The Minnesota Fighting Pike were an Arena football team based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. They joined the Arena Football League (AFL) in 1996 as an expansion team. The Fighting Pike were the first ever attempt at an arena/indoor football team in the state of Minnesota. The owner of the Fighting Pike was Tom Scallen. The Fighting Pike played at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The team colors were green and gold. In a 2012 AFL Poll, the Fighting Pike were voted as the 8th greatest nickname in AFL history.

Franchise history

In November 1995, the announced that they would be nicknamed the "Fighting Pike" and that Art Haege was named the team's head coach. During the team's first tryout, Haege walked out, stating he was going "Back to Iowa." The next day, Haege faxed in his resignation to team owner Tom Scallen. The Pike were 0-7 at home, and the average attendance for the seven home games was 8,894. The roster was full of players who had played at the University of Minnesota or other Minnesota colleges and universities. Tony Levine, a former Golden Gopher, joined the team and received 8 passes for a total of 83 yards and 1 touchdown. Former Gopher Rickey Foggie was the quarterback and he struggled adapting to the Arena Football League after many years in the Canadian Football League. Once during the season he was benched in favor of Southwest State's Jeff Loots, who threw four interceptions in a game. Loots was playing on his third expansion team in three seasons. Another player from Southwest State was Alvin Ashley. The best-known ex-Pike is kicker Mike Vanderjagt, later a star in the CFL and NFL. Ray Jauch was the head coach. He was assisted by John Coatta Jr. on offense and Frank Haege on defense. The team's lack of exposure or advertising was the key reason for the team's folding at the end of the 1996 season. The team did not have a regional television deal to promote their games or have the games advertised in newspapers and other media. The Pike's final game of the season against the Memphis Pharaohs was played in Tupelo, Mississippi, because the Pharaohs had been evicted from their arena. The Pike's official mascot was a giant Pike named "Tackle." He was known to "dive" into a promotional hot tub at the arena.

Legacy

In 2024, a revival of the Arena Football League brought it the Minnesota Myth, a team which played only two games (one at Target Center) before folding themselves.

Players

Final roster

Coaches

Head coaches

Coaching staff

1996 season results

Statistics

Team leaders

Offense

Passing

Rushing

Receiving

Touchdowns

Defense

Special teams

Kick return

Kicking

1996 regular season

Week 1: vs Texas Terror

at The Summit, Houston, Texas Attendance: 4,520

Week 2: vs Iowa Barnstormers

at the Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota Attendance: 14,840

Week 3: vs St. Louis Stampede

at the Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota Attendance: 8,726

Week 4: vs Albany Firebirds

at the Times Union Center, Albany, New York Attendance: 11,712

Week 5: vs Tampa Bay Storm

at the Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota Attendance: 7,781

Week 6: vs Anaheim Piranhas

at the Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota Attendance: 8,117

Week 7: vs Arizona Rattlers

at the Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota Attendance: 8,207

Week 8: vs Florida Bobcats

at the West Palm Beach Auditorium, West Palm Beach, Florida Attendance: 4,450

Week 10: vs Milwaukee Mustangs

at the Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota Attendance: 7,207

Week 11: vs Connecticut Coyotes

at the Hartford Civic Center, Hartford, Connecticut Attendance: 9,249

Week 12: vs Orlando Predators

at the Amway Arena, Orlando, Florida Attendance: 15,107

Week 13: vs Texas Terror

at the Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota Attendance: 7,380

Week 14: vs San Jose SaberCats

at the HP Pavilion, San Jose, California Attendance: 14,901

Week 15: vs Memphis Pharaohs

at the BancorpSouth Arena, Tupelo, Mississippi Attendance: 4,520

Other media