Thunder’s MacKeown focuses on the positive
The head coach said Mahoning Valley will keep playing hard, even after 11 straight losses.
Vindicator staff report
YOUNGSTOWN - Rumors that the Mahoning Valley Thunder is calling in a Witch doctor to cast out evil spirits aren’t true.
If the psyche of the af2 team’s players is affecting performance, coach Chris MacKeown’s own voodoo ritual will straighten it out.
“I always stay positive with them,” the Thunder coach said. “If you’re trying, just stay positive. There are big negatives that are killing us, but there are a lot of positives. This team has to focus on those. The thing that I like is just how hard guys are playing.”
MacKeown has seen progress and insists that the Thunder isn’t going to be apathetic for the remaining four games of the season.
“One thing I’m not worried about is these guys tanking,” he said. “They’ve been through a lot this year — 11 straight losses — and I’m not worried because these guys, they’re professionals and they’ll get after it. Our guys aren’t going to just ride it out.”
The infusion of new players since MacKeown’s hiring May 26 has helped minimize malaise.
“They have a fresh attitude and haven’t been here for 11 losses, so they see it as an opportunity to win a game,” he said. “The ones who have been here are the ones who believe we can win every game. Otherwise, I’d get them out.”
Virtually eliminated from the playoffs, what’s left to work for?
“There’s a lot of pride on this team,” MacKeown said. “They don’t want to be the bottom team in this league, so every game is a new challenge, a new opportunity to get a win. Every game is a new opportunity to show people that we are not a bad football team. There are good players on this team. We just had problems at a position [quarterback] that we’re working on correcting.”
There is a distinction between a 1-11 Thunder team that’s bad and a 1-11 Thunder team that’s not-so-bad. Although not acceptable, the Thunder team that blew a 20-point lead last Friday was an example of the not-so-bad.
“The six turnovers are disappointing,” MacKeown said of the unpleasant parts of the 59-53 loss to Manchester. “Every time we didn’t turn it over, we scored. If we eliminate those turnovers, we could probably win with two turnovers. But you turn it over six times and lose by six points and still have two opportunities at the end of the game to win, that’s disappointing. Because it was right there in our hands.”
In another recent game in Milwaukee, the Thunder led, 49-47, entering the fourth quarter, then didn’t score another point.
Those two examples are reasons for MacKeown’s optimism, but other elements of the equation can’t be discounted.
“To me, it’s inexperience,” the coach said. “We’re learning on the fly. Our quarterback turned it over five times [vs. Albany], but he’s a rookie; second game [vs. Wolves] he turned it over five times [including a devastating fumble] and he had two picks when his arm was hit [diverted path of the pass]. Then Jeramine Moye, a rookie, dropped the ball after his catch. Inexperience is causing us to lose now, but both guys [Roach and Moye] are talented players and they will be very good.”
The 53 points against Manchester was a bright spot, MacKeown thought.
“It’s the first time that this team scored over 50 points all season — with a quarterback who was playing his second game,” he said. “The defense is playing well enough for us to win, but the offense is where we have to play better.”
Just as the Thunder and the coach aren’t despairing, MacKeown has a message for fans.
“Understand that the situation these guys are in is really not their fault,” he said. “There was a head coach here before. I’m brand new, we will always work to make the team as good as possible. It would be hard to get players in here [the last week of the season], but if we need to make chances, we’ll make changes.
“Stick with us, we are better — not where we want to be at all, but it’s all about winning. We believe that we can beat Wilkes-Barre. Going on a winning streak starts with this game and we will always believe that we can beat whoever comes into our building and Wilkes-Barre is no different.”
Against Manchester, newcomer Aaron Turner played his first game for Mahoning Valley, although he played all 2008 for MacKeown in Amarillo (Dusters) on a team that made the National Conference championship game.
Turner filled in for Kenny Shane at tight end after Shane replaced guard Derrick Markray, whose eye swelled from perspiration as the result of being poked in practice earlier last week.
“Sweat got in there and he couldn’t see and his eye swelled so we had to get him out,” MacKeown said of Markray.
MacKeown said that Turner played well against a good pass-rush team, which included defensive end Bryan Robinson.