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Carolina Sharks Suspended For 2005 AIFL; Ghostriders To Fill Void

April 15, 2005 - American Indoor Football Association (AIFA) News Release


The Atlantic Indoor Football League has announced the Carolina Sharks will not play in the leagueÂ’s inaugural season, due to the inability to fulfill league requirements.

“We are sorry that the Sharks will not be able to compete in our first season,” said Haines. “I regret the inability of the Carolina Sharks organization to meet the high standards that the AIFL has set forth for its member teams."

To fill the void left by the loss of the Sharks, the league has created the AIFL Ghostriders, who will play CarolinaÂ’s schedule as a road team.

Earl Rose, who spent last season as head coach of the Thomasville Titans, a semi-professional team, will coach the Ghostriders. The Titans won their league championship in 2003, when Rose served as offensive coordinator, and made the first round of the playoffs in 2004.

A 1991 graduate of Grimsley High School, Rose was a three-year starter and was named to the All-Area Second Team and the All-Guilford Team. He also served a tour of duty in Iraq with the Army and was an All-Army linebacker.

He played fullback for two seasons at Applachian State University, where his team won the Southern Conference.

In 1997, Rose returned to Grimsley as the schoolÂ’s offensive coordinator on the varsity team and head coach of the junior varsity squad.

Rose played center on championship teams for the Davidson County semi-pro team from 1998 to 2000 and was named offensive MVP.

In 2000, he joined the Greensboro Prowlers of arenafootball2 as their starting center and nose tackle.

He was head coach and owner of the Carolina Heat semi-pro team in 2000-01. The Heat went to the league semifinals in the first year, and to their leagueÂ’s championship game the next year.

“Rose is truly the sort of coach the Ghostriders will need,” said Haines. “Even though they will be a travel team, we expect to see great things from this team in our opening season.”

The Atlantic Indoor Football League is the hottest new professional league and will kickoff its inaugural season April 16, 2005. For more information, visit www.aifloline.com, contact the league office at (330) 453-2860 or contact Joey Josephs, Director of Media Relations, by phone at (321) 356-5379 or by e-mail at jjosephs@aiflonline.com.

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.


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