It is tough to question why Columbus Destroyers wide receiver Tony Locke loves his position so much. After all, Locke plays in the Arena Football League – a league where teams think pass first and run second.

This combination, which usually translates into high scoring affairs, was certainly apparent during the 2003 AFL season. The Carolina Cobras, the lowest scoring team in the league, averaged 34.6 points per game.

“The speed of the indoor game is the biggest adjustment from the outdoor game to the indoor game,” Locke said. “The offense itself is a receiver’s dream, because about 90 percent of the time the plays are passing related.”

Destroyers defensive coordinator Weylan Harding makes sure these dreams do not become reality. He is faced with the arduous task of keeping opposing offenses in check.

“This game is made for an offense,” Harding said. “You are under constant pressure because even if the opposing offense is on their own goal line they are still a threat to score.”

The 2004 season marks Harding’s fourth in the AFL as the defensive coordinator for the team he once played for when the Destroyers were in Buffalo. He is regarded as one of the top defensive teachers in the league.

Harding signed with the Destroyers prior to the 2000 season but was injured in week five against Albany.

He spent the remainder of the year on injured reserve but was given the chance to coach the secondary for the remainder of the season where he worked with rookie Prentice Taylor.

Under Harding’s watchful eye, Taylor was named as an all-rookie selection and would become Buffalo’s career leader in tackles. Harding spent 2001 as the defensive backs coach with the Rochester Brigade of the Arena Football 2 League.

While in Rochester and again during the 2003 season with Buffalo, Harding took on another apprentice in Dwaine Carpenter and crafted him into one of the top young defensive players in the AFL. Next season, Carpenter will suit up for the San Francisco 49ers at safety.

“[The Destroyers] are coming together but it’s a strange situation especially when you have a bunch of guys who have never really played with one another.” Harding said. “The only true way we will find out where we are is when we actually get into a game setting.”

Harding, who can be spotted barking out words of encouragement during practice while sprinting up and down the sidelines, feels confident about where his defensive unit stands.

“There are always areas where you can improve,” he said. “At this point right now I feel very comfortable about where we are, but we will see when we get out there.”

From a roster standpoint, the Destroyers will know exactly where they are once the team makes its final cut down to 24 players tomorrow.

“The difficulty will be who to keep and who to cut,” coach Earle Bruce said. “I’ve never really been a coach who cuts players. I’ve always been a coach who encourages people to come out, but when you get to the pro’s you have to know who to cut and how to rank them.”