Fort Wayne Freedom

Looking ahead to Cincinnati

I suppose the best news coming out of practice this week is that it appears Cody Hodges will play Saturday. Hodges got knocked out of the game last weekend with a concussion and didn't practice this week, but both he and coach Eddie Brown said Hodges would play.
It's a bit different now than it was at the beginning of the season because at least the team has a viable backup. With Joe Micco getting all the reps this week, I think that helped him a lot. He looked pretty good, too.
Hodges, who also had a concussion in high school, said he apologized to Brown for staying in the game so long. He was feeling a bit woozy at halftime, and if you saw his uncharacteristic interception in the second half, you could tell something was up. Hodges said when he was watching the film on the game, he looked like he was almost in slow motion. The interception was almost like a lob pass, and it went right to the Albany player.
But when I spoke to Hodges Thursday, he said he felt better. Brown said he kept Hodges out of practice just to be cautious. Typically, Brown doesn't play guys who don't practice. So we'll see what happens for sure.

• There were tons of new guys in practice this week. I'm still working on getting info on them, but I can tell you for sure there were four receivers (Brandon Johnson, Alvin Jackson, Warren Holloway and Preston Scott), two cornerbacks (Farrell Asbell will be active this week) and a defensive lineman. Brown also expected defensive lineman Ellington Wills, acquired in a trade with South Georgia, to join the team Thursday night. But Wills won't be active.
• Randy Degg will start this weekend, but not for Stephenol Santos, like I expected. Degg instead will be the tight end in place of Lou Vega. Vega is healthy.
• Receiver Jonathan Graham is going to play this week. Brown had told me Graham was going IR, which would have put him out four weeks, but apparently that was never officially done.
• Brown was so upset with missed assignments in practice Thursday during 8-on-8 drills, he abruptly called the players to a huddle. He spoke briefly before walking away disgusted. The players then gathered in a huddle with defensive coordinator Tony Henderson and special teams/secondary coach Eddie Brown, stretched again, shouted "focus" and essentially re-started practice. There was more special teams work and then a repeat of 8-on-8 drills.
• Not surprisingly, the team dropped out of the coaches poll this week.
• I'll be in Cincy for the game, and I'm hoping to file updates. So be sure to check back here.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Looking ahead to Albany

The Fusion secondary may have its toughest challenge of this young season against Albany tonight.
Coach Eddie Brown called the Conquest's group of receivers the toughest Fort Wayne has faced.
And the Fusion will likely do it without Lawrence Wade, a starter, in the lineup for a second consecutive week.
"They're solid across the board," Brown said. "Any one of their guys can beat you on any given day. Usually, we can target a particular guy and take him out of the game plan. But with the group they have, all their guys can beat you."
Bakari Brown leads Albany with 24 catches for 281 yards. He also has caught five touchdowns. But Antwun Williams has nine touchdowns to go with 22 catches and 237 yards, and Chris Curd has eight TDs with 14 receptions and 258 yards. 
Probably helps the corps has an on-target quarterback.
Ryan Hart has been one of the league's most accurate passers, completing 66 percent of his throws. He has 21 touchdown passes and only one interception, and the pick came in the season opener.
"He's played extremely well," Albany coach Pete Costanza said. "He's had one interception, and when you watch the film in the first game, he just kind of did a no-look throw. It was more of a poor decision than a poor throw. He's gotten much better, more conscious since then. He's playing good football and is doing a good job learning the game."

• Fusion players Eze Ejelonu, R.J. Harvey, Lou Vega and Melvin Parris all played in Albany last season. Costanza insists that won't bother him. "It really doesn't affect my approach or preparation for the game," Costanza said. "If anything, the good thing is you've coached those guys and they've played for you, so my team, we talk about what those guys do well and what those guys have a hard time with."
• Costanza said he coached against Brown in the late 1990s. So he wasn't too surprised when he saw the Fusion on tape and the style the team played. "He was the type of a guy who had just so much passion and fire and love and a spark for the game," Costanza said. "He was the type of guy, he would tell you he was going to score six touchdowns on you and he'd go and score six touchdowns. You watch his team, and you see the offense that is an aggressive offense, one that's real creative with the play selection, and the defense is flying around, being physical and playing with emotion. The thing that impressed me the most is the team really has taken on the personality of the head coach."
• Hart may be accurate, but he's only 6-foot-1. So don't be surprised to see Fort Wayne use 6-foot-3 receiver Antonio Madison to spell the smaller Derek Brown at jack linebacker. Madison got some time at the spot in practice Thursday and used his length to disrupt plays. By my count, he had three deflections in 10 plays during 3-on-3 drills and should have had an interception.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Looking ahead to Manchester

I'm assuming most of you aren't making the trip to New Hampshire, but here are some things to keep in mind while you're listening to the radio broadcast on 1250 AM:

• You won't hear A.J. Lindsay's name. Lindsay, who has started on the defensive line, has been suspended indefinitely, coach Eddie Brown said. Lindsay didn't show up for practice Tuesday or Wednesday, so Brown suspended him and had him turn in his gear. The Fusion already was going to be without a starting member of the line with Rodney Wormley out with a season-ending injury. So Lindsay's suspension means even more changes. Grant Cameron, who has been on the practice squad, will be active for the first time and play end. Randy Degg will be at nose tackle, and Patrick Pa'u will stay at end.
• Patrick Horne, who joined the team last week, has looked good at cornerback. He's made a couple interceptions in practice and always seems to stick tightly to the receivers in man coverage. He could get playing time this week if Lawrence Wade still is hampered by an injury suffered Tuesday. Wade practiced some Thursday but not with the first team defense at the end of practice. Horne went to Louisiana-Lafayette and has arena experience.
• Kyle Hooper will be kicker again this weekend. He looked really solid on "field goals" (the Dome only has an upright taped to the wall) Thursday, and the ball popped off his foot. Now, he just needs to reach the net on kickoffs more consistently.
• Quarterback Aaron Marshall said Thursday he didn't expect the playbook to be pared down at all for him. Still, I'd expect the Fusion to use screens and three-step drops and quick throws, maybe even run the ball some out of a multiple-blocker formation. Marshall still hasn't looked great on deep throws, but he's been markedly better delivering the ball on timing routes.
• If there isn't another QB on the active roster, that'd likely make room for more receivers. Cesare Manning, R.J. Harvey, Jermaine Jackson and Jonathan Graham were active last week. Tyrone Walker probably would be added to that mix.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Scouting Spokane

I spoke with Spokane coach Adam Shackleford this week about his team. Here are some highlights:

• Shackleford, in his first year with the team, said he wasn't bothered in the least when Brett Dietz bolted only three days after signing a contract with the Shock in mid-March. Dietz had visited Fort Wayne but ultimately chose Spokane because of Shackleford (who coached Dietz in Louisville) and because of fan support (the Shock has 7,000-plus season ticket holders). Dietz wound up signing a deal with the AFL's Kansas City franchise, and he's currently on the practice squad there. Now, Shackleford said he is choosing between two rookies at the quarterback spot.
• Certainly, the Shock's defense is aided by having an all-conference player in the secondary (Rob Keefe), but Shackleford said he likes his line play, too. "Our defensive backs have made a mistake here or there, but they're very athletic and are good cover guys. To have that and good pass rushers, too, our defense has played well," he said. The numbers wouldn't seem to support that -- Spokane is 13th in scoring defense (47.5 ppg) and 22nd in total defense (274.5 ypg), but Shackleford said, "We've put our defense in bad situations because we've had some turnovers, and we need to eliminate those."
• Shackleford's first thoughts when watching the Fusion on film? "They have a very good defensive line, a quarterback that can make some plays and three quality receivers that can get down field. I coached Cesare Manning before in Louisville for about a year and a half, and the other two are good. We've got our work cut out for us. We need to play well, stay inside our system and execute."
• I will be blogging during the game, so be sure to keep checking back.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette

Scouting Green Bay

I'm sitting in the press box at the Coliseum, got here about 75 minutes before the Fusion opens its season against Green Bay. I meant to post this blog Friday -- with some additional info from the story I did on coach Eddie Brown and with more from my chat with Green Bay coach Doug Lytle -- but I had to jet down to West Lafayette to handle some stuff for my Purdue beat.
So let's focus on Green Bay now, and I promise to pass along some more insight from the work on the Brown piece Sunday.

• Lytle said he's settling in as head coach, his first after being on Green Bay's staff as an assistant. "All the hours I worked last year, they didn't change. I just added to them," he said with a laugh. "There's a lot more hours and a lot more responsibility on other ends you take for granted as an assistant coach. But it has lived up to everything a head coach should to do, plus some."

• Not surprisingly, Lytle wouldn't offer up much in the way of breaking down personnel. He did say defensive end Jason Hardee was one of the team's best two-way players last season and plays with a lot of intensity. He also mentioned the entire secondary was revamped. I figured that would be a bad thing -- having youth out there -- but he offered up a point to the positive I hadn't thought of. "Having rookies in the secondary is (about) learning a system," he said. "They haven't been in other systems where we have to re-teach and get them out of old habits."

• Lytle said not to pay much attention to his team's exhibition game against Quad City -- Green Bay lost in a rout -- because it was the first time he had players work in groups. He had been switching out every day, trying to find the right combinations. So there was an expected lack of communication during the exhibition. But he said he didn't make any massive personnel changes after the exhibition either.
• Click here for more on Green Bay's starting quarterback, Ryan Hawk.
• Dave Weller is the Fusion's new kicker. Doug Daniel was cut Thursday after a kick-off during practice at the Dome. Simply, Weller kicked the ball farther. There wasn't any way to test accuracy -- and coach Eddie Brown wasn't looking for that at that time. He was concerned Daniel wouldn't be able to reach the nets on kickoffs.
• You won't be seeing Kelvin Robinson tonight. The Fusion lost the claim on Robinson, who likely would have been the No. 2 quarterback.
• If you haven't yet, check out the podcast. I was joined by columnist Ben Smith and quarterback Cody Hodges. Hodges offered some interesting insight into arena ball vs. outdoor.
• Check back for updates during the game.

-- By Stacy Clardie, The Journal Gazette