Greg Hopkins returns to Avengers as assistant coach

AFL legend officially announces his retirement and will work with L.A.’s linebackers LOS ANGELES -- Greg Hopkins, who spent five of his 11 seasons in the Arena Football League with the Avengers (2002-06), has officially announced his retirement as a player and has returned to the Avengers as an assistant coach effective immediately, head coach Ed Hodgkiss announced today. Hopkins, 35, will work with the Avenger linebackers and his first game as a coach will be Saturday night’s showdown between the Avengers (5-4) and Tampa Bay Storm (3-6). Kickoff at STAPLES Center is set for 7:30 p.m. "It’s great to be here with the Avenger organization again,” Hopkins said. “I am really excited to share the knowledge I have absorbed over the years with the younger players on our team. The Avengers have been great to me during my playing career and I hope to give some of that back as a coach." The addition of Hopkins to the coaching staff comes following the departure of defensive line and linebacker coach Greg Carlson, who was recently hired to start up an NCAA Division III program at The College of St. Scholastica in Duluth, Minn. Carlson will be the first head football coach in the school’s 95-year history. He joined the Avengers prior to last season and was with the team through Sunday’s 59-37 victory at Las Vegas. Carlson has two previous stints as a collegiate head coach, leading Wabash College (Crawfordsville, Ind.) to a 112-57-2 record (1983-2000), before three seasons at Whittier (Calif.) College (2003-05). “Coach Carlson is a great coach and we hate to lose him, but we wish him nothing but the very best,” said Hodgkiss, who is in his sixth season at the helm the Avengers. “We’re very fortunate that Greg Hopkins is available and has agreed to rejoin our organization in this new capacity. We couldn’t think of a better person to work with our linebackers. Greg kind of revolutionized the ‘jack’ linebacker position by playing the angles inside the box so well and jumping up to intercept passes. Hopefully, he can instill some of that expertise into our players at that spot and the ‘mack’ linebacker, as well.” In another move associated to Carlson’s departure, defensive assistant coach Johnnie Williams will now focus his attention on the defensive line. Williams is in his first season with the Avengers, having previously been the defensive coordinator at West Los Angeles College (Culver City, Calif.). During his five seasons with the Avengers, Hopkins caught a grand total of 411 passes for 4,863 yards and 96 touchdowns. He also scored six rushing touchdowns for Los Angeles. Well known defensively for his crafty play at the ‘jack’ linebacker spot, he intercepted 16 passes and returned five of them for Avenger touchdowns. Following the 2002 season, Hopkins was selected as the AFL’s “Ironman of the Year,” the league’s most prestigious individual honor, awarded annually to the most outstanding two-way player. He finished that season with 102 receptions for 1,185 yards and 29 touchdowns for the Avengers. On defense, Hopkins had 38.5 tackles and picked off five passes, returning three of them for scores. Prior to the 2006 season, Hopkins was named to the league’s “20 Greatest Players” list. His career totals include 833 receptions, 10,206 receiving yards, 196 touchdown catches, 312 tackles, 42 pass deflections, 26 interceptions, 17 fumble recoveries, 13 forced fumbles and 5.5 quarterback sacks. Hopkins returned 10 of his 26 career interceptions for touchdowns, setting an all-time AFL record (broken this season by Kansas City defensive back Kenny McEntyre). Hopkins began his AFL career in 1996 with the Albany Firebirds. In 1999, he was a key member of the Firebird squad that won ArenaBowl XIII, beating the Orlando Predators, 59-48. Ed Hodgkiss was Albany’s offensive coordinator during that season and remained with the Firebirds until he was hired as L.A.’s head coach prior to the 2002 season (one of his first moves was signing Hopkins to a free agent contract). This past offseason, Hopkins entered the political arena, running for public office in Pennsylvania (State Representative -- 50th District). After prevailing in the primary, his campaign fell a bit short in the general election, running against a 30-year incumbent. Early this year, Hopkins underwent shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum suffered in L.A.’s 44-27 victory over the Gladiators at STAPLES Center on May 13, 2006, the regular-season finale for both teams. As previously announced, on Sunday, June 17, when the Avengers take on the Las Vegas Gladiators at STAPLES Center, the team will host a ceremony to retire the No. 82 jersey worn by Hopkins. In conjunction with that honor, the first 5,000 fans through the gates will receive a “Greg Hopkins No. 82 Russell Athletic Mini-Jersey,” compliments of Carl’s Jr. Kickoff for that contest is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. Pro-rated Avenger season tickets are on sale now at 888-AVENGERS or www.laavengers.com. Single-game tickets, which range in price from $10 to $69.50, are also on sale now at all Ticketmaster outlets, ticketmaster.com" target="_blank">www.ticketmaster.com and the STAPLES Center box office.