Omaha native’s head coaching road brings him home to lead the Omaha Beef
Mike Bonner wanted to be a head coach for an indoor football team. That journey led him to some interesting places. In the end, the Omaha native fulfilled his dream by returning home. Through a series of events, what he thought would be another gig as an assistant coach led to his first fulltime assignment as the head coach of the Omaha Beef.
Bonner spent eight years traveling around the United States, coaching offenses for teams in Richmond, VA, Kansas City, Green Bay, as well as Laredo, Texas. His coaching career took off following a four-year stint as a player for the Iowa (Council Bluffs) Blackhawks and Kansas Koyotes. He would later serve as an assistant with the Koyotes.
The coach credits his faith for his role with the Beef. Bonner discussed joining former Omaha coach Corey Ross with the Quad Cities (Iowa) franchise, but he accepted the assistant coach role with the Beef. “It was God’s decision to bring me home,” he said.
Soon after taking a position as a receivers coach with Omaha, then-coach Victor Mann asked Bonner to take on the role of offensive coordinator. About a week before the preseason game, Mann and team leadership mutually agreed to part ways, paving the way for Bonner’s first official head coaching job. He had served as interim head coach for the Salina Liberty during the 2017 season.
Seeks offensive explosion
Tasked with taking over a team shortly before the regular season started, Bonner sought continuity, so he kept his offensive coordinator role. The Beef’s task for winning – 81 points.
“My goal is to get to 81,” he said. “Take care of each quarter.”
The Beef averaged 47 points per game in 2017 en route to finishing as the runner-up in the Champions Indoor Football championship. They’ve started this season at 1-1, averaging 51.5 points per games. Defensively, the Beef average surrendering 48.5 points a game. Bonner is confident with the defensive side of the ball, led by coordinator Rod Miller. Also serving as associate head coach, Miller has several years of experience in indoor football, including the Arena Football League.
While his job with the Beef takes up a lot of his time, Bonner focuses on raising his junior high-aged son outside the game. The young man has traveled with him during some of his coaching stops. While some people may think moving a child around so often may not be good for him, Bonner thinks otherwise. “He’s seen places he may never have seen otherwise,” the coach said. As a parent, if he thought a location may not have been in the boy’s best interests, Bonner’s mom and sister assisted him in caring for his son.
As with any “part-time” job, Bonner works fulltime for the Urban League as a youth case manager. His clients include teenagers. It’s his chosen path that he tries to share with his players, as some will move on from football, with the sport offering short careers on the average. “I want to help them prepare for life after football,” he said.
As the Beef celebrate their 19th season as an indoor football team with home games at Ralston Arena, their head coach enjoys his time as the head bull.
For information on the Omaha Beef’s schedule and ticket prices, please visit www.beeffootball.com.
