Pioneers season report card
Michael Balakier
Thursday July 25, 2002
Team MVP: There are two obvious choices for this one: Bryan Snyder and John Knust. When Snyder joined the Pioneers, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton was 0-6. Since then, Synder, who has a résumé of winning wherever he plays, has helped the Pioneers go 6-5, including 4-1 at home. Knust started the season as the Pioneers starting quarterback, but head coach Terry Karg switched Knust to a wide receiver. Since his conversion from quarterback to wide receiver, Knust has been Snyder’s main target. (Who would have thought it, a quarterback throwing to another quarterback?) Both Snyder and Knust are worthy of being the Pioneers most valuable player, and it’s only logical that they be named co-MVPs.
Offensive MVP: If you choose to, you can re-read everything under the Team MVP category, because my choice is the same. Knust and Snyder share co-MVP honors.
Defensive MVP: Without a doubt, the defensive player of the year for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton is Rodrick Prayer. Prayer finished the year ranked among the league leaders in tackles with 86.0, of which 75 of them were unassisted. Prayer also had three interceptions for the Pioneers.
Most energetic: If there’s one player that can fire up the crowd, it’s John Knust.
Most personable: If there’s one guy that I always look forward to interviewing, it’s kicker Jimmie Kibble. Kibble always has the most interesting puns, comments, sarcasms, stories, etc. With the year that Kibble has had, finishing among the league’s best in all kicking categories, it may be safe to say that his interviews will be missed next year.
Best touchdown dance: Well, this one was a lock for John Knust when he pulled a kid out of the stands and started dancing with him, that is, until the yellow flag came out. So therefore, according to the play-by-play of that game, the official ruling was no play. So therefore, Knust’s celebration is ineligible, but Bryan Snyder’s touchdown dance is. When the Pioneers defeated the Mohegan Wolves on June 15, Snyder ran into the end zone, grabbed his hand towel and proceeded to brush the letter ‘P’ of the Pioneers. Snyder was signaling that ever though the team started off slow, it was time to brush things off and make a run at the playoffs. Snyder said the reason he did it was because of a bet, but the bet paid off in the long run.
Biggest disappointment: Many people will argue that the Pioneers 0-7 start was the biggest disappointment of the year, but my opinion is quite different. Although it was against his belief, something that I can understand and respect, I believe that the biggest disappointment this year was the lack of trick plays that head coach Terry Karg used. When you have a receiver that is a quarterback by trade, it just seems logical that at least once over the course of the season that Karg would have pulled a trick play out of his hat. Here’s hoping that next season will hold at least one flee-flicker.
Biggest surprise: Without question, hearing John Knust’s name being announced as a wide receiver by Pioneers’ public address announcer Bobby Day made me scratch my head and wonder how this would work out. Several weeks later and after XX touchdown receptions, I no longer wonder.
Play of the year: Though there were many, nothing can compete with the Pioneers first ever offensive play of their inaugural season where John Knust hooked up with Ky O’Day on a 32 yard touchdown pass.
Game of the year: June 15 verses the Mohegan Wolves. In this game, the Pioneers dominated nearly every aspect of play, from offense, to defense to special teams. It’s also the game that marked Wilkes-Barre/Scranton season high three game winning streak. (One thing that I definitely noticed over the course of the year is that the smaller the crowd became, the louder they got.)
Player most dedicated to the fans: John Knust. Knust will make sure that he has made a trip around the entire bowl of the field before he takes an interview. Fans first, media second. Now I can respect and admire that.
Best show of sportsmanship: This came when Pioneers kicker Jimmie Kibble saved the day by preventing Mohegan’s Brandon Burnside from returning a kickoff for a touchdown on July 13. Kibble not only prevented the touchdown, but also ripped off Burnside’s helmet in the process. After the vicious tackle, Kibble quickly ran up to Burnside, patted him on the back and apologized for the helmet incident.
Next year there are sure to be some returning players, along with many new faces as well. The inaugural season for the Pioneers had its ups and downs, but in the end, despite missing the playoffs by such a narrow margin, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton surpassed its expectation, both on and off the field of play. Hats off to the players, coaches, and front office for making the Pioneers first season a successful one.
Michael Balakier first discovered a knack for writing during his senior year in high school while reporting for his school`s newspaper. Aside from being an Arenaball fan, Michael is an avid Syracuse University athletics follower, which poses a problem for him, as he attends the University of Pittsburgh. Michael plans on using what he has learned through his Arenafan experience to remain as impartial as he can during future Syracuse/Pitt events. Michael also serves as co-Editor of the af2 section of Arenafan Online.
