Knights Still Looking For Answers
Keith Murphy
Friday May 30, 2003
The Knights go into Saturday night’s matchup following a loss to the Vipers and a bye-week. Sullivan says that the Knights will be ready to play, “The last time we were on the field it left a bitter taste in our mouths; so, I think that, regardless of the bye week, we just want to get back on the field and try to get a win under our belt. We’re hungry to get back on the field and get back to our winning ways.”
Birmingham (3-4) comes into this weekend’s tilt on the heels of disappointing losses to the Louisville Fire (3-5) and the Albany Conquest (6-1). “I think they’ve had some inconsistency at quarterback; I think that’s the biggest thing,” said Sullivan. “They’ve got Chris Windsor back and he has some experience there. They’ve lost some key players. They lost their best receiver to the CFL. Their biggest problem has been consistency, but they are still the same old Birmingham team: pretty good up front; they’ve made some acquisitions in the secondary that have helped them. They’ll be ready to go when they face us.”
Quarterback remains a position that has been, at best, questionable this season. Both Sean Peterson and Renotto Solomon have shown flashes of brilliance but neither have been able to get into a comfortable, productive rhythm. The picture is clouded further by the acquisition of Kenton Evans. Evans, a 6’ 4” 215 pounder from Tennessee State joined the Knights this week in a trade from Greensboro. So, who will be under center Saturday? “Probably Sean,” Sullivan said. “We’re probably going to stick with him. He came in last time out and did a pretty good job. His completion percentage wasn’t as high as we would like, but we were able to throw the ball down the field and were pretty successful. So, I think we’ll stick with him this week.”
As for Evans, Sullivan says that his status is still undetermined. “We’re gonna wait and see if he’s got a good enough grasp of the offense and see if he’s going to be ready to go or not. We’ll just have to wait and see if he’s got a good understanding of what’s going on.”
Sullivan says that one of the brightest spots this season has been the steady improvement of the play of the team’s newest players, “I think, based on watching practice film, I can really see an improvement from our first year receivers. I think we’re getting better. It’s just that, at times, we’re not playing as well as we can and, against good teams, you can’t do that. I think they’ve done a good job. They’re coming along and I expect them to get better.
As the afl season wraps up, some af2 teams may be able to pick up some talent from afl franchises. Sullivan says that the Knights will be watching carefully as players become available, “I think there are some guys in the number three position (on the depth chart) who need some game and film experience and their teams are going to want them to get some experience. So, I think there are going to be a handful of guys who are going to trickle down and it comes down to who they are and if they fit into your plan. Anytime we can upgrade a position we will do that.”
Kickoff is set for 7:30pm (Central) at Birmingham. The Knights’ Booster club is filling a fan bus for the trip. For more information, contact the Knights’ ticket office at (478) 314-3000. The Knights next home game is June 7th when the Bossier City Battle Wings (3-5) fly in for their first ever contest against the Knights.
Dr. Murphy has nearly 20 years of media experience ranging from radio to the Internet. He has served as webmaster for two AF2 teams and the football team at Fort Valley State University. He is a professor at FVSU and directs www.bunniwerks.org, a non-profit rabbit rescue organization. He has been commissioned as a Kentucky Colonel. Murphy is also serving as a first party editor of af2 stories for ArenaFfan. For more information about Dr. Murphy see: www.keithmurphy.info
