Rush to Revolve Around Michna
Jeff Sims
Monday March 14, 2011
In this era of one-year contracts for players in the Arena Football League, it can be difficult for fans to root for their favorite teams when they do not know anyone that is on the final roster. With players that fans have identified with for so many years either changing teams or retiring from the game and moving on with their lives, fans will need to be able to root for new players.
This season, a fan of the Chicago Rush will most likely look at this years’ roster and think…….WHO??? Gone from last season’s team are head coach Mike Hohensee, who has moved on to become head coach of the Philadelphia Soul, last season’s Ironman of the Year and fan-favorite, DeJuan Alfonzo, wide receiver Sammie Parker, and just about any other player that you can think of. Of the four returning players from last year’s team, there is really only one player that fans will be able to identify with. And he will be an awfully important part of the Rush’s offense this season.
That player is quarterback, Russ Michna.
Since 2007, Michna has spent most of his time with the Chicago Rush. He backed up Matt D’Orazio in 2007 and then started the 2008 as the back-up to Sherdrick Bonner, who is now his offensive coordinator. After Bonner got injured during the 2008 season, Michna has taken over and has not looked back.
He led the Rush to a playoff appearance in 2008, where the Rush lost in the first round to the Grand Rapids Rampage. When the AFL went dark in 2009, Michna led the Chicago Slaughter, who was then a member of the CIFL, to a league championship and a perfect 14-0 record. He returned to the Rush last season and had an injury filled campaign, but was still one of the top rated quarterbacks in the league.
His injuries limited his attempt at competing for a starting job in the UFL with the Las Vegas Locos. While he made the roster, he was the third QB on the team. But with a full year of football behind him, Michna is in game shape and ready to be the leader of the Chicago Rush in 2011 for new head coach Bob McMillen.
Knowing that the Rush had difficulty protecting Michna last season, which led to an injured rib and his inability to play in the playoffs, McMillen knows it will be important to keep his quarterback healthy this season.
“We are going to surround Russ with good protection this year,” saidMcMillen. “Russ is a competitor and the top quarterback in this league right now. I think a lot of teams out there would agree that Russ is by far the best quarterback in this league. He has things to prove as his season last year was cut short by injury and then he had to leave for the UFL . We have to protect Russ, keep him upright, and let him throw the ball where he needs to throw it. He is a smart quarterback. He is learning a new offense and is being taught by Sherdrick, who was one of the best at the position. I think we will be okay with Russ and I think he will be around a long time this year.”
Being the Rush’s new offensive coordinator, Bonner realizes the impact that Michna has had on this team and what he will bring to his offense this year.
“Russ Michna is going to be the staple of this offense,” said Bonner. “We will need to put some good people around him and let him do his thing. Arena Football is a passing game. With that being said, we will be efficient with the football. You might see us run a little bit and utilize some screens and we will do all those things to make his job easier. With his leadership and ability to play the game, this could be a special year for us.”
With his former coach and quarterback mentor gone this season, Michna knows that this is his team and that he has a chance to shine from under the shadow of Hohensee. He knows that his new coaching staff and his teammates will be looking to him for leadership this season. Feeling like he is starting over, Michna has changed his jersey number from 8 to 12 this season.
“My career in the Arena League has been one way,” said Michna. “It was Coach Ho’s way and that was how he liked it and that was how I learned it. But now I have a new perspective here and now there is more than one way to do things. It has been good to get some other perspectives. So far, there have been some things that I have liked and other things that I have said that I would rather do them the way that I am used to. Their systems (Bonner’s and Hohensee’s) and concepts are alike. That is why Coach Ho had Sherdrick here in 2008. The difference is that Sherdrick has more recent playing experience since Coach Ho has been watching. I don’t know if that is a good thing or a bad thing, or both, but I think our offense should look similar to what everyone has been used to.”
With a new group of wide receivers, his third in three seasons in the AFL, Michna will definitely have to be the leader on the field that teaches the game to the young rookies and new veterans that have joined the team. This is an opportunity that he is looking forward to and he likes what he sees from his receiving corp before the season starts.
Michna said, “I just have to be ready to teach and get (everyone) on the same page and play. We have a lot of new talent that I am excited about. We’ve got a lot of talent, a lot of speed, and a lot of athletic ability. It will be a matter of who gets the minor details down and the intricacies of what we are trying to do. That will help one of them stand out.”
With a new coach, a new offense, and a bunch of new faces around him, it is the success of quarterback Russ Michna that will make or break the 2011 season for the Chicago Rush.