Scott Roche’s unlikely road to semi-pro football began with prodding from his players, followed by sneaking into a high school stadium to practice.
Roche, a 36-year-old father of three, coaches a middle school team in Arvada. The Faith Christian alum was a Division III All-American kicker, and when the were formed three years ago, he started following the local National Arena League franchise.
His interest peaked last year, when conversations with his Arvada Mustangs players led to his
“I’d watched some of the NAL games last year, and viewing it from a coaches’ perspective who coaches a lot of specialists, I felt like I could still compete,” Roche said. “So I started talking to some of the kids on my team about it. They were super jazzed. They encouraged me to do it and actually showed up to the tryout, so I had a cheering section at the tryout.”
Roche made the team at the open tryout, and then after spending the warm winter kicking at the by his house, he beat out the Spartans’ incumbent for the starting job following training camp.
The kicker is emblematic of the which is filled with talented players who took a winding journey to play for the Denver-based arena football team. Many were college standouts who never got a chance at the next level. Some sniffed the NFL, but didn’t make it.
And with the typical pay around a few thousand dollars for the season, all are playing for the love of the game.
“It’s a labor of love for sure,” explained defensive lineman Sam Hammond, last year’s NAL “A lot of us feel like we’ve got more in the tank and we’re not ready to give up. A lot us, we were on the cusp (of playing in the Canadian Football League, the United Football League or the NFL). But there’s only so many spots, and it’s tough.
“A lot of us still want to make it to the next level. I just try to focus on winning every rep, taking it one rep at a time, one game at a time, putting my best effort out there. That’s what I did in college (as a walk-on turned team captain) at Nevada. I was focused on playing ball, winning, having fun. I’ve gotten back to that, and it’s really rewarding.”
Colorado’s arena football history
The Spartans were founded in 2023 by a former South Dakota State defensive lineman who later played arena football in South Dakota. The Spartans played their first season at Blue Arena in Loveland before moving to the Denver Coliseum last year.
The franchise is one of two Colorado teams in the NAL, along with the , who are in their inaugural season and call the Southwest Motors Events Center home. The , founded in 2017, added three teams this season, bringing its total to nine.
“It definitely seems like the league is gaining some momentum,” Hammond said.
The Spartans and the Punishers are the latest chapter in the spotty history of Colorado arena football, which has been unable to sustain long-term momentum.
The state’s first team was the Denver Dynamite, owned by Nuggets owner Sidney Schlenker. The Dynamite started in 1987 as a charter member of the Arena Football League and played their home games at McNichols Sports Arena. But after winning the inaugural ArenaBowl, instability plagued the Dynamite, which did not field a team in ’88 and by early ’92.
Next came the Colorado Crush, which was owned by John Elway, Pat Bowlen and Stan Kroenke. Elway served as the team’s CEO. The Crush played at Ball Arena (then the Pepsi Center) from 2003-08, winning the ArenaBowl in ’05, and disbanded when the Arena Football League canceled its season in ’09. Even though it was short-lived, the Crush remains the most prominent Colorado arena team, and a popularity benchmark for the Spartans to aim for.
“We want to continue to grow the brand, and the reputation of the league and of Spartan football,” Roche said. “If we could get back to like the days of the Crush in Denver, that would be a really great thing.”
There was also a second iteration of the Colorado Crush, which was not affiliated with the first version. That team, originally known as the Colorado Ice, played in United Indoor Football and the Indoor Football League (IFL) from 2006-17.
While the Spartans are looking to buck the state’s historical impermanence in the sport, they and the NAL also face strong competition across the country, albeit in different markets. There are three other arena leagues in operation: the , which has been operating since 2009, as well as and .
The IFL — which has 14 teams, strong attendance and some legacy AFL franchises — is in a stable spot, but Hammond believes the talent in the IFL and the NAL is comparable.
“The IFL has been around for a good minute, but as (the NAL) builds up its fan base, it’ll be even bigger and better,” Spartans wideout/cornerback/returner Steve Newbold added. “The Spartans are a key part of that effort.”
For the fun, and the film
Some of the Spartans, such as Roche, are settled enough in their lives and careers that playing arena football is a fun hobby on the side, and one their family can share in.
That’s the case for , a Vista Ridge alum who played at Missouri S&T. The wideout participated in rookie camps with the Chiefs, Saints, and Colts, but nothing panned out. He played last season in the IFL.
Spartans QB Paxton Lynch, the Broncos’ first-round draft pick in 2016, convinced his friend Michel to join the Spartans this season. Michel, who coaches a 7-on-7 high school team in Colorado Springs, finally caved when he considered playing in a fun environment compared to what he experienced while trying to break into the NFL. And getting to play with his wife and infant son in the stands was another plus.
“I thought to myself, ‘Why not go out one last time and just have fun doing it?'” Michel said. “My goal is to just have fun playing football again, because it’s a whole lot more pressure and a lot more demanding (in the outdoor pro leagues).”
Other Spartans, like Lynch — who suffered a season-ending knee injury a few games into the season — hope suiting up for the Spartans leads to a chance in a league such as the CFL, the UFL or overseas.
Newbold, one of the top pass-catchers in the NAL each of the last two seasons, fits that mold. So does , who acknowledged, “If you can make it in this league, that’s just the first step to moving up.”
“What keeps me playing is just knowing I still have the ability to play,” said Newbold, 28, who played two years in the IFL before arriving in Denver. “With the Spartans, I still have more chances to showcase my talent because I feel like I was overlooked coming off a strong college career ().
“So every time I make a play or catch a TD it’s like, ‘Hey, I’m still here,’ and maybe that will eventually lead to something.”
That’s what Thompson hopes for his players.
The 37-year-old, who entered ownership after his own arena career ended due to knee surgery, wants the Spartans to serve as a springboard to higher-profile, better-paid leagues for those who are good enough.
“I tell guys, ‘I don’t want you to be on my team forever,'” Thompson said. “I want them to get out to , go up to Canada and the CFL. There’s even some cool European leagues. There’s a Mexican football league as well.
“But first, you need film. Because if you can ball out in arena football, you’ve got an opportunity to make some pretty good money (in an outdoor league).”
Components to Spartans’ longevity
While players dream of what they can achieve on the field, off it, Thompson is determined to run the Spartans in a way that can consistently attract players and bolster the franchise’s chances of longevity.
Like most arena teams, the Spartans’ roster is filled with players from across the country. The team provides housing for those players, via an apartment complex on south Broadway as well as another one in Arvada where the Spartans practice. Players are also connected with jobs via the team’s union.
Thompson also provides health insurance for the players, and food is taken care of, too, thanks to partnerships with local restaurants that the players can eat at for free, as well as catered meals on practice and game days.
“I’ve had players come to me in their first year with our organization, and they say, ‘Holy (crap), you guys got some nice housing, because last year I lived with three other guys in a camper,'” Thompson said. “… I want to make sure these guys are taken care of because I need them to show up, and I need them to be comfortable.
“There’s been stories of (arena players) couch-surfing, which is not good for any level of football. And if my weekly check is $250 (which is league minimum), but I’m spending $400 a week on food, then this ain’t working out. But all of that is part of the standard we’re seeking. We’ve got to try to raise that across all of arena football, because it’s going to help us grow as a product.”
Fan experience is paramount for the team, which has drastically elevated attendance since moving from Loveland to Denver.
In Loveland, the Spartans were a secondary tenant in the arena to the American Hockey League’s and thus the minor-league hockey team had priority to host games on Friday and Saturday nights. That left the Spartans playing games on Sundays, Mondays, and Tuesdays, which wasn’t conducive to drawing big crowds.
In their final home game of 2024, the Spartans sold just 140 tickets. But the move to the Denver Coliseum and the ability to play most of their home games on Saturdays spiked attendance. Last season’s regular-season finale drew about 3,400 fans, according to Thompson, and this season’s home opener on April 11 was over 3,000.
The Spartans bill themselves as a cheaper, more intimate way for families to experience professional sports. Thompson, who wants the Spartans to emulate the stability and attendance of the National Lacrosse League as well as the Savannah Bananas’ fan engagement, hopes the team can eventually sell out the
The Spartans put seats on the Coliseum floor to be close to the action, and Thompson encourages his players to dance and interact with the crowd when they make plays in the high-octane, high-scoring game that is arena football. The team is also engaging with its sponsors to develop creative draws, such as giving away 500 free tickets to youth football players during its game on April 18.
“The way we grow is the fan experience is going to be the most important thing, and then that is going to correlate to repeat customers,” Thompson said. “Even if we don’t win an arena championship, but people have fun, they’re going to want to come back and support us the next year.”
