Jimmy Lewis couldn't be more excited about the two teams that will play in the inaugural Baltimore Indoor Football League championship game on Saturday, May 30 at the Williams J. Myers Pavilion at 6:30 p.m.
One is the Arbutus Firebirds, coached by Lewis. The other is the Towson Thundercats, coached by Butch Mullin, who was Lewis' teammate with the Arbutus Big Red semipro football team in the late 1990s.
"We are really happy about this, especially because Butch and I have known each other for a long time, so all season we are saying, 'Look, we both have to get to this championship game. It has to be us,' so we are happy about it," Lewis said.
Lewis and Mullin expect a spirited crowd.
"For the Arbutus and Towson games we packed the house," Lewis said.
But Mullin, an Arbutus resident, doesn't know who everybody will be rooting for because he has players who have ties to the Arbutus and Catonsville area.
Nick Mullin, Kenny Johns and Donyea Green are Lansdowne High graduates and Brendon Twilley and Steven Collins are graduates of Mount St. Joseph.
Twilley and Ryan McGowan were also key players for the 2014 Arbutus Big Red.
"When the crowd comes out, it's hard for them to cheer because they have people on both sides," Butch Mullin said.
Towson finished the regular season 5-0 and earned a bye to the championship game.
Arbutus was 3-2 in the five-team league. Arbutus advanced to the title game with a 42-26 victory over Randallstown in the semifinals.
Towson was led by quarterback Joe Urso (Wilkes University) and receivers Ray McCarter Jr. (George Mason) and Jason Goode (University of Maryland).
Arbutus, which has 16 players who played on the Arbutus Big Red, is led by quarterback Stewart Long and wide receiver Brian Chapman, a 2009 Catonsville High School graduate.
"Chapman is doing what he always does," Lewis said. "The surprising thing about him is he is playing receiver instead of running back."
At 5 feet 6, 175 pounds, Chapman was the Big Red's and the Mason Dixon Football League's leading rusher last summer, but the Firebirds pass a majority of the time indoors.
Long, who is also the quarterback for the Big Red, has made a strong transition as well.
"Stewart has earned a lot of respect. He's surprised a lot of guys," Lewis said.
Chapman and Nick Dillonardo have been the primary receivers.
"Nick Dillonardo has surprised me," Lewis said. "He's not the most athletic receiver, but he had good hands. In our playoff game, he came up really big for us."
Linebacker/fullback Steve Mitchell and defensive back Mark Williams also have had solid seasons.
Although Lewis, who played for the Big Red from 1998 through 2008, is not in the action on the field, he still feels connected.
"One fun thing is I'm actually on the field calling plays as opposed to being on the sidelines," he said about the indoor game.
The field is 50 yards and there is a running clock for 15 minutes and four quarters. It makes for an up-tempo game.
"The arena game is faster," Lewis said. "That's probably the biggest difference. The speed of the game is a lot faster because of the smaller confines."