Cleveland Arena Football

So far, so good for the return of Arena Football in Cleveland. The Cleveland Gladiators whooped the New York Dragons 61-49 tonight in front of an enthusiastic Quicken Loans Arena crowd.

QB Raymond Philyaw made his home debut with a stellar game tossing 5 touchdown passes for 240 with only interception. There was bad news for New York as standout qb Aaron Garcia went down with an injury that ended his night.

The season continues for the Gladiators next week as the face the Utah Blaze at home on Saturday.

Here is an ESPN Clip of talking about tonights game. Highlights of the game will posted when we receive them:

The city of Cleveland will welcome Arena Football back to the the area for the first time in 14 years as the Gladiators take the field against the New York Dragons. The Cleveland Thunderbolts lasted only 3 seasons and played in the now razed Richfield Coliseum. The Gladiators, who played last season in Las Vegas, will take the field at Quicken Loans Arena. The downtown area will probably a better fit to attract crowds than the Coliseum.

Tickets are affordable for the action packed Arena Football game starting at only $13. There will be no local television outlets showing the game but you can hear the game on AM 850 WKNR.

With the NFL Season coming to a close we can now focus our attention on Cleveland's brand new professional football. The Cleveland Gladiators, who play in the Arena Football League, are set to kickoff for the first time next month. If you are looking forward to seeing the live action, tickets go on sale Saturday at 12:00 pm.

“We are just over a month away from the start of the season and can’t wait to kickoff with the Dragons on March 3rd,” team President and CEO Bernie Kosar said. “We’ve built up the anticipation and now with single game tickets on sale, we can begin to pack The Q for opening night.”

Tickets range in price from $13-$70.

Here is the home schedule:

Gladiators Home Game Schedule

Upset that the NFL season is coming to an end on Sunday? Have no fear, the Cleveland Gladiators are here. The new team has announced that training camp will be held starting on February 5th, 2008 to prepare them for the season opener on March 3rd when the Cleveland's new Arena Football team takes the field against the New York Dragons.

Practices will be held at MultiPlex Events & Sports Center in Warrensville Heights. The team will have 23 pracices and two scrimmages against other teams in the league.

"We are looking forward to getting our players in town and the start of camp," Head Coach Mike Wilpot said in a press release. "With the new rule changes, we have many things to work on and look at before we open the season on March 3rd."

The Cleveland Gladiators, the cities new Arena Football League team, have reached a deal with AM 850 WKNR to air their games.

“We are extremely excited to announce our affiliation with ESPN 850 WKNR. We look forward to working with them as our flagship home and our inaugural season in Cleveland,” stated Kosar.

"The Cleveland Gladiators are an exciting addition for this football crazy region and fans will enjoy an exciting game experience. We are honored to partner with Northeast Ohio's favorite son and ESPN 850 WKNR on-air personality Bernie Kosar and the Cleveland Gladiators both on the field and on the air," Craig Karmazin of Good Karma Broadcasting President said.

Do you think you have the moves to become part of the dancing team with the exciting new Arena Football League team in Cleveland? You can find out as the Cleveland Gladiators will hold open tryouts on Saturday, January 19th.

The tryouts will be held at Renaissance Cleveland Hotel Grand Ballroom with registration starting at 8am and the tryout beginning at 9am. The women attending the event are required to be a high school graduate, at least 18 years of age by January 19, 2008 with a valid photo ID and are required to wear two-piece dance wear including a midriff top, lycra shorts and appropriate footwear. There is a fee of $25 to tryout.

A week after the Cleveland Plain Dealer took credit for getting the Cleveland Indians uniforms changed, the Cleveland Leader may be the reason that Bernie Kosar's new Arena Football team has announced a new team name. The Cleveland Gladiators will start their regular season action in March. The teams colors will consist of red, black and silver.

“It is an exciting day for Cleveland football,” said Gladiator part-owner, CEO and president Bernie Kosar said in release by the team “The name ’Gladiators’ epitomizes what I felt like taking the field every Sunday. We have been building this the right way with a top quality coaching staff and players that will be proud to have "Cleveland" on their uniforms.”

Am I the only one in Cleveland who wonders why the Cleveland Arena Football League team is still without a name? It has been nearly two full months since the announcement that Cleveland would field its first Arena League team since the Cleveland Thunderbolts folded after the 1994 season for the 2008 season.

By not having any team name the Cleveland franchise is missing out on the lucrative holiday season where they could get their brand out to Clevelanders. They could be selling jerseys, hats, gloves, and tickets all at the same time. C'mon people, this is Marketing 101 I am talking about, not the Wharton School of Business.

I truly want Bernie Kosar's franchise to work. But I see this as fumbling the ball before the team even starts. Another thing I would do is sign a big named Ohio State Buckeye or ex-Cleveland High School star to play on the team. There has to be someone out there that could draw attention the franchise. The new franchise released a press release earlier this year proclaiming "Cleveland Makes a Statement in Free Agency".

Here are some of the players that they signed:

QB RAYMOND PHILYAW (5-10, 180, NE Louisiana), OL/DL SILAS DEMARY (6-3, 285, Virginia State) and DB BRANDON HEFFLIN (6-1, 185, Toledo).

By now you have heard that Cleveland has a brand new Arena Football League franchise on their way for the 2008 season. Today the schedule for the as of yet unnamed team has been set.

"It's a very competitive schedule," said Cleveland president and CEO Bernie Kosar. "We look forward to the challenge in front of us, especially in a very strong Eastern Division."

The new team will play each of its Eastern Division foes twice this season. Games will be played at the Quicken Loans Arena.

This is Cleveland's second chance at the Arena League but has a much better chance of thriving this time around as the league has a much wider following with national television exposure and will be playing in downtown Cleveland for the first time. The now defunct Cleveland Thunderbolts played at the old Richfield Coliseum.

Ticket prices start at $12 per game and season tickets can be purchased by calling (216) 298-6979.

Here is the 2008 schedule.