The Cedar Rapids River Kings are a professional indoor football team based in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. They are members of American Indoor Football and play their homes at the Alliant Energy PowerHouse.
| Cedar Rapids River Kings | |
|---|---|
| Established 2011 Play in Alliant Energy PowerHouse in Cedar Rapids, Iowa CRRiverKings.com | |
 | |
| League/conference affiliations | |
| |
Current uniform | |
| Team colors | Navy blue, light blue, gray |
| Personnel | |
| Owner(s) | Dominic Montero |
| President | Drake Roach |
| Head coach | Michael Coleman |
| Team history | |
| |
| Championships | |
| League championships (0) | |
| Conference championships (0) | |
| Division championships (0) | |
| Playoff appearances (4) | |
| Home arena(s) | |
| |
The River Kings joined the Indoor Football League (IFL) as an expansion team in 2011 known as the Cedar Rapids Titans and first took the field for the 2012 season.
Since 2014, the Titans/River Kings franchise has played its home games at the newly renovated Alliant Energy PowerHouse, after having played their first two seasons at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena.
The Titans were the first indoor team to be based in Cedar Rapids. The Titans have appeared in two United Conference championship games (2013, 2014), losing to the Sioux Falls Storm both times.
During the 2018 season, the Titans were sold to new ownership and announced that they would rebrand for 2019 with a name-the-team contest,[1] eventually taking on the Cedar Rapids River Kings name.[2]
Due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the River Kings went dormant for at least the 2021 season.[3] The team website was deactivated in 2020[4] and the team was not included as a 2022 league member.
The River Kings would return in 2024, as members of the revived AIF.
Franchise history
edit2012 – Titans
editIn August 2011, it was announced that the Cedar Rapids Titans would become an expansion team of the Indoor Football League for the 2012 season owned by Chris Kokalis, Bob Sullivan and Kenneth Moninski.[5] Titans' general manager, Chris Kolalis stated, "We believe that Cedar Rapids is a fantastic market to bring a team into. We hope to promote economic development and be a part of the growth of the community by being active and giving back to the fans."[5] The team also announced that they would play their home games at the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena, with the intentions to play in the newly renovated, U.S. Cellular Center in 2013.[5] On November 18, 2011, the Titans hired former NFL player, Kyle Moore-Brown, as the first coach in franchise history.[6] They won their inaugural game on March 3, 2012, with a 32–13 win over Lehigh Valley Steelhawks.[7]
2013
editThe Titans lost their pre-season warm-up against Green Bay but began the 2013 regular season with three straight wins in a home-and-home series with Chicago and hosting the new Texas Revolution franchise out of Allen.[8] After a two-week bye, the team lost its next three games. The Titans recovered from this stumble and finished the season second in the United Conference with a 9–5 record. They made the post-season but lost to the Sioux Falls Storm in the United Conference Championship.[9] The team fared much better at home than on the road with 5 of its 6 losses coming when it was away from the Cedar Rapids Ice Arena.
2014
editThe Titans were one of eight returning teams plus one expansion team for the 2014 Indoor Football League season. After a 38–47 loss to open the 2014 season, the Titans went on to win their next 8 games in a row. The Titans entered Week 12, with a chance to claim first place in the United Conference, but fell 36–48 to the undefeated Storm. The Titans avenged the loss during the final game of the season, defeating the Storm 49–37. The victory placed the Titans in second place in the United Conference, and ended the Storm's undefeated season. The Titans' 2nd-place finish meant a road playoff game against the Storm in the United Conference Finals, where they were defeated 36–73.
2015
editThe Titans were tasked with replacing 2014 starting quarterback Spencer Ohm, while also losing the IFL's leading rusher, LaRon Council. The team signed Sam Durley, from the defunct Wyoming Cavalry, to be their new starting quarterback. Durley got the Titans off to a 6–3 start, good enough for second place in the United Conference, but he was released on May 4, 2015, to sign with the New Orleans VooDoo.[10] However, just two weeks prior to Durley's release, the Titans had traded for the 2014 IFL MVP, Willie Copeland.[11] Jeremiah Price was named the Defensive Player of the Year.
2016
editThe Titans were yet again looking for a quarterback heading into 2016. The team selected Dylan Favre (quarterback for the national team from the 2015 Football World Cup and the nephew of Brett Favre) to lead the team. Favre finished 6th in the league in passing touchdowns and 5 in passing yards as the Titans finished the season 12–4, clinching the 2 seed in the United Conference. The Titans won their first playoff game in team history with a 66–36 victory over the Wichita Falls Nighthawks,[12] but were once again defeated by the Sioux Falls Storm 48–41 in the United Conference Championship. Price repeated as the Defensive Player of the Year.
2017
editThe Titans hired former Iowa Hawkeyes wide receiver, Marvin McNutt as the third coach in team history.[13]
2018
editAfter the 2017 season, head coach McNutt took over as general manager and hired Billy Back, the 2016 IFL coach of the year with the Wichita Falls Nighthawks, as the new head coach.[14] However, coach Back would leave the team a couple of months after his hiring to coach the expansion Carolina Cobras of the National Arena League for the 2018 season. The Titans then hired former NFL linebacker Marvin Jones as his replacement.[15]
On January 30, 2018, the Titans' ownership announced the team was for sale with hopes of selling to new local ownership.[16] In June, it was announced that the Titans had been sold to Roy Choi, a California-based businessman, with the intentions of keeping the team Cedar Rapids.[17]
River Kings
edit
In a letter to fans posted on the team's website on August 17, 2018, new general manager Ryan Eucker announced that the Titans' name and identity would be replaced as part of a rebranding process after the ownership change.[1] On August 20, 2018, Eucker announced a name-the-team contest to select a new team name and identity with submissions due by September 5.[18] On September 22, the team announced their new name as the Cedar Rapids River Kings with a new logo and color scheme to be unveiled by mid-October.[2] On September 25, 2018, general manager Ryan Eucker announced that Mark Stoute had returned as the head coach of the River Kings. He coached the Titans from 2013 to 2016.[19] A few games into the season, general manager Eucker was sent by the new owner to his other IFL team, the San Diego Strike Force, to take over as general manager. Reggie Harris was promoted to the River Kings' general manager.
The River Kings finished with a 1–13 record and head coach Stoute was fired after the season.[20] Victor Mann was brought in as head coach after his previous team, the Texas Revolution, had folded the previous season.[21]
The River Kings participated in one of the two league games that were completed in the 2020 season before the entire league's season was curtailed during the COVID-19 pandemic. The team also withdrew from the league's 2021 season.[22]
2024
editIn 2024, the River Kings were revived as a member of American Indoor Football. The River Kings lost all of their league games for the rest of the season. They have announced that they are staying in the AIF while the remaining teams left to join the National Arena League. Initially, it was announced as a merger, but league owner Larry Clark Jr. and River Kings owner Montero vehemently denied this and they announced that they and Montero's other team, the Coralville Chaos, will play in the AIF for the 2025 season and will challenge the former owners (now in the NAL) with legal action if challenged themselves.
Players
editCurrent roster
editQuarterbacks
|
Offensive linemen
|
Linebackers
|
Reserve lists
|
All-IFL players
editThe following Titans/River Kings players have been named to All-IFL Teams:
- RB LaRon Council (2)
- WR Carl Sims, Bryan Pray (2), Damond Powell
- OL Maurice Robinson, Albert Erni Jr., A. J. Harmon
- DL Xzavie Jackson (4), Kyle Jenkins, Jeremiah Price (2)
- LB Nikolas Sierra
- DB T. J. Simmons, Ricky Johnson
- K Rockne Belmonte (2), Nicholas Belcher
- KR Robert Brown, Demetruce McNeal
Individual awards
editThe following is a list of all Titans/River Kings players who have won league awards
|
|
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||
Staff
edit|
Front office
Head coaches
Offensive coaches
|
Defensive coaches
|
Statistics and records
editSeason-by-season results
edit| League champions | Conference champions | Playoff berth | League leader |
| Season | Team | League | Conference | Regular season | Postseason results | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Finish | Wins | Losses | |||||
| 2012 | 2012 | IFL | United | 7th | 4 | 10 | |
| 2013 | 2013 | IFL | United | 2nd | 9 | 5 | Lost United Conference Championship (Sioux Falls) 20–44 |
| 2014 | 2014 | IFL | United | 2nd | 11 | 3 | Lost United Conference Championship (Sioux Falls) 36–73 |
| 2015 | 2015 | IFL | United | 2nd | 9 | 5 | Lost United Conference Championship (Sioux Falls) 12–34 |
| 2016 | 2016 | IFL | United | 2nd | 12 | 4 | Won United Conference Wild Card (Wichita Falls) 66–36 Lost United Conference Championship (Sioux Falls) 24–58 |
| 2017 | 2017 | IFL | United | 5th | 1 | 15 | |
| 2018 | 2018 | IFL | 5th | 3 | 11 | ||
| 2019 | 2019 | IFL | 9th | 1 | 13 | ||
| 2020 | 2020 | IFL | 0 | 1 | Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | ||
| 2021 | Dormant year | ||||||
| 2022 | Dormant year | ||||||
| 2023 | Dormant year | ||||||
| 2024 | 2024 | AIF | 5th | 0 | 2 | ||
| Totals | 50 | 69 | All-time regular season record | ||||
| 1 | 4 | All-time postseason record | |||||
| 51 | 73 | All-time regular season and postseason record | |||||
Head coach records
editNote: Statistics are correct through the 2024 American Indoor Football season.
| Name | Tenure | Regular season | Playoffs | Awards | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | Win% | W | L | |||
| Kyle Moore-Brown | 2012 | 4 | 10 | .286 | 0 | 0 | |
| Mark Stoute | 2013–2016, 2019 | 42 | 30 | .583 | 1 | 4 | 2013 IFL Coach of the Year |
| Marvin McNutt | 2017 | 1 | 15 | .063 | 0 | 0 | |
| Marvin Jones | 2018 | 3 | 11 | .214 | 0 | 0 | |
| Victor Mann | 2020 | 0 | 1 | .000 | 0 | 0 | |
| Daron Clark | 2024–present | 2 | 3 | .400 | 0 | 0 | |
References
edit- ^ a b Ryan Eucker (August 17, 2018). "LETTER TO FANS FROM GM RYAN EUCKER". CedarRapidsTitans.com.
- ^ a b Ryan Eucker (September 22, 2018). "Cedar Rapids IFL Announces New Team Name". CedarRapidsTitans.com.
- ^ "2021 IFL SCHEDULE RELEASED". IFL. November 17, 2020.
- ^ "Wayback Machine archives for goriverkings.com". Archived from the original on 8 August 2020. Retrieved October 22, 2021.
- ^ a b c "Professional Football Coming to Cedar Rapids". www.kcrg.com. ABC. August 29, 2011. Archived from the original on January 27, 2013. Retrieved September 20, 2012.
- ^ Jeff Johnson (November 18, 2011). "Titans hire Moore-Brown as head coach". The Gazette. Retrieved September 20, 2012.
- ^ Mike Condon (March 3, 2012). "Titans trounce Lehigh Valley, 32-13, in first game for Cedar Rapids IFL franchise". The Gazette. Retrieved September 20, 2012.
- ^ Bonner, Michael; Saville, Scott (March 2, 2013). "Titans Steamroll Texas To Stay Perfect". Cedar Rapids, IA: KCRG-TV. Archived from the original on September 30, 2015. Retrieved March 4, 2013.
- ^ "Titans fall to Storm in conference championship". thegazette.com. The Gazette. June 22, 2013. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
- ^ Douglas Miles (May 3, 2015). "Durley leaving Titans for AFL's New Orleans VooDoo". www.thegazette.com. The Cedar Rapids Gazette. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
- ^ Douglas Miles (April 13, 2015). "C.R. Titans trade for reigning IFL MVP". www.thegazette.com. The Cedar Rapids Gazette. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
- ^ Douglas Miles (July 9, 2016). "Dylan Favre totals 7 TDs for Cedar Rapids Titans in 66-36 playoff rout". www.thegazette.com. The Cedar Rapids Gazette. Retrieved July 11, 2016.
- ^ Douglas Miles (October 11, 2016). "Former Iowa Hawkeyes receiver Marvin McNutt named Cedar Rapids Titans head coach". www.thegazette.com. The Gazette. Retrieved March 21, 2017.
- ^ "FORMER COACH OF THE YEAR JOINS TITANS; MCNUTT PROMOTED TO GM". CR Titans. October 30, 2017.
- ^ "FORMER ALL PRO NFL LINEBACKER NAMED TITANS HEAD COACH". Cedar Rapids Titans. January 3, 2018.
- ^ "Cedar Rapids Titans up for sale". KCRG-TV. January 30, 2018.
- ^ "Cedar Rapids Titans Announce New Ownership". OurSportsCentral.com. June 19, 2018.
- ^ Ryan Eucker (August 20, 2018). "NAME THE TEAM CONTEST". CedarRapidsTitans.com. Archived from the original on August 22, 2018. Retrieved August 21, 2018.
- ^ Ryan Eucker (September 25, 2018). "Cedar Rapids MARK STOUTE RETURNS AS HEAD COACH". GoRiverKings.com.
- ^ "RIVER KINGS BEGIN SEARCH FOR NEW HEAD COACH". River Kings. July 20, 2019.
- ^ "Victor Mann Agrees to Lead River Kings". OurSports Central. September 5, 2019.
- ^ "Current Teams - Indoor Football League". Indoor Football League. Retrieved October 22, 2021.