Inside the Soul: Dan Raudabaugh
Published on January 17, 2012 under Arena Football League (AFL)
Philadelphia Soul News Release
The position of quarterback is one of the most polarizing positions in sports.
It is under a constant microscope and gets most of the credit for victories and conversely, most of the blame for losses.
Quarterbacks are important at every level of football, but none probably more so than Arena Football, because it is a pass first game.
For the Philadelphia Soul, new quarterback Dan Raudabaugh (6'3, 230, Miami, OH) is that guy. He is not only the leader of the offense, but also the leader of a team that has stockpiled talent during the off season and plays in a city that demands excellence.
"The weight of your responsibility is exponentially larger than anyone else on the field right when the ball is snapped," Raudabaugh said. "You have got to answer the tough questions after a loss, and sometimes after a win maybe they give you a little more praise than you deserve, but that comes with it."
Raudabaugh recognizes that the expectations come with the territory and the position of quarterback, and is ready to take it head on in 2012.
"It's a natural leadership position whether you want it to be or not," Raudabaugh said of his position. "You have got to be ready to step in at any given time and take the bull by the horns."
Although quarterback is the leadership position, Raudabaugh is only entering his second full season as a quarterback in the Arena Football League and does not have notoriety of an Aaron Garcia or a Mark Grieb. Despite his young age, Raudabaugh said he is more than ready to be man for the job.
"I just want to go into the locker room and be a leader the guys can trust, the guys can count on. Someone they can go and talk to at any given time," Raudabaugh said. "Because I'm going to show up every day, I'm going to work hard and do everything I can to put our team in a successful position."
"You have got to show up to play," the second-year QB said. "Those guys are in there playing their tails off for you so you better do the same for them."
In his short AFL career, however, Raudabaugh has made quite the impact.
Raudabaugh's two prior seasons in the AFL were with the Dallas Vigilantes (2010-11). In two seasons with the Vigilantes, Raudabaugh played in 20 games, including one playoff game, completing 391-of-557 (64.8 percent) passes, with 100 touchdowns and 18 interceptions. He took over as the signal-caller duties in the final two games of the 2010 season and retained the job going into the 2011 season.
During the 2011 season, his first full season as a starter, Raudabaugh started all 18 games, threw 90 touchdowns to only 17 interceptions, completed nearly 65 percent of his attempts and led the Vigilantes to the playoffs after an 11-7 season.
He proved in Dallas that he can be a leader and a winning quarterback, and is looking to prove the same thing here in Philadelphia.
"[Dan] made some huge strides in his first full year as a starter," Soul wide receiver Anthony "Tiger" Jones said, who saw firsthand the strides that were made as the two were teammates last season in Dallas.
A good portion of his Dallas teammates came to the Soul to finish what they started last season in Texas.
Jones, who earned Cutter's Wide Receiver of the Year honors last season and fullback Derrick Ross, who is coming off a season where he set single-season records in rushing yards (622) while adding 39 rushing touchdowns.
"It's always nice to play with guys who you play well together with," Raudabaugh said. "We did some good things last year in Dallas and there's a lot of room for improvement still, but it helps when you can carry over something into the next season."
Perhaps the most important addition to Philadelphia from Dallas was former Dallas head coach now Philadelphia assistant head coach and offensive coordinator Clint Dolezel.
Dolezel being a former Arena Football quarterback himself understands the pressure of the position. An AFL legend, Dolezel played 13 seasons and threw for the second-most yards in AFL history while winning an ArenaBowl championship in 2001.
"Coach Dolezel is a great guy," Raudabaugh said. "He's a great coach. He was a great player and probably an even better person. He's very approachable and knows how to talk to the players. He understands that coaches coach and players play. Coach Dolezel can only help so much, but you got to be able to transfer what he teaches you on the practice field and on the chalkboard and take it over to the game."
Raudabaugh is also a fan of his new head coach Doug Plank, but he isn't the only member of his family to be fan.
Dan's father, Gregg, grew up in the Chicago area and knows all about the 46 defense and its lineage to Plank. Raudabaugh said that when his father first heard that Plank was going to be coaching his son, he was very excited.
Raudabaugh's father has a good reason to be excited. His son is the leader of a team that seems to have everything in place to bring the city of Philadelphia another ArenaBowl championship in 2012.
"I've heard nothing but great things about the fans and the people of Philadelphia, and how much they sport their team," Raudabaugh said. "I'm excited to come down and get to meet the people who are going to be supporting us at the games."
"Dan is a very talented quarterback with unique abilities," said Plank. "He has a rocket arm and makes decisions very quickly. Dan knows where to go with the ball and understands to be successful in this league you cannot turn the ball over. We are excited to have one of the League's best on our team."
Arena Football League Stories from January 17, 2012
- Barnstormers Add Center to Roster - Iowa Barnstormers
- Cleveland Cavaliers and Quicken Loans Arena Organization Acquires Cleveland Gladiators - Cleveland Gladiators
- Inside the Soul: Dan Raudabaugh - Philadelphia Soul
- Soul Home Opener Tickets Go on Sale January 30 - Philadelphia Soul
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
