Jamar Ransom wants San Antonio to keep the Talons name

Tulsa Talons' Jack LB Jamar Ransom wants San Antonio to keep the Talons moniker, but not for reasons you may be thinking. As he said on facebook:

Jamar Ransom Keep the name so players who have dedicated everything to the team can have their records upheld and hopefully have a case for the AFL HOF! My opinion

This is something I hadn't thought about, but is important for the Tulsa fanbase. The Talons have had a lot of great talent grace the field in the BOK and Convention Center. It would be sad not to see people like Jamar, Gabe Nyenhuis, Jeff Hughley, Donovan Morgan possibly enter the AFL Hall of Fame without a reference to their time in Tulsa.

Talons gone: What next?

Well it came across the wire over the past 24 hours that the Talons are leaving for San Antonio... Here is the letter I got as a season ticket holder:

It is with great anguish I write this letter to you today to inform you the Tulsa Talons franchise will be relocating and will begin play in March of 2012 in San Antonio as the Talons. It was an extremely tough decision, but the owners of the Talons felt it was the best decision from a business perspective.

Off the field, the Talons’ players have been a big part of the Tulsa community for 12 years with many former and current players now calling Tulsa home. On the field, these same players entertained all of us for years. It was the tremendous support they received from the Tulsa community that kept them coming back and in some cases, keeping them here. That support starts with the “life blood” of all sports franchises, the season ticket holders.

Without our season ticket holders, the Tulsa Talons and our 141 regular season victories (most all-time), 9 division championships, 2 conference championships,10 straight playoff appearances and 2 arena cup championships would not have been.

On behalf of the Talons ownership, staff and the players from the last 12 years, I want to thank each of you for your unwavering dedication and support.

So with that, a storied franchise is left to another city. But now the question for me, and the blog, is "what next?"

The way I see it, I have a few options:

1. Try to find a fan in San Antonio that wishes to continue the blog.
2. Just go dormant until, or if, Tulsa gets a new team and rename accordingly.
3. Rename the blog to "Man without a Team" and continue to post about the AFL in a general manner.

Everyone let me know what you think I should do now!

San Antonio to obtain an AFL franchise... but it's not the Talons?

The newswires were all a buzz on Tuesday after reports surfaced that San Antonio will be home to an AFL franchise next year. It's expected than an official announcement of San Antonio's status will be announced today. For weeks (maybe even months) rumors had it that the Tulsa Talons would be sold and moved to San Antonio, so it stunned the AFL nation when Talons owners came out and the Tulsa World today reported:

It is unclear whether the new franchise would be an expansion or relocated team, but rumors have swirled for months that the Talons would be sold and moved to San Antonio.

"More power to San Antonio, but that's not us," Talons co-owner and managing partner Paul Ross told the Tulsa World on Tuesday.

Ross insisted the team has not been sold.

He admitted the team is "looking at (two) opportunities outside of Tulsa," but he insisted there are no definite plans.

He said he and the other owners - Henry Primeaux, Michael Johnson, Bill Cameron and David Box - are still expected to meet next week to decide the team's fate.

However, there was more bad news when it came out that a group headed by former Drillers owner Chuck Lamson pulled out of negotiations to purchase a share of the Talons.

The good news today is that, for the time being, the Talons remain in Tulsa.

YouTube Tuesday - August 2, 2011

When are we going to get more news?

YouTube Tuesday - July 26, 2011

Found this guy who has made the Arena League into Madden teams. Check out this video from a matchup between the SaberCats and Talons. Gotta say, the jerseys look great.

Talons to pick up new local owner?

After this weeks impressive win over the Kansas City Command many fans have begun to speculate that they had just watched the last Tulsa Talons game ever. However, the franchise sparked with some life this morning as the Tulsa world reported on rumors that a former Drillers owner may be interested in purchasing a share of the Talons to keep the franchise in Tulsa. From the Tulsa World:

The team's five-man ownership group will determine over the next several weeks whether the Talons will play a third AFL season in Tulsa, be sold to other investors and possibly moved to another city or die a quiet death.

Reports surfaced over the weekend that a local group headed by former Tulsa Drillers owner Chuck Lamson was interested in buying the team. Lamson would neither confirm nor deny the report.

Paul Ross and Henry Primeaux, who partnered in buying the team from Tulsa Oilers hockey owner Jeff Lund in 2004, each own 25 percent of the team. An additional one-fourth is owned by Michael Johnson, former chief administrative officer for Williams Cos. Inc. Another one-fourth is shared by Tulsa Shock owners Bill Cameron and David Box.

The Talons have a Sept. 15 deadline for notifying the AFL of their intention to participate in the 2012 season.

Ross, chairman of the AFL's finance committee, said it is too early to predict what will happen.

"It's no different than last year or the year before. It's a business decision and we don't have all our information together yet," he said.

Primeaux said he was working hard to keep the team in Tulsa.

"It belongs to the city and it should be here, but the city needs to support it," Primeaux said.

Read more from this Tulsa World article at http://www.tulsaworld.com/sportsextra/article.aspx?subjectid=407&articleid=20110725_223_B1_CUTLIN554418

YouTube Tuesday - July 5, 2011

A look back at the Talons memorable win over the Tampa Bay Storm in the Talons first game in the AFL:

Talons out officiated, lose to Dallas 55-48

Well that was just about the worst officiated game I have ever seen. Yet, the Talons were still in it at the end.

The officials allowed Dallas to have their way with Talons receivers all night and allowed multiple late hits on Allgood. As such, the Talons offense was out of rhythm most of the game. Allgood went just 25-52 but threw 5 TDs and no interceptions. Troy McBroom was held beneath 100 yards for the first time, in like, forever.

However, down 21 at one point, the defense held their ground. Forcing a couple of turnover on downs and J.C. Neal added another 12 yards to his INT return yardage. Down 48-55, with less than half a minute left, the Talons defense was able to force a fumble and give the Talons offense one last chance to tie the game up. Will 11 seconds left Allgood threw to Trent Shelton at about the 10 yard line. Trent was jarred before the ball got there, and appeared to be facemasked. But there was no laundry on the field. The Talons took one more shot at the endzone that was batted away from Troy McBroom. At the end of it the Talons lost.

Both Utah and Spokane won this week, leaving the Talons one game out of the playoffs. The Talons also slid 3 games behind Dallas. Next week the Talons travel to Iowa.

Dallas Vigilantes at Tulsa Talons: Pregame Primer

vs.

Dallas Vigilantes (8-5, 3-4 road) vs. Tulsa Talons (6-7, 3-3 home)

TV: N/A
Stream: Click here
Radio: KRMG 740 (740 AM)
Time: 7:00 CT

Passing Yards per Game: Talons – 230.2 (16th), Vigilantes – 266.6 (11th)
Rushing Yards per Game: Talons – 47.5 (1st), Vigilantes – 46.2 (2nd)
Total Yards Allowed per Game: Talons – 281.5 (8th), Vigilantes – 319.0 (18th)

View from the enemy: N/A

Tulsa is coming off a strong road win over the Philadelphia Soul last Friday. Justin Allgood over the last couple of weeks has just been outstanding.

Dallas coming in: The Vigilantes had a strong victory over the Iowa Barnstormers last Saturday.

THE MATCHUP

Dallas is a team that has struggled on the road this season. Dallas QB Dan Raudabaugh has been on and off throughout the season. On top of that, the Vigilantes give up more yards than any other team in the league.

QB Justin Allgood has not thrown a pick in two games now. His timing with the receiving corps is improving as well. Troy McBroom is looking to be even better than Donovan Morgan last year. If the Talons continue to click, it will be hard for Dallas to stop them.

On Defense, J.C. Neal has become a force to be reckoned with. Neal is currently 10th all time in INT return yards in a season. If the Talons can get some pressure, Raudabaugh is a QB that will make mistakes. The front line will need to stay on their heels however as Vigilantes FB Derrick Ross is probably the best FB in the league.

With a win, the Talons would move one game behind the Vigilantes for the 3 seed in the Playoffs.

Kickoff at 7:00 CT.

Talons at Soul - Pregame Primer

vs.

Tulsa Talons (5-7, 2-4 road) vs. Philadelphia Soul (5-8, 3-2 home)

TV: N/A
Stream: Click here
Radio: KRMG 740 (740 AM)
Time: 6:05 CT

Passing Yards per Game: Talons – 225.8 (16th), Soul – 228.0 (10th)
Rushing Yards per Game: Talons – 50.3 (1st), Soul – 14.9 (14th)
Total Yards Allowed per Game: Talons – 278.1 (7th), Soul – 268.0 (2nd)

View from the enemy: N/A

Tulsa is coming off a huge blowout win over the Utah Blaze behind QB Justin Allgood and a strong defensive peformance.

Philadelphia coming in: The Soul played last Friday in a big loss to the Spokane Shock on the NFL Network.

THE MATCHUP

QB Justin Allgood will be looking for revenge against the team that benched and then traded him earlier in the season. Having knowledge of the Soul defense should help Allgood with his reads this week. The most interesting dual of the game will be between Soul WR, and former Talon, Donovan Morgan and new Talons WR Troy McBroom. McBroom, if he had been with the Talons all season, would be 3rd in the league in receiving yards. Morgan is 1st in the league with 124 yards per game. (McBroom has a little over 119 yards per game)

On Defense, the Talons will face a QB who hasn't played organized football in 3 years in Brandon Kirsch. Hopefully the Talons defensive line, lead by Victor DeGrate, can get pressure and force some mistakes. Fred Shaw and league MVP J.C. Neal will have their hands full this week with a slew of strong Soul receivers lead by Donovan Morgan.

Kickoff at 6:05 CT.

Headlines - June 17, 2011

Tulsa World's recap of the Utah Blowout: "Rookie defensive back J.C. Neal returned two interceptions for scores and scored on an onside kick as the Talons blitzed the Utah Blaze 81-51 before an estimated 5,000 spectators. Veteran linebacker Jamar Ransom scored with a fumble and Victor DeGrate made two game-changing plays as the Talons (5-7) broke a two-game losing streak and put themselves back into the running for a National Conference playoff berth."

Talons QB Matt Bassuener gets a Special Honor: "Tulsa Talons quarterback Matt Bassuener is one of 39 players selected for the U.S. Men's National Football Team that will compete in the International Federation of American Football Senior World Championships next month in Austria."

Talons finally faceoff against Donovan MorganCoach Mitch Allner will see a familiar face Friday as his team lines up against one of his former players, Donovan Morgan. He played for the Talons last season and was the leading receiver with 1,707 receiving yards. This year, he is second in the AFL with 1,614 yards. "Donovan is a very good ballplayer," Allner said. "I definitely know what he can do."

The Blaze Blowout has the league watching: "I was expecting offense in the Utah-Tulsa match up, but the wrong one showed up. It was an 81-point night for the Talons. Justin Allgood looked to regain his magic in Tulsa, with six touchdowns and no interceptions. It always helps to get a couple of scores from the defense. That was only the third time all year the Talons put up over 50 points. Last year with Allgood at the helm, the Talons scored at least 74 points three times, and were held under 50 points only once in the regular season."

The Soul will be braking in a new QB tonight

Two Talons received honors this week: "Hunt (5-11, 205, Northwestern Oklahoma State) hauled in a 7-yard, touchdown pass from quarterback Justin Allgood in the second quarter with 55 seconds left on the clock. Hunt fell in the endzone and still managed to catch the ball as it bounced off the wall. The touchdown gave Tulsa a 34-33 lead."

JC Neal named Week 14 National Guard MVP: "In a race that was tied up with less than two hours remaining of voting, Neal defeated Meyer by six votes on Facebook.com. Neal had an explosive evening in the 81-51 win over Utah on Saturday. Neal hauled in two interceptions for touchdowns, totaling 95 return yards. He also returned an onside kick for a touchdown. Neal ended with the night with six tackles, placing him eighth in the League in total tackles (70.0)."

A look at the new Soul QB for tonight: In 2008 with Colorado, Kirsch tore his right anterior cruciate ligament while playing linebacker. He was the backup quarterback, and the team needed some help on defense. "Since then I haven't played organized football other than, say, flag football tournaments the past three years," Kirsch said. During his career at Purdue from 2002 to 2005, Kirsch completed 292 of 489 passes for 3,532 yards and 23 touchdowns. He also rushed for 757 career yards and five touchdowns and started at least one game in each of his four years.

Talons douse Blaze 81-51, Tied for 4th Playoff Seed

Well that felt good. The Talons, much like the Chicago game at home a few weeks ago, dominated for pretty much the entire game. Fueled by outstanding defensive play, the Talons took three turnovers to the house and helped the Offense, which played pretty flawlessly, maintain control of an 81-51 win to get into a four way tie for the fourth playoff spot in the National Conference.

The game started off shaky as Blaze WR Chris Bocage took the opening kickoff back for a TD after Kicker Juan Bongarra barely missed nocking him out of bounds. However, the Talons answered with a methodical drive to answer with a TD of their own. The Blaze and Talons then traded scores again until Defensive Back J.C. Neal picked off Utah QB Tommy Grady and returned it 52 yards for TD, which may be a Talons record for longest INT return (we are still checking on that), to give the Talons their first lead of the game.

At halftime the Talons lead 41-33 and would not lose that lead for the remainder of the game. The Third quarter was highlighted by a great forced fumble sack on Grady by Defensive End Victor Degrate that popped the ball up to a waiting Jack LB Jamar Ransom who scoped and scored. The Talons got to their final total 81 points off another J.C. Neal pick six, this time for 43 yards (giving him 95 yards off INTs).

J.C. Neal's two INT touchdowns leads the league for a single game high (along with his 95 yards). As one Talons player put it after the game, "if he doesn't get Defensive Player of the Week something is wrong." I can't disagree with that, he may even be a MVP of the week candidate. The Talons 81 points are also a league high for single game scoring.

The win brings the Talons into a four way tie for the fourth National Conference playoff spot along with San Jose, Utah, and Spokane. The Talons also remain 2 games behind the Dallas Vigilantes with six games to go (one of which against Dallas in two weeks) for the three seed.

The Talons travel to Philadelphia next Friday to take on the Soul at 6:05 PM. The game should be especially important to several Talons players. I'm sure Jamar Ransom wants a shot at former Talons WR Donovan Morgan and Justin Allgood will want to show the team that traded him away what they are missing.

Utah Blaze at Tulsa Talons: Pregame Primer

vs.

Utah Blaze (5-6, 1-4 road) vs. Tulsa Talons (4-7, 2-3 home)

TV: N/A
Stream: Click here
Radio: KRMG 740 (740 AM)
Time: 7:00 CT

Passing Yards per Game: Talons – 222.3 (18th), Blaze – 301.5 (1st)
Rushing Yards per Game: Talons – 51.4 (1st), Blaze – 14.2 (15th)
Total Yards Allowed per Game: Talons – 273.0 (6th), Blaze – 303.5 (14th)

View from the enemy: N/A

Tulsa is coming off a last second loss to the Chicago Rush. The return of Justin Allgood in last week's game was a surprise to many.

Utah coming in: The Blaze were rocked last weekend by the Arizona Rattlers.

THE MATCHUP

Utah is a team that has struggled on the road this season. Also, Utah QB Tommy Grady was tormented by the Talons last season. This could be the key to Tulsa picking up a win.

QB Justin Allgood should get his second start for the Talons this season. If he can continue to gel with the new set of Talons receivers the Talons offense should start to catch fire like last season. The return of Al Hunt off injured reserve this week should help.

On Defense, the Talons have continued to make teams work for every score and grind out situations where the team can win. The loss of DL Colin Bryant to suspension this week may end up being a big factor as pressure on Grady is key.

Also, with a win the Talons will move into a four-tie for the 4th seed in the Conference with San Jose, Utah, and Spokane! Go Talons!

Kickoff at 7:00 CT.

Playoffs? You're talking about Playoffs?

Well actually I am. A lot of people have made comments about how much of a disappointment this season has been. Starting out 0-3. Losing on last second plays on back to back weeks. Countless injuries. Losing veteran players.

However, will all that a side. The Talons are just one game out of the playoffs with 7 more games to play. Even more, the game against Utah this week is much more important than we realize. Utah currently is the four seed in the conference. With a win on Saturday Tulsa would be in a three way tie with Utah and San Jose for the four seed. That's pretty exciting!

Also, the Talons are playing good ball right now. We are the only team on the outside looking that is in the top five in scoring defense (we are third). The Offense has been getting better and if Allgood can click with Copeland and McBroom we could be more dangerous that last season's league leading team.

All this combined with a pretty easy remaining schedule (at least according to arenafootball.com) the Talons are poised to make a strong run into the playoffs and face either Chicago or Arizona. I plan to make either trip if we get there!

So get excited Talons nation because the season really is just starting! Bring all your friends out to the BOK center at 7pm on Saturday and lets help push this team in a victory over the Blaze!

YouTube Tuesday - May 31, 2011

A little bit of Tulsa pride in this week's video. A year an a half ago Tulsa was named the #3 minor league sports market. Lets keep up the good work and everyone invite someone new out to the Talons game on June 11th against former Sooner and YardDawg Tommy Grady!

Talons at Rush - Pregame Primer

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Tulsa Talons (4-6, 2-3 road) vs. Chicago Rush (7-3, 4-1 home)

TV: Comcast Sports Network Chicago (DirectTV 665)
Stream: Click here
Radio: KRMG 740 (740 AM)
Time: 3:00 CT

Passing Yards per Game: Talons – 222.2 (18th), Rush – 228.0 (14th)
Rushing Yards per Game: Talons – 53.7 (1st), Rush – 28.9 (6th)
Total Yards Allowed per Game: Talons – 279.7 (6th), Rush – 299.9 (12th)

View from the enemy: N/A

Tulsa is coming off a tough loss to the Kansas City where the Talons lost on a last second KC touchdown, when Tulsa failed to recover a fumble on the play before.

Chicago coming in: The Rush played last Sunday with an impressive win over the Dallas Vigilantes to regain the lead in the division.

THE MATCHUP

The stats and matchups aren't much different that the team played a fews week ago: See the last preview.

QB Matt Bassuener is likely to get the start. However, Mitch Allner has said that Justin Allgood will get playing time. What concerns me is that Allgood looked terrible is his last start against Chicago, going 12-22 and 2 TDs to 3 INTs. Matt wasn't impressive either is their last matchup going 17-31 and 3TDs to 3INTs.

On Defense, the Talons pass rush of Victor DeGrate, Collin Bryant, and Nekos Brown will need to be stellar once again. In the previous matchup, Rush QB Russ Michna was harassed all game long and the Rush committed 6 turnovers. The Defense will need to continue to force turnovers to help the team to a big road win.

Kickoff at 3:00 CT.

Command at Talons: Pregame Primer

vs.

Kansas City Command (2-7, 1-4 road) vs. Tulsa Talons (4-5, 2-2 home)

TV: N/A
Stream: Click here
Radio: KRMG 740 (740 AM)
Time: 7:00 CT

Passing Yards per Game: Talons – 217.7 (18th), Command – 297.2 (3rd)
Rushing Yards per Game: Talons – 59.1 (1st), Command – 18.2 (13th)
Total Yards Allowed per Game: Talons – 278.2 (5th), Command – 299.4 (14th)

View from the enemy: N/A

Tulsa is coming off a National televised win against the New Orleans VooDoo. The return of Justin Allgood this week has added a lot more attention to the Talons this week.

Kansas City coming in: The Command played last Friday losing a tough one to the Tampa Bay Storm.

THE MATCHUP

Just as in the Chicago game two weeks ago, the numbers lie in this one. The Command is near the top of the league on the offensive side of the ball. However, Kansas City is just 2-7 and put their top 2 receivers on Injured Reserve this week. While Tulsa continues to prove that defense and rushing still matter in this league.

QB Matt Bassuener will get a break this week playing against one of the worst defenses in the league. However, as stated above, he will have Justin Allgood standing behind him the whole game. It will be fun to see how Matt responds to that.

On Defense, the Talons will need to continue to be physical and cause turnovers. While the Talons are -5 in turnover differential, they have come alive since the Arizona game and have a +1 turnover differential and are getting more turnovers on downs.

Kickoff at 7:00 CT.

YouTube Tuesday - May 17, 2011

It was great getting to see the Talons on National TV friday night. Here is one of the more memorable moments:

Allgood to return to the Talons?

One Philadelphia outlet is reporting it:

The Soul pulled the plug on quarterback Justin Allgood yesterday, sending him back to the Tulsa Talons in a three-team deal that netted Philadelphia an offensive lineman and future considerations.

I don't really know what to think. Allgood put up impressive numbers last season with the Talons. But this is Matt Bassuener's team now. As much as we loved Justin, he was inconsistent. He will lack the chemistry Bassuener has created with Troy McBroom and Brandon Copeland. So easily stated, I can't see Allgood starting.

However, it does give the Talons a better backup. We saw how Bobby Reid did at the end of the Chicago game. He could not get the ball off. Took a safety. Not something to inspire confidence in a backup. With Allgood the Talons will have a quality backup.

All in all, it could be good news for Allgood who has been benched in Philadelphia. Now he can return home to his child and girlfriend in Tulsa.

Talons at VooDoo: Pregame Primer

vs.

Tulsa Talons (3-5, 1-3 road) vs. New Orleans VooDoo (2-6, 0-4 home)

TV: NFLNetwork (Cox 252, CoxHD 723, DirectTV 212)
Stream: n/a
Radio: KRMG 740 (740 AM)
Time: 7:00 CST

Passing Yards per Game: Talons – 216.8 (18th), VooDoo – 231.4 (14th)
Rushing Yards per Game: Talons – 58.6 (1st), VooDoo – 30.4 (5th)
Total Yards Allowed per Game: Talons – 282.9 (7th), VooDoo – 279.1 (5th)

View from the enemy: N/A

Tulsa is coming off the best win of the season taking down Chicago in impressive fashion last Saturday. Talons continue to evolve into one of the better Defenses in the league (5th overall in the past 5 games, see "Last Five Games" stats here).

New Orleans coming in: The VooDoo played last Saturday upsetting the Kansas City Command behind a defense that had two pick-6s.

THE MATCHUP

Last week, the Offense behind QBMatt Bassuener gave up three turnovers, which cannot happen again. Troy McBroom continues to be one of the most dominant WRs in the league and new addition JJ Payne adds a much needed traditional rushing attack. If the offense can continue to click then they should be able to put up good numbers on the board.

On Defense, the entire defense seems to bring the pain. Last week the Talons defense forced several fumbles and came up with six turnovers. The pass rush gets a much needed break this week against a VooDoo line that has had trouble protecting the quarterback. There is still one unknown at the moment, however, as VooDoo coach Stingley has yet to name a starting QB for tonight.

Kickoff at 7:00 CT.