Burns Reaches af2 Elite Status
July 24, 2002 - arenafootball2 (af2)
Norfolk Nighthawks News Release
Norfolk, VA (July 23, 2002) - It's kind of like major league baseball's "30-30 Club", the NBA's triple-double, or what the NFL calls the "Marshall Faulk Scenario". It is when a player in a certain league does more than one thing well, so well that they put themselves in a class few of their peers can gain admittance.
During the 2002 arenafootball2 season, Norfolk Nighthawks' WR/LB Travis Burns has entered into a status not many af2 rookies can imagine. Burns has become only the third player in the league's three-year history to amass 1,000 yards receiving and 100 yards rushing in a single season. Burns' 1,033 yards on 61 catches is a team-high, as well as his 147 yards gained on the ground. He averages 16.9 yards per reception and 5.2 per carry.
"That's what this league is all about. I get to work on every part of my game and try and improve some of the things I do well to a point where it will earn me a shot at another level", the former Liberty Flame commented, "It's been a roller coaster this season, but I'm just glad they had the confidence in me to make plays."
The first ever player to accomplish the feat was the Florida Firecats' Cleveland Pratt during the 2001 af2 season. Pratt, the 4th leading scorer in af2 last season, finished with 1,043 yards receiving and 118 rushing. Richmond's Kevin Harvey is the only other player to hit the 1,000-100 Club, doing it this 2002 season along with Burns. The defending af2 IronMan of the Year hit the 1,000-yard receiving plateau this past weekend, coincidentally the same week as Burns did. Harvey, who played college football at Temple, currently sits with 1,003 yards on 91 catches, and combines that with 186 rushing yards and 29 total touchdowns.
Burns came to the Nighthawks training camp amidst some questions as to where exactly he was going to fit in to this Norfolk lineup come opening night. At the time, the Nighthawks were looking at returning offensive specialist Gary Briggs, former University of Michigan standout Mercury Hayes, Burns, and three-year team veteran Jay Clarke, all battling for two starting spots, OS and WR/LB. Once Hayes was released from the team following week three, it was Clarke and Burns left as the two WR/LB on the squad, each one bringing their own element to the Nighthawks game plan. Clarke, the defensive-minded co-captain of the team, is leading in tackles and interceptions thus far. Burns has 30.5 tackles and an interception of his own, but it's what he has done on the offensive side of the ball that will hopefully earn him post-season recognition.
"It was tricky for a few weeks, learning all the rules about playing defense at the linebacker spot", Burns said about trying to adapt to the "jack-in the-box" concept of arena football, "I was lucky to have Jay around showing me all the secrets and techniques. He's got this thing down pat right now and I just try and learn something new each and every practice".
The one thing he has not had to learn this season is how to get into the endzone. The 23-year old Burns has been teaching teams throughout the season how he can single handedly ruin your night on defense. Take for example the Nighthawks' first victory of the season, May 4th at home vs. Mohegan. Norfolk trailed 43-30, with less than ten minutes left in the game. Burns, who had not scored a touchdown up to this point, scored on receptions of 20 and 13 yards, tying the game and sending it into overtime. Once in overtime, Burns took a toss from the Wolves' nine-yard line and hoisted his body into the air, lunging for the game-winning score, Nighthawks win 58-51. That was the "Hello, Travis Burns" game, according to Asst. Head Coach Ron Hill.
"From that point on, we knew who the go-to guy on this team was going to be", Hill said, "Travis has become a leader on the field for our team through a very tough season. He doesn't say much verbally, but his actions speak loud enough."
Burns has also gotten some praise from his late-arriving signal caller, Chris Wallace. "Once I got here and started throwing to Burns, you could tell this kid had it, " said Wallace, who spent the 2001 season with the Orlando Predators of the Arena Football League, "I told him that if he kept doing what he was capable of then he'd be playing up there (AFL) next season."
Burns had a streak after that game where he would score a touchdown every 2.5 receptions. His average has dropped a little bit (every 3.05 receptions) since teams have been noticing that he needs to be keyed on, but his 25 total touchdowns (20 receiving, 5 rushing) has helped his team go 7-3 over their last ten games, including a seven-game home win streak they will ride into 2003. June 29th against New Haven, Burns was held out of the endzone through the air for the first time in six games. Instead of taking it for a lost night, he decided to throw his first touchdown of his career, a 22-yarder to his tight end on a wing toss-pass. So when Travis returns to Liberty this fall to obtain his Master's Degree he will probably get a few phone calls from some AFL coaches looking to bring him in for a workout or mini-camp. After the soft-spoken superstar answers and listens to what is in his football career's future, he can take with him that at this level, for this season, he was as good as there was out there. No matter what else happens, Travis Burns has left his mark in the af2.
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