Saturday Pro indoor football: New Mexico at Amarillo, 6:05 p.m. April 6 Pro indoor football: New Mexico at Amarillo, 6:05 p.m. <reefer_hed>April 6 Home opener: Laredo at New Mexico, Santa Ana Star Center, 7:05 p.m.

So the ride home from San Angelo was special.

“It was great. I was a little sore, but the bus ride was great,” said Stars receiver Dexter Manley, who caught the eventual game-winning 18-yard touchdown pass from quarterback KJ Black in the fourth quarter, one of a team-high three scoring catches for the receiver. “I slept great knowing we got the ‘W.’ ”

Manley, who played college ball at Elizabeth City (N.C.) State, says he thinks this year’s team is miles ahead of last season’s on multiple levels.

“It’s character mainly,” Manley said during a break in Wednesday night’s practice on the West Side. “We have a lot of guys who want to win the championship this year. … It’s totally different because everybody here wants to play with everybody.

“And we have a lot better talent, also. I think the main difference is athleticism. You see our D-line getting to the quarterback. With the wide receivers, we have a little bit more speed out there. As far as the DBs, the first game says it all.”

Of the Stars’ passing takeaways, Chaz Thompson and DeMarcus James had two interceptions apiece. They were among seven “stops” the defense had against the Bandits – with stops being defined by coach Chris Williams as holding a foe without a TD on a possession. He said his defense’s goal is to get at least five a game.

“It was a pretty good performance,” said Williams, the team’s second-year coach. “You’re supposed to be able to win games that way. I did think we did make some mistakes offensively early on, but we did well.”

They did well enough for Black to earn league honors as Offensive Player of the Week with his 19-for-29 performance for 211 yards and six touchdowns, with one interception.

New Mexico Stars player Michael Carrasco, left, talks with coach Chris Williams during practice earlier this month. (ADOLPHE PIERRE-LOUIS/JOURNAL)

Manley gushes over Black.

“KJ’s a whole lot easier to talk to,” Manley said, comparing him to last year’s QB, Arkelon Hall. “(KJ) actually listens. And KJ’s a whole lot more accurate. He studies film. He looks at the defenses and knows where the ball’s going to be thrown.”

The Stars also had the league’s Defensive Player of the Week in Albuquerque’s Cedric Odie, who not only had 2 1/2 sacks in his first game at mike linebacker, but scored on a 1-yard touchdown run while serving as the emergency quarterback.

The performance of Odie, 29, who played freshman ball at Rio Rancho High in 1998 before moving to Columbus, Ohio, didn’t surprise the Stars’ player personnel director, Jayson Peña.

“I’ve coached him for four years – he’s been hanging around at the lower levels playing semipro,” Peña said. “He’s just an athlete. When KJ had to come out because his helmet fell off, (Odie) went in there, got a quarterback sneak and got his first pro touchdown.”

Williams laughed that he would have settled for far less on that play.

“I was saying to him to make sure you get the snap,” Williams said. “But because he had so many reps in practice, it worked out.”

SATURDAY’S GAME: In Amarillo, the Stars will be facing the Venom, which was last year’s LSFL champion and had a bye in this season’s first week.

Amarillo is led by quarterback Nate Davis, who played at Ball State and was a fifth-round draft pick by the San Francisco 49ers in 2009. Davis had 53 TD passes and 13 INTs last year with the Venom.

… New Mexico had 112 yards in penalties last week, with San Angelo having 13 – yet still won by 18 points. By comparison, the last time an NFL team overcame such a disadvantage was in October 2011.

… New Mexico State alum Seth Smith led the Stars with 81 rushing yards on 11 carries last week, including a 43-yard TD.
Stars looking to rise

LONE STAR FOOTBALL LEAGUE
— This article appeared on page D5 of the Albuquerque Journal