Firebirds 2003 Preview
Matthew Pickut
Tuesday January 28, 2003
The Bigs (with apologies to “THE BIGGS” who is now in Buffalo):
O/D linemen FB/LB – Not much has changed up front for the Firebirds. The team added a few new faces, notably Demetrious Maxie and Van Tuinei (although Van was with the team last year until he tore his Achilles tendon in the preseason). “We’ve got some veteran guys there,” said Dailey, “and that’s an area where we have been pretty consistent, I think we’ve added some new guys who could make the team and down the road make an impact.
Coach Dailey foresees a veteran rotation up front. “We looked at the front as a whole on both sides of the ball, and felt like they had played pretty steady,” continued Dailey. “Especially with Chris Snyder, a first team All-Arena, and Leroy Thompson another All-Arena guy. Kyle Moore has always been an anchor for us, so we didn’t make a lot of changes there. As I see things developing I think we’ll be a veteran group up front.”
The Quicks
WR/DB – A lot of new names will fill the preseason roster in the backfield. The team has brought in new recruits Tim Dodge, Brian McDonald, Terrence Blackwell and Donald Shoal. “We went out and recruited some guys who, if one or two of them can make the team, can help us stretch the field,” said Dailey of the new blood, “That was an area that we really targeted. I think we’ve got some good prospects there. We’re going to have to make some awfully hard decisions come the end of the week.”
OS – The Firebirds have been working their new prospects into the rotation at OS, but Eddie Brown still will see most of the time at the position. “Eddie is still a proven winner and very successful in the league, but we’re trying to find a way to work a rotation, which is hard given the rules of Arena Football, but we’re looking to find a rotation where we can get one or two more guys in the game who have some speed,” said the head coach who began working Eddie in at LB this preseason just incase “I think he’s [Eddie Brown] done a terrific job, he’s an unselfish guy in his willingness to do what ever is asked, after last year, we sat down and did the exit interviews Eddie said, I will do whatever you ask me to help the team, I’m not sure how much we’ll see him there but I know that if we don’t practice him there we won’t be prepared if somewhere down the road we could work a substitution pattern to keep him alive with another group of receivers”
DS – The DS spot also will be a source of competition as several rookies and veterans vie for the two spots. “Evan Hvlacek really had a great year last year and established himself as one of the better defensive back in this league, and you know the other guys: Greg Williams, DeJaun Alfonzo, Donnie Caldwell, have done a good job, we had the chance to draft Del Lee in the dispersal draft and we feel real good about him, and we added Fred Booker who we think is a real good player. I think competition there is really tight -- guys have been working hard.
QB – Raymond Philyaw’s off-season surgery put the team in a position where this training camp would feature a battle for the starting QB position “Certainly Raymond is a little further along than the other guys mostly because he’s been in the system three years,” said Dailey, “this is his fourth year and Raymond is coming off an off-season shoulder injury to his throwing should and so you would be very naïve to not have it to concern you. We’ve been very smart, I think, monitoring him during the off-season, our doctors and staff have done a very good job and Raymond stayed in the area this off-season, and they’ve done a very good job of limiting him to the things he can do during training camp. Our team doctor’s big concern was not to get inflammation in that shoulder.”
Coach Dailey doesn’t feel the pressure to anoint a starter just yet, however, “We’re just trying to find the best three guys, and who knows going into the season we may play two or three guys just to find out who we will go with, because of not having pre-season games.”
ST/K – Coach Dailey sees real improvement in the special teams for the Firebirds after a 2002 season that saw the team struggle kicking and returning the ball. “I think it’s been a really strong area for us this pre-season, obviously Clay is the premier kicker in the Arena Football League.” Coach Dailey remarked, “I think we’re real fortunate to bring him here. He’s got a strong leg for kick-offs and a very high percentage for extra points and field goals.”
Last year Evan Hvlaceck took the majority of return for the Birds and coach Dailey saw improvement throughout the year, “I think Evan is starting to get a feel for it, I think he always had the knack as a runner, he has great vision and can hit the hole fast, but I think he was uncomfortable catching the ball of the net early last year,” recalled Dailey “and I think as the season went on he got better at playing the nets and how to field the ball. Once he’s got the ball in his hands he’s got speed and he’s a tough guy.”
That doesn’t mean there won’t we competition for the number one return spot. “I think some of those young guys we talked about,” said Daily, ”Terrence Blackwell was impressive the other day in the scrimmage taking one back, and Brian McDonald holds the record in Arena2 with ten returns [for touchdowns]. ”
The Firebirds enter the 2003 needing consistency. If Dailey and his staff can make the right choices before the season starts there is a good chance to improve on a disappointing 2002 campaign.
Matthew Pickut is a pastor in northern Indiana and a long time AFL fan. He also writes for his own website: The Brown Paper Blog. He graduated from Taylor University in Upland Indiana (class of `96) with degrees in Biblical Literature and Sociology as well as a healthy respect for the medicinal properties of coffee.
