Indoor Football League names Colorado Ice Head Coach Heron O'Neal Coach of the Year
June 26, 2014 - Indoor Football League (IFL)
Colorado Crush News Release
Fort Collins, CO - After leading the Colorado Ice to a 10-4 regular season record and a playoff appearance Heron O'Neal was named the IFL Head Coach of the Year. The Ice had the #3 ranked offense, averaging 50.6 points per game. Defensively, the team was dominant at times, ranking #2 in the league (35.9 points per game).
O'Neal has been with the IFL since 2005 starting out as the defensive coordinator for the Wyoming Cavalry. He then went to the Billings Outlaws in which he lead his team to three national championships. He came to the Colorado Ice in 2010 as defensive coordinator and became the head coach in 2011 and has been in the playoffs every season since taking over the team.
In an interview with the Reporter Herald, O'Neal described how this 2014 team has been different than any other Ice team he has coached. "They generally care about their common man [...] these guys have bought into the scheme. They've bought into the system. They bought into the players next to them are going to do their job and they can just concentrate on doing their job. And it carries over off the field."
Under O'Neal's tutelage, Willie Copeland was named IFL MVP. In addition, the Ice placed 6 players on All-League teams including; Copeland, LB Joe Thornton, WR Kyle Kaiser, OL Sanford Banks, DL Jason Jones, and DB Corey Sample.
O'Neal has made Fort Collins and Northern Colorado his home and has a contract with the Ice through the 2017 season.
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Indoor Football League Stories from June 26, 2014
- Green Bay Blizzard QB Nate Wara Named IFL Rookie of the Year - Green Bay Blizzard
- Colorado Ice Quarterback Willie Copeland Named IFL Most Valuable Player of 2014 - Colorado Crush
- Indoor Football League names Colorado Ice Head Coach Heron O'Neal Coach of the Year - Colorado Crush
- 2014 Individual Awards Announced - IFL
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