Rattlers Ready for Champion Grand Rapids
Patrick Daly
Friday May 31, 2002
Fast forward to week seven of the 2002 season where the Rampage stand atop the Central Division with a 4-2 record and make their first-ever trip to Arizona. It’s taken a three-game win streak after a shaky start to put the Rampage back in first place, but Grand Rapids will be hard pressed to repeat as league champions this season.
“A lot of championship teams struggle early out of the gate the following year until they find their niche,” Rattlers quarterback Sherdrick Bonner said. “They’re 4-2, but they’ve struggled a little bit. But they’re still a pretty good team.”
The Arizona Rattlers enter the game with a win streak of their own, riding a five-game run that has included some impressive wins. Against Chicago last week, the Rattlers combined solid defense with some fortunate bounces to send the Rush home with a 52-41 loss. This week, Arizona faces a potentially high-scoring offense led by quarterback Clint Dolezel.
“Every year he’s played in this league he’s had great numbers,” Bonner said. “He’s somebody we have to be aware of and we have to put pressure on him, just like they’re probably saying the same thing about us.
“It could turn out to be a shootout. Hopefully we can go out and execute. If we have to, take 10, 11 play drives down the field to take the ball out of his hands and put our defense in really good situations.”
The Rampage have undergone a few changes during the offseason. They lost a few players to the expansion draft, but also filled some holes with free agent signings and dispersal draft picks. The most prominent loss may be defensive specialist Hassan Shamsid-Deen, who was selected by the Dallas Desperados in the expansion draft. On the plus side, Grand Rapids added lineman Israel Raybon and fullback/linebacker Travis McDonald, both of whom have made an immediate impact.
“They’re the champions until the season’s over, no matter how we look at it,” Rattlers receiver/linebacker Hunkie Cooper said. “They still have Clint Dolezel and he’s what makes that team go. They still have [head coach] Michael Trigg calling the plays. They’re a physical team; big, fast and strong. Receivers are small, real quick, but I don’t know how tough they are. We’re going to bang them around… trade them six yards for a headache and see if they can play at that fast speed for four quarters.”
On defense, the Rampage have a potential Rookie of the Year candidate in Raybon, who is second on the team with two and a half sacks. The Pittsburgh Steelers drafted Raybon in 1996, where he played for one season before joining the Panthers for nine games in 1997. After spending the 2001 season with the XFL New York Hitmen, Raybon signed with Grand Rapids in December.
“They do have a pretty good pass rush. They lead the league in sacks. They depend on that pass rush. Our guys just have to be patient and do a good job to get away from them and get open.”
The Arizona defense continues to get better, but Grand Rapids will present a good test. While the Arizona offense has put up good numbers, the defense has given the Rattlers the chance to build early leads. However, the Rattlers know that, despite some relatively easy wins, they’ve left some good opportunities on the table.
“We’ve stubbed our toes a few times the last few games on offense,” Bonner said. “You just have to really step on someone’s throat and put them away. You don’t want to get in that comfort level where you’re expecting it. So I think as an offense we have to do a better job. When we have opportunities, like last week we had the onside kick, we got it right back and we didn’t score, but our defense was able to hold them. We can’t rely on them to do that. We’ve got to take advantage of our breaks when we get them.”
As the Rattlers continue to gel during the season, it’s important to note that the emergence of offensive specialist Chris Horn has forced Hunkie Cooper into a somewhat new role. Cooper remains the heart of this team, as he has been since he arrived on the scene in 1993, but his role has become more of a leader and mentor, which has minimized his statistical contribution to the Rattlers. In contrast to 2001, when Cooper began to see a reduced on-field role, the Rattlers are winning this season, which makes the transition a little easier.
“This year it’s a little different,” Cooper said. “I’m still frustrated, but I’m happy with winning. I see the movement now. We have the right group of young guys and the right group of old guys. I think we’re starting to gel.”
If you talk to Horn, he’ll credit Cooper’s tutoring, both on the field and off, as one of the primary reasons for his own success.
“He’s good for a reason,” Horn said. “You can’t be consistently good in this league on just talent alone. He’s very smart and studies his opponent. Those types of things I’m just constantly learning from him.
“He’s very unselfish. He’s taken on a different role this year. That’s my definition of a leader. Whatever he’s asked to do, he does it and he does it well.”
When Horn arrived during the preseason last year, Cooper didn’t hesitate to step up and help get Horn going in the right direction.
“It was something I thought I needed to do,” Cooper said. “I’m not ready to retire yet. He’s the guy that’s going to carry the torch. He’s the guy that’s going to get me another contract. Ordinarily, a guy competing for your job, you don’t help him. That’s not the kind of person I am. I go out and help him and it helps me, because he works hard. He’s a very coachable and teachable person. He’s a good person. He’s the type of guy that draws a lot of attention like I used to do in my early years. In his second year, I think he’s accomplished some of the things that I accomplished. He’s going to be a great player for this team. The question is: Can he play ten years and be as productive as I was? He has the tools, he’s had the teaching, now he needs to go out there and put it in action.”
Compare the statistics of Cooper’s second season—47 catches, 681 yards, 13 receiving touchdowns, one touchdown on a kick return—with Horn’s first six weeks of his second season—46 catches, 629 yards, 15 receiving touchdowns, one touchdown on a kick return—and you’ll see that Horn is on pace to nearly double Cooper’s numbers. However, putting the numbers aside, Horn’s work ethic has revitalized Cooper, which can only help the Rattlers down the road.
“He makes me work because I like to see him work. He brings back the youth that I had. It’s good to see someone play the way I play the game. He plays the game with a passion. It’s not about a paycheck for him either. He plays the game with a passion and when you play with a passion you can play 94 plays and not get tired, and make big plays throughout the game.”
As the season has progressed, the Rattlers have improved since their season-opening loss to San Jose. What is the current prognosis? According to Cooper: “Right now, we’re a pretty good football team and we’re getting better every week.”
Players to watch
OS Chris Horn, Arizona—Horn added three more touchdowns against Chicago last week to increase his team leading total to 16 (one came on a missed field goal return), and should have the opportunity to add a few more this week.
OL/DL Israel Raybon, Grand Rapids—Raybon has made an immediate impact for the Rampage and can give the Rattlers offensive line fits.
QB Clint Dolezel, Grand Rapids—Dolezel has hit the 80-touchdown mark each of his last three seasons and he’s on pace to throw more than 70. He’s also prone to throwing an interception or two, which the Rattlers will look to turn into points.
Rattlers Defensive Line, Arizona—The D-Line has come up big over the past few weeks, even if the sack numbers don’t necessarily show it. Stacy Evans, Wendell Gaines and company will have to work hard to get Dolezel off balance this week, which will be a major key to this game.
OS Steve Smith, Grand Rapids—Smith has filled Terrill Shaw’s role nicely so far this season. Although Shaw has returned to Grand Rapids after signing with the Kansas City Chiefs in the offseason, Smith will carry the bulk of the load with Shaw out for the next few weeks.
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.
