Storm Optimistic Despite Off-season Losses
Adam J Locascio
Wednesday February 4, 2004
The biggest question surrounding the 2004 Storm squad is how the they will cope with the losses of their biggest impact players. Though free agency or retirement, the Storm lost quarterback John Kaleo (Austin), DS Omarr Smith (San Jose), DS Corey Sawyer (Chicago), OL/DL BJ Cohen (New Orleans), Al Lucas (Los Angeles), OL/DL Troy Wilson and OL/DL Sai Poulivaati (retirement). All were starters.
The 2003 Storm squad, led by a fierce defense, thrived on a ferocious pass rush that forced opposing quarterbacks into making bad decisions; decisions that Smith and Sawyer would promptly pounce on. Kaleo was good for 45 to 55 points a game and was a rock behind the center. That translated into a 12-4 season and a number two seed in the playoffs.
With the pass rush and defensive backfield exploring greener pastures (i.e. cash), head coach Tim Marcum stepped up to the challenge and went into the off-season looking to stop the bleeding.
If the Storm’s scrimmage with the Orlando Predators is any indication, Marcum might have found his gauze and sutures. The Storm rolled up 50 points in ten possessions against the Predators in a controlled scrimmage that saw touchdown passes thrown to six different receivers by three different quarterbacks. The defense got in on the action with three “sacks”—quarterbacks were placed in non-contact red jerseys—and a safety.
Now, who’s missing from last year?
Taking his spot behind the center is Shane Stafford who stepped in admirably for Kaleo in 2002 when he went down with a knee injury and was lost for the year. Stafford snuck the Storm into the playoffs and scored an upset win over number five seed Los Angeles Avengers, the first time in AFL history that a 12 seed won a road playoff game. Stafford returns with three leagues of experience under his belt after spending time with the Scottish Claymores of NFL Europe and with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New England Patriots.
Backing up Stafford is ArenaBowl XVII hero Pat O’Hara who took over behind center when Kaleo went down with a rib injury. Former Arizona Cardinal Stoney Case will battle for the backup spot behind Stafford and has shown that he has made the adjustment to the AFL. In the scrimmage with the Predators, Case completed 6 of 9 passes for 87 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions.
Running backs David White, Andre Bowden and Basil Proctor all were injured at some point last year; the Storm still ranked fourth in the league in rushing touchdowns. Lineman Nyle Wiren has shed about 15 pounds and is playing much quicker than last year, and may step in to play fullback every now and then as well. This is one of the deepest groups in the league.
If you want to know how talented the Storm receivers are this season, the third player in AFL history to break the 10,000 receiving yards barrier spent all but five games on the bench last year. This group is deep, talented and dangerous, and could easily put up 60 points a game. Led by ArenaBowl XVII Ironman of the Game Lawrence Samuels, the Storm receivers create a huge problem for defensive coordinators. There is no one player to shut down on this team. Freddie Solomon, David Saunders, Antione “TT” Tolliver, Clif Dell, and Tramain Jones can move in and out, and the crew never misses a beat.
Making matters worse for opponents, Stafford has become quite adept at spreading the ball around, never focusing on one receiver for too long. This team will live and die by its receivers.
On defense, Cohen and Lucas are gone, after anchoring a defense that ranked the Storm second in forced fumbles in 2003. To replace Cohen and Lucas, Marcum went to the NFL and signed former second round pick Shawn King, Emil Ekiyor, who played with the Buccaneers, and DJ Blesiath, who played with the Oakland Raiders. Providing more depth will be Darrion Connor and Rod Williams, who both return from injuries last year, former af2 Defensive Player of the Year Ernest Certain, and former Bucs guard Jorge Diaz, who signed late last season along with returning lineman Nyle Wiren.
Pass rushing specialist Kelvin Kinney returns from the Canadian Football League where he won a Grey Cup with the Edmonton Eskimos. At 6’7” 280 pounds, Kinney has made batting down low passes an art form and will be counted on heavily for picking up the slack from the departure of Cohen and Lucas.
With Sawyer and Smith gone, the battle for defensive specialist is wide open. Again, Marcum went to the NFL to make sure his bases are covered. The Storm signed former NFL first round pick Antonio Langham, along with Del Lee, Shea Showers, Carlos Lee, and the hard-hitting Tramain Jones.
The Storm used six kickers last year, none of whom seemed to get the job done. Kicker number three, Ian Howfield, returns for the Storm and was 6-of-7 on extra points during the scrimmage, with the only miss coming on a bad snap.
What looked like a dismal off-season that was marred with free agent losses has turned into a team that garners some real optimism. Coach Marcum was pleased with the efforts he saw during the scrimmage especially with the pass rush and the coverage in the secondary.
So how does this translate into on-field success? Scoring points will not be a problem, but giving up points might. This could be a team that gets into a lot of shootouts this season, which is good for TV, but bad for long term success. But Tim Marcum hasn’t survived in this league this long by not recognizing talent. The offense will bail out the defense for a little while but look for the defense to gel around week five or six.
With the offense this team has, the defense does not have to meet last season’s lofty benchmarks. While the fans and the cameras point toward New York Dragon QB Aaron Garcia, look for Shane Stafford to very quietly put up some pretty impressive numbers with OS Freddie Solomon emerging as the go-to guy during his second full season in the league.
Adam J. Locascio is a financial advisor in the Tampa Bay area and a Board Member of the Tampa Bay Storm Surge Fan Club. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Phoenix and is a six-year season ticket holder for the Tampa Bay Storm.
