Rehabilitated Rattlers Look To Get Season Rolling
Brian Knapp
Friday February 21, 2003
The 2003 Rattlers are off to an uncharacteristic 1-2 start; a start that the franchise hasn’t witnessed in almost a decade. To their credit, however, Arizona has been faced with more than their fair share of adversity in this young season. Early-season injuries to key players have kept Arizona from getting any sort of momentum going thus far.
Luckily, three of Arizona’s key veteran players will return to action this weekend.
Sherdrick Bonner headlines the returns, coming off a separated shoulder (non-throwing) that he suffered at the hands of San Jose lineman Albrey Battle in week one. “It’s just one of those injuries where you just got to see what happens. If you take a hit directly on it, you’ll be right back where you started from,” Bonner said. “But as far as all the strength and range of motion, everything’s good.”
Bonner worked hard in practice this week and definitely looks ready to retake the reigns as leader of this team. Although backup QB Chris Hixson performed well in his two outings, Bonner is the leader on this team and is a threat to the opposition anytime he steps on the field.
Randy Gatewood will also be back on the field for the Rattlers on Sunday. Gatewood sat out last week against Buffalo because of an ankle sprain. Bo Kelly is the third returning Rattler, following an injured toe that also kept him out of last Friday’s game.
Now that the Rattlers are healthy, players and coaches alike feel that it’s time to get this team back into their usual winning ways, starting with this week’s game in Indiana.
“They’ve got a great coaching staff and they do a good job offensively as well as defensively,” Bonner said. “We just need to not turn the ball over and try to gain some kind of momentum and rhythm on offense.”
The last time these two teams met was last year in Phoenix. The Rattlers defeated Indiana in an unusually low scoring affair, 34-21.
The Rattlers and Firebirds match up well, mainly on the offensive side of the ball. Each team has a future AFL Hall of Famer in Arizona’s Hunkie Cooper and Indiana’s Eddie Brown. While Brown is still the go-to guy for the Firebirds, Cooper has given much of his playing time in Arizona to All-Arena OS Chris Horn.
The Rattlers and Firebirds have been inter-division rivals since the 1994 season. Remember, it was in 1994 when Arizona knocked off the then-Albany Firebirds to secure a berth in ArenaBowl VIII against Orlando. “They’re a perennial powerhouse team. I mean they’ve always been tough, going way back when they were in Albany,” Bonner said.
Without a doubt, the Rattlers want nothing more then to get themselves back in the win column. Based on the intensity and hustle the Rattlers showed in practice this week, they are definitely beginning to look like the team of old. “We’ve got some players that can make some things happen. We just haven’t put it together yet,” Bonner said. “Once we put it together, it’s going to be fun to watch.”
Brian Knapp was a writer for ArenaFan Online from 2003 to 2005.
