Wednesday, April 2, 2008

Frisco Thunder QB’s video game debuts on team web site

By Pegasus News wire

FRISCO — Frisco Thunder quarterback Wes Cooper isn’t featured on any Madden football video game – yet – but having his own video game on his team’s web site will do just fine for now.

“Wes Cooper’s 2-Minute Drill presented by EDS Credit Union” is currently undergoing beta testing on the Intense Football League’s team’s web site.

Photo not provided by Nintendo, Frisco Thunder

Cooper is following in the footsteps of the gods

Cooper, who joined the Thunder this season after two seasons in Corpus Christi, is excited to be the first indoor football quarterback with a signature video product.

“It’s awesome to have my name on this game because the game itself is fun to play,” said Cooper, whose thrown for 1,272 yards and 33 touchdowns in the first five games this season.

Cooper, a math teacher at Kaufman High School during the day, had his students play it during a free period. The response was overwhelmingly positive.

“The kids were fighting over who got to play next and that’s a good sign,” Cooper said. “If everyone has fun playing this game, that’s what it’s all about.”

The game allows users to quarterback the Thunder in the final two minutes of an Intense Football League playoff game. The goal is to score as many points as possible during that time span by driving 45 yards for a touchdown.

Users receive one point for each yard gained and 86 (Thunder owner Jake Reed’s number when he played for the Minnesota Vikings) points for every touchdown scored. Fifteen points are deducted for each interception.

The game was designed and developed by Brian Reiss, an Ohio web designer who originally produced the game for the Continental Indoor Football League’s Miami Valley Silverbacks. Thunder General Manager Dan Ryan worked with Silverbacks President Matt King in another indoor football league and worked a deal that created a Frisco version of the game.

“This video game shows what happens when indoor football teams, even if they are in different leagues, view each other as partners who can help their teams and leagues grow instead of thinking the worst,’’ Ryan said. “Congratulations to Brian for delivering a first-class product and we are honored that he worked with us.”

Reiss began development of the game as class assignment in 2006.

“Since then it's slowly taken on a life of its own,” Reiss said. “Fans of the Silverbacks have been enjoying this game, and I'm excited that the fans of Frisco Thunder will now have the opportunity to enjoy this as well."

The game will be the centerpiece of the Kid’s Club section of the web site. To access it, click “Kid’s Club” on the top menu of the website.

Source: Frisco Thunder

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