In addition to Crum, the Lions signed quarterback Cecil Lester for the playoff run. Lester is a familiar face to longtime Lions fans as he was under center for the Albany Panthers during their championship runs in 2011 and 2012.
“We’ve added a two-time indoor champion quarterback to the roster who will give us a little bit of a security blanket,” Gibson said of Lester. “He’s been doing it for a long time. He gets it, and he can still play at a high level. That gives us two championship level quarterbacks on our roster.
With Crum and Lester joining the roster, the Lions are set to play for back to back championships, albeit in two different leagues.
Their opponent is the enigmatic New Mexico Stars, a team that will have traveled 20 hours by bus to play in Columbus and were part of a tumultuous Western Division in the AIF.
Four division rivals – Texas (Richland Hills), Abilene (Tex.), Louisiana (Baton Rouge), and Northshore (Slidell, La.) – made the league schedule but folded before even playing a game. Another team, the Steel City Raiders out of Pueblo, Colo., folded midseason, giving New Mexico a forfeit victory.
The final Western Division domino fell when Corpus Christi folded earlier last month, giving the Stars yet another forfeit win. The last four games involving New Mexico have been against semipro teams which agreed to play the Stars at the last minute, according to the Albuquerque Journal.
The Stars do have one known quantity, however, in coach John Fourcade, a veteran of the indoor game. Fourcade is no stranger to Columbus, either, having coached the af2’s Columbus Wardogs in their final two seasons in 2003 and 2004.
One of the main differences in the success of the Lions over the past two seasons has been the play between the tackles. Gibson says having strong players in the trenches is key for success.
Despite the second season beginning on Saturday, the Lions will have the same approach as they have had in each of their eight games this season, all of them victories.
“Absolutely not,” Gibson said when asked if the team has a different frame of mind for the playoffs. “They’re excited to play a really good, well-coached team, but I’m not going to steer away from what I said all year long, and that’s we practice against ourselves. Who we go against every day in practice on our 30-man roster are among the best players in this league, from top to bottom. They’ve bought into that. I’ve got guys who aren’t going to dress (Saturday) who could start on any team in this league.