First-place Firecats maintain focus
You won’t catch the Florida Firecats (7-1) saying they are on “cruise control,” and no one is getting ahead of themselves, but they enter Saturday’s arenafootball2 game against the Daytona Thunderbirds (2-7) at Germain Arena leading the division by two games.
For the Firecats, it’s business as usual.
“It will take at least 10 wins to make the playoffs this year,” said offensive coordinator Ken Mastrole.
If Mastrole’s prediction holds true, the Firecats only need three more wins to make the playoffs, but the ultimate goal every year is making it to the Arena Cup.
Getting to the Arena Cup is never easy, but Florida has been there before , including 2004 when it won the title.
For now, the focus is on getting better each week.
“We’re not 7-1,” assistant coach Dominic Bramante said. “We are 0-0. I’ve never been 7-1 before. The bottom line is we are trying to get closer to (our goal) every week.”
Coach Kevin Bouis said the Firecats still seek that perfect game.
“Overall we are doing well, and what’s better is that we have a lot of young guys who are only going to get better as the year goes on,” Bouis said. ” As they learn more of the intricacies of (arena football) they are only going to get better.”
The “young guys” Bouis refers to include wide receiver’s James Panui and Bruce Gordon, both are coming off breakout performances last week against the South Georgia Wildcats. Another emerging player is defensive back James McCoy, who has three interceptions.
Despite the impressive start, the Firecats still have eight games remaining including Saturday’s game against the Thunderbirds.