Lincoln Haymakers To Host Open House

The Lincoln Haymakers would like to invite the entire community to join the team Friday February 15th at the Pershing Center from 4-6:30pm for their open house event. Fans will be able to meet players, coaches, and front office staff inside the Haymakers home arena for the first time. Fans interested in Season Tickets will be able to hand pick the seats they want as well as purchase single game tickets and official team merchandise. If fans are unable to attend but still would like to purchase season tickets call 402- 435-0411.
The Pershing Center will have the field and dasher board walls set up just like game night so fans can get a feel for the actual layout as indoor football comes to Lincoln. Fans will also be invited to stick around after the open house to watch Haymakers practice from 7-8:00pm; which is normally closed to the public.
The Haymakers are training for their pre-season game February 23rd in Grand Island, NE against the Nebraska Danger. The Haymakers will play in Lincoln for the first time Friday March 29th in the New Victorian Suites Kickoff Classic against the Sioux City Bandits with kickoff at 7:05pm. For more information fans can check out www.lincolnhaymakers.com and by following the team on Facebook and Twitter.

Lincoln Haymakers Preparing For Inaugural CPIFL Season

With Tryouts wrapping up this last weekend, Organized Team Activities will begin on January 22. The Lincoln Haymakers take the field for the first time in 2013 under Head Coach Dave Brumagen. With Pre Season Camp starting the players will be together for the first time at the Haymakers Practice Facility. This is a time of new beginnings as it will also mark the start of the Champions Professional Indoor Football League's first year brining many established Midwestern indoor teams back together. After Tryouts wrapped up we spoke with Coach Brumagen and asked his thoughts on the upcoming season.
"We've got a lot of highly talented players coming into camp, so it will be exciting to see who makes the final cut. We have a good core of players to start off building a team and I'm anxious to see the competition in camp."
Camp invites have been extended to players around the Lincoln area as free agents work to make the final 30 man roster. The Haymakers Pre-season will conclude on February 23 with an exhibition game in Grand Island, NE against the Nebraska Danger of the Indoor Football League. That game will likely determine the opening night roster for Lincoln.
The home opener on Friday March 29th against the Sioux City Bandits is quickly approaching and the excitement is starting to grow around the team offices and in the community. The organization is planning entertaining game nights for fans at the Pershing Center.

Lincoln Haymakers Announce First Player Tryouts

The new professional indoor football team in town, The Haymakers, will hold open tryouts for anyone looking to play professional indoor football. Tryouts will be held Saturday December 29th, 2012 at The Bison Sports Arena. Registration is set for 7:00 a.m.; with workouts starting at 8 a.m. Check out The Haymakers website at www.lincolnhaymakers.com for more info or like us on Facebook. Fans are also invited to come see prospects try-out!
The Lincoln Haymakers will begin play in The CPIFL (Champions Professional Indoor Football League) in March. All games will be at The Pershing Center.

Ho-Chunk, Inc. Launches New CPIFL Team

Ho-Chunk, Inc. together with partners, Justin Hayes and Brad Lindgren, has formed the Lincoln Haymakers. Ho-Chunk, Inc. officially announced today, along with Hayes and Lindgren, that the team will be part of the new Champions Professional Indoor Football League (CPIFL).
The Lincoln Haymakers will be holding a Try Out Session on October 20, 2012 at the Bison Sports Arena located at 710 Hill Street in Lincoln. Check in starts at 12:00 P.M. and try outs will run until 5:00 P.M. For more information, email: cpifllincoln@gmail.com or jhayes@lincolnhaymakers.com.
The new team has already signed two former Cornhusker standouts, Cory Ross and Marlon Lucky. As a Cornhusker, running back Cory Ross earned the nickname "Pork Chop" due to his 5'6", 220 lb. stature. Ross earned several honors including Nebraska Offensive MVP (2004, 2005) and the Tom Novak Award (2005). After college, Ross went on to play for the Baltimore Ravens (2006 - 2007), the Sacramento Mountain Lions (2009 - 2011) and the Edmonton Eskimos (2012). In addition to playing, Ross will serve as Assistant Director of Player Personnel and assist with sales and marketing.
Ranked by Rivals.com as the second best high school running back in the country in 2005, Marlon Lucky was one of the most sought after prospects in the nation. Lucky chose to play for Nebraska, turning down USC, Washington and other schools. During his freshman year, Lucky was backup to senior Cory Ross. The Omaha Nighthawks of the United Football League (UFL) signed Lucky in July, 2011.
"We are excited to bring this new franchise to Lincoln and plan on building a championship team beginning with these two great former UNL players," said partner Justin Hayes.
The Lincoln Haymakers also signed four other players, James Patterson, Marques Parker, Everett Corley and Julius Nero. Patterson (Sacramento State University, University of Mary) most recently played with the Council Bluffs Express of the American Professional Football League (APFL) and will play defensive lineman. Parker is a graduate of Omaha Westside and played football at UNO. Offensive lineman Corley (Midland University) comes from the Omaha Beef, a member of the Indoor Football League (IFL). Nero attended Omaha North and Northwest Missouri State University. During the 2011 - 2012 season, he was a team captain.
The team is majority-owned by Ho-Chunk, Inc., with minority ownership held by Hayes and Lindgren. Lance Morgan, Chief Executive Officer of Ho-Chunk, Inc. launched the company in 1994 as the economic development corporation for the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska. During his association with Ho-Chunk, Inc. he has directed the development of 30 subsidiaries with operations throughout the United States and in five foreign countries. Headquartered in Winnebago, the company maintains offices in Bellevue and Elkhorn, Nebraska.
"The Winnebago Tribe has been in Nebraska for 150 years and Ho-Chunk, Inc. is a Nebraska corporation. We are committed to economic development in our region and in the state," says Morgan. "This is an opportunity for us to provide both an entertainment venue and a sports franchise for Lincoln, and it is an opportunity to be associated with a game that all Nebraskans love."
The Haymaker name was derived from reference to the very popular Lincoln Haymarket and from the common term used for a knock out punch in boxing.
Justin Hayes, a Lincoln native, will be the Director of Football Operations & Player Personnel for the Lincoln Haymakers. For the past 10 years, Hayes has served at Nebraska and Iowa high schools in a variety of roles such as position coach, special teams coordinator and Director of Operations. He also spent time with the Omaha Beef of the IFL and the Iowa Blackhawks of the APFL. Most recently, as Offensive Coordinator he assisted the Council Bluffs Express in getting to the championship game. Hayes currently resides in Omaha.
Brad Lindgren, Lincoln resident, will take on the role of General Manager for the Lincoln Haymakers. Lindgren's primary duties will include running the day to day operations. Having served as General Manager of the Council Bluffs Express, Lindgren brings extensive business experience to the team.
Lincoln resident Dave Brumagen will serve as Head Coach for the team. Coach Brumagen was with the Omaha Nighthawks where he served as the Assistant Director of Player Personnel. While serving as Council Bluffs Express Interim Head Coach for the last 10 games of the 2012 season, Brumagen led the team to play in the APFL Championship game.

Council Bluffs Express moving to Lincoln

The Council Bluffs Express is on a one-way trip out of town.
The indoor professional team, which has played in the last four American Professional Football League championship games, is ceasing operations to start anew in a different city and new league.
The Lincoln (Neb.) Haymakers will open play in the Champions Professional Indoor Football League at Pershing Auditorium in early March.
Owners Justin Hayes and Brad Lindgren have sold the majority interest of the franchise to Ho-Chunk Inc., the economic development arm of the Winnebago Tribe.
Both will remain with the team as minority owners. Lindgren will also serve as the team's general manager while Hayes will be the director of football operations and player personnel.
The CPIFL formed last month during a potential owners meeting in Council Bluffs. After weighing the options of staying in Council Bluffs or moving to either Lincoln or Salina, Kan., the ownership group eventually settled on Lincoln within the last month.
The Haymakers opened their Lincoln office in the Haymarket Monday.
The CPIFL also currently includes champion Sioux City, Tulsa (Okla.) and Mid-Missouri from the APFL. Wichita (Kan.), previously in the Indoor Football League, and Kansas City will join them.
Unlike the APFL, the CPIFL has a commissioner and head of officials that are not affiliated with any team.
"I think it is important to be in a league that has professionalism, first and foremost, along with sportsmanship and provides an atmosphere that is conducive to the fans," Hayes said.
The former Express, which averaged 850 fans per home date in 2012, weren't a big hit in C.B.
"We had great fans and sponsors," Lindgren said, "just not enough of them."
The move brings the end to a successful run by the Council Bluffs organization. The franchise, founded in 2000 by Jake Hiffernan, reached a championship level from a modest beginning.
The team started in the recreational Nebraska Indoor Football League as the Council Bluffs Rams, playing with football equipment purchased by Hiffernan, then 24, with his first credit card.
Its games were played indoors in Lincoln for two years before moving to an outdoor eight-man field in Malcolm, Neb. The team, which changed its name to the River City Redemption, won the NIFL title in 2003 and was invited to play an indoor exhibition game against the APFL champion Kansas Koyotes.
The Council Bluffs franchise, which later became the Iowa Blackhawks, was competitive enough that it was invited to join the APFL in 2004. It has played in that indoor professional league ever since.
Iowa won back-to-back APFL championships in 2009 and 2010. The Blackhawks, who became the Express prior to last season, have been the league's runner-up to Sioux City for the past two years.
Citing financial concerns, Hiffernan sold the team in 2011 to local businessman John Jerkovich in an attempt to keep it in C.B. Lindgren and Hayes purchased the franchise and changed its name this year.
The recent owners were actually exploring the possibility of starting an expansion franchise in Lincoln prior to last season. Their plan changed when Jerkovich offered the Blackhawks to them instead.