AROUND THE LEAGUE… REPORTS FROM A NUMBER OF RMFL CAMPS AS THE OFF-SEASON GETS UNDER WAY

RMFL – The following is a synopsis of camp reports from a number of RMFL camps as of mid-September with the 2007 season still a long way off. It is clear that although the 2007 is still 7 months away on the calendar, many teams have already begun a title run in September...

MADISON LIONZ: Since the season offically ended, the Lionz have crowned their own MVP's at a team dinner held in August. Zak Johnson was voted Offensive MVP, Kish Beverly Defensive MVP and of course Troy Dougherty was the team overall MVP for the 2006 season. Troy has also officially announced his retirement.  GM ,Jason Stucki, is playing with the idea of changing the team name away from Madison to open up doors for other field and sponsor options.

UTAH WOLVERINES: The Wolverines are spending the off-season by participating in the Utah Football Association Flag Football league.  This gives our offensive and defensive skills positions an opportunity to workout together as a team in the off-season.

The Wolverines have had several new additions signing up for the 2007 season as well as some major financial backing this season.  No more carpooling to out of state games for the Wolverines this season.  Also look for the Wolverines to make significant contributions to local charities. The Wolverines will also have their games broadcast this season on Comcast.  We can all thank the Bears for leading the way on that. 

As for the team, the Wolverines look to return their entire starting lineups except ALL RMFL First Team DE Andrew Butler who has decided to retire, and also announcing his retirement is Wolverine founder and SS Jeremy Smith.  These will be hard shoes to fill for the Wolverines as these two guys are irreplaceable.  The Wolverines look to bounce back from a disappointing 2006 season and expect to be in the hunt for the RMFL title in 2007.  One of the many fine acquisitions for the Wolverines will be former Nemesis RB Marvell Smith.  Look for Marvell to don the Green and Silver this season not having to worry about running a team, he only has to worry about running through defenses.  Marvell and a few other Nemesis players will be joining the Wolverines this season as well as many other great athletes from all over the state. 

Any potential players who are interested in the Wolverines should contact Ed Cerise at 801-654-9881 or visit www.utahwolverines.org.

CACHE VALLY BEARS: According to Bears sources, all-star running back/defensive end, Justin Oswald, has been dismissed from the organization. A number of reasons were given, however, the primary theme was that he was a “disruptive influence” on the team. The Bears have said to have filled his spot with Trent Nate and Nick Eliason and David Fiefia will be full time next year but as a strong safety and he will be able to fill in every now and again at running back. The Bears have been looking for more players in the valley to fill in their roster. The Bears have a stated goal for next year to get at least get 2 thousand people in the stands each week. They have already got Comcast to do all home games and all in state games. Currently, the 2006 season games are still being played on comcast all over the state. The Bears admit problem areas to be filled on O.L and at D.B. They have committed Jimmy Walker OG (Ricks college, Utah State, Baltimore Ravens) Malik C (USU), and Brady Pond C Mesa (J.C). According to Vaea Feafia, the Bears “pretty much have the same core of players coming back. A bunch of us play on a flag football team and we are killing people but it is not the same. We are ready to improve from last years team. The Bears would like to thank you and the league with all your work and we stand by the decision that you make even if with don't agree with them. I was in UFL and it was ran poorly so thank you RMFL and Jared Neumeier.”

BOISE ROUGHRIDERS: The Roughriders announced that they have been trying to recruit as much as possible and land a field closer to home than Horseshoe Bend. The acquisition of sponsors is a slow process.

SNAKE RIVER SABERCATS: The Sabercats have been working, for the past 2 months, on organizing a Charity Golf Tournament, benefiting the "Operation Ensuring Christmas" Foundation. They raise money for kids that have lost one or both parents due to the war. The tournament is set for this Saturday the 23rd of September. It will be our first for the Sabercats, and hopefully many more to follow. The team’s goal is to make this an annual event. The Sabercats invite anyone around the league to come join. The cost is $60.00, which covers 18 holes of golf, use of a cart, and the BBQ that follows. Head Coach and chief organizer, Dallas Hoffman, says he “truly hoping for a good turnout. The rest of the money after paying green fees, and cart costs, will go directly to this Charity.”  Besides the charity event, the team has also been holding offensive mini camps, and defensive meetings, for the past 2 months now.

IDAHO MATADORS: The Matadors have been advertising in the local paper for new players and coaches in their rebuilding efforts. They say they are getting good responses and are also holding the the first of four fall workouts beginning in October. They are hoping that the fall workouts generate alot of excitement (as they have done in the past), especially for new players. The team says that “because we are currently at the start of the "regular football season", we get alot of interest and are able to get a look at new talent. So the Matadors are certainly not idle. We feel that we could make a very strong showing in the AA conference, and have a renewed energy for the 2007 season.” Team representative, Tom Bennett says he has been taking a lot of backpacking trips in search of beautiful alpine lakes where the fishing has been superb. “And getting my butt kicked this past week in the RMFL fantasy football, despite having the first pick of the draft.”

POCATELLO PREDATORS: The biggest development in Predator country is the retirement of Brock Gunter, and the possibility that Jeff Belnap won't be able to play next season due to a new job. Player recruitment has been going well, with about 12-15 new quality players already committed to the 2007 season. That coupled with the return of roughly 30 "core" players will make for a great team. Travis Hobson, Cameron Hicks, and Eric Hillary have stepped forward and volunteered to help run the team in 2007, with Hobson looking to take over the reigns as G.M. They'll look to hold their team meeting in December or January. Then they will begin practice in late Feb. or early March, depending on the weather. The Predators say they are definitely going to build on the positives of last season and look to be a force next year.

OGDEN RHINO-RAIDERS: The Rhino-Raiders will take on the New Mexico Crush, champions of the New Mexico Football League, on Saturday, October 21st in Ogden. The winner will advance to the Far West Football Association Championship Game on Saturday, December 9th in Mesquite, NV against the California State Champion.

Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at Ben Lomond High School.

More to details to come in the following weeks.

MUDDOGS: After an outstanding season, capping an undefeated season, and the RMFL's first AA championship, the Muddogs now look to the future.

With the ousted Ed Descamps gone, the Muddogs now look forward to building a foundation of core people who can help solidify the Muddogs as dominant semi pro powerhouse. The Muddogs as of right now have decided to keep their name, (their former owner decided to take the name they were going to switch to, ending any good ties he had with his former team). The Muddogs will have their first official meeting in October, to discuss a newly designed managing board, and also to discuss other issues including the UIFL and the 2007 RMFL season.

During the offseason, rumors spread that several Muddogs were upset at management due to certain players on the team not getting recognized for MVP awards. Misinterpretations from other players on other teams, made these rumors strong, but still the commitment is high, and the face of the Muddogs are still on set. How can a team who went undefeated and won the

championship be upset? The Muddogs say some of their players got “Nate Coned”.

Under the interim management of Chris Hooper, Kyto Khouang, John Thornton, and Jared Emerick. The Muddogs have already secured Granger again as their home. They've also been searching strong for sponsors, and have also found someone to buy them NEW home AND away jerseys. Some minor kinks need to be worked out, but it's looking good right now.

All Muddogs on the ALL-RMFL team, and who made the all star team have confirmed to come back besides one name, and they plan on being more successful next season. Recruiting has already begun, and emails and the phone lines have been jam packed with players wanting to join this newly fresh dedicated team.

If you thought the Muddogs had something to prove last season, you better wait until 2007.

UTAH HEAT: The heat are getting together to play indoor this winter. They have been busy recruiting some new talent that has not been in our league before and also some of our old players who have not played for a couple of years. They have also been organizing their Home field activities for next year... bigger and better, for sure.

GLACIER KNIGHTS: Original owner, founder and head coach, Ron LaTray finally tied the knot with his lovely co-founder, co-coach and co-owner, Brandy Bennett. Football was put on hold in Glacier-ville until after the most important event, however, NOW they say they can start concentrating on Football again. Sept 18th is first team meeting with practice to start soon after. They have recruited a few more linemen in the off season and a Quarterback. They also announced they have an outstanding bet between Sheldon McCool and Jeff Ward. The bet is the slowest 40 time has to shave his head. The two players are described as both having hair like like Mark Walberg in the new Invincible Movie. The Knights are anxious to see what happens. Other then that it's been a quite off-season.

QUICK HITS: The Salt Lake Nemesis have officially folded. Former star Nemesis player, Nate Cone, is leading an effort to build an expansion team that may fill the void… The Titans will be under new management as Justin and Marty Masiak have taken over for Dave Garza who has moved to Missoula… The Missoula Raptors have changed management and names (as previously announced); they will be called the “Missoula Pheonix”; the previous managing board of the Raptors, however, has resisted giving up management power and may resurrect with a new “Raptor” team… Former Mustang, Doug Brasier, has announced that he would be willing to organize a team in Laramie, Wyoming if the CFC merges with the RMFL… There has been no word from any of the CFC teams on a decision. RMFL Commissioner, Jared Neumeier, says he “expects to move forward with the 2007 without them.”