Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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| Conference | National |
|---|---|
| Division | Central |
| Year founded | 2004 |
| Home arena | Ford Center |
| City, State | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma |
| Indoor football championships | none |
The Oklahoma City Yard Dawgz are a 2004 expansion team of the Arena Football League's minor league af2. The Yard Dawgz play at the Ford Center, located in downtown Oklahoma City. The Yard Dawgz were founded in 2003 by Barry Switzer, Jeff Lund and Horn Chen. Jeff Lund recently sold the franchise to local businessman, Phil Miller. Miller is a long time fan of the Yard Dawgz and is also the owner of several Oklahoma based businesses including Long Wave Incorporated, DocSoft Inc. and South-20 Inc.
Gary Reasons is currently a Big 12 college football color analyst for FOX Sports Net and was the Yard Dawgz team president and head coach before resigning both positions recently. He played for the New York Giants from 1984 to 1991 and helped the team earn two Super Bowl victories. Reasons was also selected to the NFL All Rookie, All NFL, and All Madden Teams. Reasons’ final NFL season was in 1992 with the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Yard Dawgz had a very successful first year on and off the field by leading the league in attendance and finishing the regular season with 10-6 record to finish second in the rugged Southwest Division of the National Conference.
The Yard Dawgz had a very successful second year on and off the field by coming in 3rd in attendance and finishing the regular season with 10-6 record to finish second in the Midwest Division of the National Conference.
The Yard Dawgz had their best showing in 2006 with a record of 11-5 and their third playoff appearance. Kicker A.J. Haglund won the af2 Kicker of the Year award and quarterback Craig Strickland became the first and only player in af2 history to reach 20,000 passing yards.
Under the leadership of Head Coach John Fitzgerald, the Yard Dawgz had the second leading offense in the league - averaging 310.9 yd/game. Despite a disappointing 7-9 record, the team made their fourth consecutive playoff appearance. Three members of the 2007 OKC Yard Dawgz earned All-af2 First Team honors - WR/DB Al Hunt, Center Gene Frederic, and OL/DL Barry Giles.
Contents |
[edit] Season-By-Season
Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties
| Season | W | L | T | Finish | Playoff results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 10 | 6 | 0 | 2nd NC Southwest | Lost Week 1 (Peoria) |
| 2005 | 10 | 6 | 0 | 2nd NC Midwest | Lost Week 1 (Amarillo) |
| 2006 | 11 | 5 | 0 | 2nd NC Midwest | Lost Week 1 (Arkansas) |
| 2007 | 7 | 9 | 0 | 3rd NC Central | Lost Week 1 (Tulsa) |
| *2008 | 2 | 7 | 0 | 5th NC Central | |
| Totals | 39 | 36 | 0 | (including playoffs) | |
* = Current Standing
[edit] Notable Players
Al Hunt
Barry Giles
Fred Shaw
[edit] Former Notable Players
Timon Marshall
Craig Strickland
Peter Martinez
A.J. Haglund
B.J. Barre
[edit] External links
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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 | ||
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