On Monday night (June 16) the Arizona Rattlers host the Colorado Crush in this week’s Russell Athletic ESPN Arena Football Monday matchup. The game, will be broadcast live in high definition at 10:00 p.m. ET on ESPN2, will provide a national showcase for a number of notable arenafootball2 (af2) alumni on both teams.
Colorado (4-10) features two (2) players on their roster with af2 experience. The athlete to focus on among them is LB KEVIN NAGLE. Nagle played three seasons for the af2’s Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers (2002-04) before breaking into the AFL with the Nashville Kats in 2005. The former East Stroudsburg standout played in four games with Nashville before finishing the season with the Orlando Predators. Nagle was a key contributor for the Predators for the past two years (2006-07) before signing with the Crush in the offseason. The four-year League veteran still owns Wilkes-Barre/Scranton team records for career rushing yards (425) and career rushing TDs (30).
Arizona (8-6) features five (5) players on their roster with af2 experience. The athlete to focus on among them is DB ISAIAH TRUFANT, a former af2 player with Spokane. The second-year player from Eastern Washington spent his rookie year with Kansas City in 2007, starting seven of the eight games in which he participated. Despite only playing in half the team’s games, Trufant led the Brigade with 17 pass breakups and was third on the team with 52.5 tackles. He also led the team with three recovered fumbles. Before earning his AFL opportunity, Trufant was a key contributor down the stretch for the af2’s Spokane Shock in 2006 as the team won the ArenaCup title. He registered 31.5 tackles, three interceptions and eight pass breakups in five regular season contests.
A full list of the seven (7) af2 alumni playing in Monday’s contest between Colorado and Arizona is located below:
Colorado
OL Brett Huyser Green Bay 2006
LB Kevin Nagle Wilkes-Barre/Scranton 2002-04
Arizona
K Eric Houle Rio Grande Valley 2004-2005
WR Jerrian James Pensacola 2002,
Tenn. Valley 2003-04
FB/LB Chris Robinson Peoria 2004,
Rio Grande Valley 2005
QB Matt Sauk Tennessee Valley 2001, 2003,
Louisville 2004-05, 2007
DB Isaiah Trufant Spokane 2006
The Crush coaching staff has a little af2 flavor with Offensive Coordinator CHRIS BODEN. Boden is in his second year with Colorado and his first as offensive coordinator. In 2007 he served as the team’s quarterbacks coach. He came to the Crush after a season serving as quarterbacks coach for the Nashville Kats in 2006. Boden played two seasons in the af2, first with New Haven in 2002 and then with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton in 2003. His best season came with the Pioneers in 2003 as he started all 16 games while also serving as the team’s offensive coordinator. That year Boden threw for 3,614 yards and 67 touchdowns.
The Rattlers coaching staff is also heavily laden with af2-experienced individuals. They are led by former af2 head coach turned AFL head coach KEVIN GUY. Guy joined Arizona after spending two seasons with the San Jose SaberCats as their Defensive Coordinator. Guy helped lead the team to two consecutive Western Division Championships and an ArenaBowl XXI title in 2007. Prior to joining San Jose, Guy served as a head coach in the af2 for four seasons where he finished with the most coaching victories in the history of the league. Guy amassed 52 career wins, a Sportexe Coach of the Year honor and compiled a .732 winning percentage while leading the Tennessee Valley Vipers (2002-04) and Rio Grande Valley Dorados (2005). In 2005, Guy guided the Dorados to a 10-6 regular season record and a trip to the league's National Conference Championship game. He currently ranks tied for fifth overall on the all-time af2 coaching wins list. Guy’s top two assistants this season are Assistant Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator SKIP FOSTER and Special Teams Coordinator/Defensive Line Coach TONY BOWICK. Foster was an af2 head coach for three seasons with Tulsa, guiding the Talons to an ArenaCup title in his final season with the team in 2003. Bowick spent 2006 as an assistant with the Albany Conquest.
