Important happenings in the Spokane sports scene

I know Casey is all big and mighty with his "major league professional sports teams" but Spokane has teams too. Here's what happened last night...

Spokane Chiefs win second-round opener against Tri-City - Is there anything better than beating Tri-City (other than not living in the Tri City, I don't think so)? Nope. And considering the Americans had a really good regular season and Spokane almost didn't get out of the first round - well, we'll take it. It also knocks and kink in the Americans armor since the first game was played in Kennewick. If the Chiefs win the second game, they'll head back to Spokane with a 2-0 series lead. Time. To. Start. Getting. Excited.

Shock lose to Arizona, drop to 1-3 on the season - With a new/old quarterback in Kyle Rowley (who had just three days of practice), the Shock had a few costly fumbles. One of the fumbles came late in the fourth with Spokane up 53-50 and on Arizona's five-yard line. “We kind of handed it to them,” Rowley said. “The second fumble, that’s on the refs. The guy jumped offside and everybody saw it in the whole arena. It’s just tough. He’s in our center’s face.”

Spokane Shock are ranked No. 9 in preseason poll

The Arena Football season is just around the corner, meaning that football season is just around the corner in Spokane. Despite a 9-9 season last year, they're ranked No. 9 in the league heading into this season. They open the season on March 12, hosting Iowa.

West-coast rivals, the Utah Blaze and the Spokane Shock are eighth and ninth in the preseason polling, continuing a battle that will persist all season. Quarterback Tommy Grady leads a Blaze offense that scores as efficiently as anyone in the League, while the Shock rely on their raucous crowd and limited turnovers to propel them to victory.

I'm suprised they didn't mention former EWU quarterback and Walter Payton Award Winner ERIC MEYER, who is going to tear up the league this year as the Shock's starting quarterback. And let's be honest about Utah, about four people show up to their games.

Erik Meyer is BACK!

Eastern Washington, your hero is back!

Erik Meyer, recently traded to the Spokane Shock, went off for seven touchdown and led the defending AFL Champions to a 75-54 victory. He was selected as the MVP of the game and put new life into the team that is hanging onto the post season with a 5-7 record.

I always felt like Meyer got a rough deal from the NFL and has a bucket full of talent. But he's gotten an even rougher deal from EWU.

At my first EWU game, I remember Wulff was going through him and another quarterback to decide who would be the starter. It became quickly evident that Meyer was the man. It was like watching the kid in Pop Warner football that already developed a throwing motion and gone throw puberty, he was just above and beyond everyone else.

Meyer had a large part in making EWU Football in what it was today. And yet no honors? Why not retire his number? I know that Roos donated a bunch of money and is a big NFL tackle, but remember who he was blocking for? Meyer.

He won the Walter Payton Award, the best player in FCS, and in the years since you wouldn't even know he played for Eastern. Shame on you Eastern. Shame on you.

At least now the Shock will have to think about a statue at this point.

Erik Meyer sparks Shock - spokaneshock.com: News

Rob Keefe is a standup guy

So the Spokane Shock got beaten pretty badly in their season opener in San Jose last night. No big deal, it's a long season and the Shock lost their first game last year before going on to win the AFL championship. Today on Facebook, Spokane Shock head coach Rob Keefe had to say this...

I want to apologize to all of the Spokane Shock fans around the country because we did not play up to our potential this weekend. I will never let this happen again. I am embarrassed and upset for our players, organization, and coaching staff. I take full responsibility for this loss. "I've failed over and over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed." Michael Jordan

You don't here a football coach say things like that very often. Good for him to step up, and knowing Rob Keefe, he really means it. Chances are the Shock won't be losing to many teams this season...

New Spokane Shock Jerseys

Here's a look at the new Spokane Shock jerseys. What do you think?

I just peed my pants a little... OUTDOOR ARENA FOOTBALL!!!!

As much as I would love to sit in the freezing cold elements of winter, I'm thinking that Arena Football has this "indoor game played outdoors" thing figured out. The Spokane Shock will be playing at Joe Albi Stadium this summer. Forget 10,000 fans, I'm thinking Spokane is going to pack that place and it's going to be the biggest game played there in years.

SPOKANE -- The Spokane Shock are taking their indoor Arena Football League game into new territory—outdoors.

The Shock announced on Thursday that the team will play the first outdoor game in team history at Joe Albi Stadium. They will take on the Utah Blaze on July 9th in a game the team is calling the Joe Albi Summer Classic.

“We are proud to bring such a unique event to the greatest fans in the AFL, right here in Spokane,” Majority Owner/CEO Brady Nelson said. “This is an idea that we have been toying with for a few years now and we are happy to bring it to our fans. The Joe Albi Summer Classic’ is going to be a memorable event that no one will want to miss.”

Let me try to hold in my excitement.

OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG. Look to the East on the third day for my coming Shock fans!

Seattle Sounders FC open tryouts

The Seattle Sounders FC are holding open tryouts in January.

The Seattle Sounders FC will hold Open Tryouts on January 29-30, 2011, at the team’s training ground, the Starfire Sports Complex in Tukwila, Washington.

Tryouts will be conducted from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. each day. Open tryouts are open to male soccer players ages 18 years and older.

Tryouts will feature small-sided as well as 11v11 games. Players will be assessed by members of the Sounders FC technical and coaching staffs, including Head Coach Sigi Schmid, General Manager Adrian Hanauer and Technical Director Chris Henderson.

The registration cost for each player is $125. Space is limited and will be filled on a first come, first serve basis. Registration fees will go directly to the Sounders FC Youth Academy program.

Perhaps the Northern Rangers should head out to Tukwila and see if we could make the team. But then again, we all remember how Brandon's tryout with the AFL's Spokane Shock went:

Spokane Shock headed to championship game

In case you didn't hear... the Spokane Shock are going to the AFL Championship game. Just how big of a deal is it? Let me spell this out for all of you people.

Spokane has long had little-man syndrome. We've been the little guy to Seattle. Our Cougars have been the little guys to the Huskies. Our Eags have been the little guys to the Montana Grizzlies. Our sports teams have been minor league compared to the bigger cities, but they've always been well-supported and well-attended.

Ask the Spokane Indians, who have led the Northwest League in attendance for how many years? Ask the Spokane Chiefs, who on a sell-out night have the best atmosphere in junior hockey. Period.

And Ask Spokane Shock fans.

Dare I say, Spokane has had the best game-day atmosphere out of any Arena Football team. The Shock from the start have been the top standard in the af2. But it was the af2. Minor-league. Not in line with all the bigger cities.

Now that they're part of the AFL, this team from Spokane is beating up on cities like Jacksonville, Chicago, Milwaukee ... you know, big markets. I know the AFL isn't the NFL, but pound for pound the Shock are showing that this city can support a big boy sports team.

And they belong in the big boy sports discussion.

The Arena Bowl will be insane on Friday night. Insane! I've been to one arena cup and I've never heard a crowd more behind it's team. It just doesn't get loud, it gets eardrum busting. It gets to the point where the hair on the back of your neck starts to stand up, your mouth starts to drop wide open and you ask yourself "I'm really part of this, wow!"

You know when you watch a sports moment and you get a "chill" during the real dramatic scenes. You'll get more than a few chills this Friday at the Arena Cup. You'll see a team in love with a team, and a team that appreciated the support they get from the crowd.

Either way, Orlando and Tampa Bay are in some serious trouble right now.

Shock still Arena Football's best

Still the most underappreciated story of Washington sports this year is how awesome Spokane is playing. They won another game, and they're a league-best 12-2 on the season.

The Spokane Shock didn’t play perfect football Friday, but they managed to keep their unblemished road record intact.

The second-ranked Shock built a big early lead, and then weathered a rough patch late in the second quarter and early in the third before subduing Iowa 48-42 at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.

Spokane won its 10th straight to improve to an Arena Football League-best 12-2. The Shock are 7-0 in road games. Iowa, which handed Spokane its lone defeat in the 2009 arenafootball2 season, dropped to 6-8.

Spokane can clinch hosting rights throughout the playoffs with a home victory against Chicago next Friday.

Do you think the Seattle Seahawks will win half as many games as the Shock this year?

Shock clinch division

Alright, so when do we start resting the starters? Cause it's O-VA!

CLEVELAND – Just in time for the bright lights.

The Spokane Shock will make their national television debut adorned with the trappings of the AFL’s Western Division crown after defeating the Cleveland Gladiators 62-56 before 8,237 fans on Saturday night at Quicken Loans Arena.

The victory came in overtime on Travis Williams’ interception return for a touchdown and, along with Arizona’s loss to Chicago, secured the division title for Spokane.

Friday, the Shock will make their national television debut on the NFL Network’s “Arena Game of the Week” as they travel to Iowa and take on the Barnstormers.

You hear that Iowa? You and your corn are going down!

Shock remain on top

This season just keeps on getting better for the Spokane Shock. Their latest test - the No. 2 ranked Arizona Rattlers - was a dramatic, defensive-laden battle but they came out on top once again.

July 2, 2010– Spokane, WA: The Spokane Shock defeated the Arizona Rattlers tonight, 37-36, for its tenth win of the season. The Shock are the first team in the AFL with ten wins and with only two losses, they have the best record in the league.

What does 10-2 mean? Well it means playoffs and a good shot at home field advantage, and that would be gigantic for the team in the post-season. Word on the street was that last night's crowd was amazing and as much as incoming teams like to play it down, the 9th man does get into the head of teams. They don't expect it from an arena football crowd (no offense).

Shock win seventh straight

It's officially starting to get exciting for the Spokane Shock. They avenged their opening season loss to the Milwaulkee Iron last night, smacking the cheeseheads around 62-48.

Spokane had travel issues Friday and eventually had to bus from Minneapolis to Milwaukee, arriving at 4 a.m. Saturday. It didn’t seem to bother the top-ranked Shock on the field as they toppled Milwaukee 62-48 Saturday night to improve to 9-2.

The Shock’s seventh straight victory sets up a big showdown with No. 2 Arizona, which knocked off Jacksonville 66-50 on the road Saturday night. Arizona (8-3) has won six straight after a 63-56 loss to Spokane in Phoenix.

Well after all this talk about whether or not the Shock belong in the AFL, well, I mean this pretty much answers those questions right?

Shock are tops

Hands down, the Spokane Shock are the best team in the AFL. They proved that last night when they rolled past the Tulsa Talons 63-42, and the formerly No. 1 ranked Jacksonville Sharks fell 70-48 to to Orlando. Spokane improves to 8-2 on the season.

“You have to give all the credit to the guys, they’ve been working so hard to be No. 1,” head coach Rob Keefe said. “If we are No. 1, there’s a responsibility that comes with that. Everyone is going to be gunning for us. We can’t let up.” Spokane (8-2) has had easier wins this season, but Friday’s may have been its most complete effort.

“Our guys are starting to understand what we expect of them, that non-stop aggressiveness, that inner drive. A lot of arena football is just being aware of what’s going on around you and having stamina. Our guys understand it’s four quarters, not two and a half.” Rowley bounced back from a three-interception performance last week with 307 yards passing. Vijil had another big night with 11 catches for 103 yards. He has 1,029 yards receiving and 31 TD catches this season.

They'll travel to Milwaukee next week, the same team that handed them an opening season loss. Time for redemption? 

Game Photos: Spokane Shock vs. Utah Blaze

Shock play the game of the year next week against Jacksonville, but time to celebrate after the crushed the Utah Blaze last night. Here are some photos of the game.

Oh, and what the heck, I'm gonna shoot next week's game. Last one. Sorry to Brett Favre this, but gotta get one last game in.

SEE THE GAME PHOTOS HERE

Gameday for Spokane Shock

This is probably my last Spokane Shock game (at least on a regular week-to-week basis) since I'm moving to Montana, so this should have some extra special meaning. I've shot for the team since their inception in 2006 and while I've missed some games, I've been to most. They've been an absolute blast to shoot, and I haven't followed or shot a team quite as closely as the Shock.

The players and coaches have always been very welcoming and appreciative, the fans have been fanastic and really one of the main reasons I've shot the games. These people really do live and die with their team, and it goes to show you just how good of a sports town Spokane is. Every Saturday there is a home game, the arena is packed and rocking. Every team that comes in here gets affected by the noise, and if they tell you otherwise they're lying, there isn't a home venue in all of arena football that's quite like Spokane.

It's been fun, let's hope they'll come away with a victory tonight against Utah.

Spokane Shock Gameday Photos

Here are some photo's from last night's loss to the Cleveland Gladiators...

SEE PHOTO GALLERY HERE

Game Photos from Shock-Battlewings

The Shock defeated the Bossier-Shreveport BattleWings 78-70 in a near sell-out crowd at the Spokane Arena. Here are some images from the game.

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE PHOTO GALLERY

Shock put out the Blaze

Spokane Shock fans can rest easy after the team redeemed their opening weekend loss with a drubbing tonight of the Utah Blaze. This one wasn't even close, 68-34, and all of a sudden the Shock look to have one heck of a high-powered offense.

Rowley looked much better under center, and the play-calling was wide open, throwing numerous times down the field and stretching the defense. The ball-hawking Shock defense was stubborn and held tight, if they can continue this sort of dominance, we're looking at some very good things for Spokane this season.

Now granted, Utah could just be very, very bad, but if there's anyway to bounce back from a loss, this is a way to do it. And since this was against a divisional opponent, the win has a little more significance. Players and fans should have much more confidence going into the April 17th matchup against Bossier-Shreveport Battlewings.

The crowd was unimpressive at Utah, as the 10,000-seat E-Center looked fairly empty. Now I havent seen the other arenas but it looks like Spokane has one hell of a home-field advantage compared to the other barns in the league. That is if the fans show up and don't sit on their hands (like they did in the first game until the first quarter).

Hopefully the first game was a hiccup, and the coaching staff was able to make the necessary adjustments (the Blaze can't be that bad, they have a slew of AFL veterans and were a member of the AFL before it went under) and we'll see more consistent play from the team. What a difference a week makes.

Shock need to improve on trust

Jim Meehan released his Shock notebook on the Spokesman's blog today. Here's what he had to say about the team...

Spokane first-year head coach Rob Keefe is often a man of many words, but he needed only one to describe what happened in the Shock’s 74-62 season-opening Arena Football League loss to Milwaukee.

“Trust,” Keefe said. “There were too many guys not trusting the man next to them, therefore they were doing too much. People were in places they shouldn’t have been because they were worried about somebody else: A defensive end being in a place where a defensive end shouldn’t be, a quarterback rolling out when he didn’t have to roll. So trust your guys. Don’t worry about the guy next to you, just do your responsibility.”

The Shock, who visit the Utah Blaze on Friday, sputtered on both sides of the ball. Offensively, as Keefe suggested after the game, Spokane didn’t stretch the field enough. There were some protection issues, but that wasn’t totally unexpected with two linemen on injured-reserve (Chris Pino, right wrist; Ed Ta’amu, back).

The team certianly played out of place sometimes during their game against the Iron, but it should only get better as the season progresses. I think that perhaps fans are a little too freaked out over this team losing one game. However, all of a sudden this Utah game becomes a must-win because we all know how tough it is to make the playoffs once you start 0-2. 

Shock-Milwaukee Iron Game Photos from Saturday

Here are some photos I took from Saturday's Shock debut in the AFL.They lost to the Milwaukee Iron 74-62, but fans have to be happy about how the team came back from 20 points down to within one score in the fourth quarter.

Click here to see all the photos.