Great Article About Isaiah Trufant

[billiejimmy]

DON'T BAN ME IT'S ABOUT A JET

http://www.arenafootball.com/news/shock-alunni-update-trufant

Shock Alunni Update-Trufant

By: Kevin Maloney

01/14/2011 6:42 PM

If you were there that night, you witnessed something you’ll never forget; Isaiah Trufant certainly won’t.

It was August 20, 2006. The Shock hosted the Arkansas Twisters that night for the right to advance to the ArenaCup in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Trufant returned to the lineup after missing the previous week with a hamstring strain. A mid-season acquisition, Trufant had started five games for the Shock and collected 31.5 tackles, three interceptions and eight pass break-ups.

Coming into the game, the Twisters planned on testing Trufant’s hamstring and targeted most of their passes to his side of the field. Trufant responded with a career-high seven pass break-ups and six tackles. Additionally, Trufant was named the Defensive Player of the Game, although he was not able to finish it.

In the fourth quarter, Arkansas QB Walter Church tried to connect with his leading receiver Kevin Williams on a deep pass into the back of the endzone. The pass attempt fell incomplete and Williams and Trufant went crashing into the endzone wall. Trufant laid down on the field for several minutes while members of the Rockwood Training staff tended to him.

As a stretcher was brought out onto the field, the sell-out crowd started chanting “TRU-FANT! TRU-FANT! TRU-FANT!” As the chant grew louder and louder, Trufant got up and was able to walk off the field on his own power.

“I remember that play clearly,” Trufant explained. “It felt good to have the fans behind you and to have people cheering for you like that. That was big.”

The following week, the Shock ended a season that Spokane fans won’t soon forget with an ArenaCup Championship.

“We had great character and it was a winning franchise from the very start,” Trufant remembered. “The team was already a stacked team with great athletes, great players and great coaches before I got there. I was just blessed to come in and help the team get to where there wanted to go -- the Championship.”

The following season, Trufant elevated his game from the af2 to the AFL when he signed with the Kansas City Brigade. In 2008, he joined the Arizona Rattlers. In two seasons in the AFL, Trufant collected 107 tackles and five interceptions.

Trufant continued to climb the professional football ladder when he signed with the UFL’s Las Vegas Locomotives. In two seasons with the Locomotives, Trufant helped Las Vegas capture back-to-back Championships and was named the 2010 Defensive Player of the Year.

These accolades caught the attention of the New York Jets who signed Trufant on his 28th birthday and three days later elevated him to the active roster.

In the week leading up to Trufant’s NFL regular-season debut, Jets’ defensive-minded Head Coach Rex Ryan said that he “wanted to see what Trufant could do to help the Jets get into the playoffs.”

Ryan’s words resonated with Trufant who recorded two tackles against the Buffalo Bills.

“I can’t lie; it’s definitely surreal,” Trufant confessed. “It’s just like any job, you try to work your way up to the highest position you can get and that’s what I was trying to do. Along the way, I am definitely thankful for the opportunities and the windows that were opened by the Spokane Shock. That’s where all of this started.”

This weekend Trufant and the Jets take on the Patriots in New England. Although it has not been determined if Trufant will be active for this weekend’s game, Trufant is just happy to contribute.

“If I’m active, I’m active,” Trufant said. “If I’m not active, I’m doing whatever I can to help my teammates get ready. “

While Trufant’s journey to the NFL might have been a long one, he will always remember the place where things started for him – right here in Spokane.

“A lot of people have dreams of getting to the NFL and so you have to take advantage of the opportunities. Spokane has a great setting, a great city and a great team,” Trufant advised the 2011 Spokane Shock. “You have to take advantage of every opportunity you have and go hard on every play.”

Additional quotes from Trufant

An EWU alum, Trufant kept a close eye on the Eagles’ success this season.

“I did watch the [Championship] game and that was a great win,” Trufant said. “That was a big win for the Eastern Eagles.”

As for the red turf, Trufant wished he had an opportunity to play on it.

“Truthfully, I would have loved to play on that red turf,” Trufant explained. “It’s better than that Boise turf!”

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http://spokaneshock.com.ismmedia.com/ISM3/std-content/repos/Top/trufant%20injury%20part%202.mp3

[Lil Bit Special]

False advertising. That article was far from great.