Meet Coach Liotta

Shawn Liotta serves as the Head Coach and Director of Football Operations for the Erie Explosion. For the past 5 seasons as a Head Coach at the professional indoor level, Liotta has established himself as a consistent winner and producer of high-powered, high scoring offensive units. Liotta has placed his team into the playoffs in 4 out of his 5 seasons as a Head Coach, and has developed a reputation as one of the top recruiters in the indoor game. Boasting a 68% win percentage during his tenure in Erie, he has led the Erie franchise to three playoff berths and a 17-4 record at the Tullio Arena. His teams have set numerous league and national records over the past 5 seasons, and several of his former players have received CFL and AFL contracts. He has twice inherited a downtrodden program and turned them into a championship contender. In 2007 the Erie Freeze finished the season with a dismal 1-13 record, the following season with Liotta and his staff in place, Erie finished with a 10-4 regular season record and a playoff berth. After leaving the franchise in 2009 to pursue another professional opportunity, Erie fell to a 3-11 record and attendance sagged to an all-time low. The 2010 season saw the return of Coach Liotta and a return to the playoffs with an 8-6 record, while bringing a high-flying offense that led the nation in passing yardage and improved attendance to the upper echelon of the league. In 2011 Erie finished with a 9-3 record, and the SIFL Northeast Division Title. Explosion rookie quarterback Adam DiMichele was named the League Most Valuable Player and receiver Kevin Concepcion was awarded the League Offensive MVP award following the conclusion of the 2011 season. Liotta has coached three different quarterbacks in five seasons to First Team All-League Honors; Adam DiMichele (2011), Rod Rutherford (2008), David Dinkins (2007).

Record-Setting Erie Offense Ranks Among the Best in the Nation in 2011

After leading the nation in passing during the 2010 season, Erie followed those marks up by obliterating the SIFL and All-Time Record books on their way to a 9-3 record and the 2011 SIFL Northern Division Championship. During the 2011 campaign, with a rookie quarterback (Adam DiMichele) Erie would average over 70 points per game and would lead all of indoor football in touchdowns per game and touchdown passes per game. The Erie Explosion offense would finish as the top ranked passing offense in the league for the second year in a row with an astonishing 94 touchdowns and only 7 interceptions in 12 games. The Explosion shattered an all-time indoor football scoring record when they scored 138 points on the Fayetteville Force.

Rookie QB Adam DiMichele would enjoy one of the most productive seasons of all-time, as he led the league in passing touchdowns, passing yardage, and total offense. He set the league record for passing touchdowns in a game on four separate occasions with the highlight being his 12 touchdown and zero interception night in the Erie victory over divisional rival Trenton. Wide Receiver Kevin Concepcion flourished in Liotta’s pass-happy offense, finishing with 110 receptions for 1,502 yards and 47 touchdowns. Concepcions’ touchdown mark of 47 is beleived to the the most touchdowns ever scored by a receiver in professional indoor football history. DiMichele did an excellent job of spreading the ball around as 5 different receivers contributed at least 250 yards receiving to the leagues top passing attack.

Click Here for Records Established During the 2011 Season
The 2010 season marked Liotta’s return to the Erie Sidelines where he led the franchise back to the playoffs. Liotta’s presence in Erie was evident as the team rebounded from a (3-11) 2009 campaign with an (8-6) finish and a 2010 AIFA Eastern Conference Playoff Birth. Liotta and his staff brought exciting high flying football back to the Tullio Arena in 2010 with the return of many of the teams former star players, and as a result the Storm featured one of the top attendance marks in the league. Liotta’s influence on the offensive side of the football was apparent as his offense ranked #1 in the League in Total Offense, #1 in the League in Passing Offense, and #1 in the League in First Downs. Prior to his arrival the team ranked last in the league (#14) in almost every offensive statistical category during the 2009 campaign. In total the team set 13 Individual Records and 9 Team Records during the 2010 campaign.

Click For Statistical Analysis of Coach Liotta’s Influence on the Erie Offense

During the 2010 regular season the Erie Storm offense amassed more passing yardage than any team in professional indoor football across the country spanning four different leagues and over 50 teams. Liotta led his team to what could possibly be the greatest comeback in Indoor Football History as the Storm rallied from a 30 point deficit for a 65-58 win over the Fayetteville Guard in the final game of the 2010 campaign. His success at the Tullio Arena continued as he completed the 2010 season with a (12-3) record at home. Coach Liotta has never missed the playoffs during his tenure as a Head Coach in the AIFA leading his team to three playoff births, and currently ranks 3rd all time in regular season wins (25) in league history.

Click For Individual and Team Records Set During 2010 Season

Coach Liotta has developed a reputation as one of the most innovative offensive minds in indoor football evidenced by having led two different quarterbacks in two seasons to recognition as AIFA All-Stars, including David Dinkins in 2007 and Rod Rutherford in 2008. Not to be outdone, Liotta’s 2008 defensive squad finished in the top three in the AIFA in several categories including defensive touchdowns scored, fumbles recovered, quarterback sacks, and opponent third down conversions. Liotta and his staff have shown an ability to consistently recruit top level talent from around the country each year over the past 4 seasons.

In his first year as a professional Head Coach in 2007, Liotta led the franchise, then based in Pittsburgh, to the playoffs in its inaugural season, rebounding from an 0-3 start to finish the regular season with a 7-7 record. The highlights of the 2007 season included a convincing 62-33 win over then-defending league champion Canton, and a 86-72 victory against the Erie Freeze, where Liotta’s club set the record for most points scored in an AIFA game. Liotta was rewarded for his first-year accomplishments with his selection to head the North Division All-Star squad in the AIFA’s All-Star game played in Florence, which his team won 58-45.

In his second year with the franchise, now relocated to Erie for 2008, Liotta led the team to a 10-4 regular-season record and a share of the Northern Division title. Erie was almost unstoppable at the Tullio Arena, winning six of seven, including the franchise’s first victory over Reading, perennially one of the AIFA’s top teams. Liotta built a talented roster including several well-known players with previous Erie indoor football connections, including OL Anthony Peluso, LB Roosevelt Benjamin, WR Darmel Whitfield, DB Sam Reynolds, PK J.R. Cipra, and Dinkins, and supplemented it with new talent such as Rutherford, DB Jovon Johnson, LB Glenroy Watkins, DL Phil Tillman, WR Eugene Baker and several others with previous NFL and Arena Football League Ties.

Liotta has coached players to school records in almost every possible offensive category in his tenures as a coach at the high school and collegiate levels. Liotta gained experience at the collegiate level at Duquesne University as an Assistant Coach/Running Backs from 2002-2004. During his tenure, Duquesne captured the 2003 NCAA Division I-AA National Championship, and the 2002 and 2003 MAAC Championships. Liotta was heavily involved in recruiting efforts and assisted with the school’s annual “Pro-Day” Combine. Liotta has served as a Varsity Head Football Coach in Pennsylvania for 5 seasons at West Shamokin and Line Mountain High School. While at Line Mountain, Liotta directed one of the top passing offenses in the entire state, and shattered most school records for the Eagles.Prior to Duquesne, Liotta served as an Assistant at Springdale High School. While at Springdale in 2002, Liotta’s offense featured the first 1,000 yard rusher in school history, and the team made the playoffs for the first time in 29 years. From 2002-2003, Liotta worked for the Metro Index Scouting Service, assisting with scouting and player evaluations for the high school, collegiate, and professional level.

Liotta is a 2002 Graduate of Robert Morris University and resides in Lower Burrell, PA with his wife Allison and daughter Liliana.