Gladiators Add 4 Wide Receivers

By Eugene McCormick. Published on 01/19/2010 - 3:58pm


The Cleveland Gladiators announced today that they have added 4 wide receivers. Ben Nelson, Cole Magner, Brent Holmes, and Chris Johnson were assigned to the team by the Areana Football One League office.

“We are excited about our talented group of wide receivers,” head coach Steve Thonn said in a press release. “Each guy brings a different dynamic to the roster and offensively, we are expecting to put up big numbers.”

Here is what we know about the players from a press release from the club earlier this afternoon.

Nelson (St. Cloud State) is no stranger to arena football. In 2006, he signed with the AFL’s San Jose SaberCats, appearing in just 11 of the team’s 15 games. He led the team with 94 receptions for 1,405 yards and 26 touchdowns, finishing the season six yards shy of the league’s rookie record in that category. For his efforts, he was named the 2006 AFL Rookie of the Year award, helping the SaberCats advance to the American Conference finals. Nelson recorded at least 100 yards receiving in seven of his 11 games that year. He spent the 2008 AFL season with the Colorado Crush, leading the team with 126 receptions and a team-high 1,358 yards and 30 touchdowns.

Magner (Bowling Green State University) spent the 2008 AFL season with Gladiators head coach STEVE THONN in Grand Rapids. Appearing in just 10 games, the former BGSU Falcon finished second on the team with 69 receptions for 739 yards and 12 touchdowns for the Rampage. The Alaskan native contributed 32 receptions for 268 yards and five touchdowns during the 2008 postseason.

Holmes (Texas A&M – Kingsville) spent the 2008 AFL season with the Georgia Force, Tampa Bay Storm and Philadelphia Soul. Appearing in 10 games between the three teams, Holmes caught 69 passes for 734 yards and 11 touchdowns. In three postseason games with the Soul, he caught 14 passes for 165 yards and five scores, including a 34-yard touchdown reception in ArenaBowl XXII.

Johnson (Georgia Southern) also spent the 2008 AFL season with Thonn as a member of the Rampage. In 2008, Johnson appeared in 15 games, recorded 66 receptions and ranked second on the team in receiving yards and touchdowns with 908 yards and 22, respectively. Johnson is familiar with northeast Ohio, having spent the 2007 arenafootball2 season with the Mahoning Valley Thunder in Youngstown.

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