| Utah Blaze | ||
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| Conference | American | |
| Division | Western | |
| Year founded | 2006 | |
| Home arena | Delta Field at EnergySolutions Arena | |
| City, State | Salt Lake City, Utah | |
| Head Coach | Ron James | |
| ArenaBowl championships | None | |
| Conference titles | None | |
| Division titles | None | |
| Wild Card berths | 3: 2006, 2007, 2008 |
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| Owner(s) | John and Robert Garff, Brett Hopkins |
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| Current status | Inactive | |
| Current uniform | ||
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The Utah Blaze is an Arena Football League team based in Salt Lake City, Utah. They began play as a 2006 expansion team. They are currently coached by Ron James.
Contents |
History
The Utah Blaze began play on January 28, 2006, playing the San Jose SaberCats on the road. The team is coached by longtime Arizona Rattlers coach Danny White and plays its home games at the EnergySolutions Arena in Salt Lake City, home of the National Basketball Association's Utah Jazz. The team is owned by automobile businessmen John Garff, Robert Garff, and Brett Hopkins.
On Saturday, February 11, 2006, the Blaze lost to the New York Dragons 84-81 in the second highest scoring game in the history of the Arena Football League. The Blaze's performance was also the second highest score for a losing team in the AFL's 20-year history.
In their first season, the Blaze had the highest average attendance in the Arena Football League, with 15,498 fans per game. They narrowly edged out Philadelphia's 15,463. Prior to the 2006 season, the Blaze had said EnergySolutions Arena held 13,000 fans due to poor sight lines in most of the building. After 16,705 people attended the home opener, that figure was changed to near 15,000. The Blaze topped that figure 5 of the 8 games their first season.
Despite a losing record of 7-9, the Blaze got into the playoffs as an AC Wildcard (the conference's #6 seed). Unfortunately, the newly formed Blaze were given the boot as they lost to the Arizona Rattlers with a final score of 57-34.
The team's mascot is a dalmatian named "Chief". The Blaze were winners of the league"Commissioners Award" in 2006 and won the "Support Staff of the Year Award" in back-to-back seasons (2006-2007), an award that goes to the league's best training and equipment staff, which was headed by Hagen Featherstone and Kevin Seamans in the inaugural season and Kevin Seamans and Darin Featherstone in 2007.[1]
During the 2008 season the Blaze became the first, and only, professional football team to record three 1,500 yard receivers in the same season, with Huey Whittaker, J.J. McKelvey, and Aaron Boone.[2] This also marks the first time three players each caught 120 or more passes in the same season.
| Name | Rec | Yards | TDs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Huey Whittaker | 126 | 1,541 | 32 |
| J.J. McKelvey | 121 | 1,529 | 38 |
| Aaron Boone | 135 | 1,527 | 23 |
Season-by-season
Retired Numbers
- 3 Justin Skaggs - WR/LB - March 29, 2008 (died of brain tumor in 2007)
AFL Hall of Famers
- Danny White
Coaches
| Head coach | Tenure | Regular season record (W-L) |
Post season record (W-L) |
Most recent coaching staff | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Danny White | 2006 - 2008 | 21-27 | 0-3 | DL / LB Coach: Lindsay Hassell DC / Dir. Player Personnel: Ron James ST Coordinator / Dir. Football Ops.: Scott Lieber |
Former Dallas Cowboys quarterback. 1993 Coach of the Year 1993 All-Star game - coach Arena Football League Hall of Fame Class of 2002. |
| Ron James | 2009 | 0-0 | 0-0 | OC: Tony Kimbrough GM / DC: Jeff Russell ST Coordinator / Dir. Football Ops.: Scott Lieber |
DC / Director of Player Personnel (2007 - 2008). |
Notes
External links
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