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by Dave Douchebag
Wisconsin State Journal
DaveDouchebag@WSJ.com
NEW SEASON...NEW HOPE?
With three consecutive losing seasons the Madison Demons are hoping for a turnaround this season. While some will say HC Mitch Montgomery is on the hot seat this year, the
veteran coach is not worried about his job status at all. "I don't worry about that stuff to be honest", said Montgomery during a recent Demons practice. While Montgomery
may not show any worry about his job status this seems like the year where the Demons will have to show some real improvement on the field or there may be changes. "I see us
getting better everyday and that is what keeps me motivated to see this thing through.", said a defiant Montgomery.
HC Mitch Montgomery at Demons practice
I talked to the veteran coach after he was showing some young boys around the facilities, he was very candid with me and didn't hold back with his thoughts.
DD: Coach, In terms of competing in the IFL where do the Demons stand and what are your expectations for the upcoming year??
MM: I know were getting better. Will that translate to more wins? I certainly hope so and I expect it too. Defense is gonna be our bread and butter and we will be relying
on those guys a ton this year. They will be the guys that carry us however far we go.
DD: Does that mean playoffs??
MM: I certainly hope so Dave. These guys have worked really hard and done everything I have asked of them. I would love to see them be rewarded with some post season play.
DD: Lets move on to the recent draft class. Can I get your thoughts on some of these guys now that you have seen them actually play some games now. Lets start off with DE
JC Wayne. How is he coming along?
MM: Well JC has been great so far. When he fell to us we were very happy. We didn't think he would be there for us at that spot. Dave, we really needed a DE who could stop
the run. His pass rushing skills are just a bonus. He is gonna be a special player for us here. He has progressed nicely so far, he is just lacking the experience right
now.
DD: How is 2nd round pick WR Eric Haynes doing?
MM: I just left a meeting with the offensive coaches and Darrell (Wilson, OC) is really high on him. We hope he can give our offense a much needed spark this year. I just called
Eric a couple of hours ago to tell him that he won the starting job. He is a very humble kid and told me he wouldn't let me down.
DD: Do you expect any of the other draftees to make any kind of impact on the team this year?
MM: The transition to the pros is a huge step. Some rookies heads will be spinning but to be honest this crop of rookies are grasping what we do here very well. I expect a
majority of them will see a surprising share of playing time. We really liked this group of rookies.
DD: Lets talk about some of the cuts you had to make yesterday to get down to 53 roster spots. Who was the hardest to let go?
MM: Well they are tough Dave. You goto war with these guys and you have the utmost respect for them. Its the hardest thing to do as a HC is tell someone their services are
no longer needed. Probably the toughest yesterday was FB Philip Pearson. A true pro, it was very hard sitting him down and telling him. I wanted him to retire a Demon but
it just wasn't meant to be I guess.
DD: Lets talk about some of the free agent acquistions the Demons made this offseason. The Little Rock franchise is under IFL league control at the time and decided to let
some of their players test the F/A Market. You brought in 9 year vet WLB Dustin Edwards who had 17 sacks last year and has 66 in his career. What do you expect out of
Edwards this year? Did Louis McCarthy sign off on this deal?
MM: First of all, I did call Louis and wanted to see how he felt about acquiring Edwards. Louis wants to win, he said, "You get whoever you feel will make us better coach,
don't worry about me." Louis can play anywhere, inside or outside it don't matter. Edwards still has a lot left in his tank and we feel he will get to the QB on a regular
basis as he did in Little Rock. The plan right now is for Edwards to backup McCarthy at the WLB position. In nickel and dime situations they will be on the field at the
same time. We're expecting big things from these two this year. I'm just putting opposing QB's on NOTICE right now.
DD: Lets talk some offense. The Demons have had their struggles putting points on the board the last few seasons. What kind of improvement are you expecting out of them this
season?
MM: To be honest, we have to be better. I'm not gonna sugarcoat it, we have stunk. The running game has been decent but the passing game is nowhere where it needs to be at the
moment. We brought in RB Roman Peckham this offseason and we look for him to be a big addition to the short passing game. We really didn't have a guy like him the last few
seasons. He could open things up for the other fellas, we hope.
DD: Lets talk about the renovations that are finally completed. Attendance is already up almost 11,000.
MM: They did a real nice job. Everything looks great, the fans seem to be having a better all around experience. I noticed a lot more tailgating with the parking lot renovations.
DD: Lets look at this weeks opponent in the home opener. Dakota comes to town, a division rival. Will this be a snoozer?? They had a Millen-esque 0-16 year last year.
MM: No such things as a snoozer in this league. We will be ready for the Spirit and hopefully start the season on a winning note and they continue on a losing note.
As I left the practice facilites I could not help but notice the optimism for the upcoming season by everyone. Will this translate into more wins? If not, changes next
season could be on the horizon.
Wisconsin State Journal
DaveDouchebag@WSJ.com
NEW SEASON...NEW HOPE?
With three consecutive losing seasons the Madison Demons are hoping for a turnaround this season. While some will say HC Mitch Montgomery is on the hot seat this year, the
veteran coach is not worried about his job status at all. "I don't worry about that stuff to be honest", said Montgomery during a recent Demons practice. While Montgomery
may not show any worry about his job status this seems like the year where the Demons will have to show some real improvement on the field or there may be changes. "I see us
getting better everyday and that is what keeps me motivated to see this thing through.", said a defiant Montgomery.
HC Mitch Montgomery at Demons practice
I talked to the veteran coach after he was showing some young boys around the facilities, he was very candid with me and didn't hold back with his thoughts.
DD: Coach, In terms of competing in the IFL where do the Demons stand and what are your expectations for the upcoming year??
MM: I know were getting better. Will that translate to more wins? I certainly hope so and I expect it too. Defense is gonna be our bread and butter and we will be relying
on those guys a ton this year. They will be the guys that carry us however far we go.
DD: Does that mean playoffs??
MM: I certainly hope so Dave. These guys have worked really hard and done everything I have asked of them. I would love to see them be rewarded with some post season play.
DD: Lets move on to the recent draft class. Can I get your thoughts on some of these guys now that you have seen them actually play some games now. Lets start off with DE
JC Wayne. How is he coming along?
MM: Well JC has been great so far. When he fell to us we were very happy. We didn't think he would be there for us at that spot. Dave, we really needed a DE who could stop
the run. His pass rushing skills are just a bonus. He is gonna be a special player for us here. He has progressed nicely so far, he is just lacking the experience right
now.
DD: How is 2nd round pick WR Eric Haynes doing?
MM: I just left a meeting with the offensive coaches and Darrell (Wilson, OC) is really high on him. We hope he can give our offense a much needed spark this year. I just called
Eric a couple of hours ago to tell him that he won the starting job. He is a very humble kid and told me he wouldn't let me down.
DD: Do you expect any of the other draftees to make any kind of impact on the team this year?
MM: The transition to the pros is a huge step. Some rookies heads will be spinning but to be honest this crop of rookies are grasping what we do here very well. I expect a
majority of them will see a surprising share of playing time. We really liked this group of rookies.
DD: Lets talk about some of the cuts you had to make yesterday to get down to 53 roster spots. Who was the hardest to let go?
MM: Well they are tough Dave. You goto war with these guys and you have the utmost respect for them. Its the hardest thing to do as a HC is tell someone their services are
no longer needed. Probably the toughest yesterday was FB Philip Pearson. A true pro, it was very hard sitting him down and telling him. I wanted him to retire a Demon but
it just wasn't meant to be I guess.
DD: Lets talk about some of the free agent acquistions the Demons made this offseason. The Little Rock franchise is under IFL league control at the time and decided to let
some of their players test the F/A Market. You brought in 9 year vet WLB Dustin Edwards who had 17 sacks last year and has 66 in his career. What do you expect out of
Edwards this year? Did Louis McCarthy sign off on this deal?
MM: First of all, I did call Louis and wanted to see how he felt about acquiring Edwards. Louis wants to win, he said, "You get whoever you feel will make us better coach,
don't worry about me." Louis can play anywhere, inside or outside it don't matter. Edwards still has a lot left in his tank and we feel he will get to the QB on a regular
basis as he did in Little Rock. The plan right now is for Edwards to backup McCarthy at the WLB position. In nickel and dime situations they will be on the field at the
same time. We're expecting big things from these two this year. I'm just putting opposing QB's on NOTICE right now.
DD: Lets talk some offense. The Demons have had their struggles putting points on the board the last few seasons. What kind of improvement are you expecting out of them this
season?
MM: To be honest, we have to be better. I'm not gonna sugarcoat it, we have stunk. The running game has been decent but the passing game is nowhere where it needs to be at the
moment. We brought in RB Roman Peckham this offseason and we look for him to be a big addition to the short passing game. We really didn't have a guy like him the last few
seasons. He could open things up for the other fellas, we hope.
DD: Lets talk about the renovations that are finally completed. Attendance is already up almost 11,000.
MM: They did a real nice job. Everything looks great, the fans seem to be having a better all around experience. I noticed a lot more tailgating with the parking lot renovations.
DD: Lets look at this weeks opponent in the home opener. Dakota comes to town, a division rival. Will this be a snoozer?? They had a Millen-esque 0-16 year last year.
MM: No such things as a snoozer in this league. We will be ready for the Spirit and hopefully start the season on a winning note and they continue on a losing note.
As I left the practice facilites I could not help but notice the optimism for the upcoming season by everyone. Will this translate into more wins? If not, changes next
season could be on the horizon.
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