The Iowa Woo held a press conference Thursday to introduce its new head coach, Victor Mann. He played under Bill Snyder at Kansas State and has 17 years of playing and coaching experience in arena football. In Mann’s opening remarks, he delivered a clear message of the expectations.
“It’s been a great transition being selected as the second coach for the Iowa Woo, but I want to be the first championship coach.”
The Woo are members of The Arena League, and play their home games at The Hippodrome in Waterloo. The league launched in 2024 with four teams playing 6-on-6 football, but expanded to six teams and will play 7-on-7 indoor football this season.
Tryouts will be held Saturday. Mann on what he’s looking for in his players.
“I’m looking for guys that are not shy to go out there and just put out what you got,” Mann says. “Sometimes at these tryouts, guys shy away, they don’t compete as hard, and they think about somebody else’s background. Obviously I want the guys that can move and do things the right way, but I also want to look at some competitors. You know, some guys that I know like to compete. And if you like to compete, I mean, I can give you some of the other tools, you know what I mean? So I’m looking for people to just come out, have fun, compete, and have a championship mindset from start to finish.”
At the press conference, team management announced that along with some other promotions, elementary students within a 20-mile radius of Waterloo will each receive a free ticket to a Woo home game, provided they’re accompanied by a parent or guardian.
Mann offers a message of encouragement to enjoy Woo games this season.
“If you want to see high-power football, a lot of scoring, a lot of big plays, a lot of fan engagement, and if you want to get some footballs, I mean, we’re to be throwing free footballs in the stands all season long, scoring touchdowns, you know. Just come on out, it’s going to be like a party with a football game going on. It’s family-friendly for everybody, and I have open opportunities that I’m going be grabbing some fans out the stands to bring them down on the field with me from time to time. It’s gonna be a lot of things outside the box that we’re gonna do to get everybody closer to the Woo.”
The season opener will be Friday, May 30 when the Woo host the Duluth Harbor Monsters.
Victor Mann interview:
Press conference:
