In celebration of the Bay Area Panthers’ decision to keep team operations in the South Bay, and in an effort to promote ticket sales for the Indoor Football League Championship squad, the mayors of Morgan Hill and San Jose will participate in a free “Kick, Throw and Go Mayors Challenge” clinic and competition on Nov. 4.
The clinic is open to boys and girls in grades 3-8, and will take place from 5:30-7:30pm at CEFCU Stadium in San Jose. Check-in starts at 4:30pm.
All clinic participants will receive two free tickets to the Panthers’ 2024 season home opener. And the top performer in each drill will receive two 2024 Panthers season tickets.
Non-contact drills include passing distance, passing accuracy, kicking distance, punting accuracy, running speed and running agility.
The clinic is sponsored by the cities of Morgan Hill and San Jose, as well as USA Football.
The Panthers moved their practice operations and corporate headquarters to Morgan Hill at the beginning of this year, for the 2023 season. The team won its first IFL national championship in August, with a victory over the Sioux Falls Storm.
Later in August, the team announced that it had posted a request for proposals from other Bay Area (and beyond) cities—including Oakland, Sacramento and Stockton—in a search for a new long-term home.
However, in early October the team announced that it had decided to keep its practice and corporate facilities in Morgan Hill, and continue to play home games at SAP Center in San Jose. Team co-owner Roy Choi said that decision was inspired by the strong support the Panthers have received from the South Bay communities.
“The team does plan to return to Morgan Hill to sleep, practice and engage with the community during the season,” Choi said. “Ultimately, we decided to stay because of the support from our Panther fans and the Morgan Hill community, especially Morgan Hill Mayor Mark Turner and San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan. The goal is to have Morgan Hill as our permanent home and the SAP Center in San Jose as our permanent game venue.”
The Nov. 4 Kick, Throw and Go clinic will include a friendly competition between Turner and Mahan, who will test their skills against each other. They will also host a challenge to see how many 2024 season tickets can be sold by residents in their respective cities.
