A Coach with a Love of Football wins Championship

You don't have to wait for the NFL season to see exciting football. There is one more regular-season home game for the Tri-City Rush, a professional indoor football team to be played at Pasco's HAPO Center. The team's website, www.tricityrush.com, is the place to buy tickets, Rush gear, and find out about the players, including information about the newly recruited female kicker, Jamie Council.

Brandon Tate, a Waitsburg High School graduate, is in his second year as owner and coach of the Tri-City Rush Professional Indoor Football Team. Tate has played football since the third grade. He was hard to stop as a running back for the Waitsburg Cardinals football team.

Tate continued to dominate as running back for the Waitsburg Elite minor league football team for three years, where he took on the coaching role. The Elite played home games on the Waitsburg High School field. Next, he started the Tri-City Rage, a minor league development team in the Greater Northwest Football Association (GNFA). Tate was the owner and coach of the Rage for about five years until games were shut down due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Since May 2021, Tate has been the owner and coach of the Tri-City Rush Professional Indoor Football team. The Rush won the Championship with a 9-2 record in its first season. Rush players are paid, given housing, and provided full medical insurance. Players for the team come from all over the United States. At last year's mid-season, the Rush recruited a former University of Washington player who signed with the Seattle Seahawks as a receiver on the practice squad at the end of the season.

The Tri-City Rush plays in the American West Football Conference, including teams from Washington, Oregon, Southern California, and Idaho. It's an eight-man game with lots of action. The Rush is playing well and currently has a 5-0 record. This week, the team has its last regular-season home game on May 14. The game starts at 7 p.m. at the HAPO Center in Pasco. The Rush will play for the Championship at HAPO Center on July 9.

There are differences in how indoor and outdoor football is played. Starting an indoor league team requires building a field with a padded wall system 23 yards wide by 50 yards long. The field has eight-yard endzones and a turf field. Under indoor rules, two offensive players, usually the receivers, can be in forward motion before the snap; a running head start.

On defense, the linebackers line up five yards from the scrimmage line. There is no punting, so players go for a first down or try for a field goal. The walls are in bounds, so if a player is touching the wall before, he could catch the ball on the other side. Tate's favorite indoor rule is that coaches can be on the field to call out plays.

Coach Tate is very enthusiastic about the game of football. He has given back to the community by coaching second through eighth graders in flag and tackle football for 11 years in the Walla Walla valley. Last fall, he coached at Highlands Middle School in Kennewick as the offensive coordinator.

Tate speaks passionately about the game.

"Kids love it," said Tate observing that families have a great time watching the Rush play.

If you happen to catch a ball that goes over the wall, you get to keep it. After the game, Rush players are happy to sign the ball. There are also activities and giveaways at home games during timeouts.

Tate is joined by staff, including his mom, Janet, who assists with the finance portion, and Matt Hamilton, operation manager. There is also a recruiter, an on-site event coordinator, and other coaches and staff.

So go to the HAPO Center on May 14 and watch a coach who loves the game win another Championship.