Aug. 14, 2000

Stevens and the SteamWheelers Take First Arena Cup In Dramatic Fashion; Finish Season 19-0 in AF2

Former Truman football letterman, Spencer Stevens can now add national champion to his list of football accomplishments. Stevens, the starting center for the Bulldogs from 1996-98, served in the same capacity for the Quad City Steamwheelers in the inaugural season of Arena League Football Two this year. He also played nose guard on defense for the wheelers.

The Quad City Steamwheelers were perfect to the tune of 19-0, finishing the season on Thursday by taking the first Arena Cup in defeating the Tennessee Valley Vipers, 68-59. In doing so, the Wheelers became the winningest, undefeated team in professional football history.

Other former Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association players on the Steamwheelers' roster included Jay Eilers, formerly of Northwest Missouri, and Sean McNamara, formerly of Pittsburg State. Cornelius Coe, who once donned a Truman Bulldog uniform before trading it in to head to Northern Michigan, was named co-defensive MVP of the league and led the team with eight tackles against the Vipers.

In a total team effort on Thursday night, the Arena League Two's Steamwheelers came back from their biggest deficit of the year (11 points) to defeat the Tennessee Valley Vipers 68-59. This was also the first time this season that the Steamwheelers had not finished ahead or even with their opponent in the turnover category with the Vipers taking the edge 2-1.

Things started quickly for Quad City after they jumped out to a 14-0 lead after Shon King returned the opening kickoff 54 yards for a touchdown and then grabbed a pass from QB Billy Dicken that covered 29 yards. King was named the game's MVP unanimously after racking up over 300 yards of total offense including 227 yards in kick returns. Tennessee Valley got on track and the shout-out continued until half time with Quad City holding a 41-31 edge. However, the Vipers came out like gang-busters after the break to the tune of 21 unanswered points putting the Wheelers in their biggest hole of the season at 52-41. The stunned sellout crowd was left yearning for something to give their team a lift. And wouldn't you know it, from the phone-booth sprung superman. As he has done all year long King took the team on his shoulders and returned the ensuing kickoff for a touchdown breaking the snake's momentum. For his encore, he took a missed Michael Proctor field-goal back 53 yards to the house to regain the lead for the home team.

From then on, the story was the defense. A squad that could have folded after being scorched for the first three quarters, pulled itself up by its bootstraps and shutout the Vipers in the fourth quarter.

Dicken capped the win with a 1-yard TD plunge with under a minute to go. Then after stopping T.V. on fourth-down pandemonium ensued.

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