Destroyers set to kick off third season in Columbus on Sunday vs. Grand Rapids at 3 p.m.

Published on January 23, 2006 under Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I)
Columbus Destroyers News Release


COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Columbus Destroyers are set to open their third season in Columbus on Sunday, Jan. 29, on Huntington Field at Nationwide Arena against the Grand Rapids Rampage. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. Below is a recap, a look ahead to next week's opponent, a preview of the week ahead, as well as a practice schedule for the week.

THIS WEEK: The Columbus Destroyers kick off the 2006 campaign Sunday, Jan. 29 on Huntington Field at Nationwide Arena against the Grand Rapids Rampage. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. The Rampage finished the 2005 season with a 4-12 mark and finished fourth in the American Conference Central Division. The Rampage are led by second year coach Spark McEwen. The Destroyers and Rampage have met six times in history with the Rampage leading the all-time series 5-1.

PRACTICE SCHEDULE: The practice schedule for this week is below. Practices times and locations are subject to change. All practices at the Columbus FieldHouse are open to the public. Practices/Walk-Thru's at Nationwide Arena are closed to the public.

Day Event Time Place

Monday Conditioning 1:30-2:30 p.m. Columbus FieldHouse

Tuesday Practice 12:30-2:30 p.m. Columbus FieldHouse

Wednesday Practice 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Columbus FieldHouse

Thursday Practice 10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Columbus FieldHouse

Friday Practice 9:15-11:30 a.m. Columbus FieldHouse

Saturday Practice 9:30-10:20 a.m. Columbus FieldHouse

Sunday Walk-Thru 11-11:30 a.m. Nationwide Arena

FORWARD MOTION: It will be a short week for the Destroyers, as the team will play its second game of the season in five days. The Nashville Kats will welcome Columbus to Gaylord Entertainment Center on Friday. Kickoff is set for 8 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on FSN Ohio. The Destroyers and Kats have met three times with the Kats winning all three games.

BRAND NEW LOOK: Head coach Doug Kay is not the only new member of the coaching staff. Kay brought in a veteran staff consisting of Offensive Coordinator Ken Matous, who has 25 years of coaching experience. Chris MacKeown joins the staff as the Offensive Assistant/Special Teams Coordinator. In seven years, MacKeown has been with eight teams and missed the playoffs once. Defensive Assistant Ian Cooper enters his first season in the AFL, but brings eight years of coaching experience to the team, including a season with the af2's Tulsa Talons. Jim Lachey returns as the line coach and Vinnie Clark as the defensive assistant.

BRAND NEW LOOK, PART 2: Other than the members of the coaching staff, almost the entire team is new to the Destroyers. Only four players return from the 2005 campaign. The players who return for the 2006 season are: defensive specialist Brandon Hefflin, wide receiver/defensive back Jeremy Unertl and offensive/defensive linemen Chris Janek and Ken Jones.

BEEN AROUND THE BLOCK: The 2006 version of the Destroyers is loaded with veteran leadership. Combined, the team has over 90 years of Arena Football League experience. Topping the team in AFL Experience are quarterback John Kaleo (12 years), defensive specialist Cecil Doggette (11 years), and fullback/linebacker Leroy Thompson (10 years).

ON THE AIR: As the Destroyers prepare for Grand Rapids, fans can listen to the insiders' preview when "Destroyers Weekly" returns Monday, Jan. 23, from 7-8 p.m. on 107.1 The Big Wazoo in Columbus. The live hour-long show will be hosted by WLVQ/WAZU Sports Director "Archie" and a rotation of co-hosts from the Destroyers radio broadcast tandem of play-by-play announcers Marty Bannister and Steve Sefner. This week's show will feature new head coach Doug Kay and quarterback John Kaleo.

GAME PROMOTIONS: Richard Childress Racing's legendary black #3 NASCAR driven by Dale Earnhardt, Sr. along with Germain's NASCAR Truck Team favorite #30 Todd Bodine will be on display. This season the Destroyers will again team with the Mid-Ohio FoodBank to "Tackle Hunger" in Central Ohio. Fans are asked to bring non-perishable food items to each home game for donation to the Mid-Ohio FoodBank. In turn, fans will receive one raffle ticket per donated food item for a chance to win a team-autographed, authentic AFL football. One winner will be announced during the fourth quarter of each game. Last season, the Destroyers raised enough resources to provide over 27,000 meals to those in need right here in our community.

TICKET INFORMATION: Single game tickets are now available starting as low as $10 and season tickets are on sale now for as low as $90 and are available by calling (614) 246-HITS or by visiting www.ColumbusDestroyers.com. In addition, high school and college students (23 years and under) with a valid student ID may purchase a specially priced $7 ticket beginning two hours before each home game at the Nationwide Arena Ticket Office only. Individual tickets may also be purchased at the Nationwide Arena Ticket Office, at all Ticketmaster Ticket Centers, or by phone at (614) 431-3600. Tickets are also available at the Blue Jackets Zones located at Chiller Dublin, Chiller Easton and Chiller North. All tickets are subject to service charges and facility fees.

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from January 23, 2006


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.

OurSports Central