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23-536: The team folded in October 2007. [1] Late in April 2006, the second year of the club's existence, Donald Jackson, an attorney representing members of the team said the club had not paid the players, staff or coaches in more than a month. The team's owner (Jamie LaMunyon) made national news on April 27, 2006, by terminating the contracts of all players and announcing that replacements would be hired. [2] On May 3, 2006,

46-654: A January 16, 2012 Republican presidential primary debate , also broadcast by Fox News. On March 9, 2021, it was announced that the Myrtle Beach Convention Center would be renamed to the John T. Rhodes Myrtle Beach Sports Center in honor of the visionary of the Beach Ball Classic and former Myrtle Beach Mayor John Rhodes. Rhodes served as mayor of Myrtle Beach from 2005 to 2017 and died January 2021 due to COVID-19 . Rhodes away also played

69-731: A 13–1 record in the regular season, then defeating the Lakeland Thunderbolts and River City Rage en route to Indoor Bowl VI, where they lost to the Billings Outlaws . In August 2006, it was reported that the Guard were moving to the World Indoor Football League . However, the Guard denied these rumors by announcing that they were staying in the NIFL in a press conference two months later. During

92-458: A 2,500 seat auditorium. The South Carolina Hall of Fame has been located on the convention center grounds since 1973. The center was expanded in 1993-94. The convention center was the site of the January 10, 2008 presidential primary debate . Six Republican presidential hopefuls attended the debate, which was broadcast by Fox News. Four years later, the convention hosted five candidates in

115-675: A crucial role in the creation of the Beach Ball Classic and was even its executive director. Myrtle Beach officials said that the hope to do a formal reveal of the new name sometime in early April. In early 2021, a new logo was revealed to honor the former mayor. The convention center was the home arena for the Myrtle Beach Stingrays of the National Indoor Football League in 2003 and one game in 2004. Another indoor football team,

138-575: A new Fayetteville-based sports marketing group claimed the rights to field a SIFL team in the Fayetteville market and the Guard did not return for the 2011 season. The new team, not affiliated with the Guard or its owners, were called the Fayetteville Force. After a 3–0 start to the 2011 SIFL season , the team collapsed. The AIFA entered into an asset purchase agreement of selected assets of the Fayetteville Force from Fanteractive, LLC,

161-753: The Fayetteville Force in the Southern Indoor Football League (SIFL) for the 2011 season. After a 3–0 start to the 2011 SIFL season , the Force collapsed and was eventually sold to the AIFA. The Force did not return in 2012 and were replaced the Cape Fear Heroes expansion team as part of American Indoor Football . The teams began play in 2003 as the Myrtle Beach Stingrays of the National Indoor Football League in

184-591: The Myrtle Beach Convention Center , compiling a 6–8 record in their inaugural season. After two games in the 2004 season, the NIFL shut down the team due to the team owners, April Coble and Jack Bowman, failing to pay the players and other obligations. However, local investors including then head coach Terry Smith, saved the team in time to schedule a third game at the Staten Island Xtreme the last weekend of April. On April 29,

207-788: The South Georgia Wildcats . The new team had originally been called the Fayetteville Heat, but later changed their name to the Fayetteville Guard. The team started their season 0–5, but went 7–2 in their final nine regular season games, earning a 7–7 record and a playoff berth. The team defeated the Dayton Warbirds in the first round, but lost to the Cincinnati Marshals in the divisional round. The Guard did better in 2006, posting

230-444: The 2007 season, the Guard and Wyoming Cavalry organized with owners of other independently owned NIFL teams to ensure they had a complete season, but without the approval of the rapidly falling apart NIFL management, which led to a midseason schedule split between the league-owned teams and the independent teams. Both the Guard and Cavalry were subsequently expelled from the NIFL before the post season. They played against each other in

253-584: The AIF. Myrtle Beach Convention Center Myrtle Beach Convention Center is an 8,000-seat multi-purpose arena in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina . It hosts various local concerts, conventions, and sporting events for the Myrtle Beach area. The original facility opened in October 1967 and was built at a cost of $ 1.12 million. Riddle and Wilkes were the architects of record. The facility opened with

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276-662: The Budweiser Indoor Football Championship Bowl, where the Guard won 48–34. Both teams joined the American Indoor Football Association (AIFA) the following 2008 season. Following the 2010 AIFA season , the league split into two leagues: the AIFA West and East. The AIFA East, of which Fayetteville was a member, then merged into the Southern Indoor Football League (SIFL) for the 2011 season . However,

299-503: The Force's parent company, but the AIFA did not purchase the corporation that was operating the Force. Under the agreement the AIFA retained the Force name, logo, likeness, playing equipment, and the artificial turf. The AIFA guaranteed that it would play the remaining four Force games with the Southern Indoor Football League. Due to contractual issues between the previous owner and his players and coaches at

322-515: The Maulers came under new ownership. After losing five of their first six games, the team has rallied under new management, winning five of the next six (the lone defeat was a 1-point overtime loss in an away game). The Maulers showed their renewed tenacity most recently in the Osceola rematch. After a downed Montgomery player was speared in the back of the head (with no penalty having been assessed),

345-485: The Maulers were 6-7 overall and surprisingly made the playoffs. Tied for 7th place in the conference with the Charleston Sandsharks who was scheduled in the final game of the regular season, the winner was to receive the final playoff spot (only 6 teams per conference would qualify). The Maulers lost the game 28-39, but Charleston's general manager Al Bannister had already stated the organization would skip

368-470: The Sandsharks were banned from the playoffs for the infractions, with the Maulers being awarded the sixth Atlantic conference spot. However this all proved academic as the Maulers lost in the first week of the playoffs on July 8 at Lakeland . Falling behind 27-0 in the first quarter, Montgomery stormed back but could not make the comeback falling 70-62; they ended their season 7-8. After the 2006 season,

391-540: The dubious distinction of setting a record for the largest single-game losing margin and points allowed in the history of indoor football – in any league – following a 0–138 loss to the Erie Explosion on May 21, 2011. The AIFA reorganized as American Indoor Football (AIF) after the SIFL folded following its lone 2011 season. The Force did not return in 2012 and were replaced the Cape Fear Heroes expansion team in

414-484: The loss, Michael Mink and John Morris decided to become more involved with arena football and purchased the Maulers franchise with Mink becoming head coach and Morris becoming general manager. Subsequently, a number of Raiders players have been signed to the Maulers roster, which has brewed speculation that the Raiders will be used as a farm team for the Maulers. Following a drumming by the top ranked Fayetteville Guard ,

437-453: The playoffs and focus on next season. It was noticed that the official NIFL web site had an asterisk by the team's name and stated no team with outstanding operational items (stats) would be eligible for the playoffs. Later, it was revealed the franchise had cheated by using at least six illegal players and also had outstanding fines due to administrative issues (not exchanging film with opponents or keeping statistics at home games). Subsequently,

460-594: The team announced they were changing their name to the Montgomery Bears and moving to the American Indoor Football Association . Fayetteville Guard The Fayetteville Guard was a professional indoor football team in the National Indoor Football League (NIFL) and American Indoor Football Association (AIFA). They played home games at the Cumberland County Crown Coliseum from 2005 to 2010. The Guard were replaced by

483-623: The team was moved to Florence, South Carolina , for the remainder of the season as the Carolina Stingrays with seven home games at the Florence Civic Center . The relocated team finished with a 3–6 record in Florence and a final 5–7 record in their second season. The following year, the team was purchased again and moved to Fayetteville to replace af2 's Cape Fear Wildcats , who had moved to Albany, Georgia , as

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506-496: The teams broke out into a 17-minute bench clearing brawl resulting in 19 players being ejected. Montgomery managed to overcome a 15-point deficit in the fourth quarter to pull off the 1 point win. Although this was officially the second time these teams have played, the first meeting was actually fielded by players from the SSFL 's Gulf Coast Raiders (a team owned by Michael Mink) due to the previously mentioned contract disputes. Following

529-524: The time, the AIFA was unable to take over those contracts. On two-day notice before the Erie away game, the AIFA had to assemble a team of available players from a group of former indoor players and rookies. The AIFA selected as head coach Matt Steeple, a veteran indoor coach from the Indoor Football League for the balance of the 2011 season. The new Fayetteville Force never won a game and has

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