02.07 Roy Lucas, Jr.

Roy Lucas, Jr.

President and Owner of the New England Surge

By Christine R. Walsh

Roy Lucas Jr. had no intention to become the president of an indoor football league. He was merely out searching the New England area for turf where the young athletes he was training could practice during the winter months. But when Lucas stumbled upon the opportunity to bring indoor football back to the Worcester area, he grabbed it.

Lucas, who resides in Shrewsbury and has operated is own personal fitness company, Reps with Roy, for over 10 years, had tossed around the pigskin throughout each stage of his life. He had played on school teams, at the college level, and even professionally for a brief period of time. He had worked as a strength conditioning coach at Assumption College and Curry College and had helped young men and women reach their athletic goals. But even with such vast experience behind him, Lucas turned to outside sources for inspiration when he purchased the ownership rights to Surge, New England’s indoor football team: a little bible called “Football for Dummies.”

“People asked me why,” Lucas recalled in our recent interview. “They wanted to know why someone like me, someone who had coached football almost all of my life, wanted to read that book. I just wanted to look at football from an organizational level.”

Lucas has often approached and overcome obstacles by setting small and achievable goals for himself along the way, whether the challenge was owning a football team or helping others get in shape.

“Take one step at a time,” advised Lucas when discussing how one might go about becoming healthier and more active. “Football taught me the value of goal setting, how to be a team player and how to get along with other people. And the important thing to remember is some days, you’re going to win. Some days you’re going to not do as well. But you’re always a winner as long as you try.”

And this owner practices what he preaches. He enjoys waking up in the wee hours of the morning to go for long walks through the Worcester area. When the climate is working against him, Lucas hits the treadmill to get his cardio. He also tries to eat healthy.

“I’ll go a couple of months, just like anyone else, when I focus on my nutrition. But sometimes I turn to my security foods ~ chocolate chip cookies and pizza,” smiled Lucas.
With a clear mind and a body that’s in top-shape, this Burncoat High School graduate can make wise decisions about his beloved football team.

“Indoor football is a very intimate experience,” he said. “It’s the fans, the board and the field. It’s really similar to a concert. And most of our players are guys who played professionally and maybe got injured and are looking to get back into the NFL. It’s a great feeder league.”

Lucas plans for the future? Avoiding those yummy chocolate chip cookies and watching his New England Surge gain even greater success.

”I wouldn’t be involved with it unless we believed that someday we could hold a trophy over our heads and say, ‘Here you are New England. Here you are Worcester County. This is for you.’”