Heavyweight tilt on tap for title

HBO and Showtime won't be there. The game won't be $49.99 on pay-per-view. Michael Buffer won't be saying, "Let's get ready to rumble!" prior to the national anthem. However, Saturday night's South Division title game between the Tennessee Valley Vipers and South Georgia Wildcats has all the makings of a heavyweight title match.
The Wildcats enter the contest with a one game lead in the division with an 11-4 record, while the Vipers sit at 10-5. A win by Tennessee Valley would give them the division due to a 2-1 head-to-head record with the Wildcats.
The road team has won each of the two previous meetings. The Vipers are just 2-4 against the Wildcats since the move to South Georgia.
South Georgia stole a win to start the season on the final play of the game with a hook-and-ladder ending in quarterback Cecil Lester falling into the end zone.
Tennessee Valley answered with a 65-51 win in South Georgia.
The Vipers win last week over Florida set up the final regular season game as the division championship. Florida is now out of the running for their fifth consecutive division title.
South Georgia enters the game on a six game winning streak. Andrico Hines will start under center for the Wildcats. Hines has played extremely well during the season. In 12 games, Hines has completed 62 percent of his passes for 59 touchdowns and just 10 interceptions. Two of those interceptions were against the Vipers, however. His 62.3 percent completion percentage is good enough for ninth in the league, and his 111.4 passer rating is also ninth best in the af2.
The Wildcats main threat is all-purpose man P.J. Berry. Berry ranks in the top ten in the league in receiving yards per game and leads the league in all-purpose yards. His six kick returns for touchdowns leads the af2.
But the Vipers will counter the offensive attack with one of the af2's leading defenses. Eric Scott and Terrance Ford both rank in the top ten in sacks and tackles for loss. The team is fifth in the af2 in scoring defense, giving up just 43.1 points a contest. including a total of just 49 points in the last two games.
The offense has been on all cylinders the last two weeks and with the absence of Maurice Brown the rest of the receivers have stepped up. Alonzo Nix hauled in three touchdowns last week.
With 33 rushing touchdowns, the Vipers love to punch it in when they get close to the goal line. Travis Blanchard returned to the line up last week and once again found the end zone by the ground game. His 12 rushing scores leads the team.
Nick Hayes anchors the kicking game while being second in the league in scoring by a kicker with 9 points a game. His 48.1 percent on field goals leads the league with a minimum number of 27 attempts on the season.
The teams are in their corners and the stage is set for the biggest game in Huntsville since 2004. Let's just hope referee David Smith doesn't say, "Let's get it on!" during the coin toss.

Vipers tame Firecats, title bout set

The Tennessee Valley Vipers know what it takes to beat their arch rivals Florida. A quick start and a complete finish. Saturday night the Vipers (10-5) got just that. The Florida Firecats (9-6) got in a 16-0 hole and could not climb out as Tennessee Valley poured on the points and the defense shut down what was once the league's premier offense in 58-28 fashion in Estero, Florida.
Nick Hayes got the Vipers on the board early with a 32-yard field goal and Alonzo Nix caught two touchdowns before Florida could muster a score.
Former Viper James Gibson got the Firecats on the scoreboard with a 4-yard touchdown run, but the Vipers responded. Three plays and 43 yards later, Benjamin McDowell hauled in his first of two touchdown grabs to put the Vipers back up 16.
The Vipers intercepted a pass on the next Florida possession and returned it for a touchdown, only to have it called back on a questionable call by the officials.
Magic Benton caught his first touchdown pass on the drive that continued with that penalty. The two teams traded score until the end of the half, where Tennessee Valley led 30-21.
After the half, the Vipers scored 28 unanswered points after capitalizing on an interception, a fumble and two turnovers on downs.
Benton ended the scoring with a touchdown grab.
Vipers quarterback Kevin Eakin was 14-of-20 on the night for just 124 yards but four touchdowns and a 25-yard scamper. Alonzo Nix was the favorite target coming down with seven catches and three scores.
Rico Reese recorded a sack and Desmond Foster came down with an interception in the great defensive effort by the Vipers. The Vipers defense held the Firecats to 1-of-6 on third down and 0-of-5 on fourth down.
With the win, Tennessee Valley is set up to host the South Georgia Wildcats next weekend in Huntsville for the South Division title.
The Wildcats and Vipers have split decisions on the year, with the road team winning each time. It's $1 beer night at the Von Braun Center for the contest.