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The Arena Football League (AFL) can refer to one of three successive professional indoor American football leagues in the United States. The first of these was founded in 1986, and played its first official games in the 1987 season, running for 22 consecutive seasons until going bankrupt following the 2008 season. The second league, consisting largely of teams from the first AFL and arenafootball2, purchased the first league's assets out of bankruptcy and resumed play in 2010 as a continuation of the first AFL; this second AFL ran for ten further seasons, before again going bankrupt following the 2019 season. A third AFL, which is not directly connected to the previous two iterations of the league but claiming their histories and trademarks, intends to launch in 2024.
The Massachusetts Marauders were a professional arena football team that was based in Worcester, Massachusetts. They were a member of the Arena Football League (AFL) from 1988 to 1994. The team was established in Detroit in 1988, as the Detroit Drive and was a member of the AFL in 1988 and in all subsequent years through 1993. The club then moved to Worcester, Massachusetts, in 1994 and played in that city through the end of the 1994 season.
The Tampa Bay Storm were a professional arena football team based in Tampa, Florida, US. It played in the Arena Football League (AFL). Originally the team was located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and operated as the Pittsburgh Gladiators. The franchise was one of the original four that launched the Arena Football League for its inaugural season in 1987. The club was relocated to Tampa Bay area for the 1991 season, being the last of the original teams to either fold or leave its market. After 26 years in the Tampa market, the team ceased operations in December, 2017.
The Philadelphia Soul were a professional arena football team based in Philadelphia. They competed in the Arena Football League (AFL). The Soul made five ArenaBowl appearances, winning their first appearance and losing their next two appearances. The Soul won in their fourth appearance, against the Rattlers in 2016, winning 56–42. They also won in their fifth appearance in 2017 against the Tampa Bay Storm, winning 44–40.
The Orlando Predators were a professional arena football team based in Orlando, Florida and member of the Arena Football League (AFL). The team was most recently owned by Orlando Predators LLC, a company owned by David A. Siegel, and played its home games at Amway Center.
Lawrence 'Law Dogg' Samuels is an arena football coach and former wide receiver/linebacker. He played his college football at the Livingston University, and was an AFL wide receiver/linebacker from 1994 to 2010. He received both his Bachelor of Science degree in industrial technology and Master of Science degree in education from The University of West Alabama. He was head coach of the Tampa Bay Storm of the Arena Football League (AFL) from 2014 to 2016.
ArenaBowl XVII was played on June 22, 2003 at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Florida before a sellout crowd of 20,496. The Tampa Bay Storm earned their AFL record fifth ArenaBowl title, by defeating the Arizona Rattlers, 43–29. The win was just months after the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers won Super Bowl XXXVII, making Tampa Bay the first metropolitan area to simultaneously hold both NFL and AFL championships.
Doug Kay is a retired American football coach who was most recently assistant head coach for the Tampa Bay Storm of the Arena Football League (AFL), which league ceased operations after the 2017 season. He has more than 55 years of football experience, including 12 seasons in the AFL. He was the head coach of the Charlotte Rage, Carolina Cobras and Columbus Destroyers. He was also the head football coach at Olivet College from 1971 to 1975.
Clint Dolezel is an American football coach and former professional arena football player in the Arena Football League (AFL).
Christopher Jackson is an American football coach and former wide receiver who is the wide receivers coach and passing game coordinator for The University of Texas. During the 2022 season, he was the wide receivers coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). He previously served as an assistant coach for the Chicago Bears.
Jay Michael Gruden is an American football coach and former quarterback. He previously served as the head coach of the Washington Redskins from 2014 to 2019 and as offensive coordinator for the Cincinnati Bengals and Jacksonville Jaguars. During his time in the Arena Football League (AFL), he won four ArenaBowls as a player and two more as a head coach. Gruden is the younger brother of former NFL head coach Jon Gruden and was an assistant coach of the 2002 Buccaneers team that won Super Bowl XXXVII.
ArenaBowl IX was the Arena Football League's ninth ArenaBowl. The game featured the #6 Orlando Predators (7-5) of the National Conference against the #1 Tampa Bay Storm (10-2), also of the National Conference. This would be the very first ArenaBowl to have the "War on I-4" rivalry featured in it. For the Predators, this was their third ArenaBowl appearance in their first five years of existence. For the Storm, this was their fourth overall appearance with a chance to get three titles in five years.
Sylvester Bembery is a former American football lineman in the Arena Football League. Bembery, #78, was an offensive and defensive lineman for the Tampa Bay Storm from 1994–99, and once again joined the Storm for the 2001 campaign.
Tyrone Timmons is a former professional American football wide receiver. He was signed by the Kansas City Chiefs as an undrafted free agent in 2007. He played college football for the Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils. He was inducted into the Mississippi Valley State University Hall of Fame in April 2017.
The Tampa Bay area is home to many sports teams and has a substantial history of sporting activity. Most of the region's professional sports franchises use the name "Tampa Bay", which is the name of a body of water, not of any city. This is to emphasize that they represent the wider metropolitan area and not a particular municipality and was a tradition started by Tampa's first major sports team, the original Tampa Bay Rowdies, when they were founded in 1975.
Tim Marcum was an American football coach, best known for his long and successful career in the Arena Football League. He was the head coach of the AFL's Denver Dynamite in 1987, the Detroit Drive from 1988–1992 and the Tampa Bay Storm from 1995–2010. Marcum also served as an assistant coach in the NJCAA, NCAA, United States Football League, World Football League, NFL and the Arena Football League. Marcum head coached in eleven ArenaBowl championship games, winning seven. Marcum was one of two men to win seven ArenaBowls ; and the only man to win seven ArenaBowls as a head coach. He was inducted into the AFL Hall of Fame in 1998. Marcum was one of the most successful coaches in the history of the sport of indoor football, and is considered the greatest coach in the Arena Football League's 32-year history.
Joseph March is a former arena football offensive lineman and defensive lineman in the Arena Football League for the Denver Dynamite, Sacramento Attack, Miami Hooters, Tampa Bay Storm and the Nashville Kats. He played college football at Murray State University. In 2000, March was inducted into the Arena Football Hall of Fame.
Randy Hippeard is an American football quarterback who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Winterthur Warriors of Nationalliga A in Switzerland as an undrafted free agent in 2009. He played college football at University of Virginia's College at Wise.
The Arena Football Hall of Fame is the official Hall of Fame of the Arena Football League (AFL). The inaugural class was announced in 1998 and the Hall was not formally organized until 2011. Prior to 2011, there were four classes: 1998–2000 and then another in 2002. The Arena Football Hall of Fame is the highest honor for players, coaches, and contributors involved in the AFL. The voting process consists of fans and current Hall of Fame members voting on the finalists. The finalists are selected by the League Office in which they collect ballots from the Arena Football Hall of Fame Advisory Board, a group which consisted of former players, executives, journalists and media personnel with a long-time involvement in the league. The league began to decline in 2015, so no Hall of Fame announcements have been made since this year. The league folded for a second time in 2019. After the league's second closure, ArenaFan, a long-running fan site, announced it had taken over operations of the Arena Football Hall of Fame.
References
- ↑ "ArenaFan Online, May 2, 2002" . Retrieved 5 July 2011.
- ↑ "Baker University Athletics Hall of Fame". Archived from the original on 27 September 2011. Retrieved 5 July 2011.
- 1 2 Richard Obert (March 21, 2012). "George LaFrance looking to come back after 12 year absence". www.azcentral.com. azcentral.com. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ↑ "Official Website of Diné College Athletics" . Retrieved 5 July 2011.