Last month, the Miners made two announcements- their move to the National Arena League (NAL) for the 2025 season, and a two-year lease extension inside WesBanco Arena. The hope that the team has for their future did not come without sacrifices and initiative from many within the organization.

A rag-tag band the Miners were not- rag-tag bands don’t outscore their opponents by an average of nearly 50 points per game and win the league championship by 47- but Wheeling did have a mix of players from different backgrounds and different levels of experience.

Star quarterback Grant Russell, who threw six touchdowns in the championship game and won league MVP and Offensive Player of the Year, had seen plenty of action in arena football previously, including with the Columbus Destroyers as recently as 2019. But since then, he’d gotten into coaching and teaching, and jumping back into competition meant plenty of long drives and long days.

“It’s been a long journey,” Russell said after the Miners’ championship win. “The season started in April, now here we are in July. I did some recollection today, thinking about all the early-morning trips, driving to West Virginia for practice and then drive back and teach the rest of the day. It’s been a long journey but I’m blessed just to be able to go out and win this game in front of all these people. The feeling’s unexplainable.”

On the opposite side, Wheeling University alum Isaiah Lewis was plenty familiar with the area, having just graduated from the Cardinals, but his leap into professional indoor football required belief from his coach Mott Gaymon- the defensive coordinator at Wheeling University who held the same position with the Miners this year- and the belief in himself to transition to the arena.

“Coming into this I had just graduated from Wheeling University. I wasn’t really sure what my future was going to be. Thankfully we had coach [Mott Gaymon] on the team, he gave me an opportunity, and I didn’t really know what to expect. Of course I’d heard of arena football, but I didn’t really know what it’d be like. I gave it my all, I took the opportunity head-on and I spent the first week, first couple weeks adjusting to the game. But everything after that, it’s been nothing short of amazing.”

Lewis made quite the first impression in his first pro season, being named to the All-AAL2 First Team Defense, and coming away with a sack in the championship game, a victory which capped a perfect season for Wheeling, by now his adopted hometown.

“It feels truly amazing, it’s hard to explain it exactly,” Lewis said. “This opportunity came out of nowhere, and it’s changed my life totally. I would’ve never imagined that I’d be here four months ago. I’m just thankful to God right now, just thankful.”

The Miners drew plenty from the local talent pool to assemble their supersquad, including Jayvon Johnson, Aaron Finch and Lewis from Wheeling University, Charles Westbrook and Isaiah Robinson from West Liberty, and Nick Coulter from John Marshall High School.

The future looks bright for the Miners, who now can settle into their home at WesBanco, where their support grew throughout the season, culminating in raucous atmospheres in the North Division championship against the Jersey Bearcats and in the championship game against the Peach State Cats.

It’s a success story which was not a guarantee.

When the Miners first announced in December their intention to bring arena football to Wheeling, they were set to become the latest in an extended line of arena football teams which had called WesBanco Arena home, others including the Steel Valley Smash (1999-2000), the Wheeling Greyhounds (2001-2007), and the Wheeling Wildcats (2009). Far before the start of the season, the Miners dealt with a coaching staff switch, and a pivot in the league they’d be competing in.

Despite any adversity, the end result Saturday was a triumphant one, Wheeling raising a trophy for the league they had conquered in what would be their lone year in the AAL2. Wheeling Miners head coach Josh Resignalo says it is only the beginning.

“It’s a great start for us,” the man known as ‘Coach Res’ said. “We’ve really laid the foundation and the groundwork for everything we’ve done, to really make this take off. I’m excited for what we’ve done and what we’re bringing to the valley, it’s just exciting.”

“The drive and the momentum into the offseason is going to be incredible for us. From a recruiting standpoint we’re already getting blown up by a lot of players who want to come here once we made the announcement about the NAL. We’re building something special here and I can’t wait to take this where we’re going.”

Going forward with their base of operations secured and a bigger, better league on the horizon, Resignalo is asking for the same thing he has since day one- the support of the Wheeling community.

“It’s been awesome,” Resignalo said. “A lot of hard work, a lot of people don’t understand what is done behind the scenes to make all this happen. We just appreciate the support, I hope people believe in what we’re trying to do and they come on out. 2025 is going to be amazing so come on out and support us.”