Fort Collins, CO- At a press conference on Thursday, October 23rd the Colorado Ice announced their upcoming season theme, “The New Ice Age”.  A number of exciting new developments were announced -chiefly the unveiling of the new Ice logo- and also included the formal naming of Head Coach Collins Sanders as General Manager, discussion of the new Indoor Football League (IFL), announcement of the partnership with Nelligan Sports Marketing, upcoming open player tryouts, and the Ice’s new front office location.

The Ice’s new logo features the Rocky Mountains with a football swooping down from the peaks and the Colorado Ice in bold, “ice-block” letters. Ice owner John Cunningham stated, “in light of so many positive developments involving the Ice organization, we feel the new logo being bold, exciting and professional - symbolizes where we are going as an organization.” All Colorado Ice memorabilia & merchandise will feature the new logo.

In addition, head coach Collins Sanders was formally named General Manager of the Colorado Ice. Sanders brings a wealth of football knowledge to the front office, having experience in both coaching and operations in professional football for eight years. Sanders will continue his duties as head coach and says he is “looking forward to being able to utilize my many years of experience in professional football both on and off the field.” In addition, Kristin Willard was named Director of Media and Community Relations for the Ice. Willard’s previous experiences include working in media and game operations with a junior hockey team in Cedar Rapids, Iowa and as a marketing and events coordinator for a Northern Colorado business.

The Ice’s new league, the Indoor Football League, was also discussed at length. The IFL was born out of the merger in August of 2008 between the United Indoor Football League (UIF) and the Intense Football League (IFL). Since the merger, seven additional teams have also joined the IFL. The IFL boasts 23 teams that stretch nation-wide from Alaska to the east coast, with talks for further expansion currently under way. Ice Owner John Cunningham says he is, “excited for the increased fan base the IFL will bring and is looking forward to bringing new competition to the Budweiser Events Center for the Ice to face.”

Nelligan Sports Marketing’s partnership with the Colorado Ice was also announced. NSM brings a wealth of sports marketing experience to the Ice, having represented more than 30 collegiate sports teams, including Colorado State University (CSU), and numerous corporations in negotiating over $367 million in sponsorship sales. Matt Brunk, Director of Sales for Nelligan Sports Marketing, said, “strengthening and maintaining the Ice’s existing partnerships while developing new relationships with surrounding Northern Colorado Businesses is a key component to the Ice’s continued success. The Colorado Ice has great sponsors and a great fan base and we look forward to developing that further.”

Rounding out the press conference was a discussion of the Ice’s upcoming open tryouts for the 2009 season and the Ice’s new front office location. On Sunday, October 26th from 10am – 1pm at Fort Collins Soccer Club at OD’s Sports Crossing in Fort Collins, CO the Ice will be holding their first of three tryouts for the 2009 season. Head Coach Sanders remarked, “we’ve already secured some amazing players; the tryouts will be a good opportunity to see them in action and to hopefully find some additional talent that we may have otherwise over-looked.” The dates for a second open tryout and a final, invite-only tryout remains to be announced. Additionally, the Colorado Ice front office has moved to a new office located on South College near Harmony. The new address for the Ice is 4812 S. College Ave, Suite 200, Fort Collins, CO 80525. The Ice’s phone number remains unchanged at 970-472-0128.

The Colorado Ice are proud members of the Indoor Football League (IFL).  All home games are played at the Budweiser Events Center located in Loveland, Colorado.  The 2009 season kicks off in March with specific game-day dates to be announced.  Single, group, and season tickets for the 2009 season are now available at the Colorado Ice headquarters by calling

(970) 472-0128.  Additional information on the Colorado Ice organization can be found at www.thecoloradoice.com. 

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