang up a game-high four tackles for loss against Memphis. Preston accounted for 17 yards in Maniax losses. He also recorded a sack, making five of his seven tackles happen behind the line of scrimmage. 

- Birmingham defensive back Toya Jones won Birmingham’s first-ever scamble for the ball prior to the game against Memphis last week. Counting preseason scrimmages, the Bolts are three-for-three in the scramble, which replaces a coin toss as a way to decide choice of possession at the beginning of regulation and overtime. 

- Birmingham head coach Gerry DiNardo is heading for a homecoming of sorts when the Bolts head for the Meadowlands. DiNardo grew up in South Brooklyn and was educated at St. Francis Prep, graduating in 1970. He played both quarterback and offensive line at St. Francis. 

NY/NJ HITMEN NOTES

- The Hitmen kick off their home slate at legendary Giants Stadium on Sunday afternoon when they host the Birmingham Thunderbolts. Both teams are looking for their first win of the season. 

- NY/NJ must rebound from a sub-par performance, as they were run out of sold-out Sam Boyd Stadium with a 19-0 drubbing by the Las Vegas Outlaws. 

- The Hitmen offense did show some signs of life, as RB Keith Elias amassed 46 yards on only six carries, while WR Fred Brock caught eight balls for 97 yards. 

- On the defensive side, the Hitmen are led by middle LB Ron Merkerson, who recorded nine tackles, eight of them solo efforts. The Hitmen did get to the quarterback, sacking Las Vegas’ Ryan Clement three times. 

- With Rusty Tillman as the head coach, look for the Hitmen to shine on special teams. NY/NJ has two explosive kick returners in Kirby Dar-Dar and Butler B’ynote, both of whom nearly broke off long returns last week. 

- The hard-nosed Tillman likes to show his team hard-nosed movies, as evidenced by the selections he has showed his team, titles including Braveheart, Cool Hand Luke and Patton, which was shown during training camp to acclimate the team to Tillman’s coaching style.

[Enforcers at Xtreme | Demons at Rage | Bolts at Hitmen | Outlaws at Maniax]
 

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