2023 Orlando Guardians season

Last updated

2023 Orlando Guardians season
OwnerAlpha Acquico, LLC
General manager Terrell Buckley
Head coach Terrell Buckley
Home stadium Camping World Stadium
Results
Record1–9
Division place4th XFL South
PlayoffsDid not qualify

The 2023 Orlando Guardians season was the second season for the Orlando Guardians as a professional American football franchise. They played as charter members of the XFL, one of eight teams to compete in the league for the 2023 season. [1] The Guardians played their home games at the Camping World Stadium and were led by head coach Terrell Buckley.

Contents

The franchise also relocated from East Rutherford, New Jersey to Orlando, Florida prior to the season, changing their name from New York Guardians to Orlando Guardians. [2]

On January 1, 2024, it was announced that the 2023 season was the last season for the Guardians. [3] [4]

Roster changes

On March 3, 2023, the Guardians released quarterback Quinten Dormady after he allegedly gave the San Antonio Brahmas plays from the Guardians' playbook prior to the two teams' week 2 matchup. [5] [6] He was reinstated a day later, on March 4, 2023, when the league released a statement saying they would be investigating into the situation. [7] He was subsequently placed on the team's reserve list. [8] After undergoing a third party investigation, it was found that there was no substantial proof behind the allegations, and Dormandy was added back to the active roster. [9]

Final Roster

2023 Orlando Guardians roster
Quarterbacks (QB)

Running backs (RB)

  • 26 Devin Darrington
  • 30 Jah-Maine Martin

Wide receivers (WR)

Tight ends (TE)

Offensive linemen (OL)
  • 77 Abdul Beecham T
  • 67 Brett Boyko T
  • 78 T.J. Bradley T
  • 65 Jordan Ighofose G
  • 59 Zeveyon Furcron C
  • 64 Fred Lauina G
  • 51 David Moore G
  • 58 Jalen Spady C

Defensive linemen (DL)

Linebackers (LB)

Defensive backs (DB)

Special teams (ST)

Reserve

Rookies in italics
51 active, 7 reserve

Schedule

All times Eastern

WeekDayDateKickoffTVOpponentResultsLocationAttendance
ScoreRecord
1SaturdayFebruary 188:30 p.m. ESPN/FX at Houston Roughnecks 12–330–1 TDECU Stadium 12,784
2SundayFebruary 264:00 p.m.ESPN San Antonio Brahmas 12–300–2 Camping World Stadium 12,011
3SundayMarch 54:00 p.m.FXat Arlington Renegades 9–100–3 Choctaw Stadium 12,006
4SaturdayMarch 117:00 p.m.FX Houston Roughnecks 16–440–4Camping World Stadium10,013
5SaturdayMarch 1810:00 p.m.FXat Vegas Vipers 32–350–5 Cashman Field 6,008
6SaturdayMarch 251:00 p.m. ABC Seattle Sea Dragons 19–260–6Camping World Stadium7,832
7SaturdayApril 16:00 p.m.ESPN DC Defenders 37–361–6Camping World Stadium7,011
8SaturdayApril 84:00 p.m.ESPN Arlington Renegades 16–181–7Camping World Stadium7,789
9SaturdayApril 157:00 p.m. ESPN2 at San Antonio Brahmas 23–251–8 Alamodome 13,023
10SaturdayApril 2212:00 p.m.ESPNat St. Louis BattleHawks 28–531–9 The Dome at America's Center 33,034

[1] [10] [11]

Game summaries

Week 1: at Houston Roughnecks

Week 1: Orlando Guardians at Houston Roughnecks – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Guardians600612
Roughnecks61501233

at TDECU Stadium, Houston, Texas

  • Date: February 18
  • Game time: 8:30 p.m. EDT
  • Game weather: 51 °F (11 °C)
  • Game attendance: 12,784
  • Referee: Chris Coyte
  • TV announcers (ESPN): Lowell Galindo, Sam Acho, and Taylor McGregor
Game information

Week 2: vs. San Antonio Brahmas

Quarter1234Total
Brahmas6714330
Guardians600612

at Camping World Stadium, Orlando, Florida

  • Date: February 26
  • Game time: 4:00 p.m. EDT
  • Game weather: 86 °F (30 °C)
  • Game attendance: 12,011
  • Referee: Mike Vandervelde
  • TV announcers (ESPN): Tom Hart, Greg McElroy, and Cole Cubelic
Game information

Week 3: at Arlington Renegades

Quarter1234Total
Guardians30069
Renegades300710

at Choctaw Stadium, Arlington, Texas

  • Date: March 5
  • Game time: 4:00 p.m. EDT
  • Game weather: 77 °F (25 °C)
  • Game attendance: 12,006
  • Referee: Francisco Villar
  • TV announcers (FX): Lowell Galindo, Sam Acho, and Taylor McGregor
Game information

Week 4: vs. Houston Roughnecks

Quarter1234Total
Roughnecks20661244
Guardians0106016

at Camping World Stadium, Orlando, Florida

Game information

Week 5: at Vegas Vipers

Quarter1234Total
Guardians7661332
Vipers8961235

at Cashman Field, Las Vegas, Nevada

Game information

Week 6: vs. Seattle Sea Dragons

Quarter1234Total
Sea Dragons368926
Guardians0106319

at Camping World Stadium, Orlando, Florida

Game information

Week 7: vs. DC Defenders

Quarter1234Total
Defenders1486836
Guardians12613637

at Camping World Stadium, Orlando, Florida

Game information

This was the Guardians only win of the season, knocking off the previously undefeated DC Defenders.

Week 8: vs. Arlington Renegades

Week 8: Arlington Renegades at Orlando Guardians – Game summary
Quarter1234Total
Renegades936018
Guardians360716

at Camping World Stadium, Orlando, Florida

Game information

Week 9: at San Antonio Brahmas

Quarter1234Total
Guardians860923
Brahmas0109625

at Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas

  • Date: April 15
  • Game time: 7:00 p.m. EDT
  • Game weather: 95 °F (35 °C)
  • Game attendance: 13,023
  • Referee: Jason Autrey
  • TV announcers (ESPN2): Lowell Galindo, Sam Acho, and Ian Fitzsimmons
Game information

Week 10: at St. Louis BattleHawks

Quarter1234Total
Guardians6140828
BattleHawks322141453

at The Dome at America's Center, St. Louis, Missouri

  • Date: April 22
  • Game time: 12:00 p.m. EDT
  • Game weather: 46 °F (8 °C)
  • Game attendance: 33,034
  • Referee: Michael Vandervelde
  • TV announcers (ESPN): Lowell Galindo, Sam Acho, and Taylor McGregor
Game information

Standings

North Division [12]
TeamWLPCTGBTD+/-TD+TD-DIVPFPADIFFSTK
(y) DC Defenders 91.900-233356–029824058W3
(x) Seattle Sea Dragons 73.7002+1030203–324317766W2
(e) St. Louis Battlehawks 73.7002+932233–324920247W1
(e) Vegas Vipers 28.2007028280–6184252-68L3
South Division [12]
TeamWLPCTGBTD+/-TD+TD-DIVPFPADIFFSTK
(y) Houston Roughnecks 73.700+430266–024718265W3
(x) Arlington Renegades 46.4003-815233–3146194-48L2
(e) San Antonio Brahmas 37.3004-816243–3169183-14L1
(e) Orlando Guardians 19.1006-532370–6204310-106L3
(x)–clinched playoff berth; (y)–clinched division; (e)–eliminated from playoff contention

Staff

Orlando Guardians staff
Front office
  • Director of team operations – Patrick Austin
  • Director of player personnel – Larry Lee
Head coach
Offensive coaches
 
Defensive coaches
Team operations
  • Quality Control - Chris Stamps
  • Athletic trainer – Rachel Sharpe
  • Equipment manager – Bobby Monica
  • Video manager – Ben Lawson

*Defensive Line coach Ty Warren was no longer on the Staff after Week 5. Mark Snyder took over Week 6. [13]

*After week 5, Devin Bush Sr. was added to the coaching stuff as a defensive analyst. [14]

References

  1. 1 2 "New Orlando Guardians of the XFL will open season Feb. 18". Spectrum News 13. January 6, 2023. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
  2. Mates, Thomas (October 31, 2022). "XFL announces name of Orlando team in 3rd attempt at starting new football league". WKMG-TV. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
  3. Murschel, Matt (January 1, 2024). "Orlando Guardians won't move forward after USFL-XFL merger". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  4. Lynch, Ryan (January 1, 2024). "Orlando Guardians cut from merged XFL/USFL". Orlando Business Journal. Retrieved January 1, 2024.
  5. "XFL Quarterback Reportedly Cut From Team After Giving Opposing Team Plays From QB Playbook". MSN. Retrieved March 4, 2023.
  6. Romero, Gabriel (March 3, 2023). "Former Boerne QB investigated for allegedly sharing XFL plays". mySA. Retrieved March 4, 2023.
  7. Dedaj, Paulina (March 3, 2023). "XFL reinstates Guardians quarterback Quinten Dormady day after release for allegedly sharing team plays". Fox News. Retrieved March 4, 2023.
  8. "XFL Transactions". XFL.com. Retrieved March 14, 2023.
  9. "Orlando QB Dormady reinstated after XFL probe". ESPN.com. March 16, 2023. Retrieved March 16, 2023.
  10. Walker, Alex (January 5, 2023). "XFL announces schedule for Orlando Guardians". WFTV. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
  11. Murschel, Matt (January 5, 2023). "Orlando Guardians' first XFL season features 5 home games". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved January 9, 2023.
  12. 1 2 "XFL Standings". XFL.com. February 19, 2023. Retrieved February 21, 2023.
  13. Larsen, James [@JamesLarsenPFN] (March 21, 2023). "Ty Warren, @XFLGuardians Defensive Line Coach, is no longer with the team, per @FootballScoop. Linebackers coach Mark Snyder will assume both DL and LB duties from here on out. #XFL" (Tweet). Retrieved March 28, 2023 via Twitter.
  14. "Devin Bush Sr. Joins Guardians Coaching Staff, DL Coach Ty Warren Out". xflnewshub.com.