Valor Game Preview: Open The Season On The Road
Jon Stark
Friday April 13, 2018
A new season is upon us, the Washington Valor (0-0) open it on the road against the nearby Baltimore Brigade (0-0) inside of Royal Farms Arena at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, April 13th. The game will broadcast live on Facebook Watch, AFL Now and Monumental Sports Network. These two teams last met August 4th, 2017. This also marks the first time that the Valor will open a season on the road.
Stopping by Valor training camp recently, I noticed most of their core roster is still intact from last season, offensive and defensive linemen, receivers, defensive backs, all there, although there were many new faces present. Former Baltimore WR Reggie Gray joined the Valor ranks this off-season along a few others including quarterback Nick Davila. Davila is coming back to the league after coaching last season, the former Arizona Rattler is a 3x AFL MVP and 3x ArenaBowl champion. Nick mentioned that “taking the year off and coaching in Arizona is something I'm appreciative and thankful for, that the organization gave me the chance to stay around the game but it's amazing to be back playing football, something I love to do.”
Returning Valor Head Coach Dean Cokinos also had a few words on the upcoming season, "This new playoff home-and-home format is exciting, the rules are evolving with time and we're cleaning up the flow of the game. The building here in Washington has never stopped, we've had a bumpy road and now I think it's stabilized, along with league and the new CBA, I think we can grow.”
Baltimore revamped and bolstered their roster as well, bringing in the 2017 AFL MVP, QB Randy Hippeard and All-Arena Wide Receivers Kendrick Ings and Quentin Sims. Returning to the Brigade are the likes of WR Paul Browning and FB Rory Nixon. As we watch the season unfold we'll get a better grasp on how these teams stack up against each other and the rest of the league. As it's been said before, we are basically looking at All-Star teams in the league this year, it should fun to watch.
Jon studied Business Management at the University of Pittsburgh and is originally from Maryland. An avid DMV sports fan, he often attends Capitals, Orioles, Wizards and Redskins games. Now a Washington Valor season plan holder and columnist for ArenaFan, he`ll be at every home game covering the team. He spends his free time with friends and family and freelancing graphic design projects. You can follow Jon on Twitter @5FIFTY3