Bye Week Key Turn for Hot Rush
Jeff Sims
Thursday April 21, 2005
What a difference a bye week makes.
Since its bye, the Rush is 3-0 having come up some solid, convincing wins over New York, San Jose, and now sweeping the season series against Colorado with a 75-51 victory over the Crush. The 75 total points this Sunday was the second highest in team history.
So what makes a team make that significant of a turn in a matter of seven days? There have been a few keys to the recent success of this football team.
The Commitment
After a couple of early defeats, the team appeared to have an "I don’t know" attitude when it came to understanding why they were not winning football games. It’s not that there was a bad attitude, a wrong attitude, or a wrong approach; it was just that none of the players understood why they had been unable to win games.
That attitude has since changed. They have put the first half of the season behind them and are now looking forward to making a statement in the second half.
"Even at that low point when we were 4-4, we still were not down on ourselves and we still knew the talent that we had," said Rush star WR/LB Etu Molden. "It wasn’t really a worrying thing for us. It was just a thing were we looked each other in the eyes and said ‘It’s time to go!’"
Practice and Performance – The Work Ethic
"People are starting to work now," said Rush QB Raymond Philyaw. We have a sense of urgency now with the playoffs coming around. I know how it feels to not make the playoffs and I don’t like that feeling. Hopefully everyone else feels the same way and we make the push toward the playoffs."
Philyaw is the leader of this team and has probably been the best example of why this team has made its turn.
Early in the year, Philyaw looked as if he had not fully recovered from the knee injury he sustained in the semi-finals last season. He was not confident in his decisions and was not a mobile quarterback, something that had made him a threat all of last season. He had become a pocket-passer and seemed predictable at times.
Over the last three games, Philyaw has been outstanding completing 75 of 104 passes for 833 yards and 18 touchdowns. He has only thrown two interceptions in that span and has attempted to run the ball as well, which has once again made the running game a threat.
It can be argued that his performance has boosted the morale of his teammates and inspired them to put forth a better effort.
"The biggest change has been the tempo of practice and how attentive they are in team meetings," said head coach Mike Hohensee. "They have just been fantastic. They have been very professional in their approach. We (the coaches) have come up with some very good game plans and some game plans where it takes a little bit of thinking for these guys. They can’t just come out and play ball. They have to come out and make some adjustments to what the other team is doing. That is to our advantage. We have some high tendencies on some people, and we have to take advantage of those things and we have been able to do that, especially defensively."
Defensively, key additions during the off-season WR/DB Charles Pauley and WR/DB Russell Shaw have made big plays. Pauley made three consecutive defensive plays against the Dragons in the final minute to secure the win in New York and Shaw’s interception against Colorado this past Sunday was a key point in the game early on. And WR/LB Etu Molden is having another spectacular season on both sides of the ball.
Special Teams
Third, the special teams play of the Rush has given the team momentum during recent games.
Henry Douglas has handled most of the kick return duty for most of the season. Before getting injured early in the season, Douglas was ranked in the top three for kick return yards per game. The team struggled during the three game stretch that Douglas missed with the groin injury.
Since his return to the line-up, Douglas has continued right where he left off. He is once again ranked as one of the top five returners in the league and is always a threat to score.
In Sunday’s game with two seconds left in the first half, Douglas took a missed FG attempt and returned it 53 yards for a touchdown and gave the Rush a 41 – 26 lead to end the first half.
The scary part is, Douglas feels that he can still do better.
"For me, I’m not where I want to be with returns," said Douglas. "I’m hoping that I can pick it up toward the end of the season. The key is just basically getting the ball and getting to the hole. Get the ball, get into the hole, and go!"
Also a factor has been K Keith Gispert’s ability on kickoffs.
"Gispert’s ability to get the ball around the iron on the kickoffs has probably been the biggest thing to not only put them in horrible field position, but to give us an opportunity to get the ball and create momentum before (the opposition) has a chance to take a snap."
The Next Hurdle
The Rush continue their difficult second half schedule in Los Angeles this Saturday night in what is another key match-up that may help clear up the American Conference playoff race.
This proves to be a key for both teams with the Rush looking to make a push for the Central Division lead and the Avengers looking to keep pace with Las Vegas for the fourth playoff spot.
It will also be the first home game for Los Angeles since the sudden and tragic death of team member Al Lucas.
"With a tragedy like that and with it being their first home game since the incident, I’m sure that they are going to be up for it," stated Molden. "We are going to have to remember that it is still a football game, play tough, and try to get a win."
And with their current three game winning streak and new found swagger, the Chicago Rush could be setting up another push toward an ArenaBowl appearance.
"That puts you in there with a lot more confidence," said Hohensee. "It’s kind of a world-beaters type of an attitude that we can do anything now. When you get twenty guys in pads thinking that way, they are going to be hard to beat."
Jeff has been writing for ArenaFan.com since 2004. Originally from New York, Jeff has been living in the Chicago area for the past ten years and is an avid football fanatic. He holds a BA in communications from Hofstra University in New York and a sports management certificate from Loyola University in Chicago.
