On, Indeed
Eric Tabor
Wednesday March 26, 2008
It had been a year since Stingley was introduced to a city starving for a football savior, one year since his promise to resuscitate a franchise that had fallen to depths even he did not fully understand, two years filled with lots of bad breaks and not enough breakthroughs.
So as Stingley was leaving the scene of what had been his greatest victory as Wildcats coach, four words came out of his mouth, four words he had wanted to say since the day he stormed into that Albany Civic Center and pointed toward the stars.
“Boy, this is on.”
Did you feel it, too? Did you see what Stingley saw?
Did you see the 10 regular season victories last year? Did you see a playoff win? Did you see the top offense in the league, the No. 7 preseason ranking, the hopes of an ArenaCup Championship?
“I saw my team, and playing the style we were playing and looking at who I had,” Stingley said, “I've been around long enough to know what a good team looks like and what good guys look like. That's when I knew.”
After the loss the following week to Tulsa, the eventual ArenaCup champions, the job offers flooded in for his services.
Then at the blink of an eye, I got an email from the South Georgia Wildcats General Manager Darren McPhail, which stated that Coach Stingley would come back to lead the Wildcats again in 2008.
“As an organization, we could not be happier with the return of Coach Stingley,” said McPhail, “We feel that the 2007 season is a stepping stone for even greater things to come for this organization and bringing Coach Stingley back to continue that progress was our number one priority in the off-season.”
“All of Coach Stingley’s accomplishments on the field are well documented and justifiably so; his stock around Arena Football is doing nothing but going up. We are thrilled to be able to retain such a rising star to lead the Wildcats for another season and be a part of the Albany community. The continuity and stability that Derek will bring to our organization, team, and community is what this franchise has needed for going on four years now,” said Managing Partner John Hunt.
Winning Over the Community
The road to this season and this place has been volatile and unpredictable. But even before the af2 realignment, the off-season issues, the job offers from the AFL -- all watershed moments that have been chronicled time and again -- Stingley encountered challenges he did not anticipate, adding difficulty to a rebuilding job that was already monumental in the wake of the migration of several key players moving to other leagues and retiring.
Rallying that support wasn't always easy, especially for a brash African-American coming from places like New York, Chicago and New Jersey.
“When Derik came, I think he had it a lot tougher than he thought he was going to have it,” said longtime radio personality Frankie J. “I think it took him awhile to adjust to Albany, to the slower pace, to maybe some of our own provincialism even. And it took the fans awhile to adjust to Derik. And they expected, because of his name, he would immediately transform this into the glory years of multiple championships.”
As always Stingley is up for the challenge.
“I can’t wait to get back to Albany and take this team to the next level. We accomplished a lot in 07 but we also left a lot on the field. Our goals in 08 will be nothing short of a Division Title and an Arena Cup Championship,” said Head Coach Derek Stingley. “I’m also excited just to return to the City of Albany. As the season went on and we continued to win games, I just felt like football was really back in Albany and people were excited about our games.”
Putting the Pieces Together
“Bringing back the nucleus from last season was our number one priority and we felt the veterens we brought back are a great start to another very successful season,” said General Manager Darren McPhail.
Roland Cola, defensive back, played in 11 games last year while recording 32.5 tackles, 1 interception, and 2 fumble recoveries.
“I believe Roland will develop into the center piece of our secondary because last year he was one of our better athletes,” said Head Coach Derek Stingley.
Pierre Lee, defensive back, was on the Wildcats inactive list for most of last season, but he did appear in one game primarily on special teams.
Wide receiver P.J. Berry who only appeared in three games last season. However, his first game as a Wildcat was a memorable one as he grabbed 7 passes for 4 TD’s.
Coach Stingley is especially excited about the return of P.J. as he commented, “he’s an exciting player that I think will turn into a game-breaker and surprise a lot of people.”
James Harris, linebacker, returns for his 3rd season with the Wildcats. The Albany State product led the Wildcats defensively last year with 11.5 tackles for a loss while also hauling in 4 sacks. Harris also had a propensity for forcing turnovers as he forced 3 fumbles and recovered 4 more.
“Pound for pound he’s one of the most athletic players I’ve ever coached. I’m excited to know that James will be wearing a Wildcats uniform again next year,” said Head Coach Derek Stingley.
Fullback Clifford Browning spent last year with the Alabama Steeldogs recording 77 rushing yards and 4 touchdowns on offense and 3 tackles for a loss, 1.5 sacks and a forced fumble on defense.
Pete McBride, defensive back, was the 2nd leading tackler for the Wilkes-Barre Scranton Pioneers last year with 74. He also had 1 interception to go along with 10 pass break ups.
“Pete is my type of player in that he’s quick and he can cover. I’ve had my eye on him for a while,” said Head Coach Derek Stingley.
For two years quarterback Cecil Lester has been an understudy, and he will finally have his moment in the sun. In 2004, Lester played in six games for the Knights and had 764 yards passing and 10 touchdowns. Lester also gained 100 yards rushing and scored four touchdowns on the ground.
Last season Buchie Ibeh, wide receiver, played in nine regular season games and the playoffs with the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers. He amassed 916 yards receiving on 77 receptions on his way to scoring 20 touchdowns. Ibeh led the Pioneers to a berth in the 2007 ArenaCup where he scored 2 touchdowns and gained 112 yards receiving in a losing effort.
“Buchie is one of the most complete receivers in this league,” said Head Coach Derek Stingley. “His combination of size, speed, catching ability, and knowledge of the game is very rare in this league.”
Ibeh spent the 2006 season as a member of the AFL champion Chicago Rush. He caught 16 passes for 205 yards while tallying 6 touchdowns.
“Buchie Ibeh is a winner,” said General Manager Darren McPhail. “He has played in two straight championship games in the AFL and the af2 and we’re excited about adding that mentality to our team and locker room.”
Albany’s own Antwon Savage spent the last 2 seasons as a member of the Spokane Shock where he compiled 2,434 receiving yards and 61 touchdowns in two years. He also led the Spokane Shock to an ArenaCup Championship in 2006.
“First and foremost, I’ve wanted to coach Antwone for a long time and I think it’s very fitting that it will bring him back to his hometown,” said Head Coach Derek Stingley. “He’s one of the best receivers in this league and his numbers from the last 2 seasons prove that easily.”
af2 veterans Lou Vega (OL/DL), Derrick Lloyd (FB/LB), Anthony Bright (WR), and Clenton Rafe (WR, Albany State) will join Savage in South Georgia. Vega will be entering his 7th season in the af2 and will provide the Wildcats with a versatile lineman that can help on offense and defense. Lloyd is returning for his 2nd season with the Wildcats and will be relied upon heavily at both fullback and linebacker. Bright adds to the Wildcats superior depth at WR. He’s spent time with the NFL’s Carolina Panthers and during his last complete season in the af2 he posted 2,035 yards receiving while hauling in 43 touchdowns.
“Coach Stingley and his staff continue to bring in valuable pieces for the 2008 season,” said General Manager Darren McPhail. “I can’t wait to see Antwone back in a Wildcats uniform where he belongs as well as the impact that the previously mentioned veterans will provide for this team.”
Still, there are no guarantees; af2 football is not a safe business. All anybody knows is that for the second straight year, the Wildcats will have a legitimate chance to win the organization's first ArenaCup Championship. With this particular mixture of experience, talent and unselfishness, Stingley has never had so many pieces fit together so well.
“Be up at bat six times in a row, and you're going to knock one out,” Edward Dyson a Wildcat fan said. “We've been up at bat, this is our second year. Now let's go two more and make it five, six, seven.”
The first game is set for Saturday, March 29.
On, indeed.
Eric Tabor is a technology consultant, a free-lance writer, mobile DJ, and a native of Albany, Georgia. He has been an af2 fan since the Wildcats moved from Cape Fear. As well as being a football enthusiast, former player, and coach, he is married with three daughters and a son.