Rattlers Look to Down Explosive Firebirds
Patrick Daly
Saturday May 19, 2001
It’s equally difficult to say “Firebirds DS Cedric Walker.” After spending four seasons alongside Cecil Doggette in Arizona, Walker now lays out hits in Firebirds orange and black. Walker lines up with rookie DS Cornelius Coe on a defense that held Milwaukee to six points in week two, but has allowed over 70 points the last two weeks in games against New York and Chicago.
While Arizona DS Jerrick Bledsoe has grabbed three picks in four games playing next to Doggette, Walker was a force for the Rattlers that won’t be easily forgotten.
“I miss him this year,” said Doggette about Walker. “He’s a defensive specialist and so am I, so it won’t a one-on-one battle, but we’ll talk to each other after the game.”
On pace to toss over 70 touchdown passes, Firebirds quarterback Raymond Philyaw has made a big impression in his first year as the starter for Indiana. While it never hurts to have a future Hall-of-Famer like Eddie Brown for a target, Philyaw has avoided big mistakes and worked within the system, earned the respect of opposing teams.
“They don’t have a real complicated package,” said Rattlers coach Danny White about Philyaw and the Indiana offense. “With Eddie [Brown] back running deep outs, ins, corners and posts, he just drops and throws to a spot. You’ve got to hope that you’ve got a pass rush on him. That’s why we’ve focused so hard this week on our guys up front. We’ve got to try to get some pressure on him.”
After a four-game run of division games during which the Rattlers posted a 3-1 record, Arizona now faces a big test against a team that has scored at will so far this season. “This game is such a rivalry,” said Doggette. “Every year it comes down to the wire. The key this week is to eliminate mistakes and play hard. We haven’t played a full four quarters yet and we can’t do that against a great team like the Firebirds.”
Arizona wide receiver/linebacker Chris Horn echoed that sentiment. “We’ve played well at times, but we haven’t played well for a whole game and that’s one of our focuses, come out from start to finish and just play a good game.”
Doggette, Bledsoe and Ricky Parker have their work cut out for them this week, facing the second-ranked offense that features Brown, WR/LB Greg Hopkins and WR/DB Van Johnson. They’ll need help from the line to keep the game under control.
“We need to start getting more pressure on the quarterback,” said Rattlers lineman Charlie Morris. “It all starts up front. If the quarterback’s not being pressured or sacked it gives him more time to throw. That puts more pressure on the defensive backs. They can only cover for so long.”
Unlike previous weeks, Arizona can ill-afford a slow start against a powerful team like Indiana. “We can’t afford any speed bumps in this game,” said White. “We’ve got to hit the ground running. We can’t come out like we did against Houston or against San Jose. We can’t have the lapses like we did, because if you have a lapse against this team you could be down by four touchdowns.”
The injury report continues. OS Calvin Schexnayder could play this week, with a 50% chance of seeing action. QB Chad May will get his fourth straight start as Sherdrick Bonner won’t be available on Sunday and will likely start preparing for the following game at home against Buffalo. Lineman Stacy Evans has not yet been cleared to practice and could be available for the Buffalo game, but probably won’t be back until the June 3rd game in New York.
This is the only home game that will be nationally televised on TNN, but for the players it makes no difference. “You really don’t think about when you’re out there playing, you’re so focused in on the game,” said Doggette about the national exposure. “We could play this in the backyard and it’ll still be a brawl.”
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.
