Denver Dynamite | |
---|---|
Established 1987 Folded 1991 Played in McNichols Sports Arena in Denver, Colorado | |
![]() | |
League/conference affiliations | |
Arena Football League (1987, 1989–1991) | |
Current uniform | |
Team colors | Blue, yellow, white |
Personnel | |
Owner(s) | Sidney Shlenker; Gary Graham |
Head coach | Tim Marcum; Babe Parilli |
Team history | |
| |
Championships | |
League championships (1) | |
Conference championships (0) Prior to 2005, the AFL did not have conference championship games | |
Division championships (0) Prior to 1992, the AFL did not have divisions | |
Playoff appearances (4) | |
Home arena(s) | |
|
The Denver Dynamite were an arena football team based in Denver, Colorado. The team began play in 1987 as a charter member of the Arena Football League. The team was brought in by businessman Sidney Shlenker and the team achieved success instantly, winning the first ever ArenaBowl under future AFL Hall of Fame coach Tim Marcum. After sitting out the 1988 season, the Dynamite were purchased by investment banker Gary Graham for $125,000. Graham then hired former NFL and AFL coach Babe Parilli to lead the team. Under Parilli, the Dynamite would return to the playoffs every season, but failed to return to the ArenaBowl. After the 1991 season, the franchise was sued by their public relations firm and filed for bankruptcy. They played their home games at McNichols Sports Arena. The team's logo was a bundle of dynamite sticks with a burning fuse.
In 1987, businessman and then-owner of the Denver Nuggets Sidney Shlenker announced the forming of the Denver Dynamite. [1] The franchise played in the inaugural four-team "demonstration" season of 1987. [1] Despite the team and league's doubters, [2] the Dynamite tied for the best record in the league with the Pittsburgh Gladiators, going 4–2. On August 1, 1987, the team participated in ArenaBowl I, which they won 45–16 over the Gladiators. [1] The Dynamite were led on offense by quarterback Whit Taylor, [3] and wide receiver Gary Mullen (Mullen won ArenaBowl I MVP). [1] [4] After winning the ArenaBowl, Head Coach Tim Marcum was named the league's first ever Coach of the Year. [1] Despite averaging the league's best attendance with over 12,000 a game, [1] it did not return for the league's second season due to Shlenker refusing to abide by the AFL's financial rules. [1]
The franchise was restarted in 1989, with the ownership purchased by Englewood, Colorado investment banker Gary Graham for $125,000. [1] Graham's first move was to hire former NFL and AFL coach, Babe Parilli as the team's head coach. [5] The team struggled to earn money during the 1989 season due to only hosting one home game. [1] The team finished with a 3–1 regular season record, and lost in the first round of the playoffs, 37–39 to the Gladiators. [6]
With the same coaching staff in place from 1989, the Dynamite got off to a hot 4–1 start during the 1990 season. The Dynamite would finish the season with a record of 4-4, good enough to clinch the 3rd seed. The team lost 25–26 to the semi-finals to the Dallas Texans. [7] The attendance had been steadily rising during the season, with the final home game's attendance listed at 10,587. This was later found to be skewed as around 3,000 people were admitted for free. [1] The AFL stepped in and began to question the Dynamite operations and financial stability as some of the player's checks began to bounce during the season. [1] Graham cited that the only problem came from a bookkeeping error. [1]
Despite the financial turmoil that occurred the season before, the Dynamite once again fielded a team in 1991. The team finished 6–4 during the regular season, [8] again clinching the 3rd seed for the playoffs. The team lost to the relocated Gladiators, who became the Tampa Bay Storm, in the semi-finals. After the season, the franchise filed for bankruptcy after being sued by their public relations firm. [1] When he learned of the situation in Denver, AFL commissioner Jim Foster has this to say, "Three things can happen. One, he finds a buyer, or we find him a buyer, and the team stays in Denver. Two, a buyer is found and moves to another city. Three, no one is interested and the franchise goes down." [1] The Dynamite went up for sale, but with the city far more interested trying to attract investors to land a Major League Baseball franchise (Colorado Rockies), the team did not attract potential buyers. [1]
The owners retained the rights to operate an Arena Football franchise, however, which they sold in 1996 to a Nashville, Tennessee-based group which started the first Nashville Kats franchise (later the Georgia Force) the next year. [1]
Denver received a new arena football team in 2003, when the Colorado Crush, owned by Pat Bowlen and John Elway, was established. [1] That franchise has since folded and the Crush name was acquired by the Indoor Football League team for its name change in 2015 from the Colorado Ice.
Denver Dynamite roster | ||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Quarterbacks Wide Receivers/Defensive Backs
| Running Backs/Linebackers Offensive Linemen/Defensive Linemen
| Wide Receivers/Linebackers
Kickers
Rookies in italics | ||||
Denver Dynamite Hall of Famers | ||||
No. | Name | Year Inducted | Position(s) | Years w/ Dynamite |
---|---|---|---|---|
?? | Fred Gayles | 2002 | WR/DB | 1989 |
1 | Gary Mullen | 1998 | WR/DB | 1987 |
73 | Joe March | 2000 | OL/DL | 1991 |
-- | Tim Marcum | 1998 | Head Coach | 1987 |
Kicker Player of the Year | |||
Season | Player | Position | |
---|---|---|---|
1991 | Rusty Fricke | K |
The following Dynamite players were named to All-Arena Teams:
Note: Statistics are correct through the end of the 1991 Arena Football League season.
Name | Term | Regular Season | Playoffs | Awards | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
W | L | T | Win% | W | L | |||
Tim Marcum | 1987 | 4 | 2 | 0 | .667 | 1 | 0 | Coach of the Year |
Babe Parilli | 1989-1991 | 13 | 9 | 0 | .591 | 0 | 3 | Coach of the Year (1989) |
The Massachusetts Marauders were a professional arena football team that was based in Worcester, Massachusetts. They were a member of the Arena Football League (AFL) from 1988 to 1994. The team was established in Detroit in 1988, as the Detroit Drive and was a member of the AFL in 1988 and in all subsequent years through 1993. The club then moved to Worcester, Massachusetts, in 1994 and played in that city through the end of the 1994 season.
The Tampa Bay Storm were a professional arena football team based in Tampa, Florida, US. It played in the Arena Football League (AFL). Originally the team was located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and operated as the Pittsburgh Gladiators. The franchise was one of the original four that launched the Arena Football League for its inaugural season in 1987. The club was relocated to the Tampa Bay area for the 1991 season, being the last of the original teams to either fold or leave its market. After 26 years in the Tampa market, the team ceased operations in December 2017.
The Colorado Crush were an arena football team based in Denver, Colorado. They began play as a 2003 Arena Football League expansion team. The Crush played in the Central Division of the American Conference until the Arena Football League suspended operations in 2009. They were last coached by Mike Dailey and owned by a coalition of Denver sports figures led by John Elway.
Vito "Babe" Parilli was an American football quarterback and coach who played professionally for 18 seasons. Parilli spent five seasons in the National Football League (NFL), three in the Canadian Football League (CFL), and 10 in the American Football League (AFL). He played college football at the University of Kentucky, where he twice received consensus All-American honors and won two consecutive bowl games.
The Chicago Bruisers were a professional arena football team based in Rosemont, Illinois. They were founded in 1987 as a charter member of the Arena Football League (AFL). They played their home games at Rosemont Horizon.
The Washington Commandos were an arena football team based in Fairfax, Virginia. The Commandos were founded in 1987 and were an inaugural member of the Arena Football League (AFL), and were based in Landover, Maryland. After not playing during the 1988 season, the team returned for the 1989 season as the Maryland Commandos. Following the 1989 season, the Commandos moved to Fairfax, Virginia, where they once again became known as the Washington Commandos. The team never achieved much success at either of its locations, winning four games in three seasons, including a winless 1989 season.
Whit Taylor is a former college and professional football quarterback. He was an all-Southeastern Conference quarterback for Vanderbilt University from 1979–1982, a period which included a trip to the 1982 Hall of Fame Bowl. His career at Vanderbilt led in 2003 to his recognition as an SEC Football Legend.
Arena Bowl '87 was the Arena Football League's first Championship Game. It was played on August 1, 1987, at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In the game, the #2 Denver Dynamite defeated the #1 Pittsburgh Gladiators by a score of 45–16.
The 1987 Arena Football League season was the first season, also known as the "demonstration season", of the Arena Football League (AFL). The league champions were the Denver Dynamite, who defeated the Pittsburgh Gladiators in ArenaBowl I.
The 1987 Pittsburgh Gladiators season was the first season for the Gladiators. They finished 4–2 and lost a 45–16 game against the Denver Dynamite in ArenaBowl I.
The 1987 Denver Dynamite season was the first season for the Denver Dynamite. Businessman and owner of the Denver Nuggets, Sidney Shlenker announced the forming of the Denver Dynamite. The franchise played in the inaugural four-team "demonstration" season of 1987. Despite the team and league's doubters, the Dynamite tied for the best record in the league with the Pittsburgh Gladiators, going 4–2. On August 1, 1987, the team participated in ArenaBowl I, which they won 45–16 over the Gladiators. The Dynamite were led on offense by quarterback Whit Taylor, and wide receiver Gary Mullen. After winning the ArenaBowl, Head Coach Tim Marcum was named the league's first ever Coach of the Year. After leading the Dynamite to the Despite averaging the league's best attendance with over 12,000 a game, it did not return for the league's second season due to Shlenker refusing to abide by the AFL's financial rules.
This article contains the awards and records of Colorado's Arena Football League teams, the Denver Dynamite and Colorado Crush (2003–2008). The records are arranged both in categories of individual franchise records and head-to-head for achievements in Colorado arenaball in general.
The Pittsburgh Power were a professional arena football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team belonged to the East Division of the American Conference in the Arena Football League. Founded in 2010, the Power was the youngest franchise in the American Conference. The team played its home games at Consol Energy Center, which they shared with the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League. The Power shared the same color scheme as Pittsburgh's other professional sports teams, the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League, the Pittsburgh Maulers of the USFL, and the Pittsburgh Pirates of Major League Baseball.
The 1989 Denver Dynamite season was the second season for the Denver Dynamite. The franchise was restarted in 1989 after sitting out the 1988 season, with the ownership purchased by Englewood, Colorado investment banker, Gary Graham for $125,000. Graham's first move was to hire former NFL and AFL coach Babe Parilli as the team's head coach. The team struggled to earn money during the 1989 season due to only hosting one home game. The team finished with a 3–1 regular season record, and lost in the first round of the playoffs, 37–39 to the Gladiators.
Gary Mullen is a former professional American football and Arena football player who played wide receiver and defensive back for eight seasons for the Denver Dynamite, Chicago Bears, Los Angeles Cobras, Detroit Drive, Cincinnati Rockers and the Milwaukee Mustangs. He was elected into the Arena Football Hall of Fame in 1998.
The 1991 Denver Dynamite season was the fourth, and what would be the final, season for the Arena Football League franchise. Despite the financial turmoil that occurred the season before, the Dynamite once again fielded a team in 1991. The team finished 6–4 during the regular season, again clinching the 3rd seed for the playoffs. The team lost to the relocated Gladiators, who became the Tampa Bay Storm, in the semi-finals. After the season, the franchise filed for bankruptcy after being sued by their public relations firm. When he learned of the situation in Denver, AFL commissioner, Jim Foster has this to say, "Three things can happen. One, he finds a buyer, or we find him a buyer, and the team stays in Denver. Two, a buyer is found and moves to another city. Three, no one is interested and the franchise goes down." The Dynamite went up for sale, but with the city trying to attract investors to land a Major League Baseball franchise, the team did not attract potential buyers.
Christopher Brewer is a former American football running back who played two seasons in the National Football League (NFL) with the Denver Broncos and Chicago Bears. He was drafted by the Broncos in the ninth round of the 1984 NFL draft. He played college football at the University of Arizona and attended George Washington High School in Denver, Colorado. Brewer was also a member of the Denver Dynamite and New England Steamrollers of the Arena Football League (AFL).
Gary Gussman is a former American football placekicker and coach. He was the special teams coach for the Tampa Bay Storm of the Arena Football League (AFL) in 2017. He previously played four seasons in the AFL with the Denver Dynamite and Albany Firebirds. He played college football at Miami University.
Sidney L. Shlenker was an American businessman. He was the team president of the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball and the owner of the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association.