Racine Raiders

Racine Raiders
Founded	1953
League	Central States League(CSL) (1953, 1962–1975); Bi-States Football League (BSFL) (1954–1959); Tri-States Football League (TSFL) (1960–1961); Northern States Football League (NSFL) (1978–1981, 1983–1985); AFA (1982); Midwest Football League (MWFL) (1986–2006) (1986–1990, 1992–1994); Independent (1991); Mid-Continental Football League (MCFL) (1995–2002); North American Football League (NAFL) (2003–2009; Elite MCFL (2011); MidStates Football League (MSFL) (2010, 2012–present);
Team history	Racine Raiders (1953–1975); North Shore Gladiators (1978); Racine Gladiators (1979–1985); Racine Raiders (1986–present)
Based in	Racine, Wisconsin
Stadium	Horlick Field
Colors	Black, silver, cardinal
President	Matt Nelson
Head coach	Wilbert Kennedy
Championships	9 (1981, 1983, 1988, 1989, 1992, 1995, 2001, 2012, 2014)
Division titles	21
Dancers	Raiders Dance and Stunt Team
Mascot	R.J. Raider

The Racine Raiders is a semi-professional American football club in the Mid-States Football League, based in Racine, Wisconsin.

Founded in 1953, they are the oldest minor league football team still operating in Wisconsin. They own a total of nine national titles. The Raiders were the first minor league football team to gain 501(c)(3) Not-For-Profit status from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).^[1] The organization is composed entirely of volunteers. The helmet design is a silver background with a cowboy bandit in black with an eye patch on the left eye with a half and half bandanna of cardinal and black.

Staff[]

President: Matt Nelson
General Manager: Robbie Harrington
Head Coach: Wilbert Kennedy

Franchise history[]

Summary[]

William "Wigs" Konicek,^[2] a graduate of Horlick High School and local restaurateur, started the Racine Raiders in 1953.^[3] The team began in the Bi-States Football League (BSFL) and won their first league championship in 1954.

The team was able to sustain itself until 1975 when it disbanded. Although they did not field a team for the 1976 and 1977 season, they remained organized for those seasons. New owners started the Racine Gladiators in 1978. They paid players and were successful on the field, winning three National Championships. Unfortunately, the team fell on hard times and disbanded in 1985.

In 1986, Bob Milkie, a retired bearing company executive, Joe Mooney, a police sergeant, Jess Levin, a local banker, and others rebuilt the team, this time as community-owned, non-profit organization.^[4]

Perhaps the biggest moment in the team's history, as well as that of minor league football, came in 1989 when the team traveled to Ottawa, Canada, to play in a World Championship game. While the team won the game in five degree weather and a blizzard, just playing the game was the important element. The team was now able to apply for, and received, 501(c)3 Not-For-Profit status from the Internal Revenue Service, setting the tone for dozens of minor league football teams since to be able to do the same.

The Raiders have won nine National Championships and have had nearly a dozen players with National Football League (NFL) experience. They also have 31 players, coaches or staff in the American Football Association (AFA) Semi Pro Hall of Fame, more than any other team.^[5]

American Football Association (AFA) Minor League Football Hall of Fame[]

1982	Harry Gilbert	Coach Category
1987	Bob Milkie	Player Category
1988	Kurt Kampendahl	Player Category
1988	Ed O'Reilly	Coach Category
1989	Greg Johnson	Player Category
1990	Charlie Bliss	Player Category
1994	Norm Killion	Coach Category
1996	Ron Hart	Player Category
1997	Tom Kohr	Coach Category
1999	Arnie Garber	Coach Category
1999	Joe Mooney	Executive Category
2000	John Scardina	Player Category
2001	Phil Micech	Player Category
2002	Tony Lombardo	Player Category
2003	Jordan Kopac	Coach Category
2003	Dennis Galipo	Player Category
2004	Brian Forston	Player Category
2004	Brian Erickson	Player Category
2005	Ron Anton	Player Category
2005	Terry Converse	Coach Category
2005	Gary Kuykendall	Player Category
2005	Mike Willkomm	Player Category
2006	Dan Dragan	Player Category
2006	Gary Suhr	Media Category
2007	Chris Pivovar	Coach Category
2007	Scott Smith	Player Category
2010	Greg Fictum	Player Category
2010	Jerry Kupper	Coach Category
2013	Wilbert Kennedy	Player Category
2013	Brian Jansen	Player Category
2015	Pedro Trevino	Coach Category
2016	Adam Walker	Player Category
2018	Todd Gorsline	Player Category
2018	John Mamerow	Player Category
2019	Mark Trudel	Player Category
2019	Don Wadewitz	Media Category

Minor League Football News Hall of Fame[]

2007		Brian Forston
2007		Peter Deates
2007		Jordan Kopac
2015		Gary Griffin
2016		Don Wadewitz

Retired numbers[]

10	Jim May	Quarterback	1964–1965
11	Charlie Bliss	Quarterback	1980–1989, 1992
23	Tony Lombardo	Running back	1962–1966
51	Bob Milkie	Center	1957–1971
53	L. Fred Vondra	Center	1979–1985
55	Wilbert Kennedy	Defensive tackle	1988–2009
74	Kurt Kampendahl	Defensive tackle	1982–1993
75	Ron Hart	Defensive tackle	1964–1975
82	Ron Anton	Tight end	1964–1973
83	Phil Micech	Defensive end/Defensive tackle/Tight end	1985–1995, 2001

Players that played professional outdoor football[]

Ron Daugherty - Minnesota Vikings (1987)^[6]
Don Deerwester - Chicago/Bloomfield Cardinals (1947)^[7]^[8]
Greg Dubinetz - Cincinnati Bengals (1975), Charlotte Hornets (1975), British Columbia Lions (1977), New York Giants (1977), Toronto Argonauts (1976, 1978), Washington Redskins (1979), Hamilton Tiger-Cats (1980)
Jim Haluska - Chicago Bears, Cleveland Browns (1956) ^[9]
Tony Lombardo - Philadelphia Eagles (1964)
Brian Lindstrom - Buffalo Bills (1972) ^[10]
Phil Micech - Minnesota Vikings (1987)
Brent Moss - St. Louis Rams (1995)
Don Perkins - Green Bay Packers (1943–1945), Chicago Bears (1945–1946)
Tim Rucks - New York Jets (1983)^[11]
Dave Smith (fullback) - Houston Oilers (1960–1964) Sporting News All-AFL in 1960. Member of AFL's first two championship teams in 1960 and 1961.
Ralph Thomas - Chicago Cardinals (1952), Washington Redskins (1955–1956)
Matt Turk - Washington Redskins (1995–99), Miami Dolphins (2000–01, 2003–05), New York Jets (2002), St. Louis Rams (2006), Houston Texans (2007–2010;2011), Jacksonville Jaguars (2011).
Fred Venturelli - Chicago Bears (1948)^[12]
Adam Walker - Minnesota Vikings (1987)^[13]
Kevin Webster - Minnesota Vikings (1987) ^[14]
Brett Wilson - Minnesota Vikings (1987)^[15]

Head coaches[]

1953	Don Perkins	(1-2-2)
1953	Les Kalchik	(1-6-0)
1954–1962	Frank Schinkowitch	(46-47-5)
1963	Jim Haluska	(2-8-0)
1964–1967, 1982	Harry Gilbert	(44-9-2)
1968–1969	Jim Thompson	(11-12-0)
1970–1972	Bruno Wojtaszek	(15-24-0)
1973–1974	Warren Greco	(16-9-0)
1975, 1979	Larry Benjamin	(15-12)
1980–81, 1986–90, 1997–2000	Bob Milkie	(137-29-0)
1983–1984	Pete Bock	(32-3-0)
1985	Rich McClure	(9-7-0)
1991–1994	Terry Converse	(49-3-0)
1995–1996	Kurt Kampendahl	(29-4-0)
2002–2004	Gregg Brenner	(36-10-0)
2001, 2005–2007, 2011	Jordan Kopac	(63-20-0)
2008–2010	John Mamerow	(17-10-0)
2012–2013	Gino Perfetto	(28-3-0)
2014–present	Wilbert Kennedy	(30-3-0)

References[]

^ D'Amato, Gary (13 March 1990). "Racine Raiders gain tax-exempt status". The Journal Times. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
^ "Obituaries". The Journal Times. 10 July 1989. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
^ Brehm, Keith (30 March 1953). "Sports, It's this way..." The Journal Times. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
^ Danowski, Jeff (22 June 1986). "'Return of Raiders' to premier this week". The Journal Times. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
^ http://www.americanfootballassn.com/forms/2010HallofFameListing.pdf
^ "Ron Daughtry". pro-football-reference.com. Retrieved 18 June 2021.
^ "Don Deerwester". profootballarchives.com. Retrieved 18 June 2021.
^ Legacy Obituaries [1], accessed August 4, 2015.
^ The Milwaukee Sentinel "Berzinski, Haluska sign with Racine", accessed June 23, 2011.
^ Arizona Star website [2], accessed July 10, 2013.
^ Tim Rucks, 1960-2015. Carthage College Athletics.
^ Brehm, Keith (27 August 1953). "Raiders Assembling Topnotch Grid Team". The Journal Times. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
^ Nelson, David (6 July 2016). "Former Red Men Adam Walker Inducted Into the American Football Association Semi-Pro Hall of Fame". carthage.edu. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
^ Sheboygan Press "North Wall of Fame to Induct 3", accessed March 10, 2015.
^ "Brett Wilson". pro-football-reference.com. Retrieved 18 June 2021.

External links[]

[1] D'Amato, Gary (13 March 1990). "Racine Raiders gain tax-exempt status". The Journal Times. Retrieved 2 June 2021.

[2] "Obituaries". The Journal Times. 10 July 1989. Retrieved 3 June 2021.

[3] Brehm, Keith (30 March 1953). "Sports, It's this way..." The Journal Times. Retrieved 2 June 2021.

[4] Danowski, Jeff (22 June 1986). "'Return of Raiders' to premier this week". The Journal Times. Retrieved 3 June 2021.

[5] ttp://www.americanfootballassn.com/forms/2010HallofFameListing.pdf

[6] "Ron Daughtry". pro-football-reference.com. Retrieved 18 June 2021.

[7] "Don Deerwester". profootballarchives.com. Retrieved 18 June 2021.

[8] Legacy Obituaries [1], accessed August 4, 2015.

[9] The Milwaukee Sentinel "Berzinski, Haluska sign with Racine", accessed June 23, 2011.

[10] Arizona Star website [2], accessed July 10, 2013.

[11] Tim Rucks, 1960-2015. Carthage College Athletics.

[12] Brehm, Keith (27 August 1953). "Raiders Assembling Topnotch Grid Team". The Journal Times. Retrieved 3 June 2021.

[13] Nelson, David (6 July 2016). "Former Red Men Adam Walker Inducted Into the American Football Association Semi-Pro Hall of Fame". carthage.edu. Retrieved 3 June 2021.

[14] Sheboygan Press "North Wall of Fame to Induct 3", accessed March 10, 2015.

[15] "Brett Wilson". pro-football-reference.com. Retrieved 18 June 2021.

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