Big News in New Jersey
Marc Viquez
Thursday January 31, 2002
"Mike gives us another great player on offense, " said Gladiators Head coach Frank Haege.
No kidding.
 Mike Horacek in 2000 with the Iowa Barnstormers Image courtesy of Drew Kennedy |
"He gives us some size and speed and hopefully will give us some more points", said Haege.
After his memorable 2000-season, Horacek spent time with the Jacksonville Jaguars and Green Bay Packers. When it didn’t work out, Horacek narrowed his choices between the Gladiators and the New York Dragons, who he originally played for when the team was in Iowa.
The Gladiators have made some notable transactions with the recent acquisition of QB Glenn Foley and former Tampa Bay Storm OS James Bowden. The addition of Horacek adds a crowded contingency of receiving stars that also includes team MVP Coco Blalock, newcomer Fontez Jefferson, who is coming off a 25-touchdown season, and AF2 stars George Williams and Dennison Robinson who combined for 28-touchdowns last year. Could this lead to having too many cooks in the kitchen? Haege is hoping that everyone will focus on higher priorities come the beginning of training camp on March 24.
"Everybody will just want to win and be happy with being productive on the field.”
The coaching staff and new assembly of players should create more wins in a now highly talented eastern division. There seems to have been a trend this off-season with eastern division teams bringing in highly sought after players through trades. However, the return of Horacek to the league should keep division foes in awe.
A fan of the sport since 1990 Marc has covered both the New Jersey Gladiators and Cincinnati Swarm (Af2) for Arenafan Online. Marc now resides in Indianapolis after graduating with a Masters in Sports Management from Indiana State University in Terre Haute, Ind. When not at a Firebirds game Marc can be found traveling the Midwest covering sports for various Internet and print publications.
