RESPECTABILITY NOW RETURNED TO GREAT FALLS; GLADIATORS NOW MUST FOCUS ON PUTTING THE PIECES TOGETHER FOR PLAYOFF RUN

Team preview by: Jared Neumeier

GREAT FALLS – When the city of Great Falls received its first RMFL franchise in 1999, it embraced the then, Great Falls Rangers with fairly open arms… and the team responded with a fairly successful season, winning more than they lost, and after a successful 2000 campaign seemed poised to keep up the momentum of success in Northern Montana.

However, after a couple of difficult years and management problems in 2001 and 2002, the Great Falls Gladiators have set to prove they will be a positive influence in the Great Falls community… and have, thusfar, succeeded with flying colors. They will even play two of their home games in historical Memorial Stadium.

What they have yet to turnaround, is a winning season.

With the franchises foundation firmly established thanks in large part to the efforts of team General Manager, Brad Thurber, as well as consistency and quality coaching of Mike Morgan, the Gladiators should be well on their way in 2006.

Getting the Gladiator offense going will be the primary focus for a team that finished near lead last in offense, however, a reasonably respectable 15^th of 21 teams on defense.

A good start might be the addition of a new quarterback. New addition, Robert Cook, out of Alabama may just fit that bill nicely. Along with Cook, who has the athleticism to play wide receiver, running back and defense, the Gladiators have also added, 6’2, 230 lb. John Hughes also who has qb skills. A strong competition at running back, some additional offensive and defensive line support, the return of an all-star linebacker and the ability of head coach, Morgan, to focus on the offense have the Gladiators poised for a serious 2006 play-off run.

With the re-organization and re-tooling of the Titans and some splintering of Missoula to the Bitterroot team, 2006 sets up to be the perfect season for the Gladiators to step up and take their place among Montana’s best teams.

KEY ADDITIONS:

John Degle – Offensive Line

Dave Moore – Defensive Line/Linebacker

Robert Cook – Quarterback/wide receiver/running back

Sterling Wynn – Running Back

David Milodragavich – Place Kicker

Chris White – Fullback

Jamari Austin – Offensive/Defensive Line

John Hughes – Quarterback/Running Back/Linebacker

Eric McGowan – Safety

Aaron Bradley – Defensive Back

Mike Tudor – Running Back

Jabrai Truelock – Defensive Back

OFFENSE:

Not since the early days of Shane Jurasek and a long since forgotten name of Anthony Barnes, has Great Falls had any kind of a scary offense, and even then, it could at best be described as average. So offense has been the Achilles heel of Great Falls… for years. Will 2006 be any different? Will this seasons’ array of additions finally be the difference? Honestly? YES! Not only do the Gladiators get a quarterback in Robert Cook who looks to have the necessary skills for the job, but they are probably the deepest team at tailback with no less than 4 legitimate contenders for the position. Sterling Wynn (5’10, 185), Anthony Gaines (5’10, 170), Mike Tudor (5’8, 175) and Clint Cannon (5’7, 170) are all similarly talented running backs; built strong, low to the ground and tackle-breakingly dangerous. Cannon is the only player in the group to play in the Gladiator backfield in 2005, rushing 28 times for 71 yards. Newcomer, Chris White will share reps at fullback with returning powerhouse, Keon Pinckney (11 carries, 73 yards in ’05). The Gladiators lone receiving threat in ’05 was probably Jermaine Saunders who lead the Gladiators paultry passing attack with 11 receptions for 126 yards. Robbie Merriman should also factor in at tight end for Great Falls. Eddie Hailey is back at wide receiver and will be paired up with Chris Corbin who saw some action at the position last season catching but 5 passes for 25 yards and a touchdown. What needed the most help of all, however, is a Gladiator offensive line that ranked dead last in the RMFL in 2005. Although the run blocking wasn’t bad with a 4.11 yard per carry rush average, which was 14^th in the league, the Gladiators yielded 33 quarterback sacks, which was the second highest total, but with how little the Gladiators passed, it was worse than that. The Gladiators were sacked 4 times for ever 15 times a quarterback dropped back to pass, converting to almost 1 of every 3 drop backs resulting in a sack! To solve the problem, the Gladiators have changed out some offensive linemen. Long-time veterans, Carlos Uresti (6’4, 290) and Mike Campbell (6’3, 285) will return. They will be joined by newcomer, John Degle (6’4, 310), Jesse Mcquire (5’11, 235) and Drew Wanner (6’4, 260). These are the guys that are going to have to make a difference. These are the guys that are really going to have to step up if the Gladiators are going to have a chance at competing for a Northern Conference playoff spot. Quick notes: David Milodragavich will support the place-kicking duties… if the team can get into the red zone enough… and the team must deal with the loss of Joe Reza, their most explosive offensive threat in ’05 who left for military duties. Projected Offensive Ranking: 11^th.

DEFENSE:

Unlike the offense, the Gladiator defense had a pretty respectable season in 2006. Although they finished 15^th overally, they were constantly plagued with the problem of having to deal with a short field to defend and an offense that couldn’t sustain enough drives to allow them to catch their wind before the next series. This very solid defense will definitely benefit if the offense can improve and maintain drives… oh by the way, score some more points and take some pressure of them. The Gladiators get a big boost from the return of all-star linebacker, Reggie Jennings. Many Gladiators felt that Jennings was their best player in 2003 and 2004 and his return to an already solid defense is well received. According to Gladiator GM, Brad Thurber, “His leadership and experience are too valuable to measure. Being a prior al-star in the league, Reggie will be a very effective leader on the field and in the locker room.” Coach Greg Tadman comes in to coach the defense, allowing Morgan to focus on righting the offensive ship. Tadman will not only have a true defensive stud in Jennings, but also 2005 all-star and second strongest man in the RMFL, Mike Pease at defensive line. Pease will be joined by a couple of new upgrades in Dave Moore (6’0, 260) and Jamari Austin (6’2, 270). With the Gladiators going to a base 3-4 set, Jennings leads a 4 man linebacking group that will also include John Garcia and Mike Rohde, the second and third leading tacklers on the team in ‘0f (Pease was first with 46 tackles and 6-1/2 quarterback sacks). David Craig and two-way stud, Keon Pinckney will also be factoring into the deep Gladiator linebacker group. No real chinks here in the Gladiator armor. This may be just the group to hold down some of the talented offenses in the Northern conference. If the Gladiators have a defensive weakness, it would more likely be in their secondary. Two new-comers are the wild card as Jabrai Truelock joins the team at cornerback and Eric McGowan, from North Carolina joins the team at free safety. Demond Orr gets promoted to first string corner in ’06 and the long time reliable, Brad Thurber brings athleticism, size and experience to the strong safety position. Thurber will benefit from not having to spend time on offense where he has played anywhere from tight end to quarterback over the years. This defense matches up well with Bitterroot and Missoula and they should be able to put pressure in the Helena backfield to help in those games, however, this defense will likely be impacted… again… by the performance of the offense . Projected Defensive Ranking: 6^th.

INTANGIBLES/COACHING:

Every year, Gladiator GM, Thurber talks about his new players and his “high hopes” that “this will be the year” the Gladiators turn it around. This year, more than ever before, he has reason to feel positive. However, he is not going to jinx it. “Every year I keep thinking that we are going to be there this time,” he recalls, “this time I guess we’ll see. I’m not going to get all excited until we start playing and winning.” There was certainly room to improve and they have certainly improved and, might very well win the Northern conference title. All of the teams that I project higher than them have some question marks. If the Gladiator question marks turn into exclamation points, this team seriously will contend for the Conference title… and the RMFL’s first AA Championship. In another review, I directly called out the Snake River Sabercat defense; for the Gladiators, I am going to call out the team’s remodeled offensive line. If you guys make it happen and protect your quarterback, you guys WILL be playing for the title.

OVERALL RANKING: 10^th