For the first time in 15 years, the Milwaukee Mustangs are headed to Minnesota.

The last time the team made the six hour trip west on I-94 was June 28, 1996. Clad in purple and teal, the Mustangs put up 61 points on the green and gold Minnesota Fighting Pike at the Target Center in Minneapolis. Current Arizona Rattlers Head Coach Kevin Guy was Minnesota’s leading tackler. Future Arena Football legend Clint Dolezel served as a backup quarterback for Milwaukee.

Fifteen years later, the Mustangs – now sporting orange and black – will cross the St. Croix River once again, but this time for a different reason: scouting.

Milwaukee coaches and football operations staff will host open tryouts on Saturday, December 17 at the University of Minnesota’s Gibson-Nagurski Football Complex.

“We are trying to attract some football talent from the northern part of the Midwest and Minnesota has had a taste of Arena Football before with the Fighting Pike,” Mustangs Head Coach Bob Landsee said.

The Pike lasted just one season, but their roster boasted a number of local players, including former University of Minnesota quarterback Rickey Foggie – who spent eight seasons under center in the AFL – and Southwest Minnesota State’s Alvin Ashley, who played receiver and defensive back for both the Pike and Mustangs and earned two All-Arena nods in his 11-year Arena Football career.

“There have been several players who have made an impact in Arena Football that have been discovered through open tryouts and we are hoping to do the same with this tryout in Minnesota,” Landsee said.

With less than 100 days till opening weekend, Landsee and the Mustangs have already started filling the roster with a handful of familiar faces, including quarterback Gino Guidugli and All-Arena offensive lineman and Wisconsin-native Adam Tadisch – both of whom got their Arena Football starts with Landsee when he served as Head Coach of the af2's Green Bay Blizzard. The team also added hometown wide receiver Jared Jenkins, an All-American from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.

But despite strong ties to “America’s Dairyland,” Landsee understands the importance of tapping into the nearby Minnesota talent pool.

“Several former Mustang players came from the Minnesota area, including fullback/linebacker Brad LaCombe and quarterback Craig Kusick,” Landsee remembered.

LaCombe, a St. Cloud State alumnus, recorded 25 rushing touchdowns in four seasons in Milwaukee, while Kusick, a native of Apple Valley, Minnesota and graduate of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, spent time with the Mustangs in 1997 and 2001.

The 2011 Milwaukee Mustangs roster also featured three Minnesota college standouts, including ex-Golden Gophers Jeffrey Tow-Arnett and Antoine Burns – a Milwaukee-native who earned junior college All-America honors at Rochester Community College before becoming an All-Big Ten selection in 2001 and 2002 at the University of Minnesota. The team’s leading tackler from a year ago, defensive back Kelvin Rodgers, was also a Minnesota-find, starring at Division II Minnesota State University-Mankato, one of several smaller Minnesota schools with much to offer in terms of undiscovered and overlooked prospects.

Minnesota’s strong tradition of Division II and III programs makes the area an intriguing spot for scouting. The state's football pedigree is exactly the reason the Mustangs scheduled their latest open tryout in the Land of 10,000 Lakes, and perhaps landing a prospect or two from the area will prove to be just the boost the team needs to get back on track in 2012.

After ending the 2010 season with the team’s best record (11-5), best finish (three points shy of ArenaBowl XXIII) and only Offensive Player of the Year award winner (Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin-native Chris Greisen) in franchise history, Milwaukee finished a disappointing third in the American Conference East Division in 2011 with a 7-11 record. As the offseason transactions made by division rivals Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Cleveland continue to roll in, the Mustangs anticipate the December 17 open tryouts will be key to not only finding a few more area standouts, but will also be vital for remaining in the hunt for a division title and in contention for the team’s ultimate goal – the opportunity to compete for the ArenaBowl XXV championship.

Preregistration on www.mkemustangs.com runs through December 15, but potential players will also be able to register at the Gibson-Nagurski Complex the morning of the tryouts. Workouts begin at 8 a.m. Saturday, December 17.