Anchorage Daily News

Turns out the Alaska Wild aren't hosting their first playoff game in franchise history.

Instead of playing CenTex at Sullivan Arena on Thursday, which was unofficially announced by Intense Football League president Chad Dittman last Saturday, the Wild will have another week to prepare for the Barracudas.

The Wild begin their quest for an Intense Bowl championship on Saturday, July 12, at 4:05 p.m. ADT, at the Bell County Expo Center in Belton, Texas, said Robert Winfrey, IFL's director of communications.

Dittman said during a halftime interview with KXLW 96.3-FM at the Wild's regular-season finale in Fairbanks that CenTex would likely travel to Anchorage for the first round of the playoffs because of facility availability problems.

The Expo Center's playing surface Thursday will be busy with cowboys toying with broncs and bulls as the city kicks off its three-day 4th of July rodeo.

Given the mixed-up circumstances, owners of the nine-team league voted Sunday to push the playoffs back one week. Winfrey said they felt it wasn't fair to give sixth-seeded Alaska (5-9) home-field advantage in the first-round against the third-seeded CenTex (8-6).

"Our owners did not want to penalize the Barracudas and their fans of the right to host the first game, so they voted to extend the playoffs back one week," Winfrey wrote in a press release. "Round one will be played over a two-weekend period."

CenTex owners knew at the beginning of the season that the Expo Center was booked for the 4th of July weekend, Winfrey said. But considering the Barracudas finished with just two wins last season, Winfrey said the owner didn't think the team would be hosting a first-round playoff game.

Odessa and Frisco play Saturday in the other first-round game in Odessa. Winfrey said the IFL wanted each opening-round game on the same weekend, but Odessa also ran into facility conflicts for the weekend Alaska faces CenTex. So as it unfolded, each playoff game will be on separate days.

"We are excited that each game will not have to compete with another playoff game," Winfrey wrote. "The ability to showcase each of our games to fans of the IFL and around the country, could not have worked out better."

But given the Wild's paltry road record, they would rather have played CenTex at home. In two full seasons, Alaska has never won on the road.

"I think the guys would have much rather played in front of the hometown fans," said Wild coach Hans Deemer by cell phone. "We're much tougher at home."

The Wild sported a 5-2 record at Sullivan Arena this season. But they were a dismal 0-7 on the road, including a 54-7 loss to CenTex at the Expo Center on May 24.

"We'll be ready," Deemer said. "We'll do much better than we did the last time we visited CenTex."

The Wild will be without their top offense player, Thomas Ford Jr., who suffered a dislocated hip against the Fairbanks Grizzlies, Deemer said.

"Huge loss for us," Deemer said. "We're really going through the players."

Deemer said at least 16 of his 20 starters have suffered from some sort of injury this season. But with his playoff roster locked, what the Wild have is what CenTex will get.

"We don't have much of a choice now," Deemer said.

Find Kevin Klott online at adn.com/contact/kklott or call 257-4335.

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