The last time the Arizona Rattlers played football, they lost to the Philadelphia Soul in ArenaBowl XXIX back on Aug. 26. The Rattlers committed five turnovers and lost by a final score of 56-42.
Now, the Rattlers are a team that will play in the Indoor Football League. They moved from the Arena Football League after rumors went around that the AFL was struggling.
That’s not the only thing that’s changed.
A New Era for the Arizona Rattlers
The Rattlers were seen as the most dominant team in the AFL in 2016. They dominated almost every opponent and only lost twice all regular season. That was with quarterback Nick Davila under center. Davila has since retired from football. He will serve as Arizona’s quarterbacks coach.
It is not known who the new quarterback will be, but things will definitely be different without Davila under center. Not only that, but the road to the title game won’t be as easy as it was, either.
The Rattlers will be going up against very competitive teams in the IFL. The Sioux Falls Storm are six-time reigning IFL champions. They will be the biggest challenge all season.
There’s also the Cedar Rapids Titans and Spokane Empire, who both won 12 games in 2016. The Wichita Falls Nighthawks also finished with 11 wins.
Arizona will have to get through Spokane and Wichita Falls to win the Intense Conference. If they can do that, they’ll have a chance to dethrone six-time defending champion Sioux Falls.
While Arizona is without Davila, they still have their future Hall of Fame head coach Kevin Guy. Guy has coached the team to several ArenaBowl titles. The Rattlers also won three consecutive ArenaBowl titles under Guy from 2012-2014.
The 2017 Indoor Football League season kicks off on Feb. 16. The Rattlers will have their first shot at the six-time defending champions as they open in Sioux Falls. Their first home game is Feb. 26 against the Iowa Barnstormers, another former AFL team.
Main Photo Credit: Wikipedia
