Rush, Slaughter hit road for some key rematches

After pulling out a nail-biter last week on the road against the Arizona Rattlers, courtesy of a Chris Gould 33-yard field goal with 1 second remaining, the Chicago Rush (6-3) are expecting more of the same this week when they travel to Dallas for a Central Division showdown against the Vigilantes (6-3) on Sunday afternoon.

The Vigilantes, who topped the Rush 65-52 in the last meeting between the two teams, are coming off a tough loss to the Spokane Shock, but they still feature fullback Derrick Ross, who has scored in every game this season and leads the league in rushing with 332 yards and 20 touchdowns.

Rush quarterback Russ Michna had his strongest performance of the season against the Rattlers, going 23 for 40 while totaling 267 yards with 5 touchdowns. Wide receiver Reggie Gray had 9 receptions for 141 yards and 3 touchdowns in the come-from-behind win.

“We battled hard all the way to the end and walked away with an exciting victory.” Rush coach Bob McMillen said.

Slaughter has a big beef with Omaha’s team:The last time the Slaughter and the Omaha Beef met, it was the Slaughter#146;s home opener and the Beef were carving out a victory.The Slaughter is hoping there#146;s no second helping Saturday when the two teams meet at 7:30 p.m. in a revenge match in Omaha. #147;We have to come out ready to play,#148; defensive lineman Chris Pisani said in a report on the team#146;s website. #147;We know what they are capable of now and we have to take that and use it against them.#148;The Slaughter (8-3) took control of first place in the Great Lakes Division with a 42-16 drubbing of the Bloomington Extreme (7-4). The Green Bay Blizzard (7-3) sits in second place in the Great Lakes after losing to unbeaten Sioux Falls on Sunday, 57-38. Bloomington plays at Green Bay on Saturday night.