Behind the Curtain of the Indy Eleven Front Office - Shelby Gilmore

Photo Credit: Indy Eleven

Imagine you've been at your job, in an official capacity, for about two months and you're set to take your first business trip with some of your co-workers. 

Imagine that every single person of those 24 to 25 coworkers rely on you to schedule their meals, accommodations, and travel arrangements. 

Now imagine that in that first business trip, nearly everything that you had planned for all those individuals goes sideways right before their big presentation.

That is exactly the life that Indy Eleven Manager of Team Administration, Shelby Gilmore, has been doing for six seasons (including this upcoming one). So I thought it would be good to pull back the curtain on a member of the Indy Eleven organization to allow Indy fans, and maybe other soccer fans, a chance to get a glimpse of what goes on behind the scenes of a lower division professional soccer team.

Shelby didn't find soccer when she was a kid. Like most kids who grow up in Indiana (specifically the west side of Indianapolis), Shelby played a lot of basketball, and like most kids in Indiana that play a lot of [insert sport here], Shelby didn't expect to be working in a sports-related profession. When Shelby headed off to college at IUPUI, she had intentions of getting a degree in Elementary Education. A profession that she quickly realized was not what she wanted to do. However, while lifeguarding at her local pool, she began talking to her manager who was in the Sports Management program at IUPUI, which peaked Shelby's interest. Despite having played sports her entire life, it had just never registered for her that there was a way to have a career in sports without being an athlete. With a newfound direction in life, Shelby majored in Sports Management in 2018 with a minor in Business from the Kelley School of Business. 

[sidenote from Shelby on her time as a lifeguard: "I was a lifeguard through college and got the opportunity to work some high profile events and guard for Olympians. I even got to see Katie Ledecky break a world record in person which was really cool."]

A degree in hand, Shelby first worked with our hockey-playing counterparts, landing an internship with the Indy Fuel in their Operations department. The one-semester internship turned into a full year gig though as she finished the season with the team. 

"I found I really enjoyed Operations and the skills I got to use, and they gave me a ton of great opportunities that pushed me and challenged me." 

While interning at the Fuel, Shelby was introduced to then Indy Eleven Game Operations Coordinator James Fields, who mentioned that Indy Eleven was looking for a Game Operations intern for the 2019 season. Shelby applied, interviewed with Andy Piggush and James, and landed a season-long internship with the team. 

"I worked hard during that season and was, again, given some opportunities to lead and challenge myself again. I don’t think I am tooting my own horn when I say I impressed Piggush and got very fortunate with some timing."

As the 2019 was coming to a close, the previous Team Administrator was leaving the club, opening the position for somebody else to grab. Another round of interviews, with an intimidating interview with all the coaches that included a question about The Office from goalkeeper coach Andy Swift (a question that she bombed), and a solid recommendation from Andy Piggush, and Indy Eleven had found their next Team Administrator.

Before we get more in detail about Shelby and her job with Indy Eleven, let's circle back to that first business trip in March 2020 to Memphis (a come from behind, 4-2 win for the Boys in Blue against a Tim Howard in goal 901 FC squad) as Shelby navigated her first road trip in her new position:

So the first [memory] that stands out is quite literally the first ever regular season match that I worked for, or worked with, for Indy Eleven. That was Memphis in 2020. Memphis is always a bus trip for us, just based off of the league protocols that we have to follow. Same with Pittsburgh. Getting down to Memphis was completely fine. No issue at all there.

However, match day comes around and it started off in the morning with Coach Rennie coming out and asking our equipment manager at the time where his runners were. I think he was going to use the hotel gym to go for a quick workout or whatever. Equipment manager goes to grab his runners out of the coaching bag only to realize that the bag got left in Indianapolis.

So, obviously with it being a 7-hour trip and we just found out that information at like 11:00 AM, it wasn't really going to work out that we were going to get all the stuff that we needed in time for kickoff. Because of that, the equipment manager and myself went out around Memphis and we kind of bought everything that we needed for the coaches when it comes to their boots, their gear, whatnot. Specifically for that trip too, our one assistant coach, Juan Guerra was leaving from Memphis to go to Tampa for a coaching course so we had to go out and buy all of the toiletries that he needed, because that was all still in Indianapolis as well.

While we are running around Memphis trying to find all this stuff for the coaches, I get a call from the hotel and they tell me that they cannot do our pre-match meal, which throughout the entire weekend (breakfasts, dinners, everything), the pre-match meal is the most important meal that we have during the weekend. And with me being brand new, I didn't have everything memorized or know that this was super important, so I called our assistant coaches that were on the trip at that time, Juan and Swifty [Goalkeeper Coach Andy Swift] and was like, "the hotel said they can't do the pre-game meal." Only with their reaction did I realize how bad the situation was. So Juan and Swifty kind of helped me figure out we can go to this restaurant and get the things that we need, so we were able to kind of work that out.

But overall I just have a distinct memory of being in an Uber in Memphis, driving around and being like if this is how every game is, I don't think I'm going to be able to make it. This is insane. This is everything that I'm dealing with on the very first trip and very first regular season game that I've ever worked.

Worried and concerned, but seemingly undeterred from her new profession, Shelby has learned from those early difficulties and is now preparing for her 6th season with the team. With preseason just around the corner, Shelby has found that this time of year is still the most intense part of her job. "Preseason is the craziest part of the season as players start getting into town, getting them settled, and helping take care of all the logistics involved with that." Indy Eleven are returning a good core group of players this year, but have already added to the roster and will likely be adding more. For Shelby, it's important that all the new players to Indy feel welcome. "I want players to know that the Indy Eleven staff cares about them, Indy Eleven wants them to succeed as individuals. Sometimes I am a player’s first contact with the club, and I want to set the standard for what they can expect from us."

Preseason may be crazy, but Shelby describes the offseason as magical. "Offseason is the best and most magical part of my year. The first two weeks are us coordinating with players who are moving on to new teams or getting [returning] Indy Eleven players back home [for the offseason break]. We do full cleanouts of the apartments, including moving furniture. Normally, once we get to Thanksgiving, things start to die down. Things then pick back up at the start of the year as we prep for preseason."

Game Beckons: Obviously, there's a lot that goes into your job to keep you busy (not counting your magical offseason), but how do you spend your time when you're not ushering around soccer players and coaches? Rumor is that you're a big Taylor Swift fan.
Shelby: Outside of work I enjoy watching reality tv competitions (Survivor being my favorite, which I hope to be on one day). I really like watching "popular" TV shows/movies too and keeping up with the discourse around said shows/movies. I also really enjoy reading, but I find the best time to fit that in is actually when we are flying. Nothing like a good book to distract you from the fact that you’re thousands of feet in the air in a metal tube (can you tell I don’t like flying?). I have a cat named Chelsea (no, not after the team) who I love with all my heart. I am a HUGE Taylor Swift fan. Got to see her twice during the Eras Tour and have seen her 5 times total (just to prove I’m not a bandwagon fan). I also love listening to Megan Thee Stallion and have recently got into Doechii, but overall I would classify myself as a basic pop girlie when it comes to my music preferences. 

Game Beckons: What does your day-to-day look like during the season?
Shelby: One of the things I like most about my job is that not every day is the same. Sure, I have "norms" and processes, but my weekly schedule is normally dictated by what our match and/or travel schedule looks like. 

    I try to get to the building by about 8:30 a.m. and check in with the coaches about anything pertinent. Depending on my workload, I’ll either stay in the building during training and get some work done or I'll go out and watch. However, ever since I broke my wrist in March 2023 out at training, my time out at trainings has decreased a good amount. I go and pick up our post-training lunch and try to get that to the building and setup by 11:30 a.m. for the guys. I do a check of our breakfast lounge once the building has cleared out of players and assist Sean Jackson [Equipment Manager] with the cleaning of the facility (although he takes on a significant role when it comes to this task). 

    The start of my week is finalizing logistics for whatever game we have at the weekend. Wednesdays are our off day but I almost always have some work that I do from home on this day. Thursdays vary depending on if we have a home or away match that weekend. If it’s a home match, these are my long days as I have to go to Sam’s Club, then downtown to the opposing team hotel, and swing by Carroll Stadium to drop off everything we need for matchday. If it’s an away match, this is my final prep day where I’m working with the coaches to ensure their 18-man roster matches the 18 I have on the flight manifest, and basically triple checking any and everything to ensure I have as much memorized as possible so I know how each day is "supposed" to go. Fridays are either travel days or my easiest day of the week, Saturday is match day, and then Sunday is either an off day or travel day. 

Game Beckons: Now that you mentioned it, describe your game days (home versus away). What time does the day start for you and when does it normally end, what are your responsibilities, do you always/never travel with the team, etc?
Shelby: I always say that home and away games are two different beasts.

Game Beckons: Let's start with the home games at Carroll Stadium.
Shelby: As for home matches, it’s much much easier leading up to match day [than away days], but are significantly longer day of. Before match day, I do my Sam’s Club run to get our match day needs. I then have to drop off cases of water and Gatorade to the hotel where the opposing team is staying and drop the rest of those cases off at Carroll. 

    I normally arrive at Carroll between 12-1 p.m. depending on setup needs of any given match. I am responsible for the full setup of the opposing team locker rooms and referee locker rooms, and then I assist with specific aspects of Indy Eleven’s locker rooms setup. Lucky for us, [editor: you may not read it, but that was sarcasm] Carroll has two sets of locker rooms we utilize for each team [editor note: the main locker rooms for each team are in the Natatorium (think of typical locker rooms with showers, bathrooms, etc.; and then the smaller, less complete locker rooms under the grandstand of Carroll Stadium], so we have double the amount of setup we need to accomplish on match days. We have a minimum standards list that we must follow so I double check that list to ensure I haven’t forgot anything to avoid a fine. I try to have my full setup done by 4:30/5 p.m. since that is when our players start to roll in. I am also responsible for welcoming in the opposing team (both for early locker room setup and the team bus) and ensure they get to the locker rooms and have everything they need. I do 5-, 3-, and 1-minute warnings pre-match (and halftime) for all three parties and then assist with the procession. During the game, I have much less responsibility since we have more staff present and really I am just on red card watch because it is my responsibility to escort the suspended player back to their locker room. I normally grab the opposing team’s post-match meal, as well as ours, and get those setup at the Natatorium locker rooms. Then we wait for all three parties to vacate their locker rooms so we can do a full tear down. Since Carroll is a shared stadium, we do not have the luxury of keeping items in those spaces. I’m normally leaving the stadium between 10:45-11:15 p.m. depending on how quickly the locker rooms are vacated.

Game Beckons: And now the away games?
Shelby: 2024 was the first year I traveled to every single game with the team, but I have traveled with the team plenty before that and was even our acting Kitman on the road for the latter half of the 2023 season. 

    Away games require way more planning and effort leading up to match day. Making sure we have all dressing players on our flight manifest, coordinating with our contact at the airport to make sure they have all our flight info and travel roster, ensuring the bus is going to be there when we land, double checking with the hotel that our meals are scheduled to be served at the right time, finalizing the rooming list, etc. The day of an away match though is pretty chill with my biggest responsibilities being to make sure our pre-match meal is on time, the bus arrives on time to get the team, and making sure our post-match meal is delivered to the stadium on time.

    

Shelby and Josh Frankham
Photo Credit: Indy Eleven

    Josh [Frankham, Athletic Trainer] and Sean [Equipment Manager, AKA "Kitman"] are the ones that go to the stadium for locker room setup, so I normally help roll bags out to the car and keep communicating with them about any needs/issues I can take care of at the hotel. I normally set up, or help set up, the meeting room for film and then make sure we get everyone on the bus. That is, more times than most, the most stressful part of my match day; making sure that the driver has the correct route and stadium drop-off point, and then checking for traffic/crashes that could make us late to the stadium, all while communicating with my counterpart for the opposing team to ensure they have our estimated time of arrival. Being a woman in a male locker room, there isn’t a ton that I can do in there until we head out for warmups. Then after that I am responsible for giving the same 5- , 3-, and 1-minute warnings to ensure we get out of the locker room on time to ensure we don't get fined. Same thing for halftime. During the game, I really kind of just get to enjoy the game, but am also ready to help wherever needed with filling water bottles, gear needs, and being ready to run to the locker room to get anything anyone forgot. I take care of the post-match meal about halfway through the second half and get that all setup for our guys. Then I wait until the locker room is good for me to go in and help do a final clean up of the space.

    On our travel days back to Indy, I head to the airport an hour earlier than the team to get boarding passes and bag tags printed. Depending on the airline and the airport, sometimes they let me do this and sometimes they don’t. Then it’s just getting everyone through security and checking our flights to make sure that everything is running on time until we get back to Indy.  

Game Beckons: How far ahead can you plan ahead for the team's travels?

Shelby: Once the schedule comes out, I send that to the bus company to cover all our bus trips for the year and I’m able to do that in January. Similar thing with our flights, we are able to book those in January. We work with a third-party company to look at different options for our flights [editor: from a separate interview that Shelby did with Game Time Gals, the third-party company is Sportscorp Travel and the hotel third-party company is Sports Travel Management. Both companies work with USL Championship to help all the teams in the league.]. I then put those into an Excel file and present that to Coach and we work together to come up with our preferred options and work with the company to get our air travel booked. Then just have to stay on top of any schedule changes that the airline makes to our itinerary.

    The league has a minimum standard that Team Admins should be reaching out to the hotel and bus company in market at least two weeks prior to the team’s arrival into market. I follow that but try to reach out sooner if possible depending on our schedule. 

    I like to spend the week leading up to an away match finalizing the smaller details like the meals at the hotel, getting bus driver info, looking at driving routes we will be taking at the travel time for each of those, and then sharing as much info as possible with the rest of the tech staff. In short, we are able to finalize a lot of our travel by the start of preseason and the rest is taken care of about two weeks before we arrive in market. 

Game Beckons: There was a game this past season where travel back to Indy went askew and rumors were that it looked like the team was going to be split into different groups on their way back. How did you get through it & what gives you the confidence you're going to get it all worked out?

Shelby: I first want to remind everyone who’s reading this that our team and every team in the USL Championship flies commercial. So we are always working with the logistical nightmares that sometimes brings, and that when the shit hits the fan it’s very unlikely that we find a flight with 24/25 open seats to fit our full team (and that is often the biggest obstacle we are working around). Luckily, (knock on wood) I have never had to split the team up in a significant manner like that. We have had to put some guys individually on different itineraries than the team but that is much easier to manage. 

    In those instances, you’re really just praying that the airline desk worker that you are working with is in a decent mood and willing to talk through options. I’ve also done enough flying now with the team to know that we are always going to have better luck if we get stuck/delayed in a bigger airport. We also have the benefit of flying with a big group because most airlines are going to work as hard as they can to get us on a new flight vs rebooking us because it costs the airline more money to rebook us and give us vouchers than getting us to our destination on our original flight/day. 

    First step is to figure out from the airline worker what other flight options we have and the number of seats available on each of those flights. Then I go through and make “priority list” of who will get on the first flight vs the last. We have a number of different variables that we work through when creating that list. 

    I think my confidence with these type of situations truly comes from my experience. And knowing that, at the end of the day, as long as we all get back to Indy on Sunday (assuming we had a Saturday match) then that’s a success in my book. I also know that the players and coaches seeing how hard I work (really even if it's just me running around like a chicken with her head cut off) in those moments to gather as many options as possible and properly communicating those options helps me in the long run. 

    Airports are also like this weird space where I lose all capability of being able to be embarrassed or hesitant. For this exact instance that you are speaking of, I actually ended up chatting with a pilot who was from Indy and knew the team. He was able to find out what the mechanical issue was, told me what it was, and that we would have an answer on a delay/cancellation within the next 20 minutes, and gave his candid opinion that he thought everything was going to be fine. That helped me manage how much I needed to worry and start planning for the worst. 

Photo Credit: Indy Eleven

Game Beckons: How often do things go smoothly versus badly?

Shelby: The times where things go badly always stand out more, so it feels like it happens more often than when a trip goes smoothly. I would say 8/10 times, things go as smooth as they can. The experience I have gained though has given me enough insight to know what to do in different situations when things do get crazy. I think 2021 and 2023 were the worst, where it felt like every other trip something "major" happened (cancelled flight, significant delay, bus issues, etc.) There’s also a few locations where we have never had great luck. El Paso being a perfect example. 

 

El Paso, specifically, has never given us a ton of luck, which just makes me super excited to travel there this year [more sarcasm...]. Weirdly enough, though, El Paso, once you get into the city, it's one of the best cities that we travel to, in my personal opinion. But unfortunately the air travel there and back has never been super lucky for us. In 2021, this is my first ever flight that I was taking with the team and also, kind of the first flight that I had ever done personally, within like 10 years. I didn't fly much growing up, so this first flight, I'm checking the flight number just to make sure that everything is scheduled and on time right before I'm leaving Grand Park to head towards the airport, and when I look up our flight it says that it's canceled, and I was like, well that's weird. Why? Why does it say that? So I check again. I check like three other websites. They all say cancelled, but I haven't heard anything from our air travel agent. I shoot her over a text and I'm like, "hey, is this correct? What's going on?" And she calls me and says "yeah, it looks like it's canceled, we're going to have to figure out something." And so, we spent the next probably 2 hours figuring out what flights we could get on and, ultimately, we got in at 11:00 p.m. El Paso time, which was 1:00 a.m. Indy time, which made for a very long match day. The next day we got back fine, that trip. 

But then in 2023, everything getting there was completely fine. But when we were on our way back is when we got stuck in the airport for 12 hours. We got everybody checked in and, unfortunately, with flying commercial we have to arrive on time no matter what. We pretty much knew before the team even showed up that we were delayed a little bit, but at that point it was kind of too late to make the logistical changes that we needed to make. So we get everyone to the airport, we get through security and whatnot, and the flight just continues to keep getting delayed and delayed and delayed. It's about every hour that they're pushing it back another hour because of the mechanical issue they were dealing with at DFW. We had been there for long enough that we had to get everybody vouchers, but because they couldn't send vouchers out to everybody individually because it was a group, under one name to an extent. So all the vouchers got sent to me, then I had to divvy them up between everybody. It was a whole thing there. Also, I don't know if you've ever been to El Paso [editor: I have actually.], El Paso has like 4 gates, no [electrical] outlets anywhere, and they have about 3 different options in terms of the food you can eat at the airport. So not a super ideal situation for us to get stuck there for, again, 12 hours.

 

Finally, we see that the flight is taking off from Dallas to El Paso. In the meantime of all of that, we've missed our connector at this point. I'm now working with the El Paso kind of head person with American. And so we get confirmation that DFW is going to hold a flight for us, so we already knew basically that once we got on this plane in El Paso, when we landed in DFW, it was going to be getting off the plane, sprinting to the next gate, and then they would be holding the flight for us, which was huge. Oftentimes we aren't able to kind of confirm that. So knowing that helped kind of ease a lot of stress. So then we see that the flight is finally taken off from Dallas. It's on its way to El Paso.

 

And I'm not joking when I say it felt like the cruelest joke that's ever been played on us as a team.

 The plane is literally coming off the runway and heading towards our gate and like staring us straight in the face and all of a sudden I see the lady that's been working at the desk all day start talking to other people and I'm hearing her yell "oh, you need to run to this gate, run, run, run!" So then I'm like that's not good. Anytime someone that works at the airport is telling you to run, it's never a great sign. So I go up to the desk and I'm like, "hey, what's going on?" And she looks at me and she says, "we're going to have to cancel this flight." I looked at her and I was like "you've got to be joking me, right?" She's like, "no, and there's no other planes out of here today that's going to be able to fit all 23 of you on any airline. I'm like "right! super! Can you explain to me why that's the case?" And that's when she goes on to tell me that the crew that got on the flight in Dallas was unable to do the return flight because they were going to hit their FAA regulated number of hours that they're allowed to work in the day. It's one of the few times that I cried in the airport because I just genuinely could not believe that American Airlines kept us in the El Paso Airport for at least 12 hours, just for them to cancel the flight as soon as it's literally right in front of us. So then Josh Frankham and myself stay back at the airport. The hotel staff in El Paso was absolutely amazing. They sent kind of like party bus-type style vehicles to pick up the team and the bags so we didn't have to worry about getting Ubers. They were able to get us accommodated with rooms for an additional night, and then we also got very lucky that we were able to book a bus for the next morning because we had to leave the hotel at, I believe 3:30 in the morning the next morning to get on a flight at 5:00 a.m. to take us to, I think it was Phoenix, and then we got back to Indy that way.

So that's El Paso for you. Beautiful city. Just try to drive there if you need to.

Game Beckons: What is your favorite and least favorite things about your job?

Shelby: My favorite thing about my job is the relationship building I get to do every season. I have met some of the best people during my time with Indy Eleven (staff, players, and fans). It’s also presented me with opportunities to meet people from all over the world and learn about cultures I wouldn’t have if I wasn’t in this role. That’s another aspect of my job that I am super grateful for, all the opportunities I have had during my time with Indy Eleven. I’ve got to travel the country which I never thought I would be able to do. I’ve been face-to-face with some big names in soccer. Had the opportunity to go to some of the best soccer specific stadiums in the country. And made some life long friends along the way. 

    My least favorite part of my job is the lack of other women I get to work with on a regular basis. Sure we have a ton of women in our Front Office that I get to interact with on a daily basis, but 9 times out of 10, I am the only woman in the pre-match huddle and sometimes the only woman working for either team's Operations Department on matchdays. While it isn’t something I have direct control over, it is something I want to highlight because more women should be working in sports!! 

Game Beckons: One more horror story from the road?

Shelby: Sure.

So this one was us getting back to Indy from Charleston after the playoff game in 2023. Obviously, not the most ideal situation, nor an ideal result. A 5-0 loss never makes the next travel day any sort of fun. Everything's looking good, we get to the Charleston airport. Charleston Airport is really nice, a bit cramped at the ticketing area, but, ultimately, we get everyone through security. We're all waiting at the gate, then we board our flight. We're sitting there waiting, and then we get to the takeoff. I think that we were delayed maybe 20 minutes from pushing back from the gate and getting onto the runway, because I knew that we had a tight connection, and I can remember telling myself that as we're rolling out to the runway, "OK, as long as everything goes good, we have plenty of time. We'll be pushing it, but we'll get to the gate, no problem at all." And so we start, we get to the runway, pilot goes pedal to the metal to get us up to full speed and we're at maybe full speed for about 3-4 seconds, and then slams on the brakes.

 

He comes over the PA, and he's like, "I just need everyone to stay in their seat. We're going back to the gate. As soon as I can provide you an update, I'll do it." As I mentioned before, I don't like flying. In that moment, I was like, "cool, we're dying. We're dying on the Charleston runway after a 5-0 loss. This is going to be just a great way to go." But we start making our way back towards the gate and the pilot comes over and he's like, "hey, everyone, one of our engines is not putting out enough power. This plane is not going to be going anywhere, so I would recommend that as soon as you get off the plane, head to the desk and we will start kind of rebooking you on new flights." 

I don't know how it always manages to happen this way, but when we get booked on our air travel, we almost always get thrown to the back of the plane. I don't really know why? That's just kind of always the situation that happens. So I already knew right then and there, well we're screwed because we're towards the back of the plane and all the flights that we could get players and staff out on earlier are probably going to get booked with everybody else that's on our flight. At that time, I can't remember which coach, but one of our coaches was kind of up towards the front, so I sent them a message and was just like, "hey, as soon as you get off the plane, get in line, I'll join you as soon as can. They message back saying "there are some flights open." "I know, but we need to see what the airlines are willing to do for us at this point." 

At some point between then and me getting off the plane, I'm not sure what kind of communication was or was not had, but by the time I made my way to the line to join the group, we had a small handful of guys that had already booked themselves on new flights. I think, unfortunately, with the result from the previous day, everybody just wanted to get home. We're essentially in offseason at that point. So the last thing they want to do is wait around, which I completely understand. It just made things a little bit more difficult to deal with as we're moving through the rest of the day. There were also a few guys that were honestly just a little spooked by that situation. I didn't realize it in the moment, but having an engine basically go down as we're getting ready to take off is very scary. So I don't blame them, but some of the guys just wanted to get in a rental car and drive. Because of this, because we had different guys on different airlines, and we had a small handful of guys, as well as two of our coaches, that wanted to drive home. It was a situation where we were just split. 

So I'm working with, at this point, the league because we have to notify them of when situations like this happen. They then had to get with the Players Association [PA] because we've never had a situation where guys have wanted to drive themselves home after a match, so we needed to make sure that that wasn't against CBA rules [Collective Bargaining Agreement] or PA guidelines or anything like that. So I'm working with a number of different people while also making sure that guys that are booked on this flight, have it paid for with this card, and what about the bags? What are we going to do with that? Then I had to make sure that our coaches were taken care of with the rental cars that we were booking. 

We had everybody get back to Indy that day, but we had three different rental cars. Two were filled with players and assistant coaches. Then that resulted in me and Josh Frankum getting to drive back from Charleston with all of the bags in our rental vehicle filled to the brim to the point where we couldn't see out our rear view mirror.

I think that gives you an idea of the crazy situations that I deal with in terms of travel.

Game Beckons: Anything else you would like fans to know about your job?

Shelby: I want fans to know that working in sports, and specifically in Team Operations, isn’t always as glamourous as it seems (especially in the lower divisions). However, as cliché as it sounds, the tech staff and coaches become a second family during the season and I feel so lucky that I have a such good group of people to surround myself and spend 10 months with. Each season feels like its own war with each match being its own battle, and I couldn’t ask for a better team to go to battle with week in and week out. There have been times where our staff is working 50+ days without a break, all so our Boys in Blue can be as prepared as possible to go 90 minutes at the weekend and walk off the pitch with 3 points. We go above and beyond for our guys, work ourselves to the bone, miss holidays with family, operate on such little sleep it should be illegal, all for the hopes of lifting a trophy with our team at the end of the year. Remember the behind-the-scenes people who help the team run as smoothly as possible, and give us a thank you (or buy us a coffee) every once in a while. 

    I also just want to take this time to thank you for allowing me to answer these questions. I think it's important that fans and, even the players honestly, get an inside look as to what I deal with on a regular basis. They see it, but they don't necessarily get to see all the details, the nitty gritty stuff. So yeah, thank you.

Thank you, Shelby! It was really great getting to know more about you and the role you play for Indy Eleven. I appreciate you taking the time to answer the questions. It was interesting to be able to get the stories from the road. I think it's important for fans to be able to find out more about happens off the field for a lower division soccer team in America. I'm looking forward to getting some of the off-record stories when preseason officially starts in a few weeks!

Is There a Plan for Eleven Park?

Last month, the City of Indianapolis, specifically the Department of Public Works, publicly made available their "Archaeological Investigation Workplan for a Portion of Greenlawn Cemetery (CR-49-6) Henry Street Bridge Project" (The Plan) prepared by Stantec for the White River Infrastructure Development project at the Henry Street Bridge. The Plan highlights what they are going to do for the excavation of the ground where the bridge and the connecting Henry Street runs through the southern portion of what used to be the Greenlawn Cemetery. The same cemetery that has shut down the construction of Eleven Park. The Mayor’s attempt to bring MLS to Indianapolis, his still-unknown ownership group, and the takeover of the PSDA location (from the site owned by Ersal, Keystone, and Indy Eleven to the area surrounding the downtown Heliport) exacerbated that shutdown, but it feels from an external perspective like nothing is being done for Eleven Park. Once the PSDA made it's way through the government channels, has anybody heard anything about what the club intends to do?

Keystone and Indy Eleven haven’t issued any new information on their plan in months. Unlike my last article about Eleven Park and the Henry Street Bridge where I didn't reach out to the team, I did reach out to them for this article. What they said was, "Once we have a further update on the new stadium and Eleven Park, we will share accordingly." What I heard was, "when we want you to know something, you'll hear about it in an article from the IBJ." Which a long history of dealing with the team on items of this magnitude has proven to me will always be the case. 

But I digress...

Periodically since the time of the Mayor's announcement, I drive by the Eleven Park site. Every time I do so, the site has progressed further and further away from any kind of construction activity. At first, there was a construction trailer and some equipment sitting there unused. Then the equipment disappeared. After that the construction trailer was removed from the site. The large piles of fill dirt have remained, likely because Keystone would have to bring back the equipment to haul it somewhere else. However, he last time I drove by, some of the construction fencing and the Eleven Park fence banners had been allowed to fall down. Once the equipment and trailer were removed, it looks, again externally, like the site is just being left to rot and return itself back to nature. Any kind of site security has been neglected, seemingly with the knowledge that there's nothing there to take, except for some dirt, new weeds, and if anyone else were so inclined, a high probability of human remains. 

Photo: Indianapolis City-Council Council X post

Conversely, the construction for the Henry Street Bridge that runs just south of the Eleven Park site is in full swing, including another ceremonial groundbreaking. Though it looks like from all indications that the groundbreaking took place on the WEST side of the River this time even though the construction on the west side has been ongoing since March and it's only been recently that the activities have been happening on the east side of the river. My guess is somebody realized that it would have been some really bad optics for the Mayor to have another groundbreaking in the same general vicinity as the groundbreaking he attended for the Eleven Park development in 2023. From the article [emphasis mine], "The Henry Street Bridge is a transformative infrastructure project designed to provide added vehicular and pedestrian connectivity between the west side of Indianapolis and Downtown..." 

Why does that sound so familiar? Oh wait, since the original Eleven Park announcement, it has been described as a "transformational riverfront neighborhood development in downtown Indianapolis." 

As I began to dig [pun intended] into the Plan for the Henry Street Bridge project, the Plan requires that [again, emphasis mine]:

"Once overlying fill dirt has been removed and the original ground surface exposed, an archaeological team will monitor backhoe stripping of the cemetery portion within the Project Area. This process will involve using a smooth blade backhoe to incrementally strip back the soil in order to identify unmarked burial features. When soil stains are exposed during the backhoe stripping, archaeologists familiar with historic cemetery excavation will discern whether these stains represent grave shafts. Shaft stains will be assigned unique feature numbers and mapped using the grid established during the cemetery mapping and georeferenced to the established coordinate system and datum. All potential graves shafts identified will be fully investigated by experienced excavators."

Nearly everything that now comes out from the City related to the Henry Street project makes some reference to it being led by an archaeological team. The Plan document itself doesn't explicitly differentiate this method being different than the "Contractor-led" excavation that is regularly referenced by the DPW notifications when describing the work that was being done at Eleven Park, but as of right now, that seems to be a key difference between the City's Plan and whatever plan Keystone had before the Mayor's MLS announcement. "Archaeologist-led" versus "Contractor-led" has seemingly come to mean, "still moving forward, but slowly" versus "come to a screeching halt." Again, at least when looking at it externally. 

Between this purposefully wording choice from the City about who is leading the excavation and using the same "transformational" language to describe the Henry Street project that Keystone/Indy Eleven have used for Eleven Park, it's beginning to feel like the Mayor is trolling Ozdemir at every opportunity. It's like the elementary school bully taking your lunch money and then pantsing you just for good measure.

I also purposefully emphasized a seemingly random sentence from the plan about fill dirt. What makes that so interesting to me is that there is sentence a couple of paragraphs above that in The Plan that goes into more detail on what the "overlying fill" means. That paragraph indicates [emphasis mine]:

"The soil stratigraphy from the extracted cores was examined by Stantec geoarchaeologists who estimated the fill depth above the original cemetery ground surface to vary between 3.5 and 7.5 ft below the current ground surface; the depth to the base of burial deposits associated with Greenlawn Cemetery interments varies between 6.5 and 10 ft below the current ground surface." 

Let's unpack that paragraph a little. 

The Stantec staff estimate that before anybody ever reaches the original level of the cemetery, they would have to remove at least the first 3.5-feet to potentially 7.5-feet of existing soil from the current ground surface. Only at that point would the excavation then be within what was considered the "original" cemetery soil where burials would have been performed. Additionally, there are indications from research performed by historian Deedee Davis from a July 1882 Common Council Proceedings (see below) that "in excavating a grave, it was almost always the case that at least two, and frequently three sets of buried remains would be met...they simply spread the different sets of remains over the bottom of the grave, and placed the new coffin upon top of them. The city has no grounds within the enclosure, that have not been buried in one or more times." 

So expecting to find remains in our now typical "6-feet deep" range is likely optimistic. Digging will need to be deeper.

Excerpt taken from Greenlawn Research performed by Deedee Davis

The Henry Street Bridge project is just a hair under 2 acres. The Eleven Park property (officially known as the property owned by 402 Kentucky Avenue LLC) is comprised of approximately 19 acres. If you assume a similar soil stratification over the entire 19 acres as what was estimated for the 2 acres (which, admittedly, is probably a bit conservative), on the low end you are talking about 2,896,740 cubic feet of fill dirt (at 3.5-feet of fill) and maybe as much as 6,207,300 cubic feet of fill dirt (at 7.5-feet) before you actually reach the original ground level of the cemetery. Then you have another 3- to 6-feet of additional digging of the soil that is considered "original cemetery ground." Doing some math on just the upper level of soil/fill, that's approximately 107,000 to 230,000 cubic yards. A dump truck can carry about 10 to 14 cubic yards, but for simple math, let's assume 10 cubic yards per truck. Therefore, it would take 10,700 to 23,000 dump truck loads to remove all the top fill. In my day job, we would estimate a cost for this kind of excavation by "smooth blade backhoe" to be $45/cubic yard (and potentially even higher). Just to get to cemetery soil, I would estimate the cost to be $4.8M to $10.3M depending on the depth. The total area that might require this level of excavation might be high and my "per cubic yard" cost might be low. As a rough estimate, that's a lot of money, and it's only at that point that digging below the original cemetery ground can start.

That is how you end up with a construction site that does have have any construction activity. Particularly when the Mayor five-finger discounted your PSDA tax area away from you. The process of preparing the site for construction took a drastic increase in cost. I would have thought that in the months following the Mayor's announcement that Keystone and the team would have some kind of preliminary plan, but if they do, they don't look inclined to share those plans. While the Eleven Park site is showing signs of neglect, Ozdemir, Keystone, and Indy Eleven continue their mode of operation of keeping every detail about things like this as close to the vest as humanly possible until the very last second. In a world where information leaks are plentiful, it's really an amazing feat that they have continued to remain so tight-lipped for so long about so many things.

I do want to clarify one thing. I have been using cemetery a lot throughout this article and my other articles. Other news sources and documentation from the City also use that designation. However, from the May 22, 2023 "Archaeological Monitoring Plan for the Henry Street Bridge Project in the Old Greenlawn Cemetery (CR-49-6), City of Indianapolis, Center Township, Marion County, Indiana" prepared by Weintraut & Associates:

"The cemetery is now classified as a burial ground since some graves have been removed, and there remains no physical above-ground evidence of its existence." 

The cemetery began to not be a cemetery around the 1870s to 1890s, and anything that is found when digging aren't "bodies" but rather "human remains" or "burial items," the latter of which is more for the jewelry, buttons, caskets or its components, etc. that might be found. 

Recently, now that work has begun in earnest on the east side of the river in the Henry Street portion of the Henry Street Bridge project, the City's archaeologist-led excavation has already discovered some of those burial items, finding granite pavers, rail lines, grave shafts, and a headstone.

New discoveries at the Henry Street Bridge project include historic railway - "Indy DPW says crews discovered granite pavers and rail lines from what was once considered to be the first and largest electric railway freight terminal in the U.S." - WTHR article linked above

Human remains, grave shafts found while preparing for Henry Street Bridge construction on Indy's near west side - "While preparing to start archaeological excavation east of the White River, Stantec – Indy DPW's archeology consultant – found 15 grave shafts. These discoveries were made three to four feet below ground. They also identified a "possible footstone" and a headstone base for a total of seven monument pieces." - WTHR article linked above

It's not surprising that the excavation is finding burial items. The historical documents have shown that there were just too many bodies buried there, and not enough records of many, to maybe most, of them being interred and reburied elsewhere. The question remains for Keystone and Indy Eleven on whether they can find the money to excavate the way that the Henry Street Bridge is being excavated (thanks in part to a donation from the Lilly Endowment). It may be some time before fans hear the answer to that question.

So while Ozdemir, Keystone, and Indy Eleven continue to keep fans in the dark about their plan for Eleven Park, the next door neighbor project is moving along and finding the remains and the burial items that everyone was concerned were going to be present. 

There has been at least one shred of information made public and that was provided by a X thread by Indianapolis City-County Councilor Michael-Paul Hart. In his thread, he indicated that the status of the Mayor's PSDA site is still going through the process. 

"A high-ranking city official explained that the project is now in the hands of multiple state agencies. They chose to delay making a decision until after the election. 

The City expects to receive an update on the PSDA (Professional Sports Development Area) by the end of December. This update should confirm whether the State approves or denies the plan."

I suspect that it will be discussed during the State Budget Committee hearings in December, and the results of those discussions will narrow down whether the Mayor's MLS desire moves forward or not. Without any knowledge of the discussions, it wouldn't surprise me if the plan is allowed to proceed, only to fail miserably within MLS headquarters. Councilor Hart indicated that if the plan does move forward, the identity of the investors will be made publicly known. So there's that.

It's not a Plan, but there may be some kind of plan.

One last interesting thing to note that I found while trying to find information. In mid-April of this year, just two weeks before the Mayor made his MLS announcement, the Department of Metropolitan Development Plat Committee gave "Approval of a Subdivision Plat, to be known as Eleven Park, dividing 18.98 acres into 12 blocks. Staff recommends that the Plat Committee approve and find that the plat, file-dated January 4, 2024, complies with the standards of the Subdivision regulations."

Ozdemir, Keystone, and Indy Eleven were that close to having another step completed before the rug was yanked out from under them.

I've recently wondered if, in hindsight, Peter Wilt would still recommend the path that Ersal Ozdemir and Indy Eleven have taken to try and get a stadium. The path they're on doesn't seem to be working any longer and they need their own Plan to somehow change paths. Watching Fort Wayne FC and Rhode Island and a long list of other teams get stadiums in the time since Indy started trying to get one before they had ever played a game, it would seem like that change of plan needs to happen soon. Indy will no longer be part of the USL Super League next season without their own stadium (for some reason...), and they have 20 acres of land sitting.

Externally, the Eleven Park Plan looks stalled, buried [pun intended] under layers of dirt without any archaeologists around to unbury it.

Indy Eleven 2024 Season Recap & 2025 Off-Season Outlook

I started the recap of the 2023 season asking the question about whether simply making the playoffs was enough to consider a season successful. Last year, that answer was mostly "maybe." Indy hadn't been to the playoffs since 2019, so getting to the playoffs was a positive step. Getting bludgeoned 5-1 by Charleston in the opening round of the playoffs was clearly not a positive finish to the season, but the playoff appearance was an important step. 

As Coach McAuley stated after Sunday's defeat to Rhode Island, "In football, if you stay the same, you're probably getting worse. So we need to improve next year and improve again and just keep improving." When thinking about this season as compared to last season, it's easier to consider the 2024 season a successful one, despite finishing the season at the exact same stage as last year. Indy had an U.S. Open Cup run to the tournament's semifinal game. Indy finished top four in the Eastern Conference to be able to host the opening round game of the playoffs. Indy improved.

Yet, those same lingering frustrations remain that fans felt last season when the season was over. Indy finished the season feeling like they should have done better in their final game. Which, I think, is a fair complaint. It's easy to continually see the success across the Ohio River and want there to be more success on this side of the river. It takes a winning culture, and a lot more consistency than what Indy has ever had in its history. I'm going to discuss a lot of this later, but if you base the success of a season based only on the result of the team's last game, only one team would ever be able to say that they had a successful season. 

So much has happened this season that it's difficult to narrow down which part was the most impactful. In some ways, it felt like the transition between the 2017 and 2018 seasons when the team switched coaches, leagues, and playing venues. A lot happened this year.

• In November of 2023, it looked like we were headed toward a third season with Mark Lowry, who had successfully returned the team to the playoffs with a core group of players who seemed to be returning for 2024 to continue to improve upon that step. By the end of the month, Lowry and the club decided to part ways. 
  
  
• A couple of months later, the team hired Coach McAuley who came to Indy with limited first-team level coaching experience but who, like his predecessors, was confident that he could bring success to the club. I wondered before the announcement if it really even mattered who would be selected as the coach. Indy's periodic, but regular replacement of coaches has made my pessimism strong. More on Coach McAuley later. 
  
  
• A few months after that, the Mayor of Indianapolis dropped a bombshell on the club and its supporters with a press conference where he announced that he had taken a trip to NYC to see Don Garber to discuss the possibility of bringing MLS to Indianapolis, while also announcing a new Professional Sports Development Area different from the Eleven Park site. Over the next couple of months, I had some thoughts on the entire debacle. More on the stadium later.
  
  
• 
Starting in the last game of April all the way until mid-June, Indy did not lose a game. In a 9-game undefeated streak that started with a draw against Colorado, the team then proceeded to go on an 8-game league win streak with wins against North Carolina, Monterey Bay, Miami, Hartford, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Birmingham, and San Antonio before losing at home to Orange County. Built around and within that undefeated league streak was also a historic run in the U.S. Open Cup, which put Indy on a 12-game undefeated streak, with 11 wins and USOC wins against Chicago Fire II, Detroit, and San Antonio. Even after Indy's league loss, the team beat Atlanta United in the USOC to get to one of the tournament's semifinal games against Sporting Kansas City.


• Indy clinched a playoff spot in back-to-back years for the first time since the 2018-2019 seasons, which are the only two times that the team has been in the playoffs in consecutive seasons. Indy then clinched a home playoff game for the first time since 2019.

Everybody would have liked to see Indy progress further in the playoffs, particularly with the first game being hosted at Carroll Stadium, but it would be disingenuous to say that the season wasn't successful. Removing the loss in the playoff game and the stadium debacle, Indy took steps forward. Whether they can take more steps forward in 2025 will be seen.

To that end, here are my thoughts when looking towards next season.

Looking to 2025

Stadium

The stadium is in an absolute state of limbo, at least as far as the fans are concerned. I plan to have a dedicated article to the stadium in the coming days/weeks so I won't get into it much here. However, what we, as fans, know is very little. The Eleven Park site that included a groundbreaking in 2023 with the Mayor and Governor in attendance, and had the Diamond Chain buildings demolished from its site, appears to be frozen in time from where it was when Mayor Hogsett made his announcements about MLS and the process of converting the Eleven Park PSDA to a new location began. Whether that is a temporary stoppage or a permanent stoppage is dependent on how Mr. Ozdemir (and the rest of the ownership group?), Keystone, and Indy Eleven address the potential thousands of human remains that may be present in the burial ground that was Greenlawn Cemetery where Eleven Park was going to be constructed. Again, I plan to discuss more soon, with a much more detailed article, but the stadium design has been put on hold, construction has ceased, and the team would offer no real comment to me other than to say that, "Once we have a further update on the new stadium and Eleven Park, we will share accordingly." That could be this week, next week, next month, or 6-months from now. Only they know. What fans know is that Rhode Island, who entered the Championship this year, will begin playing in their new soccer-specific stadium next season, while Indy, in their 12th season, will continue to play at "American Soccer's Greatest Dive Bar." To add salt to the stadium wound, Fort Wayne FC announced this week that they will be building a new stadium and will begin playing there in the 2026 season. 

Coach

Coach McAuley was announced in early January and was quick to endear himself to the fans who were able to meet him at his first appearance with the fans in late January. My impression was that he was a nice person, with a desire to play a different style of soccer than his predecessors, and seemingly with the support of the players who had been announced by then. Coach McAuley continued to impress me throughout the season with his desire to do right by the fans. He even reached out to me personally when a mix-up in schedules meant that I was not afforded an interview that I was told could happen. I appreciate that personal touch.

I think he wants to be here. I think he wants to build something in Indy. I think he might be able to get it done. 

I thought all of those things about Mark Lowry who wanted to be here until he didn't. It took until after the second season for Lowry to realize that he didn't want to be here any longer. How long it takes for McAuley is unknown to me, but history of this team has proven that it might not be very long. Maybe McAuley will prove me wrong.

However, in comparison to other first year results of the Indy Eleven coaches, McAuley ranks second in percentage of points won across all competitions. Coach Hankinson's team in 2016 won or drew 81.1% of the time, while Coach McAuley's team this year won or drew 67.50% of the time. Coach Hankinson's value is inflated slightly because that counts the "friendly" win against Pachuca, but even without that value, he's still ahead. Only Martin Rennie's second season with the team in 2019 (72.50%) was more successful than McAuley's debut season. Those rankings remain the same if you look at the successes on a Points/Game basis. Given that the 2016 and the 2019 teams are the only times that Indy has ever had a significant positive goal differential, and this year's team was the only one of the Eastern Conference playoff teams with a negative league goal differential (the USOC run likely helped bring Indy's overall goal differential into a positive value thanks to three shutouts in the run), it's clear that McAuley's team this year were in a bunch of close results. McAuley came into the season stating that he wanted the team to score a lot of goals and would have the team play in a way to try and do that (pressing high in the opponent's half, getting the ball into the attacking third as quickly as possible, etc.). The 59 goals that the team scored this year were a club record setting total, but unfortunately, they conceded 56 goals. That's something that McAuley will want to get remedied next season.

I stated last year that Lowry getting the team back to the playoffs was enough for him to continue on in Indy unless a different team came calling offering a better opportunity or money. I think the same applies this year for McAuley. It would be difficult for Ozdemir and Stremlaw to fire a coach that lead his team to a Top 4 finish in the conference. Given McAuley's relatively thin first-team resume, I would be surprised if a lot of clubs are seeking him out right now. Another year of similar, or better, success and it might be a different conversation. So unless McAuley wants to leave (and my hunch at this point is that he wants to stay) or he gets a better offer, McAuley will be back next year to try and improve upon his inaugural season with the club.

Players

After the Rhode Island game, Coach indicated, "We gotta make decisions about players. I've already got a picture in my mind what it looks like so that's going to be easy for me to make them decisions."

Repeating myself from last year, "As I've discussed over the years in these season end reviews, it seems like the majority of the player contracts for Indy Eleven have the appearance of 2 year contracts or 1 year contracts with a 2nd year option. The existing contracts, loans, and trades that happened this year make it another year where it could be difficult to accurately determine who will be returning next year. However, all the roster movement also meant that Lowry McAuley brought in or released the players that he thought would make the team better. Moving forward will likely be this core, while also bringing in depth at all positions," which McAuley also said in his remarks after the Rhode Island game would be likely.

Based on my own opinions, here are what players from this year's roster that I can envision being somewhere else and who might be returning (I'm including all players that were on the roster, even the ones that were transferred away, for completeness, but am not including the Academy players as they seem to fall under an even larger variable than the 1st team players):

Gone:

1. Barbir - He was signed when Lowry was the coach and last just three games before being transferred to Miami. 
2. Boudadi - The frequently injured player was transferred to Hartford in June. He liked being in Hartford, and felt aggrieved by his release from Indy based on his X post at that time. 
3. Henderlong - Played just 119 minutes on the season. Even when you're looking for depth, those players rarely return the following season.
4. Ikoba - He was on a loan from Portland and they recalled him back in June where he dropped back down to their MLS NEXT Pro team for the remainder of the season. Maybe they try to loan him to Indy again, but I doubt it.
5. Klein - Indy's first "Undrafted" signing. He was on the roster for less than a month. 
6. Molina - He was a carryover from the 2023 season and played just 4 minutes this season before being part of the transfer deal to Miami.
7. O'Brien, Ethan - Just 36 minutes all season, the bulk of which came in a 27-minute stretch against Las Vegas in the game before the USOC semifinal where McAuley was rotating players. Those players rarely return. However, my impression is that Ethan's contract was not substantial. So maybe he becomes one of the outliers to return despite his minimal minutes, but I doubt it.
8. Sanchez - A single minute of action and was on the injured list for a lot of the season. Feels like the kind of player that doesn't get his contract renewed when the team is looking to build additional depth on the roster. Though he's also a young kid who was recently on an Academy contract so he could slide back into the roster and it wouldn't surprise me.
9. Schneider - Minimal minutes and nothing since the middle of the season.

Possibly Gone:

1. Gibson - It pains me to say it, but I think Gibson won't be returning next year. Top 10 in club history in Minutes Played, Games Played, and Games Started, but he was non-existent on the game day rosters at the end of the year. If he wants to stick around for depth, maybe he's here. At his age, I can see that happening, but I could also see him hanging up the boots if he's not interested in uprooting his family again.
2. Guenzatti - Repeat everything I just said about Gibson except change it to Games Started, Goal Scorers, and Total Points. In a playoff game where Indy needed a goal, McAuley brought on Diz Pe while Guenzatti watched helplessly from the endline. I don't know if that says everything, but it might mean that Guenzatti has played his last game for Indy. I hope not, but I think the possibility exists.  
3. King - Hampered by injuries all season, Macca played just 63 minutes this season. A carryover from last season, if he was on a 2-year deal, I don't know that he gets an extension. Will likely depend on whether McAuley saw enough from him in training for the team to offer a 1-year extension.
4. Mines - Mines was a quick starter for McAuley when he arrived in Indy from Miami, but has dropped off substantially in recent weeks (though still getting playing time just not as frequent), particularly after the late-season additions. McAuley saw enough in Mines to bring him here, but it might be a single season here.
5. Musa - Has provided depth at the back, and began to find a starter role in the tail end of the season. Musa’s return next year may be dependent on the contract amount. His mid-season arrival could have meant a short-term contract that would need to be renegotiated this off-season. That negotiation could bring him back or send him on the road.
6. O'Brien, Josh - Was a good defender to have for depth. Like his brother, my impression is that his contract wasn't substantial. I'll put this comment here, but it could apply to most/all of the defenders on the roster. The team conceded 56 goals. If McAuley is looking to fix that problem, a few of the defenders that I list in Possible Gone or Probably Returning could easily switch to Gone.
7. Oettl - Until his injury, Yannik was the clear #1 for Lowry last year. He started this year in that same #1 position, but Sulte relatively quickly edged him out. What happens with Oettl could depend on what happens with Sulte (see below). He was also probably on a 2-year deal, so he might be looking for another team where he can get starter minutes. Again, subject to what goes on with Sulte...
8. Sulte - This will depend highly on what Portland does with their goalkeeper situation. If they keep all the other guys, they might loan Sulte back to Indy again. If they saw enough out of him during his stint here, he might supplant one of the current guys, in which he won't be back in Indy next year. 
9. Wootton - Same thing as Sulte, but make it Chicago instead of Portland. They may renew the loan or he may be gone. Difficult to say.

Probably Returning:

1. Blake - Unless other teams come calling with more more, which could be possible, an 8-time Team of the Week player doesn't get left off the roster then next season. 
2. Chapman-Page - Callum was on a loan deal in 2023. I think McAuley liked his physicality this year, though his injury stints might give the team pause. I think he returns though.
3. Collier - Collier was Top 5 in the league in goals per minutes played, and played in 35 of the team's 40 games, but only getting 4 starts. His unpredictability makes him an interesting and dangerous weapon off the bench late in games. McAuley keeps him around.
4. Diz Pe - Diz did a better job this season of controlling his emotions, with the exception of the two-game stretch late in the season where he was shown red cards. Other than that blip, Diz was a mainstay on the game day lineup.  
5. Foster - Pacey goal scorer who willingly attacks opposition defenders one-on-one; maybe to a fault at times. Will get another year to try and score more than the 1 goal he scored for Indy this year.
6. Lindley - All of what I said last year applies: "A local guy who was a cornerstone of the roster this year. Cam wants to be in Indy closer to family and Lowry wants him in the Indy midfield. There aren't guarantees in the business of soccer, but Lindley returning next season might be close." The one caveat that makes me wonder is how much Cam dropped off the lineup at the end of the season. He has to be a great person to have for depth and he wants to be in Indy. That is likely enough for me to believe that McAuley wants to have a player who has in recent years received league first-team recognition.
7. Martinez – He’s likely at the end of a 2-year contract, but showed an ability to score, while also being third on the team in assists behind Stanley and Blake, respectively. We’ve seen his ability to play at different positions, which is always valuable to a coach when it comes time for game day lineup selection and flexibility on who gets used for each game. It might be a one-year contract with an option for more, but Martinez found himself on the field a lot, which to me means that McAuley has faith in him. 
8. Neidlinger - It didn’t benefit the team (or club) in many ways to sign the recent Academy player to a pro contract so late in the year, but the team felt it was important to reward him for his effort and progress. On the Academy contract, he could have still competed with the U20s in the upcoming Academy League Cup, plus they could have continued to have an additional substitute sitting on the bench thanks to the new rule this year to promote giving Academy players game experience. Signing in early October, I seriously doubt that they signed him to a 1- or 2-month contract, so I fully expect the local kid to be wearing the Indy Eleven crest next year.
9. Ofeimu - Upon arriving from Miami, Ofeimu was a staple in the back line and showed that he could play different spots within that line. Ofeimu played in every game except the season finale. While I know McAuley has some questions about how to solidify the defense, I think it’s going to at least partially revolve around getting the appropriate players to play with Ofeimu.
10. Quinn - The other player in USL Championship history to have at least 50 goals and 50 assists besides Asante, and Indy's second leading scorer this year behind Guenzatti, Aodhan was a key component of the Indy midfield. He has also started setting roots here with a young family and that will make him want to stick around. McAuley would be crazy to not keep him.
11. Soumaoro - The arrival of Soumaoro nearly coincided with the absence of Lindley from the starting lineup. While I think Lindley still has a place on this team, the fact that Soumaoro started taking many of Lindley’s minutes indicates to me that Soumaoro was able to do things that McAuley wanted. His persistence in the starting lineup at the end of the season when other options remained available for selection gives me confidence that he’ll be returning next season.
12. Stanley - Stanley quickly moved up the team’s all-time assist leaderboard, finishing the season with 9 across all competitions (7 league, 2 USOC) to put him tied with Zayed and Lindley. He had been on pace to threaten the top 2 spot held by Dylan Mares, but didn’t have an assist in the final 21 league games. What he did do, though, was play every minute of every game he was in except for the final 27 minutes of the playoff game, the final 15 minutes of the USOC game, and two full games in league action when being rested for squad rotation, or 94% of the minutes available for him to play. Players with those kinds of minutes almost always return the next season.
13. White - Much like Soumaoro, when he arrived in town, he immediately began finding himself in the starting lineup. He brings a different skill level that McAuley appreciates. Would suspect that the contract was for the end of the year, with an option for next year, which I think will be taken.
14. Williams, Augi - Leading goal scorer for the team in league play. Leading goal scorer for the team in USOC play. He’ll be back.
15. Williams, Romario - Didn’t score many goals, but he has good hold-up play and was starting to really figure out the partnership with Augi and was getting better with Foster. He returns as well to continue those partnerships.

Final Thoughts

With so much happening this year for the men’s team, it will be difficult to match for next year. USOC runs for teams at the USL Championship level are historic and rare, so it’s difficult to think that Indy could repeat that feat, but McAuley has already expressed a desire to do “at least 1 better” next year. Watching the team seemingly struggle in league play as they progressed further into the USOC, being able to manage players differently might be something that will be on the coaching staff’s mind next year if a USOC run does begin to materialize.

I’m sure there will be some news about the stadium. What and when and by whom is an absolute mystery to everyone not named Ersal Ozdemir or Mayor Hogsett. See my article, likely next week, for more of my thoughts on the stadium.

With a year under his belt, and a Top 4 finish in the conference, McAuley’s expectations for next season are going to go up. If other fans are like me, you would like to match those expectations, but history of the club has made that a difficult proposition. We have grown to accept that the setbacks happen just as frequently as the breakthroughs. However, the team improved from year 1 to year 2 under Rennie, and then did the same thing under Lowry (after the requisite setbacks in year 3 and 4 under Rennie…).  So a more successful second season under McAuley isn’t out of the question. With the core 15 players that I have listed as Probably Returning, that's a good start.

Indy Eleven vs Rhode Island - 11.35 - USL Playoffs (Conference Quarterfinals)

Summary

- Opponent: Rhode Island FC
- Location: Carroll Stadium Stadium
- Attendance: 7,623
- Final Score: 3-2 L

- Starting XI: Sulte, Musa, Ofeimu, Stanley, Neidlinger, Soumaoro, Blake, Quinn (C), Martinez, Williams, A., Foster

- Substitution: Williams, R. 54' (Williams, A.); White 55' (Soumaoro); Diz Pe 75' (Stanley); Collier 75' (Neidlinger)

- Unused: Oettl, Guenzatti, Wootton

Scoring Summary:
RI - Williams 19' (Penalty Kick)
IND - Quinn 35' (unassisted)
RI - Williams 38' (unassisted)
RI - Williams 52' (assist Kwizera)
IND - Martinez 76' (assist Quinn)

- Bookings:

IND - Martinez 45'+2' (Yellow)
IND - Foster 58' (Yellow)
IND - Musa 69' (Yellow)
RI - Herivaux 81' (Yellow)
IND - Ofeimu 90'+2' (Yellow)

- Referee: Joshua Encarnacion

- Adage goals: One

Thoughts and Opinions

The playoffs of any sport are just different. Teams work hard all year to put themselves into a position to have the best chance at success in the "win-or-go-home" scenario that the playoffs create. Indy used an 9-game undefeated run in the middle of the year and a 4W-4D-2L run to close out the season to give themselves an opening round home playoff game. Notably, Indy picked up a late stoppage time draw against Pittsburgh get a draw, which allowed them to finish even on points with Rhode Island. The August win against Rhode Island was the determining factor in giving Indy the head-to-head tiebreaker, thereby allowing Indy to host today's conference quarterfinal game. Rhode Island made the playoffs in their inaugural season in the USL Championship, in part, thanks to a league single-season record setting number of draws (15). Rhode Island's talented roster kept themselves in most games and rode that consistency to the playoffs. They also went to Louisville and came away with a 5-2 victory, so this was a team that proved they can compete with everybody in the league.

With Taylor Swift looming large (literally and figuratively) as she closes out her United States tour in Indianapolis this weekend, the game received an early afternoon start time. The Swift Era took precedence over the McAuley Era for Indy's evening entertainment, but the earlier start time still allowed Indy Eleven to get over 7,000 people into the stadium, including a couple dozen Rhode Island fans. It was the Williams (this time J.J. and not Augi nor Romario) Era that stole the show for the game as he notched the first hat-trick from an Indy opponent this season in the 3-2 Rhode Island win that sent Indy to an early departure from the playoffs.

Rhode Island likes to play out of the back and utilize the new trend of having one of the defenders do the restart by passing the ball along the six-yard box to the goalkeeper, who makes the decision on whether to continue to pass around the back or blast the ball up the the field. Indy, contrarily, have no interest in playing out of the back, but would rather get the ball out of their half of the field with a Sulte boot. With that style of play, it's important for Indy to get the first, or second, ball off those kicks. Indy had a 39% to 61% disadvantage on aerial duels. It wasn't the only factor, but after some early effort from Indy, Rhode Island began to control the game and winning those balls, forcing Indy to defend for large amounts of time. Eventually, all the possession and corner kicks led to an inadvertent handball in the Indy box. That handball led to a successful penalty kick by Williams, which led to an early lead for Rhode Island on the road.

The goal from the visitors allowed the tactics to change for awhile in the game. Rhode Island knows that Indy's attack frequently relies on long passes over the top to the forwards. With the 1-nil lead, Rhode Island could sit their back five defenders deeper to make it nearly impossible for Indy to do much with the ball in the final third of the field. Midway through the half, Indy drew a foul outside of the box that Blake put around the wall low, which Vegas was able to push wide for an Indy corner kick. In the subsequent corner, the ball was headed out of the box by Holstad, but directly into the general area of where Quinn was positioned. Quinn patiently let the ball drop and emphatically plucked it out of the air towards goal. The ball took a slight deflection off Nodarse, but Vegas couldn't get to the ball bringing the game level, and giving Quinn his first goal of the 2024 season.

With a potential momentum change in Indy's direction, Indy proceeded to immediately concede a second goal. Some efficient passing through the Indy defense and then a ton of effort from J.J. Williams to toe-poke the ball beyond Sulte's reach immediately put the visitors back on top. To be honest, Rhode Island were the better of the two sides to that point, but Indy's regularly effective team defending was atrocious in that moment. Some fireworks in the closing seconds of the half as Indy nearly equalized going into the halftime locker, but for the first home playoff game for Indy in 5 years, the home squad found themselves staring at a deficient that they were going to need to overcome in the second half.

Post 58th Minute - Shots & Crosses

Minutes into the second half, Rhode Island made a run up the left side of the field where Kwizera put a ball into the box that J.J. Williams, again with more effort than what Indy could match, found the ball with his head, and Rhode Island gave themselves a two-goal cushion on Williams' third goal of the game. Coach McAuley quickly made changes to the lineup, bringing on White and Romario Williams for Soumaoro and Augi, respectively. Those two substitutes made an immediate impact on the game with a cross from White that Romario redirected into the Rhode Island goal. However, the goal was correctly disallowed as Williams never got back on side as the ball recycled. Indy adamantly protested but all that they received for their protestations was a Foster yellow card and a bump in their energy as they tried to channel their frustration with the call into a successful goal. With a 3-1 lead, Rhode Island was content to defend. After Foster's goal, the field was drastically tilted in Indy's direction. Eventually, the pressure resulted in a Martinez goal in the 76th minute when Quinn put a ball into the box where Martinez could get his head to the ball and redirect it passed Vegas.

Post 76th Minute - Shots & Crosses

After the goal to bring Indy back to within one, the difference in offensive attempts was even more stark. Indy were fighting for their playoff lives, while Rhode Island were looking to hold onto their lead, knowing they were getting closer and closer to a matchup with Louisville next weekend. The game ultimately went included 10-minutes of stoppage time before a Quinn shot that was well wide signaled the end of action. 

Rhode Island and Indy played three times on the season and ended the year with a 0 Goal Differential, with both teams scoring 6 goals apiece between the three games. The game looked exactly like a matchup between two teams that finished the season with the exact same number of points and were the 4/5 matchup in the playoff bracket. Surprisingly, it also looked like two teams that had a dozen-year rivalry instead of two teams that were meeting for just the third time as the game was chippy, nearly from the start.

With the win, Rhode Island continue their successful first season in the league, but get rewarded for that success by having to play next week in Louisville. Indy, however, have to watch the remainder of the season from their homes and try to figure out a way to come back next year and do something the men's side has never done before; make the playoffs in three consecutive years. When asked after the game how he wants to be able to take the "winning culture" he has tried to build this year with a top 4 finish and a run in the Open Cup, he responded:

"In football, if you stay the same, you're probably getting worse. So we need to improve next year and improve again and just keep improving. And that's where we have to make decisions on the players. ... But we'll fight and we'll scrap to keep this momentum and identity going that we want to be recognized for what we do. And what we do is never give in. We gotta make decisions about players. I've already got a picture in my mind what it looks like so that's going to be easy for me to make them decisions. What I will say, and recognize is the landscape of the USL has changed. Gone are the days where you just return 6 players and we'll see if we can put a squad of 15 together. If you look at everybody's roster now, everybody's deep with probably 20 to 25 players, at least, who all play. So we gotta recognize the fact that there will be some squad building...I can see us making decisions on players but also keeping quite a few back because we've had, like we've said, a really successful season."

Soon, I'll provide my end-of-year recap and 2025 outlook to discuss my thoughts on who might be returning. 

I don't know how many other people saw it, but when the BYB set off their first round of smoke bombs just before the kickoff, it started a, relatively, small fire of one of the banners. If you're looking for bad omens before a playoff game, that might have been one. While we're talking about it. Why the hell doesn't the BYB have a fire extinguisher nearby instead of trying to put out the fire with water bottles? 

The Game Beckons Game Ball

As I stood near the sideline in second half stoppage time waiting for access to the post-game press conference, the ball came into the Rhode Island offensive corner and Quinn made a run over to the corner to defend. His body and face said that he was nearly gassed, but he knew he had to make the play and dug deep to get to the ball. He seemed to be the catalyst for all the offense going forward at the end of the game, distributing the ball from left to right and back again. All that was after he had Indy's first goal and then the assist on the second goal. Quinn has been a true professional this season as he continued to deal with he ongoing injury rehab from last season's injury. For his quality and effort tonight, Quinn gets the final GBGB of the season.

Photos - Don Thompson Photography