NORTH MANCHESTER -ÊAttention armchair quarterbacks. Do you think you still have what it takes to play competitive football?

If so, the Wabash Express semi-pro football may be right up your alley.

After a 15-year break, the Wabash Express took off again last summer. Mike Garcia, a North Manchester resident, was the player who got the ball rolling in North Manchester last year.

"I played for another team in the league a few years ago," said Garcia. "Then I decided to start the team here. I heard through the grapevine that there used to be a semi-pro team here years ago called the Wabash Express, so I talked with Pete Rish and asked him if I could keep the team name. He thought that was a good idea so we went with it."

Last year was the first season the Wabash Express took the field since the mid-1980's. Unlike many first-year semi-pro teams, the Express won a game. In fact, they surprised other teams and won three games.

"We went 3-4 in our first year," said Garcia. "Most new teams take at least a year or two before they get their first win.

"We lost two games by one or two points and one in overtime, so we were pretty close to being 6-1. We shocked almost everybody because most new teams are a cakewalk."

And the Express had a limited number of players.

"We only had 20 guys the whole season," Said Garcia. "Most teams have 50 or 60 on their roster."

And those teams with 50 or 60 players can be a bit intimidating at first.

"Our first team scrimmage was against the Fort Wayne Rhinos, who are from a bigger league," said Jeff Felgar, an outside linebacker for the Express. "They had at least 60 guys and an entire coaching staff. Here we showed up and some of our guys had not even practiced with pads yet. But once we got the bugs worked out, they weren't so tough."

The Wabash Express is one of 11 teams in the Federal Football League. The FFL got started around the Indianapolis area and branched out from there. Other teams in the FFL include the Allen County Explosion, the Dayton Panthers, the Delaware County Thunder, the Elkhart County Grizzlies, the Indianapolis Tornadoes, the Louisville Steelers, the Madison County Chiefs, the Morgan City Broncos, the Randolph County Rage, the Shelby County Outlaws and the Southern Ohio Patriots.

The most important thing to remember about this semi-pro league is that the players are not paid.

"That makes it tough," said Garcia. "This league started off a a grass-roots kind of thing, a Christian League. It's a clean league. Most of the guys are married.

"We're not out here to kill somebody, just to play football. We're here because we love the game and we still want to play."

But don't let that fool you, the FFL is not a pick-up, walk-in-the-park type football league. It is home to serious, hard-hitting football games.

"We have uniforms and everything, even fans," said Felgar with a laugh. "This is a very competitive league. It's not a wimpy league. The skill level is not quite at the college level, more like a really good high school league.

"But the guys are out here because they love to play. Not because their buddies are playing or because their parents want them to play. The guys in our league pay their money and play because they love the game. They love to hit."

The players in the Federal Football League must buy their own equipment, pay players fees, provide their own insurance and fund most of their own travel fees.

However, the Wabash Express is lucky to have a generous sponsor, Scott Galley of G & S Metals in Wabash, to help defer team costs.

"To run a team in this league, it takes money," said Garcia. "Teams that don't have sponsors have to pay players' fees of a few hundred dollars. Thanks to our sponsor, Scott Galley, we only have to pay $50 each.

"We are very lucky to have a sponsor for our team. In fact, I think we are the only team in the league that has one guys as our sponsor."

But that also give the team incentive to play well.

"We want to be sure not to embarrass our sponsor," said Garcia. "We are out there to play ball. We are not obnoxious. We want to make a good name for our sponsor."

And there are rules to make sure the players don't get out of line. The FFL adheres to mostly high school rules and has IHSAA officials to call the games.

"You can get a fine for being overly obnoxious or using foul language," said Garcia. "You can be ejected as well. It goes back to the clean league concept.

"There have been teams kicked out of the league. In fact, the Henry County team out of Muncie was ejected from the league last season. They are not allowed to start up a team again, either."

In order to be eligible to play in the league, participants must be at least 18-years-old and not currently playing in college. Spots are still open on the Express roster.

"We will have an informational meeting in April and see what kind of response we get," said Garcia. "We are hoping to get a good response this year and fill a 40-man roster. Try-outs will be May 6, and we start playing in July."

Those who want to try out should attend the informational meeting April 22 at 7 p.m. at the North Manchester Town Life Center on the corner of Seventh Street and Bond or contact Garcia at 982-2633.

The Express will play a nine-game season this year beginning July 14. Home games cost $3 and are played at the Wabash High School football field. The Express practices in North

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