Photos & Story By: Kevin Pakos for S&E News
The LA Avengers came to Phoenix and put a 65-33 smack down on the Arizona Rattlers. ON the Rattlers opening night, ON national TV. The final score was not in my opinion indicative of the Rattlers and do not think for a moment that AZ is headed for a long season, not because of this game. But make no mistake; the Avengers are a very good team with a great QB in Sonny Cumbie.

In only 31 games he has passed for over 8,000 yards, no one in AFL history has done that. LA’s WR Kevin Ingram is still one of the AFL’s best ever, throw WR Timon Marshall into the mix and it just gets better for LA.  Plus the Avengers have an aggressive, dangerous defense, one that scored a touchdown of its own when Clay Harrell, all 300+ pounds of him rumble in for six after stripping the ball from Rattler QB-2 Jeff Smoker.

I plan on being in the Staples Center for the week 10 rematch when Arizona goes to LA on Saturday, May 3^rd. Barring injuries on either team; this will be a great game.

Was LA confident, yes. Did they think they could beat the Rattlers by such a lopsided score, yes. Are they arrogant, no, because they did what they said they would do. Not to prove a point, but to play up to their potential, to achieve goals the team has set. Beating Arizona is a big deal, it is a big rivalry and it means a lot to set the tone.

#7 Timon Marshall

But I was watching the game and noticed one LA player that stood out. As it turned out he ended up being the “Ironman of the Game” #7 WR Timon Marshall is that guy. But I did not know that when I waited outside the LA locker room that he had won that award. All I knew was that I witnessed a class performance by a great athlete that also, as it turns out, happens to be a class guy. He is, to steal a line, the kind of player that could be “Everybody’s All American”

I caught up with him afterwards and we talked; I asked him if they expected this kind of score? “We did expect to come out and dominate, we knew if we jumped on them early and they had to go five step that our defensive line would dominate.”

I was in the SE corner of the end zone and listened all night as the fans in that section gave it pretty good to the LA players, I asked him about that and the way he responded (with class). “It’s going on my fourth year now and I have been in some of the nastiest places in Arena Football, I know its all fun.  That’s the fans part to get involved, to say what they say. Usually after the game, they are all hugs and kisses. I know during the game they are doing their part to help their team win and distract me as much as they can.”

I asked about his faith. “I am definitely a Christian, to respond any other way would be against my Christian faith. Like I said, I know it’s all in good spirits, it’s all in the fun of the game.  So I just ignore it.” I mentioned that the reason I sought him out was because of his character and the way he carried himself. He said, “I appreciate that, it is definitely my goal, for people to know I am a Christian without me having to say anything about, the way I carry myself. That plays a big part in it. When you keep God first, especially on the field, you tend to have a good game whether you put up big numbers or not.”

Are there others on your team that share your faith? “We definitely have a lot of guys that are Christians, one guy that did not make the trip Mike Cobbins, he leads our bible studies on Wednesdays. We pray before every game, we have an atmosphere right now. It is a total team atmosphere, it’s deep. The offense supports the defense, the defense supports the offense. It is great for us.”

Timon mentioned that a great man of faith is the Rattlers coach, Tony Bowick. He met Tony in Grand Rapids and says that Tony played a big part in his faith. We would like other believers to keep Timon Marshall and Mike Cobbins of the Avengers in your prayers this season. They play a violent game in a crazy environment and sometimes-even warriors need support. We will be staying in touch with Timon this entire season and will keep Avenger fans up to date.

Some LA Stats:

QB Sonny Cumbie 15/29 for 267 yards no interceptions and 7 TD’s

Receiving: Timon Marshall 6 catches for 119 yards and 2 TD’s

Defense: Damen Wheeler 7 tackles, 1 INT, 1 pass break up.

Ironman of the Game: LA Timon Marshall

 Timon Marshall Bio:

He led the AFL in all-purpose yards each of  the last two seasons. He is in his first season with the Avengers. He played in 13 games last season for Grand Rapids before signing with the Chicago Bears on June, 5th 2007. They released him just before the season. He missed the final three games of 2007 and still led the league in all-purpose yards with 3,050. He averaged 22.9 yards on kick returns. While with Grand Rapids, he had one of the best games of his career against the Avengers totaling 406 all-purpose yards while scoring seven touchdowns in a 75-71 loss on April 28, 2007 at the Staples Center.

In 2006, he became the first player in AFL history to record 1,300 yards in both receiving and on returns. He finished that season with 39 tackles and three interceptions and claimed the All Ironman Honors. He made his debut with the Rampage in 2005 by returning a kickoff 57 yards for a score against the Avengers and his team won 71-65 and denied the Avengers the number one seed in the playoffs.

He began his pro career in the AF2 and helped the Tulsa Talons win the ArenaCup in 2003. The following year he led the Oklahoma City Yard Dawgs with 2,139 yards and 192 points scored. He was a four-year letterman at Ottawa (Kan) University. He is the school’s all-time leader in touchdowns with 39, and points scored with 234. His senior year in 2001 he scored 20 touchdowns for the Braves setting a single season record. He was a three-time All-Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference selection at wide receiver.

His prep career was Westbury High School in Houston, Texas. There he played football and ran track. He was born in Kingston, Jamaica and currently lives in Houston with his wife Courtney.  In 2006, he was the wide receivers coach at Wabash College in Crawfordsville, Indiana.

Next up for the LA Avengers: Road trip to take on HC Doug Plank’s Georgia Force on Saturday, March 15^th at 4:00 PM Pacific time. (Doug was the defensive coach for the Rattlers a few years ago)

 This game will be discussed as will every game on the weekly radio shows "Game of the Week" and "Amazing Performances" heard each week on 1010 AM KXXT. Game of the Week is a Saturday night 8-10 PM weekend sports wrap show that covers all Arizona teams. The Friday 3-4 PM show Amazing Performances has features that showcase the best in sports and entertainment.