Lions set to open mini-camp for skills players on Wednesday

In the world of weather, the saying is that the month of March "comes in like a lion."

On Tuesday, that saying also applied to the Columbus Lions indoor football team.

Players at skill positions - quarterbacks, wide receivers, and defensive backs - descended on Columbus for the start of training camp as the team ramps up for their 10th season of professional indoor football. The mini-camp for the skill players begins in earnest Wednesday morning, with linemen reporting next Tuesday for the start of full training camp the following morning.

The Lions host the Albany-based Georgia Firebirds for the opening game of the season on March 20 at 4 p.m. at the Columbus Civic Center.

This season marks the Lions' first in American Indoor Football, coming off a Professional Indoor Football League championship in 2015 prior to that league's dissolution in the offseason. Only two PIFL franchises, the Lions and the Lehigh Valley (Penn.) Steelhawks, elected to field a team this season, with the two making a joint decision to join the AIF.

Lions coach Jason Gibson says that despite the notion that the bar is set a bit lower in the AIF than the PIFL, his recruiting style hasn't changed in the offseason.

"The best team we're going to play - and I say this with no disrespect - is ourselves at practice," Gibson said. "Whether we're PIFL, AIF, I don't care what you call the league. We always compete against ourselves. It wasn't a PIFL roster last year, it was a Columbus Lions roster. I'm bringing guys in to move up (to the Arena Football League), and I'm bringing guys in to compete against each other every week like there's no tomorrow."

Gibson's recruiting style also carries the mantra that no job is safe, even those of returning players from last season.

"You're always looking for the best players," Gibson said. "I've never been one to say 'hey, you started for me last year, so you're going to start for me this year.' That's what made us so competitive. We talk about the 'Lions Way'. That's what makes Columbus as successful as it is, because you compete every week if you're a four-year starter or if you've been here four weeks. You're going to compete for your job.

"I don't have 'my guys.' A lot of teams do. My guy is the guy who wins."

The returning player on the roster who made the most impact last season is quarterback Casey Kacz, who earned PIFL Offensive Rookie of the Year honors in 2015 en route to leading the Lions to the championship. Quarterback Mason Espinoza, who was also a PIFL starting quarterback with the now-defunct Erie (Penn.) Explosion, will join Kacz in camp. Gibson says despite the accolades, training camp is time for everyone to prove themselves.

"I think Mason Espinoza is a really good quarterback," Gibson said. "I wanted him to come in and compete. I told him you know Casey's the projected No. 1, he had a great season last year, but I like what you can do; if you can beat him out, you can beat him out. Mason welcomed the competition. That's the kind of player you want."

While Gibson acknowledged he was also loaded at the wide receiver position, even in spite of losing league MVP Terrence Ebagua to the AFL, he is especially looking forward to the competition among a stable of talented defensive backs in camp.

"This might be the best group of defensive backs I've ever signed," Gibson said. "It's a very competitive group of guys for three spots. I set forth a skill set of what we're looking for size-wise, and we got them. Probably the most competition we're going to have is at that position. That's what I'm looking forward to, seeing them get after it."

Through a decade of Lions football, Gibson has been the one constant through all the leagues and teams. The Maryland native has taken root and started a family locally, currently residing in Phenix City with his wife, Sarah, who he met at a Lions game during their inaugural season, and their three children: two sons, Gunnar and Jett, and infant daughter Steele.

"To be here 10 years, only one other coach in the country can say that," said Gibson. "There's a reason I'm still here, because it's the best organization in the country. It's no secret."

This story was originally published March 1, 2016 at 8:40 PM with the headline "Lions set to open mini-camp for skills players on Wednesday ."