Blaze unwraps uniforms as team gets set for minicamp

As an expansion team in the Arena Football League, the Utah Blaze may take more lumps than they give in their first season.

But they'll look good doing it.

The team, which will open its inaugural season in late January, unveiled its jerseys on Wednesday afternoon. The home jerseys will be black with white numbers and orange trim with black pants. The road uniforms will be white with black numbers, orange trim and gray pants.

"I think they look great," said head coach and general manager Danny White, the former Arizona State and Dallas Cowboys star. "Then again, I'm more concerned with what's inside the uniform than what it looks like on the outside."

White, for his part, is confident the team he fields will be competitive in the Delta Center and the road venues as well — despite the fact it is a brand-new franchise. And White knows all about the AFL. In fact, he is in the AFL Hall of Fame as a coach, having led the Arizona Rattlers to the ArenaBowl four times.

"At this point, on paper, I feel pretty good about what we've done," said White. "I know some of the guys that we've got can play this game. We've won some championships with some of them. But we are also going to be relying on some young guys that we will have to bring along and that will be learning the (indoor) game."

Two AFL veterans who figure to be cornerstones of the Blaze were on hand to model the new jerseys — QB Joe Germaine and receiver Siaha Burley.

Germaine, a former Ohio State star, threw for nearly 2,000 yards with 40 TDs last season with Arizona. Burley led the league in 2005 with 46 touchdowns.

Forty-five of his 117 catches went for scores. He also ran for a TD on one of his three rushing attempts for the Rattlers.

"Fans won't be used to the excitement and the fast pace," predicted Burley. "NFL football isn't as high scoring. There is a shorter play clock (in the AFL), so plays happen quicker. It's a short field and it's (almost) all throwing. And this league's rules are made to keep games close and any team can make a comeback within minutes. All that brings excitement to these games."

In addition to several AFL veterans, the Blaze roster will have players with local ties. Among the 37-man training camp roster are Jason Andersen, Tevita Ofahengaue and Hans Olsen of BYU, Doug Kaufusi, Lewis Powell and Garret Smith of Utah and Emmitt White and Jermaine Younger of Utah State.

The roster will be trimmed down to 24 players by Jan. 24. The opener is Jan. 28 in San Jose against the two-time ArenaBowl champion SaberCats.

"Only 45 days until ignition," team president Jason Jones pointed out.

White will get his first chance to see his whole team in action next week, as the Blaze will hold a mini-camp. There will be two-a-day practice sessions Monday and Tuesday at the Spence Eccles Fieldhouse on the University of Utah campus beginning at 10:15 a.m. and then again at 4 p.m.

The practices will move to the Delta Center, the Blaze's home turf for games, on Wednesday. The public is welcome to watch the practice sessions.

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E-mail: lojo@desnews.com