Georgia Fire
The Georgia Fire were a professional indoor football team based in Rome, Georgia. They were members of the American Conference in the Professional Indoor Football League (PIFL) during the 2014 season.
| Georgia Fire | |
|---|---|
| Established 2014 Folded 2014 Played in Rome, Georgia at the Forum Civic Center | |
| League/conference affiliations | |
Professional Indoor Football League (2014)
| |
| Team colors | Red, Black, Gold, White |
| Personnel | |
| Owner(s) | PIFL |
| General manager | Jeff Gonos |
| Head coach | Cosmo Dematteo |
| Team history | |
| |
| Championships | |
| League championships (0) | |
| Conference championships (0) | |
| Division championships (0) | |
| Home arena(s) | |
| |
The Fire joined the PIFL in 2014 as an expansion team, after the PIFL was forced to find a replacement team for the Albany Panthers, who were kicked out of their home arena by city official in Albany.[1] They are the latest franchise to play indoor football after the Rome Renegades of the now-defunct National Indoor Football League (NIFL).
The Fire played their home games at the Forum Civic Center in Rome.
Franchise history
With complications surrounding the Albany Panthers franchise for the 2014 season, the Professional Indoor Football League (PIFL) introduced the Fire to replace the Panthers for the 2014 season. With the league running the team, PIFL Executive Director, Jeff Ganos was named the franchise's general manager and Cosmo DeMatteo was named the team's innaurgal head coach on February 27, 2014.[2] With the season starting on April 5, 2014, the Fire were given the Panthers roster, where players who didn't wish to play for the new franchise, refused to report.[3] In the first game in franchise history, the Fire knocked off defending PIFL Champions, the Alabama Hammers by a score of 57-55.[4]
Players of note
Final roster
| Georgia Fire roster | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
|
Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen
|
Linebackers
Defensive backs
Kickers
|
Injured reserve
Exempt list
Failure to report-exempt
| |||
All-League players
The following Fire players were named to All-League Teams:
- WR Johnny Lester, John Harris
- OL Aaron Wheeler
- LB Adrian McLeod
Coaches of note
Head coaches
| Name | Term | Regular season | Playoffs | Awards | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | Win% | W | L | |||
| Cosmo DeMatteo | 2014 | 4 | 8 | 0 | .333 | 0 | 0 | |
Coaching staff
| Georgia Fire staff | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Front Office
|
Head Coach
| |||||
Season-by-season results
| League Champions | Conference Champions | Division Champions | Wild Card Berth | League Leader |
| Season | Team | League | Conference | Division | Regular season | Postseason results | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finish | Wins | Losses | Ties | ||||||||
| 2014 | 2014 | PIFL | American | 3rd | 4 | 8 | 0 | ||||
| Totals | 4 | 8 | 0 | All-time regular season record (2014) | |||||||
| 0 | 0 | - | All-time postseason record (2014) | ||||||||
| 4 | 8 | 0 | All-time regular season and postseason record (2014) | ||||||||
References
- "Panthers owner: City doesn't want us here". www.walb.com. Worldnow and WALB. February 18, 2014. Retrieved April 22, 2014.
- "DeMatteo and Gonos to Lead Fire". www.oursportscentral.com. OurSports Central. February 27, 2014. Retrieved April 22, 2014.
- "Fire to have first training camp this week". www.northwestgeorgianews.com. Rome News-Tribune. March 19, 2014. Retrieved April 22, 2014.
- "Fire Burn Hammers For Inaugural Win". www.oursportscentral.com. OurSports Central. April 7, 2014. Retrieved April 22, 2014.