Virginia Badgers announced today that the Badgers are moving to Ranson, WV to play at the Ranson Civic Center!

We will be known going forward as the West Virginia Badgers! 

We would also like to welcome aboard former Badgers Running back and All time leading rusher Andre McDonald as part of our ownership group as well as Lucas Taylor. Coach Dawes will still retain the title of majority owner and will also be the team's Head Coach.

Please stay tuned as the Badgers will be announcing the rest of the West Virginia Badgers staff for the 2013 season in the coming days!

Stampede Round-up Lands Big 12 Talent - Kansas State and Iowa State Players Sign! Harrisburg Stampede Head Coach, Bernie Nowotarski announced today he has signed Iowa State Defensive Line Stand-Out Michael Bibbs and Kansas State All-Conference Offensive Lineman Edward Prince.

Michael currently lives in Williamsport, Maryland and is originally from Atlanta, Georgia. He attended Booker T Washington HS and then went on to play for the Iowa State Cyclones. After graduation in 2009, Michael spent time with the Green Bay Packers and the Cleveland Browns. Michael has Indoor experience with the Trenton Steel. During the summer months you can find Michael playing for the Chambersburg Cardinals. 

The 6’3” 255lb defensive end has tremendous strength, speed, footwork, handwork and most of all he is a disciplined player. Michael will provide us with the outside push and solid pass rush. 

Edward comes to the Stampede from the currently number 1 ranked BCS Kansas State Wildcats. Edward was a Pre-Season All-American and All-Conference selection with the Wildcats. Edward was part of the offensive line that protected Josh Freeman. Edward currently lives in Starkville, Mississippi and we are excited for his arrival in Harrisburg.

The 6’6” 295lb offensive linemen has very good hand and foot work. He has a very long reach and a solid first attach. Edward should be able to add a strong level of protection to our QB. 

Just a Reminder: The First Stampede Open-Try Out Will Be Posted on our Web Site and FB page Very Soon

Harrisburg Stampede’s Head Coach, Bernie Nowotarski announced today that WR Aaron Yarbough has signed with the Stampede for the 2013 Season.

Aaron is a player with quickness, speed and runs crisp routes. The former Mount Vernon HS and Virginia Military Institute Grad has been a player that Coach Nowotarski has had to game plan against many times from his time with the Baltimore Mariners.

Aaron signing with the Stampede will re-unite him with QB EJ Nemeth. The combination of Nemeth to Yarbough was among the tops in the AIFA as the Mariners completed a perfect 16-0 record in 2010 and claiming the AIFA Championship.

“There is so much more to Aaron then his stellar athletic career”, mentioned Nowotarski. “He is exactly the type of player you want on your team. He is un-selfish in his play and studies the game and his opponent to increase what he can give the team every time he steps on the field. Aaron is also a community minded young man. He is a Deacon of Musicians with his church. He speaks to Youth Groups about Family, Education, Character, Discipline and Faith. He graduated from VMI with a Bachelor’s Degree in Mechanical Engineering. This is just a well-rounded young man and again is the type of player we strive to find and sign with the Stampede,” commented Nowotarski.

Just a Reminder: Dates for Open Try-Outs for the 2013 Stampede will be posted very soon on our Team Web Site as well as our FB and Twitter pages.

York Capitals Is The Official Name For The 2013 Expansion Team

The Fans have Spoken and The Name is Official!  York Capitals Is The Official Name For The 2013 AIF Expansion Team that will play in York, PA.

The American Indoor Football league and the ownership of the new expansion team want to thank all the fans who voted. "We had an incredible response to the contest with well over 1000 votes cast and want to thank all the fans who participated. We're excited to have the York Capitals for the 2013 season."  stated John Morris of the American Indoor Football league. 

The York Capitals took off to an early lead in the voting and never looked back.  Fans cast well over 1000 votes combined on the Facebook and League polls to make the York Capitals the winning name!  We want to congratulate the fans who submitted a valid entry.

The following fans will receive 1 pair of season tickets for the York Capitals Home games for the 2013 season:

- Dylan O.
- Josh G.
- Sarah B.
- Chris C.
- Bryan B.
- Christina C.

You will be contacted shortly with instructions on how to register to receive the tickets.

 

We had a great response for the York Team Name Contest and want to thank all the fans who submitted names. It was a really tough choice to try and choose just one name so instead, the top 5 names were selected and we are going to let you, the fans, decide on the final name!  

A poll is live here on the American Indoor Football league website with the 5 finalist and are also on the league's Facebook page.  Feel free to vote on both polls and the winning name will be decided by adding the votes from both polls.

Harrisburg Stampede’s Head Coach, Bernie Nowotarski announced today that the Stampede has come to terms with four Stampede players from the 2012 squad.

The Stampede have re-signed Offensive players, Wide Receiver Scorpio Brown and Running Back Eugene Goodman. On the Defensive side of the ball, the Stampede have signed Defensive Backs Armar Watson and Travis Proctor.

Scorpio led the League with 45 receptions for 631 yards and 15 touchdowns. Eugene led the League with 317 yards rushing on 39 carries. He also had another 151 yards receiving and combined for 13 touchdowns. Armar had an outstanding season and was a high consideration for League Defensive MVP. Armar had 10 interceptions, 2 of them were returned for touchdowns. He also had 24 pass deflections, 25 tackles and 2 fumble recoveries. Armar also had 3 receptions and a TD catch on the offensive side of the game and not to mention 2 kick-off returns for touchdowns. Travis was a rookie for the Stampede in 2012. He worked hard and became a member of the 20 man game day roster. He was a major contributor on all Special Teams, but also added 15 tackles and 3 pass deflections as a defensive back.

“Having these four players back for the 2013 season along with our players that have signed will give us a solid start to putting together a Championship team,” commented Nowotarski. “As we get ready to start the Stampede Open Try-Outs along with players that are signed already, really sets up a great deal of competition for positions.” 

Just a Reminder: Stay tuned for our Stampede Open Work-Out dates. Stampede Box Seat Season Tickets are On-Sale NOW

York Team Needs A Name - Fan Contest

We have narrowed down the contest to the top 5 submissions!  The submission portion of the York Team Name Contest is over and the voting begins!
Take a second to vote in the poll here on the league website, as well as the poll on the league's Facebook Page! 

We are letting the fans name the the new 2013 AIF expansion team in York, PA!

York gets American Indoor Football team, but no name yet

Morris will serve as the majority owner for the York team. The other owner is Ulander Giles, who works at Georgetown University doing lung cancer research. "It's about giving back to the community and having the kids come out. It's about being in the schools, being in the churches. It's about having an impact on the city," Morris said.

That impact, whether it's with the AIF kids program or offering an additional revenue stream to the ice rink could affect a host of people. "We have AIF for kids," Morris said. "For example, the Fayetteville (N.C.) team had about 500 kids be a part of the youth program we had down there. We anticipate them putting a youth program together here."

From a business standpoint, Morris said, "The bottom line is we have the opportunity to come in here and drive additional business, more concessions, more everything. At the end of the day, I think the facility will be much better off because we're here."

For Mike Cleveland, the general manager of the York City Ice Arena, the timing of the team's March through June schedule is ideal. "Traditionally, we take the ice out at that time of year," Cleveland said. "The timing of when the league plays is absolutely perfect."
The turf playing surface will replace the ice on one of arena's the two rinks for the length of the football season. The other rink will remain open to the public.

"Once it's down, it's down," said Jimmy Lewis of the turf. Lewis was introduced as the head coach of the team. The soon-to-be 36-year old played for Morgan State University and played 10 years of semipro football, mainly for the Arbutus Big Red.v "It's a challenge," said Lewis, who works full time as a computer system administrator in Columbia, Md. "I've always wanted to be able to push guys on. I want to give you the opportunity to move on." The presence of the football team also will create jobs for the ice arena.

"Absolutely, when you pack the place with the potential for 1,500 people, we certainly have to beef up security and ticket takers and concessions. Opportunities are there for extra employment," Cleveland said.

First things first: The team will conduct a "name the team" contest within the next week. The creator of the winning name will win two season tickets. One possible way the team might come to find its nickname is to let the fans pick it. "We could pick the top five and give them to a local radio station and have them put it out there and have fans call in and vote on it that way," Morris said.

Odds and ends: There are eight games on the schedule, and York will play the Harrisburg Stampede twice: once in York and once in Harrisburg. York is scheduled to play four home games. Permanent seating ticket prices will be $10, and floor box tickets might cost a little more.

Tryouts will be held in November and twice in December. Two tryouts will be held in York and one in Baltimore. The time and exact dates of the tryouts will be announced on the league's website.

Players made $150 a game last year, a rate that could increase along with the league's salary cap according to Morris. Last season's salary cap was $3,150 for 20 players.

At a glance

What: American Indoor Football expansion team in York
Where: Games will be played at the York City Ice Arena. One rink will remain open to the public, and the other will have the ice removed during the football season and a turf playing surface installed.
When: The season runs March through June, and the team will debut in 2013.
Schedule: Eight games are scheduled, two against the Harrisburg Stampede. York will host four games.
Tryouts: Two tryouts will be in York, one in Baltimore, at a time and date to be determined. v Team name: A "name the team" contest will be announced within the next week. The creator of the winning name will win two season tickets.

Original Article:
By RYAN DIXON 
For the Daily Record/Sunday News

Harrisburg Stampede’s Head Coach, Bernie Nowotarski announced today that he has re-signed Offensive Linemen, Randell Bennett for the 2013 Season.

Anytime you can bring a player like Randell back for another season is a big plus for your Offensive. The 6’6” 330lb guard and former Grambling Tiger is a big time young player and just keeps getting better each season, commented Nowotarski.

Randell makes his home in Connecticut but when he returns to Harrisburg for the season he also takes the lead and embraces the community, especially the events we do with the schools. Randell took a very active part with the Stampede’s involvement of First Lady Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move” and Beyoncé’s ”Move Your Body” exercise programs. The programs were developed to get kids up, active and exercising. Randell also took part in the Teams Football Frenzy. A special day that the players and coaches spent with the children from the Easter Seal Central Pennsylvania.

“Randell is certainly an upper level player and is a great community player and we are proud to have him on our Stampede roster. We are expecting him to have an outstanding season and that should bring scouts out see him and hopefully a shot at an upward move,” commented Coach Nowotarski. 

Just a Reminder: Stampede Box Seat Season Tickets are on Sale Now…Stampede Open Try-Outs Dates will soon be posted.

Harrisburg Stampede’s Head Coach, Bernie Nowotarski announced today that the Stampede has re-signed local player and fan favorite Will Hines for the 2013 Season.

Will Hines is one of those players that are just finding out how valuable he is to a team.

He is an All-Purpose player. In the past Will only played one position, LB. Last season with the Stampede Will found out he is way more talented at this game and at several positions. Will still played some LB, but added all 3 positions on the D-Line. Will also learned several of the Offensive Line positions just in case there was a need for him to play Offense and he plays on almost every special team. The 2013 season will again find him as a multi-position player. We have even talked about Will expanding his position expertise and give him some running back work when we go to a big set.

Will is not only a versatile player for the Stampede. He is a fan favorite and always has time to be with the kids after the games to take pictures and sign autographs. He is a team leader on and off the field and makes it a point to get along with all his team mates.

Just a Reminder: Stampede Box Season Tickets are on Sale Now and always check out our web site for several Off-Season Team Meet and Greets.