By KEVIN J. KELLER
2007 CIFL Director of Media Relations 

The 2007 Continental Indoor Football League season was one filled with suspense and drama. After a stellar inaugural season, the Great Lakes Indoor Football League became the Continental Indoor Football League and expansion began.

In addition to the five remaining teams from the inaugural 2006 season, the CIFL added franchises in Upper Marlboro, Md., Chicago, Ill., Kalamazoo, Mich., Troy, Ohio, Muskegon, Mich., Worcester, Mass., Springfield, Ill., Steubenville, Ohio and Akron, Ohio.

The two teams that battled it out in Great Lakes Bowl I, the Port Huron Pirates and Rochester Raiders, kicked off the second season of the nation’s only seven-on-seven professional indoor football league.

The two clashed three times during the league’s first season, with Port Huron winning all three by a combined margin of 15 points. However, the CIFL Kickoff Classic between the two was a completely different story.

The Pirates, defending league champions, opened the 2007 season with a 62-30 triumph over the Raiders.

It was the first of many lopsided victories for the defending titlists, who would go on to finish the regular season with an unblemished 12-0 mark. In doing so, Port Huron became the first professional football team in any league to finish back-to-back undefeated regular seasons.

However, the Pirates’ quest for back-to-back undefeated championship seasons ended in late July at the hands of their week one foe Rochester.

The Raiders, who were 1-2 after a week three loss to the Pirates, entered the title game winners of their last 11 games.

Port Huron earned the right to host the game, but after an agreement between the two teams’ owners, the city of Rochester became the sight of one of the most talked-about indoor football games in the sports history.

More than 5000 fans filed into Blue Cross Arena in downtown Rochester to watch the hometown Raiders stun the indoor football world by dethroning the Pirates 37-27 to win the 2007 CIFL Indoor Championship Game.

Mike Condello won the game’s MVP award after harassing indoor football great Shane Franzer from the games opening minute. The Raider defensive end had five tackles, two sacks and six quarterback hurries on the night.

The 2007 season, however, wasn’t just about the Pirates and Raiders.

New England started the season 1-3, but a coaching change kickstarted a run that ended in the divisional title game for the Surge. Rick Buffington started the season as the team’s coach, but team owner Roy Lucas wasn’t happy with the team’s performance through the first four games.

Lucas named himself the team’s coach and the Surge proceeded to win eight of its next nine games before falling to Rochester in the Atlantic Division Championship Game.

Kalamazoo was also a bright spot in the CIFL in 2007. The expansion Xplosion sat atop the league standings with Port Huron until a week 10 meeting with Chicago put an end to Kalamazoo’s perfect season.

The Xplosion would fall victim to the Pirates three weeks after the Chicago loss and finish the 2007 regular season 10-2. Kalamazoo gave Port Huron a run for its money in the divisional title game, falling 37-29 after battling back to tie the game at 29.

Lehigh Valley joined Rochester and Port Huron as the only back-to-back playoff qualifiers. However, for the second-straight year, the Outlawz were bounced in the first round by the Surge 58-34.

In week eight, the Outlawz took part in just the second overtime game in league history with expansion franchise Chesapeake. The Tide, who had already knocked off New England earlier in the year, handed Lehigh Valley a 57-56 setback in the extra period.

Lehigh Valley scored on its possession in overtime, but Chesapeake blocked the PAT attempt. The Tide scored on third down on the ensuing possession and won the game with a successful point-after kick.

The Marion Mayhem made their first appearance in the playoffs in 2007 and also picked up the franchise’s first playoff victory at home over the expansion Muskegon Thunder in the first round of the Great Lakes Division playoffs.

The Mayhem, led by former Ohio State University quarterback Stanley Jackson, hosted the playoff affair between the two. Marion built a 10-point lead by halftime and led by as many 17 in the second half to claim the victory and the right to take on Port Huron in the next round.

Two new teams to the CIFL, the expansion Chicago Slaughter and the Miami Valley Silverbacks, duked it out in the other Great Lakes Division playoff game.

Chicago built a 31-0 lead in the game and cruised to a victory over the Silverbacks, a franchise that joined the CIFL after spending its inaugural season in another indoor league.