By Grant Abston, Sports Editor
Six former ACU football players will get a chance to continue their career next season after the Katy Ruff Riders relocated, bringing the Indoor Football League to Abilene.
Greg Yeldell (DB), Regis Andrez (OL/DL), Chris Morris (WR), Brandon Henry (DB), Greg Crear (DB) and Matt Raesner (OL) will join the 30-player roster after completing an open tryout and signing with the Ruff Riders, who begin training camp in March. All six players played for ACU and will get a chance to make an impact at the next level.
“I’m looking forward to just continuing to play,” Morris said. “I’m interested in traveling and just getting some professional experience and maybe moving up from this league.”
Abilene will welcome its first professional sports team since 2000 after previously being home to the Abilene Prairie Dogs of the Texas-Louisiana League in baseball and the Abilene Aviators of the Western Professional Hockey League. The Ruff Riders are part of the Indoor Football League, a first-year league created in July after the merging of two leagues: the Intense Football League and the United Football League. The Ruff Riders joined the Intense Football League in 2007 and have relocated from Katy.
“It’s exciting and there are TV contracts being put into works, and we are trying to go nationwide with satellite,” said Ruff Riders head coach Gerald Dockery. “[We want to] put it on a level that minor league sports are at, but we are trying to get major league feel like the [Arena Football League]. We’re trying to get where they were and really put it out there in the public.”
After looking at several different locations, the Ruff Riders chose Abilene because of the different resources it had to offer.
“It had to do with the venue, the crowd, and we were in a situation in Katy where we had two or three major sports to compete with,” Dockery said. “Getting in a venue that allowed the sell of alcohol had a lot to do with it.”
While the move to Abilene will spark the interest of local sports fans, it also provides college athletes around Abilene the opportunity to continue their career. Morris helped ACU capture a Lone Star Conference championship in 2008 after catching 16 passes for 211 yards and three touchdowns and is looking forward to playing with former ACU players.
“I heard there was going to be a team in Abilene, and my friend told me about the tryout,” Morris said. “I went over there and did well and made the team. Since I have been playing with players of this caliber or higher, I feel prepared and ready to do it.”
The Ruff Riders will look to improve on their 5-9 record from last season and will compete in a 14-game regular season beginning April 3 against the Odessa Roughnecks. The Ruff Riders are part of the Lone Star Division, which consists of teams from San Angelo, El Paso, Corpus Christi, Frisco and Odessa.
“Since the AFL is almost over, they are trying to take this to a new level and get on the same plain,” Dockery said. “Guys need to come in shape and ready to ball. Everyone is on equal playing ground and the best players will play.”
With only eight players on the field at a time, ACU could see half of its alumni on the field at different times, something that former ACU lineman Regis Andrez is excited about.
“Oh man, it’s going to be awesome,” Andrez said. “Playing with those guys will be fun and with only eight guys on field, over half the guys could be ACU guys.”
With the recent success of the ACU football program, the Ruff Riders could be in for a breakout season in 2009.
“There’s no reason why we shouldn’t win,” Andrez said. “The guys I know playing and who we are bringing in is ridiculous. Coach Dockery shares a lot of the same characteristics of Coach Thomsen and he is very competitive which I like, so the only thing we have to worry about is playing.”
