John Elway has lent his Hall of Fame status to enhance the image of the Colorado Crush and the Arena Football League, but Crush players expecting a big celebration for winning the franchise’s first division title might be surprised.
“I’m not much of a celebrator until you reach and win the ultimate goal,” Elway said Wednesday. “I don’t want to take away the thunder, but my goal always was to win a Super Bowl. That doesn’t say that winning the division doesn’t deserve a congratulations and a pat on the back, but our job isn’t finished.”
Elway’s appraisal came after the Crush clinched the AFL’s Central Division title and a home game May 29 in the first round of the playoffs. Crush coach Mike Dailey elicited some smiles when he said he would celebrate with a glass of milk and a snack cake instead of champagne.
“That’s why Mike is so special,” Elway said. “He’s so passionate about this organization and seeing to it that we go all the way if we can.”
The Crush (10-5) completes the regular season Saturday night at New York.
Elway admitted his team’s turnaround since a crushing 89-41 loss to San Jose four weeks ago at the Pepsi Center might be deserving of celebration.
“That was as disappointed as I’ve been in a long time,” Elway said. “The way we played was very discouraging. For me, I’m not one to throw my hands up at anything. It was a matter of how are we going to get this thing turned around.”
Elway also noted the improvement since the team’s miserable first year when the Crush went 2-14.
“You look at the first year to last year and making the playoffs and then to this year and winning the division, it has been a step at a time,” Elway said. “Winning the division helps us get closer to our goal. But the milk and Suzy Q’s don’t come until we win the ArenaBowl.”
So far, Elway and the Crush have earned a banner that will be raised next year at the Pepsi Center signaling the division championship.
Onside miseries
Dailey feels more like celebrating if his team could perform better in onside kickoff situations.
Going into the final week of the regular season, the Crush has faced a league-high 22 onside kicks and the kicking team has recovered a league-high five. One came Friday when the Crush pulled out a 52-49 victory over Nashville in the final 16 seconds on a 31-yard field goal by Clay Rush. Nashville recovered an onside kick to tie the game at 49 before Rush’s attempt.
Irv Moss can be reached at 303-820-1296 or imoss@denverpost.com.
