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Shockwave promises 'Civil War ' By Tim Trower Southern Oregon doesn�t have to look far for a natural rival as it embarks on its first National Indoor Football League season. The Heat is one of two NIFL teams in the Northwest. The other is the Washington Shockwave out of Yakima. They collide Wednesday in the league�s debut game. Larry Jobe, coach of the Shockwave, considers it an instant rivalry. Instead of adding water and stirring, he adds words and stirs. "You can call it the �Indoor Civil War,�" he says. "This will be fun. Players on our squad know some of their players. And we know their coaches." Jobe also knows the indoor game, having coached Denver�s team in the Indoor Professional Football League two years ago. Fans are in for a treat, he says. "They�ll be disappointed when they leave, but they�ll be thoroughly entertained," he says. "They�ll be disappointed because we have no plans other than to come down there and win that football game. We don�t play client football, like client golf. There are no freebies." Told that Southern Oregon coach Brett Wells termed the Heat�s brand of football "snot bubble" because of jarring hits, Jobe said, "We�ll bring Kleenex for them." Jobe pitches the indoor game like a carnival barker, calling it "rock-and-roll football" and "high-impact" and "high-scoring" and christening the Heat�s home stadium as the "new entertainment venue for Medford, Ore." "It�s not the kind of game you can read about in the newspaper or hear on the radio," he says. "The only way to capture the impact is to be sitting in the front row and have a player land in your lap. So I would encourage all the people in Medford, Ore., sitting in the front row not to have any soft drinks in their hands." The Shockwave organization is interesting in that its owner, Duane Anderson, also owns the Billings, Mont., Outlaws NIFL team. The teams are scheduled to meet twice. Doug Pace, media relations director for the team, says the owner will "root for us when we�re here and he�ll root for them at their place. That seems fair." Pace is one of three front-office personnel who worked for the Yakima Sun Kings of the Continental Basketball Association before that league was shut down. On the field, the Shockwave is led by quarterback Jeff Thomas, who guided Portland State in the late 1980s. Thomas is 6-foot-2, 255 pounds and "has a cannon for an arm," says Jobe. "We call him �Culpepper,�" says the coach, referring to the Minnesota Vikings� physical quarterback, Daunte. "If anyone gets to him, they�ll have their hands full." Other key players for the Shockwave are: Lineman Ron James, who played at Weber State and was the team�s first signee. He goes 6-5, 280. Kicker Joe Martinez, a 37-year-old Yakima police officer who was a high school star in Eastern Washington and twice made it to final cuts with the Dallas Cowboys. Running back Tony Williams, an all-conference player at Merced, Calif., Junior College, who goes 5-7, 190 and is "cat-quick," says Pace. Running back Elijah Massey, 5-10, 185, who played at Portland State in the mid-90s and has indoor experience in both Utah and Montana. Linebacker Arronn Pinkney, 6-1, 245, who played at Washington State. Reach sports editor Tim Trower at 776-4479, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.