PHOENIX, AZ – The Tucson Sugar Skulls will travel north on the Interstate-10 to take on their in-state rivals, the Arizona Rattlers on Saturday June 12 at 5:10 p.m. MT. The Sugar Skulls are winless in two all-time matchups against the Rattlers, but Sugar Skulls head coach Dixie Wooten is 4-0 against Arizona in all-time matchups.
Regaining Ground
After an explosive performance in their second game, the Sugar Skulls offense relied on running back Mike Jones to carry the scoring load against the Iowa Barnstormers as he carried the ball for two touchdowns on the day.
The receiving duo of Ryan Balentine and Juju Augustine were everywhere against Iowa, each making seven receptions for 67 and 56 yards, respectively. Quarterback Demry Croft passed for over 150 yards and added 22 more on the ground. Balentine enters the weekend just 49 yards away from becoming the IFL's all-time receiving yardage lead.
Airtight Defense
For the second week in a row, the Sugar Skull defense held the IFL's top offense to below 40 points. Holding the Barnstormers to 13 points in the first half, the defense did its part as defensive back Mike Minter grabbed his second interception of the season, giving him back to back games with an interception.
In his first game as a Sugar Skull, defensive lineman Isame Faciane tallied the Sugar Skulls' first sack of the season as the front line hounded quarterback Daquan Neal, allowing only 168 total yards on the day. No rusher for the Barnstormer had over 70 yards as the defense flew to the ball on every possession.
Rallying for the Rattlers
This will be the third all-time matchup between the Rattlers and the Sugar Skulls, with the last game ending in a one-point, overtime thriller that went to Arizona. Arizona is 2-1 on the season, coming off a win against the Green Bay Blizzard. The Rattlers boast the fourth-best scoring offense and defense in the IFL, with the Sugar Skulls placing third in total defense after their stellar outing against the Barnstormers.
The Rattlers are led by quarterback Drew Powell, the 2018 IFL MVP. Powell earned his MVP with head coach Dixie Wooten and the Iowa Barnstormers during their championship season. In three games this season, Powell has seven rushing touchdowns and four passing touchdowns. Powell has led the Rattlers to 15 rushing touchdowns to start the season.
Click here to purchase tickets for the Sugar Skulls' matchup against the Arizona Rattlers, which will take place at Phoenix Suns Arena on Saturday, June 12 at 5:10 p.m. The game will be nationally televised as the "IFL Game of the Week" exclusively on Stadium and WatchStadium.com.
The Sugar Skulls will return home on Saturday, June 19 to face the Massachusetts Pirates at 6:05 p.m. Click here to purchase tickets for that game, as well as any other Sugar Skulls home games.
