Post by Late Boarder on Dec 22, 2009 17:58:44 GMT -5
Robbinsville hosts indoor pro football tryouts
Thursday, December 17, 2009 3:20 PM EST
By: Sean Moylan Sports Writer
Current Rating: 0 of 0 votes! Rate File:
If you’re a person who enjoys watching the NFL combine then Robbinsville’s Bob Smith Soccer Academy Fieldhouse was the place to be this past Sunday morning. Because that is where the New Jersey Kings were holding their second of three scheduled open football tryouts.
The newly-formed Kings recently joined the American Indoor Football Association and they will start playing their games at the Sun National Bank Center in Trenton (formerly the Sovereign Bank Arena) starting in March. The team will play a 14-game schedule, which will include seven home and seven away games.
It was year and a half ago when the Kings’ personable owner Kelly Lockwood first got the idea to bring a new indoor football team back to Mercer County. Previously, the Trenton Lightning played at the Sovereign Bank Arena for an Indoor Professional Football League.
“We were originally going to play 18 months ago at the Sovereign Bank Arena, but it didn’t work out because of timing and being able to get the team up in time. So we decided we were going to do it this year,” said Lockwood, who works very closely with his good friend and team general manager Butch Seltzer, who has previous experience as the Director of Corporate Sponsorship for the Trenton Devils of the ECHL. Seltzer also worked for the New Jersey Red Dogs of the Arena Football League. So he knows the sport very well. The Kings also plan on hiring a team mascot.
Although the Bob Smith Soccer Academy Field House in Robbinsville was designed for soccer, its high ceiling and its all-sports turf made it an ideal indoor facility to hold a football tryout.
“Our (head) coach (Kelly Logan) put this together. He saw this facility a couple of months ago and thought it was a great facility,” remarked Lockwood. “You wouldn’t have expected something like this here (so close to the Sun National Bank Center) but it’s definitely here and we enjoy coming here. This is our second tryout at this facility. We had our first about five weeks ago (the Kings plan to run another tryout sometime in January).”
When some people think “open football tryout” their thoughts automatically turn to the movie “Invincible” and the humorous scene in which a bunch of over-age, overweight guys try out for the Philadelphia Eagles. However, Sunday’s tryout was nothing like that at all. A $55 registration fee for each prospective player kept any jokers or pretenders away. Of the 50 to 60 guys trying out for the squad on Sunday not one was out of shape. In fact, even most of the linemen at the tryout were built like pro linebackers. Moreover, the overall speed and agility of the players trying out was quite impressive.
Like the NFL Combine, each prospective player was asked to run the 40 yard dash and the shuttle run. They were also asked to do a standing broad jump and bench press 225 pounds as many times as possible. Then after those agility drills, Coach Logan and his staff held a serious football practice to see which players could really play indoor football.
“We have quite a few really good players. A lot of these players are veterans of the indoor game,” said Lockwood. “It’s (the AIFA) basically a passing game. It’s high power and it’s a lot of touchdowns and it’s a lot of scoring. So it’s a great place for families to come out and have a good time. And one of the rules of the league is if a ball goes into the stands, it’s a souvenir.”
While no one from the immediate Allentown-Robbinsville area tried out for the Kings on Sunday morning, there were plenty of players from the tri-state area trying out. A Willingboro native himself, Logan is happy to finally get a chance to coach a football team close to home.
“We have guys from all over the area. We have guys from the Pennsylvania area, including Pittsburgh. And we have guys from North Jersey, South Jersey and Camden, New Jersey. So we’re excited about the young men we have trying out for this team. I can’t wait until February (preseason),” said Logan, who has been a head coach in the AIFA the past four years, including a stint as the head coach of the Harrisburg Stampede last season.
“I have seven staff members, all from New Jersey. Some of the coaches live in Camden, New Jersey and Burlington, New Jersey which is a good thing because we don’t have to worry about guys coming a far distance like three or four hours away.”
Because of his experience coaching the Stampede, the Reading Express and the Lehigh Valley Outlawz, Coach Logan has close ties to several players in the professional indoor football world and appears to be the perfect man for this job. In fact, two of his best players from the Stampede, linebacker and fullback Melik Brown, who is built like a Greek statue, and quarterback A..J. Roque, are looking to secure spots on this year’s New Jersey Kings’ roster.
Last year Brown, a Camden native who graduated from Woodrow Wilson High and was a star linebacker for the University of North Carolina, led the Stampede in sacks with seven. A very soft-
spoken young man off the field, on the field Brown is extremely aggressive and loves getting to the quarterback.
“I’m excited to be here and to have an opportunity to play for a team in my home state,” Brown said. “I think it’s about time for a different professional league to come into New Jersey. So I’m just excited and waiting to get the ball rolling.
“Last year when I played in this league I was fortunate to earn a contract offer from the CFL’s B.C. Lions. I was with them for the preseason but ended up getting released. I’ve had some interest from a couple of NFL teams so I’m just trying to gain some more interest here.”
While playing for the Stampede last season, Roque, who graduated from Matawan High and played college football at Kean University, threw 15 touchdowns for 929 yards in just seven games.
“This is my third year in the AIFA,” said Roque, who has played quarterback since he was 7 and can throw a football nearly 70 yards in the air. “ I love the fast pace game. Anything that is complete pass is a good pass. I love coming to a brand new team.”
Those are only two of many terrific players at Sunday’s tryout. Because so many experienced players want to play locally in New Jersey, it’s entirely possible that the Kings can be very competive from the start. But since the league has a strict salary cap even the AIFA’s best players are not getting rich off the league. Yet it’s a fun league which is keeping very talented football players, mostly former college stars, in the public light.
“We can’t really speak to the dollar amounts they make but they really do have to carry full-time jobs, most of them,” said Seltzer.
Lockwood and his staff have already started a successful viral marketing campaign to draw attention to the team. Moreover, the team will be doing print and perhaps television ads in the months to come. In addition to Seltzer and Coach Logan, Lockwood has surrounded himself with a lot of talented people, including John Archibald, a public relations expert and the founder of Resolution Sports, who also helped with Sunday’s practice. It’s obvious that Lockwood, Logan and Seltzer are trying to put together a professional team the right way.
Things are starting to move very quickly for the New Jersey Kings as March is just around the corner.
“We’ll be making decisions today (this past Sunday) on ninety percent of our roster,” added Lockwood, who looked like he and Coach Logan had a lot of tough roster decisions to make given the high talent level at Sunday’s tryout. “It’s an opportunity to get to a higher league. Of course the story that everyone talks about is Kurt Warner, who played for the Iowa Barn Stormers (of the Arena Football League) before going on to star in the NFL.”
Will Roque become the next Warner? Will Brown be the next Lawrence Taylor? Will someone else on the Kings step up and become a future star? Those are questions that will only be answered with time. In the meantime the AIFA has already established itself as a successful and affordable league.
The Kings have advanced season ticket packages available for as low as $105 for an adult and $55 for a child. Ticket sales and other information on the New Jersey Kings can be found at their official website www.NewJerseyKings.com.
Thursday, December 17, 2009 3:20 PM EST
By: Sean Moylan Sports Writer
Current Rating: 0 of 0 votes! Rate File:
If you’re a person who enjoys watching the NFL combine then Robbinsville’s Bob Smith Soccer Academy Fieldhouse was the place to be this past Sunday morning. Because that is where the New Jersey Kings were holding their second of three scheduled open football tryouts.
The newly-formed Kings recently joined the American Indoor Football Association and they will start playing their games at the Sun National Bank Center in Trenton (formerly the Sovereign Bank Arena) starting in March. The team will play a 14-game schedule, which will include seven home and seven away games.
It was year and a half ago when the Kings’ personable owner Kelly Lockwood first got the idea to bring a new indoor football team back to Mercer County. Previously, the Trenton Lightning played at the Sovereign Bank Arena for an Indoor Professional Football League.
“We were originally going to play 18 months ago at the Sovereign Bank Arena, but it didn’t work out because of timing and being able to get the team up in time. So we decided we were going to do it this year,” said Lockwood, who works very closely with his good friend and team general manager Butch Seltzer, who has previous experience as the Director of Corporate Sponsorship for the Trenton Devils of the ECHL. Seltzer also worked for the New Jersey Red Dogs of the Arena Football League. So he knows the sport very well. The Kings also plan on hiring a team mascot.
Although the Bob Smith Soccer Academy Field House in Robbinsville was designed for soccer, its high ceiling and its all-sports turf made it an ideal indoor facility to hold a football tryout.
“Our (head) coach (Kelly Logan) put this together. He saw this facility a couple of months ago and thought it was a great facility,” remarked Lockwood. “You wouldn’t have expected something like this here (so close to the Sun National Bank Center) but it’s definitely here and we enjoy coming here. This is our second tryout at this facility. We had our first about five weeks ago (the Kings plan to run another tryout sometime in January).”
When some people think “open football tryout” their thoughts automatically turn to the movie “Invincible” and the humorous scene in which a bunch of over-age, overweight guys try out for the Philadelphia Eagles. However, Sunday’s tryout was nothing like that at all. A $55 registration fee for each prospective player kept any jokers or pretenders away. Of the 50 to 60 guys trying out for the squad on Sunday not one was out of shape. In fact, even most of the linemen at the tryout were built like pro linebackers. Moreover, the overall speed and agility of the players trying out was quite impressive.
Like the NFL Combine, each prospective player was asked to run the 40 yard dash and the shuttle run. They were also asked to do a standing broad jump and bench press 225 pounds as many times as possible. Then after those agility drills, Coach Logan and his staff held a serious football practice to see which players could really play indoor football.
“We have quite a few really good players. A lot of these players are veterans of the indoor game,” said Lockwood. “It’s (the AIFA) basically a passing game. It’s high power and it’s a lot of touchdowns and it’s a lot of scoring. So it’s a great place for families to come out and have a good time. And one of the rules of the league is if a ball goes into the stands, it’s a souvenir.”
While no one from the immediate Allentown-Robbinsville area tried out for the Kings on Sunday morning, there were plenty of players from the tri-state area trying out. A Willingboro native himself, Logan is happy to finally get a chance to coach a football team close to home.
“We have guys from all over the area. We have guys from the Pennsylvania area, including Pittsburgh. And we have guys from North Jersey, South Jersey and Camden, New Jersey. So we’re excited about the young men we have trying out for this team. I can’t wait until February (preseason),” said Logan, who has been a head coach in the AIFA the past four years, including a stint as the head coach of the Harrisburg Stampede last season.
“I have seven staff members, all from New Jersey. Some of the coaches live in Camden, New Jersey and Burlington, New Jersey which is a good thing because we don’t have to worry about guys coming a far distance like three or four hours away.”
Because of his experience coaching the Stampede, the Reading Express and the Lehigh Valley Outlawz, Coach Logan has close ties to several players in the professional indoor football world and appears to be the perfect man for this job. In fact, two of his best players from the Stampede, linebacker and fullback Melik Brown, who is built like a Greek statue, and quarterback A..J. Roque, are looking to secure spots on this year’s New Jersey Kings’ roster.
Last year Brown, a Camden native who graduated from Woodrow Wilson High and was a star linebacker for the University of North Carolina, led the Stampede in sacks with seven. A very soft-
spoken young man off the field, on the field Brown is extremely aggressive and loves getting to the quarterback.
“I’m excited to be here and to have an opportunity to play for a team in my home state,” Brown said. “I think it’s about time for a different professional league to come into New Jersey. So I’m just excited and waiting to get the ball rolling.
“Last year when I played in this league I was fortunate to earn a contract offer from the CFL’s B.C. Lions. I was with them for the preseason but ended up getting released. I’ve had some interest from a couple of NFL teams so I’m just trying to gain some more interest here.”
While playing for the Stampede last season, Roque, who graduated from Matawan High and played college football at Kean University, threw 15 touchdowns for 929 yards in just seven games.
“This is my third year in the AIFA,” said Roque, who has played quarterback since he was 7 and can throw a football nearly 70 yards in the air. “ I love the fast pace game. Anything that is complete pass is a good pass. I love coming to a brand new team.”
Those are only two of many terrific players at Sunday’s tryout. Because so many experienced players want to play locally in New Jersey, it’s entirely possible that the Kings can be very competive from the start. But since the league has a strict salary cap even the AIFA’s best players are not getting rich off the league. Yet it’s a fun league which is keeping very talented football players, mostly former college stars, in the public light.
“We can’t really speak to the dollar amounts they make but they really do have to carry full-time jobs, most of them,” said Seltzer.
Lockwood and his staff have already started a successful viral marketing campaign to draw attention to the team. Moreover, the team will be doing print and perhaps television ads in the months to come. In addition to Seltzer and Coach Logan, Lockwood has surrounded himself with a lot of talented people, including John Archibald, a public relations expert and the founder of Resolution Sports, who also helped with Sunday’s practice. It’s obvious that Lockwood, Logan and Seltzer are trying to put together a professional team the right way.
Things are starting to move very quickly for the New Jersey Kings as March is just around the corner.
“We’ll be making decisions today (this past Sunday) on ninety percent of our roster,” added Lockwood, who looked like he and Coach Logan had a lot of tough roster decisions to make given the high talent level at Sunday’s tryout. “It’s an opportunity to get to a higher league. Of course the story that everyone talks about is Kurt Warner, who played for the Iowa Barn Stormers (of the Arena Football League) before going on to star in the NFL.”
Will Roque become the next Warner? Will Brown be the next Lawrence Taylor? Will someone else on the Kings step up and become a future star? Those are questions that will only be answered with time. In the meantime the AIFA has already established itself as a successful and affordable league.
The Kings have advanced season ticket packages available for as low as $105 for an adult and $55 for a child. Ticket sales and other information on the New Jersey Kings can be found at their official website www.NewJerseyKings.com.
This is getting more confusing all the time...
