Destroyers open free agency period by signing five AFL veterans

Published on October 4, 2005 under Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Columbus Destroyers News Release


COLUMBUS, OHIO - Columbus Destroyers have signed Arena Football League free agent quarterback John Kaleo (pronounced cuh-LAY-oh), offensive specialist Thabiti Davis (pronounced tuh-bee-tee), defensive specialist Cecil Doggette (pronounced daw-get), and offensive/defensive linemen Juan Porter and Mike Sutton, club president Dave Paitson announced today. The team also released wide receiver/linebacker Cornelius White.

Former Ohio State lineman Juan Porter (6-4, 310) played for the Buckeyes from 1993-96, earning All-Big Ten Conference recognition twice. A five year AFL veteran, Porter has developed into a threat on both sides of the ball. He has recorded 17.5 tackles (14UT-7AT), a sack, two pass breakups and forced a fumble during his career.

Doggette (5-8, 180, West Virginia), who resides in Columbus during the AFL off-seasons, also brings a championship to the Destroyers as he was an integral part to the 1997 Arizona Rattlers ArenaBowl championship season. Doggette broke into the AFL in 1993 with Detroit and has improved each year in the league. He spent seven years with the Rattlers and the past three with the Grand Rapids Rampage. He is the AFL's all-time leader in pass breakups (145). The future Hall of Famer earned First Team all-arena distinction in 1999 and was named Second Team all-arena in 2002.

Sutton (6-4, 285, Louisiana State), who played his High School football at St. Ignatius in Cleveland, was a two-time All-State honoree and All-American during his prep days. In three seasons of AFL football, he has 35 tackles (24UT-22AT), four tackles for a loss, four sacks, two pass breakups, 11 QB hurries, two blocked kicks and four forced fumbles. Sutton got his start in Arena Football in 2001 with Los Angeles and spent the 2005 season with the Tampa Bay Storm.

Kaleo (6-0, 215, Maryland) was introduced to the Columbus media on Monday at a press conference at Nationwide Arena. He enters his 13th season in the Arena Football League and is one of only five players in league history to pass for more than 30,000 yards and 500 touchdowns. Kaleo brings a wealth of talent to the table as he has an ArenaBowl to his name. He guided the Tampa Bay Storm to the Arena Bowl XVI title in 2003 and owns a 71-51 record in 122 career starts. He has completed 2,487-of-4,154 passes (55.9 percent) for 30,013 yards and 502 touchdowns to rank in the top five in the AFL's all-time career leaders in all four of those categories.

Davis (6-3, 215, Wake Forest) joins the team with three years of Arena Football experience under his belt. The Wake Forest product has put up big numbers each year with a total of 309 receptions for 3,382 yards and 59 touchdowns to go along with four rushing touchdowns. Normally an offensive specialist, Davis has recorded 61.5 tackles (50UT-23AT), 1.5 tackles for a loss, two fumble recoveries and an interception in limited action on defense.

Last season with the New Orleans VooDoo, Davis caught 113 passes for 995 yards and 19 touchdowns. His best season came in 2004 with Detroit when he finished third in the AFL in receptions (127), fifth in receiving yards (1,557) and added 26 touchdowns. His rookie season with Orlando he was named to the all-AFL Rookie team and received votes for the AFL Rookie of the Year award.

The Destroyers finished the 2005 season fourth in the AFL in attendance, averaging 15,229 fans per game in eight home contests at Nationwide Arena. In addition, the Destroyers became one of only two teams in the league to draw over 250,000 fans combined during the past two years (Philadelphia).

For further information on the Destroyers, visit www.ColumbusDestroyers.com or call (614) 246-HITS.

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Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from October 4, 2005


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