thursday arena football
- Thread starter lowell
- Start date
Know NOTHING about arena football... Has the season just started? How much do you like your play tonight? Might give it a try! 
following a guy who is very good. this is strong play for him . 5 stars. he seldom has any this strong. play at your own risk. good luck. with a total of 96 it is doubtful the line will be a factor but i am parlaying austin with brown in college hoops for a large play.
AUSTIN WRANGLERS
Wranglers try defensive improvement this time
Austin hopes stopping teams will start team on road to postseason
By Eric Ransom
AMERICAN-STATESMAN CORRESPONDENT
Friday, January 27, 2006
The Austin Wranglers start their season tonight with the end in mind.
The arena football team, which hosts the Las Vegas Gladiators, has every intention of finishing the season in Sin City for the ArenaBowl. Their off-season plan didn't call for the signing of big-money players, but instead to fill defensive holes and create depth for two-way players.
"We've really approached it different," Wranglers Coach Skip Foster said. "We have a couple high-salary guys, but what we really have is a lot of guys in the middle."
Fortunately for the Wranglers, there's no such thing as a small-market team in the Arena Football League. The AFL's salary cap, set at about $1.7 million per team, allows a parity similar to the NFL's. The Colorado Crush, for example, went 2-14 two straight years before winning it all last season.
Defense may not seem like the key ingredient in a league where teams average 50 points a game. But in the off-season, the Wranglers got defensive.
Defensive specialists Damon Mason ? the league's all-time leader with 727 1/2 tackles in eight seasons ? and Donvetis Franklin, a highly regarded cover and return man, were the team's two key signings.
"What (people) don't realize is the table has been slanted, because people like scoring so much, but in every case, defense wins championships," team president Doug MacGregor said. "The four teams in the conference championships (last season) all had shutdown defenses."
On offense, quarterback John Fitzgerald ? who threw for 3,960 yards and 72 touchdowns last season ? returns along with receivers Darrin Chiaverini (114 catches, 951 yards and 19 touchdowns) and Kevin Nickerson. The Wranglers ranked 14th in the league last year in scoring offense, but had the sixth-best rated passing offense.
The first six weeks ? which include five straight road games starting next week, including three Southern Division games and a matchup with the Dallas Desperados ? will be an immediate gut check.
After tonight's home opener, the Wranglers don't return to the Erwin Center until March 12.
The early-season road games are largely due to scheduling conflicts with the Erwin Center, including University of Texas men's and women's basketball and also the state high school boys and girls basketball tournaments. But it also may mean an advantage late in the season: seven of the team's last nine and four of the last five games are at home.
"This is going to be a very important year," Foster said. "We've got to show significant progress, get in the playoffs, and our absolute goal is to win the ArenaBowl championship."
Wranglers try defensive improvement this time
Austin hopes stopping teams will start team on road to postseason
By Eric Ransom
AMERICAN-STATESMAN CORRESPONDENT
Friday, January 27, 2006
The Austin Wranglers start their season tonight with the end in mind.
The arena football team, which hosts the Las Vegas Gladiators, has every intention of finishing the season in Sin City for the ArenaBowl. Their off-season plan didn't call for the signing of big-money players, but instead to fill defensive holes and create depth for two-way players.
"We've really approached it different," Wranglers Coach Skip Foster said. "We have a couple high-salary guys, but what we really have is a lot of guys in the middle."
Fortunately for the Wranglers, there's no such thing as a small-market team in the Arena Football League. The AFL's salary cap, set at about $1.7 million per team, allows a parity similar to the NFL's. The Colorado Crush, for example, went 2-14 two straight years before winning it all last season.
Defense may not seem like the key ingredient in a league where teams average 50 points a game. But in the off-season, the Wranglers got defensive.
Defensive specialists Damon Mason ? the league's all-time leader with 727 1/2 tackles in eight seasons ? and Donvetis Franklin, a highly regarded cover and return man, were the team's two key signings.
"What (people) don't realize is the table has been slanted, because people like scoring so much, but in every case, defense wins championships," team president Doug MacGregor said. "The four teams in the conference championships (last season) all had shutdown defenses."
On offense, quarterback John Fitzgerald ? who threw for 3,960 yards and 72 touchdowns last season ? returns along with receivers Darrin Chiaverini (114 catches, 951 yards and 19 touchdowns) and Kevin Nickerson. The Wranglers ranked 14th in the league last year in scoring offense, but had the sixth-best rated passing offense.
The first six weeks ? which include five straight road games starting next week, including three Southern Division games and a matchup with the Dallas Desperados ? will be an immediate gut check.
After tonight's home opener, the Wranglers don't return to the Erwin Center until March 12.
The early-season road games are largely due to scheduling conflicts with the Erwin Center, including University of Texas men's and women's basketball and also the state high school boys and girls basketball tournaments. But it also may mean an advantage late in the season: seven of the team's last nine and four of the last five games are at home.
"This is going to be a very important year," Foster said. "We've got to show significant progress, get in the playoffs, and our absolute goal is to win the ArenaBowl championship."
Today: January 27, 2006
Take Five: Las Vegas Gladiators
Las Vegas Sun
Las Vegas Gladiators head coach Ron James is approaching the team's fourth season in the Arena Football League with a new mantra: The more things remain the same, the more they change.
While stopping short of a total housecleaning, James and the Gladiators' front office made significant changes in both philosophy and personnel after the team posted its third consecutive 8-8 season last year (James' first as head coach).
A new-look Gladiators team opens the 2006 season on the road tonight against the Austin Wranglers with a team that features eight AFL rookies, a new quarterback and a new offensive scheme.
???
1. Off the schneid
It took only one 8-8 season with James at the helm to realize sweeping changes needed to be made.
"When it happens one year, you think 'OK,' " James said of the team's three consecutive break-even seasons. "When it happens two times, you think something else and when it happens three years in a row, it kind of becomes a trend."
To reverse that trend, James said he opted to bring in players with relatively little or no AFL experience "with a fresh outlook to the league."
2. Out with the old
After leading the franchise the past two seasons, quarterback Clint Dolezel signed with Dallas during the off-season and James has settled on Dolezel's backup last year, Craig Whelihan, as the starter.
"It's going to be very strange not to see Clint in uniform this year -- from both a coaching aspect and from a personal aspect," James said. "We're pleased that we've got somebody of (Whelihan's) caliber and ... we've tailored a system to him and the strengths not only of Craig but also (offensive specialist) Marcus Nash."
3. Familiar faces
Despite the rash of personnel changes, the Gladiators return their two most potent offensive threats in Nash and wide receiver/linebacker Coco Blalock.
Nash has led the AFL in receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns during the past two seasons and is coming off a season in which he had 73 receptions for 851 yards and 13 touchdowns.
4. New(?) faces
Among the first-year Gladiators on the opening-day roster are four players from the developmental league known as af2, one from NFL Europe and three NFL veterans -- including former NFL bad-boy Alonzo Spellman.
James is confident that Spellman -- who once was arrested twice in the same day -- has been fully vetted by team officials. Since his legal troubles in 2002, the 6-foot-4, 300-pound lineman has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and is on medication.
5. Drive time
After three weeks of training camp and one scrimmage, James said he is eager to see his team finally play a game that counts.
"I'm really excited about getting this product on the field and seeing exactly what we've got," James said. "It's like having a new Corvette in the garage and you haven't taken it out for a spin yet.
"I think we've upgraded significantly in the line group -- we've got some bigger bodies in here -- and some more athletic players in the front group. I think this is a playoff-caliber team."
Take Five: Las Vegas Gladiators
Las Vegas Sun
Las Vegas Gladiators head coach Ron James is approaching the team's fourth season in the Arena Football League with a new mantra: The more things remain the same, the more they change.
While stopping short of a total housecleaning, James and the Gladiators' front office made significant changes in both philosophy and personnel after the team posted its third consecutive 8-8 season last year (James' first as head coach).
A new-look Gladiators team opens the 2006 season on the road tonight against the Austin Wranglers with a team that features eight AFL rookies, a new quarterback and a new offensive scheme.
???
1. Off the schneid
It took only one 8-8 season with James at the helm to realize sweeping changes needed to be made.
"When it happens one year, you think 'OK,' " James said of the team's three consecutive break-even seasons. "When it happens two times, you think something else and when it happens three years in a row, it kind of becomes a trend."
To reverse that trend, James said he opted to bring in players with relatively little or no AFL experience "with a fresh outlook to the league."
2. Out with the old
After leading the franchise the past two seasons, quarterback Clint Dolezel signed with Dallas during the off-season and James has settled on Dolezel's backup last year, Craig Whelihan, as the starter.
"It's going to be very strange not to see Clint in uniform this year -- from both a coaching aspect and from a personal aspect," James said. "We're pleased that we've got somebody of (Whelihan's) caliber and ... we've tailored a system to him and the strengths not only of Craig but also (offensive specialist) Marcus Nash."
3. Familiar faces
Despite the rash of personnel changes, the Gladiators return their two most potent offensive threats in Nash and wide receiver/linebacker Coco Blalock.
Nash has led the AFL in receptions, receiving yards and touchdowns during the past two seasons and is coming off a season in which he had 73 receptions for 851 yards and 13 touchdowns.
4. New(?) faces
Among the first-year Gladiators on the opening-day roster are four players from the developmental league known as af2, one from NFL Europe and three NFL veterans -- including former NFL bad-boy Alonzo Spellman.
James is confident that Spellman -- who once was arrested twice in the same day -- has been fully vetted by team officials. Since his legal troubles in 2002, the 6-foot-4, 300-pound lineman has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder and is on medication.
5. Drive time
After three weeks of training camp and one scrimmage, James said he is eager to see his team finally play a game that counts.
"I'm really excited about getting this product on the field and seeing exactly what we've got," James said. "It's like having a new Corvette in the garage and you haven't taken it out for a spin yet.
"I think we've upgraded significantly in the line group -- we've got some bigger bodies in here -- and some more athletic players in the front group. I think this is a playoff-caliber team."
