Georgia Force (14-2 in 2007, lost National Conference Championship to Columbus)
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When the Force brought together Troy Bergeron, Derek Lee, and Chris Jackson as their receiving corps, the job of first-year starting QB Chris Greisen was supposed to be easy. An AFL record 117 TD passes was the result for the Forces field general. Only Bergeron remains from a team that came up just short in its championship aspirations, which should make 2008 an uphill battle for the Force.

2007 Highlight: It was teacher vs. student in the much-anticipated match-up of the undefeated Dallas Desperados and the one-loss Georgia Force in Week 8. Greisen, formerly Dallas QB Clint Dolezel’s backup, taught the teacher a thing or two, tossing an AFL record-tying 10 TD passes en route to a mildly shocking 78-63 victory.

2007 Lowlight: After suffering a loss to the Columbus Destroyers earlier in the season, the Force had revenge on their minds when they took on their former QB Matt Nagy and the Destroyers in the National Conference title game. The heavily favored Force came out of the blocks flat, but used three straight TDs in the 2nd half to take their first lead at 49-48 with 9:28 to go in the game. Columbus responded with back-to-back TDs, a deficit which the Force would never overcome, ultimately allowing the Destroyers a trip to ArenaBowl XXI by the count of 66-56.

Key acquisition: R-Kal Truluck (did not play in 2007). Truluck had stints in both the CFL and NFL between his previous time in the AFL and now. It may be six years since Truluck has played, but when he was with the Detroit Fury in 2001-02, Truluck made the All-Arena team twice. His job is to replace the departed Mike Sutton, who underachieved last year, recording only three sacks.

Key loss: WR’s Derek Lee and Chris Jackson (combined 228 receptions, 2801 yards, 67 TDs in 2007). The three-headed monster at receiver helped the Force put up a whopping 62.9 PPG last season, but now with only Bergeron remaining, the task for QB Greisen in his second season as a starting QB is that much harder.

2008 Preview: Not only did the 14-2 team from last year lose almost 3000 yards worth of offense, they also lost three starters on defense, who accounted for 119.5 tackles, 11 sacks, and five interceptions. Though there aren’t many familiar “names” replacing the departed, if there’s a coach who can evaluate young talent in this league, it’s Force Head Coach Doug Plank.

2008 will be a success if… Bergeron finds a way to pick up the slack left by Lee and Jackson. Of the three receivers from last year, Bergeron is the most explosive. DB’s will have a difficult time covering him even if he is the only deep threat on the team. Look for #22 to find the end zone at least 50 times this year for the Force to have a chance of sticking around in the always difficult Southern Division.

Though the Force were one of the best teams in the league last year, they’re a far cry from it this year. Expect Georgia to take a massive step backwards from last year’s 14-2 mark, but they might be a “Force’ to be reckoned with down the road once the new guys become familiar playing with one another.

Prediction: 8-8, 3rd place Southern Division

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