The Colorado Crush were an arena football team based in Denver, Colorado . They began play as a 2003 Arena Football League expansion team. The Crush played in the Central Division of the American Conference until the Arena Football League suspended operations in 2009. They were last coached by Mike Dailey and owned by a coalition of Denver sports figures led by John Elway .
20-676: Negotiations with a Denver ownership group were underway for a future AFL expansion franchise in Denver, but it was unclear whether or not it will use the Crush branding or that of the Denver Dynamite , an earlier AFL team. Like the Dallas Desperados , the Crush's branding is partially based on NFL teams (the Denver Broncos and St. Louis Rams , though to a much lesser degree), which would have given
40-1100: A new arena football team in 2003 , when the Colorado Crush , owned by Pat Bowlen and John Elway , was established. That franchise has since folded and the Crush name was acquired by the Indoor Football League team for its name change in 2015 from the Colorado Ice . In 2024, the Colorado Spartans of the National Arena League will be relocating to Denver from Loveland and play at the Denver Coliseum starting in 2025. Wide Receivers/Defensive Backs Offensive Linemen/Defensive Linemen Kickers Rookies in italics Roster updated January 23, 2013 23 Active, 0 Inactive, 0 PS → More rosters The following Dynamite players were named to All-Arena Teams: Note: Statistics are correct through
60-582: The ArenaBowl, Head Coach Tim Marcum was named the league's first ever Coach of the Year. Despite averaging the league's best attendance with over 12,000 a game, it did not return for the league's second season due to Shlenker refusing to abide by the AFL's financial rules. The franchise was restarted in 1989 , with the ownership purchased by Englewood, Colorado investment banker Gary Graham for $ 125,000. Graham's first move
80-452: The Crush name expired the year before meaning that the original Crush ownership no longer had a say in the use of the name. The following Crush players were named to All-Arena Teams: The following Crush players have been named to All-Ironman Teams: The following Crush players have been named to All-Rookie Teams: The team's main color and name are in reference to the Denver Broncos 1970s defensive squad (the "Orange Crush" ). Denver
100-598: The Crush rebounded to go 11–5 and make the playoffs in their second year. On June 12, 2005 they won ArenaBowl XIX (19) in Las Vegas' Thomas & Mack Center over the Georgia Force 51–48, in only their third year of existence. In their fourth year the Crush ended up 11–5, with the American Conference Central title for the second year in a row. In the divisional round, however, the Crush lost in an upset to
120-765: The Denver Dynamite. The franchise played in the inaugural four-team "demonstration" season of 1987 . Despite the team and league's doubters, the Dynamite tied for the best record in the league with the Pittsburgh Gladiators, going 4–2. On August 1, 1987, the team participated in ArenaBowl I , which they won 45–16 over the Gladiators. The Dynamite were led on offense by quarterback Whit Taylor , and wide receiver Gary Mullen (Mullen won ArenaBowl I MVP). After winning
140-429: The city far more interested trying to attract investors to land a Major League Baseball franchise ( Colorado Rockies ), the team did not attract potential buyers. The owners retained the rights to operate an Arena Football franchise, however, which they sold in 1996 to a Nashville, Tennessee -based group which started the first Nashville Kats franchise (later the Georgia Force ) the next year. Denver received
160-469: The end of the 1991 Arena Football League season . ArenaBowl The ArenaBowl is the championship game of the Arena Football League . Originally hosted at Pittsburgh's Civic Arena based on home attendance during the inaugural 1987 season , save four years (2005–2008) the game was hosted by the team with the higher seed based on regular season performance. In 2005–2006 the league staged
180-465: The fifth-seeded (and eventual ArenaBowl champion) Chicago Rush 63–46. The team's mascot was an anthropomorphic bull named " Crusher. " On July 15, 2015, the Indoor Football League franchise previously known as the Colorado Ice announced that they would change their name to the Colorado Crush , but would have no ties to the former AFL franchise. According to team owner Tom Wigley, the trademark of
200-453: The game in Las Vegas , and in 2007–2008 New Orleans hosted the event. For the series final two games, regular season home attendance between the competing teams determined which would host. Originally using year-based nomenclature ("ArenaBowl '87"), the league would begin consistently referring to the game using roman numerals beginning in 1994 (" ArenaBowl VIII "). The original Arena Football League 's 2009 bankruptcy liquidation brought
220-479: The late Pat Bowlen or Stan Kroenke a potential veto over any usage of the Colorado Crush branding. On July 15, 2015, the Crush name was acquired by the Indoor Football League franchise formerly known as the Colorado Ice as the trademark for the name expired in 2014 according to their ownership. On August 8, 2001, the team entered an application for expansion into the Arena Football League . In June 2002, it
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#1732859140565240-570: The league's existence to a close, but ArenaBowl XXIII would be staged in 2010 as the championship game of a new league which assumed the AFL's intellectual properties. The final ten games of the series would be staged under the "new" Arena Football League, concluding with ArenaBowl XXXII between the Albany Empire and Philadelphia Soul . The second AFL ultimately had the same fate as the first, ceasing operations after its 2019 season and undergoing Chapter 7 bankruptcy liquidation. The ArenaBowl
260-469: The player's checks began to bounce during the season. Graham cited that the only problem came from a bookkeeping error. Despite the financial turmoil that occurred the season before, the Dynamite once again fielded a team in 1991. The team finished 6–4 during the regular season, again clinching the 3rd seed for the playoffs. The team lost to the relocated Gladiators, who became the Tampa Bay Storm , in
280-480: The playoffs every season, but failed to return to the ArenaBowl . After the 1991 season, the franchise was sued by their public relations firm and filed for bankruptcy . They played their home games at McNichols Sports Arena . The team's logo was a bundle of dynamite sticks with a burning fuse. In 1987, businessman and then-owner of the Denver Nuggets Sidney Shlenker announced the forming of
300-484: The season with a record of 4-4, good enough to clinch the 3rd seed. The team lost 25–26 to the semi-finals to the Dallas Texans . The attendance had been steadily rising during the season, with the final home game's attendance listed at 10,587. This was later found to be skewed as around 3,000 people were admitted for free. The AFL stepped in and began to question the Dynamite operations and financial stability as some of
320-462: The semi-finals. After the season, the franchise filed for bankruptcy after being sued by their public relations firm. When he learned of the situation in Denver, AFL commissioner Jim Foster has this to say, "Three things can happen. One, he finds a buyer, or we find him a buyer, and the team stays in Denver. Two, a buyer is found and moves to another city. Three, no one is interested and the franchise goes down." The Dynamite went up for sale, but with
340-756: Was announced that John Elway (Co-Owner and Chief Executive Officer), with Stan Kroenke , owner of the Avalanche, the Nuggets, the Rapids, Pepsi Center, & the Altitude Sports network and the majority Broncos owner Pat Bowlen would be bringing an arena football team to Denver. The Crush competed in the Central Division of the American Conference. After a bad inaugural season in 2003, in which they finished 2-14,
360-409: Was brought in by businessman Sidney Shlenker and the team achieved success instantly, winning the first ever ArenaBowl under future AFL Hall of Fame coach Tim Marcum . After sitting out the 1988 season, the Dynamite were purchased by investment banker Gary Graham for $ 125,000. Graham then hired former NFL and AFL coach Babe Parilli to lead the team. Under Parilli, the Dynamite would return to
380-520: Was host to one of the four charter teams, the Denver Dynamite , which won the first-ever ArenaBowl in 1987. Van Montgomery from the TV show Reba played for the Crush at the end of his football career. Denver Dynamite (arena football) The Denver Dynamite were an arena football team based in Denver, Colorado . The team began play in 1987 as a charter member of the Arena Football League . The team
400-435: Was to hire former NFL and AFL coach, Babe Parilli as the team's head coach. The team struggled to earn money during the 1989 season due to only hosting one home game. The team finished with a 3–1 regular season record, and lost in the first round of the playoffs, 37–39 to the Gladiators. With the same coaching staff in place from 1989, the Dynamite got off to a hot 4–1 start during the 1990 season. The Dynamite would finish
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