BLOOMINGTON - Bloomington Extreme owner Ed Brady said Thursday the franchise is committed to United Indoor Football despite some recent upheaval in the league and Peoria's decision to rejoin af2.

"We're not looking at any other leagues," Brady said. "I'm working hard to secure a solid Eastern Division along with the Western Division and stay in the UIF.

"With major league indoor football, any league you're in has some of these uncertainties and changes each year. We're focusing on making sure the UIF is as solid as it has been in the past."

The UIF's Eastern Division has already lost Evansville, which folded shortly after the league playoffs. Brady said East member Ohio Valley is on the verge of disbanding.

The Lexington Herald-Leader also has reported that Lexington Horsemen owner Lennie House is "strongly considering" folding the team.

"Ohio Valley hasn't formally announced but they're iffy," Brady said. "Rockford has been looking for investors, but I think they'll be OK. We're hoping to have the same four in the East as last season (Bloomington, Rockford, Lexington and RiverCity), and we are picking up Wichita.

"I think we'll have a strong Eastern Division and we're looking for maybe one more team out west to strengthen that some more."

Brady attended the news conference Wednesday where Peoria said it was rejoining af2 for the 2008 season, sparking speculation Bloomington might be listening to overtures to jump leagues.

Peoria, which won the 2002 af2 championship, played in the UIF with Bloomington in 2006 before the franchise folded.

"I sat down with the new Peoria owner (Doug MacGregor) when they made the announcement and (af2 president Jerry Kurz) came over, but it wasn't something where we requested a meeting with them about joining af2," Brady said.

"We would love to have a Peoria-Bloomington rivalry again, but unfortunately we're going into different leagues right now and it doesn't look very promising in the near future."