The Ocean City Hammerheads decided to go with Alex Biddle to fill the team vice-president vacancy left by the firing of David "DJ" Citro. Biddle, a front office member in the PFL for 12 seasons, is the brother of head coach/GM Joshua Biddle and should form a great tandem with president Keith T. Bleeker.
The Ocean City Hammerheads fired vice-president David "DJ" Citro Jr. late Friday night as the front office begins to prepare for Monday's PFL Draft. Citro, who was on board for two seasons, was fired because of the Hammerheads' first round exit after being defeated by the Mentor Storm.
"We just felt we needed a change in the front office" head coach/GM Joshua Biddle said in a statement, "we needed someone more active and aware of our front office dealings".
Candidates to replace Citro are Joe Staab, Andrew Guile, or brother/part owner Alex Biddle.
The Ocean City Hammerheads and the city of Ocean City, NJ have reached an agreement to bring the Hammerheads a new home. The Hammerheads, currently residing in the dilapidated Ocean City Stadium - baseball stadium turned temporary Hammerheads' home, have enjoyed being back in Ocean City, but the owners ensured that a new stadium was absolutely necessary for the move back to Ocean City to be considered successful and "permanant". The owners unanimously approved the decision to be affiliated with a PFL-based theme park, which will be filled with rides that are named after many current and former PFL teams that PFL ownership wishes to acknowledge. Head Coach/GM Josh Biddle will overlook the project. "I'm excited to see how this turns out" Biddle said in a statement, "I can't wait to get started".
QB Daniels solid in debut as Ocean City topples Kansas City
The Ocean City Hammerheads traveled to Kansas City with new QB Rashard Daniels at the helm of the offense. He would play well enough to win as the Hammerheads were led by a strong defensive showing on their way to a 13-3 victory.
The first quarter was a major defensive struggle and the Hammerheads were able to put three on the board when K Robby Stevenson made good on a 48-yard field goal with 40 seconds remaining in the third quarter. After several punt exchanges by both teams, Wildcats' K Garo Yepremian tied the game at three when he connected on a 40-yarder with 2:49 remaining in the first half. K Robby Stevenson would give the Hammerheads a 6-3 halftime lead when he connected on one more field goal prior to halftime.
The Hammerheads received coming out of halftime and that would be a chance for the offense to get a solid drive together. QB Rashard Daniels led the drive downfield and got the offense down to the Wildcats' five yard line. Daniels dropped back, realized everyone was covered, and scrambled into the endzone for a five-yard touchdown run to give the Hammerheads a 13-3 lead. The Hammerheads' defense would take it from there and that was the ballgame.
There wasn't a single spectacular showing on the offensive side of the ball, although QB Rashard Daniels' "play-not-to-lose" style suited the team well for this game. The Hammerheads have suffered their losses this season due to careless play by former QB Joe Namath so the change was welcome. The defense was led by DT Victor Hunt, who helped put the pass rush on QB Warren Burns by recording 5 tackles and 4 sacks. MLB Anthony Pierce was a monster at getting into the backfield and recorded 7 tackles and 4 tackles for loss. CB duo Onterrio Lops and "Super Mario" Jones both played well in the secondary recording 4 tackles and 4 passes defensed and 3 tackles and 3 passes defensed respectively. The Hammerheads travel to Detroit to finish their 3 game road trip against the surprising Detroit Dawgs in week 5.
QB Joe Namath & C Roberto Garza Released In Personnel Shakeup
It took three games for the Hammerheads to pull the trigger, but the front office made a move that will change the Hammerheads' offense forever. Head Coach/GM Joshua Biddle decided to cut ties with the only QB he put his faith in over the last two-and-a-quarter seasons - QB Joe Namath. Namath failed to play intelligent football - especially against the team's recent blowout loss to the Mentor Storm - which ultimately lost the 28-year old quarterback his job.
The reins of the Hammerheads' offense will now be passed to week 3 free agent pickup QB Rashard Daniels. Daniels is expected to bring accurate passing, mobility, and a solid deep ball to help compliment a vastly improved running game. "I'm looking forward to this opportunity to display my skills and show the league that Rashard Williams should have been the number one quarterback taken".
Biddle loved what he saw from the 19-year old rookie when he played for Florida State. "The guy has the tenacity we need behind center. If he's in trouble he is able to roll out and he probably won't get sacked as many times as 'Slow-Mo Joe" did. I'm excited to see him throw his first pass as a Hammerhead".
C Roberto Garza was another casualty for the Hammerheads as he was replaced by rookie C Yusef Scott on opening day. Garza hasn't seen any action this season and his release gives him the opportunity to be persued by other teams. Biddle said on both releases, "I do wish them the best and hope they have an opportunity to thrive somewhere else".
DE Kevin Greene's 4 Sacks Ruin QB Namath's Day
The Ocean City Hammerheads looked forward to battling one of their old rivals from many seasons ago. What the Hammerheads hadn't experienced yet was the improvement of the Mentor Storm franchise. The Storm won their first game ever against head coach Josh Biddle's team in a 45-20 thrashing that saw the Hammerheads demoralized by halftime.
The Hammerheads kicked off the scoring when K Robby Stevenson kicked a 30-yard field goal on the Hammerheads' first possession of the game, giving them the early 3-0 lead. That would be all the Hammerheads would score in the first quarter as the remainder of the quarter was all Mentor. Hammerheads' SS Anthony Holcombe forced a fumble midway through the first quarter, but the Storm were able to recover. A recovery could have been key for the Hammerheads; however, the recovery by the Storm allowed them to resume their drive and WR Henry Ellard took advantage when he scored on a 34-yard touchdown reception with 52 seconds remaining in the first to give the Storm a 7-3 lead. QB Joe Namath would follow to throw an interception and backup Kerry Collins would do the same within the 52 second span. The first interception was converted into 7 points when the Storm put a quick drive together and scored on HB Ron Johnson's 1-yard touchdown run. The second was returned for a touchdown by LB Ted Ellis with 10 seconds remaining in the first, breaking the game open to a 21-3 lead. QB Joe Namath fired yet another interception on his first throw of the second quarter as well - which was returned 32-yards for a touchdown by LB Kevin Greene. The Hammerheads struck back on Homer Jones' 7-yard touchdown reception, but HB Rob Johnson's 9-yard touchdown run canceled out the Hammerheads' only score of the second quarter. Following a kick out of bounds by the Storm, K Robby Stevenson missed a field goal late in the second which led the Hammerheads into halftime with a 35-10 defecit.
The Hammerheads' settled down in the second half with the defense playing respectable ball and the offense finally moving the ball. WR Jim Smith scored a touchdown late in the 3rd quarter - a 10-yard reception that cut the lead to 35-7 with 15 seconds remaining in the third quarter. On the Storm's next possession, CB Billy Burrough picked off a QB Alfred Love pass to give the Hammerheads possession. The Storm defense fought off any chance of the Hammerheads recovering from the defecit and HB Rob Johnson sealed the Hammerheads' fate when he scampered 63-yards for a touchdown with 6:23 remaining in the game, making the score 45-20 which was the final score.
QB Joe Namath's poor performance puts him on the hot seat as the Hammerheads' quarterback, as he has not been stable at the position. The team apparently has offered Namath in trades but no team appears willing to take on the easily rattled quarterback. The Hammerheads will attempt to reverse their poor play with their week 4 game versus the Kansas City Wildcats.
Effort of WR Smith, HB Hamilton, CB Jones, and CB Hitchcock Not Enough To Propel Hammerheads
The Ocean City Hammerheads failed to carry the momentum from their week one victory against the Sharkbait Pingus into week two, falling to head coach Arya and his Boston Blizzard 28-16 at Ocean City Stadium. The Hammerheads, who split the series with the Blizzard last season, also failed to carry momentum from last season's incredible comeback where the Hammerheads rallied down 27-0 in the third quarter to win the game 41-36.
Trouble began for the Hammerheads early on when the Blizzard were able to put together a substantial drive that resulted in HB Jim Brown's 9-yard touchdown run to give the Blizzard a quick 7-0 lead. After the Hammerheads failed to put any points on their next possession, WR George Lewis took advantage of a blown coverage by the Hammerheads' defense resulting in a 45-yard touchdown reception, putting the Blizzard up 14-0 with 59 seconds remaining in the first quarter. The Hammerheads punted on their ensuing possession and on the Blizzard's next possession, CB "Super Mario" Jones recorded his first career interception. The Hammerheads failed to capitalize off of QB John Kramer's blunder and they were forced to punt, which was followed by another Blizzard punt. This time the blunder would be made by QB Joe Namath and this would be a blunder that would cost the Hammerheads in a big way - CB Steve Allen picked off a Namath pass and returned it 72 yards for the touchdown to increase the Blizzard's dominance to 21-0 with 2:42 remaining in the first half. On the Hammerheads' next possession, the team relied on the legs of HB Bert Hamilton and got themselves in good field position - good enough to put K Robby Stevenson's leg to good use in the form of a 36-yard field goal that was good with 58 seconds remaining to get the Hammerheads on the board, down 21-3. The Blizzard, trying to bury the Hammerheads further before the half, put the ball in the hands of QB Kramer and he made another crucial mistake. CB Marcus Hitchcock picked Kramer in Blizzard territory to give the Hammerheads another scoring threat with time ticking. QB Joe Namath found TE Bradley Clinton in the endzone for a 4-yard touchdown reception with 11 seconds remaining in the first half - which cut the Blizzard's lead to 21-10 going into the half.
The second half didn't start out well for the Hammerheads as FB Bradley Myers caught a pass and took it to the house for a 22-yard touchdown reception to extend the Blizzard's lead to 28-10. K Robby Stevenson was able to cut the lead with a field goal late in the third, but the score going into the fourth was still dismal for the Hammerheads as they trailed 28-13. Both defenses came to play in the fourth quarter and that hurt the Hammerheads as the only points scored was another Robby Stevenson field goal, making the final score 28-16, dropping the Hammerheads to 1-1.
QB Joe Namath struggled all game and he was sacked six times, which didn't help his cause. HB Bert Hamilton was respectable and WR Jim Smith looked spectacular, but it wasn't enough for the Hammerheads to put another win on their record.
Hamilton is the first Hammerhead to run for 100+ yards since their return to the league in 2013
It took 19 regular season games over the course of two seasons, but Hammerheads fans finally saw it happen. Rookie 3rd round selection HB Bert Hamilton broke the 100-yard barrier for the first time in modern Ocean City Hammerheads' history, sparking a 20-10 victory over the Sharkbait Pingus in week one PFL action.
The game started off positively for the Pingus. After a Pingus punt and a Hammerheads punt, the Pingus were able to drive downfield and put three points on the board on K Jeff Chandler's 35-yard field goal with 2:38 remaining in the first quarter. The Hammerheads fought back with a solid attack both on the ground and in the air and the Hammerheads' retaliation was complete when newly acquired WR Homer Jones caught the ball in the endzone for a 17-yard touchdown reception, giving the Hammerheads a 7-3 lead with 21 seconds remaining in the first quarter. The second quarter was mostly a defensive struggle with the Hammerheads getting the only points on a K Robby Stevenson 53-yard field goal - his 29th consecutive wtihout a miss - increasing the lead to 10-3, which remained the score going into halftime.
The Hammerheads shut down the Pingus offense in the third quarter as well. K Robby Stevenson connected on a 29-yard field goal with 4:07 remaining in the third quarter - his 30th consecutive field goal without a miss - extending the Hammerheads' lead to 13-3. However, Stevenson's streak ended at 30 as he missed a 56-yarder later in the third. The Hammerheads defense held steady through the early part of the fourth and on their next possession, the Hammerheads took the ball upfield and HB Bert Hamilton took it from there - breaking free for a 26-yard touchdown run with 4:47 remaining, extending the lead to 20-3. HB Terry Metcalf scored on a 10-yard reception later in the fourth with 46 seconds remaining, but it was too late to make a comeback.
Player of the game honors went to Hamilton with his 17 carry, 135 yard performance (7.9 ypc) with one touchdown run. Honorable mention goes to QB Joe Namath and the entire Ocean City Hammerheads' defensive unit - who held the Pingus to 28 rushing yards. Namath played intelligent football going 10-18 (55%) passing for 178 yards with 1 TD pass, no INT's and a 108.1 QB Rating. WR Homer Jones got an ovation from Hammerheads fans for scoring the first Hammerheads touchdown of the season and he hopes to continue his success and hold onto the #2 job. Jones said "I liked Dodge City but it's nice to have a change of scenery. We just weren't getting it done in the playoffs so this is a fresh start and a place where I have the opportunity to be the #2 receiver and/or the slot receiver. I'll be effective". Kicker Robby Stevenson - whose consecutive field goal streak ended at 30 - said "I'm proud of what I've accomplished and I'm not ashamed to see it end. I talked with coach and we agreed the ultimate goal is to win a PFL Bowl. If there were any field goals that could be attempted from 55 or more yards out, we were going to go for it without hesitation - even if it means the record could end. I want to win first and foremost and anything else is a bonus".
After the game, the Hammerheads announced the signing of CB Marcus Hitchcock with their week one free agent selection. With the move, the Hammerheads released CB J.T. Thomas - a starter from two years ago who fell flat on his face in 2013 - not even recording an interception after a breakout performance in 2012.
The Ocean City Hammerheads traded a week 3 and week 5 free agent selection to the Dodge City Outlaws/Greensboro Horsemen in exchange for TE Charles Young and standout WR Homer Jones. Jones, a 6'6" giant that creates many mismatches for opponents' defenses, has a solid history in the PFL, having broken 1,000 yards receiving in two of his five seasons and having 10+ touchdowns in one of his five seasons. Jones is coming off of a career low in receiving yards as the #3 in Dodge City - he hopes to win the #2 receiving job from WR Kelley Washington and re-ignite a career that looked as if it was starting to head downhill. Young, who had little playing time in 2013, is poised to be the Hammerheads' backup policy to TE Bradley Clinton and could see some time in multiple tight end sets. He replaces aging TE Ernie Kossenko, who remains a lock for the #3 TE spot.
Regarding the trade, the players received praise from both sides. Hammerheads' head coach/GM Joshua Biddle said, "I believe Homer will really help this team out. We now have a new potential starter and it vastly increases our receiver depth - something this Hammerheads franchise hasn't been lucky enough to have. Young was another solid addition." Outlaws/Horsemen head coach Rocky said, "Outlaws agree to this deal and say good bye to two of our all-time favorite players... but after years of playoff failure changes are happening with more changes to come..."
For the second consecutive season, the two coaches will not meet in a regular season game.
The Ocean City Hammerheads have announced the retirement of HB Howard Smith, WR Marty Bookman, and MLB B.B. Wallace. Bookman broke the 1,000 yard receiving plateau in 2008 and 2010, but his roles diminished as he aged and he only made three receptions as a Hammerheads last season. Wallace was a standout MLB as a member of the Knoxville Pioneers. His best season came in 2010 where he recorded 70 tackles (17 for loss), 3 sacks, 1 forced fumble, 2 interceptions and 15 pass deflections. Smith never had a starting role, but he worked out frequently with HB Jim Hartley, who hates to see him go. "I hope he ends up getting into coaching or something because he's a class act" Hartley said.
To make room for the new Hammerheads draftees, the Hammerheads released six players: CB Blake Taylor , CB Leeland Mitchell , LG Deon Rice , LG Charles Diggs , LT Luke Petitgout , and DT Joe Mack. Coach/GM Joshua Biddle said, "it's not fun to give players their pink slips, but sometimes it is necessary to upgrade the roster with new players. I'd like to thank all of the individuals for their contributions to the team - especially that of Luke and Blake. I wish them lots of luck in their future endeavors".