Back to the drawing board for Pirates’ Gary Porter
Michael Vergane
Sunday April 1, 2001
Not exactly something you want to think about going into a bye week if you are a player. But if you are Gary Porter, it gives you an extra week to work out the numerous kinks that the Pirates possess. Porter knows he has the players not only to compete, but to win.
That is because Porter knows his team. As the starting QB of the Pirates in 2000, he knows how his teammates reacted when the game was on the line. And he knew who he didn’t want to face on the other side of the ball during practice.
So when the IFL was sold and the new ownership went looking for a new head coach, they didn’t have to look far for their man. He even came with some coaching experience.
“After I finished the 97’ season with the Texas Terror (AFL)” said Porter, “I went back to my alma mater (Northwestern Oklahoma State) as a grad assistant and coached there for three years. We won a national championship and played for the title and lost last year. It was a great learning experience.”
One of the first things you notice about Gary Porter is a thick Texas accent. The Tomball, Texas native claims his legs are shot, his back is shot and he can’t run. But in a pinch he could probably come in and lead the Pirates down the field. That shouldn’t be necessary because Porter believes he has the right quarterback – a former competitor in Sean Hoolihan.
“We were very pleased to get Sean. He brings a dimension to this team athletically that we weren’t going to have. He can run the football and avoid the rush, and he makes a lot of good things happen. With Sean, we have to get him settled down and into the pure passing mode. He has to learn to use his speed and when to stay in the pocket.”
Last year in the IFL with Duluth, Hoolihan threw for 1605 yards in 10 games for 25 TD’s and 11 interceptions. He also ran for 542 yards which ranked him as the 7th leading rusher in the league.
Last Thursday in Moline, Hoolihan’s foot speed was negated. He frequently found himself being harassed by the Steamwheelers defensive front and the blanket coverage by the defensive backs on the Pirate receivers.
One reason that the Pirates find themselves starting the season at 0-1 is because the team only has two players with any Arena experience. That is not to say that you can’t learn the game and succeed. Only to say that by the time you gel, you will be in a hole and be playing catch-up in the standings.
In the season opener against Quad City, the Pirates special teams seemed to be a problem area all evening. A good example of experience vs. non-experience came about in the 4th quarter.
On fourth down, Porter sent out place kicker Todd Kurz to attempt a field goal. The officials failed to mark the ball properly and left the ball outside of the hash marks. Neither Kurz, nor the coaching staff spotted the officials error and the try was attempted at a harsher angle than was necessary.
On the ensuing drive the Steamwheelers stalled at mid-field and kicker Brion Hurley came out to attempt a field goal. Once again the officiating crew failed to mark the football within the hash marks. However, Hurley spotted the error and lined up on the hash mark. The referee saw this, realized his error and quickly placed the ball at its proper place. The field goal was good and Arena experience by itself dictated a 6-point swing in the game.
Gary Porter and his coaching staff will iron all these problems out. His players will eventually learn the Arena nuances and their athletic ability will take over and put them on par with the leagues’ top players.
Pirate fans can only hope that this point comes sooner, rather than later.
Michael Vergane was a writer for ArenaFan Online from 2000 to 2002.
