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Dispatch

3/3/06

ARENA FOOTBALL

Destroyers’ Brown shines in big-play role

His interceptions bolstering defense

Friday, March 03, 2006

Dave Devereux
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

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Destroyers quarterback John Kaleo and defensive specialist Jerald Brown are 10 years apart in age and Arena Football League experience. They hadn’t played on the same team before this season.
Yet Kaleo, a 13-year veteran, immediately had an idea of what to expect from Brown.
"He’s from Washington, D.C., my hometown," Kaleo said. "That means he’s tough."
Five games into the season, Kaleo is discovering what his D.C. counterpart brings to the defensive specialist position, responsible for alerting the defense of checks and keeping the secondary aligned.
"This is his first full season as a middle (defensive specialist)," Kaleo said, "but he’s proving throughout the league that he’s a force to be reckoned with."
Brown, who signed as a free agent in the off-season, is with his third team, after playing for New York as a rookie in 2004 and Arizona last season.
Since the opener, he has shown the ability to make big plays, cover the opposing team’s best receiver and direct one of the league’s top-ranked defenses.
In the Destroyers’ 53-30 win over Grand Rapids in Week 1, Brown returned a fumble 40 yards for a touchdown, sparking a 21-0 lead. He intercepted two passes in each of the past two games, including a 42-26 win over Arizona last Friday.
Brown, assigned to the Rattlers’ best offensive threat, Damien Groce, gave up three touchdowns, but his secondhalf interceptions of Rattlers quarterback Sherdrick Bonner came at critical times.
"I go into it knowing that it’s one of the hardest positions to play," Brown said. "The offense is going to score, but if you can get some interceptions it changes the complexion of the game."
Brown and Cecil Doggette are the Destroyers’ primary defensive specialists. The position allows the defense to substitute two of the best cover men on the team for the offensive specialist and quarterback.
Doggette has played the middle spot throughout most of his 12-year career.
"Cecil for a lot of years was probably the premier middle safety in the league," coach Doug Kay said. "He’s still capable of doing it, but right now Jerald is playing it and I think playing it as well as anybody in the league."
Heading into the game tonight against the New York Dragons, Brown is tied for second in the league with four interceptions, but he credits the defensive front for doing its part.
The Destroyers will look to take advantage of Dragons rookie quarterback Juston Wood. They were expecting to face Aaron Garcia, who was voted the 11 th-greatest player in league history before the season, but Garcia is out for the season after suffering a fractured right tibia in last week’s win over Orlando.
"We gave one of the all-time greats (Bonner) some problems, so with a rookie quarterback, I hope that we can do the same thing," Brown said.
"As coach says, ‘You can make him a star in 30 seconds if he makes that quick big play and gains confidence, but he can also lose it in 30 seconds.’ "
ddevereux@dispatch.com

Friday, March 03, 2006