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Every day offers more sunshine for the Florida Firecats, who need just two home victories to reach their third ArenaCup in five seasons.

The reasons are plenty.

All that speed on the edges. Quarterback Chris Wallace’s accurate right arm. A secondary rich with fast, blanket covermen.

But this journey began long before the playoffs will start — even before the first snap, pass or pop of the 2006 season.

It began on the recruiting trail. That’s when Firecats coach Kevin Bouis turned into a poor man’s Urban Meyer, scouring the Sunshine State for young, explosive talent that can be found nowhere else.

This is Florida, after all.

“My main focus in the offseason was two-fold,” Bouis said Wednesday, three days before the team’s visit to South Georgia to close out the regular season. “I wanted to find young guys who truly wanted to be here. And I wanted to find Florida guys.”

The upshot: Thirteen of the team’s 22 players have Florida ties, the best representation in franchise history. Precisely what Bouis, a Tampa native, had in mind.

Florida guys. They are that fast, athletic breed full of big hits and big plays — God’s gift to the gridiron, any football fan from Pensacola to Miami would tell you.

The numbers don’t lie. In a study conducted by nflhs.com using 2005 rosters, the only state with more NFL players was California. Just two states, Texas and Ohio, provide college football with more Division I-A programs, with Florida fielding seven.

And here, for the Firecats, is the kicker: In a state that once overflowed with arenafootball2 franchises — there were four of them four years ago — Estero houses the lone survivor.

The Florida Firecats.

They do, indeed, cover much ground.

“It’s easier to get a guy to stay in state,” Bouis says, “than to fly somebody down here and ask him to relocate.”

Quite often, Bouis doesn’t have to. There are plenty of players within driving range who want a chance to be seen, settling for af2 contracts because they believe it might propel them somewhere else.

Cory Bailey, a Miami native, is one of those players. He had an offer to sign with a National Indoor Football League franchise — close to his agent, who lives in Ohio — but ultimately chose the path that led him closer to home. The University of Florida product has since set a Firecats record for tackles in a single season.

“I didn’t want to get too far off,” Bailey says. “I talked to my mom. We decided this was best for me.”

He certainly isn’t alone. Twelve of the Firecats are from Florida, including Belle Glade native John Miller, who signed this week as a replacement in the trenches. Two-way lineman Brian Ross is the only Florida outsider with state ties, a Raleigh, N.C., native who played for Florida State.

And the Firecats (12-3), who have homefield advantage throughout the playoffs, play the game the Florida way. Opposing coaches often have no answer for the team’s speed and athleticism, characteristics that run rampant throughout the state.

It helps, too, that two Arena Football League teams, the Orlando Predators and the Tampa Bay Storm, are only a drive away. Players who try out for those clubs are spotted by Bouis, who often helps work tryout camps for the teams. When a prospect isn’t fortunate enough to land an AFL contract in Orlando or Tampa Bay, Bouis is there to tell them about the Firecats.

But location isn’t everything. Florida has been af2’s winningest team in recent years, so playing for the Firecats gives the players a better chance to be seen.

“We used to lose Florida players to teams outside the state,” Firecats president/general manager Chris Vallozzi says. “It’s the whole package. Players want to go somewhere that the program is successful.”

Maybe that’s why Vallozzi doesn’t view the Jacksonville Wizards, who are expected to join af2 next season, as a threat to Florida’s success.

But there’s more.

Vallozzi knows there will be only two teams in the state. The way he sees it, there could be many — like the old days — and still the Firecats would have every opportunity to attract impact prospects.

This is Florida, after all.

“There are too many good players out there,” Vallozzi says. “Jacksonville will be a good in-state rivalry for us, but I don’t believe it will hurt us in any way. There’s enough good football players in the state to go around.”

Baker's dozen

Below is the list of Florida Firecats who have state ties. Thirteen of the team’s 22 players attended high school, college or both in Florida. (List shown in the following order: player, hometown and college.):

Cory Bailey; Miami; Florida

Magic Benton; Miami; Miami

Levy Brown; Miami; Fla. A&M

Clenton Crossley; Bushnell; S. Florida

Keith Drayton; Ft. Myers; Georgia

Brandon Kornblue; Boca Raton; Mich.

Justin Midgett; Punta Gorda; Florida

John Miller; Belle Glade; S. Florida

Alfred Peterson; Miami; Rutgers

Brian Ross; Raleigh, N.C.; Fla. St.

Ethenic Sands; Miami; Miami

Brittney Tellis; Miami; Fla. Atl.

Greg Walls; Sarasota; S. Florida