Post by David on Sept 30, 2019 10:23:35 GMT -8
11/1/19 -
SPOKANE, WA - After two long seasons, indoor football has finally returned to the Lilac City with a familiar name.
On Friday, the Indoor Football League announced that the Spokane Shock have officially been revived and will play in the upcoming 2020 season. The announcement came at a press conference held today in Spokane.
SCtoC first broke the news of the Shock's revival back on August 31, as confirmed by a confidential source, moments after the team's official Facebook began posting after having gone silent in July 2017. After SCtoC's tweet went viral, the Spokesman-Review confirmed with league sources that the team had been confirmed for IFL membership.
Two days after the story broke that franchise was returning from the ashes, the official Twitter feed of the Shock (under its previous identity of Spokane Empire) changed their Facebook URL back to Spokane Shock, and their Twitter handle to @thespokaneshock. Both accounts began posting pictures and tweets for the first time since the team folded in 2017.
Former NFL defensive tackle Sam Adams, best known in the area for his tenure with the Seattle Seahawks from 1994-1999, will be the team's majority owner. This is the third venture into an arena/indoor football franchise ownership for Adams, who previously owned the Everett Hawks (2001-2007) and Cincinnati Jungle Kats (2007), the latter of which he co-owned with Seattle Mariners legend Ken Griffey Jr. Both franchises were members of arenafootball2, the same league the Shock played in from 2006-2009.
Adams, a former Super Bowl champion with the Baltimore Ravens in 2000 acquired the Shock logo and trademark from Spokane's previous owner, Nader Naini, who owned the franchise from 2014 up to its folding in 2017.
“When I think of Spokane, I think of the Shock,” Adams said, according to the Spokesman-Review. “The name is very important. This team has a rich history of being the Shock. It was unfortunate what happened with the Empire. I’m thankful for everyone who helped pave the way for us, and we felt that the Shock name was only thing we could pick for Spokane.”
In addition to Adams, the team lists two Puget Sound real estate developers, Kevin Taylor and Zuri Hector as owners. Although not listed on the team's management page, original Shock owner Brady Nelson is listed on the team's history timeline as a "partner" with Adams.
Also involved in the Shock's front office include General Manager & President David Gravenkemper, and former Spokane Shock OL/TE Patrick Afif as Assistant General Manager.
The team also announced that Billy Back would take the reigns as the team's head coach.
Back brings a successful winning resume with him, recently having served as the head coach of the Carolina Cobras in the now-defunct National Arena League, going 19-10 with two playoff appearances and winning the 2018 NAL Bowl. In addition to his tenure in Carolina, Back has found success as head coach of the Cincinnati Commandos, Texas Revolution, Nashville Venom, and the Wichita Falls Nighthawks, amassing a 93-37 regular season record. In addition to his NAL Bowl Championship, Back has won two CIFL Championships, one UIFL Championship and a PIFL Cup Championship. He has also earned three Coach of the Year awards with Cincinnati (2010), Nashville (2014), and Wichita Falls (2016).
This will be the second attempt for the Spokane Shock to play in the IFL. Unlike the first time Spokane joined the league, the team is able to keep its identity, something that would haunt the franchise over the next two seasons.
"We couldn't be any more pleased to have the opportunity to reintroduce the Spokane Shock," said Adams in the team's press release. "We have assembled a strong leadership team, are signing players and have been surprised and excited to see the enthusiasm the Spokane community has for the Shock. We can't wait to bring Indoor Football back to Eastern Washington."
The Shock will be considered a continuation of the original franchise, absorbing the team's records and history from 2006-2015. The team even acknowledges the two seasons of the Spokane Empire, but whether the team will count those two years in its history is currently not known.
The Shock's history is different from that of another IFL team, the Quad City Steamwheelers. The Steamwheelers, named after the af2 franchise that played from 2000-2009, features the same team colors and similar logos the original franchise, but considers itself as a new entity and not a continuation of the original franchise.
Initially founded in 2005 and beginning play in the af2 in 2006, the Shock got off to an incredible start, jumping out of the gate with an exciting 41-40 win over the Stockton Lightning in their inaugural season opener at the Spokane Arena. The Shock would bust out to a 4-0 record and eventually finish the season 14-2, capturing the Western Division title. Spokane would cruise to ArenaCup VII, defeating the Green Bay Blizzard 57-34 to cap off one of the most successful expansion seasons in arena football history.
From then on, Spokane would become the model franchise in the af2. In its four seasons of play, Spokane amassed 56-8 regular season record, winning four West Division Championships, three National Conference Championships, and two ArenaCup Championships.
In September 2009, the af2 dissolved when no teams submitted paperwork to return in 2010 due to the AFL suspending operations earlier that year. Spokane would join the new league, Arena Football 1, made up of teams from both af2 and the former AFL. Eventually, Arena Football 1 acquired the assets of the original AFL and revived the league. As a result, Spokane officially became members of the new AFL, referred to among Arena Football fans as "AFL 2.0."
During their first season in the AFL, Spokane stumbled out of the gate in their regular season opener with a 74-62 loss to another former af2 franchise, the Milwaukee Iron. Spokane would eventually rebound and cruise to a 13-3 record, capturing the Western Division Championship, the National Conference Championship, and eventually hosting and winning ArenaBowl XXIII over the Tampa Bay Storm, 69-57.
After winning the ArenaBowl, Spokane would make the playoffs in four of their next five seasons. During their six seasons in the AFL, Spokane amassed a 64-42 regular season record, but advanced to the National Conference Championship only once.
The Shock left the AFL in September 2015, citing concern with the AFL's financial instability after the league took ownership control of the New Orleans VooDoo and Las Vegas Outlaws before folding both franchises. As a cost saving measure, with lower operations costs and teams in closer travel proximity, Spokane joined the IFL.
"Our move to the IFL is based on our ownership group’s commitment that we made when we purchased the team in 2014 to ensure that Shock football stays in Spokane,” said Naini during the team's press conference. “We can assure you that our commitment to our loyal fans is paramount. This is the right move for the team, the community, and the fans. We could not be more excited about the opportunity to be a part of the IFL next season.”
However, the move came at a cost. A month after the Shock moved to the IFL, the AFL retaliated by stating they would keep the team's name and trademarks. Naini attempted to purchase the trademark from the AFL, initially agreeing upon a price of the trademark. However, the AFL would increase the money demand for the trademark, reportedly in the excess of $300,000 after initial reports were settled upon the $200,000 range.
With the hefty price tag attached to the name, the team would undergo a re-brand, eventually adopting the identity of the Spokane Empire.
Under the "Empire" name, Spokane would find success in its first IFL season, going 12-4, winning the Intense Conference Championship before falling 55-34 to the Sioux Falls Storm in the United Bowl. The Empire would return for the 2017 season, but would suffer a disappointing 8-8 campaign and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2012.
In July 2017, the Empire announced they were ceasing operations, citing declining attendance and financial losses. According to Jim Meehan of the Spokesman-Review, the Empire suffered a loss of $600,000 in their first year in the IFL, adding onto the reported loss of "multiple seven figures" in Naini's four years of ownership. The significant loss of revenue in 2014 and 2015 were likely due to the AFL's "single entity" model at the time, in which if a team failed to pay its bills, the league would take ownership of the franchises and the other ownership groups would pay that team's bills. During Naini's ownership tenure in the AFL, the league took possession of the San Antonio Talons, New Orleans VooDoo, and the Las Vegas Outlaws.
With operation costs being a primary factor, the loss in attendance was another issue, with most fans citing the team's name change while others cited the team's move to the IFL.
After the team folded, Naini reportedly got the Shock trademark back from the Arena Football League, who made an offer for the "Empire" name for its Albany expansion franchise. "That happened about a year ago after we shut down. I said I want the Shock name so we traded,” Naini stated to the Spokesman-Review.
Now the trademark has been handed off to Adams.
"I believe Spokane is the best market in the country. It has the best fans, and it's always had the best teams," Adams said. "We’re going to build something special here that you can be proud of, our families can be proud of, and we’re going to go across the country and demonstrate what Spokane is, how you play football and how you win championships."
The 2020 Indoor Football League season is expected to kick off in March 2020, with the schedule to be released shortly. It'll be a 14-game regular season schedule, with 7 home and 7 away games.
Shock season tickets are currently on sale via the team's new website, TheSpokaneShock.com.
