“At this stage in my career I’d been in Philly for seven years and I don’t want to say I got comfortable because you never wanna get comfortable in football, but this was something I probably needed to light another fire under me,” Goosby said. “I kinda feel like I’m not too old to still play this game I still have a lot left in the tank and going to a new place and kinda getting that refresh was what I needed at this stage of my career. I feel like Baltimore is the place where I could further my career and learn a little bit more about the game and still showcase my skills as well,” Goosby said.

“It’s been great so far experiencing the good and vibing with the team it’s been treating me good. The biggest change is the lingo, the game is pretty much the same Arena Football isn’t rocket science everybody pretty much runs the same scheme it’s just the terminology,” Goosby said.

The quick ride from Philly to Baltimore on I-95 South lead Goosby to Omarr Smith’s Brigade defense who appeared in last season’s ArenaBowl. Smith is widely regarded as one of the best defensive minds in league history with three ArenaBowl titles as an assistant coach and four as a player. Smith’s seven ArenaBowl titles and Goosby’s desire to add more championship rings to his already growing collection made this a match made in heaven.

“It’s been great working with these coaches they have a lot of experience, they said something in a meeting that there’s like maybe 20 rings between them. Coach Omarr being the G.O.A.T. that he is he was an amazing player and now he’s an amazing coach and Baltimore is coming out of the championship game last year. Working with these coaches I’m learning even more, I don’t know it all but I want to know it all and those guys help me understand the game better,” Goosby said.

“The defense just flies around the coaches are motivators they don’t accept mediocrity. Practices are very intense and up beat we’re running everywhere and we’re always where we’re supposed to be. You definitely have to know the playbook if you want to play for the Brigade,” Goosby said.

The Brigade beat the Philadelphia Soul twice in last year’s postseason but fell short of the ultimate goal when they lost to the Washington Valor in the ArenaBowl. Since then the team lost a few pieces in free agency, most notably their quarterback Randy Hippeard who signed with the Atlantic City Blackjacks. The Hippeard loss is certainly a big one, but the Brigade were very aggressive in signing a lot of young talent while also returning some of their solidified veterans.

“It’s only been the first week so we’re still taking things slow and making sure that everyone is on the same progression level. The defense is going to come together pretty good we’ve got good pass rushers, a couple familiar faces at defensive end that I know from Philly in Robert Hayes and Thomas Dover, and there’s a couple guys I know from playing against like Joe Powell. We’ve got a couple veterans who are coming in late like Justin Lawrence and Dexter Jackson, so I’ve played against these guys for a couple years in the league and I know they know their stuff and everyone has the same goal and that's a championship at the end of the year,” Goosby said.

The return of Justin Lawrence and Dexter Jackson during training camp was big for the middle of the Brigades pass rush. For many years in San Jose Omarr Smith was coaching Jason Stewart at nose guard and Francis Maka at mac linebacker, and the Lawrence and Jackson combination is a similar style. Lawrence is similar to Stewart in that they both do a good job at holding up blockers and freeing up a gap for the mac linebacker to come through. That’s where Jackson’s ability comes into play, and similar to Maka they both are very aggressive downhill mac linebackers. Both players don’t waste any time in their first step off the ball, and both have a reputation for coming downhill harder than other macs. This can create a nightmare situation for centers and fullbacks due to the fact they must deal with a big and powerful nose guard, while also having a physical mac coming full speed ahead at the fullback.  

In addition to Goosby the Brigade signed perennial All-Arena receiver Joe Hills in free agency, an immediate improvement to the weapons that Baltimore has offensively. Hills has dominated the AFL since he joined and the move to Baltimore puts him in an offense who likes to take shots downfield. Last year with the Albany Empire Hills had 88 receptions for 1,045 yards and 33 touchdowns. Goosby and the Soul defensive backs had many battles with Hills since his arrival in the AFL in 2012, and for the first time in their careers Goosby and Hills will be teammates this year.  

“It was shocking when I walked in and saw Joe Hills, I was like man we’ve been enemies for so long now we’re dapping each other up and smiling. We’ve got three Joe’s now with Powell, Hills, and Goosby. It’s been cool man just playing with these guys that I’ve had to tackle for a couple years, and having a receiver like Joe Hills who knows so much about the game and he’s a specimen you see him in person and he’s 6’4 and looks like he’s been hitting the iron pretty good this offseason. I was not expecting him to be in Baltimore when I signed but I’m happy that he’s here,” Goosby said.

The Joe Hills signing certainly had to sit well with Shane Boyd, the Brigades backup quarterback during the 2017 and 2018 seasons who has the opportunity to be the starting quarterback in Baltimore this season. Boyd is a 36-year-old journeyman who has attempted a pass for six different franchises during his AFL career. Prior to the AFL Boyd played at the University of Kentucky and had stints with multiple NFL teams. Boyd joined the AFL in 2012 and has only had one full time starting job with the San Antonio Talons in 2014. Boyd did what he could in an unperfect situation, but Baltimore is a much more optimal spot. The Brigade have a much stronger offensive line and weapons than Boyd had in 2014, and after that season in San Antonio Boyd spent two seasons working with Nick Davila and Kevin Guy in Arizona.

“Shane Boyd is a great leader who knows a lot about the game, and I feel like him getting his opportunity to be the face of the franchise and be the man, quarterback you’re the captain of the team he’s been waiting his turn and it’s long overdue. The quarterbacks we have behind him are all great, couple of these guys have arena experience other places maybe lower leagues or other AFL rosters but these young guys are picking up the game pretty fast as well,” Goosby said.

“He has the confidence we’re comfortable around him, he knows where the balls supposed to go, and it’s just all about him getting out there and showcasing his skills on Fridays and Saturdays. We’ll be great with Shane, I know that the quarterback situation here was kind of a big question when I came in but Shane Boyd is a great leader and he’s gonna be a great quarterback for us we have big time weapons here so all he has to do is get the ball to these playmakers and they’ll do the rest,” Goosby said.

“Coming from Philly and watching film they do use Dan Raudabaugh as a blueprint, they watch a lot of film on him. When I was in Philly they’d always get the ball out so quick. I think these guys have heard about him and know that he’s one of the top quarterbacks in the league and watching film you take things from others game and implement it to your game and that’s what makes a better football player,” Goosby said.

Goosby joins Baltimore with a career total of 415 Tackles and 18 interceptions, playing for Philadelphia in every season but his rookie year which he spent with the Dallas Desperados. After Dallas folded in 2011 Goosby joined many of his former Desperados teammates on the Soul, like Dan Raudabaugh and Tiger Jones to name a few, reuniting them with former Dallas head coach Clint Dolezel. The influx of players from Dallas and Coach Dolezel’s high powered offense lead the Soul to a huge turnaround in 2012, with a 15-3 record and an ArenaBowl appearance. Since then the Soul have never looked back, appearing in a grand total of four ArenaBowl’s with two championships since Dolezel joined the Soul.

The 2019 season will be the first of Goosby's arena career that he isn’t coached by Dolezel, and this will be the first season since 2009 that Dolezel doesn't have Goosby as his jack linebacker. In 2010 Dolezel was the head coach of the San Angelo Stampede formerly of the Indoor Football League and Goosby was a member of the team.

“It was a very difficult decision; Philly will always be home when you’ve been with an organization for so long and have won championships. At the end of the day I still talk to (James) Romain he’s one of my best friends and it’s so weird talking to him about when we’re gonna play against each other. But every individual has to make a decision and do what’s best for you and I just felt like moving on was probably best for me and the team, and I knew that I couldn’t play in Philly forever but Clint Dolezel is one of the best coaches ever and he knows what he’s doing so Philly will be okay, it’s just for me and my career I felt like I needed to move on and do somethings I wanted to do myself but it’s all love,” Goosby said.

“My favorite memory had to be the two championships we won, and we were just talking about that with the coaching staff here in Baltimore how when you win a championship you remember every guy on that roster that year but when you don’t win it you might just remember the guys that you hung out with the most. I kind of respected on that because the 2016 and 2017 season we were tight like glue and I’m just trying to be that voice here and let the guys know that were trying to bring a championship pedigree and learn the in’s and out’s that have helped us while also learning what helped them last year. It’s all a learning curve situation and I’m just happy that at my age I don’t think that I know it all and I’m still learning,” Goosby said.

One thing that Goosby was always known for in Philly was his ability to be a leader in the locker room and help mentor and develop young defensive players. With eight seasons in the AFL under his belt Goosby will certainly have a similar role in Baltimore, helping the young players the Brigade have learn the nuances of the arena game.

“The same way I got mentored when I was brought into the league really going over the basics like knowing the route tree, formations, and then moving from there. I think those two are the main things that helped me when I got into the league, what routes you’re gonna see and certain formations. Then once you add the defensive calls too it the game becomes that much easier. We have a lot of rookies on the defensive side of the ball and I know for a lot of these guys the games moving really fast-paced for them but they’ll begin to understand the game better and it’ll start to slow down,” Goosby said.

One of the young players who Goosby will have the opportunity to play with this season is Joe Powell, a 25-year-old defensive back who took the AFL by storm in 2016 when he recorded five interceptions with the Cleveland Gladiators before getting multiple opportunities to play in the NFL that summer. Since then Powell has bounced between NFL camps and the AFL, with a stop in the AAF this year. Last year with the Brigade Powell recorded four interceptions and was voted onto the second team all-arena list.

“A lot of talent he’s a joy to be around, he’s a fireball. He’s a football player, he’s one of those guys that kind of reminds me of myself when I came in the league. He went all-arena last year, and I know his goal is probably DB of the year and I wouldn’t be surprised if he got that award this year,” Goosby said.

While Goosby is now the wily vet with multiple championships and all-arena selections he started his AFL career with a star-studded group of veterans who helped him learn the things that’ve led to his success. The most notable change in the game of Joe Goosby came in 2015 after the Soul had went through two ArenaBowl losses in 2012 and 2013, and then a subpar season that ended in a first-round exit in 2014. Goosby was extremely productive for the Soul during that time, but he had been playing at a lighter weight that more so reflected the outdoor strong safety position which he played during his college days at Tulane University. During the offseason after the 2014 season Goosby dedicated himself even more than before to the weight room and came into the 2015 season looking more of a prototypical linebacker’s size than a safety.

“It did a lot for my game I was one of the young guys who fought being a linebacker my whole life. Coming out of high school teams wanted to recruit me to play linebacker I just never saw the bigger picture because I was a little bit lighter and I didn’t know that I could throw the weight on my frame and that I’d still move pretty good, I fought that my whole life. Then I got to the arena league and I was like you know what let’s just give it a shot. I fought it for so long then going from that 2014 to 2015 season if I could put on an extra ten pounds and workout pretty good I could feel myself kind of just turn it on, we had went to two championships and lost back to back,” Goosby said.

“That was just something I had to do, it was really Tiger Jones I was fortunate enough to play with him when I was a rookie in Dallas and in Philly and he’s the ultimate guy about taking care of your body and he was the one to put that bug in my head, why don’t you bulk up a little bit and see how that works out for you, and I really respect him and really look up to his game so when he said it I tried it and it really worked for me. A lot of kudos to him,” Goosby said.

The 2019 season will be an interesting one for Goosby, joining a new organization for the first time since 2012 will certainly be an adjustment. But Goosby’s track record as one of the best jack linebackers ever has not changed, and on the field Goosby may be in line for his best season yet.

“Team goal is always to win a championship, and my personal goal is to be All-Arena and be the best jack linebacker in the league. I know Albany has Terrance Moore and D.C. has Alvin Ray Jackson and I’m pretty cool with those guys and anytime we see each other we joke about who's the best jack linebacker in the league, but those guys are pushing me and hopefully I’m pushing them to elevate our game,” Goosby said.

 

Harrison Brown is a college student who has been covering Arena Football since he was 12 years old and has been with ArenaFan since 2014. Harrison was a captain of the varsity football team during his senior year of high school and went on to play one season of Division III football in Massachusetts. Harrison has worked for two indoor football teams, in 2018 he was the Director of Player Personnel for the Jersey Flight and in 2016 he was the Color Commentator for the Philadelphia Yellow Jackets. You can follow Harrison on twitter @HarryBrownRusso.