A controversial and downright strange week for the San Diego Strike Force continues Friday night, when they take on the Vegas Knight Hawks for a spot in the Indoor Football League championship game.
The drama isn’t about just who’s playing. It’s where.
As the No. 3 seed in the IFL’s Western Conference bracket, the Strike Force should be hosting the fourth-seeded Knight Hawks.
But due to what the IFL labeled “financial concerns” at Oceanside’s Frontwave Arena, the game has been moved to Henderson, Nev. — a home game for Vegas. The Strike Force went 1-1 against Vegas during the regular season, winning in Henderson and losing in Oceanside. There is nothing scheduled at Frontwave Arena on Friday, though the Channel 933 Sunset Sounds concert featuring Alex Warren is set for Saturday.
“Unfortunately, after many discussions with the league, we will now be going to Vegas to play the Knight Hawks Friday night at 7 p.m. for the right to move on to the 2025 IFL Championship in Tucson,” the Strike Force said in an email sent Wednesday to fans. “This is obviously not what we had planned or hoped for and we feel awful as you, our loyal fans and players, have earned the right to host a playoff game here in San Diego.”
Strike Force coach Taylor Genuser issued the following statement: “People can protest, take away our home game and whatever else they want. I don’t care! Just let us know where and when! It is what it is and we don’t care. …We aren’t intimidated by pre-game, in-game or post-game noise. Keep making things tough on us. We’re ready!”
The Strike Force’s mere presence in the title game is somewhat controversial. The IFL acknowledged Tuesday that it had missed a false-start call that would have ended Monday night’s Western Conference semifinal, giving the Arizona Rattlers the win. Strike Force quarterback Nate Davis threw a game-tying touchdown pass to Arthur Jackson III as time expired, and Ernesto Lacayo’s extra point gave San Diego a 49-48 win.
The league said “three or more (Strike Force) players were not set at the time of the snap,” but stopped short of reversing the result — even though the Rattlers, who had protested the game, were ruled correct.
“The IFL will not set a precedent for reversing game results due to judgment errors,” the league said. “The integrity of competition requires that such matters be addressed through officiating evaluation and improvement, which will remain a priority moving forward.”
The Knight Hawks had a far more conventional week, advancing with a 36-31 road win over the Bay Area Panthers.
Saturday’s game will air live on IFLnetwork.com. The winner will advance to the Aug. 23 IFL title game in Tucson, Ariz., where they’ll face either the Green Bay Blizzard or Quad City Steamwheelers.