The Indiana Firebirds were a team in the Arena Football League. The team was based in Indianapolis, Indiana. Home games were played at the Conseco Fieldhouse, also the home of the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association. The team was based in Albany, New York from 1990 to 2000. At that time home games were played at the Pepsi Arena. After the move, the Firebirds competed in the Central Division of the AFL's American Conference. Indiana Firebirds logo, claiming fair use This work is copyrighted. ... Indiana Firebirds helmet File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... Arena Football League logo The Arena Football League (AFL) was founded in 1987 as an American football indoor league. ... Nickname: Circle City, Indy, Naptown Location in Indiana Founded  -Incorporated 1821 {{{incorporated}}}  County Marion County Mayor Bart Peterson Area  - Total  - Water 966. ... The Conseco Fieldhouse is a sports arena in Indianapolis, Indiana. ... The Indiana Pacers are a National Basketball Association team based in Indianapolis, Indiana. ... NBA logo, depicting former star Jerry West The National Basketball Association, more popularly known as simply the NBA, is the worlds premier mens professional basketball league and one of the major professional sports leagues of North America. ... New York State Capitol Building, completed in 1899 at a cost of $25 million was the most expensive government building of its time. ... 1990 is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about the year 2000. ... The Pepsi Arena is an indoor arena located in Albany, New York. ...

The Firebirds won the 1999 ArenaBowl championship. 1999 is a common year starting on Friday Anno Domini (or the Current Era), and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... The ArenaBowl is the Arena Football Leagues championship game. ...

The 2004 Firebirds just missed the playoffs after a disappointing 0-5 start. However, they finished the season winning eight of the their last eleven games and were considered by some a potential contender for the 2005 Arena Bowl championship led by 2004 Rookie of the Year, quarterback Adrian McPherson. 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar and is the current year. ... ArenaBowl is the name of the Arena Football League championship game. ... The quarterback is a position in the offensive backfield of American and Canadian football, directly behind players of the line. He is generally the leader of the offensive team when it is on the field, responsible for initiating play by receiving the snap of the ball from the center. ...

However, in early September of 2004, Indiana Firebirds owner Dave Lageschulte announced that his company, Lags Football LLC, would cease all business operations for the Firebirds. Lageschulte had been actively, but unsuccessfully, pursuing local investors to purchase the Firebirds since he had assumed ownership in 2002. September is the ninth month of the year in the Gregorian Calendar and one of four Gregorian months with the length of 30 days. ... 2002 is a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

On September 20, 2004, the date of the announced sales deadline, the Arena Football League announced the termination of the Firebirds franchise and that the players would be made available to continuing AFL teams in an expansion draft. However, within the week the team was purchased by Scott and Todd Hines, who run H3 Sportsgear, a sportsgear company based in Indianapolis. With AFL approval, it was hoped that the Firebirds could remain operational in Indianapolis. But the AFL checks background and financial qualifications before approving any new team ownership. This move was ultimately disapproved, and the roster of former Firebirds players were made available in the dispersal draft conducted on October 14, 2004, marking the end of one of the AFL's longest-running franchises. September 20 is the 263rd day of the year (264th in leap years). ... A (sports) draft is a process by which professional sports teams select players not contracted to any team, often from colleges or amateur ranks. ... October 14 is the 287th day of the year (288th in Leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ...

Notable Players

• Greg Hopkins, Wide Receiver/Linebacker 1996-2001
• Mike Horacek, Offensive specialist 2004
• Kyle Mackey, Quarterback 1990
• Adrian McPherson, Quarterback 2004
• David Patten, Wide Receiver
• Mike Pawlawski, Quarterback 1996-2000
• Raymond Philyaw, Quarterback 2000-2003
• Reggie Smith, Wide Receiver/Defensive back 1990
• Leroy Thompson, Fullback/Linebacker 1996-2004