Much Work Remains for Rattlers
Patrick Daly
Saturday April 17, 2004
The optimists among us will look at last season’s turnaround in which the Arizona Rattlers went from 4-5 to 10-6, setting up their run to the ArenaBowl, and say they can do it again.
The pessimists will look at a schedule that includes four of the last five games on the road, two games against the San Jose SaberCats and only one game (Detroit) that includes an opponent under .500, and say it’s still an uphill battle. Additionally, all but one playoff game took place in the Snake Pit.
Right now, after two wins that followed Arizona’s first three-game losing streak, the Rattlers understand the task they have ahead of them, and they remain optimistic.
“I think it puts us in the right direction, but I definitely don’t think it puts us where we want to be,” said Rattlers QB Sherdrick Bonner. “We’re working hard and the attitudes have always been great, even amidst the three-game losing streak, everybody continued to work hard. We’re trying to get where we want to go.
“We put ourselves in this position and it’s where we’re at, unfortunately. We know we have the ability to win out and to win a lot of games. It’s just a matter of us focusing and trying to get it done every week.”
To a man, they know what it’s going to take to get into the limited playoff field at season’s end, and last season’s experience may help, but it can only happen one week at a time.
“We were sitting in this position last year,” said Rattlers WR/DB Randy Gatewood. “We, as a team, have to take a look in the mirror, and we’ve got to go out and win four of our next six games to possibly get into the playoffs. We’re just taking it one week at a time.”
There are differences to keep in mind when comparing the 2004 version of the Rattlers to the squad from last year. One of those differences is the number of younger players on the active roster. That includes FB/LB Joe Jackson, who holds the starting spot with Bo Kelly and Frank Trentadue on the injured reserve, OL/DL Antoinne Scott, WR/DB Justin Taplin, and WR/LB Tom Pace, as well as WR/DB-turned-DS Orshawante Bryant. The team’s sack leader, OL/DL Bryan Henderson is only midway through his second season.
Despite the youth, the key appears to be finding consistency on defense, an area that seemed to be in good shape early, but has recently proven to be an Achilles’ heel.
“We’ve probably got more young guys playing this year than we did last year that are just going to keep getting better I think,” said Rattlers head coach Danny White. “I feel like we’re really jelling at the right time with the one exception of the secondary, and everybody has just got to focus on it and concentrate, and help wherever we can. If we can strengthen that area of our football team, we’ll be solid.”
And that’s an area of tremendous concern, as the Rattlers have struggled to find consistency in the secondary. Even though this is a league built for offense, defenses need to avoid giving up the homerun ball too often, and some of that comes from having the right mindset on defense.
“I don’t think we’re physical enough still," said Rattlers WR/LB Hunkie Cooper. “[Las Vegas] ran the same plays in the same parts of the field and they made the same catches. I think we have to become more confrontational. We’ve got to be more physical -- we’ve got to hit the motion man. I think if you hit that guy for four quarters, by the fourth quarter he doesn’t want to catch the football.”
One player that seems to be more involved lately is Gatewood, who was a major part of last season’s run, which was backed up by his Ironman of the Year award. Statistically, Gatewood’s contribution has increased. Gatewood acknowledged that it’s due mainly to the fact that the offense isn’t one-dimensional.
“Coach White, right now, is probably doing a great job of just mixing the ball around,” said Gatewood. “There’s a lot of guys catching different balls. I feel like, when I’m more involved in the offense, when I’m catching balls and catching touchdowns, I like our success rate. I’m a little selfish in that regard. On the other hand, as long as we win games and play well as a team, that’s all I can ask for.”
For now, the Rattlers have to continue to build on the pace they’ve set in the last two wins, but sitting in the number nine position looking at the eight-team playoff pool from the outside, they’ll need some help.
“We’ve got to have help now and I hate being in that situation; watching all the other games and seeing who beats who, instead of worrying about us,” said White. “Unfortunately, we dug this hole, so we’ve got to climb out of it.”
Twenty thousand, and counting
When Hunkie Cooper broke the 20,000 mark for all-purpose yards, he became only the second player in league history to do so – George LaFrance, who spent most of his 12-year career with the Detroit Drive and Tampa Bay Storm, is the only player ahead of Cooper at 20,480. In Cooper’s eyes the personal achievement pales in comparison to the team goals, but he did acknowledge the significance of the shear number of yards gained on the small field.
“Now that you look at it, I guess 20,000 is a lot of yards on a 50-yard field,” said Cooper. “The thing is that 20,000 had to begin at some point, and it was a long time ago. You have to play a lot of games, so I’ve been consistent. The thing I’m more proud of is that I still have something in the tank. I haven’t doubted that -- other people have, but I’m just going to continue to go. When I think I’ve had enough I’ll step away. I’ll never embarrass myself like that. Just because somebody else thinks I’m done I’ll probably play another 10 years just because of that.”
This week it’s been back to business.
“I’m 5-5,” said Cooper. “I’m not worried about 20,000 yards, I’m worried about being 6-5 after next week.”
Just kick it
Rattlers K Nelson Garner had one of his best games this season against the Las Vegas Gladiators on Saturday night, hitting all of his extra point tries and a makeable field goal. His performance was tempered a little by a failed onside kick that didn’t make it the required 10 yards and a kickoff that went out of bounds, but he’s certainly looking more like the kicker he’s capable of being.
“He had an excellent game except for the onside kick and the kickoff,” said White. “It seems like they’re always back-to-back. Still, he was an important part of the game and played very well. He’s kicking the ball well right now.”
Say what?
Prior to the matchup with Las Vegas, Gladiators receiver Maurice Bryant voiced his dislike for the Rattlers, not because of the rivalry that’s building between the two teams, but because he felt he wasn’t given a fair shake while in Arizona.
Bryant singled out Bonner and Cooper, but also blasted the management. Bryant was placed on injured reserve prior to the game, leaving him out of the action -- not the place to be if you want to back up your words. While Cooper didn’t see the need to defend himself, he did question why Bryant made the comments only to not be on the field to back it up.
“Why would you say anything if you’re not going to be in the competition,” said Cooper. “He’s one person on one team for one game, and then he’s not even at the game. He’s there with a tank top on. If I was his teammates I’d be on his head right now, because I wouldn’t talk up a battle that I’m not going to be a part of.”
Patrick Daly has been an Arena Football League enthusiast since he first stumbled across the late-night ESPN broadcasts and has followed the Arizona Rattlers since their inaugural season in 1992. He graduated from Arizona State University with an engineering degree and is currently a member of a web development team for Direct Alliance in Tempe. Patrick currently resides in the Phoenix suburb of Chandler, Arizona with his beautiful wife, son and a very large football helmet collection.
