MICHAEL COTTON RETURNS TO TEAM

Michael Cotton has returned to the team. Michael decided it was in his best interest to return to the Xpress after visiting the Texas Knights for a few practices. When Mr. Cotton was asked why he decided to look else where to play the 2011 season he responded " I thought Tre was not returning to the team and I thought the team would be moving in another direction and I did not think the chemistry would still be with the team like it was in the 2010 season. But I am back now and I am ready to pick up where I left off" With him returning to the team it gives us more outside speed and and adds depth to the position. The Xpress organization is glad he is back and so are both QB's Fields and Chism.

Xpress and AllStar Part Ways

The Dfw Xpress and all star wide out Michael Cotton have parted ways. The front office made a call and it was confirmed Mr. Cotton has decided to take his game to another franchise. Mr. Cotton did not notify the club that he had decided not to renew his contract making him a free agent. He decided to sign with the Texas Knights a franchise that finished the 2010 season with a 4-6 record. With the emergence of James Chism and the signing of Bobby Duncan the Xpress will not miss a beat. Michael brought us a deep threat receiver that the Vernon style offense always has, but as always the organization finds a deep threat to man the Z wide out spot. With the Titans it was 6'7 Kevin Massenburg 10T.D, 07 Bryson Clarke 10 T.D, 08 Johnny Williams 9 T.D, 09-Rashard Manning 10 t.d, and 2010 Michael Cotton 8 T.D, and in 2011 it will be James Chism. Michael put up phenomenal receiving yard numbers over 600 yards on just 18 receptions. The Xpress feel like Chism will better those numbers as a full time starter, he played Q.B. and receiver in the 2010 season, as a wide out his 3 catches for 118 yards and 2 scores showed enough promise that prompt the Xpress to move him into the starting line-up. With the signing of Free Agent wide out Bobby Duncan and Rookie sensation Anthony Caston in the slot and the returning all time leading receiver Chris Choice the Xpress offense will not miss a beat. The Xpress family would like to wish Mr. Cotton well with his new Franchise.

XPRESS MAKE MAJOR MOVE

The DFW XPRESS made a major announcement today that they were returning to play in the TUFL (Texas United Football League) in 2011. The Xpress won the NMLF Championship in 2010 and were slated to play for a national Championship this fall. Many leagues called and wanted the 2A State Champion to join there league but after heavy consideration and positive behind closed door meetings with John Kirkpatrick(Hunt County Longhorns) Shaun Ellis(Collin County Rattlers) and Brommett(Ft Worth Avengers) and positive conversations with Larry Anding and E-mails with Gary Craig I decided the best place to play and for the Xpress to play the best competition would be to play in the TUFL. The other leagues do have some very good teams but the TUFL has better competition on a weekly basis. The Xpress has gotten the reputation as being a premier team, and for the organization to continue to grow I feel like it is important to the organization to play teams like the Longhorns, Rattlers, Avengers,Bullets,and Shreveport just to name a few teams that will make the team better. Last season we finished with an overall record of 11-2 and we played any and everyone that would stand up and play us we even had teams that was scheduled to play us and backed out the week of, but we understood why they did not want to get rolled by the train. The Xpress played two full seasons in the 07,08 year and compiled a 12-8 record since the team left, the organization has compiled a 19-4 record, so going back to the TUFL will help make the TUFL stronger and help our organization gain more notoriety. The goal this year is to win the TUFL Championship and be crowned the 3A State Champion to go along with our 2010 2A State Championship. Keep an eye on the 2011 season and see if the Xpress Train can continue to roll.

Wondering

Showing curiosity. Why is this important you may ask? Well I will elaborate on this word. I have been around semi-pro, Minor League Football, or what this level of football was called over ten years ago by some was knuckle head ball where all the players do is fight! I been doing this for longer then any other coach in the DFW area, and each year someone starts rumors that my team will not be that good, or he will not field a team or his team will fold, and it's funny they say that, because the Xpress has an over all record of 31-10, 19-4 over the last 2 years, my Dallas Titans team I had before I retired had a record of 22-9, 15-5 the last 2 season. My first year owning a franchise the Falcons 1st year record was 0-10 the next year 2-8 the third year we were 4-6, I have always made teams improve where ever I coach! Now the Xpress Organization Is The Premier Team In Dallas Period! The Avengers are the best team in FT-Worth, Hunt County is the best team in East Texas and the Colin County Rattlers are the best team in the North Texas/upper Plano area. There is not a team that is worth playing that can beat this Franchise we proved that this past season! I may come off as being arrogant and I apologize if that is how you feel but oh well, I am sick and tired of outsiders saying what is going on in the Xpress organization. If you do not live in my house what do you know about what's going on behind my closed door? You are Wondering, but when you cannot figure it out you start rumors. Well let me be the first to let you in on a secret sense you are wondering, we have 35 rookies that are trying out for this 2010 championship team! and 30 returners from the 2010 championship team! so in case you are wondering will we be as strong as the 2010 team, what do you think!!!!!

TRY-OUTS

The Xpress had it's first try-out for the 2011 season and the turn out was great! with over 25 new faces in attendance and a few veterans that showed up for support the try-out was a success. Players like MLB Sam Crawford, DT Robert Teal, WR Chris Choice, TE Kendrick Matlock and WR Melvin Harris attended the try-out and gave pointers to the rookies that were in attendance. The Xpress Coaching staff sent the players through several NFL drills and received good times through out the drills. The players worked very hard throughout the try outs. There was a good show of talent that attended and the Xpress are very interested in signing several from the try out, the next try out will be OCT 3rd check back for more details.

Xpress Take Bite Out Of Vipers

The Xpress traveled to Austin to take on yet another team from another league, this time it was the Austin Vipers of the NAFL. The NAFL is a perennial league that plays during the summer and all the teams travel to play games in different states. The NAFL is arguably the highest ranking league at this level of football. The Xpress showed up at Round Rock ISD ready to show the Vipers and all Nay-Sayer's why the Xpress were the 2010 NMLF Champions. The Vipers got on the board early on their first drive a 9 play 65 yard drive to take an early 7-0 lead. the Xpress showed their big play capability when QB Fields hooked up with WR. James Chism on a 62 yard T.D. pass the 2 point conversion was no good and just like that the score was 7-6 Vipers. The Xpress defense showed why it is ranked in the top ten in the state by stopping the Vipers offense and giving the ball back to the Xpress offense this time Fields found WR Chris Choice on a 24 yard strike to put the Xpress up 12-7. The Xpress defense caused the Vipers offense to fumble the ball at the Xpress 48 yard line, this time Fields hooked up with WR Michael Cotton on a 62 yard score, Fields QB keeper for the 2 point conversion was good and the Xpress now had a 20 -7 lead. The Vipers did manage to get a F.G. right before the half to cut the lead to 20-10. The second half started off in the Vipers Favor when the Xpress defense was put in a bad situation inside their own 18 yard line 3 plays later the score was now 20-17 Xpress. After an Xpress punt, the Vipers offense had the ball for 5 plays before Demarcus Nixon intercepted his 9TH pass of the season. The Xpress offense kept the Vipers defense off balance with the running back tandem of Roberts and Franks. Roberts 11 carries 55 yards and a T.D. Frank 12 carries for 85 yards the Xpress offense drove the ball down the field with runs and passes and Roberts capped off the drive with a 4 yard score and push the lead to 28-17. On The Vipers next offensive series OLB George Tambah intercepted the Vipers and this time Fields found WR. Melvin Harris on a 18 yard strike to put the game out of reach and push the score to 34-17. The Vipers would not quit, but once again Nixon intercepted his second pass of the game to give the Xpress another chance at scoring. The offense could not do much and gave the ball back to the Vipers offense and the Vipers Q.B. connected on a 18 yard strike to cut the lead to 34-24 with just over 6 mins left in the game. The Xpress offense stalled once again and the Vipers offense had new life only to have that life die after OLB Tambah intercepted his 2ND pass of the game. The Xpress offense returned back to the field on a mission to score again this time Fields found Harris again on a 12 yard strike and after a David Steele extra point the Final score DFW Xpress 41 the Austin Vipers 24. Xpress have played teams from every league in Texas, except for the Gulf Coast league and have been dominant against every team. (Wins over the Killeen Knights 29-19 TUFL) (Win over the Terrell Sharks 27-10 EFL) ( Win over Austin Vipers 41-24 NAFL) ( Tie with The Texas Knights 12-12 MPFL which easily should have been a blow out win for the Xpress) What the Xpress displayed this year was an attitude any team any league any place we will be victorious. Lets see what happens in 2011 Stay Tuned.

Championship

The DFW played the Kaufman Sharks in the NMLF 2010 Championship in front of a crowd of 400 - 500 fans. The Xpress train started rolling early when rookie QB sensation James Chism hooked up with 2010 All Star Wide Out Chris Choice on a 27 yard T.D. pass and after a Cadenas Kick the Xpress went up 7-0. The Sharks could not muster much offense against the Xpress Monsters of the Midway defense on their first drive. The Xpress offense went back to work this time when Q.B. Tre Fields hooked up with All Star wide out Michael Cotton on a 55 yard T.D. grab for a 14-0 lead. The Xpress defense put up another defensive stand and the Xpress could not get rolling Fields was sacked in the end zone for a Sharks safety that made the score 14-2 Xpress half time lead. After half time the Sharks had the momentum but the defense stopped the Sharks and the train started to roll again this time Fields hooked with All Star T.E. Kendrick Matlock for a 38 yard score and the Xpress were up 20 -2 and the game was basically out of reach at that time. The Xpress defense had key players to stand out in the championship game. Middle Linebacker Sam Crawford and rookie Standout Stanley Sterns kept the sharks powerful running game bottle up, while free safety turned defensive end Anthony Stevenson kept constant pressure on the Sharks Q.B.'s. The defensive tackles Derrick Blount and Robert Teal kept the middle of the field running lanes closed down. With just under 9 mins to go inn the game the Xpress offense wet back to work constantly confusing the Sharks defense with the run and the pass when Rocky Frank went in un touched for an 8 yard T.D. to make the score 27-2 and with under 3 mins left to go in the game the Sharks scored a meaningless T.D. to give you a final score of Xpress 27 Sharks 10.

CHAMPIONSHIP

In a game that was classified as a grudge match between the Xpress and the Storm was a game with many big hits, long T.D. runs and interceptions for T.D.'s. The Xpress came in the game coming off a blow out win a week earlier over the Storm by a score of 38-0. 2 weeks earlier the Xpress traveled to longview to take on the Storm and lost in overtime 20-14. The game was set out to be a battle from the beginning to the end. Tempers flared before the game, both teams were determined to get respect before the kick-off, the dislike for one another was like the hate the Dallas Cowboys have for the NY Giants. The game was the most important game of the year for both teams. Winner advances to the NMLF Championship! The game started off slow with big hits. Kicker Nestor Cadenas kicked a 32 yard F.G. to put the Xpress up 3-0. The next Offensive possession for the Storm ended when Safety Demarcus Nixon intercepted his first pass of the game and his 7th of the year, he returned it 33 yards and that ended the half with the Xpress leading 3-0. The second half heated up, Qb. Tre Fields was intercepted and the pass was returned for a T.D. and gave the Storm an early 6-3 lead. The Xpress defense played the best game of the season forcing 4 interceptions and delivering vicious hits all game long. The Xpress run game was successful all during the game, the runningback by committee worked out perfect. Ron Hallum brought the physical run to the game, James Roberts brought his finesse Guy Smith brought his quickness and Rocky Frank brought his change of direction. All game long this kept the Storm defense off balance. The Xpress offense got the running game going in the fourth quarter and moved the ball down to the 1 yard line when Q.B. Tre Fields took it in from the 1 yard line, to put the Xpress up 9-3 and the storm started fading away. After a Field's interception the Storm found new life drove down to the Xpress 17 yard line and kicked a 34 yard F.G. On the next Storm kick-off the Xpress got a good return the ball was brought back to the Xpress 45 yard line, the very next play Frank took the hand off and went 55 yards for a T.D. that sealed the faith. The Storm had a chance to win the game but the Storm Q.B. was intercepted by Wisner Derosier that ended the chance for a Storm win. And sent he Xpress to the 2010 NMLF CHAMPIONSHIP.

Game of The Decade

The Xpress played a game down in Gainsville Texas with only 25 players against the C.C Outlaws turned out to be nail biter. The Xpress had the ball first and moved the ball pretty good only to have the drive stall. The Outlaws then received the ball and immediately got their ground game going early, with the Xpress missing 5 starters on defense, the Outlaws moved the ball quickly down the field to take a 6-0 lead early. The Xpress answered right back with a 17 yard T.D. reception by all time reception leader Chris Choice. The extra point was fumbled and returned for 2 Pt's for the Outlaws and the score was 8-6. The Xpress then turned over the ball and C.C. went back to work this time with passes and runs to take a 16-6 half time lead. The Xpress players still had the feeling that they could win. After halftime the Outlaws received the ball drove the length of the field and scored again to make the score 24-6. On the kick-off Mr. excitement Isiah Johnson took the kick-off 85 yards for an Xpress T.D. and just like that the score was 24-13, but the Outlaws were not done scoring. The Outlaws this time went to the air and scored on a 65 yard T.D. pass and push their lead to 32-13. The Xpress still had a sense of pride and determination. Michael Cotton who did not have a catch in the first half had 4 catches for 190 yards and 2 T.D. in the second half. The first score was a 39 yard strike and a Cadenas kick and the score was now 32-20, the Xpress defense made a major stop and a mishap on the Outlaws punt team gave the Xpress the ball at the 1 yard line the Xpress scored again with a Q.B. plunge after a Cadenas kick the Xpress were down 32-27 with just under 5 mins left in the game. The Xpress defense played superb down the stretch and held the Outlaws again to a punt and Mr. Cotton went to work with a final 79 yard T.D. to seal the biggest comeback in franchise history 33-32.

Cant Weather The Storm

The Xpress traveled to Long view to take on a Storm team that was looking to rebound from a lost to the Sharks the week before. On the Xpress 1st possession the Offense moved the ball successfully on the ground and moved the ball down to the storm 15 yard line only to have Nelson snap the ball in the ground and the Xpress missed a opportunity to get 3 points early. The Xpress defense got the team out to an early lead when they forced a turnover and middle LB Sam Crawford took it in for the first score of the game, the extra point was no good and at the beginning of the 2ND quarter the Xpress were leading 6-0. The Storm would not go away they immediately went to the air and threw a 39 yard T.D. to take a 7-6 lead. The Xpress offense continued to have problems moving the ball. After a Matlock punt the Storm went to the air again this time scoring on a 27 yard T.D. that put the Storm up 14-6. The Xpress got an excellent return from return specialist Isiah Johnson down to the Storm 15 yard line, with 28 seconds left to go in the half and knowing the team would come away with a least 3 points, only to have Nelson get sacked after holding the ball too long and another 3 points left on the field. At the start of the second half Isiah Johnson Took the opening kick-off down to the Storm 22 yard line, and once again the Xpress came away with no points. After the Xpress defense forced a punt the Xpress inserted back-up quarter back James Chism and immediately received a spark when Chism hooked up with Larry Cooper on a 48 yard pass 4 plays later Rocky Frank took it in from 6 yards out, the 2 point conversion was good by Guy Smith and to start the 4Th quarter the score was tied 14-14, The Xpress had many opportunities to score but could not capitalize on the many turnovers that the Xpress defense forced throughout the game. In the end the Xpress lose another close one this time in overtime 20-14.

Re Signing

The DFW Xpress released Michael Cotton only to resign him hours later. Coach Vernon had decided to release Mr. Cotton because of his lack of attendance at practice. Coach Vernon was notified by Mr. Cotton on why he had been missing team practices, the conversation lasted about 5 mins and end the end Cotton was resigned. I personally want to apologize to Mr. Cotton for the miscommunication on my part on the mistake of releasing him.

Released

The DFW Xpress have released Wide Receiver Michael Cotton, for conduct detrimental to the team. Mr.Cotton who was coming off a career game against the Sharks with 3 catches for 90 yards and a T.D. in the Xpress 7-6 win. The Xpress tried diligently to satisfy the Star receiver but could not get him to give full commitment to the team. What started out to as promising signing for the Xpress ended up as a disappointing lost for the team. The Xpress have released two star wide outs in the past month because of both players lack of practice participation. What this does for the Xpress it puts the roll players in a position to step up and produce. Players like Melvin Harris, Larry Cooper, and Andrew Ruben, and with the re-signing of Rocky Frank the Xpress offense will be fine. The Xpress wish Mr. Cotton the best and maybe both sides can come to an agreement on re-signing him for the 2011 season.

Xpress Capture Sharks

The Xpress and Sharks played for the 2nd time in 2 weeks, both teams had something to prove, the Xpress wanted to prove that the team did not need a late game F.G. to beat the Sharks, and the Sharks wanted to prove that the Xpress late game heroics was a fluke. The Xpress made some position changes, starting back up Q.B. James Chism, taking T.E. K. Matlock and moving him to W.R. and starting Guy Smith at R.B. The mind set was to try and just start the offense early. Chism showed his game inexperience fumbling 2 snaps losing one of them, and showing more of his talent to run rather then displaying his arm. Guy Smith and Ron Hallum were effective running the ball but the offensive consistently made mistakes with penalty's. The game was tied 0-0 with the Xpress manageing to rack up more offensive yards then the Sharks. At the start of the 4Th quarter and the score still tied 0-0 the Xpress inserted Kevin Nelson back in at Q.B. and he took the Xpress down field on a 5 play 75 yard drive while completing 3-4 passes the last completion to Michael Cotton for the only Xpress T.D. with a Cadenas kick the Xpress were leading 7-0. On the in suing kickoff the Sharks got a excellent return that could have been a T.D. but kicker Cadenas made a game tackling T.D. save at the Xpress 45 yard line. The Sharks pounded the ball down to the 3 yard line and 1 play later the score was now 7-6, Coach Hambrick head coach of the Sharks decided to go for the win and opted to go for 2 and the Xpress defense stepped up and made the stop. The Sharks kicked-off to the Xpress and the Xpress took over at their own 42 yard line, the Xpress managed to have little success running the football late in the game and on 4 and 3 at the Sharks 36 yard line the Xpress were stopped 2 yards short of the first down marker. The Sharks took over at their own 35 yard line with 1:23 seconds left to go in the game, but on the second play of the series CB. Chris Hicks picked up a fumble returned 13 yards to the Sharks 22 yard line, and that sealed the game for the Xpress, and gave the Xpress the tie breaker over the Sharks.

Outlaws Out Run Xpress

In a game that was suppose to be a offensive display turned out to be a defensive ball game. Both teams showed how good their defenses were and how stagnant their offense can be. The Outlaws were coming off a dismantled win over the East Texas Storm 42-18 while the Xpress were coming in on an emotional high after winning a nail biter over an undefeated Terrell Sharks team. The Xpress offense has been sputtering the past few weeks and has had to rely on it's defense to win games for the team. Chris Hicks the 2009 Xpress rookie of the year helped the Xpress get on the board first with a fumble recovery and return for a T.D. QB Kevin Nelson scored on the very next play for a 2 point conversion, that put the Xpress up 8-0. The Outlaws did not score until late in the 3rd quarter to narrow the lead to 8-6. Both defenses continued to play hard, forcing the Outlaws to punt, Punt returner sensation Isiah Johnson took the ball from the Xpress 27 and returned it to the Outlaws 33 yard line the offense then moved the ball down to the 17 that was as far as the Xpress could get before the offense had to rely on points from Kicking sensation Nestor Cadenas as he kicked a 34 yard F.G. to put the Xpress up 11-6. The outlaws never gave up, this time with less then 7 minutes left to go in the game the Outlaws Q.B. found one of his favorite targets for a late game T.D. and give the Xpress their 2nd defeat of the season 12-11.

XPRESS CAPTURE SHARKS

March 27th The DFW Xpress took a road trip down to Terrell to take on an unbeaten Terrell Sharks the results were a slim win for the home town heroes. With many changes occurring , from players being demoted, players quitting the team, and players having injuries did not stop the Xpress from being victorious. Several Players stepped up their game, backup RB Jesse Wyatt scored the Xpress only T.D. of the game with a 3 yard plunge off the left side of the line, James Roberts had a career high in rushing attempts with 17 carries for 62 yards, 2009 all star nominee Chris choice had 4 receptions for over 40 yards, and Melvin Harris had 3 catches for over 44 yards. The Xpress nasty defense gave up only 5 first down the entire game. With the score being 7-0 in favor of the Xpress, going into the middle of the 3rd quarter the team seemed to self destruct! first back-up quarter James Chism was caught in the end zone for a safety. On the next Xpress offensive series Xpress starting QB Kevin Nelson threw a pass intended for Chris Choice and the pass was intercepted and run back for a 37 yard T.D. and just like that a 7-0 lead was now a 9-7 turnaround. Late in the 4Th quarter the Xpress defense performed another miracle for the Xpress offense the Defense forced a punt by the Sharks and the Xpress started on the sharks 47 yard line, Nelson then scrambled for a first down taking the ball down to he Sharks 31 yard line where Nestor Cadenas kicked a career long and game winning 48 yard F.G. with just 23 seconds left to go in the game.

Parting Ways

In a move that was a surprise to coach Vernon and the Xpress staff, was the fact that Quentin Sarpy has decided to leave the team. Sarpy contacted coach Vernon and informed the coach via text message that he had too much on his plate and he has decided to quit the team. Sarpy was coming off a career game where he had a defensive T.D. and 5 tackles against the Killeen Knights. The Xpress family wish him good luck in his future endeavors. In other news 2009 all star wide receiver Rashaad Manning has also quit the team, but for a different reason. Coach Vernon contacted Manning about him being demoted from starting wide out to 3rd receiver. The initial response from Manning was he was ok with the demotion, but on 3/22/10 Manning informed the Xpress head coach via text message that he was leaving the team and he wished the Xpress good luck on the rest of the season.

Knights Dethroned

The Xpress had their second game of season and just like the first game the Xpress came away with a win. The game with the Killeen Knights was a game that had a lot of hard hitting, Turnovers, Rushing T.D., and Passing T.D's. The scoring started fast, the first play of the first series for the Knights ended in a T.D. for for the Xpress. L.B. Quentin Sarpy stripped the ball from the Knights running back and returned it 37 yards for the first Xpress T.D. Nestor Cadenas extra point was good, and just like that the Xpress were up 7-0. The Knights took the second series and marched down the field on an 8 play 62 yard drive for a T.D. and they were down 7-6. The Xpress first offensive series did not mount any positive yards, the Knights took their second series down the field after intercepting a Nelson pass that was intended for Manning. Six plays later the Knights QB hooked up on a 28 yard T.D. pass right over the outreached arms of corner back Wisner Derosier, and at the half the Xpress were down 13-7. But in football their is always a first half and a second half, and the Xpress owned the second half. The Xpress got it together the train started rolling. The Defense turned up the heat and started forcing turnovers to give the Xpress offense extra chances to get the high scoring offense on track. with the Xpress down 13-7 the Xpress defense forced a fumble and 5 plays later FB Mack Harris scored with a 1 yard plunge, the extra point was blocked and that made the score 13-13. The next offensive series for the Knights ended when DB Chris Hicks forced a fumble at the Xpress 22 yard line Nelson hooked up with Manning on a 77 yard completion down to the 1, 3 plays later Harris scored again and the Xpress were up 19-13. The Xpress defense kept the Knights offense off balance and the Xpress offense went back to work this time with rookie QB James Chism leading the way, Chism hooked up with wide out Michael Cotton on a 30 yard completion and the Xpress came away with 3 points and made the Score 22-13. The Knights would not quit the next possession ended with a 9 play 73 yard dive for a T.D. the extra point was no good and with little over 6 mins to go in the game the Xpress were leading 22-19. After the Knights defense forced the Xpress to punt, the Knights took over at their own 42 yard line, 2 plays later the Xpress defense forced another fumble this time Strong side LB Stanley Sterns took the ball 41 yards for the final Xpress T.D. and with the Cadenas kick the final score 29-19. Xpress have win number 2. The Xpress have a bye 3/13/10 and will travel to Port City to face a strong Jaguars team that were the 2008 T.U.F.L. Champion.

Caged

The DFW Xpress started off the season with a bang, by caging the Lone Star Pitbulls. The Xpress started off fast with Nelson hooking up with Manning on a 45 yard completion and taking the ball down to the 7 yard line. 3 plays later Nelson hooked up with Chris Choice on a 4 yard T.D. pass, the extra point was good just like that 3 minutes into the game the Xpress were up 7-0. The defense forced a turnover and 5 plays and 36 yards later Fullback Eerick Brown took it in from the 2 yard line and at the end of the 1st quarter the Xpress were leading 14-0. The beginning of the 2ND quarter was just like the first quarter, an air show and a ground attack! Nelson hooked up with Manning again this time on a 65 yard T.D. that put the Xpress up 21-o, the Pitbulls tried to put a drive together,that was ended with a forced fumble by the Xpress defense that was lead by 2009 All star LB Sam Crawford, 2010 rookie sensation Stanley Sterns and the stingy secondary lead by All star CB Chris Hicks and veteran Wisner Derosier. The Xpress offense went back to work, with it's finesse running game lead by Guy Smith and James Roberts, and right before the half, Smith took it in from 2 yards out and putting the Xpress up 28-0 at the half. The 2ND half was a little different the Pitbulls made some adjustments and sustained a few offensive drives to keep the Xpress offense off the field, but could not get any scoring from those drives. In the 4Th quarter Fullback Mack Harris put the final nail in the coffin by scoring from 3 yards out and putting the cage over the Pitbulls by a final score of 35-0

Trying to Succeed

Many attempts by leagues, teams, and players fell through in their attempt to shut down the Xpress for the 2010 season. Many things were said, and done to keep the Xpress from playing a 2010 season. Many lies from those that are true liars, were told about me and about the Xpress team. Things that were said about me that were not true! but I guess because I was carrying myself like the man I am, and was not retaliating and saying things about those who were slandering me must have made people think that things that were being said about me must be true. Well I am here to tell that they were not true. I was always taught that their is always 3 sides to every story, theirs, mine and the truth. I am not the type of person that slander people, are certain individuals to get self gain, I have nothing to benefit from doing this. Their are those that claim they have forced me out of this level of football, those that gave me a bad recommendations to play in another league, and that league decided to second guess themselves about the Xpress playing against their teams, but it could just be that they were afraid of competition. The other league's owner has held a grudge against me since 2000 when he called me a STUPID NIGGER! but it's said that the older you get the wiser and more knowledgeable you become, but I guess when you are already ignorant you can not become wiser or more knowledgeable, What really amazes me is that when a person really knows your personal business why would that individual slander you? maybe it's because they know you are not childish and that you look over people who do and say childish things. Well with the help from a few people in the football world, I will keep their names anonymous.The Xpress will be kicking off the season this Saturday Feb.27Th at 6:00 pm. In the end those that tried to succeed DID NOT!!!!!!!!!!!. I want to personally thank those 2 individuals for all their help and support, they know who they are. ( THANK YOU ).

Major Announcement

With the NMLF suspending the 2010 season in preparation of the 2011 season, the DFW Xpress will be playing the 2010 season under a TUFL/EFL schedule!! Do to one of the NMLF franchises ceasing operations for the 2010 season the remaining NMLF teams decided it would be best if the remaining teams play the 2010 schedule within other leagues. The Xpress organization feels that the 2010 Xpress team is as strong as any team in the metroplex and what better way to prove it, by playing more competitive teams for the 2010 season. The Xpress will play teams like the 2008 TUFL Champion Hunt County Longhorns, the always powerful FT Worth Stampede, The Collin County Rattlers, and Cooke County of the EFL just to name a few. The Xpress will have to put up some offensive and defensive numbers that the 2009 team show cased in order to prove to the nay-sayers that the 2009 8-2 record was the real deal. Stay tuned for more to come.

Stay Tuned For Major Announcement

The DFW XPRESS will make a major announcement on 1/12/10 at 9:00 am tune in to find out what the major announcement is. It will be a bombshell!!!!!!!!!!!

Tie Game

The Xpress game vs the Texas Knights this past Saturday on 2/6/10 ended in a 12-12 tie. The game started off like all Xpress game generally do with the Xpress scoring on their their first play from scrimmage. Last year the deep connection was Fields to Manning, this year it looks to be Nelson to Manning. The first play Nelson hooked up with Manning on a 65 yard T.D. pass and just like that the Xpress were up 6-0, the extra point was no good. The Knights could not muster much offense during the first half, and the Xpress had many opportunities to blow the game wide open but many miscues and stalled red zone opportunities stopped the Xpress offense from putting up more points. A play that could have been a momentum changer was when Nelson scrambled for a 25 yard gain and as he was hit at the goal line fumbled into the end zone for a touch back and that kept the score 6-0 going into the half. The 3rd quarter belonged to the Knights. The Knights kept the Xpress defense off balance and drove 75 yards on 8 plays to tie the score and make it 6-6. At the beginning of the 4Th quarter both teams went back and fourth not allowing a score then with a little over 4 mins left to go in the game Nelson found Manning again this time on a 80 T.D. and that score put the Xpress up 12-6. The Knights starting putting together a game tieing drive when the Knights Q.B. was hit as he threw the ball, and the pass was intercepted by defensive lineman Kenard Turner. The Xpress put their offense back on the field, and what was suppose to be the game ending drive ended quickly, when R.B. Jesse Wyatt fumbled the ball and the Knights recovered at the Xpress 30 yard line. On the first offensive play the Knights scored the game tying T.D. on a 30 yard pass, the extra point was no good. The Xpress were left with 63 seconds on the clock, Nelson found Frank for a gain of 29 yards, then found Frank again for 18 yards to put the Xpress at the Knights 7 yard line. The next 2 plays ended in incomplete passes by Nelson, and on 3rd down Nelson was flagged for intentional grounding, and on 4Th down Nelson decided to call his own number and kept the ball and tried to run it in but was tackled before he could get to the goal line. Final score Xpress 12 Knights 12.

Major Loss

The DFW Xpress take a major loss. The Xpress were notified Tuesday 2/2/10 that LineBacker Jody Linville will be lost for the season with a torn ACL/MCL. What the coaching staff thought was a minor injury to the Starting Linebacker turned out to be a major blow to the Defense. During practice on 1/27/10 the offense and defense were having and inter squad scrimmage as Mr. Linville came in to assist on a tackle his leg was rolled up on. He walked back and fourth and said the knee did not feel right but their was no indication that the ligaments had been torn. A few days later the MRI revealed that both ligaments had been torn and that Mr. Linville would need surgery to repair the ligaments in his left knee, that will take 6-9 months of rehab. Mr. Linville vowed that he would be back for the 2011 season.

Final 3

Its official the Xpress make final 3 signings. The team signed a Defensive lineman, LineBacker, and a QuarterBack. The Xpress have signed 6' 270 lb defensive tackle Curt Wiggins to a 1 year deal with a 1 year player option to give the Xpress defense depth at DT and DE. The Xpress then signed 5'8 230 lb LineBacker Oscar Baeza to the same deal to shore up the middle of the defense, Their is also a chance that he will play Fullback in our power running game. The 3rd and final signing was James Chism a 6'0 205 lb QB who played his high school ball at Lake Highlands, and WR at McMurry University. With these signings the Xpress roster is now at capacity with 53 players, any signings made at this point will either be the team releasing players or moving players to the 7 man practice squad. This has been a long process but I think the team is finally built to win the 2010 championship.

Xpress lose

The Xpress had their first pre season game for the 2010 season vs the Collin County Rattlers on Jan.23rd to help and raise money for the Buckners Children Home and a can food drive to raise food for the North Texas Food Bank. The weather played a major roll in the attendance, with a lot of rain which caused for low attendance, but the game was a success. The Xpress dressed 50 players and all had the opportunity to show case their talents in an effort to show the the coaching staff why they should be a part of the 2010 team. Certain players stood out on both sides of the Ball.On the defensive line Mckenzie Tilmon displayed his talent and his run stuffing ability by constantly clogging up the middle. At LineBacker several players stepped up Jody Linville lead all players in tackles, he showed his ability to play defensive end but seems to be making the adjustment to outside LineBacker, Sam Crawford showed why he is the head of the defense at Middle LineBacker making several stops and stopping a key 4Th and 1 play, Terrance Henson played great at strong side Backer he displayed his toughness to come up and take on the lead blocker and still make the tackle on the ball carrier. Quentin Sarpy, and Cornelious Pryor made big strides in either securing a starting spot or pushing for a starting job. In the Secondary Wisner Derosier showed good pass coverage and great run support, Chris Hicks showed he could possibly be a good front side corner in just his 2ND year at the position, Isiah Johnson displayed why he should be either a starting corner or free safety, Demarcus Nixon continued to display that he has become a big hitter and Anthony Stevenson seems to be trying to settle in as the secondary captain. On Offense their were a few bright spots. Raashad Manning showed his speed and consistently got behind the defense and made big plays, Michael Cotton showed why he was a good addition to the team making several big catches. Kendrick Matlock showed why he can stay on the field on every play displaying his ability to run block and pass protect. The running backs displayed their talent also FB/H-Back Eric Brown showed his ability to step up and pick up the blitz, Rocky Frank showed no affects of his injury from the 2009 season, Ron Manning showed his strength speed and power before he left the game with bruised ribs, Guy Smith displayed his quickness and balance, and FB Mack Harris displayed his power as a runner and a lead blocker. All in all even tho the Xpress lost the game 12-0 the offense showed it's ability to move up and down the field the whole game getting in the red zone on 5 different occasions. The next game will be 1/30/10 against the Texas Knights at 3pm. This game will be a lot different, because the Xpress staff has let the players know that the potential starters will play about 2-1/2 quarters because this is the last pre season game before the season kicks-off on 2/20/10.

Capacity

With many Free Agent signings these past few weeks the Xpress have gotten the roster to full capacity. That's right with only 1 signing left to make and that being another offensive lineman the Xpress roster will be at 53 players the league maximum. The team also has 3 players they have added to the practice squad. This team looks to be built for greatness. The past 3 previous seasons the team had been adding players and releasing players, it added players out of free agency, walk-ons and even draft picks and the team has finally gotten rid of the free agents walk-ons and draft picks that were not up to Xpress kind of football. I think this team is much better then the 2009 team, and that team was very good! This 2010 team is faster and more athletic then the 2009 team on paper, now it's about this team going out and proving it to the other NMLF teams and any other team that wants to step up the plate and play us during our bye weeks. The 2009 team finished 8-2 and lost 1 game from the championship, so for the 2010 team to better the 2009 teams accomplishments the 2010 team would have to finish 9-1 and make it to the Championship! So get on board and ride the train and lets see how far the ride will take us.

Xpress Sign 1

The Xpress make one major signing to upgrade and to add depth to the offense of the ball. Coach Vernon talked to Offensive coordinator Jaun Valles and Asst O-Line coach Pat Collins and asked what did the offense need? their response was a offensive Lineman. Well the Xpress did just that! the team went out and signed ex Denton County Patriots RG Selby Hatcher, a 6'2 330 lb lineman to a 1 year deal with a 1 year player option. These signing have made an already strong team stronger.

Major Signing

The Xpress make another huge signing, with the roster almost at capacity the Xpress needed to make to big signing on the defensive side of the ball and they did just that! Team captain and offensive player rep Chris Choice invited the DT to attend practice and talk to coach Vernon. Coach Vernon started negotiations with the DT and after a 30 min meeting, The Xpress signed 6'4 370 lb North East Oklahoma and Former Denver Crush Defensive Tackle Mckenzie Tilmon to a 1 year deal with a 1 year option. What this does for the Xpress Defensive line is give the team a true NT that can play in their 3-4 scheme and also gives the team another big run stuffer to play in the rotation with 6'3 305 lb Derrick Blount and 6'2 300 lb Robert Teal. This signing should make the Xpress run Defense even better then the 2009 defense that did not yield a 100 yard rusher all season. With 1 more major signing left, stay tuned for the last signing it should be a big one.

Rocky Frank

After several phone calls and many conversations with fellow teammates Rocky Frank returned to practice on Jan. 4Th. What many fans and coaches thought were perhaps retirement talk was actually Mr. Frank finishing school. Frank returned to practice and last years knee injury looks fully healed. He has his explosiveness, his cut back, his lateral movement and his speed. Coach Vernon has informed the Xpress staff to keep Frank's practice reps to a minimum in hopes that he can possibly complete the 2010 season. Coach Vernon discussed with Frank and made him aware that his practice carries will be at a minimum and that during pre-season his playing time will not be much, Coach Vernon was quoted " I hope in minimizing his practice carries and pre- season work will lessen the chances of injuries".