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Venom coach gets his wide receiver

WENATCHEE — Since Keith Evans was named the head coach and assistant general manager of the Wenatchee Valley Venom in June, he’s taken aim at signing wide receiver Phil Goodman.

This week, Evans got his man.

Goodman has four years of AF2 experience and becomes the third player to commit to the indoor football league team, after cornerback Kofi Amoah and linebacker Randy Chappell.

He played collegiately at Temple University in Philadelphia, graduating in 2004 after two seasons with the Owls.

“This is the guy I’ve been wanting to get the whole time,” said Evans. “I think he’s a No. 1 receiver, a guy who can get us four or five touchdowns per game. This is a guy who should be playing on the next level. It’s all there as far as size, speed and route-running.”

Goodman wasn’t bashful about his own abilities.

“I’m an offensive playmaker that everyone in this league is going to have to respect,” he said. “I have high expectations for myself to do some things that haven’t been done in this league before. I want to dominate the league hands down.”

Goodman, 26, stands 6-foot-3, weighs 225 pounds and is from Vallejo, Calif.

He spent last season with the Central Valley (Calif.) Coyotes, and put up good numbers. He had 50 catches for 494 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Goodman began the 2009 season with the Tri-Cities Fever, whom Evans worked for as an assistant, and racked up 26 catches for 191 yards and four touchdowns before being traded to the Coyotes early in the year.

Goodman had his best year statistically with the Fever in 2008, when he amassed 846 yards on 63 catches and scored 20 touchdowns, despite missing the team’s final three games.

In his senior season with the Owls in 2004, he was Temple’s leading receiver with 47 catches for 677 yards and five touchdowns.

Evans said that Goodman’s presence on the team will lure other talented players to Wenatchee.

“He’s going to bring at least five guys here that want to come play with him,” Evans said. “Quarterbacks will want to play with him. He’s my prize. He’s an established No. 1 target from Game 1.”

In July 2008, Goodman was arrested in Richland on a fugitive from justice charge stemming from a drug-related incident in his home state of California.

After the arrest, Goodman was suspended from the Fever for the final three games of the season.

Goodman also wants to use himself as an example for kids in the Wenatchee Valley on how to make the right decisions in their youth.

“I’ve been through the ringer and made mistakes in the past, and I’m ready to learn from them,” he said. “I want people to look at me and say that he turned a bad situation into something positive. I want to inspire people to do the right thing.”

By Brian Adamowsky

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