Lexington Horsemen
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| Conference | American |
|---|---|
| Division | Midwest |
| Year founded | 2003 |
| Home arena | Rupp Arena |
| City, State | Lexington, Kentucky |
| Indoor football championships | 1 (2004 NIFL) |
The Lexington Horsemen are an af2 team based in Lexington, Kentucky. They play their home games at Rupp Arena. They began as a 2003 expansion member of the National Indoor Football League, where they were successful. After defeating the Sioux Falls Storm to win Indoor Bowl IV, the Horsemen decided to join the new United Indoor Football (UIF) as a charter member, where they made the playoffs, yet ironically lost to the Sioux Falls Storm (the team they beat in their last year in the NIFL). They made the playoffs again in 2006 and made it all the way to United Bowl II; but they, again, lost to the Sioux Falls Storm.
During the 2007 season the Horsemen finished with an 8-7 regular season record and then advance through the playoffs to United Bowl III where they faced none other than their longtime playoff foe the undefeated Sioux Falls Storm they lost the game 62-59 after Collin Barber missed the potential game tying field goal as time expired. The game was Head Coach Mike Zuckerman's final game.
The team's official mascot is Spike, a hero-like horseman.
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[edit] The End, But Then A New Beginning
On August 22, 2007 Horsemen owner Lenny House announced that the Horsemen had played their final game. They weren't averaging fans like they were once and simply lost too much money. They would join other Eastern Conference UIF teams that financially struggled during the 2007 season.
However, on October 16, 2007, House announced he had changed his mind and the Horsemen would be playing the 2008 season in arenafootball2, where they would have an in-state rivalry ("The War on I-64") with the Louisville Fire. [1]
[edit] Season-By-Season
Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties
| Season | W | L | T | Finish | Playoff results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lexington Horsemen (NIFL) | |||||
| 2003 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 2nd Atlantic Eastern | Lost Round 1 (Ohio Valley) |
| 2004 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 1st Atlantic North | Won Round 1 (Atlantic City) Won Atlantic Semi-Final (Houma) Won Atlantic Conference Championship (Ohio Valley) Won Indoor Bowl IV (Sioux Falls) |
| Lexington Horsemen (UIF) | |||||
| 2005 | 11 | 4 | 0 | 1st South | Won Round 1 (Evansville) Lost Semifinals (Sioux Falls) |
| 2006 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 1st East | Won Semifinals (Rock River) Lost United Bowl II (Sioux Falls) |
| 2007 | 8 | 7 | 0 | 3rd East | Won Round 1 (River City) Won Eastern Championship (Bloomington) Lost United Bowl III (Sioux Falls) |
| Lexington Horsemen (af2) | |||||
| *2008 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 2nd AC Midwest | -- |
| Totals | 63 | 28 | 0 | (including NIFL & UIF playoffs) | |
* = Current Standing
[edit] Horsemen Highlights
First Game
- On March 29 2003, the Horsemen played their first game in front of a crowd of 10,004 in Rupp Arena. They lost to the Lake Charles Land Sharks 41-50.
Indoor Bowl IV
- In their second season( 2004), the Horsemen beat the Sioux Falls Storm in Sioux Falls 59-38 to win the Indoor Bowl Championship.
United Bowl II
- Under first year QB Eddie Eviston, the Horsemen lost to the undefeated Sioux Falls Storm 64-72 in United Bowl II. The Storm still retain that streak as of July 22, 2007
Road to United Bowl III
- After leaving the team to play for the Cincinnati Jungle Kats of the af2 quarterback, Eddie Eviston returned to play in a July, 22 2007 playoff game against the River City Rage. They won the game 48-33 and advanced to the Eastern Conference championship with homefield advantage.
- In the same game, running back Rayshawn Askew tied Hall of Fame NFL wide receiver Jerry Rice for most touchdowns by a professional football player with 208. The following week in the eastern conference championship Askew broke the record on a touchdown catch from Eddie Eviston. The Horsemen won and advanced to the United Bowl.
[edit] Current Roster
| # | Name | Position | College |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1
2 3 4 5 6 9 12 13 14 17 19 20 21 22 25 27 31 32 33 35 50 56 67 68 71 76 87 94 95 |
John Cooper
Octavious Latimore J.T. Haskins Jaquar Sanders Harry Lewis Tavon McGee Collin Barber Jarrod Rouanzoin Kewan Dewberry Eddie Eviston Carl Hayden Eric Norris Rayshawn Askew Slyvester Peoples Jonathon Messick Dieonneta Stewart Leonard Burress William Mulder Earven Flowers Josh Williams Jamus Martin Antoine Sims Ellery Moore Michael Madrazo Antonio Hall Bryan Stallings Kayland Denson Chad Spencer Kenya Williams Jamal Naji |
WR/DB
WR/LB DB/WR WR WR/DB WR/DB K WR/LB/QB QB QB DB WR/LB OS DL WR/DB WR/DB WR/DB DB/WR WR/DB DL DS OL DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL OL/DL WR DL DL |
Marshall University
Carson Newman University of Louisville University of Louisville UNC/University of Louisville Glenville State College Syracuse University Nichols College Morris Brown College Georgetown College Eastern Kentucky University Eastern Kentucky University Elizabeth City State University Kentucky State University Campbellsville University University of Virginia at Wise University of Kentucky Campbellsville University University of Kentucky Georgetown College Marshall University University of Louisville University of Kentucky Pikeville College University of Kentucky Indiana State University Eastern Kentucky University Georgetown College Georgetown College Norfolk State |
[edit] Notable Players, Past and Present
- Rayshawn Askew-RB
- Dusty Bonner-QB
- Eddie Eviston - QB
- Antonio Hall-OL/DL
- Derek Homer-RB
- Dennis Johnson-OL/DL
- Anthony "Champ" Kelly-WR/DB
- J.T. Haskins - DB
- Craig Yeast - WR/DB
[edit] Coaches and Staff
Coaches
Mike Zuckerman: Head Coach, Offensive Coordinator, Running Backs Coach
Mike Harmon: Asst. Head Coach, Defensive Coordinator, Recruiting Coordinator, Defensive Line Coach
George Barber: Special Teams Coach
Kevin Bruggeman: Special Teams Coordinator, Offensive Line Coach
Rodney Byrd: Defensive Backs, Secondary Coach
Frank Crossman: Linebackers Coach
Anthony "Champ" Kelly: Wide Receivers Coach
Bill Randsdell: Quarterbacks Coach
[edit] References
- ^ Roberts, Ben. "Horsemen going up in class", Lexington Herald-Leader, 2007-10-16. Retrieved on 2007-10-16.
[edit] External links
- Lexington Horsemen
- af2 Official Site
- Horsemen on Kentucky.com
- Horsemen on OurSports Central
- Horsemen's 2003 Stats
- Horsemen's 2004 Stats
- Horsemen's 2005 Stats
- Horsemen's 2006 Stats
- Horsemen's 2007 Stats
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| American Conference | Eastern Division | Albany Conquest · Mahoning Valley Thunder · Manchester Wolves · Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers |
| Midwestern Division | Green Bay Blizzard · Iowa Barnstormers · Lexington Horsemen · Louisville Fire · Quad City Steamwheelers · Peoria Pirates | |
| Southern Division | Daytona Beach ThunderBirds · Florida Firecats · South Georgia Wildcats · Tennessee Valley Vipers | |
| National Conference | Central Division | Amarillo Dusters · Arkansas Twisters · Lubbock Renegades · Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz · Tulsa Talons |
| Southwestern Division | Austin Wranglers · Bossier-Shreveport Battle Wings · Corpus Christi Sharks · Rio Grande Valley Dorados · Texas Copperheads | |
| Western Division | Boise Burn · Central Valley Coyotes · Spokane Shock · Stockton Lightning · Tri-Cities Fever | |
| Related articles: Arena Football League · af2 · Arena football · Indoor football | ||
