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Damon Dowdell threw 4 TD passes and Nick Body caught 2 of them as the home team, the Kalamazoo Xplosion, turned the ball over far too many times in this game and was defeated by the Saginaw Sting at Wings Stadium 41-37 for the 2008 Continental Indoor Football League Championship. It looked like Kalamazoo kicker Brad Selent might have had won the game for the formerly unbeaten at home (15-0 2 seasons) Xplosion on a late FG, but it was not to be for Kalamazoo. A ton of flags were tossed in this one, and the Kalamazoo great DB David Gater did not do much to speak of. Congrats to the Saginaw Sting on winning the CIFL championship. The Sting only lost 2 games all season long, once to the 12-0 Rochester Raiders and once in Rockford earlier this season to the Raptors and it is the Sting that grab the big CIFL hardware this year. Not only does Saginaw win the league championship, but Body and Dowdell are both among the front runners for league MVP and Offensive Player of the Year awards. Congrats to the Saginaw Sting!

-MinoltaMan 6-29 2008

Kalamazoo Xplosion DB David Gater erases the Raptors lead at the close of the first half by returning this Brandon Wogomon flea-flicker pass the distance breaking the momentum and the spirit of the Rock River Raptors. Gater picked off the Raptors 6 times this season on his way to the CIFL Defensive Player of the Year Award and quite possibly even the league MVP award as well. Gater has accumulated an amazing 18 interceptions on the year. This particular play call was quite possibly the worst play call in the history of Rock River Raptors football. 

The gallery from this game is under construction and when complete it will contain 125 images or more. Click here to be view the CIFL Great Lakes Conference Championship images. This game saw an amazing beginning as the start time of game was actually delayed to allow the Xplosion's big stud DB David Gater to arrive before halftime!!!! A complete game recap and story will be posted in the next couple of days. Congratulations to Kalamazoo on getting the job done.

-MinoltaMan

Randy Bell and the Raptors took the 12-1 Kalamazoo Xplosion to overtime before falling 33-26 in Kalamazoo in the opening game of this CIFL season. The rematch in Rockford was also won by Kalamazoo 36-28, a game in which CIFL MVP favorite Randy Bell missed a lot of the action due to injury. The Xplosion have a 14 game home winning streak on the line in this one, and Randy and the Raptors are fully intent on busting that streak and sitting the Xplosion down for the last week of the season. No worry for the Xplosion owners though as this same ownership group also owns the 11-2 Saginaw Sting...The Sting are heavy favorites in the Atlantic Conference Championship game against the 7-5 Lehigh Valley Outlawz to be played on Monday night. If the Raptors and Saginaw win, the Raptors will travel to Saginaw for the championship game on the following Monday. If the Raptors and the Outlawz win, the Raptors will host the CIFL championship game in Rockford next Saturday. If Kalamazoo wins, Kzoo will host the game against the Atlantic Conference winner next Sunday.

Eric Gardner had 82 passing yards in the game in Rockford as Kalamazoo used the two-headed quarterback monster to good effect in this one.

JoJo Moore opened the game in Rockford with a kick return touchdown, the second straight game he opened the game with a TD return.

Kalamazoo coach Mike Sparks and several of the Xplosion players were really working the refs in the Rockford game, and it seemed to payoff for them as the game progressed. The Raptors were called for a dozen penalties last week against Chicago and we don't need to see that repeated in Kalamazoo tomorrow night.

Rockford will need to contain Brian Dolph who is a force at wide receiver for the Kalamazoo Xplosion.

Left: Rock River quarterback Steve Lafalce winging it against Kalamazoo in Rockford. Lafalce has yet to beat the Xplosion in two efforts this season. Steve has been working much better under pressure as the season progresses, and he also seems to be getting a much better feel for his receiving crew as he has shown steady improvement over the course of the season. Steve is one of the best running quarterbacks in the league, and he is not afraid to take it into the teeth of a defense for a key first down or a clutch score. Right: Randy Hutchinson is one of the best QB's in the CIFL and he is not shy about throwing the football downfield. The Raptors will need to keep up the solid play on the DLine, and in the secondary, to be successful against the Xplosion.

The Kalamazoo Xplosion field a solid defense that likes to rip at the ball. Randy and the Raptors will need to play relatively mistake free to beat the Xplosion in Kalamazoo.

Steve LaFalce has a chance to put the biggest win on the board the Raptors have ever had. With Luke, Brandon, and Willie all in post-season form, I fully expect Steve to have a decent day and win this Great Lakes Conference Championship  game against the Xplosion.

Kicker Filip Filipovic was finally dialed in last week in Chicago. Filip hit on a 37 and 43 yard field goals in the Raptors rout of the Slaughter. If Kzoo keeps the game close, Filip may have to test the low air inside Wing's stadium.

Left: Since Domonique Dunbar was beaten by Brian Dolph on this play we have seen some good improvements in the Raptors secondary play. Dunbar was involved in a bit of an on-field altercation during the Chicago game and we hope he is able to go against the Xplosion. Right: Kalamazoo DB David Gater is a lock for the CIFL Defensive Player of the Year award and he has played two solid games against the Raptors this season. Gater had three INTs in the first game against us, and 10 tackles in the second.

If the Raptors defeat the Xplosion in Kalamazoo we will more than likely travel to Saginaw to face Damon Dowdell's Saginaw Sting in the CIFL Championship game a week from Monday. Dowdell is in the running for CIFL Offensive Player of the Year as he has been firing a ton of TD passes to Nick Body and others all season long.

The Raptors defeated the Sting in a great game at the MetroCentre earlier in the season even with superstar Nick Body having a solid game. Fortunately for the Raptors, Randy Bell put 244 all-purpose yards on the Sting in that one to trump the MVP candidate Body. Body is a legitimate CIFL MVP contender this season, and don't be surprised if we see the award shared by both Bell and Body.

The Raptors have a great chance of beating the Xplosion tomorrow night and all of the pressure is on Kalamazoo. If the Billy Cook's defense plays well, the Raptors win no matter what the Xplosion do. The Raptors DLine (Matrenga, Jones, and Foxx) are playing solid football, and as long as we see Dunbar or Patrick Jackson in the secondary along with Cordera Jackson, Burge, and Hampton, defeating the Xplosion should not be a problem. Monte Smith has been playing great football and Maurice Simpkins should be ready to go so the linebacker position will be well covered as well.

LeRoy McFadden's offense will need to keep doing what they have been doing of late. Take what is there, don't force it, make good decisions, make some adjustments, and control the ball game on the ground. If Kzoo tries to stuff the run and contain Stevie, Luke, Brandon, and Willie should be able to get to enough balls to put the win on the board for the Coach Jones and the Rock River Raptors.

That's my story and I am sticking with it. Go Raptors!

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-MinoltaMan 6-20-2008 9:00PM

The Kalamazoo Xplosion will host the Rock River Raptors in the CIFL Great Lakes Conference Championship game on Saturday night June 21, 2008 at Wings Stadium in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Kickoff is at 7:30 PM and the game will be broadcast on ESPN radio. The winner of this game will play for the CIFL Championship on the following weekend against either the Saginaw Sting or the Lehigh Valley Outlawz.

-MinoltaMan 11:39 AM 06-15-2008

CIFL Rd #1 playoff action - Somebody had better get Willie Tolon Jr a pilots license cuz' this guy can fly and sky with the best of them...

Luke McArdle has some of the best concentration in the business and fans at the Sears Center watched Luke run under this Steve LaFalce bomb in textbook fashion.

Luke McArdle fought and won this battle with the Chicago Slaughter defensive back.

Steve LaFalce is proving to be one of the better running quarterbacks out there, and he proved in this game that he has what it takes to take over a game if necessary. LaFalce was killing the Chicago Slaughter most of the night, and they had no real answer for him.

The familiar Steve LaFalce airplane glide into the endzone...this TD looked easy and it signaled a beatdown was in the making.

Mo Simpkins was a no show in Hoffman Estates, but the Raptors did not miss a beat as Monte Smith proved to be the beast in this one.

CIFL scoring and rushing leader Mr. Touchdown Randy Bell is a sure lock for at least a piece of the 2008 CIFL MVP Award, and he was back from his tryout with the Buffalo Bills and in-action against the Chicago Slaughter. Two more wins and Randy will be wearing a sweet ring to go with that hardware...

[CIFL Playoffs - Hoffman Estates] 

The Rock River Raptors easily tore apart the Chicago Slaughter on the road at the Sears Center on Friday night. The Raptors punished the Slaughter right up until garbage time as the Rock River defense held Ronnie Gordon, JR Taylor, and the rest of Slaughter offense in serious check. QB Steve LaFalce was making great decisions while killing the Slaughter with his feet, and he also connected on a beautiful long TD hookup with Rockford fan favorite Luke McArdle as one of the six scores he accounted for. The Raptors never trailed and were never challenged in this one. The Raptors will play for a CIFL Conference Championship next week, and that game will more than likely take place in Kalamazoo, Michigan unless the Thunder from Muskegon can pull off the big road upset.

The Slaughter talk a big game on the message boards, but the Raptors played the big game on the Slaughter's home field, and now Rock River is only two wins away from a CIFL Championship. Way to play Raptors! We have taken down Saginaw and Chicago this season, and it is now time to show Kalamazoo who the new power is in the CIFL.

Kalamazoo, you're up next!!

Click here to view the action photos from the Raptors 54-39 CIFL playoff shredding shredding of the Chicago Slaughter. (This gallery is in-progress.)

Randy Bell blows by the Sioux Falls legend Mark
Blackburn in a game against the Sioux Falls Storm at the Rockford MetroCentre.

I am getting tired of reading
straight BS false propaganda put out by the Rochester Raiders website and others! The
Rochester Raiders ARE NOT close to owning the LONGEST INDOOR FOOTBALL WINNING
STREAK by any stretch of the imagination. This garbage was released on the
Rochester Raider website and has been picked up by media around the country,
including our own Rockford Register Star. What a joke...The Raiders claim the
Port Huron Pirates streak is the longest ever at 26 games, this is not even close to the longest winning streak as
many Rock River fans, and most UIF fans know better than this as the mighty
SIOUX FALLS STORM won 40 straight indoor football games dating from July 2005 to March 29, 2008. The
Storm's winning streak was finally ended by the Omaha Beef  34-18 and this 40 gamer by the Storm is
*supposedly* the longest winning streak in professional team sports history.

Rochester may have quit the league but they
need to stop making up BS and posting it on their website. The Storm dominated
the UIF for several seasons and it's hard to believe so many folks believe the
cra* posted on the Rochester Raiders website. One more thing while I am on this
rant...The Raiders staff and fans need not claim they are the CIFL champs as
they decided not to play the 2008 playoffs and therefore forfeit all right to
claim they are champions of anything yet this 2008 indoor football season.

-MinoltaMan 6-11-2008

The Rock River Raptors and Randy Bell lead the CIFL in rushing, and Mr. Touchdown has scored an amazing 36 touchdowns this CIFL season. As we reported earlier Randy had a tryout with the Buffallo Bills this week, but Coach Jones says Randy will be ready to go for the Raptors on Friday night, and we all know Randy has dominated the Slaughter both times we have seen them this season.

The Raptors suffered a blow both on the DLine and at long snapping when Anthony Harris received an NFL contract earlier in the season. The Raptors lineplay has been getting better as the season progresses and Vichael Foxx, Mike Matrenga, and Shopping Cart Jones have been working over the opposing quarterbacks fairly well of late.

Ben Sankey had no trouble beating the Chicago Slaughter earlier in the season. We won't have all world QB Ben Sankey for this one as he was told to stop playing indoor football by his CFL team several weeks ago.

Patrick Jackson only played 4 games for the Raptors in 2008, but in those 4 games he came up with 5 interceptions and several highlight film plays. Patrick has been sidelined with an injury for most of the season and we are suspecting he may be ready to go for playoffs. This may present a situation for the Raptors as the Raptors current secondary consisting of Domonique Dunbar, Tristan Burge, and Cordera Jackson have come up with a ton of turnovers of late, and the Raptors actually lead the CIFL in takaways by a decent margin. The question you have to ask yourself is how rusty will Patrick be after the long layoff even if he is ready?

Steve LaFalce will need to play his best game as a Raptor on Friday night. He will need to bring solid leadership, make solid decisions, and he will need to complete some medium and/or long range passes on Chicago for the Raptors to be victorious in this CIFL tilt. Stevie is as good as scrambler as anyone in the CIFL, but we need the threat of the deep ball as a weapon, and Steve has not looked good going deep all season long.

Randy Bell has led the Raptors to the most first downs in the CIFL, the CIFL's time-of-possession lead, and now the number one combined ranking after the "suspension" of the Rochester Raiders. The CIFL's combined rank is derived from points scored, points allowed, schedule strength, victory strength, and point differential. To the surprise of many that don't follow  Raptors football, the Raptors have held down the number 2 power ranking spot produced by the league for almost the entire season. This is the ranking as of today, as presented by the league webmaster/statistician.

The Rock River Raptors can not afford to be stuffed at the goaline like it happened last time we were in Chicago. The Raptors used to be a strong goaline team, and we need to convert every opportunity on the Slaughter. Coach McFadden may need to be creative to punch in those tough scores and hopefully he has had enough games under his belt to have a few tricks in his pocket for the Slaughter defense.

JR Taylor is a short yardage force for Chicago and the Rock River defense needs to frustrate him early. If we can shut Taylor down again, I expect our much improved pass defense will not give up anywhere near the 67 points they gave up last time we played in the Sears Center.

Kicker Filip Filipovic has not been setting the indoor world on fire by any means and this season the Raptors kicking game has made 25-30 less field goals than they did last year! Wow...that is really leaving some points on the field!

Last year Doug Daniel converted on 31 of 52 field goals and tallied 166 points for the Raptors. This year the kicking game has been non-existent and I can't even remember the last time we converted a successful field goal. Doug Daniel made more field goals in one game last year than the Raptors have made this entire 2008 CIFL season!

Mike Matrenga, JoJo Moore, Brandon Tobias and the rest of the Raptors will need to bring their A-Game to take down the Slaughter on Friday night and play for a conference championship. The Raptors can get it done if the defense plays like it is capable of playing, and Steve LaFalce makes good on-field decisions. The last time we were in Chicago we made some bad mistakes and had a couple dropped footballs and we can't afford see any of that stuff this time if we are to continue down the CIFL championship road.

Go Raptors!!!!!

Click here to view all of the 2008 football action photo galleries.

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Click here to view the 2007 Cheerleader photo galleries.

Click here to view all 4000 indoor football photos.

-MinoltaMan 12:02 PM 6-11-08

The CIFL has announced that they have suspended coach Eddie Long's defending league champion Rochester Raiders! This is more jokes from the CIFL as everyone already knows the Rochester Raiders told the Spitaleri brothers to stick this league on Sunday! As reported here and elsewhere on Sunday the undefeated Raiders pulled out of the CIFL and joined the AIFA after the Flint Phantoms failed to show for their game in Rochester. The CIFL has replaced Rochester in the playoffs with the 7-5 Marion Mahem, and has placed the Rochester Raiders on a so-called "suspended status". The Raiders are the one that suspended the CIFL games...not the league. The league suspension may help the league appear to save face, but the fact remains that the Rochester Raiders pulled out of this league and joined the AIFA on Sunday.

-MinoltaMan 1:12 PM 6-10-2008

The joke is on the CIFL as Rochester Raiders owner Bob Bartosiewicz pulled his undefeated and reigning world champion Rochester Raiders out of the CIFL earlier today after the Flint Phantoms failed to show up for the game in Rochester this afternoon.

The Rochester Raiders had won 24 straight CIFL games and Rochester Raiders superstar Maurice "Mo" Jackson will no longer be electrifying CIFL fans.

The Rochester Raiders took their 2007 CIFL championship rings with them while telling the Spitaleri brothers to shove the 2008 CIFL playoffs right up their a**. The CIFL has been horrible at enforcing rules and deadlines all season long, and the Raiders had enough of the bull.

Most of the season the CIFL statistics have been a complete joke, and now the 2008 Continental Indoor Football Season has just become a joke as well! OSC is reporting that the undefeated world champion Rochester Raiders have pulled out of the CIFL!! Team owner Bob Bartosiewicz pulled the team out of the league when the Flint Phantoms did not show up for their game with the Raiders earlier this afternoon.

The CIFL supposedly had a security deposit system in place to insure all of the season games are played,  but Barto is suspecting no team except the Raiders actually paid the security deposit. Team owner Bob Bartosiewicz asked for a refund of his security deposit and he was denied by CIFL officials. 13WHAM and the 8th man have reported that the Raiders have already been added to the American Indoor Football Association (AIFA),  and will play three exhibition home games against AIFA teams, and then play in the National Indoor Championship game in Rochester, NY against the league champ. The AIFA is an 8 man indoor league that was born from the old AIFL in 2007.

This really does not surprise me as the CIFL's weak enforcement policies, very poor communication, and the league's excuse making is second to none. It now appears as if a handful of CIFL teams may not be back next year due to financial or other reasons,  and to be honest several of the teams in this league are a complete joke anyway. The CIFL had been producing incomplete, slow, misleading and inaccurate stats for months, and now the season is a confirmed farce with the pulling out of the defending league champion Rochester Raiders before the playoffs even begin!

I gotta hand it to the Raiders, they were not getting what was expected, and they told the league where to put it. I have seen enough of this league to know that they pitch a lot of BS instead of dealing with problems and issues that need immediate attention.

Well, Rock River, the road to the CIFL championship just got a lot easier with the team that put a 50-10  pre-season  beatdown on Raptors now gone from the league. Who would have known that just 12 games after that whupping they put on the Rik Richards led Raptors the Raiders would tell the league to stick it. Who knows how long the AIFA will be around for, but who cares since we are in the CIFL and the Continental Indoor Football League seems to be falling apart before our very own eyes...from the top and the bottom simultaneously!

-MinoltaMan 10:00 PM 6-8-2008

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-MinoltaMan