The Rapid City Flying Aces were a professional indoor American football team in Rapid City, South Dakota. Like their predecessors, the Black Hills Red Dogs, they played their home games at the Don Barnett Arena in Rapid City. As of April 2007, the Flying Aces did not belong to any football league. The team was affiliated with the original Indoor Football League in 2000; with the National Indoor Football League from 2001 to 2004 and in 2006; and with United Indoor Football in 2005. The team considered rejoining United Indoor Football in 2008.
| Rapid City Flying Aces | |
|---|---|
| Established 2000 Folded 2006 Played in Don Barnett Arena in Rapid City, South Dakota | |
 | |
| League/conference affiliations | |
Indoor Football League (2000)
National Indoor Football League (2001–2004, 2006)
| |
Current uniform | |
| Team colors | Black, brick red, white |
| Personnel | |
| Owner(s) | Howard Neal |
| Head coach | Dan Majiejczak |
| Team history | |
| |
| Championships | |
| League championships (0) | |
| Conference championships (0) | |
| Division championships (0) | |
| Playoff appearances (3) | |
| |
| Home arena(s) | |
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The Flying Aces won at least 10 out of 14 games three times in their seven seasons; however, organizational turmoil threatened the existence of the franchise.
History
edit2000–2005
editThe team began play as the Black Hills Machine of the Indoor Football League in 2000. They lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Topeka Kings. When the IFL folded, the franchise moved to the newly formed National Indoor Football League as a charter member and became the Rapid City Red Dogs.[1] The team played in the NIFL from 2001 to 2003. In 2004, the franchise renamed itself the Black Hills Red Dogs. In 2005, the Red Dogs joined the United Indoor Football as a charter member and won a single game during their inaugural season in the UIF. Also in 2005, the team signed quarterback Chris Dixon. Dixon would later become the first indoor football player to throw for 500 touchdowns in his career.
2006 season
editIn 2006, the franchise moved back to the NIFL and became the Rapid City Flying Aces. During the 2006 season, they began the season 8–0. It appeared the team was going to fold when owner Howard Neal left the franchise in a financial mess;[2] However, several local investors helped pay the bills and save the team. The team went on to the Pacific Conference title game, where they lost to the Billings Outlaws.
Unfortunately, there was not enough time to save the team and the franchise would fold in December 2006.[3] Former owner Howard Weiner, who went by the alias "Howard Neal", was sentenced to four months in prison after admitting to committing bank fraud and was also sentenced to five years of probation and ordered to pay $116,000 in restitution. He had until July 18, 2011, to turn himself in at the Coleman Federal Correctional Complex in Coleman, Florida.[4]
Season-by-season
edit| Season | W | L | T | Finish | Playoff results |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Black Hills Machine (IFL) | |||||
| 2000 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 2nd WC Northern | Lost Round 1 (Topeka) |
| Rapid City Red Dogs (NIFL) | |||||
| 2001 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 1st PC Central | Lost Round 1 (Sioux Falls) |
| 2002 | 6 | 8 | 0 | 4th PC Western | — |
| 2003 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 3rd PC Western | — |
| Black Hills Red Dogs (NIFL) | |||||
| 2004 | 3 | 11 | 0 | 4th PC Western | — |
| Black Hills Red Dogs (UIF) | |||||
| 2005 | 1 | 14 | 0 | 4th North | — |
| Rapid City Flying Aces (NIFL) | |||||
| 2006 | 11 | 3 | 0 | 1st Pacific West | Won Pacific Semi-Final (Katy) Lost Pacific Championship (Billings) |
| Totals | 52 | 51 | 0 | (including playoffs) | |
Notable players
edit- Tony Case
- Chris Dixon
- Renz Julian – American rapper
- Scott Pingel
References
edit- ^ "Red Dogs Season Opener". www.oursportscentral.com. OurSports Central. March 19, 2002. Retrieved July 22, 2017.
- ^ Rapid City Flying Aces ownership slapped with judgment last Friday, Black Hills Pioneer, May 15, 2006
- ^ Rapid City indoor football team folds, Jim Holland, Billings Gazette, December 21, 2006
- ^ "Former Flying Aces owner sentenced to prison for bank fraud". Rapid City Journal. May 21, 2011. Retrieved June 29, 2018.