Arena Football League

The Arena Football League has shut down, this time indefinitely. The league, which previously called off play for the 2009 season but had said it planned to return in 2010, sent a terse, one-paragraph statement to its teams late Tuesday announcing it had suspended operations. The statement said the AFL's board had been "unable to reach any consensus on restructuring the league over the past 8 months. " The 22-year-old indoor league had lost its commissioner and two teams since the end of last season.

Mike Hohensee has been around the Arena Football League long enough to tell stories that few people can. As a quarterback for Pittsburgh in the inaugural 1987 season, Hohensee recalls wearing uniforms made by Zubaz, the clothing line best known for its zebra-print shorts and wild patterns. "We actually had mesh sides to our pants, so you could actually see leg," Hohensee said, laughing. "So, yeah, we've evolved. " Hohensee is now a longtime AFL coach, and he is taking over the reborn Soul, who will resume league play in April.

Philadelphia, a city known for its passionate sports fans, now has another professional football team to cheer - and boo, too. The Arena Football League (AFL), which was founded 16 years ago and has steadily increased in popularity, is coming to Philadelphia next year. Ron Jaworski, an NFL analyst for ESPN and former Eagles quarterback, said that he and a group of partners had reached an agreement in principle yesterday to join the AFL. He said that the deal will be sealed once the paperwork is completed.

When it comes to money, David Baker, commissioner of the Arena Football League, says the main difference between his league and the big league is a few zeros missing at the end of every number. In the NFL, each team gets $70 million a year in national television revenue, which is about $70 million more than the owners of the new Philadelphia Soul figure to see from NBC, the arena league's carrier. With so little money involved, relatively speaking, the odds of making a killing in the indoor game are not huge.

Here's what local fans need to take their minds off of Reggie White's imminent departure and Norman Braman's ill-conceived shots at the city, its mayor and its fans: More football. The indoor Arena Football League (AFL) is planning to expand for its seventh season, beginning in May. Philadelphia is among four finalists for a new franchise. Perhaps you haven't been waiting all your life for this brand of Roller Derby football, which is played on a 50-yard rug ("He's at the 15, the 20, the 25, the 20 . . . ")

Soul quarterback Tony Graziani yesterday was named Arena Football League offensive player of the week. He completed 15 of 22 passes for 257 yards and a franchise-record nine touchdowns with no interceptions in the Soul's 77-56 victory Saturday over the Orlando Predators. Graziani led the Soul's offense on scoring drives on 10 of its 11 possessions, and his passer rating of 147.2 ranked highest among all quarterbacks during Week 1.

The Soul will have their work cut out for them next Sunday when they visit the Georgia Force in the divisional round of the Arena Football League playoffs. Georgia (14-2), the Southern Division champion, is 8-0 at Atlanta's Philips Arena. The Force handed the Soul (9-8) their first loss of the season, 57-49, at the Wachovia Center on April 9. The 7 p.m. game will be televised on ESPN2.

The Colorado Crush have moved their scheduled Arena Football League game against the Soul to 9 p.m. Saturday at the Pepsi Center in Denver. The game, originally scheduled for Sunday, was moved to accommodate a potential Game 6 Sunday in the Denver Nuggets' first-round NBA playoff series against the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Soul game will be broadcast on WNJC-AM (1360) but will not be televised by Channel 10. This is the second meeting this season between the two teams.

The Soul named Connell Maynor offensive coordinator and re-signed John Kirk as fullback/linebacker and special-teams coach, the Arena Football League team announced yesterday. Contract terms were not disclosed. Maynor joined Philadelphia as a backup quarterback late last season when Tony Graziani was sidelined with a torn hamstring. The 12-year league veteran has won four championships. In his playing career, Maynor completed 727 of 1,246 passes for 9,332 yards and 160 touchdowns.

THE UNIVERSITY of Arkansas says the former mistress of fired football coach Bobby Petrino has resigned her position with the program. The school announced in a news release Tuesday evening that Jessica Dorrell had stepped down as the football team's student-athlete development coordinator. Athletic director Jeff Long said the decision was mutual and that there are no immediate plans to try to fill the job. The university says Dorrell, 25, will be paid approximately $14,000 to settle "all matters between the parties.

Sunday at 4 p.m. at New Orleans Arena TV/Radio: CSN; ESPN-AM 950 Coaches: Soul, Doug Plank; VooDoo, Chris O'Hanlon Last year: The Soul finished the season 6-12; the VooDoo were 3-15, the worst record in the league. Both teams were out of the AFL during the 2009 and 2010 seasons. Outlook The Soul feature league record-setter Derrick Ross and wide receiver Jeff Hughley, who ranked No. 3 in the Arena Football League last year in all-purpose yards (2,680)

SOUL COACH Mike Hohensee has resigned after going 6-12 this season. Philadelphia lost a handful of close games early on and finished the year dropping five of the final six. Hohensee, however, held his head high. "I'm extremely proud to have been the coach of these guys," he said. "The expectations were high, maybe higher than they should be, and it's best that I move on. But I'll always remember my time here. I had a blast. " The Soul was essentially starting from scratch after a 2-year hiatus following a league stoppage.

DALLAS - The Dallas Vigilantes jumped out to a 13-0 lead and never trailed as they defeated the Soul, 58-41, in an Arena Football League game Saturday night. The Soul (5-11) fought to stay close throughout the game, but each score was answered by the Vigilantes (10-5). Donovan Morgan scored three touchdowns for the Soul, all in the second half, on pass receptions of 6, 27, and 28 yards. Syvelle Newton, Ty Nsekhe, and Larry Brockins had the other Philadelphia scores. For Dallas, Derrick Ross led the way with three rushing touchdowns of 2 yards each.

The Soul is on the verge of signing its first player, the Daily News has learned. And he's a good one. Wide receiver Donovan Morgan, the Arena Football League rookie of the year in 2008, will be the first member of the revamped team, according to a league source. Morgan was first-team all-Arena last season for Tulsa. A product of Pearl River Community College in Poplarville, Miss., Morgan (6-3, 220) had 123 catches, 1,707 receiving yards and 52 touchdowns. He played for new Soul coach Mike Hohensee in Chicago in 2008.

Mike Hohensee has been around the Arena Football League long enough to tell stories that few people can. As a quarterback for Pittsburgh in the inaugural 1987 season, Hohensee recalls wearing uniforms made by Zubaz, the clothing line best known for its zebra-print shorts and wild patterns. "We actually had mesh sides to our pants, so you could actually see leg," Hohensee said, laughing. "So, yeah, we've evolved. " Hohensee is now a longtime AFL coach, and he is taking over the reborn Soul, who will resume league play in April.

Ron Jaworski had already interviewed four or five coaching candidates when he heard Mike Hohensee might be available. Hohensee had spent the last 9 years coaching the Chicago Rush, where he won ArenaBowl XX in 2006. "Mike wasn't even on my radar," Jaworski said yesterday after Hohensee was introduced at Chickie's & Pete's in South Philly as the Soul's new head coach. "I had heard there was some issues with the ownership over there. [We] called and said '[We're] looking for a coach.

The Philadelphia Soul is no longer a thing of the past. After what will be a two-year hiatus, the franchise will make a return to the Arena Football League next season. But it will do so without former high-profile owner, Jon Bon Jovi, who's focusing his attention on the Bon Jovi world-wide tour. New owners Cosmo DeNicola and Pete Ciarrocchi will join Craig Spencer and former Eagles quarterback Ron Jaworski, members of the original ownership group. Ciarrocchi is the owner of the sports bar Chickie's and Pete's.

The Arena Football League has shut down, this time indefinitely. The league, which previously called off play for the 2009 season but had said it planned to return in 2010, sent a terse, one-paragraph statement to its teams late Tuesday announcing it had suspended operations. The statement said the AFL's board had been "unable to reach any consensus on restructuring the league over the past 8 months. " The 22-year-old indoor league had lost its commissioner and two teams since the end of last season.

The former sales manager of the Philadelphia Soul is suing team owner Jon Bon Jovi and his partners, claiming they owe him $125,000 in sales commissions. According to the suit, filed earlier this month in Common Pleas Court, Joseph E. Krausesaid Soul employees were told at a December meeting that the team was shutting down because the Arena Football League was suspending the 2009 season while it develops a long-term economic plan. Soul officials said they would give employees 2 weeks' severance pay. But Krause complained that his contract said he would get salary and a commission based on ticket sales, said his attorney, George Bochetto.