GAME TEASER: vs Texas Copperheads

The Teams: Texas Copperheads (0-4) at Boise Burn (2-1). Saturday, 7 PM, Qwest Arena. Last Week: In front of a sellout crowd of over 5,100 fans, the Burn blistered Tri-Cities, 74-28. George Williams had 3 touchdowns and Terrence Sanders returned an interception for a touchdown in the victory. Texas took Lubbock to the wire, falling 48-46 in the closing minutes of the game. Coaches Poll Position: Boise checks in at no. 11, Texas is not ranked in the latest af2 Coaches Poll. Get to Know? Texas QB Rudy Carlton. He completes lots of passes to his guys (af2-leading 88 completions), but also a lot to the other guys (af2-leading 9 interceptions). He usually looks for Shaun Rochon, who leads the league at 10.67 receptions per game. Boise?s pass defense?after being ranked last in af2 last season?is 9th thusfar this season, surrendering just 211 yards per game through the air. Burn among af2 leaders: WR/DB DeRonn Finley is 5th in the league in kick return average (24.0/return) but less than half a yard per return from the top spot in the league. WR Casey Allen is 4th in the league in yards per catch (17.9). Just for kicks: Levi Madarieta handled the kicking duties, going 6-of-11 on extra points in Boise?s win. Not bad for a guy who is a linebacker by trade. The Weiser native has booted for the Burn each of the past two games, allowing head coach Lee Leslie to dress an additional player. Welcome back: Texas defensive coordinator Ed Jenkins was the head coach of the now-defunct Boise Stallions of the IPFL in 2001. Red-zone regular: The 3 TDs scored by Burn receiver George Williams last week inched him closer to a pair of all-time af2 records. He needs just 8 touchdown receptions and 40 points to tie each all-time mark for the league. Texas?s defense is in the bottom-5 in af2 in pass defense and touchdown passes allowed, giving him a chance to make a big jump. Numerically-speaking: Texas is 29th?out of 29-- in af2 in points per game allowed (59.2) and 27th in points per game scored (35.2). What they're saying... "The Boise Burn have a definite leader of the pack as they try to improve on their 2-1 record with a Qwest Arena date against Texas Saturday night. Last summer, Weiser High grad Levi Madarietta was seriously toying with giving up football, but he?s come back this season to anchor just about everything for the Burn. Fittingly, Madarietta was the U.S. Army Ironman of the Game in the 74-28 clubbing of Tri-Cities last week after not only patrolling the defense as a linebacker, but also playing on offense and handling all of Boise?s placekicking chores. Madarieta finished the game 6-of-11 on extra points, had tackles, and even had one rushing attempt." (Scott Slant)On the Air: Televised live on Cable One (Channel 17) in the Treasure Valley, live radio broadcast on KGEM (1140-AM) with Scott Conklin handling play-by-play duties. The game can also be watched live via the internet at www.boiseburn.com