The Destroyers ended Georgia's undefeated start last week.

DALLAS - The Dallas Desperados (5-0) have a chance to set the franchise record for longest single-season winning streak Thursday night (7:30 p.m. CDT) when they meet the Columbus Destroyers (2-2) at American Airlines Center.

They will have to do so despite being handicapped by a short week of practice.

The Desperados beat the Austin Wranglers on Saturday night for their record-tying fifth consecutive victory, then took Sunday off. That left only Monday, Tuesday and a short practice on Wednesday to recover from the last game and prepare for Thursday's game against Columbus.

A short week is hard on players in more ways than one.

"It's tough," Desperados LB/FB Duke Pettijohn said. "Normally you have a day to get the soreness out. Now you have to work through it. You have to push yourself physically and mentally. You can't feel sorry for yourself and complain. You've just got to get ready."

This is a tough part of the schedule for the Desperados, who are one of just two undefeated teams in the AFL. Thursday's game marks their second game in six days and third in 11 days. Following this week's game, however, the team doesn't play again until April 16, when the Philadelphia Soul (4-0) comes to town for what promises to be a first-place showdown in the Eastern Division during the nationally-televised (ESPN2) Monday night game at the AAC.

Desperados head coach Will McClay is aware of what a shortened week can do to his team. He has made a few changes to the practice schedule in order to keep the players physically fresh and mentally prepared.

"We cut down on number of reps," McClay said of one concession. "We are missing one extra prep day, so that means more time in the film room. We want to stay off of our legs as much as we can."

The Desperados also will have a few fresh bodies for the game. Wide receiver Marcus Nash is expected to return to the starting lineup after missing the past two games with a sore knee. Also, they have activated defensive lineman Jermaine Brooks and defensive back Jacoby Shepherd off injured reserve.

Shepherd will help with the defensive backfield depth since starter Chris Brown (hamstring) has been placed on IR. Starting in his place should be rookie Bobby Keyes. The Desperados also waived wide receiver Jermaine Lewis, who was inactive the first five games.

But it's a good thing McClay puts a strong emphasis on conditioning, which he believes helps during stretches of the season like this one.

"We condition and try and stay in shape," McClay said. "The first day was a little rough, but they got their legs and we've had a good practice the last two days."

The Desperados' age and experience make it easier to handle a short week, according to Pettijohn. Also, playing a division opponent makes refocusing a littler easier, and especially this time since Columbus upset the previously undefeated Georgia Force last Friday, 62-61.

That should go a long ways toward repressing any amount of overconfidence left over from defeating the Destroyers both times last year.

"The game is just on you quicker," Pettijohn said. "We have a lot of veterans, so we can handle it. A younger team may think it's more difficult to get the guys back up so quick. We know what's in front of us is a divisional opponent, so it's not that hard to get focused and get prepared."

The game against Austin didn't go as smoothly as the team would've liked, but the Desperados still managed to pull out a 68-64 come-from-behind victory. Turnovers (four) were a problem, and so were untimely penalties (10 total), both seemingly sure signs of a lack of focus playing caused by playing what had been a 1-3 team.

The players know they must come out prepared each game if they expect to double their previous high season-opening winning streak (3-0), and you can bet McClay will use the Austin game as an example of why his players must stay focused and protect the football.

"It taught us a lesson," McClay said, "that you can't turn the ball over as many times as we did and come out ahead of the score all the time. It's a matter of taking care of the football, being prepared, coming out and starting early, and keeping that tempo going."

And for Thursday night, he can keep getting ready to play again with just four days between games.