Arena

Storm secondary doesn't give up

The unit is starting to come together and prevent the easy touchdowns after being criticized early in the season.

By FRANK PASTOR
© St. Petersburg Times
published March 28, 2003

TAMPA -- Omarr Smith knows he is going to get beat.

As the Storm's defensive specialist covering the high motion, Smith is responsible for stopping a receiver who knows where he is going and has a full head of steam by the time he reaches the line of scrimmage.

Smith is going to give up touchdowns. He knows that. But he can't let it bother him. And he can't allow easy ones.

"This is an offensive game, the offense is supposed to put up points, touchdowns are going to happen," Smith said. "But you don't want to give up the easy ones, that's the thing, and I think we've done that a lot better than in the first couple of weeks."

Early in the season, coach Tim Marcum accused his secondary of lining up wrong, being too timid and missing assignments. He vowed to take second looks at reserve John Williams and practice player Jonathan Ordway and to perhaps even bring in a player from outside the organization.

But as Tampa Bay (6-2) enters tonight's game against Arizona (4-4) in search of a sixth straight win, it appears the best solution was to stand pat and let the players become familiar with one another.

Through eight games, the Storm ranks first in the league in scoring defense, allowing 41.2 points per game, is second in total defense (244.4 yards per game) and fourth in passing defense (236.4).

Tampa Bay intercepted four passes in Sunday's 41-20 victory over Indiana and has 14 for the season, more than twice the six it grabbed a year ago.

"They have come a long way, and the key is our two specialists, Corey (Sawyer) and Omarr," Marcum said. "They really are putting in a lot of time off the field studying the game plan. When you have guys that are concerned like that and put that kind of mental preparation into it, the chances are less likely that they will bust it."

The secondary's improvement is proportional to the amount of time it has spent together.

Wide receiver/defensive back Keita Crespina started last season with the Storm after playing three seasons in New Jersey. Sawyer arrived five games into the season but was lost to a knee injury.

Smith, the ironman of the game in last year's ArenaBowl, signed as a free agent in the offseason. Backups Alvin Ashley and Clif Dell are other recent additions.

After some early breakdowns, the group is beginning to jell.

"At first, we just weren't on the same page at times," Sawyer said. "Any time you have a new secondary, things like that are going to happen. You look around this league and you see guys playing with each other two or three years still having the same busts that we're having."

Smith said the unit's goal is three or four stops a game. If the offense is playing well, as in a 58-56 victory over Grand Rapids, the defense can get by with one or two. But if the offense struggles, as it did early in the Indiana game, the defense has to pick up its play.

Of course, that is easier said than done.

"One of the toughest things to do in football is to cover that high motion," Marcum said. "That guy's coming straight ahead and you don't have any help. If you play zone, they throw underneath you. If you play man, they're probably going to beat you."

Smith knows.

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