Post by 50 Yard Fan on Jul 25, 2012 12:22:15 GMT -5
Some interesting things in this article, of course it may just be incorrect info
Owners hope move to Dalton is big score
July 25, 2012
With all due respect to Carol Brady, you can forget Mom’s rules about not playing ball inside.
Kacee Smith and Amer Awad, owners of the Georgia Rampage, are excited about the chance to bring a minor league indoor football team to Dalton next spring. While the 11-game regular season schedule for 2013 is not yet set for the Rampage (Does 11 games mean travel teams?), a member of the UIFL, the team has announced that it plans to play its six home games at the trade center.
This year’s UIFL schedule kicked off March 1, with the playoffs finishing in late June.
Smith, a 2005 graduate of Gordon Central High who played football there, believes Carpet Capital residents — and others in the area — will be eager to experience the fast-paced game.
“My dad (Mike Smith) is from Dalton and I’m in Dalton all the time, so I always thought it would be a great place for an arena team,” he said. “I used to play against Dalton High all the time, so I know how the fans are. It’s a big football town.”
The UIFL has been previously known as the Ultimate Indoor Football League, but Smith said a potential name dispute has the organization simply going by the four letters for now.( United not Ultimate - This guy was part of the league this year, did he not get the memo?) The league has nine teams ranging from Pennsylvania to Florida, but Smith said clubs may be added in Macon and Sarasota, Fla.
While the sport is fundamentally similar to its outdoor counterpart, the dimensions, rules and pace are quite different. According to the league’s website, each artificial turf field is 50 yards long and 26 yards wide with end zones that are 5 to 8 yards deep. A four-foot high padded wall surrounds the field.
Each team has eight players, with two allowed to go in forward motion on each play. There are three linemen on each side of the ball, and only one player may blitz on a given play.
All of that creates the tendency for a game where scoring is frequent and fast, and Smith believes that’s a big positive for the sport.
“It’s the excitement of it, the fast pace,” he said. “There’s a lot of touchdowns ... a lot of hard hits, and they’re right there at the wall. If the games are done right, there’s something for everyone to see ... It’s kind of like a circus meets a rock show meets a football game if you do it right.”
Smith will be in his second year as an owner of the team — Awad came on soon after the end of the 2011 season — having led the Rampage as a “travel team” this year. While the team practiced in Calhoun, it had no home field for competition, and after winning its season opener in Tupelo, Miss., went on to lose its remaining six games.
But in an email release, co-owner Awad referenced former NFL coach Herm Edwards “You play to win the game!” line in his expectations for the Rampage.
“Fans don’t want to see a team lose, and neither do we,” Awad said.
In addition to his experience this season with the Rampage, Smith is co-owner — along with his father — of the North Georgia Bulldogs, a semi-professional outdoor football team based in Calhoun. That team, which is in its first season of competition in the Heart of the South Football League but sixth overall, has been successful, enjoying an undefeated 2011 and a 5-0 showing so far this summer.
The Bulldogs have also been successful in simply persisting in the semi-pro sports world, where teams and leagues seem to frequently come and go in small towns. Smith credited that persistence to creating a family-like atmosphere within the team.
For the fans in Dalton, he’s hoping to capitalize on the excitement of having a minor league team.
“I think Dalton has potential,” the Calhoun resident said. “We’re excited to be there and we see good things for it.”
Smith said Awad has already brought plenty of excitement to their partnership. The two met when the latter was doing the former’s taxes and Smith — whose day job is as a manager for General Nutrition Centers — discovered that Awad had a longtime interest in being the owner of a minor league sports franchise.
“Usually when I first meet people, they don’t really understand what I do,” Smith said. “He was all into it.”
Shashank Gairola, general manager of the trade center, said talks about having the team play in Dalton have been taking place for several months. He’s optimistic the home games will be a boon for nearby hotels and restaurants.
“We’re excited to team up with the Georgia Rampage and bring new sports to Dalton, Ga.,” Gairola said. “It will be great for the community and the overall impact of what it means to businesses and restaurants here.
“We’re excited to team up with the group and bring professional arena football to Dalton. It will be exciting for the youth, and it’s just another activity for people to enjoy here.”
Smith said he’s currently working on putting together next year’s coaching staff. The team is allowed to invite 40 players to training camp, with 23 signed and 18 kept on an active roster.
He and Awad plan to have an introductory news conference in the future, with Smith hoping to bring in league co-founder Andrew Haines and commissioner Jared Lorenzen, the former University of Kentucky and NFL quarterback.
Anyone interested in learning more about being part of the Rampage’s operations on the field or off is invited to write kacee.rampage@gmail.com or amer.rampage@gmail.com.
July 25, 2012
With all due respect to Carol Brady, you can forget Mom’s rules about not playing ball inside.
Kacee Smith and Amer Awad, owners of the Georgia Rampage, are excited about the chance to bring a minor league indoor football team to Dalton next spring. While the 11-game regular season schedule for 2013 is not yet set for the Rampage (Does 11 games mean travel teams?), a member of the UIFL, the team has announced that it plans to play its six home games at the trade center.
This year’s UIFL schedule kicked off March 1, with the playoffs finishing in late June.
Smith, a 2005 graduate of Gordon Central High who played football there, believes Carpet Capital residents — and others in the area — will be eager to experience the fast-paced game.
“My dad (Mike Smith) is from Dalton and I’m in Dalton all the time, so I always thought it would be a great place for an arena team,” he said. “I used to play against Dalton High all the time, so I know how the fans are. It’s a big football town.”
The UIFL has been previously known as the Ultimate Indoor Football League, but Smith said a potential name dispute has the organization simply going by the four letters for now.( United not Ultimate - This guy was part of the league this year, did he not get the memo?) The league has nine teams ranging from Pennsylvania to Florida, but Smith said clubs may be added in Macon and Sarasota, Fla.
While the sport is fundamentally similar to its outdoor counterpart, the dimensions, rules and pace are quite different. According to the league’s website, each artificial turf field is 50 yards long and 26 yards wide with end zones that are 5 to 8 yards deep. A four-foot high padded wall surrounds the field.
Each team has eight players, with two allowed to go in forward motion on each play. There are three linemen on each side of the ball, and only one player may blitz on a given play.
All of that creates the tendency for a game where scoring is frequent and fast, and Smith believes that’s a big positive for the sport.
“It’s the excitement of it, the fast pace,” he said. “There’s a lot of touchdowns ... a lot of hard hits, and they’re right there at the wall. If the games are done right, there’s something for everyone to see ... It’s kind of like a circus meets a rock show meets a football game if you do it right.”
Smith will be in his second year as an owner of the team — Awad came on soon after the end of the 2011 season — having led the Rampage as a “travel team” this year. While the team practiced in Calhoun, it had no home field for competition, and after winning its season opener in Tupelo, Miss., went on to lose its remaining six games.
But in an email release, co-owner Awad referenced former NFL coach Herm Edwards “You play to win the game!” line in his expectations for the Rampage.
“Fans don’t want to see a team lose, and neither do we,” Awad said.
In addition to his experience this season with the Rampage, Smith is co-owner — along with his father — of the North Georgia Bulldogs, a semi-professional outdoor football team based in Calhoun. That team, which is in its first season of competition in the Heart of the South Football League but sixth overall, has been successful, enjoying an undefeated 2011 and a 5-0 showing so far this summer.
The Bulldogs have also been successful in simply persisting in the semi-pro sports world, where teams and leagues seem to frequently come and go in small towns. Smith credited that persistence to creating a family-like atmosphere within the team.
For the fans in Dalton, he’s hoping to capitalize on the excitement of having a minor league team.
“I think Dalton has potential,” the Calhoun resident said. “We’re excited to be there and we see good things for it.”
Smith said Awad has already brought plenty of excitement to their partnership. The two met when the latter was doing the former’s taxes and Smith — whose day job is as a manager for General Nutrition Centers — discovered that Awad had a longtime interest in being the owner of a minor league sports franchise.
“Usually when I first meet people, they don’t really understand what I do,” Smith said. “He was all into it.”
Shashank Gairola, general manager of the trade center, said talks about having the team play in Dalton have been taking place for several months. He’s optimistic the home games will be a boon for nearby hotels and restaurants.
“We’re excited to team up with the Georgia Rampage and bring new sports to Dalton, Ga.,” Gairola said. “It will be great for the community and the overall impact of what it means to businesses and restaurants here.
“We’re excited to team up with the group and bring professional arena football to Dalton. It will be exciting for the youth, and it’s just another activity for people to enjoy here.”
Smith said he’s currently working on putting together next year’s coaching staff. The team is allowed to invite 40 players to training camp, with 23 signed and 18 kept on an active roster.
He and Awad plan to have an introductory news conference in the future, with Smith hoping to bring in league co-founder Andrew Haines and commissioner Jared Lorenzen, the former University of Kentucky and NFL quarterback.
Anyone interested in learning more about being part of the Rampage’s operations on the field or off is invited to write kacee.rampage@gmail.com or amer.rampage@gmail.com.