Receiver Willie Quinnie and offensive lineman Joey Hollenbeck are in the right place at the right time with the Colorado Crush.
They play different positions, but they have something in common. Both are experienced offensive players, and this year the Arena Football League adopted free substitution rules so players aren’t required to play offense and defense in order to land a job.
“It’s not that they couldn’t play defense,” coach Mike Dailey said. “It takes a long time to learn how to play the other side of the ball. It might take a year or two, certainly more than a training camp. Both are accomplished players at their natural side of the ball.”
Quinnie did not play defense in college at Alabama-Birmingham or in professional stints with the Oakland Raiders, Atlanta Falcons, San Diego Chargers and Green Bay Packers. He also had playing time in NFL Europe and the Canadian Football League.
In the old AFL, he wasn’t going to beat out Damian Harrell as the offensive specialist, and Quinnie probably wouldn’t have had time to learn defense in training camp.
While Quinnie is a new player in the new AFL, he already knows the workings of the Crush.
“My goal is to take a lot of the pressure off of (Harrell),” Quinnie said of his role. “I want to see Damian make a lot of plays. If the defenses pay too much attention to him, I’ll step up and say they can’t put all the attention on him.”
Like Quinnie, Hollenbeck is a rookie with veterans to look up to in center Kyle Moore-Brown and lineman Chris Watton.
“I think we’re starting to jell pretty well together,” Hollenbeck said.
Hollenbeck played defense his first two seasons at Washington State, but shifted to the offensive line his junior year and stayed there in professional stints with St. Louis, Buffalo and Seattle and in NFL Europe.
“This is a positive for me because I’m learning something new,” Hollenbeck said. “I learned a lot in the NFL, but this is a new game. Who knows if this is my last stop? First task at hand is being here and trying to get to the ArenaBowl.”
Quinnie says playing for the Crush is a big opportunity.
“It’s an up-and-coming league,” he said. “The talent here is better than in any other league except the NFL. Being able to concentrate on my natural position has made it a nicer transition for me. If you’ve never played defense before, it would have been a tough transition. It would have been too fast.”
Harrell, the AFL’s offensive player of the year the past two seasons, has been a mentor to the newcomer.
“I’ve already learned tons from him,” Quinnie said. “Damian Harrell has been through the wars. I heard before I got here that he was the best receiver around here. He told me there’s no such thing as a first-year player. I have to be ready to make plays.”
Quinnie already has learned some differences between playing the arena game and the outdoor game.
“You have all this space in the outdoor game, but here you have to create your own space with speed and quickness,” Quinnie said. “You have to score points every chance you get, so as a receiver you have to catch the ball.”
Quinnie also will return kicks and has to learn the hazards of catching the ball off the back nets.
“I’ve been around in leagues where things didn’t work,” Quinnie said. “But that just toughens you up. I plan on mastering this sport and put everything else on the back burner.”
