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Columbus Destroyers lineman, Howard Duncan is no Stranger to Winning

Howard Duncan and the Rest of the Columbus Destroyers Travel to Georgia to Take on the Force on Saturday July 14, 1:00PM ET on ESPN

Most of the outside world had counted out the Columbus Destroyers long before kickoff to last Saturday’s divisional playoff contest in Dallas. The 8-9 Destroyers had other ideas. After all, the 15-1 Desperados didn’t seem as invincible to a Destroyers team that just narrowly lost to them in late May and have proven all season long to have a knack for raising their game to the level of the competition: regardless of how high the bar is set.

Last Saturday night, in front of 15,000+ hostile fans, Columbus quarterback Matt Nagy shredded the Dallas defense, passing for 4 TD’s and rushing for another two. A key cog to the Destroyers improbable run to the Conference Championship has been the stellar play of their offensive line, and on it, former Oklahoma Sooner, Howard Duncan.

Duncan, a native of Liberia, became a regular on the Destroyers O-line during the 2006 season, and he is no stranger to success. The 6’4 300 LB Duncan was a Third-Team All Big-12 selection while at Oklahoma. His tenure under Bob Stoops was capped with a National Championship in 2000. Prior to his days in Norman, Duncan started 24 straight games while at Butler Community College. During the stretch, the team compiled a mind-boggling 23-1 record, including two National Championships. For his efforts, Howard Duncan was named the Jayhawk Junior College Offensive Lineman of the Year.

Duncan and his fellow Destroyers have had a roller-coaster of a season. Big wins over upper echelon opponents including both Dallas and Georgia have proved them to be capable of big time success. However, the consistency just hasn’t been there as they struggled to put together a true winning streak at any point in the season. Regardless, on the heels of two stellar playoff performances, the Destroyers find themselves 60 minutes away from a trip to New Orleans and a chance to play for an ArenaBowl Championship.

Be sure to check out Howard Duncan and the Columbus Destroyers on Saturday July 14, 1:00PM ET on ESPN