The af2 effect and why it needs to return

Throughout the season longterm AFL fan/media site ArenaFan has complained about the talent level in the AFL. This culminated in Adam Markowitz's ArenaBowl preview where he said:

After all, it's pretty clear that both of these teams would have been smoked by basically any other ArenaBowl team from the 2000s before the league went on hiatus in 2009. The talent level just isn't there anymore for various reasons.

The bulk of the argument has been that the pay grade in the league no longer attracts top talent. But I see a different answer.

One major thing that the league had in the past decade, when the league saw the talent level raise, was the af2. The af2 served as a developmental league for arena football. No longer did teams have to train rookies on the fly throughout the season. The af2, centered in mid-market cities that would probably never house an AFL franchise, took mostly regional players and taught them the game.

In fact the last Rookie of the Year before the demise of the old AFL was former af2 Tulsa Talon Donovan Morgan. That same year, ArenaBowl champion Jeff Hughley almost made the leap to the AFL as a part of the Colorado Crush. And these were not the only players to do so. They were able to jump right into the AFL without much of a learning curve.

It was just this past week when I realized how important this development in the af2 was. I was reminiscing about the Talons' season and how great it would have been if the team that ended the season started the season. But it wasn't the actual players I was referring to; it was the experience the players had gained.

At the start of the season the Talons' defensive backfield, which had two rookie players, was horrible. The team gave up touchdowns on a multitude of busted coverages. These guys just did not understand the game. But what happened about five games into the season? It finally clicked. The biggest example was J.C. Neal's record setting game against the Blaze where J.C. demolished the AFL record for INT return yards in a single game.

In the old AFL this would not have happened. Players like J.C. would spend a season (or less) in the af2 before moving on to the AFL. But now, you have a decent amount of teams carrying a number of these rookie players who still have to learn the game. As a result, the first half of the season is going to be a little ugly until the players finally "get it".

As such, I don't think simply increasing pay will improve the talent of the AFL. What the league needs is experience. The only place that will come from is playing time. Accordingly, that will either come in the form of a developmental league, or at the cost of games early in the season.

Talons at Soul - Pregame Primer

vs.

Tulsa Talons (5-7, 2-4 road) vs. Philadelphia Soul (5-8, 3-2 home)

TV: N/A
Stream: Click here
Radio: KRMG 740 (740 AM)
Time: 6:05 CT

Passing Yards per Game: Talons – 225.8 (16th), Soul – 228.0 (10th)
Rushing Yards per Game: Talons – 50.3 (1st), Soul – 14.9 (14th)
Total Yards Allowed per Game: Talons – 278.1 (7th), Soul – 268.0 (2nd)

View from the enemy: N/A

Tulsa is coming off a huge blowout win over the Utah Blaze behind QB Justin Allgood and a strong defensive peformance.

Philadelphia coming in: The Soul played last Friday in a big loss to the Spokane Shock on the NFL Network.

THE MATCHUP

QB Justin Allgood will be looking for revenge against the team that benched and then traded him earlier in the season. Having knowledge of the Soul defense should help Allgood with his reads this week. The most interesting dual of the game will be between Soul WR, and former Talon, Donovan Morgan and new Talons WR Troy McBroom. McBroom, if he had been with the Talons all season, would be 3rd in the league in receiving yards. Morgan is 1st in the league with 124 yards per game. (McBroom has a little over 119 yards per game)

On Defense, the Talons will face a QB who hasn't played organized football in 3 years in Brandon Kirsch. Hopefully the Talons defensive line, lead by Victor DeGrate, can get pressure and force some mistakes. Fred Shaw and league MVP J.C. Neal will have their hands full this week with a slew of strong Soul receivers lead by Donovan Morgan.

Kickoff at 6:05 CT.

Headlines - June 17, 2011

Tulsa World's recap of the Utah Blowout: "Rookie defensive back J.C. Neal returned two interceptions for scores and scored on an onside kick as the Talons blitzed the Utah Blaze 81-51 before an estimated 5,000 spectators. Veteran linebacker Jamar Ransom scored with a fumble and Victor DeGrate made two game-changing plays as the Talons (5-7) broke a two-game losing streak and put themselves back into the running for a National Conference playoff berth."

Talons QB Matt Bassuener gets a Special Honor: "Tulsa Talons quarterback Matt Bassuener is one of 39 players selected for the U.S. Men's National Football Team that will compete in the International Federation of American Football Senior World Championships next month in Austria."

Talons finally faceoff against Donovan MorganCoach Mitch Allner will see a familiar face Friday as his team lines up against one of his former players, Donovan Morgan. He played for the Talons last season and was the leading receiver with 1,707 receiving yards. This year, he is second in the AFL with 1,614 yards. "Donovan is a very good ballplayer," Allner said. "I definitely know what he can do."

The Blaze Blowout has the league watching: "I was expecting offense in the Utah-Tulsa match up, but the wrong one showed up. It was an 81-point night for the Talons. Justin Allgood looked to regain his magic in Tulsa, with six touchdowns and no interceptions. It always helps to get a couple of scores from the defense. That was only the third time all year the Talons put up over 50 points. Last year with Allgood at the helm, the Talons scored at least 74 points three times, and were held under 50 points only once in the regular season."

The Soul will be braking in a new QB tonight

Two Talons received honors this week: "Hunt (5-11, 205, Northwestern Oklahoma State) hauled in a 7-yard, touchdown pass from quarterback Justin Allgood in the second quarter with 55 seconds left on the clock. Hunt fell in the endzone and still managed to catch the ball as it bounced off the wall. The touchdown gave Tulsa a 34-33 lead."

JC Neal named Week 14 National Guard MVP: "In a race that was tied up with less than two hours remaining of voting, Neal defeated Meyer by six votes on Facebook.com. Neal had an explosive evening in the 81-51 win over Utah on Saturday. Neal hauled in two interceptions for touchdowns, totaling 95 return yards. He also returned an onside kick for a touchdown. Neal ended with the night with six tackles, placing him eighth in the League in total tackles (70.0)."

A look at the new Soul QB for tonight: In 2008 with Colorado, Kirsch tore his right anterior cruciate ligament while playing linebacker. He was the backup quarterback, and the team needed some help on defense. "Since then I haven't played organized football other than, say, flag football tournaments the past three years," Kirsch said. During his career at Purdue from 2002 to 2005, Kirsch completed 292 of 489 passes for 3,532 yards and 23 touchdowns. He also rushed for 757 career yards and five touchdowns and started at least one game in each of his four years.

YouTube Tuesday - June 14, 2011

This week the Talons travel to Philadelphia to take on the Soul and former Talons WR Donovan Morgan. Here's a look at a Q&A with Donovan from training camp with the Soul:

Headlines - March 13, 2011

Today's starting QB is still unknown: "Bassuener battled in training camp with former Oklahoma State starter Bobby Reid, who has never thrown a pass in the indoor game. Who starts Sunday? Allner said he wouldn't disclose his choice until just before kickoff. 'That doesn't change how you prepare," Bassuener said. "You have the mentality that you're going to be out there.'"

Allner is concerned about lack of experience: "Only linebacker Jamar Ransom returns from Tulsa's inaugural Arena Football League season in 2010. Allner has several players who had never been exposed to the indoor game until going through training camp, which ended last weekend."

Arena Pigskin has Tulsa ranked at 17th: "Tulsa lost it’s best QB-WR duos, possibly the best the AFL has ever seen. Can the Talons recover?"

AFL Insider has Tulsa at 12: "A lot of people will have Tulsa low on the rankings as their roster is filled with a bunch of unknowns to Arena Football. However, Head Coach Mitch Allner is extraordinarily high on the roster, believing that he has two recievers that are better than former star wideout Donnovan Morgan. There are a lot of question marks here, but this team could be very dangerous if everything comes together."

The Talons did not make it into the Top 10 of the Coaches Poll

The Talons offer a Q&A with Bobby Reid: "What game are you looking forward to most this season? BR: I'm looking forward to the PLAYOFFS!"

Arena Pigskin picks Tulsa to win: "I’m not which sure of which way to lean. Both teams aren’t appetizing picks. Tulsa does return FB/LB Jamar Ransom and head coach Mitch Allner which will help. Not sure who Georgia will have at the quarterback position. Tulsa should be able to prevail fairly easily."

Looks like the Arena Bowl will be at the highest seed again: "Answering a question from the public about whether the league is considering holding the ArenaBowl at a neutral site, rather than at the home of the highest-seeded team in the championship game, Kurz said that ownership decided to leave things the way they have been. Neutral sites take time to put together, and home field advantage is something for players to work for and for fans to be excited about."

An interesting article on last year's duo: "Last season for the Tulsa Talons, Allgood threw for 4,359 yards for a league-leading 109 touchdowns. Morgan was the recipient of 52 of those touchdowns."

Donovan Morgan on last year: "Last year, I ventured off to somewhere else, and I really didn't like the situation I was in. Coach Honensee gave me a call when the free agency period came, and it was all over after that. Once he called, I knew this is where I wanted to be."

By the way, interesting stat from Friday night's game: Justin Allgood threw all his touchdowns to Donovan Morgan.

Talons Tryouts - November 28th, 2010 (Tulsa)

Hello Talons faithful. This morning the Talons held open tryout at Soccer City. This post will be mostly a media post with videos from the tryouts and pictures. I do have to say it was good to see Steve Watson and Antwon Floyd out on the field helping out the coaching staff. As most are aware by now, Floyd has decided to sit out this season to recover from an injury he sustained at the end of the season. Also watching the tryouts was former Talons star wide receiver Donovan Morgan. Morgan signed with the Philadelphia Soul for next season but still stopped by to support the Talons.

I will say there was some talent at the tryouts. There were some that during speed drills made me verbally go "wow". I'm unsure whether any of the guys will make the roster, but there should be a few that make it to training camp.

To see the pictures from today go to: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2220396&id=44000338&l=349bf3713a

Here are the videos:

Allgood to Soul looking likely

Today the Philadelphia Daily News is reporting that the Philadelphia Soul are close to signing former Talons QB Justin Allgood. This follows a week of speculation and rumors after a facebook post by former Talons WR Donovan Morgan implying that Allgood could be following him to the Soul. Several former Talons have also commented that the Allgood to Philly rumor is true.

Last season Allgood lead the AFL with 109 TD passes. A large portion of those were to Donovan Morgan. The Soul offense is sure to look a lot like Tulsa's from last year.

In other news, the Talons inked two more players yesterday:

WR Reynaldi Audate 6’2 210 5/3/86 Merrimack
DB Abdal Morris 6’0 180 1/7/88 Western Kentucky

EDIT 4:34 P.M. CST: It's official, Allgood to Philly. The Philadelphia Soul just released a press release announcing the signing of Justin Allgood.

Morgan to Soul, Hughley to Sharks

According to the Philadelphia Daily News, the Philadelphia Soul should be announcing early next week the signing of Donovan Morgan.

See the whole story here: http://www.philly.com/dailynews/sports/20100925_Source__Talented_WR_will_be_Soul_s_first_player.html#ixzz10Y0jTWAj

In other Talons news, Jeff Hughley announced via facebook that he is heading to Jacksonville to join the sharks. This will leave the Talons with no remaining starting receivers for next season.

More Free Agency News

So after my post last night, Coach Ho (Philadelphia Soul, formally of the Chicago Rush) commented on Donovan Morgan's status with "Soul Blue. . ." This may indicate that is where Morgan is heading for next season.

Also last night, Terrance Carter posted on facebook that next year he will have a "new attitude, new city" so it looks like he may be leaving Tulsa as well. This is surprising as he has spent so many years with the Talons.

If I hear anything else I will post it here. But according to a source, many more may be leaving the Talons.

Donovan Morgan to leave Talons for another AFL Team

Tonight, the night before Unrestricted Free Agency begins, Donovan Morgan announced he will be wearing a different uniform next year:

From Facebook:

"Well looks like I'm gonna be wearing a new AFL uniform. Imma destroy the league this year DESTROY!!!!!!!!"

This is a big disappointment for any Talons fan. This past year D.Mo had 123 receptions for 1707 yards and 52 touchdowns. Morgan's 52 touchdowns lead the league.

All-Arena Teams Contain 5 Talons Players

Today the AFL Announced the All-Arena first and second teams. Here are where Talons Players fell:

First Team:
Donovan Morgan (WR)
Gabe Nyenhuis (DL)
Steve Watson (MAC)

Second Team:
Odie Armstrong (FB)
Jamar Ransom (JACK)

Headlines - July 10, 2010

Recap from the Cleveland Thumping

Jamar Ransom won the AFL's Highlight of the Week Award for his Pick 6 in the Cleveland Game

Tulsa likely to have Three 1,000+ receivers this season: "The Talons are on track to have three 1,000-yard receivers in the same season for the first time. Donovan Morgan reached quadruple digits weeks ago and has 1,407 yards. Carlese Franklin and Jeff Hughley have 934 and 933, respectively, with four games left."

The Tulsa World takes a look at an improved Talons Defense: "With our offense, if you give us three or four additional possessions, and limit them, then we believe we'll win. We are that confident in our offense to go out and score on nearly every possession. So, we're not talking about a lot of defense. Make a few stops."

Brett Rayl made an interesting post to facebook: "Thanks to all my Texas friends for making my trip so much fun! I will be back in September for good, so keep in touch." The phrase that concerns me is "for good," is Brett saying this is his last year with the Talons? It's probably not but just putting it out there.

This story made me love Donovan Morgan even more

A look at fullback Odie Armstrong: "Coming back here was a no-brainer. I loved the city and the guys they had coming back. It was an opportunity I couldn't pass up."

Last night Tampa Bay was the first team to clinch a Playoff Birth

Tonight's game from Bossier's viewpoint: "I want to embarrass Tulsa," Battle Wings wide receiver and backup quarterback Kinsmon Lancaster said. "Last year they beat us up there when we got the bad end of the stick. Tulsa is like the brother you can't get along with and you're always in competition with. I hate Tulsa. I hate Tulsa with a passion."

Headlines - May 22nd, 2010

Last night the Iowa Barnstormers inducted Kurt Warner into their "ring of honor".

Recap for last week's game: "The Tulsa Talons lost four turnovers and allowed Cleveland quarterback John Dutton to throw nine touchdown passes — not the best prescription for success."

The Oklahoman takes a look at this week's instate matchup: "The Talons and the Yard Dawgz are more than just division adversaries and in-state foes. OKC coach Sparky McEwen said the bitter rivalry is no different than the one between the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees."

Donovon Morgan assures he's going to work on ball control: "It's a bad habit I've gotten into, holding the ball with one hand, and I see that it's something I'm gonna have to work on in practice," he said. "I promised my teammates that it would never happen again. I'm not a guy who fumbles and turns the ball over, so I let my them down in that aspect."

Jason Dixon of Tampa Bay Storm Radio gives the Talons a C+: "I think Tulsa was one of the teams that I hit the nail on right on the head early on. They are real good at home. Take them out of Tulsa and they struggle. 3-0 at the BOK Center, 0-3 everywhere else. The Talons have been hard luck losers. They lost two straight games on the last play of the game. They will have a chance to beef up their record. They have played just one game within their division and the Southwest is likely the weakest in the AFL. Tulsa needs to shore up its defense. It is giving up more than 63 points per game putting it near the bottom of the league. They should win the division and get to host a playoff game, but to get to the Arena Bowl, they will have to win on the road."

KRMG previews Justin Allgood's chance to set a franchise record: "It could also be a record-setting night for Tulsa's starting quarterback. During the last home game, running back Odie Armstrong set a franchise record with a 37-yard TD run against Alabama. Now it is quarterback Justin Allgood who has a chance to rewrite the team's record book.
Allgood trails all-time franchise leader Craig Strickland by just 262 yards in total passing."

Dallas coach Rich Ingold claims they will win the division: "I'm going to go out on a limb right now and I'm going to tell you -- we're going to go out, we're going to compete and win this division," Ingold said.

The Tulsa World previews tonight's game: "Friendships and rivalries are renewed whenever the Tulsa Talons tangle with the Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz."

Be sure to mention sickle cell night when buying your Talons tickets tonight: "Tickets are $12 each and $4 of each ticket purchased will go to the sickle cell group."

Weekend Roundup - Week 6

Jacksonville Sharks 46, Tampa Bay Storm 43: This was a great game for the NFL Network. Both teams had strong showings from their defenses. Jacksonville simply came up with the win at end of this hard fought battle.

Orlando Predators 70, Dallas Vigilantes 59: What is it with this Dallas team? Once again Dallas had the lead going into the fourth quarter and let it slip away due to turnovers. What makes it hurt even more? It was against one of the worst teams in the league.

Milwaukee Iron 71, Chicago Rush 48: Chicago called back into question the quality of their 4-0 start. After going into halftime tied at 27, Chicago fell apart in the 3rd Quarter to let this one slip away. On the other side of the ball, Chris Greisen continues to be perfect with 0 INTs in 5 games.

Spokane Shock 63, Arizona Rattlers 56: Much like their game with Tulsa two weeks ago, Arizona was caught in another offensive shootout. However, unlike two weeks ago Arizona came out on the wrong end at the end of the game. Spokane scored on the last drive of the game to take the lead and the win.

Tulsa Talons 62, Alabama Vipers 56: After an early 0-14 deficit and some bad calls the Talons started to pull themselves back out of the hole they dug for themselves. In the second half the defensive line really started to wear down the the Alabama offense leading to multiple sacks, one of which was for a safety to give Tulsa their first lead of the game. After that the Talons started to pull away, even though they almost gave it away on a bad on-side kick decision.

Cleveland Gladiators 70, Iowa 56: The Gladiators are starting to put it together. John Dutton threw for 5 TD and 0 INTs. Iowa played a good game but just came up short against a rolling Gladiators team. Cleveland will get a real test this week with a road-win hungry Tulsa team.

Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz 88, Bossier-Shreveport Battle Wings 79: OKC picked up their second win of the year on one of the most exciting last minutes of the season. After cutting the lead to 3 and holding Bossier to a field goal attempt, OKC returned the ensuing missed field goal to the house to win the game.

Special Congratulations:

Donovan Morgan: took the sole league lead for TD receptions this week. (19)

The Talons Defense: now tie the Jacksonville Sharks for team sacks. (9)

Jeff Hughley: leads the lead in kick return yardage. (500)

Weekend Roundup - Week 5

Ok so gotta apologize again. Finals week has full control of me and didn't get a chance to do this week's roundup.

Here is the official recap from the AFL

Special Congratulations to Donovan Morgan who now is tied for the most receiving TDs this season.

Talons Wide Receiver Core

With the season set to kickoff in just a week we want to take a look at the Talons key receivers; Donovan Morgan and Jeff Hughley.

Donovan Morgan was signed as an undrafted free agent in 2004 by the New York Jets but did not survive training camp. In 2005 Morgan started his career with the Tulsa Talons. Donovan was a standout, gaining the nickname "Spiderman" due to his acrobatic catches. In his rookie season Donovan set af2 records for touchdown receptions (54), total touchdowns (57), and points scored (346). After two outstanding seasons with the Talons Morgan was signed by the Buffalo Bills in 200, but was released before the season started. Morgan went on to play for the Chicago Rush in 2008. In 2009, with the AFL season on hiatus, Morgan played for the IFL's Chicago Slaughter.

Jeff Hughley has been another veteran of the Talons franchise. After a stellar season with the Talons Hughley was picked up by the Colorado Crush in 2008. After the 2008, with the AFL season on hiatus, Hughley returned to the Talons for the 2009 season. In 2009 Hughley was the Talons lead receiver and a strong reason for the Talons success in the playoffs.

With Morgan and Hughley, Tulsa has probably the second best receiving core in the AFL, behind the Milwaukee Iron. Damian Harrell of the Iron is the only reason I can't say Tulsa has the best. He is a dominate individual with years of AFL experience. However, Morgan is not to be taken lightly. His acrobatic receptions are the reason arena football remains an exciting fan experience. Regardless of how the season ultimately turns out, the Talons will be a fun team to watch.