Salina Liberty
{{Short description|American indoor football team}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2024}}{{Infobox indoor American football team
| name = Salina Liberty
| current = 2024 Arena Football League season
| logo = Salina Liberty AF1.png
| helmet =
| founded = 2015
| city = Tony’s Pizza Events Center
in Salina, Kansas
| misc = {{url|http://www.salinaliberty.com}}
| colors = Navy, blue, red, silver, white
{{color box|#002244}} {{color box|#4B92DB}} {{color box|#C60C30}} {{color box|#A5ACAF}} {{color box|#FFFFFF}}
| owner = Precision Sports, LLC
Roy Lawrence
Dan and Linda Mendicina
Tom Perez
Josh Perez
Jimmy and Robyne Sponder
Dan Kieborz and Jennifer Main
| general manager = Sam Sellers
| coach = Heron O'Neal
| cheerleaders =
| mascot = Sideline Sam
| league =
- Champions Indoor Football ({{CIF Year|2016}}–2023)
- Northern Division (2016)
- North Conference (2017–2019)
- Arena Football League ({{AFL Year|2024}})
- Arena Football One (2025-future)
- Central Division (2025-present)
| team_history =
- Salina Liberty (2016–present)
| no_league_champs = 1
| league_champs =
- 2022
| no_conf_champs = 1
| conf_champs =
- 2019
| no_div_champs = 0
| div_champs =
| no_playoff_appearances = 5
| playoff_appearances =
- {{CIF Year|2018}}, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023
| arena_years =
- Tony’s Pizza Events Center (2016–present)
}}
The Salina Liberty are a professional indoor football team based in Salina, Kansas. They began play in 2016 as members of the Champions Indoor Football (CIF) and played in the Arena Football League in 2024. In 2025, they will become inaugural members of the newly-formed Arena Football One. The team plays their home games at the Tony’s Pizza Events Center.
History
Indoor football in Salina started in 2012 as the Salina Bombers, an expansion franchise for the Champions Professional Indoor Football League (CPIFL), were announced for the 2013 season. The Bombers then joined Champions Indoor Football (CIF) due to a merger between the CPIFL and the Lone Star Football League for 2015. However, during their first season in the CIF, the league ejected the Bombers for a "business violation" on May 28{{cite news |first=Jake |last=Copp |publisher=KWCH-DT |location=Salina, KS |title=Salina Bombers dissolving football team |url=http://www.kwch.com/news/local-news/salina-bombers-dissolving-football-team/33268516 |date=May 28, 2015 |access-date=June 1, 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150529003019/http://www.kwch.com/news/local-news/salina-bombers-dissolving-football-team/33268516 |archive-date=May 29, 2015 }} and they would cease operations later that month.{{cite web |publisher=Champions Indoor Football |via=Our Sports Central |title=Salina Bombers Suspended from CIF |url=http://www.oursportscentral.com/services/releases/?id=4977520 |date=May 28, 2015 |accessdate=June 1, 2015}} In July 2015, the CIF announced it had replaced the Bombers with a new expansion team in Salina called the Salina Liberty.{{cite web |url=http://starlocalmedia.com/sports/indoor-football-salina-liberty-announced-as-latest-cif-franchise/article_d11c7f10-3228-11e5-8c66-d379a696a7e3.html |title=Indoor football: Salina Liberty announced as latest CIF franchise |publisher=Star Local Media |date=July 24, 2015}}
The Liberty began play in the Champions Indoor Football League in 2016 finishing last in the Northern Division and failing to qualify for the playoffs. In 2017 Salina Liberty received their first win on the road against Bloomington Edge 47-34 after promoting Offensive Coordinator Mike Bonner to Head Coach. The team finished 1-4 under Coach Bonner.
General Manager Ricky Bertz decided to go in another direction after the 2017 season. After hiring Herron O’Neal The Liberty finished first in the CIF's North Conference regular season in 2018 and 2019. They won the conference playoff championship in 2019 and played in the Champions Bowl for the league title, but lost to the Duke City Gladiators 29–35.
File:Salina Liberty.png in 2024.]]
On September 25, 2023, the Liberty were implicitly announced to be joining the Arena Football League after the AFL announced it would be absorbing CIF's remaining franchises.{{cite web |url=https://county17.com/2023/09/25/mustangs-football-will-not-play-in-gillette-in-2024/ |title=Mustangs football will not play in Gillette in 2024 |website=county17.com |date=September 25, 2023}} Then nearly one year later on September 4, 2024, the Liberty announced their move to the new Arena Football One following the collapse of the AFL. They will play in the league's new Central Division along with the Corpus Christi Tritons and Southwest Kansas Storm with the Wichita Regulators going dormant for 2025.
Current roster
| class="toccolours" style="text-align: left;"
|+ colspan="7" style="{{NFLPrimaryStyle|Salina Liberty|border=2}};text-align:center;"| Salina Liberty roster |
style="font-size: 95%;vertical-align:top;" | Quarterbacks
Running backs {{NFLplayer |
| -|Luis Gonzalez|link=no}}
Wide receivers {{NFLplayer |
| -|Tyler Cargill|link=no}}
{{NFLplayer |
| -|Dallas Dixon|link=no}}
{{NFLplayer |
| -|Ari Kaleb Werts|link=no}}
{{NFLplayer |
| -|Aaron Dilworth|link=no}}
| style="width: 25px;" | | style="font-size: 95%;vertical-align:top;" | Offensive linemen {{NFLplayer |
| -|Dallas Reins|link=no}}
{{NFLplayer |
| -|Brandon Thorpe|link=no}}
{{NFLplayer |
| -|Dominique Robertson|link=no}}
{{NFLplayer |
| -|Nashawn Jackson|link=no}}
Defensive linemen {{NFLplayer |
| -|Jordan Harris|link=no}}
{{NFLplayer |
| -|Denaz Ross|link=no}}
{{NFLplayer |
| -|Bryson Kelly|link=no}}
| style="width: 25px;" | | style="font-size: 95%;vertical-align:top;" | Linebackers
Defensive backs {{NFLplayer |
| -|Tyler Cargill|link=no}}
{{NFLplayer |
| -|Shaquez Bond|link=no}}
{{NFLplayer |
| -|Dewayne Autry II|link=no}}
Special teams
| style="width: 25px;" | | style="font-size: 95%;vertical-align:top;" | Reserve lists
{{ubl |Rookies in italics |Roster updated January 20, 2025 |14 Active, 0 Inactive }} |
Staff
{{NFL final staff
|Year=
|TeamName=Salina Liberty
|Front Office=
- Co-Owner - Roy Lawrence
- Co-Owners - Dan and Linda Mendicina
- Co-Owner - Tom Perez
- Co-Owner - Josh Perez
- Co-Owners - Jimmy and Robyne Sponder
- Co-Owners - Dan Kieborz and Jennifer Main
- General manager - Sam Sellers
- Director of player personnel - Brandon Davis
- Marketing - Katie Junk
- Equipment manager - Jimmy Stevens
- Equipment manager - Cameron Pflaum
- Video coordinator - Terry Tebrugge
|Head Coaches=
- Head coach - Heron O'Neal
- Assistant coach - Jorge Martinez
- Assistant coach - Dylan Mendicina
|Offensive Coaches=
- Offensive coordinator - Jorge Martinez
- Offensive line coach - Ed Prince
|Defensive Coaches=
- Defensive coordinator – LJ Jackson
- Defensive line coach - Ed Prince
}}
Season-by-season results
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:75%;" |
| style="background:#fcc;"|League Champions
| style="background:#dfd;"|Conference Champions | style="background:#d0e7ff;"|Division Champions | style="background:#96cdcd;"|Playoff berth | style="background:#c8a2c8;"|League leader |
| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size: 95%;" | |||
| rowspan="2" | Season
!rowspan="2" | League !rowspan="2" | Conference !rowspan="2" | Division !colspan="4" | Regular season !rowspan="2" | Postseason results | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Finish | Wins | Losses | Ties |
| 2016
| CIF || || Northern | 6th || 2 || 10 || 0 || style="text-align:left" | | |||
| 2017
| CIF || North || | 7th || 1 || 11 || 0 || style="text-align:left" | | |||
| 2018
| CIF || North || |bgcolor=#c8a2c8| 1st || 9 || 3 || 0 || style="text-align:left" |Won Conference Semifinal (Bismarck) 81–51 | |||
| 2019
| CIF ||bgcolor=#dfd| North || |bgcolor=#c8a2c8| 1st || 8 || 4 || 0 || style="text-align:left" |Won Conference Championship (Omaha) 44–42 | |||
| 2020
| CIF || | North || | colspan=5; align=left |Season cancelled due to COVID-19 pandemic | |||
| 2021
| CIF || || | bgcolor=#c8a2c8| 1st || 9 || 1 || 0 || style="text-align:left" |Won Semifinal (Dodge City) 55–31 | |||
| 2022
|bgcolor=#fcc| CIF || || | bgcolor=#96cdcd| 2nd || 7 || 3 || 0 || style="text-align:left" |Won Semifinal (Billings) 26–14 | |||
| 2023
| CIF || || | bgcolor=#96cdcd| 2nd || 8 || 2 || 0 || style="text-align:left" |Won Semifinal (Gillette) 37–30 | |||
| 2024
| AFL || || | bgcolor=#96cdcd| 3rd || 6 || 2 || 0 || style="text-align:left" |Won Round One Semifinal (Dodge City) 41–35 | |||
| rowspan="3" colspan="5"|Totals
! 50 | 36 | 0 | All-time regular season record (2016–2024) |
| 7 | 5 | — | All-time postseason record (2016–2024) |
| 57 | 41 | 0 | All-time regular season and postseason record (2016–2024) |
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{Official website|https://www.salinaliberty.com/}}
- [https://www.arenafan.com/teams/?page=clubhouse&team=244 Salina Liberty at ArenaFan.com]
{{Arena Football One (2025)}}
{{Arena Football League (2024)}}
{{Kansas Sports}}
Category:American football teams in Kansas
Category:Champions Indoor Football teams
Category:Sports clubs and teams in Kansas
Category:Sports in Salina, Kansas
Category:American football teams established in 2015
Category:2015 establishments in Kansas