Playoff-bound Tucson Sugar Skulls have 'showed resiliency' in regular season

Some people enjoy a home-cooked meal. Others prefer veering into a drive-thru, sometimes even eating in the car.

For the Tucson Sugar Skulls, the Old Pueblo’s IFL franchise want nothing more than a home win, but some of their best meals — err, wins — this season have been on the road.

The Sugar Skulls (8-6), which hosts the Green Bay Blizzard (7-7) for the teams’ final regular season game Saturday night at Tucson Arena, have a 2-5 record at “The Boneyard” this season. On the other hand, coach Hurtis Chinn’s team is 6-1 in away games.

“That’s something we’ve been trying to figure out as an organization,” Chinn said. “We talk about that in meetings. One thing they said, and it’s not an excuse, but they really press hard at home and aren’t relaxed, so it’s tough on their psyche.

“When they’re away, they’re more relaxed instead of wanting to please the fans. I always tell them: ‘You please them by winning.’ That’s something that’s unfortunate through this whole season, but we’ve been able to manage and deal with it as we get ready for the playoffs.”

A win for Tucson on Saturday would secure the third seed in the Western Conference standings for the postseason and set up a first-round matchup with the Bay Area Panthers. The Panthers’ offensive coordinator is former Sugar Skulls head coach and general manager Dixie Wooten. A fourth-seed finish could mean a first-round contest against rival and top-seeded Arizona Rattlers at Footprint Center in Phoenix.

Chinn joined ESPN Tucson’s “Spears and Ali” ahead of Saturday’s matchup. Here’s what he had to say:

What’s your mindset going into the final home game of the season?

A: “Just to not back in the playoffs. What I mean by backing into the playoffs is getting in and doing just enough to get in. We want to go into the playoffs with good esteem, feeling good about ourselves, playing well, executing on all cylinders. ... We also want the attitude and mind frame of, ‘Hey, we’ve done enough to deserve to be here, now let’s go play well on the road and finish the drill.’”

Tucson is coming off a thrilling 59-51 win over the Duke City Gladiators; what did that win in Albuquerque mean for former Duke City quarterback Ramone Atkins, who accounted for four touchdowns in the victory?

A: “It meant a lot to Ramone. When I texted him the offensive gameplan for the week, and I said, ‘If we win, we’re in.’ He texted back immediately and said, ‘We will win.’ We went into the game, and he was chill, confident.

“I reminded him before the game, ‘Hey, we’ve got nothing to lose, just play your game. Let the game come to you,’ because quarterbacks like to press and take over the game. But until you let the game come to you, you don’t know which aspect you should take over the game with. ... We were in an uphill battle, but we came out swinging and came out victorious.”

What is the identity of the Sugar Skulls this season?

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A: “The identity of our team is we keep pushing through it all. When you think about what we do at home and what we do away, it’s easy to lose focus and get distracted. It was easy for us to tuck our tail when we went into the losing streak.

“It was easy to give up and complain, but we pushed through everything this season to get us right into position to look forward to everything in front of us. We’re definitely a team that has showed resiliency, all we gotta do is keep pushing and move forward.”

Who are the offensive and defensive MVPs for Tucson this season?

A: “(Defensive lineman) Maurice Jackson and (wide receiver) Carrington Thompson. When it comes time to make plays on offense.

“(Thompson) comes up with big plays to ice the game or take a lead in those moments. He’s been able to put the team on his back in certain situations throughout the season. Same goes for (Jackson). He’s just an unsung hero of this team. The plays he makes, the plays he makes others to make is big.

“They both have made plays all season.”

Extra points

First 1,000 fans who attend Saturday’s game will receive a Sugar Skulls-branded backpack.

Jackson is in a three-way tie to lead the IFL in sacks (7) this season, along with Chris Terrell (Rattlers) and Tramond Lofton (Northern Arizona Wranglers).

Sugar Skulls safety and former Arizona Wildcats linebacker Rashie Hodge garnered his sixth interception of the season last week against Duke City; he is tied for third in the IFL this season.

Thompson is second in the IFL with 21 receiving touchdowns this season.

Photos: Sugar Skulls fall at home to Vegas Knight Hawks on last minute touchdown