Butterfingered Rush Get Run Over by Predators
Jeff Sims
Sunday February 27, 2005
But it was not meant to be on this rare Friday night game at home for the Rush. The win literally fell right out of their hands and the Orlando Predators were more than happy to take the ball and run with it to come out of Chicago with a 48-35 victory.
After catching a pass on the first drive of the second half, starting WR/LB Jeremy McDaniel (who started in place of Etu Molden, who started at OS in place of injured star Henry Douglas) appeared to have a clear path to the end zone. Predators WR/DB Justin Skaggs, playing in place of last season’s Ironman of the Year Cory Fleming, came up behind McDaniel and stripped him of the ball. The Predators recovered the fumble, which the Rush argued that it had gone out of bounds.
Instead of wasting their energy arguing the call, the Rush should have concentrated on playing defense and making a stop. It would only get worse from this point.
Following the fumble, the Predators completed a five-play touchdown drive with a 13-yard reception by OS Jimmy Fryzel, who played in place of the injured Travis McGriff.
Out of the touchdown, Predators coach Jay Gruden surprised the Rush and the entire crowd at Allstate Arena by calling for an onside kick that was mistimed by Rush WR/DB DeJuan Alfonso and recovered by Orlando.
"I was trying to get us some momentum," said Gruden. "We were not quite flat, but things weren’t going our way and we needed some momentum. I thought our team needed a boost and our kicker executed perfectly. It was great execution by our whole team, but it was momentum we much needed."
Well you certainly can’t get much more momentum than what the Predators took away from the Rush at that point. Set up by an excellent running attack by Predators fullbacks Idris Price and Marlon Moye-Moore, Orlando completed another five-play drive with another touchdown pass from QB Joe Hamilton to Fryzel.
But wait, it only gets better!
On the ensuing kickoff, Etu Molden returned the ball 26 yards only to fumble and have the ball recovered by the kicker. THE KICKER!!!!
The Predators would then complete a two-play drive capped of by a nine-yard run by Moye-Moore.
The Rush would then score a touchdown to make the score 38-28 at the end of the quarter, but it was obvious they knew that they had been beaten with many heads down with a whole quarter left to play.
A Broken Down Defense
Price and Moore combined for a total of 61 yards on nine carries, almost unheard of in the arena game. The two seemed to barrel over the Rush defense at will.
Fryzel torched the Rush secondary for 133 yards and three touchdowns.
"We’ve always been a good running team," said Gruden. "I just had to stick with it. I lot of times I just want to throw, throw, throw, but we have good run blockers and of course our running backs can make things happen."
And the Chicago Rush defense can also look as though it would rather be bullfighting than playing football.
"Right now, I’m embarrassed to be the coach of this football team," said Rush coach Mike Hohensee. "I thought we played with no sense of urgency. I don’t think we played very physical. They beat us up front like we didn’t know what the hell we were doing. When you can hand the ball off on a dive and (give up) 20 yards, that’s embarrassing. We’ll be a better football team next week. "
Looking Ahead
The Chicago Rush now have a little more than a week to prepare for a division game at home against the Nashville Kats. The Kats bring in OL/DL James Baron, whom the Rush traded to Nashville during the off-season for the top three picks in this year’s expansion draft.
The Kats bring a physical style of play similar to that of the Predators. They are a new team that does not score many points, but may be able to give the Rush fits on defense.
Coach Hohensee believes that this is a home game that his team should win, but he also made some hints after this crushing loss that some changes may have to be made to the line-up.
"It’s pretty obvious," Hohensee stated in the press conference. "I pretty much got on them and told them what I just told you (the lack of urgency and inability to play physical). And I didn’t have anyone stand up and say ‘that’s bull…’. I wish I would have. But that didn’t happen. So we’ll find out how tough they are (next week) and I know I have some hungry guys waiting to dress. I’ve been waiting for the time to get them some playing time, and this just might be it."
This should certainly be an interesting week in practice for the Chicago Rush leading up to next Sunday’s game against the Kats. As fans, we may be shocked as to who is, and is not there.
Jeff has been writing for ArenaFan.com since 2004. Originally from New York, Jeff has been living in the Chicago area for the past ten years and is an avid football fanatic. He holds a BA in communications from Hofstra University in New York and a sports management certificate from Loyola University in Chicago.
