Ex-Pioneer Musinski keeping options open

WEST PITTSTON – After a long day of work and football practice, Rich Musinski got a call on Monday.

It was his girlfriend giving him the news that the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers were suspending operations for the 2010 season.

Musinski, who was a wide receiver for the team, is currently assistant coach for his alma mater at Wyoming Area and was disheartened when he heard the development.

“It’s disappointing that’s for sure,” Musinski said on Tuesday before Wyoming Area practice. “A lot of people already came up to me and it’s only been 24 hours since it came out and a lot of people are disappointed that there’s not going to be any Pioneers.”

The West Pittston native played for the Pioneers for two seasons and was one of the more popular players in franchise history. In his two seasons with the arena football team, he compiled 54 touchdowns and more than 2,000 yards receiving in 32 regular season games. He added eight more touchdowns in the 2009 postseason.

The William & Mary grad said playing for the Pioneers was a perfect situation for him.

“It was nice for me having that luxury in my backyard and being able to play at home in front of all your home fans. It was enjoyable. I loved it,” said Musinski, who was one of only three players in NCAA history to accumulate more than 4,000 receiving yards in a career when he graduated in 2004. “It was a convenience because I was able to go to work in the morning and then go to practice at night where some of these guys from out of town were stuck in a hotel.”

Musinski, a 1999 Wyoming Area graduate, played briefly in the NFL with the Tennessee Titans as an undrafted free agent in 2004. He also saw playing time with the New England Patriots, the San Diego Chargers and was part of a team in NFL Europe.

With that much playing experience, the 28-year-old may not have to look far to land another spot on an arena football roster and he plans on keeping his options open as owners of the new arena football league, AF1, begin talking to players to fill out rosters for the upcoming season. Currently, the closest geographical team to Musinski in the AF1 is Jacksonville, Fla., although reports indicate Manchester, Mass., is close to joining the league. Whether those locations would be beneficial for the two-year arena football veteran is unknown.

“I haven’t heard anything or made any contact with any of the other teams or anything like that,” he said. “But if the opportunity were to present itself I would definitely have to weigh my options and see if it was worth doing.”

In addition to being an assistant coach for the Warriors, he also has a day job working for his father and will be looking for other sources of income in the spring to replace the income he made with the Pioneers the last two years.

He also has not had contact with any of his coaches or teammates associated with the franchise since the announcement, but he plans on making a few phone calls because he made strong friendships over the last few years. He plans on visiting Ryan Vena in New York and J.J. Outlaw in Philadelphia, while Kirby Griffin has been to Wilkes-Barre to visit Musinski since the season ended.