Johnstown Jackals

The Johnstown Jackals were a professional indoor American football team based in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. They were members of the original Indoor Football League founded in 1999 and began play in 2000. They competed in the Southern Division of the Eastern Conference and played their home games at the Cambria County War Memorial Arena.[1] They were the first of two teams that would play in Johnstown. The second were the Johnstown Riverhawks of the American Indoor Football Association (formerly the Topeka Knights/Kings of the IFL).

Johnstown Jackals
Established 1999
Folded 2002 (as Johnstown J-Dogs)
Played in Cambria County War Memorial Arena
in Johnstown, Pennsylvania
League/conference affiliations
Indoor Football League (2000)
  • Eastern Conference (2000)
    • Southern Division (2000)
Team colorsPurple, gold, tan
     
Personnel
Team history
  • Johnstown Jackals (2000)
Championships
League championships (0)
Conference championships (0)
Division championships (0)
Home arena(s)
Cambria County War Memorial Arena (2000)

History

The Jackals were founded as an expansion team in 1999 and joined the original incarnation of the Indoor Football League along with several others expansion franchises. The team played in the Eastern Conference South.[2] In the only season in the IFL, the team compiled a 3–13 record finishing in fourth place in the Eastern Conference. After the IFL was bought out by af2, the Flames were not among the many teams that moved to the new league and subsequently folded.[3][4]

The Jackals folded after the 2000 season after the league was purchased by the Orlando Predators of the Arena Football League.

The next year, they became a new expansion team in the newly formed National Indoor Football League. The team was coached by former United High School football coach Frank Krevetski. The then-current coach of United High School, Chris Matava, joined the team as offensive coordinator.[5]

The Jackals name changed three times after their first season. Since Johnstown did not join the new league, they held a fan vote on a new team name. The fans voted on Jaguars, and the team rebranded, including a new logo and website. The NFL demanded that Johnstown must change the team name, since the Jacksonville Jaguars own the right to the name. The team rebranded again, this time to the Jags. The NFL contacted Johnstown again, and informed them it was still too close to Jacksonville's name. Johnstown rebranded one final time; this time to J-Dogs. The team name was loosely based on Morley's Dog, a mythological dog that supposedly saved lives during the Great Johnstown Flood of 1889.[6] The team folded after the 2002 season.

References
  1. "Indoor and Arena Football History: Johnstown Jackals". OurSports Central. Retrieved February 8, 2018.
  2. Zenner, Michael J. (July 2, 2000). "'Playing the hits' in Peoria". Fond du Lac Commonwealth Reporter. Fond du Lac, Wisconsin. p. 17 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. "IFL Franchise Histories". OurSports Central. Retrieved February 8, 2018.
  4. "Indoor and Arena Football History: Johnstown Jackals". OurSports Central. Retrieved February 8, 2018.
  5. Burglund, Matthew (March 13, 1984). "Krevetski enters a new arena of coaching". Indiana Gazette. Indiana, Pennsylvania. p. 14 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. Burglund, Matthew (March 13, 1984). "Team dogged by nicknames". Indiana Gazette. Indiana, Pennsylvania. p. 14 – via Newspapers.com.
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