Post by Free Agent Fan on Feb 2, 2007 16:05:02 GMT -5
League watches as season starts
By SAMUEL LEGG
The Tribune-Democrat
There's a ticker on the American Indoor Football Association Web site, www.aifaprofootball.com, counting down the days, minutes and seconds until the Johnstown franchise hosts the league opener.
The Riverhawks kick off the season tonight at 7:05 against defending league champion Canton at Cambria County War Memorial Arena.
œIt's finally time,Riverhawks first-year coach Steven G. Folmar said. The players are starting to get real anxious.
From a coaching standpoint, it's more, what am I forgetting, what can I possibly do. The game plans in, but I keep going back and looking at the film, thinking, is there one or two more things that I can do? Its a tough time of the year right now.
Friday's game will be a meeting of two of the original six professional indoor football franchises which formed the Atlantic Indoor Football League in 2005.
Johnstown owns a 3-1 overall mark against the Legends during the past two seasons.
Erie is the other remaining original franchise. The Riverhawks are 1-3 overall against the Freeze.
The three original franchises will participate in the Northern Conference, with expansion teams Danville and Pittsburgh, and holdovers from the American Indoor Football League, Huntington and Reading.
In the shadows: The Florence Phantoms are the only franchise from the former AIFL seven-team Southern Conference to stay in the AIFA. The Phantoms went 4-10 last season in the AIFL.
The AIFA South will be made up of expansion teams Baltimore, Carolina, Mississippi and Tallahassee, while two franchises Lakeland and Montgomery broke away from the National Indoor Football League.
Dirty Rats: Possibly the biggest signing during the offseason was done by expansion Pittsburgh.
The RiverRats procured the services of multi-talented quarterback David Dinkins. Dinkins starred for the Erie Freeze the past two seasons.
The RiverRats open their first AIFA season Saturday in Tupelo against Mississippi, a round trip of nearly 1,600 miles.
Tommy gun: Mississippi inked Tommy Jones from the Odessa (Texas) Roughnecks of the Intense league during the offseason.
The 6-foot-4, 240-pound quarterback threw for a professional indoor-football record 100 touchdowns last season.
The former Indiana Hoosier had three nine-touchdown games with Odessa.
Double debut: The expansion Carolina Speed make their debut Saturday night with an out-of-conference road tilt at Huntington, W.Va.
The Speed, based near NASCAR-rich Charlotte, N.C., will help the Heroes christen their new home, Big Sandy Superstore Arena.
The Heroes, who played home games during their first season in the AIFL at Veterans Memorial Field House, finished 8-7 following a Round 1 playoff loss.
By SAMUEL LEGG
The Tribune-Democrat
There's a ticker on the American Indoor Football Association Web site, www.aifaprofootball.com, counting down the days, minutes and seconds until the Johnstown franchise hosts the league opener.
The Riverhawks kick off the season tonight at 7:05 against defending league champion Canton at Cambria County War Memorial Arena.
œIt's finally time,Riverhawks first-year coach Steven G. Folmar said. The players are starting to get real anxious.
From a coaching standpoint, it's more, what am I forgetting, what can I possibly do. The game plans in, but I keep going back and looking at the film, thinking, is there one or two more things that I can do? Its a tough time of the year right now.
Friday's game will be a meeting of two of the original six professional indoor football franchises which formed the Atlantic Indoor Football League in 2005.
Johnstown owns a 3-1 overall mark against the Legends during the past two seasons.
Erie is the other remaining original franchise. The Riverhawks are 1-3 overall against the Freeze.
The three original franchises will participate in the Northern Conference, with expansion teams Danville and Pittsburgh, and holdovers from the American Indoor Football League, Huntington and Reading.
In the shadows: The Florence Phantoms are the only franchise from the former AIFL seven-team Southern Conference to stay in the AIFA. The Phantoms went 4-10 last season in the AIFL.
The AIFA South will be made up of expansion teams Baltimore, Carolina, Mississippi and Tallahassee, while two franchises Lakeland and Montgomery broke away from the National Indoor Football League.
Dirty Rats: Possibly the biggest signing during the offseason was done by expansion Pittsburgh.
The RiverRats procured the services of multi-talented quarterback David Dinkins. Dinkins starred for the Erie Freeze the past two seasons.
The RiverRats open their first AIFA season Saturday in Tupelo against Mississippi, a round trip of nearly 1,600 miles.
Tommy gun: Mississippi inked Tommy Jones from the Odessa (Texas) Roughnecks of the Intense league during the offseason.
The 6-foot-4, 240-pound quarterback threw for a professional indoor-football record 100 touchdowns last season.
The former Indiana Hoosier had three nine-touchdown games with Odessa.
Double debut: The expansion Carolina Speed make their debut Saturday night with an out-of-conference road tilt at Huntington, W.Va.
The Speed, based near NASCAR-rich Charlotte, N.C., will help the Heroes christen their new home, Big Sandy Superstore Arena.
The Heroes, who played home games during their first season in the AIFL at Veterans Memorial Field House, finished 8-7 following a Round 1 playoff loss.