The Northern Kentucky River Monsters were a professional indoor football team based in

Highland Heights, Kentucky Highland Heights is a home rule-class city in Campbell County, Kentucky, in the United States. The population was 6,923 at the 2010 U.S. census. Highland Heights is home to Northern Kentucky University and General Cable, a Fortune 500 company wh ...

. The River Monsters began play as a charter member of the

Ultimate Indoor Football League The Ultimate Indoor Football League (UIFL) was a regional professional indoor football league that began its inaugural season on February 18, 2011 as the Ultimate Indoor Football League before playing as the United Indoor Football League in 2012 ...

(UIFL) for its inaugural 2011 season spending one season in the UIFL before reaching an agreement with league management to leave. After a two-year hiatus, the River Monsters returned in 2014 as a member of the South Division of the

Continental Indoor Football League The Continental Indoor Football League (CIFL) was an indoor football league based along the Midwestern United States region that played nine seasons from 2006 to 2014. It began play in April 2006 as the Great Lakes Indoor Football League (GLIF ...

(CIFL). The River Monsters played their home games at

The Bank of Kentucky Center Truist Arena, formerly The Bank of Kentucky Center and BB&T Arena, is a 10,000-seat multi-purpose arena in Highland Heights, Kentucky, on the campus of Northern Kentucky University. The arena was topped off on June 21, 2007, and the first event ...

. On June 6, 2011, it was announced that the UIFL and the River Monsters mutually agreed to part ways, leaving the team free to join another league. However, the UIFL had a lease agreement with the arena, which hampered the likelihood the River Monsters would play in Highland Heights in 2012. The team had been mentioned as a charter member Stadius Football Association in 2012, but that league never got off the ground. The team suspended operations on October 1, 2014.

History

2011

Announced as startup team for the newly formed

in 2010, the team was purchased by Jill Chitwood from the UIFL in February 2011. The River Monsters were the first professional sports team to play in northern Kentucky in over 90 years, after the

Covington Blue Sox The Covington Blue Sox were a Federal League baseball club in Covington, Kentucky, in 1913. The team was also referred to as the Covington Colonels or Covington Federals in contemporary newspaper reports. The team was moved to Kansas City in Jul ...

folded after a single season in 1913. Just a week before the season began, team general manager,

Jared Lorenzen Jared Raymond Lorenzen (February 14, 1981 – July 3, 2019) was an American football quarterback and administrator who played in the National Football League (NFL) for four seasons with the New York Giants. He played college football at Kentucky ...

, relieved himself of his duties as general manager, and became the quarterback for the franchise. In the River Monsters first ever game they defeated the Canton Cougars by a score of 63–41. With a week 9 win over the

Saginaw Sting The Saginaw Sting was a professional Indoor Football team based in Saginaw, Michigan. The team was most recently a member of American Indoor Football (AIF). They began play in 2008 as an expansion team in the Continental Indoor Football League ...

, the River Monsters had clinched a postseason berth in their first season, clinching home field advantage throughout the playoffs. After wrapping up the season, the UIFL had discovered that the River Monsters had been paying their players over the league's salary cap. The UIFL stripped the River Monsters of the #1 seed and made them the #4 seed, taking away the River Monster's chance to earn playoff money. The River Monster now traveled to

Saginaw, Michigan Saginaw () is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the seat of Saginaw County. The city of Saginaw and Saginaw County are both in the area known as Mid-Michigan. Saginaw is adjacent to Saginaw Charter Township and considered part of Greater ...

to play the Sting, where the Sting upset the River Monsters 48–47. On June 6, 2011, it was announced that the UIFL and the River Monsters mutually agreed to part ways, leaving the team free to join another league. However, the UIFL had a lease agreement with the arena (establishing a paper franchise named the

Kentucky Monsters Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

to hold onto the lease) and signed Lorenzen as their commissioner, which hampered the likelihood the River Monsters would play in Highland Heights in 2012. The team had been mentioned as a charter member Stadius Football Association, but that league never got off the ground. On their web show, the

Dayton Silverbacks The Dayton Silverbacks were a professional indoor football team based in Dayton, Ohio. The team was a member of the Continental Indoor Football League (CIFL). The franchise started as the Miami Valley Silverbacks and joined the CIFL in 2007 afte ...

announced the River Monsters would be joining the

(CIFL), moving to

Muncie, Indiana Muncie ( ) is an incorporated city and the county seat, seat of Delaware County, Indiana, Delaware County, Indiana. Previously known as Buckongahelas Town, named after the legendary Delaware Chief.http://www.delawarecountyhistory.org/history/docs ...

, and retaining the River Monsters name. A September 2011 article on OurSportsCentral.com also said that former ownership of the Northern Kentucky River Monsters were joining the CIFL and moving to Muncie for the 2012 season. However, the team never played a game in Muncie.

2014

After a two-year layoff, the River Monsters announced that they would be returning to an active team, joining the CIFL for the 2014 season. In the River Monsters' first game of the season, listed as 320 pounds,

showed that he still had plenty of athleticism. Lorenzen's play was filmed and the videos ended up all over the internet, overshadowing the River Monsters' 36–20 victory of the

Bluegrass Warhorses The Bluegrass Warhorses were a professional indoor American football team based in Lexington, Kentucky. The team joined the Continental Indoor Football League (CIFL) in 2014 as an expansion team. The Warhorses were the second indoor football team ...

. Head coach Brian Schmidt was fired on February 22, and was replaced by defensive coordinator Mike Goodpaster. Goodpaster was able to salvage the season after losing Lorenzen to injury in week 2, going 5–2 down the stretch, defeating the

Dayton Sharks The Dayton Sharks were a professional indoor football team based in Dayton, Ohio. The team was a member of the Continental Indoor Football League (CIFL). The franchise started as an expansion team in the CIFL during the 2013 season. The Sharks ...

the final week of the season to clinch the final South Division playoff spot. On October 1, 2014, the team announced that they were suspending operations effective immediately.River Monsters to Suspend Operations Effective Immediately
Team website, October 1, 2014

Notable players

Final roster

Awards and honors

The following is a list of all Northern Kentucky River Monsters players who won league awards

All-league players

The following River Monsters players were named to all-league teams: * QB

(1) * RB Maurice Douse (1) * WR Ricardo Lenhart (2), Willie Idlette (1), Harry Lewis (1) * OL Khalil El-Amin (1),

Matt Rahn Matthew Rahn (born January 14, 1982) is a retired American football player and since 2020, the acting head coach of the College of DuPage Chaparrals football team. College career Rahn attended the College of DuPage, where he was a member of the ...

(1), George Frisch (1), Frank Straub (1) * DL

Thomas McKenzie Thomas "T.J." McKenzie is a former indoor football defensive lineman. Early life McKenzie graduated from Etiwanda High School in Etiwanda, Ca. Professional career Marion Mayhem Following the 2006 season,it was announced that McKenzie had sig ...

(1), D'arrel Brown (1), Luke Scarbough (1) * LB Jon D'Angelo (1), Santino Turnbow (1), David James (1) * DB David Jones (1), Tez Morris (1), Tommy Harris (1), Ahoma Maxwell (1) * K Dustin Zink (2) * KR Maurice Douse (1)

Head coaches

Season-by-season results

References

External links

Northern Kentucky River Monsters official siteUIFL press release announcing the team
{{UIFL 2010 establishments in Kentucky 2014 disestablishments in Kentucky