Bloomington Edge Announce Move to CIF
August 19, 2015 - Champions Indoor Football (CIF)
Bloomington Edge News Release
On the eve of the 2015 Champions Indoor Football (CIF) fall league meetings, the CIF is pleased to announce its newest member for the 2016 season with the addition of the Bloomington Edge.
For nearly a decade, Bloomington, IL has been a consistent home for indoor football. Originally carrying the moniker, "Extreme", the team was renamed the Edge in 2011.
The franchise has been known since its inception in 2006 for building competitive rosters and even once boasted former Florida State and NFL wide receiver Peter Warrick on its squad. The team is fresh off of one of its' best on-field seasons in franchise history in 2015.
"After the conclusion of the 2015 season, my coaches and office staff held discussions regarding our future plans in professional football. During our exit interviews, several of our players had expressed their desire to play in a league that would give them the best opportunity to showcase their abilities and maximize their opportunities at the next level. A return to the CIF, where the Edge had played for the previous two seasons, was a consistent topic of discussion during those interviews. After talking to other team owners and partners in the Champions Indoor Football league, we ultimately decided that our franchise was a natural fit in the CIF for the 2016 season and beyond. We are excited about this new opportunity to grow and rebrand our professional football team in our community, in addition to being a valuable member of the league," stated team owner Omar Khokhar.
"We have been successful as an organization in identifying and recruiting players who have had successful careers playing not only for the Edge, but for other teams in the CIF as well. The last two league MVPs are former Bloomington Edge players in Rocky Hinds and Charles Dowdell, and I am personally excited about putting together a team that will not only compete for a league championship next season, but also recruiting the next league MVP here in Bloomington," explained John Johnson, head coach for the Bloomington Edge.
Ricky Bertz, CIF Executive Committee member and Co-owner of the Dodge City Law, had the following comments about the newest member of the CIF: "My discussions with Omar and his entire organization have been productive and positive for not only the Bloomington Edge, but for the CIF as well, and we are all very proud to call them the newest partners and members of the CIF. Bloomington's addition to the CIF adds another regionalized opponent for our northern league partners. In addition, they have developed a sound business model that they have already begun to implement that will ultimately lead to their long term success both on and off the field."
The Bloomington Edge will be playing their home games at U.S. Cellular Coliseum. On August 20th, the Edge will hold an open house so that fans will be able to come to the Coliseum and personally select their seats for the 2016 season. For more information, visit the Bloomington Edge website at www.bloomingtonedge.net or Champions Indoor Football atwww.gocif.net.
The Champions Indoor Football league is about to begin their 2nd annual fall meetings in Dodge City, Kansas on August 20th & 21st. In addition to all 12 league teams in attendance, there will also be potential new teams in attendance that could still be added to the league in time for the 2016 season. Aside from reviewing new potential franchise applications, other topics such as playoff structure, potential divisional alignments, 2016 schedule release dates as well as field of play rule changes are all on the two day agenda for discussion. For updates and additional information about league meetings be sure to follow the league website atwww.gocif.net or the league's Facebook page.
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Champions Indoor Football Stories from August 19, 2015
- Bloomington Edge Announce Move to CIF - Bloomington Edge
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