Washington Valor Fire Offensive Coordinator Steve Thonn

The Washington Valor have fired offensive coordinator Steve Thonn. Washington have lost two games in a row after winning their first game in franchise history over the Baltimore Brigade. The reasoning behind the firing has yet to be released by the team, but the assumption is due to the offensive struggles.

Quarterback Erik Meyer has thrown just 10 touchdowns. That is the least touchdown passes in the AFL. He is also second in the league with four interceptions thrown and last with 680 yards passing.

With the departure of Thonn, head coac Dean Cokinos will take over the offensive coordinator duty. He served as the assistant head coach and defensive coordinator for the Storm in 2016.

Before joining the Valor coaching staff, Thonn was the head coach of the Cleveland Gladiators. During the 2016 season, he went through a lot of health issues that caused him to miss several games on the sidelines.

There was even one scary moment in July against the Orlando Predators. Thonn collapsed on the sideline and had to be escorted out of the Amway Center. Due to that and the multiple other health incidents, the Gladiators decided to part ways with their coach.

The Valor became a team back in October. They were founded by founder of Monumental Sports and Entertainment (MSE) Ted Leonsis. Washington is one of two expansion franchises in the Arena Football League.

The Brigade were announced as the fifth team on Nov. 14. They announced their team name on Jan. 25. Like Washington, Baltimore sits at just one win on the season. They lost their home opener against the Tampa Bay Storm last Sunday when Tampa scored with five seconds left.

The Valor, currently at a 1-2 record, have a tough schedule ahead of them over the next couple weeks. They will play the Storm twice over the next two weeks. One meeting will be in Tampa and the other in Washington, D.C.

They follow their two matches against Tampa with a home game against the defending champion Philadelphia Soul. The Soul won in Washington 49-31 back in Week 3.

Cleveland Gladiators 2017 Season Preview

If there was ever a year for a city to believe in all of their teams, 2017 is the year for Cleveland. Four of the five professional teams that call Cleveland home have a legitimate shot at winning a title. The only team truly struggling season after season is the Browns (we still love them). Outdoor football in Cleveland has not been great lately, that’s all the more reason to go inside the arena (no pun intended.)

In 2014 the Cleveland Gladiators won 19 games, winning their conference and earning the right to host Arena Bowl XXVII and playing in front of over 18,410 fans at the Quicken Loans Arena. Last season, they won a playoff game on the road despite it being their eighth straight road trip on the season. This team is better than the 2014 team.

Cleveland is led on offense by wide receiver Collin Taylor, 30, who is going into his fourth season with the Glads and saw his streak of games with at least one touchdown reach 32 straight. He is now joined by a man who scored 45 times on his own just last season. 29-year old Brandon Thompkins, who played the last two seasons for the Orlando Predators, was named AFL Player of the Year last season. Out of his 45 touchdowns, six were on kickoff/missed field goal returns. In case you are new to arena ball, yes there are missed kicks the players can return and it really happens often.

There was a training camp surprise, however, when Cleveland native and Jack Linebacker turned quarterbck, Arvell Nelson was placed on recallable reassignment. It was quite a shock, but Nelson did have trouble hitting receivers in late game situations. A lot of the fans will point to this as new head coach Ron Selesky’s first major move.

Selesky is in his first season as the Glads’ head coach, but he’s entering his seventh overall in Cleveland. Selesky was named as the 2014 Assistant Coach of the Year during their 19 win season.  Taking Nelson’s place at quarterback is 34 year-old Shane Boyd, who had spent the last two seasons as a backup for the Arizona Rattlers, the class of the Arena Football League the last several years.

When Boyd did get playing time he went 50/92 passing (52.5 percent) with 13 touchdowns to only two interceptions. Coach Selesky (8-14 as a head coach 2003-04) stepped up early in the season last year when couch Steve Thonn (90 wins all time, eighth best in AFL) started to have trouble breathing before a game at the Q vs the Tampa Bay Storm. Thonn finished the season and most believe the move to step down was just a health decision. Selesky is a defensive leader who last year helped develop AFL rookie Joe Powell five interceptions, three taken back for scores), who is now a member of the Buffalo Bills.

Selesky should be able to make this team really dangerous with such great talent on the offensive side as well. The major addition this offseason on defense for Cleveland has to be Euclid, Ohio native and local college product out of Walsh, Rayshaun Kizer. Kizer, 32, helped anchor a solid Los Angeles KISS team the last two seasons. In those two seasons he grabbed sven picks and took three back to the house. Kizer is entering his eighth AFL season and should quickly become a new fan favorite.

The Gladiators enter 2017 with a great deal of talent on both sides of the ball and they rank #1 among returning teams in average attendance at just over 11,000 a game. The Q really sounds like a great place for Arena Bowl XXX.

Washington Valor Finalize Coaching Staff

Dean Cokinos, head coach of the Washington Valor, finalized his football operations staff today. Benji McDowell, Cos Dematteo, and Steve Thonn will serve as assistant coaches to Cokinos.

“We have been very fortunate to acquire this group of coaches and support staff in our inaugural season,” Cokinos said. “A strong staff is vital to the development of the team, we have a good blend of experienced and young talented professionals on board.” This will be McDowell’s second season in the AFL as a coach. Last season, he served as the defensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Storm.

McDowell has played for the Georgia Force, New Orleans Voodoo, and the Alabama Vipers. He also served as a graduate assistant at Georgia. Dematteo will be the Valor’s player coordinator. He has coached with the Voodoo and the Force. He’s also coached for the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League.

Dematteo also played for the Barcelona Dragons of NFL Europa. Additionally, he played for the Arizona Rattlers, Nashville Kats, and New York Dragons. Thonn will be the Valor’s offensive coordinator. Last season, Thonn was the head coach of the Cleveland Gladiators. He’s also been the head coach for the Grand Rapids Rampage and the Houston Thunderbears, and he’s served as the offensive coordinator for the Force.

Finally, he played for the Chicago Bruisers and the Albany Firebirds. The Valor also filled the vacancies for team doctor, head athletic trainer, equipment manager, operations coordinator and strength and conditioning coach. Washington will kick off their inaugural season against the Baltimore Brigade on April 7.

Cleveland Gladiators Name Ron Selesky Head Coach

Today, the Cleveland Gladiators made a coaching move. Not a shock to many they stayed in-house, giving the official title to Ron Selesky. He replaces former Head Coach Steve Thonn. Selesky has been with the Glads for six of the last seasons and had been defensive coordinator and asisstant head coach, making him the leader of the stronger side of the ball for Cleveland on.

Thonn’s only logically reason for leaving has to be health issues. He had to leave a game right before kickoff early in the season, but Selesky was able to fill in fine fashion. Thonn will finish with a record of 66-67 as Cleveland’s head man. He also got to eighth all-time in wins during a road overtime victory against the Tampa Bay Storm. 

Selesky was named the AFL’s Assistant Coach of the Year in 2014, the same season the Glads went 17-1 and an appearance in Arena Bowl XXVII. Cleveland also announced that head line coach Mike Smith would not return and that the team would announce new moves at a later date.