The West Virginia Wizards were announced on October 29, 1997 as a trial member of the Professional Indoor Football League

Professional Indoor Football League

The Professional Indoor Football League was the second league to successfully play indoor football as a paid pro-league sport, after the Arena Football League. Since the AFL had a patent given in 1990 on the gameplay of "Arena Football" , the PIFL played with mostly the same rules, but without the...

 (PIFL). The Wizards were to play a single exhibition game against the Utah Catzz

Utah Catzz

The Utah Catzz was a team in the United States Professional Indoor Football League in 1998. The Catzz franchise was owned by Michael & Carla Curran, who also started a farm club for the Catzz, the Salt Lake Lions . The Catzz played their home games at the David O. McKay Events Center in Orem, UT.,...

 on December 6, 1997. The PIFL commissioner, Richard "Dick" Suess, scheduled the pre-season indoor football game in Charleston, West Virginia

Charleston, West Virginia

Charleston is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is located at the confluence of the Elk and Kanawha Rivers in Kanawha County. As of the 2010 census, it has a population of 51,400, and its metropolitan area 304,214. It is the county seat of Kanawha County.Early...

 to gauge fan interest.

They were led by former West Virginia University

West Virginia University

West Virginia University is a public research university in Morgantown, West Virginia, USA. Other campuses include: West Virginia University at Parkersburg in Parkersburg; West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Montgomery; Potomac State College of West Virginia University in Keyser;...

 quarterback Major Harris

Major Harris

Major Harris is a former college football quarterback for West Virginia University during the 1980s. Harris was a 1989 All American and finished third and fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting in 1988 and 1989, respectively. He was also the ECAC Player of the Year in 1988 and 1989...

. The Wizards' uniforms consisted of solid white helmets (no logo), yellow jerseys with green numbers, and green pants. Major Harris lived up to his nickname of "Mr. Excitement" in leading the West Virginia Wizards to a 41-51 comeback victory over the Utah Catzz that Saturday night. An estimated crowd of 7,000 attended the exhibition. Major Harris threw for 6 touchdowns and ran for another during this game.

There was a tryout for the Wizards held on April 9, 1998, at Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse in Huntington at 7pm. The West Virginia Wizards also were scheduled to play the Louisville Bulls in an exhibition on May 2, 1998, at the Huntington Civic Center. It is not known if this game took place.

Once the PIFL was official organized in 1998, they were no longer a part of the league.