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Grand Rapids Rampage
The Grand Rapids Rampage was an arena football team based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. The team began play in 1998 in the Arena Football League as an expansion team. They were last coached by Steve Thonn. Their home arena was the Van Andel Arena. History In 1997, Dan DeVos was granted an expansion AFL franchise for the 1998 season, and was awarded the remains of the dormant Massachusetts Marauders franchise out of bankruptcy court. That team's first incarnation, the Detroit Drive, had been the league's first dynasty; the Drive had advanced to the ArenaBowl in all six years they played in Detroit, winning four times. They moved to Worcester, Massachusetts for the 1994 season before folding. Due to the four-year period of dormancy, the Rampage did not claim the Drive/Marauders' history as their own. Grand Rapids was the smallest market in which the AFL had a franchise at the times of its first/2009 disbanding. The Rampage played in the Van Andel Arena, which is also the home of the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Van Andel Arena
Van Andel Arena is a 12,000 plus seat multi-purpose arena, situated in the Heartside district of Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States. The arena attracted over five million patrons in its first 5 years, 1996–2001. It is home to the Grand Rapids Griffins of the American Hockey League, the top minor league affiliate of the Detroit Red Wings, with fans giving it the nickname "The Freezer on Fulton". It is also home to the Grand Rapids Gold of the NBA G League, the minor league affiliate of the Denver Nuggets. Van Andel Arena is the fourth-largest arena in Michigan, as well as West Michigan's largest; only Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, the Jack Breslin Student Events Center in East Lansing, and the Crisler Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan, are larger. Background After a $78 million construction effort, the arena opened on October 8, 1996. The 12,000 plus seat arena is managed by ASM Global. It was named in recognition of the largest benefactors, Jay and Betty Van Andel. The arena ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rhinoceros
A rhinoceros (; ; ), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. (It can also refer to a member of any of the extinct species of the superfamily Rhinocerotoidea.) Two of the extant species are native to Africa, and three to South and Southeast Asia. Rhinoceroses are some of the largest remaining megafauna: all weigh at least one tonne in adulthood. They have a herbivorous diet, small brains (400–600 g) for mammals of their size, one or two horns, and a thick (1.5–5 cm), protective skin formed from layers of collagen positioned in a lattice structure. They generally eat leafy material, although their ability to ferment food in their hindgut allows them to subsist on more fibrous plant matter when necessary. Unlike other perissodactyls, the two African species of rhinoceros lack teeth at the front of their mouths; they rely instead on their lips to pl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fred Gayles
Frederick Gayles (born May 11, 1966) is a former Arena football wide receiver/linebacker in the Arena Football League (AFL). He played college football at Western State Colorado University. In 2002, Gayles was elected into the Arena Football Hall of Fame The Arena Football Hall of Fame is the official Hall of Fame of the Arena Football League (AFL). The inaugural class was announced in 1998 and the Hall was not formally organized until 2011. Prior to 2011, there were four classes: 1998–200 .... References 1966 births Living people American football wide receivers American football linebackers Western Colorado Mountaineers football players Denver Dynamite (arena football) players Albany Firebirds players New York CityHawks players Grand Rapids Rampage players Players of American football from Denver {{linebacker-1960s-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Quarterback
The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually considered the leader of the offense, and is often responsible for calling the play in the huddle. The quarterback also touches the ball on almost every offensive play, and is almost always the offensive player that throws forward passes. When the QB is tackled behind the line of scrimmage, it is called a sack. Overview In modern American football, the starting quarterback is usually the leader of the offense, and their successes and failures can have a significant impact on the fortunes of their team. Accordingly, the quarterback is among the most glorified, scrutinized, and highest-paid positions in team sports. '' Bleacher Report'' describes the signing of a starting quarterback as a Catch- ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
James MacPherson (American Football)
James MacPherson (born September 2, 1980) is a former American football quarterback who played two seasons in the Arena Football League (AFL) with the Georgia Force and Grand Rapids Rampage. He played college football at Wake Forest University. He was also a member of the Indianapolis Colts, Hamilton Tiger-Cats, Colorado Crush, Philadelphia Soul and Green Bay Blizzard. Early years MacPherson played high school football at Mountain View High School (Pima County, Arizona), Mountain View High School in Tucson, Arizona, where he was a three-year Letterman (sports), letterman at quarterback. He also earned All-Southern Arizona honors as both a quarterback and Punter (football), punter in 1997. MacPherson recorded 2,500 passing yards and 800 rushing yards during his career. He completed more than 56 percent of his passes. He earned all-region honors as a shortstop and pitcher in baseball. MacPherson also earned a spot on the honor roll and was named a "Scholar-Athlete" by the Arizona Int ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kansas City Brigade
Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named after the Kansas River, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native Americans who lived along its banks. The tribe's name (natively ') is often said to mean "people of the (south) wind" although this was probably not the term's original meaning. For thousands of years, what is now Kansas was home to numerous and diverse Native American tribes. Tribes in the eastern part of the state generally lived in villages along the river valleys. Tribes in the western part of the state were semi-nomadic and hunted large herds of bison. The first Euro-American settlement in Kansas occurred in 1827 at Fort Leavenworth. The pace of settlement accelerated in the 1850s, in the midst of political wars over the slavery debate. When i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Michael Bishop (football Player)
Michael Paul Bishop (born May 15, 1976) is a former gridiron football quarterback. He was drafted in the seventh round (227th overall) of the 1999 NFL Draft by the New England Patriots. Bishop was a member of the CFL's Toronto Argonauts from 2002 to 2008. He also previously played with the National Football League's New England Patriots during the 2000 season and also played in the Arena Football League, most recently with the Grand Rapids Rampage. He was also one of the best college quarterbacks in the country during his career at Kansas State, beating out UCLA's Cade McNown for the 1998 Davey O'Brien Award. Academy Award winning actor Jamie Foxx (Eric Bishop) is Michael Bishop's first cousin. Bishop was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2023. High school and college football career High school career Bishop was an outstanding football and baseball player at Willis High School in Willis, Texas. A two-year starter who averaged 221.2 yards-per-game passing as a se ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Colorado Crush
The Colorado Crush were an arena football team based in Denver, Colorado. They began play as a 2003 Arena Football League expansion team. The Crush played in the Central Division of the American Conference until the Arena Football League suspended operations in 2009. They were last coached by Mike Dailey and owned by a coalition of Denver sports figures led by John Elway. Negotiations with a Denver ownership group (known not to be the Elway group) were underway for a future AFL expansion franchise in Denver, but it is unclear whether or not it will use the Crush branding or that of the Denver Dynamite, an earlier AFL team. Like the Dallas Desperados, the Crush's branding is partially based on NFL teams (the Denver Broncos and St. Louis Rams, though to a much lesser degree), which could give Pat Bowlen or Stan Kroenke a potential veto over any usage of the Colorado Crush branding. On July 15, 2015, the Crush name was acquired by the Indoor Football League franchise formerly know ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Steve Smith (wide Receiver, Born 1974)
Steve Smith (born May 30, 1974) is an American former arena football offensive specialist. He played college football at Utah State. He was originally signed as an undrafted free agent by the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League (CFL). In his career, Smith also played for the Buffalo Destroyers, Grand Rapids Rampage, Philadelphia Soul, and Kansas City Brigade. While he spent most of his career in the Arena Football League (AFL), he did spend time in the original Indoor Football League (IFL) as a member of the Flint Flames, as well as the short-lived XFL as a member of the Birmingham Thunderbolts. College career Junior college Smith first attended Independence Community Junior College where he was an option quarterback for his freshman season. He then transferred to Chaffey Junior College where he converted to wide receiver. After the team started the season 0-3, he was switched back to quarterback. He went on to be junior college All-America selection. Utah State ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Georgia Force
The Georgia Force was an Arena Football League (AFL) team based in Gwinnett County, Georgia, United States (part of suburban Atlanta) that played in the South Division of the American Conference. The team was owned by Doug MacGregor and Donn Jennings. Following the termination of operations of the Arena Football League on August 4, 2009, Georgia Force officials quickly followed with a release that indicated that they, too, were ceasing operations. In 2010, the Alabama Vipers announced they would leave Huntsville, and would move to suburban Atlanta for the 2011 AFL season, once again playing home games at Arena at Gwinnett Center. Following the 2012 season, the franchise folded citing, "The market never responded to our extensive marketing and sales campaign," said team president Corey Remillard. "With all of the outreach, marketing, community and public relations that we put forward, it would have been impossible to not know that we were playing here, and the city simply did n ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rhinoceros
A rhinoceros (; ; ), commonly abbreviated to rhino, is a member of any of the five extant species (or numerous extinct species) of odd-toed ungulates in the family Rhinocerotidae. (It can also refer to a member of any of the extinct species of the superfamily Rhinocerotoidea.) Two of the extant species are native to Africa, and three to South and Southeast Asia. Rhinoceroses are some of the largest remaining megafauna: all weigh at least one tonne in adulthood. They have a herbivorous diet, small brains (400–600 g) for mammals of their size, one or two horns, and a thick (1.5–5 cm), protective skin formed from layers of collagen positioned in a lattice structure. They generally eat leafy material, although their ability to ferment food in their hindgut allows them to subsist on more fibrous plant matter when necessary. Unlike other perissodactyls, the two African species of rhinoceros lack teeth at the front of their mouths; they rely instead on their lips to pl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
