Tulsa, Okla. — Tulsa Oilers Football, proud member of the IFL, hosts the Sioux Falls Storm at home for the first time.
LAST TIME OUT Tulsa hosted the Iowa Barnstormers for the first time, a team in which they beat 54-48 back on April 22 in Des Moines for their first win in franchise history. The Oilers sought after the season series sweep on June 10. Tulsa scored on the opening drive of the game via a 4-yard reception on fourth down by Alexis Rosario into the endzone with 11:01 left in the first to give the Oilers a 6-0 lead. Jonathan Nance helped add to the Oilers' lead thanks to a 4-yard catch and score on fourth down again to make it 12-0 Tulsa, 2:47 remaining in the opening frame. After quickly trailing, Tulsa responded right back with 3:48 left in the half, scoring a touchdown on a Nance 8-yard catch to give the Oilers the lead back 18-14. Gabriel Rui for Iowa kicked a 24-yard field goal with no time left in the half to cut the Tulsa lead to 18-17 at the end of two quarters. Nance scored his third touchdown of the night on an 8-yard catch to make it interesting again, the Barnstormers held a 27-26 lead at the 5:44 mark remaining in the third. With just 0:30 left in the third, Jo-El Shaw rushed for two yards for a touchdown to help tie the game 34-34. Wimbush scored back-to-back touchdowns to open the fourth quarter scoring for Iowa to help them leap out to a 48-34 advantage before Montero Dubose scored the last points for Tulsa with 0:26 left in the game, getting into the end zone on a 2-yard catch to bring the final score to 48-40 Barnstormers.
FOCUS AHEAD The Oilers seek their first home victory of the season on June 17, against the Sioux Falls Storm. Tulsa will look to bounce back from an uncharacteristic unproductive performance in the second half, just a week ago. Although Tulsa got off to the start they were looking for, they were unable to maintain a lead, something that has been emphasized leading up to this Week Fourteen matchup. The Oilers have added manpower on the defensive line via Jesse Chavis, at running back with Dalton James, and kicker upon the addition of Victor Leventritt. Chavis, formerly played with the Nebraska Danger and the Bismarck Bucks in the IFL. Prior to his professional career, the new Oilers defensive lineman played at the University of Texas El Paso, where he played 19 games, recording 37 tackles, with four being for loss including a sack. James, most recently played with the Duke City Gladiators, recording two games and picking up 52 yards on the ground via 13 attempts for an average of 3.5 yards per carry, adding a touchdown to his name as well. The new Tulsa running back played college football at Missouri Southern State University, where he rushed for 913 yards over 25 games, scoring three touchdowns, and averaging 3.7 yards per carry. Leventritt, has played for Duke City in 2021, going 10 for 11 on PAT's. In 2022 the Oilers kicker played for San Diego, going 6 for 6 on attempts and most recently this season in 2023 with Tucson going 29 for 33. Leventritt formally played in the AAL and AIF prior to his time in the IFL.
HOW TO "RAIN" ON THE STORM'S PARADE The Sioux Falls Storm are in a heated playoff race. Their motivation to keep pace with Green Bay is high. They won't be an easy task for the Oilers this week. Utilizing the momentum of a wide receiver like Jonathan Nance for Tulsa can be a huge boost this week. Nance has made major strides amongst the wide receiver core in Tulsa and is coming off a hat-trick performance with three touchdowns last week. The Oilers will need to also contain QB Lorenzo Brown, who has thrown 28 TD's.
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