Wheeling Wildcats
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| Founded | 2008 |
|---|---|
| League | Continental Indoor Football League |
| Team history | Wheeling Wildcats 2008-2009 |
| Based in | Wheeling, West Virginia |
| Arena | WesBanco Arena |
| Colors | Orange, Purple, White |
| President | Dave Bender |
| Head coach | Shawn Liotta |
| Championships | 0 |
| Division titles | 0 |
| Dancers | Kittens |
The Wheeling Wildcats were a professional indoor football team located in Wheeling, West Virginia. The team began play in the Continental Indoor Football League during the 2009 season as an expansion team. The Wildcats are the second indoor football team to be based in Wheeling. The team filled the void left by the demise of the Ohio Valley Greyhounds, who played their final down of football in 2007. The owner of the Wildcats was Dave Bender. The Wildcats played their home games at WesBanco Arena in Wheeling, West Virginia.
In March 2008, it was announced that indoor football would be returning to Wheeling, West Virginia. Owner Dave Bender was debating on putting the team in Elmira, New York, but when he saw the opportunity to Wheeling, he couldn't pass it up. Bender also cited that the location of teams in the league were a large part of why the Wildcats joined the CIFL. The team tried to establish rivalries, challenging the Rochester Raiders to play the Wildcats in the Raiders' first home game. However, the Raiders have since left the CIFL for the newly established Indoor Football League, leaving the challenged unanswerable. In August, the team announced the signing of head coach Shawn Liotta, who had been coaching the Erie RiverRats of the American Indoor Football Association. In December 2008, the Wildcats announced the signing of former University of Pittsburgh standout quarterback, Rod Rutherford. The team also signed former NFL and Arena Football League player, Robb Butler to play receiver. With both Rutherford and Butler player together for Liotta in Erie the year before, the team's offense had high expectations. The Wildcats, as well as the rest of the CIFL, had an opportunity to get a higher caliber player in 2009, as the Arena Football League suspending its 2010 season. The reason that many of the AFL players did not make it onto the Wildcats roster was largely due to the players wanting more money than the CIFL would allow.
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