Where are they now - Joe Hamilton

Nice story on Little Joe as he prepares for his Arena football league debut:

Preds QB accepts change
Joe Hamilton joins AFL after 4 years with the Bucs
By Shannon Shelton | Sentinel Staff Writer
Posted January 25, 2004

Walking down Orange Avenue for a photo shoot one afternoon wearing a teammate's Orlando Predators jersey, Joe Hamilton caught a motorist's attention.

The driver yelled something at the Preds' quarterback, who responded with laughter. It was a friend of Hamilton's, playfully teasing him about his supposed fame.

Besides his friends, most Orlandoans wouldn't recognize Hamilton; he's only been a Predator since November and just moved here three weeks ago. He doesn't have his official jersey yet because the team hasn't received the No. 14 shirt they ordered for him.

Orlando, however, long has embraced its Predators quarterbacks, and if Hamilton, 5 feet 10 and 190 pounds, becomes a fan favorite, too, more people might roll down their car windows to say something to their football team's newest leader.

Hamilton has been getting the scoop on living in Orlando -- where to eat, what places to avoid, where to have fun -- and also learning about what it means to be an Orlando Predator. If he hasn't figured out Rule No. 1 -- hating the Tampa Bay Storm is a must -- he'll get a crash course today.

The Predators will have a scrimmage against the Storm at 5 p.m. today at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa. The scrimmage is open to the public and will consist of each team running 60 offensive plays, alternating possessions every 15 plays.

"Sunday is a big test for me," he said. "I've just been here three weeks, just feeling my way around. I love [backup quarterback] Connell Maynor. He's welcomed me during my stay and has helped me with anything that I need."

For Hamilton, the scrimmage will be the first game-situation snap he has taken since leaving NFL Europe in 2002. After becoming a Heisman Trophy candidate at Georgia Tech in 1999, Hamilton spent four years with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and was the team's No. 3 quarterback in 2001 and 2002.

He was sent to Frankfurt, Germany, of NFL Europe but tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. He was on injured reserve in 2003 and received a Super Bowl ring from the Bucs' championship season.

"He's done better each practice," Orlando Coach Jay Gruden said. "He's getting a better feel for what's going on and making better throws."

Like most players adjusting from the NFL to the Arena Football League, Hamilton, 26, is learning to adjust his style to the 50-yard field.

"It's a matter of getting used to it," Hamilton said. "You have to time a lot of your plays pre-snap and make throws in a tight window because there isn't a lot of field."

The Preds have a tradition of successful quarterbacks, including Ben Bennett, who completed a team-record 67.8 percent of his passes in 1994; Pat O'Hara, who holds team single-season (3,335 yards in 1998) and career (9,676 yards from 1995-2000) records; and Gruden, who was Orlando's quarterback last season before agreeing to return for a second stint as coach. O'Hara is now with the Storm.

Just having Gruden, who was slowed by an injured right ankle last season, around has been beneficial for Hamilton.

"He's a winner -- a great guy," Hamilton said. "Jay would love to be playing again, but he's passing that role to me. I want to be an extension of him on the field."

Shannon Shelton can be reached at sshelton@orlandosentinel.com.