Rattlers continue to learn and grow together in Indoor Football League

MESA — The 2017 season for the Arizona Rattlers is reason to celebrate. It is the organization’s 25th anniversary season.

However, after struggling early in the season, a celebration is the last thing on coach Kevin Guy’s mind.

“We are going to continue to work,” Guy said. “It is early. We will get better as the season goes on.”

For the first time since 2007, the Rattlers started a season 0-2, causing concern among members of the Rattlers faithful.

Now five games into the season, the Rattlers are 2-3 and showing signs of improvement. Guy said the record is a sign that his team knows how to win, but needs to be more consistent on a weekly basis.

The Rattlers’ struggles come after they joined a new league for the first time since Phoenix sports mogul Jerry Colangelo founded the team in 1992. For their first 24 years, the Rattlers were members of the Arena Football League. However, Rattlers owner Ron Shurts, who bought the team in 2011 and is the franchise’s fourth owner, announced in October the organization would move to the Indoor Football League.

Initially founded in 2003 as the Intense Football League, it wasn’t until a merger with the United Indoor Football Association in 2008 that the Indoor Football League was formed. The league thrived from the start, fielding 19 teams in its inaugural season in 2009. Although the number of teams has shrunk, the popularity of the IFL continues to grow.

In 2015 the Iowa Barnstormers announced their move to the IFL from the AFL. A year later, they were joined by the Spokane Shock, which rebranded as the Spokane Empire. As the only team remaining in the AFL in the western part of the United States, Guy and Shurts sat down to discuss options for the Rattlers organization moving forward.

“Me and (Shurts) thought it was the best move for the organization,” Guy said. “We are happy to be in the league, we have great partners and are going to continue to keep building what we have been for years.”

The Rattlers made the most of their 24 years in the Arena Football League, reaching the playoffs all but four seasons. In total, they appeared in 10 ArenaBowl championship games, winning five.

As top dogs in the AFL, the Rattlers’ status on the turf was quickly challenged in the IFL. The first game of the 2017 season came against the Sioux Falls Storm, which has won the last six “United Bowl” IFL championship games. The Rattlers fell 40-29 and then lost 51-47 to the Barnstormers the next week in Arizona’s home opener.

The move to the IFL required changes in the Rattlers’ offensive gameplan, an adjustment that did not come easily. The IFL requires a more balanced attack than the pass-heavy offenses the Rattlers were accustomed to in the AFL.

Along with more use of a true running back, the IFL adds the ability for a second offensive player to go into motion before the snap.

On defense, an outside linebacker is added to the pass rush mix. However, that player must stay outside the width of the tackles until the ball is snapped. Early on it was clear the Rattlers’ young roster was having trouble getting accustomed to the new style of play.

“We had a lot of turnover,” Guy said of the roster. “We have guys that had to learn our system and there is definitely a transition there.”

The Rattlers came into their first IFL season with just five returning players from the team’s final season in the AFL. While many newcomers had experience in the eight-man game, adjusting to Guy’s system was difficult early on.

Defensive back Arkeith Brown, who is in his fifth season, is one of those five returners. Brown knew there would be difficulty among the new players becoming accustomed to the different style of play in the IFL.

“We started shaky,” he said. “You have two guys in motion and there is a lot more of a run-game. Last year we didn’t have that.”

The transition hasn’t been as tough for Brown thanks to his experience in the IFL his first season in arena ball. Brown relies on the mindset of having trust in his teammates on the field.

“Altogether, you still just have to go out there and cover your receiver,” he said. “As long as we focus on ourselves, we will continue to grow.”

Second-year wide receiver Anthony Amos agreed.

“It was still indoor, there weren’t a lot of changes,” Amos said. “It was just a matter of us coming together as a team and get used to the style of the IFL.”

The Rattlers appear to be adapting quickly.

The young team won two games in a row before falling late to a 5-1 Wichita Falls team. With confidence levels growing, Amos knows he and his teammates will continue to listen to Guy’s message and learn together.

“We just have to take it day-by-day and get better at practice,” he said. “Coach always tells us that how we practice will transition to games. We just have to worry about things that we can control.”

The Rattlers hope the growth continues when they visit the Nebraska Danger at 5:05 p.m. Friday, April 7. Nebraska leads the Intense Conference with a 4-0 record, 4-2 overall.