Sometimes you have to leave home to find your way in the world.
For Jarvis Dunn, that meant breaking away from the familiarity of his hometown of New Orleans and plodding a path out West in pursuit of his dream to play professional football.
Stops along the way have included the Tri-Cities, Vancouver, B.C., Arizona and San Jose, Calif.
And now Tacoma.
Dunn is a member of the Tacoma Cobras, an upstart, minor-league football team that begins its inaugural season in the newly formed Professional Developmental Football League this weekend.
The Cobras will play their first game tonight in Portland, and host their first home game July 11 at 6 p.m. at Franklin Pierce Stadium.
Dunn, who played in the Arena Football League and has had a tryout with the B.C. Lions of the Canadian Football League, sees his time with the Cobras as an opportunity for other leagues, such as the newly formed United Football League, to see him play.
“Right now it’s pretty much film,” Dunn said. “I’ve got a lot of indoor film, so I’m trying to get some outdoor film so I can send it to the CFL. And the UFL doesn’t start until August, so hopefully I still have enough time to send stuff there”
The 5-foot-8, 185-pound scatback also has a family name to uphold. Dunn’s cousin is another New Orleans native, longtime NFL running back Warrick Dunn. Jarvis Dunn, 27, says he communicates regularly through e-mails and texts with Warrick, and learned the value of work ethic from his older relative.
“He works hard, man,” Jarvis Dunn said about his cousin. “It shows on the field, but you don’t really know unless you see him work out, and I’ve worked out with him. He got that NFL workout before he even went to the NFL.”
The four-team PDFL includes teams in Portland, Bellingham, Everett and Tacoma. Theo Hall, general manager of the Cobras, said teams will not pay players for now, but do provide medical insurance and are hopeful the league flourishes after going through the expected growing pains in the first season. Hall says the league also plans to have some league games televised on Comcast.
“The purpose of this is to give guys under the radar a chance to compete with the people who are always on the radar, the people who play on Saturdays (college players),” Hall said. “It doesn’t mean that they’re not as good as the guys who play on Saturday. They’re the same people, but they just didn’t get the same chance because of grades, or because of family or other issues in their life. But this is a chance for them to get out there and do their thing.”
Hall already has had some success in helping players move on. Running back Joe Rubin, a Tacoma native and former All-American at Portland State, recently was drafted by the United Football League. Rubin had planned to play for the Cobras but now will be headed to the UFL’s New York franchise in August. Receiver Robert Long also was picked up by the B.C. Lions for training camp.
Other players looking for another opportunity include A.J. Middleton, a recent graduate who played defensive end at the University of Puget Sound, and Eric Patterson, a defensive back who played at Dixie State College in Utah and later walked on at the University of Georgia. Patterson also has some Arena League experience, playing for the Billings Outlaws in Montana.
For Patterson, playing for the Cobras is a chance to compete in his hometown with other players he grew up with.
“This is a great opportunity,” Patterson said. “I kind of like what they’re trying to do here. Me living in Georgia for a while and seeing what football is like down there, seeing how they have developmental leagues, there’s nothing like this in this area.”
For Middleton, the Cobras offer an opportunity to learn a new position – linebacker – and show teams that might be interested that he can play in space. However, once his playing career is over, Middleton says he will pursue his planned career path of becoming an officer in the Air Force.
And even for older guys like defensive lineman Paul Whatley, a Spanaway Lake graduate who finished his playing career at Central Washington and now coaches football at his former school, the Cobras offer a chance to get back on the field again.
“I just love the competition,” Whatley said. “I missed the camaraderie and being out here with the guys and things like that, and competing. Those are the things the brought me back out here.”
Dave McEachern, offensive coordinator for Lakes High, is the head coach of the Cobras. He said the head coaching opportunity has allowed him a chance to pass along what he has learned while coaching under Lakes head coach Dave Miller.
McEachern said the goal of the league is to become a feeder program for other professional leagues, including the NFL, plus instilling accountability, discipline and an understanding of what players will be expected to do at the next level.
“It’s fun, and it’s a new experience for me,” McEachern said. “You have to have standards. You have expectations and you don’t budge. Now they have to understand that the expectations for them are high standards to be accountable and responsible and all of those things.”
Eric Williams: 253-597-8437
JOIN THE DISCUSSION | Register here
We welcome comments. Please keep them civil, short and to the point. ALL CAPS, spam, obscene, profane, abusive and off topic comments will be deleted. Repeat offenders will be blocked. Thanks for taking part — and abiding by these simple rules. A thorough explanation of rules of conduct can be found in our Terms of Service. If you have any questions, including why your comment may not be showing immediately after you submit it, be sure to visit the commenting FAQ.