The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1969, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Football Conference. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence. It was more successful than earlier rivals to the NFL with the same name, the 1926, 1936 and 1940 leagues, and the later All-America Football Conference.
The World Football League (WFL) was a short-lived American football league that played one full season in 1974 and most of its second in 1975. Although the league's proclaimed ambition was to bring American football onto a worldwide stage, the farthest the WFL reached was placing a team – the Hawaiians – in Honolulu, Hawaii. The league folded midway through its second season, in 1975. A new minor football league began play as the World Football League in 2008 after acquiring the rights to its trademarks and intellectual property; it folded in 2011.
Sidney Gillman was an American football player, coach and executive. Gillman's insistence on stretching the football field by throwing deep downfield passes, instead of short passes to running backs or wide receivers at the sides of the line of scrimmage, was instrumental in making football into the modern game that it is today.
The Birmingham Barracudas were a Canadian football team that played the 1995 season in the Canadian Football League. The Barracudas were part of a failed attempt to expand the CFL into the United States.
Henry Louis Stram was an American football coach. He is best known for his 15-year tenure with the Dallas Texans/Kansas City Chiefs of the American Football League (AFL) and National Football League (NFL).
The AFL–NFL merger was the merger of the two major professional American football leagues in the United States at the time: the National Football League (NFL) and the American Football League (AFL). It paved the way for the combined league, which retained the "National Football League" name and logo, to become one of the most popular sports leagues in the United States. The merger was announced on the evening of June 8, 1966. Under the merger agreement, the leagues maintained separate regular-season schedules for the next four seasons—from 1966 through 1969—and then officially merged before the 1970 season to form one league with two conferences.
David Duke Carr is a former American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Houston Texans first overall in the 2002 NFL Draft. He played college football at Fresno State. Carr also played professionally for the Carolina Panthers, New York Giants, and San Francisco 49ers. He received a Super Bowl ring as a backup for the Giants after their victory over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLVI. Carr's status as a number one draft pick and subsequent career has led to him being considered a draft bust.
Andre Lamont Johnson is a former American football wide receiver who played most of his 14-year career with the Houston Texans of the National Football League (NFL). He is a "Special Advisor" for the Texans head coach Bill O'Brien. He played college football at Miami, and was drafted by the Texans third overall in the 2003 NFL Draft. He is 11th all-time in NFL career receptions, and 10th all-time in NFL receiving yards. Johnson holds nearly every Texans receiving record. He was also a member of the Indianapolis Colts and Tennessee Titans. During his career, Johnson was named to the Pro Bowl 7 times, named to 4 All-Pro teams and emerged as one of the NFL's most productive wide receivers of the 21st century.
The American Football Conference – Eastern Division or AFC East is one of the four divisions of the American Football Conference (AFC) in the National Football League (NFL). There are currently four teams that reside in the division: the Buffalo Bills ; the Miami Dolphins ; the New England Patriots ; and the New York Jets.
The 2002 NFL season was the 83rd regular season of the National Football League.
A dispersal draft is a process in professional sports for assigning players to a new team when their current team ceases to exist or is merged with another team. Since most sports drafts are held in North America, this is where most dispersal drafts are conducted as well.
The Texas Collegiate League (TCL) is a collegiate summer baseball league comprising teams from the states of Texas and Louisiana.
Jamar Mondell Israel, born Jamar Mondell Fletcher, is an American former college and professional football player who was a cornerback in the National Football League (NFL) for eight seasons in the early 2000s. He played college football for the University of Wisconsin, and was a two-time All-American. The Miami Dolphins chose him in the first round of the 2001 NFL Draft, and he also played professionally for the San Diego Chargers, Detroit Lions, Houston Texans and Cincinnati Bengals of the NFL.
The Spring Football League (SFL) was a professional American football league that existed for only part of one mini-season in 2000. Founded by several ex-NFL players such as Eric Dickerson, Drew Pearson, Bo Jackson, and Tony Dorsett, the SFL planned to use the four-game mini-season to test cities, fans, stadiums, the media, entertainment, and springtime American football as a product. The year before, the Regional Football League staggered through a spring season, then announced it would not return for 2000.
Jeff Ladd Novak is a former American football offensive lineman who played professionally in the World League of American Football and the National Football League. Novak was born in Arlington Heights, Illinois and considers his city of upbringing to be Clear Lake City outside Houston, Texas. He went to Clear Lake High School and he graduated from Texas State University in 1990.
The San Antonio Matadors were a professional football team that played in the Spring Football League (SFL) in 2000. The Matadors were undefeated before the league decided to cease operations. The Matadors were named co-SFL Champions along with the Houston Marshals. The Head Coach for the Matadors was Brian Wiggins. The Director of Football Operations was Mark Rikker. The team operated in San Antonio, Texas, and home games were played at Alamo Stadium.
The Miami Tropics were a professional American football team based in Miami, Florida that played in the Spring Football League in 2000. The Tropics Head Coach was Jim Jensen, who played for the Miami Dolphins. The Tropics played their home games at the Miami Orange Bowl. The Tropics were the only team in the SFL that played in an NFL market at the time.
The professional American football team now known as the Tennessee Titans previously played in Houston, Texas as the Houston Oilers from its founding in 1960 to 1996 before relocating to Memphis, and later Nashville, Tennessee becoming the Titans. The Oilers began play in 1960 as a charter member of the American Football League (AFL). The team won two AFL championships before joining the NFL as part of the AFL–NFL merger in the late 1960s.
Champions Indoor Football (CIF) is a professional indoor American football league created in 2014 out of the merger between the Champions Professional Indoor Football League (CPIFL) and Lone Star Football League (LSFL), plus one team from the Indoor Football League and two expansion teams. Players are paid $75 – $300 per game before taxes with no other benefits.
Gordon Enloe Houston was an American professional outfielder and shortstop who played from 1937 through 1940 in Minor League Baseball. Listed at 5' 8" (1.77 m), 156 lb. (71 k), he batted and threw right-handed.
