Ready Or Not, Season Begins For Blue Knights

It didn't take Al Burleson and Bob Butler long to turn themselves into a team. Now if they can just do the same thing to the Snohomish-King County Blue Knights semi-pro football team. . . .

Burleson, a 1976 graduate of the University of Washington and a seven-year veteran of the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League, is the Blue Knights' defensive head coach. Butler, the Blue Knights' original starting quarterback, is the offensive head coach. Together, they form the brain trust behind the 1990 entry in the Northwest Football League.

The Blue Knights play the Portland Thunderbolts tomorrow at 7:30 p.m. at Edmonds Stadium in the season opener. Profits from the game will be donated to Northwest Harvest, team owner John Fahnestock said.

Both Burleson and Butler are new to the Blue Knights this season. Burleson is the former head coach of the Seattle Warhawks; Butler has been an assistant at Class A King's High School, his alma mater.

``This arrangement is working out pretty well,'' Burleson said of the co-coaching situation. ``I'm more defensive-minded anyway, and I like the way things are working out. Concentrating on the defense is something I enjoy. I think it's going to be fun.''

Butler agreed.

``We don't have a real head coach, but we have a couple of guys who really know the game of football and who respect each other,'' he said. ``It's going to be interesting to see how things go.''

Running the team's offense is nothing new, Butler said. Early in that first year, the coaching staff turned play selection over to him.

``I guess I'm what you would call a self-taught player and coach,'' he said.

After five weeks of practice, both say they are ready to play the first game, even though it's against a team that went unbeaten and untied last year and has made known it wants to move to a higher-caliber league.

``I'm pretty excited about it,'' Burleson said. ``I think we're ready to get out there and see what we can do.''

Butler was a little more reserved about the opponent but pleased with the way his offense has responded.

``We have all sorts of levels of experience and ability,'' he said. ``We have a lot of players who are just out of high school or who have been playing the semipro circuit. Portland wants to go big-time, and they have 100 guys on their roster.''

Portland has a greater depth of former college talent, Fahnestock said, and the Thunderbolt linemen outweigh the Blue Knights by as much as 50 pounds.

Butler is less concerned with Portland's size advantage than with his team's execution.

``We're going to be a very, very quick offense,'' he said. ``I don't expect to be swept off the field by any means. Hopefully, we'll be able to use our quickness to get through their line and into their secondary before they can react.''

John Secrist and Steve McKinney make up the starting backfield, Butler said, and the pair is a hard-running tandem that should make things happen.

Burleson promised an attacking defense, one that will not sit back in zone coverage and wait for the game to be brought to it.

But his main concern is to show improvement from game to game and establish a foundation for next season.

``That's the main thing,'' he said. ``We want to build a reputation, but we also want to build character.''

On that count, he said, seven seasons as a professional defensive back helps.

``I think the players look up to me because of that,'' he said. ``They listen to me, and I think I'm a good teacher. I really want to make this a joyful experience for them, and that's pretty much a matter of talking to them man-to-man.''