Exit Shell; Enter Harding as New York Heads into New Season
Dwayne Smith
Saturday January 22, 2005
The loss of Shell left a void. He was a strong personality that had instant credibility upon joining the team due to his football IQ and intense attitude. It also didn’t hurt to own a Super Bowl ring. Clearly, New York’s first course of action would be to find a coach that would be able to not only keep the Dragons at that level of intensity, but also pair that with a consistency that has at times been lacking. As great as Shell was in leading New York over many of the elite teams in the AFL, including the current champion San Jose Sabercats, what probably kept them out of the playoffs were inexplicable losses to sub-.500 teams. The fact is you just have to close the deal in those games before becoming an elite team.
Into the fray comes new head coach Waylon Harding. The former defensive coordinator of the Columbus Destroyers was the architect of the top-rated defense in the AFL during the 2003 season and will look to achieve that type of success with a team that already sports a top-rate offense. Harding, known for an intensity of his own, will be a change of pace from Shell and has already made an impact with his team. Whereas Shell served as a tough disciplinarian, Harding is an energetic, inspiring teacher. This may be exactly what the Dragons need to get over the hump, as Harding will keep the focus on improving the defense and allow QB Aaron Garcia to continue his assault on every passing record in the Arena Football League.
At Garcia’s disposal will be a who’s who of players he has hooked up with in the past and has had great success with. OS Kevin Swayne was a highly touted addition during last season and injuries prevented him from making a significant impact. In the last game of 2004, Swayne showed his incredible acceleration on a scoring reception where he jumped into another gear, blowing by the Philadelphia Soul secondary. Swayne ended up with 2 TDs in that game and left New York fans with a positive outlook for 2005. Also rejoining Garcia will be the 2000 offensive Player of the Year Mike Horacek who won the honor while receiving passes from Garcia when the team was still the Iowa Barnstormers. Horacek will make the move to WR/LB from OS due to Swayne cementing ownership of that role, but looks forward to rejoining Garcia. Even with all of these weapons, the Dragons were still able to snag highly touted free agent OS Markeith Cooper. With a clear memory of New York’s injury issues in 2004, Dragons Director of Player Personnel Rory Vacco noted, "In Arena Football, you can never have enough offensive weapons."
As for the defensive side of the ball, the acquisition of FB/LB Kevin Clemens, another free agent signing, will help both sides of the ball. New York fans will, however, miss favorites like Donvetis Franklin and Terrance Joseph. Franklin’s trademark dreadlocks and big plays consistently provided a lift to the fans and the team. Players that look to provide that physicality and impact are WR/LB Titcus Pettigrew and DS Chris Angel who have previously played for Harding. Angel is a hard-hitting defensive specialist that along with Pettigrew, have immense talent, but limited Arena League experience. Angel played defensive back for the Oakland Raiders in 2002 before going to the Destroyers. The true test of Harding’s ability as a head coach will be turning these young players into impacting defensive standouts.
Despite the dramatic change from the 2004 season, the most important sign of stability will be Garcia. The AFL’s all-time leading touchdown passer signed a three-year deal in the off-season before any of the other moves were made. This went a long way to allowing the team to attract free agents looking to play for a high-powered offense, while giving the Dragons some salary cap flexibility. At 34 years old, Garcia hasn’t shown any rust and should have one of his best seasons with the wealth of weapons at his disposal.
The Dragons have legitimate ArenaBowl aspirations and can’t wait to get back on the field. Key to any success for New York will be the carry-over of strong defensive play that can provide enough stops to take some of the heat off the Dragons top-flight offense. Keep an eye of New York’s revamped line and defense early in the season as an indicator of their overall success. The area where the team will have to most improve upon will be their consistency. Losses to some of the AFL’s weaker teams cost them an opportunity at a championship more than any rule did in 2004. If the Dragons are to be the elite team they aspire to be, these are the games they need to win, along with the big games at home.
Dwayne Smith covers Arena Football and the NFL for different web outlets along with providing a fantasy column to FantasyGMs.com. Dwayne has also been a contributor to other online and print outlets, including the Dallas Morning News. In 2003, he covered the NFL Draft from the Headquarters of the New York Jets.
