The "Drive" for Five

Aug. 16,2014

By CHRIS HOPKINS

With a win in ArenaBowl XXVII, the Arizona Rattlers would join the Tampa Bay Storm as the only franchise in AFL history to win five ArenaBowl championships. Perhaps even more impressive, the Rattlers would also join the Detroit Drive as the only franchises in AFL history to achieve the illusive “three-peat.”

Although the two teams could share this distinction, their respective approaches are quite different.

The Drive’s inaugural season came in 1988 and their march to history would begin that same year after they defeated the Chicago Bruisers in ArenaBowl II.

Tim Marcum – later the architect for the Storm’s championship success – coached the 1988 squad, and at the time was 2-for-2 for seasons in the League and ArenaBowls won after being the winning coach in ArenaBowl I with the Denver Dynamite.

Rich Ingold in Detroit was the quarterback and had a dynamic group of young receivers to throw to: Dwayne Dixon, Steve Griffins and George LaFrance.

In their first year of existence, the Drive already had a championship core but the core would be shaken up for their title defense in 1989.

The 1989 AFL season was utilized as a showcase season in attempt to grow the League so the scheduled was shortened to four games.

Ingold would part ways with the team before the season so Detroit featured two signal-callers during the year, Mike Trigg and Tony Burris. Also, Steve Griffin was no longer with the team as well so the team plugged in Gary Mullen, who played for Marcum in Denver.

Nonetheless, the Drive finished the regular season tied with the best record in the League and found themselves again in the ArenaBowl.

Burris would get the start and despite throwing five interceptions, the Drive were able to defend their ArenaBowl title.

Prior to the 1990 season, the Drive were forced to endure more change as their head coach Tim Marcum would not be with the team during the season. Also, their quarterbacks in the previous season — Trigg and Burris — and their reigning MVP offensive specialist George LaFrance would not be with the team either.

Detroit brought in Perry Moss to replace Marcum. Moss had been the head coach of the Chicago Bruisers in 1988, the Drive’s victim in their first ArenaBowl.

At quarterback, Art Schlichter was added to lead the offense. Schlichter was a decorated college quarterback at Ohio State. On the perimeter, Steve Griffin teamed up with future Arena Football Hall of Famer Gary Mullen as the primary offensive playmakers.

Behind Schlichter’s MVP performance during the season, the Drive were able to reach their third straight ArenaBowl and complete their three-peat.

The next season, Tim Marcum returned to command the Detroit sideline but the Drive came up short against the newly formed Tampa Bay Storm.

Two seasons and one more ArenaBowl championship later, the dynastic Detroit Drive were gone.

Since that time an AFL franchise has sniffed a three-peat only once and that was another Tim Marcum-led team – the Tampa Bay Storm – when they won back-to-back ArenaBowls in the mid-1990s. The Storm failed to reach the ArenaBowl in their third season.

Therefore, just by making this ArenaBowl this season the Arizona Rattlers have already made history and are on the cusp of making even more.

Unlike the Drive, who would patch players and coaches together when others would leave, the Rattlers have established a core group of players that have fueled this historic run.

It starts with their coach, Kevin Guy.

Guy was brought in in 2008 with Arizona coming off its worst season in franchise history. His first season with the Rattlers ended with a mediocre 8-8 record and a loss in the first round of the playoffs.

The 2010 season is when the core started to take shape with the emergence of Nick Davila and Rod Windsor. In his first AFL season, Davila completed more than 67 percent of his passes 4,858 yards and 102 touchdowns. His main target, Rod Windsor, was awarded the AFL Rookie of the Year award and was a First Team All-Arena performer.

The next season is when the team really took off as they finished with the best record in the League. Along with the best record, Davila won the MVP and Guy was named the Coach of the Year.

The 2011 season also marked Kerry Reed’s rookie season, defensive backs Marquis Floyd and Virgil Gray’s first seasons with Arizona, and Anttaj Hawthorne’s breakout season.

Although they fell to Aaron Garcia and the Jacksonville Sharks in ArenaBowl XXIV, the Rattlers had everything in place to have sustained success in the coming years.

Fueled by the bad taste left in their mouths from 2011, the Rattlers methodically went about their business in 2012, finishing the season with a 13-5 record. They got by their first two opponents of the playoffs to reach their second straight ArenaBowl. This time, they left nothing to chance as the defeated the Philadelphia Soul, 72-52.

In 2012, Arizona was without their stud receiver Rod Windsor but compensated by adding Maurice Purify who was a First Team All-Arena performer.

Another first-year Rattler player, rookie Michael Huey, joined Purify on the First Team All-Arena. In addition, the Rattlers added Arkeith Brown to help solidify their secondary with Marquis Floyd and Virgil Gray.

The following year, with Rod Windsor returning and their core still intact, the Rattlers were able to upend Philadelphia and capture their second straight ArenaBowl.

Now this year, after setting an AFL record by winning their first 14 games of the season, the Rattlers are back in the ArenaBowl and looking to capture their third straight championship. 

Arizona still has most of the members from the original group including a lot of extra talent.

The Rattlers and Drive may have taken different paths on their dynastic journeys; Arizona is hoping that they end the same way.