Jumping right back into it, let's
continue relocating the
MLL expansion teams to the markets
you voted for.
2016: Phoenix and St. Louis (sorry Zach) both failed in the voting. To
accommodate the changes, the Scorpions move about 290 miles northwest to
Las Vegas. The St. Louis team leaves the
Midwest to join the
NCAA's newest D1 program in Jacksonville (which completely throws off my balanced divisions).
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Las Vegas Scorpions: The biggest problem with moving the Scorpions to Sin City is the lack of suitable field options. While
Las Vegas has been mentioned as a potential
MLS expansion city in the past, the lack of a soccer stadium plan pushed the city out of the running. The only venue in the metro that could work is the 36,800 seat
Sam Boyd Stadium on the
UNLV campus. Such a large venue may work for NCAA and
UFL football, but could prove problematic (read nearly empty) for
MLL games. Perhaps a tarp system could be employed to create a more intimate atmosphere...
Since Vegas is just as much in the desert as Phoenix, the "Scorpions" name stays.
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Jacksonville Conquistadors: This franchise relocates from the Gateway City's French heritage to the Spanish history of the
First Coast's largest city. Drawing on Jacksonville's importance to the establishment of New Spain, the
MLL team adopts
the name applied to early Spanish explorers and soldiers.
The team's colors will come primarily from
the city's flag while paying tribute to the Spanish conquistadors. Decked out in silver helmets, the teams will wear brown and yellow uniforms. Silver trim suggests armor. Orange will be an accent color.
The Conquistadors should find a suitable home at
Hodges Stadium on the campus of the University of North Florida. The 9400 seat stadium currently hosts the
school's soccer team and minor professional
football and
rugby teams. It looks to be the ideal size facility for the
MLL.
2018:
Minnesota Bobcats-
Ottawa Loggers: Stepping in for the Detroit
Mastodons, Canada's capital city becomes the home of the nation's second
MLL team. Drawing on the area's
pre-industrial
history, the "Loggers" name refers to the strong timber industry that helped establish Ottawa as an important center of Canadian and North American commerce. The name also pays tribute to the city's former
professional roller hockey team.
The loggers will wear the colors of most of the
city's other sports teams - red and black. Although this presents an obvious conflict with nearby
Toronto's choice of colors, teams in Ottawa have worn red and black going back at least as far as the
original Senators. These colors make the most sense and pay tribute to the city's sports history.
Currently
Frank Clair Stadium is the only suitable venue in the Ottawa area.
Continue
When I was working on something personal (hopefully to be announced later this spring) last night, I was looking at the Chinese Zodiac. I was surprised to learn that the Valley team's first year of lacrosse will in fact occur during the Year of the Tiger. That's right boys and girls, the ancient Chinese prophets predict that we will have a very successful inaugural season!
For everybody in the Des Moines area that wants to come check out some live lacrosse, here are our home games this spring:
