Chicago Rush Chances: 100%
Kevin Sheller
Thursday August 8, 2002
They are emotional. They are lackadaisical. They get into fights. They are overconfident. Who’s that? Oh yeah, that’s the Chicago Rush, too.
On Monday night against the Dallas Desperados, they were the former version of themselves. They were a playoff team. Oh, except they got into fights.
“We’re going to get personal fouls,” said OL/DL John Moyer, who has had his share this season. “That’s the kind of team we are. We have a lot of guys who want to fight for a championship, and hungry for a championship. Me being one. I’ve never had a championship and (OL/DL) James Baron’s never had a championship. We’re definitely fighters and we definitely want that ring bad.”
Looking back through the season, the Rush have demonstrated many combinations of positive and negative traits. Luckily, even when they are emotional, lackadaisical, and overconfident, another almighty attribute comes through: They find a way to win.
Now, however, they are in the playoffs. And while a few of those negative traits can be overcome, the competition gets stiffer each week. Next week it raises another notch when the Rush travel to Phoenix to try to avenge their 52-41 regular-season loss to the Rattlers in week six.
So, how did the Rattlers win back in May?
“They were more physical than us, no doubt about it,” said Moyer, the team’s Built Ford Tough representative. “I’m not going to lie. I’m not going to cover it up with sugar. They were more physical than us. We don’t take that lightly. So it should be a new team coming into Arizona next week.”
Head coach Mike Hohensee concurs. “We had a chance to win that football game. We didn’t play very physical. I think they out-hit us, and that usually doesn’t happen to our football team.”
What were those criticisms again? They are emotional. They are lackadaisical. They get into fights. They are overconfident.
Well, sure, the Rush are emotional, but in the playoffs, they can use that emotion to pump themselves up for these big games. Interestingly enough, the Rush have faced the three remaining playoff teams during the regular season. All three games were away, and the Rush lost each one, which will serve as motivation in itself, not to mention the revenge factor.
The Rush will not be lackadaisical. They weren’t on Monday night, and that was the easiest of the potential challenges to be faced. The team knows they have to be on the top of their game to win.
They get into fights. Well, it doesn’t seem like this is going to change much. It’s all a part of the physical attitude. The Rush players and coaches don’t want to see personal fouls kill the team’s chances, but they are willing to accept a few such penalties if it means rattling opponents.
They won’t be overconfident. Not when they’ve lost to all three remaining teams. The experience of losing is always humbling. Had the Rush already beaten Arizona, they might run the risk of looking past the next opponent. Not true this week. Not only must the Rush face the Rattlers, but they must face them in Arizona.
“We’re a totally different team than the last time we went down there,” said Hohensee. “The thing is, we’ve been there. We know it’s going to be hot. We know it’s going to be loud, and we know they’re a good football team. We know what they do. I think we’re very confident right now.“
“Hulk” Moyer agrees, “We got no doubt. The Chicago Rush have no doubt. We’re a confident football team, and we’ve got the players to prove it.”
Can the Rush win it all?
“We’ve got as good a chance as anybody else,” said Hohensee. “We wouldn’t be at this point if we didn’t. If they told me that we had no chance and that the games are fixed, then I wouldn’t go. But they aren’t telling me that. The ball’s still shaped funny, we got huge nets on the ends, and the ball sometimes hits the iron. Anybody’s got a shot.”
Moyer said that he expects to win it all. When I asked him what the team’s chances were, he said simply, “100%”
It Almost Happened
The number one and number two seeds were almost eliminated in the quarterfinals last weekend. Tampa Bay didn’t catch the winning touchdown over San Jose, while Arizona did against Carolina. Had the winning touchdowns fallen the opposite way, the final four remaining clubs would have consisted of three Southern Division teams, and the Rush would have been the number one seed, leaving only Chicago with a winning record: 9-5, 7-7, 6-8, and 6-8.
Kevin Sheller ia founder of Arenafan Online and was the principal owner until 2004. Kevin graduated from the University of Akron with a degree in technical writing, and has been a member of the Arena Football Internet community since 1993. He has worked as a professional web programmer and is also the executive producer for a computer/video game company. The most recent Xbox title to his credit is called Hunter: The Reckoning.
