IN EMBARRASSING 56-23 LOSS
The Barnstormers embarrassed the Dogs by the score of 56-23 in front of 4,889 fans. The Dogs played their worst game of the year and quite possibly the worst game in the team’s three-year existence. The anemic offense was held to just nine first half points and did not score a touchdown until the last play of the third quarter. Ex Red Dog QB, Aaron Garcia, threw for 202 yards and four touchdowns while Red Dogs QB Ricky Foggie was off target the entire day. His line is not pretty, 16-41 for 151 yards 3 interceptions (seven completes to fans in the stands). He was consistently off target and seemed like his head was not in the game.
I’m a glass is half -full kind of person, so I would be remise in saying there were no positives in the game. There were a few bright spots for the Doggies. Kicker Steve Videtich had an outstanding game connecting on 3 of 4 field goals and hit both extra points. There was the play of rookie WR Willie Latta who scored two touchdowns, and the first game of defensive specialist Henry Baker who had some crunching tackles.
The fact the Dogs lost to the Barnstormers is not a shock, the way they lost is. For the second time this year the Doggies were blown out at home (Week 6 against Milwaukee) and their record fell to a mediocre 3-3 at home. I am a fan of arena football and the Red Dogs. As a fan the first thing I look for is wins, the second is scoring. The Red Dogs have done little of both lately. After a 3-1 start and being at the top of the Arena League in nearly every offensive category the Red Dogs offense has become conservative and hence has produced a 2-5 record. After four weeks the Dogs averaged 46 points per game since that time they have averaged 35 points per game. The defense has been pretty good and as the old saying goes "Defense wins championships." I’m not sure this applies to Arena Football. This is an offensive minded league and 35 points a game will not cut it.
The most concerning aspect of the day was the mind set of the team. This game was a huge disappointment for everyone on the Red Dog side of the ball. From the head coach on down, the entire time was scratching their heads for answers. I would like to give some anonymous quotes from some of the players:
"We have to work more as a unit, we need to be on the same page."
"We need to believe what the coaches are saying so we can come together and win."
"We need to play together as a team, some people are being selfish."
"Well it puts a lot of pressure on us to beat New England and Nashville."
"It looks like we are going home in a few weeks."
The last two quotes upset me the most. Not acknowledging the Tampa Bay game coming up this week leads me to believe that the team feels they cannot win this game, that they are giving up on the game. The final quote is telling me that the players do not believe in themselves, the coaches or their teammates. This upsets me the most. I find this hard to believe because these guys are professional athletes. This writer along with most fans would give their right hand to play professional sports. The players and coaches on this team need to remember this is game and the point to any game is to have fun. This team has forgot how to have fun. I hope Coach Mattiace identifies this and is able to sit down with this team, clear the air of all the negativity, and get back to having fun.