In November 1995, the announced that they would be nicknamed the "Fighting Pike" and that Art Haege was named the team's head coach.[2]
During the team's first tryout, Haege walked out, stating he was going "Back to Iowa." The next day, Haege faxed in his resignation to team owner Tom Scallen.[3][4]
The Pike were 0-7 at home, and the average attendance for the seven home games was 8,894.[5]
The roster was full of players who had played at the University of Minnesota or other Minnesota colleges and universities. Tony Levine, a former Golden Gopher, joined the team and received 8 passes for a total of 83 yards and 1 touchdown. Former Gopher Rickey Foggie was the quarterback and he struggled adapting to the Arena Football League after many years in the Canadian Football League. Once during the season he was benched in favor of Southwest State's Jeff Loots, who threw four interceptions in a game. Loots was playing on his third expansion team in three seasons. Another player from Southwest State was Alvin Ashley. The best-known ex-Pike is kicker Mike Vanderjagt, later a star in the CFL and NFL.
Ray Jauch was the head coach. He was assisted by John Coatta Jr. on offense and Frank Haege on defense.
The team's lack of exposure or advertising was the key reason for the team's folding at the end of the 1996 season.[citation needed] The team did not have a regional television deal to promote their games or have the games advertised in newspapers and other media.
The Pike's official mascot was a giant Pike named "Tackle." He was known to "dive" into a promotional hot tub at the arena.
Legacy
In 2024, a revival of the Arena Football League brought it the Minnesota Myth, a team which played only two games (one at Target Center) before folding themselves.
The Arena Football League (AFL) was a professional arena football league in the United States. It was founded in 1986, but played its first official games in the 1987 season, making it the third longest-running professional football league in North America after the Canadian Football League (CFL) and the National Football League (NFL) until the AFL closed in 2019.
The Cleveland Gladiators were an arena football team based in Cleveland, Ohio, and members of the Arena Football League (AFL). The Gladiators played their home games at Quicken Loans Arena, which they shared with the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association and the Cleveland Monsters of the American Hockey League. The franchise was originally based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, and then later in Las Vegas, Nevada, before relocating to Cleveland for the 2008 AFL season. The Gladiators qualified for the playoffs eight times in their history, reaching the ArenaBowl in 2014.
Todd Vaughn Devoe is an American former professional football wide receiver who played in the National Football League (NFL) and Arena Football League (AFL). He was signed by the Baltimore Ravens as an undrafted free agent in 2003. He played college football at Itawamba Community College and Central Missouri.
Matthew Louis D’Orazio is a former American football quarterback who played in the Arena Football League (AFL). He played college football at Otterbein College.
Frank Haege is an American football coach. He is the special teams coordinator and defensive backs coach at Solon High School in Solon, Iowa. Haege served as the head football coach at Augsburg University in Minneapolis from 2005 to 2019. He was also the head coach for the Quad City Steamwheelers of AF2 from 2000 to 2001 and the New Jersey Gladiators the Arena Football League from 2002 to 2004.
The 1996 Arena Football League season was the tenth season of the Arena Football League. It was succeeded by 1997. The league champions were the Tampa Bay Storm, who defeated the Iowa Barnstormers in ArenaBowl X. The AFL finally stabilized its scheduled number of games. It expanded to a 14-game season, which would remain until 2003. Previously, the scheduled number of games had not stayed the same for more than three years.
The 2007 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team was the first for new head coach Tim Brewster. They began play on September 1, 2007 at home against Bowling Green and finished the season with a record of 1 win and 11 losses.
The 1984 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota in the 1984 Big Ten Conference football season. In their first year under head coach Lou Holtz, the Golden Gophers compiled a 4–7 record and were outscored by their opponents by a combined total of 316 to 194.
The 1985 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota in the 1985 Big Ten Conference football season. In their second and final year under head coach Lou Holtz, the Golden Gophers compiled a 7–5 record and outscored their opponents by a combined total of 293 to 240.
The 1981 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota in the 1981 Big Ten Conference football season. In their third year under head coach Joe Salem, the Golden Gophers compiled a 6–5 record and outscored their opponents by a combined total of 274 to 264. It was the final season in Memorial Stadium.
Rickey Foggie is an American former gridiron football quarterback. Foggie was the starting quarterback for the Minnesota Golden Gophers for four seasons, before going on to play professionally in the Canadian Football League (CFL) and Arena Football League (AFL). Foggie had a short tenure as the head football coach for the Minnesota Myth AFL team.
The 1924 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota in the 1924 Big Ten Conference football season. In their third year under head coach William H. Spaulding, the Golden Gophers compiled a 3–3–2 record and outscored their opponents by a combined score of 68 to 62. It was Minnesota's first season playing in Memorial Stadium.
The 1925 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team was an American football team that represented the University of Minnesota in the 1925 Big Ten Conference football season. In their first year under head coach Clarence Spears, the Golden Gophers compiled a 5–2–1 record and outscored their opponents by a combined score of 176 to 91.
The 1941 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota in the 1941 Big Ten Conference football season. In their tenth year under head coach Bernie Bierman, the Golden Gophers compiled an undefeated 8–0 record and outscored their opponents by a combined total of 186 to 38. The team's national championship run in the days before the attack on Pearl Harbor was chronicled in journalist Danny Spewak's book, "From the Gridiron to the Battlefield: Minnesota's March to a College Football Title and into World War II," published in 2021 by Rowman & Littlefield.
Thomas Kaine Scallen was the first owner of the NHL's Vancouver Canucks. He owned the team from 1970 to 1974, when Frank Griffiths, an owner of several Vancouver area radio and television stations, the next largest shareholder in the Canucks, took over after Scallen was arrested. He was found guilty of securities fraud in 1973, and a later appeal failed.
The 1945 Minnesota Golden Gophers football team represented the University of Minnesota in the 1945 Big Ten Conference football season. In their 11th non-consecutive year under head coach Bernie Bierman, the Golden Gophers compiled a 4–5 record and outscored their opponents by a combined total of 177 to 55.
Jeff Loots is an American former professional football quarterback who played eight seasons in the Arena Football League (AFL) with the Milwaukee Mustangs, Minnesota Fighting Pike, Albany Firebirds, Oklahoma Wranglers, Chicago Rush, Buffalo Destroyers and Grand Rapids Rampage. He played college football at Southwest Minnesota State.
Jay McDonagh is a former American football quarterback who played four seasons in the Arena Football League (AFL) with the Buffalo Destroyers, New Jersey/Las Vegas Gladiators and Columbus Destroyers. He played college football at Western Michigan University. He was also a member of the Bologna Phoenix and Bologna Warriors of the Italian Football League, Green Bay Bombers, Madison Mad Dogs, Quad City Steamwheelers, Colorado Crush.
Bruce Wayne LaSane is a former American football wide receiver who played eight seasons in the Arena Football League (AFL) with the Cincinnati Rockers, Miami Hooters, Minnesota Fighting Pike, Milwaukee Mustangs, Orlando Predators, New Jersey Red Dogs, and Los Angeles Avengers. He played college football at Florida State University and attended Wildwood High School in Wildwood, Florida. He was also a member of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Orlando Thunder.
The Minnesota Myth were a professional indoor football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Myth played their home games at the Target Center. They were announced as one of the inaugural teams for the revived Arena Football League (AFL), playing its lone season in 2024.
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