Rattlers chasing after another IFL title
Team upgrades defense heading into 2019 season
Last year, the Rattlers were good enough to come within a chip-shot field goal of getting to the Indoor Football League championship game. They missed and lost in overtime.
That’s fuel to the 2019 Rattlers, who are used to playing for championships. They won in their first year in the Indoor Football League two years ago. They won three in a row under coach Kevin Guy in the Arena Football League.
Even while becoming an owner in the off-season with a new IFL franchise in Tucson, Guy still found time to add more pieces to what he hopes will be another championship season for the Rattlers.
Their 14-game schedule begins Sunday with a road trip to the Green Bay Blizzard.
The Rattlers brought back the core, and made sure the defense was bigger and more equipped to handle the league’s athletic, running quarterbacks, who often burned the Rattlers last year.
During Tuesday’s media day at Talking Stick Resort Arena, Guy said he believes this is his best roster since joining the league, which expanded from six to 10 teams this year.
“We had to get better stopping the run, especially against the running quarterbacks,” Guy said. “We felt like we checked all the boxes there.
“We wanted to get more physical in the secondary. We had a couple of guys who were making business decisions during the game and not sticking their head in there and making tackles and playing physical. That’s not going to happen this year. We’ve got a very physical secondary.”
The Rattlers struggled at home, losing 69-68 in overtime to Sioux Falls in the IFL semifinals, and 69-68 in OT to eventual league champion Iowa in Week 11.
The Rattlers needed to score 84 points at home to beat Cedar Rapids by a point.
Allen “Bubba” Chapman returns to safety, and Chris McAllister and Joshua Gordon at defensive ends. Those are the defensive core players.
The Rattlers got bigger on the defensive line with the additions of Connor Flagel (6-foot-5, 280 pounds) and Lance McDowell (6-4, 325).
“Our defense is going to be better than last year,” Guy said. “We still have to work to get where we need to be. I think we’ve got a lot of pieces. We tell these guys it’s a 21-man game roster. So your eight starters on offense and eight starters on defense have to play special teams. The truth is, if they get picked up by an NFL team, they’re going to be on the bottom half of the roster and will have to play special teams.”
Guy believes his depth is good enough to make special teams special.
He also brought in a new kicker, Jimmy Camacho out of Fresno State, after parting with kicker Sawyer Petre. Camacho will have to get acquainted with the indoor nuances on Sunday.
The offense returns just about everybody. Lamar Mady anchors the line. Quarterback Jeff Ziemba and Verlon Reed Jr., again are battling it out to see who starts Sunday’s opener.
Guy wouldn’t disclose on Tuesday who he will start against the Blizzard.
“You’ll have to see Sunday,” he said. “Our plan is to get both of them playing early. We’ll see how it goes from there. But it’s a day-to-day business. It’s about production. Any decision we make is about the team. I feel very confident in Verlon and Jeff.”
Both were pushed in camp by quarterbacks Matt Behrendt and Michael Keir, who, since being release, have been picked up by other teams.
Darrell Monroe, who set an IFL record with 11 rushing TDs in the 84-83 win over Cedar Rapids, returns at running back.
“It’s always in the back of my brain to do that,” Monroe said about that record performance. “But I want to have a better game than that.”
Receivers Jamal Miles, Anthony Amos and Dezmon Epps return.
2019 Rattlers schedule
This team might be Guy’s closest since being part of the IFL with several players back who remember how last year ended.
“That’s why a couple of guys came back,” McAllister said. “I know when I get out there, it’s about making it right this time.”