Knight Hawks getting up to speed for start of season

The Vegas Knight Hawks are not coach Mike Davis’ first expansion Indoor Football League franchise. He was head coach of the Nebraska Danger when they entered the IFL in 2011.

He has used that experience to help his Vegas team prepare for its inaugural season.

In the 10 days of training camp, Davis has focused on getting everyone on the same page for their season opener at 7 p.m. Friday night at the Dollar Loan Center in Henderson against the Northern Arizona Wranglers. The intensity in camp has mirrored the style of football Davis wants his team to play.

“You’ve got to get up-tempo and run,” Davis said. “For us, we want a high-scoring affair.”

Davis likes his team’s athleticism and energy. One area of focus was helping everyone get their timing down as most of the Knight Hawks adjust for the first time to the quicker pace of play at the indoor level.

One of those is former UNLV quarterback Dalton Sneed. In preparation for the season, Sneed watched film from previous seasons and quickly noticed the difference between the indoor and outdoor versions of the game.

“You’ll never wrap your head around (how fast the game is) until you play it,” Sneed said.

Sneed, who is in contention for the starting quarterback job with Jaylon Henderson, is one of four former UNLV players on the 25-man roster. He joins his 2016 UNLV teammates Gabe McCoy, a linebacker, Jericho Flowers, a defensive back, and Darren Woods, a wide receiver.

As Davis was putting together the roster, he felt having local players would help the new franchise connect with the community. But that’s not the only reason they are on the team.

“They deserve the right to be here,” Davis said. “They were good players. That’s why we decided to keep them on.”

Despite having a short training camp, McCoy said the team felt it grew substantially and ready for the season.

“We all had camaraderie. We all came together (during training camp),” McCoy said. “Now in this last week we’re really putting a game plan together.”

Like every other team in the IFL, the Knight Hawks expect to have a fast-paced offense. Sneed said he can trust any of his receivers, whether its Woods, Kasey Allison or Jordan McCray. He expects every receiver and running back to contribute.

On defense, McCoy said the team has been working on setting the tone defensively with an aggressive style of play. He said an area of focus has been creating turnovers to give the offense more opportunities to score. Defensive lineman Kai Higgins and defensive back Kalen Hicks are expected to lead the Knight Hawks defensively.

A true expansion team has never made the playoffs in the Indoor Football League. The Knight Hawks have aspirations of becoming one of the top teams in the league, but they are focused on improving game by game.

“Even though it’s our first season,” Sneed said, “we are coming out here, day-by-day, trying to get better and build as a unit.”

Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on Twitter.