Philadelphia Soul
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For current sports news on this topic, see 2008 Philadelphia Soul season |
| Philadelphia Soul | ||
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| Conference | National | |
| Division | Eastern | |
| Year founded | 2004 | |
| Home arena | Saturn Field at Wachovia Center & Wachovia Spectrum (alt.) |
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| City, State | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | |
| Head Coach | Bret Munsey | |
| ArenaBowl championships | none | |
| Conference titles | none | |
| Division titles | none | |
| Wild Card berths | 2: 2006 & 2007 |
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- For the music genre, see Philadelphia soul.
The Philadelphia Soul is a team in the Arena Football League. They began play as a 2004 expansion team. The team currently plays in the Eastern Division of the National Conference.
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[edit] History
The team is owned in part by Jon Bon Jovi, Craig Spencer and Ron "Jaws" Jaworski (former QB of the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles). The Soul began play in February of 2004, and plays its home games at the Wachovia Center, home of the Philadelphia Flyers of the National Hockey League and the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association. When there is a scheduling conflict with the NBA or NHL, games are played at the Wachovia Spectrum--the former home of the Flyers and 76ers and the current home of the Philadelphia Phantoms AHL hockey team and the Philadelphia KiXX MISL soccer franchise. The Soul play in the Eastern Division of the National Conference of the AFL. The name "Soul" refers to the Philadelphia soul music genre, as the team is owned in part by musician Jon Bon Jovi.
In 2005, the Soul got off to a great start, beating the Austin Wranglers 66-35. However, after five games, the Soul had 2 wins and 3 losses, which lead to the firing of head coach Michael Trigg.
Critics say that the Soul erred that off-season when they made Tony Graziani the highest-paid player in Arena League history. The move left them with little money under the salary cap to improve their defense, and as a result, they were not in the drive to the ArenaBowl Playoffs. The elimination came even after NBC scheduled 14 games of the Soul to be shown on national or regional television. NBC, along with the AFL, was clearly hoping for Philadelphia to develop a good team to justify the hype given them before the season.
In the 2006 season, the Soul got off to a 2-0 start. They went 2-0 against division rival Dallas Desperados (who finished a league best 13-3), and finished the season at 9-7 and earned their first playoff berth through the wild card. In their wild card playoff game, the Soul defeated the Austin Wranglers in Austin, 52-35. The score was 21-21 at halftime, but the #5 seed Soul outscored the #4 Wranglers 21-7 in the third quarter and ran away with the game. Their Divisional Round Playoff Game was in Orlando against the #2 seed Predators on Sunday, May 28, at 3:00PM. Unfortunately, the Soul had some scoring opportunities slip by, as they fell 31-27.
The Soul got off to a great start in 2007, starting 4-0, and became a powerhouse in the AFL. However, they were finally knocked out of the unbeatens, losing to the Georgia Force, 57-49. Afterwards, they lost on a Monday night contest to their division rival, the Dallas Desperados, 51-41. In the game, Tony Graziani left the game early with a separated left shoulder from a sack by OL/DL Rickie Simpkins. He would miss the next 4 weeks...all losses, dropping the team to 4-6. Graziani returned in week 12 against the New Orleans VooDoo and led the team to its highest scoring output in its short franchise history, winning 78-34. In a week 16 "win-and-in" matchup with the Columbus Destroyers, Graziani led the Soul down the field and threw a touchdown pass to Charles Pauley with 7 seconds left, giving the Soul a 56-53 win and their second trip to the playoffs in their four-year history. In the playoffs, they defeated the Orlando Predators 41-26, then traveled to Atlanta to take on the Georgia Force in the Divisional Round, but lost 65-39.
The official mascot of the Soul is the Blues Brother-like Soul Man[1].
[edit] Franchise Highlights
- On Sunday, February 13, 2005, in a Week 3 home game against the Nashville Kats, QB Tony Graziani would throw for six touchdowns. One of those TD's came on an amazing third quarter play from their own 5-yard line. Graziani got the snap, tripped over his own fullback's foot, and threw an incredible 45-yard TD pass to OS Steve Smith off his own knee. The Soul would go on to win the game 59-48. On the AFL's 20 Greatest Highlights Countdown, this is at #6. It also finished in The Best Damn Sports Show Period's Top 50 Spectacular Plays. [2]
- On Saturday, April 24, 2004, the Soul was trailing to the New York Dragons by a point with 1.3 seconds left in the 4th quarter. The Soul was pinned back at their own 2 yardline. Ken Hinsley kicked a field goal from the back of the endzone which just barely made it over the crossbar as the buzzer went off, winning the game for the Soul 60-58.
- Since its inception, the Philadelphia Soul has been deeply involved in the community. In 2006, The Philadelphia Soul Foundation was formed to further the organization's commitment to the Philadelphia area. Former President Bill Clinton joined Soul majority owner Jon Bon Jovi on stage to announce a project that would rehab 15 townhouses in North Philadelphia.Scheduled to open in November 2007, the homes will also be eco-friendly, saving not only money for its new tenants, but improve the environment as well.
[edit] Season-by-season
Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties
| Season | W | L | T | Finish | Playoff results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 5 | 11 | 0 | 5th NC Eastern | -- |
| 2005 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 3rd NC Eastern | -- |
| 2006 | 9 | 7 | 0 | 3rd NC Eastern | Won Wild Card (Austin) Lost Divisional (Orlando) |
| 2007 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 2nd NC Eastern | Won Wild Card (Orlando) Lost Divisional (Georgia) |
| *2008 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 2nd NC Eastern | -- |
| Totals | 36 | 38 | 0 | (including playoffs) | |
* = Current Standing
[edit] Head coaches
- 2004-2005: Michael Trigg, 7-14
- 2005: James Fuller, 4-7
- 2006-present: Bret Munsey, 17-15
[edit] Current roster
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Philadelphia Soul roster
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| Quarterbacks
Running Backs
Wide Receivers
Offensive Linemen
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Defensive Linemen
Linebackers
Defensive Backs
Special Teams
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Injured players
Exempt List Practice Squad
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[edit] Front Office Staff
- Jon Bon Jovi - Founder, Majority Owner, and Co-Chairman of the Board
- Craig A. Spencer - Majority Owner and Co-Chairman of the Board
- Richie Sambora - Member of the Ownership Group
- Leo Carlin, Jr. - Member of the Ownership Group
- Stephen Perna - Member of the Ownership Group
- Ron "Jaws" Jaworski - Team President
- Rich Lisk - General Manager
- Steve Shultz - Director of Operations & Game Presentation
[edit] External links
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Philadelphia Soul seasons
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