But another chapter in The Amazing Kurt Warner Story -- supermarket bagger-turned-Super Bowl hero -- hasn't gotten as much ink (or bytes, I guess). Before Warner and Delhomme battled for the starting spot in Amsterdam, Warner cut his teeth on another pro team: the Iowa Barnstormers of the Arena Football League.
I know, because I was there.
Before Warner won NFL MVP awards in 1999 and 2001, and before he was even named to All-Arena first teams in 1996 and 1997, he was a rookie quarterback for the 1995 Barnstormers -- a team otherwise known for their distinctive helmets. Seriously, how can you not like the aviator goggles painted above the facemask?
As opposed to the media horde Warner faced at Super Bowls, his first Arena League playoff game -- on the road against the Arizona Rattlers -- featured a handful of local reporters, including a lowly newspaper intern. That intern was me.Yes, this game was so big that The Phoenix Gazette dispatched a 22-year-old kid fresh out of college to cover it. And thanks to a very helpful person at The Arizona Republic, we now offer this look back at Warner's first-ever pro playoff victory on Aug. 13, 1995, complete with rearview mirror comments from the reporter.
The Rattlers had Sherdrick Bonner, the quarterback who orchestrated last year's drive to the ArenaBowl. They also had Hunkie Cooper, the Rattlers' ''Mr. Everything,'' who rushed for two touchdowns and caught one more Sunday night.
(Yes, not only did Warner face a team with a player named "Hunkie," but that guy was a stud.)
But in the end it was a huge performance by rookie quarterback Kurt Warner that sealed the win for the Iowa Barnstormers over the Rattlers ...
Warner ... threw for a career-record 428 yards and six touchdowns with no interceptions as the Barnstormers defeated the defending champion Rattlers 56-52.
(Ahhhh, those were the days. I remember sitting in the press box in the final minutes and switching my story angle every time a team scored -- which was every 45 seconds. I'm not lying.)
... Warner had to deal Sunday with deafening noise, an Iowa rushing game that netted negative yardage and a late Rattlers comeback.
''It's just the adversity you have to deal with on the road,'' an excited Warner said after the game. ''That's kind of how the ball bounces in this league.''
(And he really was excited. I barely had to ask any questions, he was just rambling on and on. Still, note his Bull Durham-esque use of nothing phrases. Is that really how the ball bounces, Kurt?)
... When it counted, the rookie came through with a scrambling, 36-yard bomb to wide receiver Tony Young with just two seconds left.
''We were just trying to get in field-goal range,'' Warner said. After he saw Young behind two Rattlers defenders, he decided to go for the win. ''I just tried to put as much on it as I could.''
("With just two seconds left." I'm telling you, no lead was safe in these games. No lead.)
... Warner may not have been rock solid all the time, but he showed a maturity beyond his years. When a fight broke out after the last Iowa score, Warner tried to soothe the battling players and even congratulated the Rattlers on their season.
''There's no part for (fighting) in this game,'' Warner said. ''I don't know who started it and who finished it, but I'm out here to play and have fun.''
(By most accounts, Warner's a good guy, and was back then. And yes, I actually wrote "maturity beyond his years." Ouch.)
... For Warner, who said he has had his ups and downs in his first season, the victory followed the regular-season pattern: If he played well, the Barnstormers usually won.
''The team goes as I go,'' he said. ''A lot is riding on my shoulders, and I'm happy to take all the blame.''
(Happy to take all the blame? I know some Panthers fans who hope he feels that way Saturday.)
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first, first, second wow, that blog blows.
ReplyDeleteVery cool article that gives some historical perspective on a two-time NFL MVP. Great writing.
ReplyDeleteI knew Kurt when he worked at the Hy-Vee in Cedar Falls, Iowa.
ReplyDeleteKurt, would be working night shift and I would see him when buying beer. Now Kurt, makes millions playing a game. Love you Kurt!
Thanks for that trip down memory lane, Jeff. Is ArenaBall great or what? You can have such a swell time at those games, for a mere pittance compared to the insanely expensive NFL. Hope their league survives and returns to Charlotte. Warner has ALWAYS been a class act. I feel almost guilty for hoping his latest "comeback" season gets shut down tomorrow...
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