AFL: Mike Hohensee - Rush Exclusive

The Arena Football League has had many great coaches and many great teams. Led at the helm, by a man who exemplifies, the true meaning of the word LEADER, the Chicago Rush, last season, made a great run into the playoffs where they fell short to the team who went on to win the whole thing the Colorado Crush. Rush Head Coach Mike Hohensee also exemplifies the meaning of this quote, “You have to perform at a consistently higher level than others. That’s the mark of a true professional,” said by Penn State Football’s Joe Paterno. I recently went one on one with Hohensee, who’s entering his 20th straight year in Arena Football, for this exclusive interview.

JR: In 10 seasons as a head coach, your teams have reached the playoffs 7 times. What do you contribute the most to that success?

MH: I can't respond to this question with one answer. My first response would be that the organizations that I have worked for have believed in me enough to supply me with the resources to compete at a high level. Secondly, I have been fortunate to coach along side many quality coaches. Many have since moved on to become successful Head coaches in the Arena league. Last but not least, just like any other level of football, it takes great players to win and again I have been fortunate to coach some of the best players to play the game of Arena football.

JR: Describe the two weeks leading up to the Colorado playoff game? Did you do anything differently from the regular season?

MH: We prepared for this game just as we would any other. Colorado is a good team with a good coaching staff. We focused on trying to do our jobs better. We play each other so often that there are not too many things we can do to fool them. The main thing we stressed was to understand that just because we had beaten them twice in the regular season that this game would be a dogfight that could come down to the last play and it did.

JR: Discuss the conversation that you had with the team in the locker room after the loss Colorado in the playoffs?

MH: I told them how proud I was of them. I also stated that I don't feel that many teams could of comeback the way we did, down 20-0 with them driving to make it 27-0 and force an overtime with a chance to win with a short field goal on the road for the third straight week. I was very proud of our football team.

JR: Should the Rush get to the conference finals again, what will you change from last season on a personal level? And also on a team level?

MH: It is hard to say since each game takes on its own personality. I personally need to make sure we are ready to play from the opening kick-off. Comebacks like that one don't happen too often. As far as our team goes, we must continue to believe that detailed preparation by everyone is a must for us to continue to have success.

JR: D.J. Bleisath was a huge part of the defensive strength last season. Discuss how you are looking to build around him in the trenches?

MH: D.J. did come on for us last season, but we don't build around one player. We build a team by building an attitude that is practiced by each player that we feel has the ability to excel at this level. We can have a team of all-stars and we may or may not have success based on the over-all attitude of the players.

JR: When Rush fans see the team this season, what are some of the notable changes they will see?

MH: With most of our roster returning next season, I do not fore see many drastic changes.

JR: Explain how Raymond Philyaw grew last season as a leader and including the expectations you have shared with him for this season?

MH: Ray didn't need to grow as a leader. He has been a good leader since he arrived two years ago. He did however grow as a competitor. Coming back from his knee injury challenged him on many levels. Although he didn't start off as well as we hoped he did eventually fight through it and played well down the stretch to help get us to the play-offs for the fifth year in a row.

JR: Etu Molden is coming off a surgery back in June. How are his spirits and rehab doing?

MH: Etu's spirits are almost always good. He is one of the best natured players I have ever coached. When it’s all said and done he may go down as one of the best to play the game. His surgeries went well and he is expected to achieve a full recovery by training camp.

JR: Wednesday August 31st, you’ll be holding your Coaching Clinic. Tell us about that?

MH: This is our first youth coaches clinic ever. We are excited to share some of our coaching points with these good men who volunteered their time to mold these young players into good people and to assure that these players have fun playing. It is an awfully big responsibility and hopefully we can give them a few pointers to assist them with this process.

JR: Any Closing Comments?

MH: I am going into my 20th straight season of Arena football. I believe I am involved in the best spectator sport around. The fans are second to none and deserve a quality product on the field each time they attend a game. I am going to do my best to assure that they are never disappointed. I'm having a blast. Thanks Jim Foster.

Official Site: Chicago Rush

Photo: Mike Hohensee - Head Coach - Chicago Rush

Credit: Chicagorush.com

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