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New challenges await champion Sharks as they prep for Indoor Football League debut

The Jacksonville Sharks open the Indoor Football League season on Saturday. (News4JAX)

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – New league. New faces. Plenty of new opponents.

The Jacksonville Sharks are gearing up for a transitional season as they segue into a new arena league with the same championship-sized expectations.t

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Jacksonville has built an arena power. They won the National Arena Bowl championship in 2011 as a member of the Arena Football League. Last year, the Sharks won their third championship season in the National Arena League.

But they’re not going to defend their championship.

Not long after beating the Carolina Cobras for the NAL crown, the Sharks announced that they were leaving that league for the Indoor Football League. The IFL has more teams, deeper rosters and better all-around stability than the NAL, which saw two teams fold in-season in 2023 and another two leave for the Arena Football League.

“I’m expecting a ton of competition, a ton of competition. Great coaches, great players, national league across the country,” said coach Jason Gibson. “We’re about ready to find out who the Sharks are.”

A new league means a far more significant challenge for the Sharks, who rank fifth in the IFL Coaches Poll entering their opener Saturday against the Massachusetts Pirates. The IFL is the highest-paying indoor league in the game and has sent more than 150 players to the NFL and the Canadian Football League. It served as the feeder system for the XFL in 2022-23 before that league merged with the USFL to create the United Football League.

Gibson said that football is still football even if it’s taking him more time to get accustomed to larger rosters and more teams.

“There’s transactions that come across the waiver [wire], I couldn’t tell you who any of these people are,” he said. “But you just watch film, you grow and it’s kind of exciting. It’s like starting over going to a new school. We’ll see what happens.”

There’s less ironman football involved in the IFL than the NAL, so players expect to have more opportunities to engage in a truer version of football than the wide-open game of the NAL. Defensive back Jabari Gorman, a four-star recruit in high school who played four seasons at Florida, said that the IFL is an excellent opportunity for players. He’s played in the IFL before and said athletes in it still have the chance to parlay their work in the league into an opportunity beyond the indoor game.

“So now that you don’t have to rely on a two-way guy to be the best guy out there, you actually have a true receiver, a true defensive back. And honestly, it makes the game more harder now,” Gorman said. “Being in this league right now is good for the Sharks, but it’s also good overall for all the opportunities for a lot of guys that’s trying to go to the next level.”

Offensive lineman Gibril Ghee won a championship with the Sharks last year and knows the IFL game well. He played for the Green Bay Blizzard three years ago and said that he’s pumped to get back to it.

“This league is more of a 50-50, more outdoor-type of league. So, you’ll see about the same amount of runs and you will passes and that just makes the game more interesting,” he said. “Adds some more dynamics to the game to make it tougher, you know what I mean, more competitive.”

Need to knows

What’s new: Sharks left the National Arena League where they won three championships, including last year’s. They’re now in the 16-team Indoor Football League.

Season starts: The Sharks play their opener on Saturday.

Where they play: The Sharks switched leagues but not venues. They play at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena. Ticket information can be found here.

Home opener: Is on April 6 against the defending IFL champion, Bay Area Panthers.

Notable players: QB Conor Blount (19 TD passes in four games before season-ending injury); QB Eddie Brill (13 TD passes); DB Jabari Gorman (NAL Defensive Player of the Year, former Gators star); LB Anthony Johnson (Camden County grad); K Frankie Onate (Trinity Christian product); WR Jeremiah Payton (Fletcher grad); DB Harrison Poole (Camden County grad); WR Kamrin Solomon (Mandarin grad, NAL Offensive Player of the Year); WR Jenson Stoshak (University Christian grad); RB Logan Wright (Sandalwood grad).

Jacksonville Sharks 2024 schedule

Saturday: Sharks at Massachusetts Pirates

Sunday, March 31: Sharks at Vegas Nighthawks

Saturday, April 6: Sharks vs Bay Area Panthers

Saturday, April 20: Sharks vs Vegas Nighthawks

Sunday, April 28: Sharks at Arizona Rattlers

Saturday, May 4: Sharks at Tulsa Oilers

Saturday, May 11: Sharks at Frisco Fighters

Saturday, May 18: Sharks vs. Sioux Falls Storm

Saturday, June 1: Sharks vs. Arizona Rattlers

Saturday, June 8: Sharks vs. Tulsa Oilers

Friday, June 14: Sharks at Green Bay Blizzards

Saturday, June 22: Sharks vs. Massachusetts Pirates

Saturday, June 29: Sharks at Sioux Falls Storm

Saturday, July 6: Sharks at Iowa Barnstormers

Saturday, July 13: Sharks vs. Green Bay Blizzards

Saturday, July 20: Sharks vs. Quad City Steamwheelers


About the Author
Justin Barney headshot

Justin Barney joined News4Jax in February 2019, but he’s been covering sports on the First Coast for more than 20 years.

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