 The Green Bay Bombers was an indoor football team that played in the Professional Indoor Football League (PIFL) in 1998, and in the Indoor Football League (IFL) in 1999 & 2000. The Bombers franchise was owned by Keary Ecklund. The team office was based in Neenah, Wisconsin, and played their games at the Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena. The team colors were: Black, Green, and White. The Bombers were coached by Mario Russo for the '98 PIFL season and part of the '99 IFL season and by Bud Keyes for the 1999-2000 IFL seasons. Indoor football is a variation of American football with rules modified to make it suitable for play within basketball gymnasiums and, particularly, ice hockey arenas. ...
The Professional Indoor Football League was the first league to successfully play indoor football as a paid pro-league sport other than the Arena Football League. ...
The Indoor Football League began in 1999 as an offshoot of the troubled Professional Indoor Football League. ...
Neenah is a city located in Winnebago County, Wisconsin. ...
The Brown County Veterans Memorial Arena (more commonly known as the Brown County Arena) is a 5,248-seat multi-purpose arena in Green Bay, Wisconsin, USA. It was the city and countys main indoor venue until the Resch Center opened in 2002. ...
The Bombers played four preseason PIFL games in '98. Losing only once:
- February 18 - Madison Mad Dogs 22 at Green Bay Bombers 64
- February 23 - Green Bay Bombers 45 at Madison Mad Dogs 39
- March 7 - Green Bay Bombers 32 at Minnesota Monsters 35
- March 25 - Colorado Wildcats 39 at Green Bay Bombers 53
The Green Bay Bombers tied with their sister team, Madison Mad Dogs, for the second best record in the PIFL with a 10-4 record. In the playoffs, the Bombers had to travel to Madison in the first round. They lost 19-46.
Keary Ecklund took his Bombers and Mad Dogs teams and defected from the PIFL to form the IFL. In 1999, the team, again, finished with the second best record in the league at 9-3. The start of the season was not pretty, as the team lost two of their first three games, both loses to Peoria. The week before the playoffs, the Bombers beat Duluth, 52-15. Despite the great regular season record, the team was forced to travel to Lincoln in the playoffs. The Bombers brought back a 44-34 victory and a trip to Peoria for the IFL Gold Cup Championship. The Bombers won, 63-60.
The following year was very similar. After a mediocre 6-4 start, the Bombers won their final four games by large margins. After being routed 40-16 by Peoria, the Bombers took their frustrations out on LaCrosse to get the four game streak started, 62-26. The Bombers' actually got a home playoff game this time around and they took advantage of it, crushing Dayton, 64-23. Their bid for a repeat championship ended the following week, with a 21-10 loss at Steel Valley. When the IFL was sold, the Bombers disappeared.
In 2003, Green Bay got an af2 team, the Green Bay Blizzard. af2 (short for arenafootball2) is the name of the Arena Football Leagues minor league, which started play in 2000. ...
Season-By-Season
Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties | Season | W | L | T | Finish | Playoff Results | | Green Bay Bombers (PIFL) | | 1998 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 3rd League | Lost Semifinal (Madison) | | Green Bay Bombers (IFL) | | 1999 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 2nd Northern | Won Semifinal (Lincoln Lightning)
Won Gold I (Peoria Pirates) | | 2000 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 2nd EC Northern | Won Round 1 (Dayton)
Won Quarterfinal (Steel Valley Smash)
Lost Semifinal (Peoria Pirates) | | Totals | 32 | 13 | 0 | (including playoffs) | The Lincoln Capitols are a professional indoor football team. ...
The Peoria Rough Riders are a professional arena football team. ...
The Ohio Valley Greyhounds are a professional arena football team. ...
The Peoria Rough Riders are a professional arena football team. ...
External links - Rick's Sports Photos (GB Bombers pics)
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