Perkins glad to be out of the jungle

Print Story

Email to Friend

Discuss this story

The Thunder DB was unhappy with the af2's Cincinnati
franchise.

By TOM WILLIAMS

VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF

YOUNGSTOWN — As the Thunder's inaugural season winds down, it's hard to find a player happier to be here than the af2 team's "Mouth of the South."

When the af2 season began in late March, defensive back Reggie Perkins was a member of the Cincinnati Jungle Kats.

Perkins signed with Cincinnati to be close to a NFL franchise. He soon realized that playing on one of the worst af2 teams — the Jungle Kats and Laredo Lobos are both 1-14 — was not an immediate goal.

After the Jungle Kats lost to the Thunder, 54-20, April 21 at the Chevrolet Centre, Perkins reconnected with Thunder coach Mike Hold and defensive coordinator Lucious Davis.

"I've known Coach Hold and Coach Davis from playing arena football," said Perkins, 26, after Tuesday's practice. "I know the caliber of coaches that they are."

Diplomatically, Perkins suggested the Jungle Kats' staff is not of that caliber, so he initiated his release, then was assigned to the Thunder (6-9) May 9.

"I had no room for progress there," Perkins said. "I got a call from Coach Davis who said they could really use me [but] I really didn't want to change teams in the middle of the season."

Re-evaluation

After the April 21 loss here, Perkins said he re-evaluated.

"It's a better place for me, a better fit," said Perkins, who played at the University of Memphis. "They let me be me here.

"The community is great and the owners are unbelievable," the 5-foot-9 defensive back said. "The sky is the limit."

Defensive back Maurice Taylor, who starts with Perkins, said his teammate "has brought a voice to the secondary.

"Myself, I'm a quiet leader. I like to go out on the field to make plays — that's my voice," Taylor said. "But with Reggie, he's going to talk. He's going to get into guys faces, even in practice.

"Then we're having some fun bickering back and forth, challenging each other in practice," said Taylor who grew up in Warren. "He brings intensity, a competitive attitude to the secondary.

"We've embraced him, taken him in with open arms," Taylor said. "We knew what type of player he was from playing against him. We knew he would bring his trash-talking to the field and that's what we felt we needed.

"He's brought every thing we expected and more," Taylor said. "He's making plays on the field. He has a few interceptions in the past few weeks."

Comparing performances

In four games for Cincinnati, Perkins made 221/2 tackles. For the Thunder, he has 36 tackles and four pickoffs (trailing only Taylor's seven).

The Jungle Kats play their home games in the arena formerly known as Riverfront Coliseum, a building twice as large as the Chevrolet Centre.

"They have all those seats, but they sure don't have the cozy [feeling] as we do," Perkins said. "You can have the big building, but if you don't have fans in those seats, it doesn't help at all."

Perkins' other af2 teams have been the Memphis Xplorers, Bossier-Shreveport Battle Wings and Quad City Steamwheelers.

Perkins said one of the biggest differences here has been the response of the fans to the Thunder players.

"Here, it's been like one big round circle where we can all hold hands," Perkins said. "We don't have a gap because we can be all together.

"The fans have shown good spirits," Perkins said. "They're willing to pat me on the back and pick us up even after a loss."

Perkins calls the af2 life "a blessing. From my high school team, I'm the only one [still] playing and getting paid for it. It's good to still have your dream going without any major injuries."

williams@vindy.com

Wednesday, July 25, 2007