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By JOE PETRUCCI jpetrucci@leader.net
Wednesday, March 19, 2003 Page: 7B
WILKES-BARRE TWP. – There was plenty of buzz at a Wilkes-Barre/Scranton
Pioneers organizational meeting Tuesday at Applebee’s, as players met for the
first time prior to training camp.
In addition, there’s a possibility two prominent names from last year –
Jonathan Pittman and Jimmy Kibble – may return.
The Pioneers open their 13-day camp from 5 to 8:30 p.m. today at the
Wyoming Valley Sports Dome. The team will practice there every day (with a day
off on Sunday) until March 30-31, when it will work out at the First Union
Arena.
“The ship is starting to get straight. I think we have some good players
coming in,” said Pioneers coach Dean Cokinos, whose players went over housing
details, underwent physicals and received equipment late Tuesday afternoon.
Wilkes-Barre/Scranton has signed 31 players, with a few more contracts
expected to be approved by the league late Tuesday night or this morning. That
total includes four signings announced on Tuesday – returning Pioneers Kevin
Nagle (fullback/linebacker), Elly Salamo (fullback/linebacker) and Chad Clark
(lineman) and ex-East Stroudsburg University quarterback Jeremy Palm.
The league allows teams to bring 35 players into camp. Teams must cut down
to 30 by Friday and the opening-day roster of 21 must be set by 2 p.m. March
31.
“I trust that coach brought in better competition (this year),” said wide
receiver/linebacker Terrel Johnson, one of nine Pioneers back from last year’s
6-10 squad. “It’s going to be competitive.”
Cokinos said at least part of the team, likely the linemen, will be in full
pads and hit today.
Some players will be brought in on two-day waivers to work out with the
team, Cokinos said, and Pittman and Kibble are two of them. Those players will
not count against the roster number.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if he wound up here,” Cokinos said of Kibble.
Pittman was the first Wilkes-Barre/Scranton player to be signed by an NFL
team when he was picked up by Tampa Bay prior to the Pioneers’ 2002
season-opener. He was traded to the New York Jets before being cut early in
training camp last year. Last week, he was released by the af2’s Peoria
Pirates.
Kibble, the Pioneers kicker for 15 games last year, played in one game with
the Arena Football League’s New York Dragons in January before being released.
According to Kibble’s father and agent, Jim, the former All-Big East punter
from Virginia Tech had a successful workout with the Atlanta Falcons last week
and has a couple more NFL workouts on the horizon. However, there’s a chance
he may play for Wilkes-Barre/Scranton this season.
In other team news, the Pioneers got a new equipment manager and offensive
assistant in Taylor native Gary Armstrong. Armstrong, 24, replaces Mark
Arcure, the former Scranton Eagles coach.
Also, Bryan Snyder, the quarterback who helped lead a turnaround in the
final 10 games of the Pioneers inaugural season in 2002, signed with Cape Fear
over the weekend. He became a free agent at 12:01 a.m. on Saturday.