Post by Gene on Mar 12, 2009 8:44:23 GMT -5
www.readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=129272
Great expectations: Express sets sights on finishing job
3/12/2009
By Brian Rippey
Reading Eagle
The Reading Express will roll into its fourth indoor football season with the same enthusiasm and goals it had during the first three.
The main thing the players and coaches would like to change is the final destination.
The Express has posted a gaudy 41-11 record during its first three seasons in the American Indoor Football Association. But losses in two conference championship games and a setback in the 2007 AIFA championship game leaves plenty of Express players with a burning desire.
The Express opens its fourth season in search of that elusive title at 7 p.m. Friday in the Sovereign Center against the expansion Washington D.C. Armor.
"I think guys are still hungry for it," said offensive lineman Mark Stout. "For a lot of guys this is going to be their last go-round. They know it's coming to an end."
Stout, along with linebacker Matt Sola, wide receiver Carmelo Ocasio, kicker Erik Rockhold and defensive lineman Brett Kolk, have been with the Express since its inaugural season in 2006.
Defensive lineman Adam Vogel and wide receiver Ian Cooper, starters in 2006 and the 2007 team that played in the AIFA championship game, have returned.
Sola has been there the entire time, making key plays only to see the Express lose its final game. Last year, Reading suffered its only home loss of the season to eventual league champion Florence in the Eastern Conference championship game.
"It's unsatisfying, it's disappointing," Sola said. "As much as we've had all the success, it doesn't matter if you can't produce in the playoffs."
Bernie Nowotarski, in his second year as coach/general manager, also would like to help the Express get over the hump. But he has some short-term goals before the Express can start talking about winning a championship in July.
"You've got to first get through your division," Nowotarski said. "We've got to start with game one on Friday and go from there."
Cooper said the drive to bring a championship to Reading started way before Friday's game and even before the Express opened camp in February.
Cooper left the Express after the 2007 season when he caught more than 120 passes. Looking to regain his job, Cooper said he reported to camp bigger, faster and stronger.
"It's heartbreaking year after year after year," said Cooper, who equated the team's postseason fate to that of the four-time Super Bowl loser Buffalo Bills. "You come back and work even harder the next year. I think in the offseason I put in more work than I usually have."
That's a theme throughout the team. Stout said he and fellow lineman Chris Nunn have shed a few pounds and should be much quicker on the line.
Sola also said the 2009 edition of the Reading Express should be faster, leaner and hungrier.
The Express underwent several personnel changes after the 2007 season. Most of last season's first-year players, including quarterback Rob Flowers and wide receiver Yardon Brantley, are back.
"The key to me is team chemistry," Sola said. "We had a lot of talent on the field last year and we made it pretty far. You get to play with each other for a year and really develop a better team chemistry, a togetherness, a collective want to win the championship."
Contact Brian Rippey: 610-371-5070 or brippey@readingeagle.com.
Great expectations: Express sets sights on finishing job
3/12/2009
By Brian Rippey
Reading Eagle
The Reading Express will roll into its fourth indoor football season with the same enthusiasm and goals it had during the first three.
The main thing the players and coaches would like to change is the final destination.
The Express has posted a gaudy 41-11 record during its first three seasons in the American Indoor Football Association. But losses in two conference championship games and a setback in the 2007 AIFA championship game leaves plenty of Express players with a burning desire.
The Express opens its fourth season in search of that elusive title at 7 p.m. Friday in the Sovereign Center against the expansion Washington D.C. Armor.
"I think guys are still hungry for it," said offensive lineman Mark Stout. "For a lot of guys this is going to be their last go-round. They know it's coming to an end."
Stout, along with linebacker Matt Sola, wide receiver Carmelo Ocasio, kicker Erik Rockhold and defensive lineman Brett Kolk, have been with the Express since its inaugural season in 2006.
Defensive lineman Adam Vogel and wide receiver Ian Cooper, starters in 2006 and the 2007 team that played in the AIFA championship game, have returned.
Sola has been there the entire time, making key plays only to see the Express lose its final game. Last year, Reading suffered its only home loss of the season to eventual league champion Florence in the Eastern Conference championship game.
"It's unsatisfying, it's disappointing," Sola said. "As much as we've had all the success, it doesn't matter if you can't produce in the playoffs."
Bernie Nowotarski, in his second year as coach/general manager, also would like to help the Express get over the hump. But he has some short-term goals before the Express can start talking about winning a championship in July.
"You've got to first get through your division," Nowotarski said. "We've got to start with game one on Friday and go from there."
Cooper said the drive to bring a championship to Reading started way before Friday's game and even before the Express opened camp in February.
Cooper left the Express after the 2007 season when he caught more than 120 passes. Looking to regain his job, Cooper said he reported to camp bigger, faster and stronger.
"It's heartbreaking year after year after year," said Cooper, who equated the team's postseason fate to that of the four-time Super Bowl loser Buffalo Bills. "You come back and work even harder the next year. I think in the offseason I put in more work than I usually have."
That's a theme throughout the team. Stout said he and fellow lineman Chris Nunn have shed a few pounds and should be much quicker on the line.
Sola also said the 2009 edition of the Reading Express should be faster, leaner and hungrier.
The Express underwent several personnel changes after the 2007 season. Most of last season's first-year players, including quarterback Rob Flowers and wide receiver Yardon Brantley, are back.
"The key to me is team chemistry," Sola said. "We had a lot of talent on the field last year and we made it pretty far. You get to play with each other for a year and really develop a better team chemistry, a togetherness, a collective want to win the championship."
Contact Brian Rippey: 610-371-5070 or brippey@readingeagle.com.