ROSEMONT—It was Rush wide receiver Terrance Turner’s turn to shine in the spotlight as his 10 catch, 112 yards and 4 touchdown night powered the Rush to a 62-61 win over the Milwaukee Mustangs.
“My output is just a product of this offense and I capitalized on the opportunities given to me,” exclaimed WR Terrance Turner.The defense would take hits on the scoreboard all night, but took its biggest one at defensive back with Vic Hall leaving the game due to injury on first Milwaukee offensive possession. His absence left the Rush cycling wide receivers Marquis Hamilton and Reggie Gray into the secondary as well as rotating other defensive players to positions they previously hadn’t played. The void allowed Milwaukee QB Gino Guidugli (28-35, 330 yards, 8 touchdowns, 1 rushing touchdown) to accumulate touchdowns on all nine offensive possessions, four of which found WR Jonathan Wilson and WR Jared Jenkins in the first half.
With the Rush defense down its best defensive playmaker, the pressure turned to the Rush offense to keep pace with the Mustangs. Early on it was the rushing attack that brought three touchdowns as Kelvin Morris, Marquis Hamilton and Russ Michna fought their way into the end zone. Quarterback Russ Michna provided the last second elation to close out the second quarter by taking the snap, surveying covered receivers and tucking the ball to run along the left side boards and sneak in for a touchdown to tie the game at 28.
The back and forth nature continued into the second half, but a missed extra point and two failed two-point conversions by the Mustangs were small mistakes they wouldn’t overcome. Third quarter touchdown passes to Rush WR Terrance Turner brought the first lead of the night for the Rush, who would never lead by more than two points.
For every Rush touchdown, there was an answer by the Mustangs. Milwaukee QB Gino Guidulgi threw for 330 yards and eight touchdowns, while adding a rushing touchdown with 52 seconds left in the game to give the Mustangs a 61-55 advantage.
Nevertheless, 52 seconds were too long for the Rush offense. Game MVP QB Russ Michna (26-34, 306 yards, 6 touchdowns) engineered the team with under a minute left to the Milwaukee 22-yard line with four seconds remaining.
“(Russ) had bullets fired at him all night…the last play was 100% his call and he told us he wanted to run something,” said Head Coach Bob McMillen.
The trust in Michna paid off, as Jared Perry would secure a 5-1 start with his 22-yard touchdown grab with four seconds to go to put the cap on a 62-61 victory.
The Milwaukee Mustangs were active on defense despite the loss, piling up four quarterback sacks from the trio of Quartez Vickerson, Dwayne Lefall and Luis Vasquez.
NOTES—Rush wide receiver Reggie Gray was denied a receiving touchdown for the first time in his career…..Mustang wide receivers Jonathan Wilson and Jared Jenkins combined for 20 catches, 239 yards and 6 touchdowns…..Rush defensive back Brandon Freeman totaled 9 tackles, leading the team…..Next week, the Rush travel to San Antonio to take on quarterback Aaron Garcia and the Talons in a divisional match up…..
Russell Athletic Offensive Player of the Game – MIL Gino Guidugli
Riddell Defensive Player of the Game – MIL Luis Vasquez
JLS Ironman of the Game – CHI Marquis Hamilton
AFL Playmaker of the Game – CHI Terrance Turner
Cutters Catch of the Game – CHI Jared Perry’s game winning touchdown catch
Spalding Highlight of the Game – CHI Marquis Hamilton over the wall touchdown catch
National Guard MVP – CHI Russ Michna
Attendance- 7,955