Two Different Strategies
Manny Nunez
Wednesday August 20, 2014
It takes a lot to build a franchise. With the stress it takes to find the right players to pleasing the fans in all aspects, as a fan you always would like to stay happy. In order to stay entirely happy though, one must win, and you would hope to see everyone be involved.
The second episode of 4th and loud had begun to show a displacement of the team. Already suffering losing star players due to injury, quarterback Colt Brennan and defensive back Jorrick Calvin, they were stuck with scraping the bottom of the barrel. Head Coach Bob McMillen and the rest of the coaching staff began to show a lack of trust with certain players. The first of which came from quarterback J.J. Raterink. While Raterink did manage to struggle throughout the year, every bad pass, erratic throw, and even bad play calling in certain aspects had McMillen riled up. In the scrimmage against San Jose, a lot of the blame was put on Raterink's arm, wondering why they didn't play better than they should have.
Fullback Jeff Tow-Arnett was another player who lacked any respect. McMillen takes the position to heart since he did play the role for 13 seasons. Discussing how McMillen wants Tow-Arnett to position himself so he can improve his game touched some nerved. While Tow-Arnett rejected McMillen's ways, the scrimmage for him became a disaster, which resulted in his cut.
While the coaching staff worried about building their roster preparing for their season opener, the KISS and its owners had other matters on their mind. A lot of discussion had come about what kind of in-game entertainment, with the worry about the fans expecting big things. We are introduced to Harlan Hendrickson, the spokesperson of entertainment. His ideas of bringing BMX bikers, guitar players, and all the like to fill every time out possible would be the goal. Unfortunately, the goal did come with a hefty price: about $50,000 per game.
The owners had then decided, with the team nearly finalized, to plan a little surprise and send them to the house of Gene Simmons. Many of the players did enjoy their time, getting a tour of all the memorabilia and the like, but the knowledge from Simmons and Stanley to really grasp the knowledge of the sport and the rough tumbles an expansion team will face. Stating that any team from Los Angeles must become winners right away was the only item for discussion, which made the pressure to not only win but become the last team standing even greater.
With all this aside, you can already see the disparity between the owners, coaches, and the team. There was not much interaction between McMillen and the players, as well as any involvement between the owners and the team itself. Even with the team's first win, there was still some discomfort when the game ball was tossed to Brett Bouchy, their co-owner.
The team did win their home opener and start the season 2-1. The demise of the team soon came thereafter. It will be interesting to see when the owners begin to take over.
Manny Nunez is a freelance writer who resides in Los Angeles. He has been an arena football fan since 1996 while living in Phoenix, dedicated to the Arizona Rattlers. Although he lives in Southern California, he still reps his Arizona teams. He is also a beat writer for the Phoenix Coyotes for InsideHockey.com.