The West Texas Warbirds, like the rest of the teams in the Arena Football Association, were just happy to be get on the field in 2021.
With the nation emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic, teams weren’t sure just how much they would be able to play and how many fans would be able to watch.
Through all that, the Warbirds ran the table and emerged with the Lone Star Series championship after a victory against Amarillo.
Now, it’s time to defend the crown.
West Texas will open its 2022 season against the Texas Jets at 7:05 p.m. Saturday at the Ector County Coliseum.
“We’re excited that the season is here,” Warbirds coach Tate Smith said. “We’ve had some good practices and we’re looking to carry it over to the game.
“We know the fans want to see touchdowns and that what we are going to try to give them.”
The Warbirds will have a new quarterback leading the way in Skyler Howard.
Howard was a standout at West Virginia University and had played in an indoor league in Japan before making his way to the Warbirds’ roster.
Smith is excited to see what Howard can do throwing to the team’s speedy wide receivers.
So, too, is Howard, despite being in the Permian Basin for just a short while.
“It’s football,” Howard said. “It’s a lot of repetition between me and the receivers and the O line and that transfers over to the football field.
“You have to learn your guys and learn their speed. But we’ve all done it before and really coming together.”
One of the weapons in Howard’s arsenal is returning wide receiver Jordan Gandy.
Gandy is capable of taking every catch the distance, with multiple games in 2021 with multiple touchdown receptions.
A big target for the Warbirds’ quarters, Gandy doesn’t shy from the crossing routes.
He also knows that with the team’s success last year, this year’s version needs to be ready to play from the first whistle each week.
Even with all the new players as West Texas is returning eight players from last year’s team.
“We’ve got Houston coming in and I’m excited about the first week,” Gandy said. “Last year is last year and we’ve got to come in and be able to produce and put a product on the field to be able to repeat what we did last season.
“We’ve got new players on defense, new players on offense, but I think collectively we should be fine. I’m looking forward to the process that we have to do to get back to the championship.”
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