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87-842: Preparations for the UFL Premiere Season kicked off in the summer with player signings and a draft . Training camps for the players began on September 9 in Casa Grande, Arizona for the Western teams and September 10 in Orlando, Florida for the Eastern teams. The league announced its game schedule in the first week of August, a schedule that features games in teams' primary cities as well as secondary sites (a few of which are potential future UFL homes). Certain game sites were not finalized, however, and changes were made both before

174-521: A 5-yard run by Redwoods' quarterback Shane Boyd was the league's first touchdown. The Locos, who trailed 14–3 at one point in the 2nd quarter, rallied for the win via 2 touchdown passes by quarterback J. P. Losman . The top team during the regular season was the Florida Tuskers ; with a roster of players including quarterback Brooks Bollinger and receiver Taye Biddle , the Tuskers finished

261-470: A UFL player was supposed pay a transfer fee of $ 150,000 (later lowered to $ 25,000) to the league. This fee was waived after the 2009 season but was more strictly enforced for 2010; in practice, no NFL team ever paid the fee, and the players who did jump to the NFL ended up paying the fee out of their UFL salaries. The league dropped the transfer fee for the 2011 season. For 2009, each team was unofficially tied to

348-606: A couple owners in hand, the UFL decided to go ahead and do a "soft launch" in 2009, similar to the one used by the Arena Football League in its inaugural season in 1987, rather than delaying play another year. The soft launch called for opening the league with fewer teams than planned and playing an abbreviated schedule. They hoped a functioning league would yield the UFL a superior position for attracting potential owners over competing leagues still under development (like

435-456: A deal to have their games broadcast on CBS sports. On the league's official website [1] on August 1, 2012, an official schedule for 2012, with the September 19 starting date and each team playing an unbalanced, eight-game schedule was posted, matching the earlier speculation. As of that time, final postseason plans remained undecided; the date for the championship game, Friday, November 16,

522-546: A game-winning 62-yard field goal as time expired, which ranked as the third-longest successful attempt in NFL history. Other ex-Bucs included Micheal Spurlock , the first player in Tampa Bay history to return a kickoff for a touchdown, and Super Bowl XXXVII MVP Dexter Jackson . The Tuskers put together a league-best undefeated 6–0 record in the regular season, clinching a spot in the championship game in Week 4. However, in

609-409: A half interest in a team. The league would own the other half. The UFL had difficulties finding willing owners the UFL leadership considered suitable. The UFL planned for each team to eventually sell shares to the public that they hoped could raise another $ 60 million. This never came to pass. Ultimately, the league accrued financial losses of between $ 120 million and $ 150 million over the course of

696-484: A one-half interest in four franchises to play in the league's 2009 inaugural season. The league was under the overall direction of William Hambrecht, a former Wall Street figure who had sold his old firm, Hambrecht & Quist, to what was then Chase Manhattan Bank for US$ 1.35 billion in 1999. Michael Huyghue , a former executive with the Jacksonville Jaguars and the head of a sports agency service,

783-661: A paid basis in the 1980s, was given the head coaching position at the behest of league commissioner Michael Huyghue in November 2010; Williams had no input on the hire. However, in January 2011, the league announced Moglia would instead coach the Omaha Nighthawks . Meanwhile, on January 12, 2011, the league announced that the Tuskers had ceased operations in Orlando and moved to Virginia, with Jay Gruden remaining as

870-564: A pair of divisions in the National Football League. In addition to this feature, the league held a draft on June 18, 2009, the UFL Premiere Season Draft . A second draft was held on June 2, 2010. The 2011 UFL Draft was held on May 2, with player selections announced via Twitter . No formal draft was staged prior to the 2012 UFL season . The original plan was for owners to pay $ 30 million to buy

957-551: A player salary cap range of $ 12–20 million per team with a staff salary cap of $ 3 million per team. The UFL hoped to be paying at least 10 players on each roster in excess of $ 1 million each per season. These players would provide name value and legitimacy for the league and would fast track the development of local fanbases and a national TV audience. The original plan was predicated on luring very wealthy owners like billionaire entrepreneur Mark Cuban. The UFL however ultimately proved unsuccessful in securing commitments from enough of

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1044-447: A soft launch financially tolerable, player salaries had to be dramatically scaled back—pro-rated to reflect the shortened season. An agent representing two players with NFL experience, Jack Bechta, reported his clients were offered UFL contracts at a base salary of $ 35,000. He confirmed with other agents that $ 35,000 was the league mandated salary for skill players and $ 25,000 for punters, place kickers and long snappers, at least for

1131-430: A total of $ 50,000 in the regular season; participants in the 2010 UFL championship game were paid a total of $ 10,000 each, with an additional $ 10,000 going to each player on the winning team. Starting quarterbacks earned a $ 200,000 salary. There was a significant delay in payments after the 2010 season, because of a revenue shortfall, a severe underestimation of expenses, and a delay in a $ 50,000,000 subsidy from one of

1218-490: Is a Chesapeake, Virginia native. Daily Press Paul White handled the local coverage in press and online. Former NFL and USFL quarterback Doug Williams later was named the team's general manager . On February 21, 2011, Williams resigned from the Destroyers to become the head coach at Grambling State University . Joe Moglia , chairman of TD Ameritrade and a former college coordinator who last coached football on

1305-521: Is in fact what happened; in addition to the championship game between Virginia and Las Vegas, the season concluded with a third-place game (on the same day) in Omaha between the other two teams, the first such game in outdoor professional gridiron football since the demise of the NFL's old third-place game, the Playoff Bowl , which was last contested in January 1970 following the 1969 season . Despite

1392-635: The 2008 NFL draft before signing with the Green Bay Packers as a practice squad member. The team's name, along with its colors and uniforms, were unveiled to the public in August, two months before the start of the season. On the same day it was announced that the Tampa Bay Rays had bought interest in the team. In their inaugural season, the Tuskers were led by quarterback Brooks Bollinger , and wide receiver Taye Biddle . Bollinger

1479-635: The Baltimore Stallions and (briefly) the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League , was named as the team's owner, but relinquished control of the team to the league on August 23, 2010, in a dispute over the league's ownership structure. The radio broadcast team of 2011 was handled by play-by-play Hampton Roads area veteran John Castleberry and colour by ex-USFL/NFL defensive lineman William Fuller who

1566-480: The Hampton Daily Press ; Tom Robinson covered the Destroyers (albeit in an often disparaging manner) for The Virginian-Pilot . After a promising 2011 season in which the Destroyers drew over 12,000 fans to all three home games, attendance plummeted in 2012, prompted in part by uncertainty over whether the league would even play their 2012 season. The team's second home game was so poorly attended that

1653-617: The National Football League (NFL) had no current presence. Unlike most professional football leagues since the 1980s, the UFL played all of its games in the traditional fall season, competing directly with the NFL, college football , and high school football . The UFL occupied the second tier of professional football in the United States, behind the National Football League. The UFL primarily consisted of players who had previously played for an NFL team. Although

1740-540: The National Football League . On February 9, 2010, UFL commissioner Michael Huyghue named Jay Gruden as head coach and general manager . On the same day it was announced that the Tampa Bay Rays had sold their interest in the team, meaning the Tuskers would be fully based in Orlando for the 2010 season. After several months of league ownership, a group led by Joe Theismann purchased the team in October 2010. The Tuskers signed WYGM as their radio affiliate, becoming

1827-582: The United States Football League . On December 31, 2023, the XFL and USFL announced the formation of the modern United Football League . The remnants of the previous league ceded their social media handles to the 2024 UFL on April 6, 2024. The National Gridiron League attempted to relaunch as the UFL, using the existing trademarks and claiming to be a continuation of the original league. The UFL's original pay structure plan included

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1914-607: The championship game , the Tuskers were beaten by the Las Vegas Locomotives , losing on a game-winning field goal in overtime. Despite the team being unable to complete a perfect season , Jim Haslett was named Coach of the Year, while Bollinger was given the league's MVP award. In January 2010, head coach Jim Haslett left the team to become the defensive coordinator for the Washington Redskins of

2001-443: The 2009 inaugural season. One of the players represented by the agent was a quarterback who received an offer of $ 35,000, although he stated that his negotiations revealed that teams are allowed to pay one quarterback more than the $ 35,000 salary. Bonuses were limited to $ 10,000 per player. In addition to the base salary, the league also paid for all housing expenses for its players. The league's initial salaries were roughly equal to

2088-658: The 2010 season, the New York Sentinels permanently settled in Hartford, Connecticut, becoming the Hartford Colonials . The new name was chosen by fans through an online vote. The California Redwoods relocated to Sacramento, California, and chose the name Mountain Lions, also from a fan vote. In another change for the 2010 season, each UFL team would gain their own uniform color identity, loosening them from

2175-503: The 2012 season had sued the league ownership for failure to pay their salaries. The Destroyers' business license expired on March 1, 2013, and that team's remaining offices were closed before that date. On March 28, 2013, a report in The Wall Street Journal noted that both the spring 2013 resumption and the fall 2013 season were canceled, and that if the league were to return, it would not have been until spring 2014 at

2262-500: The Destroyers' coach. Bret Munsey , the Tuskers' director of player personnel, assumed authority over player personnel upon Williams' resignation. Theismann, a minority owner of the team in Florida, was relegated to being a consultant for the league but eventually left that role, expressing disgust in the way he was treated by the league's ownership during his time as the Tuskers' director of football operations. In February 2011, Gruden

2349-608: The Hartford Colonials potentially on the chopping block. On August 10, 2011, the UFL announced that it would "suspend operations" of the Colonials and go forward with a four-team league. Jerry Glanville , a UFL consultant who had previously been announced as the new head coach of the now-suspended Colonials, began a listening tour of Chattanooga, Salt Lake City and Jackson, Mississippi , in October 2011 to gauge support for UFL expansion franchises. He has stated that of

2436-659: The Las Vegas Locomotives), blue (Florida Tuskers), black (New York Sentinels), and lime green and white (California Redwoods). Each of the team jerseys had the same design template, complete with a horizontal arc across the top front that resembles the arc on the UFL's logo. One of the Redwoods' games was moved to San Jose; the other two were played in San Francisco (the move to San Jose was a short-notice move due to poor attendance in San Francisco; however,

2523-449: The NFL should the established league lock out its players prior to the 2011−12 season. The thought was that the NFL would fail to reach an agreement with the NFL players' union after the end of their collective bargaining agreement. This would have led to the 2011−12 NFL season being delayed or cancelled, leaving the UFL the only pro football available. The NFL did lock out their players, but

2610-533: The New USFL, which at the time was trumpeting a spring 2010 launch). The markets chosen for the premiere season were New York City ( Sentinels ), Las Vegas (Locomotives), Orlando ( Florida Tuskers ), and the San Francisco Bay Area ( California Redwoods ). The league's short schedule made the kind of expensive promotional efforts often employed with a new league cost prohibitive. Additionally,

2697-584: The New York Sentinels), Omaha Nighthawks, Sacramento Mountain Lions (originally the California Redwoods), Florida Tuskers, and Virginia Destroyers. The Florida Tuskers and Virginia Destroyers were legally separate teams, but because the Tuskers folded before the Destroyers began play, the UFL assigned most of the Tuskers' staff to the Destroyers and the two are typically conflated for the purpose of league history. Only stadiums in which

2009 UFL season - Misplaced Pages Continue

2784-523: The October 8 inaugural game in Las Vegas, (though media observers at the game suggested the actual in-house attendance for that first game was considerably less). The twelve regular-season contests drew a total of 116,132 fans, or an average of 9,678 a game. Florida led the league in average attendance (13,225), while California (5,836) and New York (6,637), hampered in part by shifts in game sites and competing in major markets with an NFL presence, brought up

2871-780: The San Jose game ended up being even more poorly attended). The league was unable to secure a fiscally reasonable deal for a stadium within New York City, forcing the league to have the Sentinels play one home game each in Hartford, Connecticut; on the campus of Hofstra University in Long Island , and in New Jersey . In addition, one of the Tuskers' games was played at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida , in part because

2958-560: The Tuskers shared ownership that year with the Tampa Bay Rays ; this was not reprised in 2010. The Florida Tuskers finished 2009 with a 6–0 record. The Las Vegas Locomotives were next at 4–2, the California Redwoods were 2–4, and the Sentinels were last at 0–6. The Locomotives played the Tuskers in the 2009 UFL championship game ; the Locomotives won the title on a field goal in overtime. Before

3045-426: The UFL announced it would delay the start of its season until mid-September due to financial issues. The league was in negotiations with CBS and TNT for coverage after Versus dropped the UFL as part of its rebranding to NBC Sports Network , but was unable to get any, and the league also lost its existing television partners. After this postponement, the league confirmed it was considering even further contraction, with

3132-428: The UFL ceased operations for the remainder of the 2012 season. According to head of public relations Larry Weismann, the league intended on resuming the canceled schedule some time in spring 2013, with those games counting toward the 2012 season standings, then come back yet again for the next season in fall 2013. By spring 2013, 78 players from the 2012 season, two head coaches from 2011 and four assistant coaches from

3219-470: The UFL for their failure to repay the loan by the October 6, 2010, deadline. For the 2011 season, the UFL announced the addition of a franchise in the Hampton Roads ( Norfolk metro area) region of Virginia , originally owned by former CFL owner Jim Speros and managed by former NFL and USFL quarterback Doug Williams . Soon after Speros' ownership was announced, he relinquished control of

3306-433: The UFL was arranging a broadcast TV deal with CBS Sports Network (a deal the league had desperately sought) to go along with regional supplemental coverage. However, May 1 came and went without any official announcement by the UFL on their future plans. The league had previously entertained input on the possibility of moving from a fall schedule to the spring. Michael Huyghue, the UFL's original commissioner, resigned from

3393-513: The UFL's owners. As of February 2011, the bonuses for the 2010 championship game remained unpaid, as did numerous other bills accrued by the league during the 2010 season. Most of these bills were eventually paid in March. According to reports that surfaced in May 2011, the base salary for players was reduced to $ 5,000 per game (including the championship), with only a $ 1,000 additional bonus for winning

3480-476: The UFL's scheduling plan was different from that of the National Football League, which is prohibited under federal anti-trust exemption law ( 15 U.S.C. § 1291, i.e., the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961 ) from broadcasting any professional game within seventy-five miles of any inter-collegiate or high school game on any Friday or Saturday, beginning with the second Friday in September and ending

3567-413: The UFL; that team was suspended at the same time (and eventually folded outright prior to the 2012 season). The league confirmed the contraction of the Colonials on August 10 and Mayer was installed as Destroyers' owner September 7. Schottenheimer abruptly resigned shortly before the start of the 2012 season. Though failure to pay was a factor in his departure, it became known several years later that he

2009 UFL season - Misplaced Pages Continue

3654-626: The United Football League name. In 2018, he instead announced a new XFL , a brand used by McMahon's defunct football league that played one season in 2001; the new XFL began play in 2020 but went on a two-season hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2023, the XFL—by this time owned by Dany Garcia , Dwayne Johnson and RedBird Capital Partners—re-filed for the UFL and United Football League trademarks ahead of its proposed merger with

3741-476: The average per-game salaries in the Canadian Football League and, adjusted for inflation, equivalent to the old XFL . In another similarity to the XFL, teams could offer a sizable performance bonus; former Locomotives starting quarterback J. P. Losman has stated that he received a "nice sized" bonus for winning the 2009 UFL championship game . In 2010, players earned $ 6,250 per game, for

3828-428: The championship game. This contradicted the word of the commissioner, who had previously stated he aimed to increase compensation to $ 10,000 per game in March. Pay was further reduced to $ 3,500 per game for the 2012 season. Each player was under contract to the UFL through February of the following year, effectively creating a two-month non-compete clause after the season ends, and any NFL team that wished to sign

3915-466: The deep-pocketed owners their original plan required. By time the initial season began, the league had totally dumped its original salary structure to suit the reality of the soft launch. The league's original plan would have had the average UFL salary in the $ 240,000-$ 500,000 range, far in excess of the CFL's average salary. The short schedule gutted the league's ability to generate TV or gate revenue. To make

4002-478: The difficulties of 2011, UFL officials were on record as wanting to move ahead on future plans for the league. An April 2012 Las Vegas Review-Journal report indicated that the UFL would announce plans on May 1 to field a five-team league for the 2012 season, including the four 2011 teams plus a fifth expansion team. (The Review-Journal report mentioned San Antonio, Southern California , and Portland, Oregon, were expansion candidates.) The report also indicated that

4089-462: The earliest. The ownership lost or settled most of the lawsuits against them in 2014. As of 2016, all of the remaining non-liquid assets of the league were sitting in a warehouse in Jacksonville, Florida , with an estimated value of $ 100,000. The league still owes approximately $ 1,000,000 to the estate of Dennis Green ; under a court ruling, the league itself is liable for Green's salary, as

4176-510: The fall of 2008. T. Boone Pickens and Mark Cuban had originally been in discussion with the league as potential owners, but both backed out prior to the 2009 season. On February 9, 2009, it was announced that Paul Pelosi , husband of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi , was one of four investors who had stepped forward to invest $ 10,000,000, plus a personal commitment to cover opening-season losses up to another $ 10,000,000 for

4263-406: The field, had done in 2010 after repeated delays of its announced inaugural schedule. However, on July 26, 2012, news broke that the UFL would indeed play a fourth season in 2012. Terms had not been finalized, but initial plans called for four teams playing an eight-game schedule (which would require an unbalanced schedule) on Wednesdays and Fridays beginning September 19, 2012. The league did reach

4350-598: The first time Las Vegas had beaten Florida in a regular season match-up. After splitting their next two games, the Tuskers were 2–3 and in danger of being eliminated from championship contention. After backup quarterback Chris Greisen became the new starter in Week 8, the Tuskers went on to win their final three games, sending them back to the championship game , once again facing, and losing to, Las Vegas . The UFL originally announced an expansion team based in Norfolk, Virginia , to begin play in 2011 . Jim Speros , owner of

4437-455: The first two UFL championship games , losing both to the Las Vegas Locomotives . In 2010, the league suspended the Tuskers' operations and moved the remnants of the team to Virginia Beach to assume the identity (and some executive staff) of a previously announced expansion team that was to begin play in 2011. The Destroyers' business license expired on March 1, 2013; the team had effectively ceased operations several weeks earlier. Orlando

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4524-490: The fourth season starts, a rebuilding and restocking of personnel will need to take place. To conserve much-needed funds the Virginia Destroyers relocated to much smaller office space by February 2012. The league remained silent throughout winter, spring and early summer 2012, raising fears that the league had quietly folded, in the same way the proposed All American Football League , without ever actually taking

4611-518: The league $ 5 million in April 2010. He did not own a franchise and he was not involved in day-to-day operations of the league nor of any of its teams. In January 2011, Cuban, the owner of the Dallas Mavericks and majority owner of HDNet (now AXS TV ), a cable channel and Web-streaming service which had broadcast some games of the league's inaugural two seasons, filed a federal lawsuit against

4698-838: The league announced Moglia would instead coach the Omaha Nighthawks. At the same time, the Florida Tuskers ceased operations in Orlando and moved to Virginia, with Jay Gruden initially remaining as the Destroyers' coach; however, Gruden was hired the next month by the Cincinnati Bengals of the NFL. For possible 2011 expansion, all cities that were in consideration for 2010 (Portland, San Antonio, Austin, and Salt Lake City) remained in consideration, as well as Raleigh, North Carolina ; Los Angeles; and Honolulu. In regards to future expansion, Huyghue has said that they "may never have more than eight teams" depending on

4785-407: The league had a full schedule of three home games in the same stadium in only one of their selected cities, Las Vegas. During the week of August 10, 2009, the four team names and their uniform jerseys were revealed. Each of the uniforms (and the team logos and helmets that were unveiled on October 2) incorporated the UFL's signature color scheme into their designs, including silver (primary color for

4872-407: The league had no connection with the NFL, and had never intended to foster any such connection, some speculated that it could have become a minor or "developmental" league for the NFL, including the UFL's own commissioner. Early news reports had speculated that based on the UFL's initial plan the league would become a "competitor" to the NFL. The UFL seemed poised to capitalize on fan disgust with

4959-545: The league to turn a profit. While he did reach the 20,000 fan threshold in Sacramento in 2010 and 2011, the paying television contract never materialized. Hambrecht sustained losses of $ 40 million on the league. Six teams played in the UFL over the course of its history, no more than five in any given year. The teams that played in the league were: the Las Vegas Locomotives, Hartford Colonials (originally

5046-408: The league was that they intended to resume operations and complete the unfinished 2012 schedule at an unspecified time in spring 2013, then revert to a fall schedule in fall 2013 without a full off-season. This announcement, however, was met with widespread skepticism from both within and outside the league, skepticism that was proven to be warranted as the league never returned. Over the course of

5133-637: The league's economic situation. The league announced it would expand into the Hampton Roads region of Virginia prior to the start of the 2011 season, giving the Virginia Destroyers time to organize. During UFL Championship Week 2010, the league announced it had a seventh franchise in place, with Huyghue indicating that it would most likely be in Los Angeles, and that the team would not be officially announced until an eighth franchise

5220-403: The league's four years of play. Paul Pelosi's investment alone was between $ 10 million and $ 50 million, according to federal disclosure forms filed by his wife Nancy. For his part, Pelosi initially anticipated losing $ 6 million per year, based on an anticipated 20,000 fans per game, and hoped to make up the difference from a renegotiated television contract in 2011 that paid enough rights fees for

5307-440: The league's history, the Las Vegas Locomotives were the most successful team, winning two of the three championships , appearing in (but losing) the third, and having a perfect record for the season at the time of the cessation of operations. The United Football League was founded by Bill Hambrecht and Tim Armstrong . The UFL initially had plans to start with eight teams with $ 12–20 million rosters playing in targeted sites in

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5394-411: The owners had not personally guaranteed it. Hambrecht has also allegedly not paid the 78 players who sued him for back pay, even as the players won a $ 2.4 million judgment against Hambrecht. Frank Vuono, an executive with the UFL in its early existence, stated that Hambrecht had simply stopped paying the league's bills. The UFL abandoned its trademarks by 2017, when Vince McMahon filed a trademark on

5481-440: The position on January 31, 2012, citing in part the league's severe financial problems and philosophical differences with the league's owners on how to move forward. Instead, the league dispensed, at least for the time being, with a central office and owners Bill Hambrecht (Las Vegas) and Bill Mayer (Virginia) oversaw the league's business operations, while Locos' coach/president Jim Fassel overseeing football operations. Before

5568-555: The rear in attendance average. Further, two New York home games were held the same nights as Games 2 and 6 of the 2009 World Series , featuring the New York Yankees . Other factors—including the lack of a season ticket package, large-scale college football in Florida, the death of UConn football player Jasper Howard and Tim Lincecum 's Cy Young Award press conference just prior to a Redwoods home game—hampered attendance severely. Though Florida Tuskers' coach Jim Haslett

5655-441: The regular season and Championship Game United Football League (2009%E2%80%932012) The United Football League ( UFL ) was a professional American football minor league based in the United States that began play in October 2009 and played four seasons, the final one being cut short in October 2012 . The small league, which never had more than five teams playing at one time, played most of its games in markets where

5742-427: The results and lessons learned from the season in determining the league's plans for 2010 and beyond.   Win   Loss y -denotes team advanced to 2009 UFL championship game The UFL's Premiere Season concluded on November 27, 2009 (one day after Thanksgiving ) with the championship game at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas. The matchup between the Florida Tuskers and Las Vegas Locomotives

5829-827: The same home stadiums as in 2011; the Mountain Lions moved to the Triple-A baseball stadium ( Raley Field ) of the Sacramento franchise of the Pacific Coast League , the Sacramento River Cats . In addition, the Las Vegas Locomotives also negotiated backup plans with Cashman Field in Las Vegas, although the team was able to play its first two home games at Sam Boyd Stadium . On October 20, 2012, after four weeks, continued financial shortfalls, an uncertain stadium situation in Las Vegas, and dramatically reduced attendances across all four markets,

5916-467: The schedule's release and after play had begun: During the week of August 10, the four team names and their uniform jerseys were revealed. Each of the uniforms (and the team logos and helmets that were unveiled on October 2) incorporated the UFL's signature color scheme into their designs, including silver (primary color for the Las Vegas Locomotives), blue ( Florida Tuskers ), black (New York Sentinels), and lime green and white (California Redwoods). Each of

6003-519: The season with a perfect 6–0 record, officially securing a berth in the UFL Championship Game with an October 30 win over Las Vegas . The Locomotives clinched 2nd place and the other title game spot with a November 14 win over California. Sparsely attended games were a noticeable part of the UFL's regular season, with announced crowds ranging from as low as 4,312 for California's November 14 home game in San Jose to as high as 18,187 for

6090-739: The second Saturday in December (15 U.S.C. § 1293). Florida Tuskers The Virginia Destroyers were a professional American football team based in Virginia Beach, Virginia . They began play in the United Football League (UFL) in the 2011 season . They played their home games at the Virginia Beach Sportsplex . The team succeeded the Florida Tuskers , a charter UFL franchise based in Orlando, Florida , from 2009 to 2010. The Tuskers appeared in

6177-598: The second UFL team to have one. Florida extended their regular season winning streak to seven games when they defeated the Las Vegas Locos in their opener on September 18, 27–20. The Tuskers lost their first regular season game in franchise history in Week 2 when they were defeated by the Sacramento Mountain Lions , 24–20. They dropped their next contest on September 30 against the Locos, 20–17,

6264-506: The situation was resolved in July 2011, before the start of the NFL season. This negated any benefits the UFL might have hoped to reap from the labor dispute. The league was beset by frequent operational interruptions, stemming from systemic financial shortfalls, especially from summer 2011 onward. The United Football League announced on October 20, 2012, that it was ceasing operations immediately, after four weeks of play. The official line from

6351-405: The standard league colors. For 2010, the league indicated that five markets were under consideration for expansion teams: Omaha, Nebraska ; San Antonio or Austin, Texas; Portland, Oregon; and Salt Lake City. On April 15, 2010, Omaha was granted an expansion team, called the Omaha Nighthawks . Mark Cuban, who was mentioned as a potential franchise owner in the league's formative stages, loaned

6438-424: The team jerseys had the same design template, complete with a horizontal arc across the top front that resembles the arc on the UFL's logo. The UFL launched play on October 8, 2009, with the Las Vegas Locomotives defeating the California Redwoods 30–17 at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas. Locos' kicker Graham Gano's 33-yard field goal with 3:20 remaining in the 1st quarter were the first points in league history, while

6525-446: The team played more than one game are listed. In an approach similar to previous football leagues, the UFL mostly adhered to standard NFL and football rules with a few differences of note: For the 2009 and 2010 seasons, the UFL scheduled its games on non-traditional evenings for pro football: Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings. Though these games conflicted with high school and college football events in some locations,

6612-483: The team to the league and allowed bidding to be opened again. Williams later joined his alma mater Grambling State University as their head coach, resigning as Destroyers' general manager. The UFL announced the businessman Joe Moglia , also executive advisor to the head football coach of the University of Nebraska, as the first head coach and president of the Destroyers in November 2010; however, in January 2011,

6699-452: The third consecutive year. If a sixth team had been added, the schedule for each team would have expanded to ten games. The schedule for the 2011 UFL season , released June 9, 2011, confirmed that the league would be locked at five teams for the season, with no expansion. The 2011 season was to shift from a traditional late fall schedule to a late summer/early fall schedule beginning in August 2011 and ending in October; however, in July 2011,

6786-416: The three, at least "one has a UFL team and one may get a UFL team." On October 16, 2011, immediately after each team's fourth game, numerous reports indicated that the remainder of the 2011 season had been cancelled and that the 2011 UFL championship game between Las Vegas and Virginia would be moved up to the date of Virginia's last home game, which would have taken place against Omaha on October 21. This

6873-405: Was among those expressing some disappointment in the league's marketing approach for the season (a possible cause of low attendance), league commissioner Michael Huyghue was among league and team executives who countered that rather than heavily marketing the UFL, the league's premiere season was meant to be a "dress rehearsal" -- start small, promote modestly, emphasize quality of product, and take

6960-439: Was awarded a franchise for the UFL's 2009 season . Former New Orleans Saints and St. Louis Rams head coach Jim Haslett was named the first head coach of the team on March 11, 2009. Tryouts for the four teams that would play in the 2009 season took place in Orlando and Las Vegas during the summer, with the draft taking place on June 19. With their first selection, the Tuskers picked Fred Bledsoe, who had gone undrafted in

7047-603: Was confirmed. As events would turn out, neither franchise would materialize. The league suffered a setback when they had to fold the Florida Tuskers in January 2011. The league moved most of the Tuskers' staff to the Destroyers and reassigned the coaching staff already in Virginia to Omaha, firing the previous Omaha coaching staff. After this, the league reduced their goal to six teams, with Portland, Oregon; Salt Lake City; and new contender Chattanooga, Tennessee , still in consideration, and Los Angeles no longer in consideration for

7134-556: Was dominated by defense until the 4th quarter, when a total of 24 points were scored, highlighted by 2 touchdown runs by Locos running back DeDe Dorsey . A 33-yard field goal by Graham Gano in overtime (the first overtime game in UFL history) gave Las Vegas the championship (and denied Florida an undefeated season) by a 20–17 score. The final score of the game was set up by a Locos takeaway deep in Tusker territory on Florida's first overtime possession. Note: Statistical numbers cover both

7221-512: Was hired by the Cincinnati Bengals of the NFL as their offensive coordinator . On March 23, 2011, former NFL coach Marty Schottenheimer was hired as head coach and general manager. On July 28, 2011, after unsuccessfully searching for another investor to replace the departures of Speros and Theismann, Bill Mayer was installed as owner of the Destroyers. Mayer had previously owned the New York Sentinels / Hartford Colonials in

7308-472: Was in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease . Kurt Schottenheimer , Marty's younger brother and longtime defensive assistant, was given the head coach position on September 18. The assistant coaches were Bret Munsey , Bill Lavoroni , Kurt Gouveia , and Terry Shea . The front office in 2012 was manned by John Wuerhmann and Vice President of Sales John Castleberry , who was also the play-by-play broadcaster in 2011. Print journalists included Paul White of

7395-462: Was set, although the location was not. Also left unanswered was the question of whether last season's unusual third-place game would be repeated. On September 6, a revised UFL schedule for 2012 was posted on the Omaha Nighthawks website [2] showing the season rescheduled to begin on Friday, September 28, and end on Saturday, December 1, along with the claim that CBS Sports Network was in full concordance with this revision. All teams but Sacramento used

7482-495: Was the league leader in passing yards, while Biddle led in receiving yards. On the defensive side of the ball, Odell Thurman led the team in tackles, Patrick Chukwurah was the league leader in sacks, and Jerome Carter led the league in interceptions. The team was noted for having a large number of former players from the nearby Tampa Bay Buccaneers . Among the Buccaneer alumni was Matt Bryant , noted for having once kicked

7569-765: Was the league's first and only commissioner. The league had identified 21 cities that they deemed possessed strong economic bases, passionate football tradition, and a high number of average TV viewing households as potential team locations. Target markets in the US included: Austin , Birmingham , Columbus , Hartford , Las Vegas , Los Angeles , Louisville , Memphis , Milwaukee , New York City , Oklahoma City , Orlando , Portland , Raleigh-Durham , Sacramento , Salt Lake City , San Antonio , and San Jose ; as well as international markets in London , Mexico City and Monterrey . With their planned launch date arriving soon and only

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