Orlando Pirates Shove Off in New Mexico

By: Mick Moninghoff

Season Openers

The Pirates have a history of starting the season off right as they sport a 5-2 all-time record in season openers. They are even better when starting a season on the road as they are 2-0. The last road opening game was in 2024 when the Pirates scored 22 unanswered points to come back to defeat the Green Bay Blizzard 44-40 at the Resch Center.

The Head Coaches

Rob Keefe, who became the ninth Head Coach in the history of the Pirates last November will lead the team into its eighth season overall. Keefe came to the Pirates after serving as the Head Coach and President of Football Operations of the Bay Area Panthers the last three seasons, His record as a Head Coach in the IFL after three seasons is 41-12. Keefe is also the team's defensive coordinator. Last year his Bay Area defense ranked number one in the league allowing just 35.1 points per game and was also first against the pass yielding just 131.5 yards per contest.

Bay Area earned the Western Conference's No. 1 playoff seed with a 13-3 record the last two years in a row, simultaneously establishing a franchise record for wins. This also signified the third consecutive campaign where the Panthers reached the Indoor Football League playoffs while sharing the IFL lead for most regular-season wins.

In 2023 under Keefe, the Panthers won their first title in team history with a 51-41 win over the Sioux Falls Storm in the IFL National Championship Game. Keefe has won seven championships as a player and a coach.

As a player, Keefe was a defensive back on the AFL Philadelphia Soul 2008 championship team, which makes him the only person in Arena Football history to win an Arena Cup (AF2) and ArenaBowl (AFL) title as both a player and a coach.

Kyle-Moore Brown is the Head Coach of the Chupacabras. Brown was the first-ever Head Coach of The IFL Cedar Rapids Titans in 2012 as the team went 4-10. Most recently he was the Offensive Line Coach and Associate Head Coach for the Vegas Knight Hawks, who won the IFL National Championship Game last season. This is the seventh coaching stop for the former member of the Detroit Lions in 1994, 

Brown enjoyed a 14-year Hall of Fame career in the AFL with Albany and Chicago. He was a two-time ArenaBowl Champion, a First-Team All-Arena selection in 2007, a three-time member of the All-Ironman Team and was inducted into the Arena Football Hall of Fame in 2014.

Players to Watch 
Running back Pooka Williams returns to the Pirates. He was an All-IFL Second Team selection on offense last season. In just his first year in the Indoor Football League, Williams won the 2025 rushing title. In 13 games, the former star running back at the University of Kansas led the league with 201 carries, a Pirates single-season record, for an IFL best 795 yards. Williams was a workhorse as he averaged just over 16 carries and four receptions per game. The New Orleans native averaged four yards per carry with 11 touchdowns and was second in the league with 61.2 rushing yards per game.

The Pirates will have plenty of experience at wide receiver.

The most decorated receiver in Pirates history is Thomas Owens. The owner of eight All-Time regular season records and seven All-Time playoff marks will join the team in 2026 for his seventh season with the franchise. He also has a pair of Pirates single-game regular-season and single-game playoff records.

Last season, the 6'1", 205 lb. wideout had 41 receptions in 15 games for 526 yards and 15 touchdowns. Owens averaged 12.8 yards per catch and had three touchdown receptions in a game, three different times.

Teo Redding returns for his fourth season with the franchise. Last year, in 15 games, Redding led the team in receptions with 52, receiving yards with 634, and tied for the team lead with 15 TD receptions

Joining the Pirates this year is NyQwan Murray who was an All-IFL First Team selection with the San Antonio Gunslingers. He posted 64 catches for 858 yards, had 20 touchdowns and averaged 13.4 yards per reception.

Taulia Tagovailoa returns to the Pirates for a second season at quarterback. The Big Ten's All-Time leader with 11,256 passing yards saw action in two games with the Pirates last season, making one start. In that game vs. the Bay Area Panthers, he completed eight of 17 passes for 55 yards and a touchdown. He also rushed nine times for 61 yards and two scores. The former Alabama and Maryland University quarterback, who holds numerous single-season and career passing records at the University of Maryland.

The offensive line will be anchored by former All-Indoor Football League First Team offensive lineman Jordan McCray. This is McCray's third season with the team, as he started all 16 games last year at center. The 6'4", 330 lb. native of Miami, FL was a force on the offensive line that allowed just nine sacks and opened holes for the IFL's leading rusher in Pooka Williams. 

Nick Jones (6"3", 300 lbs.) is expected to join the offensive line after playing in the Canadian Football League with the Saskatchewan Roughriders the last two seasons.

Making an impact on the defensive side of the ball in camp have been Latavious Brini and linebacker Jacques Bristol. Brini can play both defensive back and linebacker. He has NFL and CFL experience. In two games with the Pirates last season, he made nine tackles with .5 tackles for a loss. Brini played collegiately at Georgia and Arkansas.

Bristol is in his second year with the Pirates. In five games last year, he started twice and made eight tackles with two for a loss and had .5 sacks. Bristol also has NFL and CFL experience. The 6'1", defensive lineman from Sarasota, FL, played collegiately at Central Michigan University from 2019 - 2023.

Scouting the Chubacabras
Quarterback Ja'Rome Johnson is expected to make an impact. Johnson was the 2024 IFL Most Valuable Player. That season he rushed 167 times for 770 yards and a league-leading 37 rushing touchdowns while completing 63.2% of his passes, connecting on 138 of 220 attempts for 1,925 yards and 43 touchdowns..

On defense lineman Maurice Jackson joins New Mexico after helping Vegas to the IFL National Championship last season. Jackson checks in at 6'2", 275 lbs. In 2025 with the Knight Hawks he recorded 22 tackles, four tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, two pass breakups, and one blocked kick. In 2023, he was named to the Second Team All-IFL Defensive Team  with the Tucson Sugar Skulls. He finished that season with 55 tackles, 18 tackles for loss, seven sacks, six pass breakups, and one fumble recovery.

Kicker Ben Derby will be counted on to secure the special teams as he won a ring with Vegas last season as well.

This press release is the property of the Orlando Pirates and may not be republished in full without attribution.

About the Orlando Pirates: The 2021 United Bowl National Champions and 2-time Eastern Conference Champions, Orlando Pirates, are members of the Indoor Football League (IFL) and play their home games at the KIA Center in Orlando, Florida. For 2026 ticket information for Orlando Pirates, please email contact@orlandopirates.com, call (407) 516-6391, or visit www.orlandopirates.com

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About the Indoor Football League (IFL): The IFL is the longest-running indoor football league with 14 teams based in cities across the country. For additional information, please email info@goifl.com or visit the league website at https://goifl.com

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