Tucson Sugar Skulls hopeful roster shakeup will turn season around

At the halfway mark of the season, the Sugar Skulls are riding a four-game losing skid and have two wins over the New Mexico Chupacabras, a team tied for the worst record in the Indoor Football League.

It's not the start to the season the new ownership group — led by Edmund Marquez and Ali Farhang and its roughly dozen minority owners known as the "board of governors" —  had hoped for. 

Tucson has prioritized fan engagement at Tucson Arena this season, including Sugar Skulls-themed items at the concession stands and having themed nights with custom game-worn jerseys to auction after games.

When the Sugar Skulls (2-6) host the Orlando Pirates (5-3) Saturday at 6 p.m., Tucson will be donning camouflage-printed jerseys for its military appreciation game.

As far as the product on the field? Well, there's a reason the Sugar Skulls added roughly 10 new players to its roster during the bye week and the days leading up to Saturday's matchup with Orlando. 

"The bye couldn't have come at a better time," said first-year Sugar Skulls head coach Rayshaun Kizer. "We made a lot of adjustments with the coaches and the players. We just had to revamp our roster. We just felt like it wasn't good enough. We've added some key pieces in the bye week, so we're looking forward to turning the second half of the season around." 

One of the additions was former IFL Offensive MVP quarterback Ja'Rome Johnson, who was traded from the Tulsa Oilers after starting the season in New Mexico. Johnson was traded for the Sugar Skulls' opening-day quarterback Draylen Ellis, who struggled and was replaced by Kacey Otto, who was then replaced by the up-and-down Tasleem Wilson. 

In 2024, Johnson was named IFL MVP after leading the Vegas Knight Hawks to an 11-5 record and the franchise's first postseason appearance.

Johnson had 1,985 passing yards for 43 passing touchdowns, along with 843 rushing yards and a league-best 37 rushing touchdowns during his MVP campaign in 2024. Johnson was IFL Offensive Player of the Week four times in 2024.

After re-signing with Vegas last season, the injured Johnson was replaced by former Arizona Wildcat and rookie quarterback Jayden de Laura, who led the Knight Hawks to an IFL championship. De Laura is still Vegas' quarterback. 

In the first matchup between New Mexico and Tucson earlier this season, Johnson accounted for six touchdowns in the Chupacabras' 45-40 loss to the Sugar Skulls. Johnson passed for three touchdowns in New Mexico's 33-26 loss to the Sugar Skulls in Tucson. 

Johnson now takes over an offense that ranks last in the IFL in yards per game (156.4) and passing yards per game (85.4). The Sugar Skulls are sixth in the IFL in rushing yards, averaging 71 yards. Tucson is third-to-last in the IFL in points per game (32.2).

The Sugar Skulls also signed Tucson native and former Salpointe Catholic running back and wide receiver Mario Padilla. The former Lancer rushed for 3,000 yards and 45 touchdowns while also hauling in 783 receiving yards and 11 touchdowns.

Padilla shared the backfield with Atlanta Falcons star running back Bijan Robinson at Salpointe, and the tandem led the Lancers to back-to-back state championship appearances. Padilla played under longtime Salpointe head coach Dennis Bene, who's now a part of the Sugar Skulls' ownership group.

After his productive Salpointe career, Padilla became a walk-on defensive back at Ole Miss in 2019 and played two seasons for the Rebels. 

Kizer admitted to the pros and cons of a roster shakeup at this point of the season. 

The pros? 

"Just a different energy, a different mindset," Kizer said. "You have guys that want to be here, want to learn and want to be coached, get the film and get to the next level. "

The cons?

"A lot of these guys are rookies and first-year players and you have to teach them the game," he added. "The chemistry and gelling with the team, you have to reset and start over; that's the hard part. It's never ideal to switch the roster midseason, but we weren't getting it done with the group before, so changes had to be made, unfortunately. We're looking forward to the second half of the season. The first half didn't go the way we wanted it to." 

Leading up to the Sugar Skulls' battle with the Pirates, Kizer joined "Spears & Ali" on ESPN Tucson to address the roster changes and preview the game. 

What gives you confidence Johnson will turn the offense around?

A: "He understands the game. We haven't had a quarterback like him. He can take off and run and he's very dynamic in the run game. He's just electric. We haven't had a player like him in Tucson since the franchise came in. Electric player. All of the offensive players are excited to get him in. I'm looking forward to seeing him getting it done on Saturday and turning things around."

What was Johnson's path to Tucson? 

A: "Crazy story. Ja'Rome started in New Mexico and he did some good things in New Mexico, but something happened between him and the coaching staff. They went in another direction and traded him to Tulsa. Tulsa didn't need a quarterback, so they got in contact with him and asked if we wanted to work out a trade for Ja'Rome. When someone is offering a former MVP, you gotta take that. I jumped on it right away and got Ja'Rome here." 

You're a defensive coach by trade, so what's your assessment of that side of the ball through the first half of the season?

A: "Through eight games, I think we've played fantastic. We lead the league in defensive touchdowns and we've been scoring on defense. We've been playing really well defensively. The only two games we played bad was against Vegas and Arizona. Outside of those games, our defense has played well enough to win six games. We gotta get more points on the offensive side. Once we figure that out, we're going to be a tough team to beat." 

Do you remind your team that you're only 1.5 games back from the San Antonio Gunslingers for the final playoff spot?

A: "We are not out. We're only a game out from San Antonio. We control our destiny. It starts this week against Orlando. We have to take care of business this week and follow it up against New Mexico next week. If we win these next two games and San Antonio drops these next two games, we're back in the playoffs. It can be that easy. We're just taking it one game at a time. We just have to handle our business. I'm not focused on anybody else or looking for help, we just gotta take it one game at a time."

Orlando is 5-3 since moving from Massachusetts, and the Pirates were competitive at the IFL Cup in New Jersey last week. What's the scouting report on the Pirates? 

A: "When you look at Orlando, you can see a lot of NFL talent. They have the most talent in the IFL. It's a talented roster. We do think they're a little undisciplined offensively and defensively, so we have to take advantage of that. With Ja'Rome here, we can put up more points and we have the right pieces around him. ... On the defensive side, we just make sure we confuse the quarterback (Paxton DeLaurent). He's having a great season, but he hasn't faced a defense like ours. We want to confuse him as much as possible. We've got our work cut out for us, but we're up for the challenge." 

How would you describe the last few months for the organization?

A: "I love Tucson. ... Everyone has been great to us. The front office has been great getting people in the seats. Edmund has been a fantastic owner and is very hands-on in making sure we have everything we need to be successful and that these guys are cared for. It's been great in Tucson. I wouldn't want to be in no other position than right now. My job in the second half of the season is to deliver more wins. The community deserves it."