New England Football League

Last updated
New England Football League
New England Football League logo.png
FormerlyGreater Lawrence Men's Football League
Sport American football
Founded1994
FounderTom Torrisi
No. of teams7
Country United States
Headquarters Salisbury, Massachusetts
Most recent
champion(s)
AA: Glens Falls Greenjackets A: Rhode Island Riptide (2nd NEFL Title)
Official website nefl.us

The New England Football League (NEFL) is a semi-professional American football league based in Salisbury, Massachusetts, and owned by Thomas Torrisi. [1] It is the second largest semi-professional league in New England, and formerly of the biggest leagues in the United States. [2] [3] The NEFL was founded in 1994 and was also known as the Greater Lawrence Men's Football League. [4] In 2024, the league shifted to one conference, comprising seven teams. The 2023 season involved nine teams, down from a recent high of 32, with about 2,000 players.

Contents

From 2021-2023, the NEFL has had single-A, and AA Conferences, and from 2013-2019 with a AAA Conference, with annual promotion and relegation among Conferences based on game results, so that the best teams work their way toward the AA level. 2024 is the first season since 1999 that the NEFL has played with one conference.

The league provides competitive football for adult players. It is a "working man's league", as most players have regular jobs during the week. [5] [6] Teams practice on weeknights and play virtually all games on weekends. [2] Players are not paid for their participation, but they often pay up to $200 to be on the team's roster. [2] [6] The league runs from July through September, followed by single-elimination championship tournaments within each Conference. Each team can dress up to 55 players. [7]

The league is unrelated to the original NEFL, which operated from 1964 to 1969. [8]

The 2023 NEFL season finished with two league champions in AA and A; the Rhode Island Riptide won the Maritime (A) Conference by defeating the New England Bombers 28-21, their second NEFL Championship (2011). The Glens Falls Greenjackets won the North Atlantic Conference (AA), their first in program history in the NEFL, by beating the Middleboro Cobras 12-6 in overtime. It was the first season playing in the NEFL for the Greenjackets

League history

The New England Football League was founded in 1994 by League President and Director of Marketing, Tom Torrisi, Chairman Matt Brien, Commissioner Bob Oreal, Vice-President and Treasurer John Motta and Secretary Christine Torrisi. [2] It started its 1994 season with four teams. By 1997, the number of teams tripled to twelve; in 2002, the league had at least one team in each New England state, and started its three-conference alignment with three different skill levels, one for each conference. The 2006 was the first season with at least 30 teams, making the NEFL one of the largest semi-pro football leagues in the country.

Game rules

The NEFL describes its rule set as "modified NCAA rules". Most rules are adopted from the NCAA rulebook, but there are also a few NFL rules and NEFL-specific rules. Games use a free-running clock until five minutes left in either half or overtime, at which time the clock stops according to NFL rules. Game time is usually kept by an official on the field, but for some games is kept on the scoreboard by a paid, uniformed official operating it.

Current teams

AA (2024)

TeamStadiumCity/Area
Glens Falls Greenjackets East Field Glens Falls, New York
Middleboro CobrasBattis Field Middleborough, Massachusetts
New England Bombers Alumni Stadium at Braintree High School Braintree, Massachusetts
Rhode Island RiptideStebbins Field at Cranston Stadium Cranston, Rhode Island
Southern Vermont StormStorm Stadium Bennington, Vermont
Worcester Wildcats Commerce Bank Field at Foley Stadium Worcester, Massachusetts
Vermont Ravens South Burlington High School South Burlington, Vermont

2023 Teams

North Atlantic Conference (AA) (2023)

TeamStadiumCity/Area
Glens Falls Greenjackets East Field Glens Falls, New York
Mass Warriors Wayland High School Wayland, Massachusetts
Middleboro CobrasBattis Field Middleborough, Massachusetts
Western Mass Blitzin BearsRoberts Sports Complex Holyoke, Massachusetts
Worcester Wildcats Commerce Bank Field at Foley Stadium Worcester, Massachusetts

Maritime Conference (A) (2023)

TeamStadiumCity/Area
Connecticut Reapers Crosby High School Field Waterbury, Connecticut
New England Bombers Alumni Stadium at Braintree High School Braintree, Massachusetts
Rhode Island RiptideStebbins Field at Cranston Stadium Cranston, Rhode Island
Vermont Ravens South Burlington High School South Burlington, Vermont

League champions

Annual League Champions Based on Conference [4]
YearTeamAAAAAA
1994Lawrence Lightning
1995North Shore Rage
1996Massachusetts Havoc
1997Massachusetts Havoc
1998Lowell Nor'easter
1999Lowell Nor'easter
2000Seacoast HawksLowell Nor'easter
2001Southern Maine Raging BullsBoston Bandits
2002Connecticut ThunderVermont Ice StormLowell Nor'easter
2003Seacoast HawksNew England StarsBoston Bandits
2004Hampton HurricanesConnecticut ThunderLowell Nor'easter
2005Rhode Island RaptorsSeacoast HawksBoston Bandits
2006Notre Dame CobrasNorth Attleboro RenegadesBoston Bandits
2007Leominster RazorbacksWhaling City Clippers [9] Middleboro Cobras
2008Tri City ChargeWhaling City ClippersMiddleboro Cobras
2009Connecticut SpartansNew Hampshire WolfpackTri City ChargeLowell Nor'easter
2010Seacoast HawksConnecticut PanthersWestern Mass WarriorsLowell Nor'easter
2011Rhode Island RiptideNew Hampshire WolfpackConnecticut Bearcats
2012Connecticut BearcatsCape Cod SeadogsSouth Shore Outlaws [10] Western Mass Warriors
2013Central Mass SabercatsPioneer Valley KnightsConnecticut Panthers
2014Brass City BrawlersRhode Island WardogsConnecticut Panthers
2015Port City VipersSomerville RampageBoston Bandits
2016Mass State WolverinesSouth Coast OutlawsWestern Connecticut Militia
2017Southern Vermont StormMass State WolverinesConnecticut Panthers
2018Seacoast WarhawksWorcester WildcatsBoston Bandits
2019Connecticut BrawlersWorcester WildcatsMarlboro Shamrocks
2020Green Valley BlackhawksBoston Bandits
2021Hartford ColtsWestern Mass Blitzin Bears
2022Mass WarriorsWestern Mass Blitzin Bears
2023Rhode Island RiptideGlens Falls Greenjackets

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pro Bowl</span> All-star event of the National Football League (NFL)

The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's star players.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hockey East</span> Ice hockey conference in New England, US

The Hockey East Association, also known as Hockey East, is a college ice hockey conference which operates entirely in New England. It participates in the NCAA's Division I as a hockey-only conference.

Overtime is a method of determining a winner in an ice hockey game when the score is tied after regulation. The main methods of determining a winner in a tied game are the overtime period, the shootout, or a combination of both. If league rules dictate a finite time in which overtime may be played, with no penalty shoot-out to follow, the game's winning team may or may not be necessarily determined.

A draw or tie occurs in a competitive sport when the results are identical or inconclusive. Ties or draws are possible in some, but not all, sports and games. Such an outcome, sometimes referred to as deadlock, can also occur in other areas of life such as politics, business, and wherever there are different factions regarding an issue.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arena football</span> Variation of gridiron football played at ice hockey-sized indoor arenas

Arena football is a variety of gridiron football designed to be played indoors. The game is played on a smaller field than American or Canadian football, designed to fit in the same surface area as a standard North American ice hockey rink, and features between six and eight players for each team playing at any given time depending on the league, resulting in a faster and higher-scoring game that can be played on the floors of indoor arenas. The sport was invented in 1981, and patented in 1987, by Jim Foster, a former executive of the National Football League and the United States Football League. The name is trademarked by Gridiron Enterprises and had a proprietary format until its patent expired in 2007.

Overtime or extra time is an additional period of play specified under the rules of a sport to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw where the scores are the same. In some sports, this extra period is played only if the game is required to have a clear winner, as in single-elimination tournaments where only one team or players can advance to the next round or win the tournament and replays are not allowed.

Semi-professional sports are sports in which athletes are not participating on a full-time basis, but still receive some payment. Semi-professionals are not amateur because they receive regular payment from their team, but generally at a considerably lower rate than a full-time professional athlete. As a result, semi-professional players frequently have full-time employment elsewhere. A semi-pro player or team could also be one that represents a place of employment that only the employees are allowed to play on. In this case, it is considered semi-pro because their employer pays them, but for their regular job, not for playing on the company's team.

The Yankee Conference was a collegiate sports conference in the eastern United States. From 1947 to 1976, it sponsored competition in many sports, but was a football-only league from mid-1976 until its dissolution in 1996. It is essentially the ancestor of today's CAA Football, the legally separate football league operated by the Coastal Athletic Association (CAA), and the continuation of the New England Conference, though all three leagues were founded under different charters and are considered separate conferences by the NCAA. Also, CAA Football does not recognize the New England Conference as one of its predecessors, though it does recognize the Yankee Conference as such. 2024 marked a return of The Yankee Conference when in August of 2024 it was announced that Merrimack College and Sacred Heart University would play for The Yankee Conference Championship presented by LEONA.

The Empire Football League (EFL) is a semi-professional American football league with franchises based primarily in New York State. The league was established in 1969. Many franchises have come and gone including in locations such as Pennsylvania, Vermont, and Connecticut as well as Quebec, Montreal, and Ontario in Canada. In 2018 the league included six teams: the Glens Falls Greenjackets, Hudson Valley Mountaineers, Plattsburgh North Stars, Seaway Valley Venom, Tri City Spartans, and Utica Yard Dogs.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MLS Cup 2002</span> 2002 edition of the MLS Cup

MLS Cup 2002 was the seventh edition of the MLS Cup, the championship match of Major League Soccer (MLS), which took place on October 20, 2002. It was hosted at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, and contested by the New England Revolution and the Los Angeles Galaxy to decide the champion of the 2002 season. The Revolution, who were named hosts before the season, were playing in their first MLS Cup; Los Angeles had lost in all three of their previous cup appearances.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Randy Edsall</span> American football coach (born 1958)

Randy Douglas Edsall is a former American football coach, who was the head football coach at the University of Connecticut from 1999 to 2010 and again from 2017 until his abrupt retirement in 2021. He also served as the head coach at the University of Maryland from 2011 to 2015 and as director of football research-special projects for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL) in 2016. During his first stint at UConn, he oversaw the program's promotion from the NCAA Division I-AA level to Division I-A. He is the program's all-time leader in wins and games coached.

The American Association (AA) was a professional American football minor league based in New York City. Founded in 1936 with teams in New York and New Jersey, the AA extended its reach to Providence, Rhode Island prior to the onset of World War II. After a four-year hiatus, the league was renamed the American Football League as it expanded to include teams in Ohio and Pennsylvania. In 1947, the Richmond Rebels of the Dixie League purchased the assets of the defunct AFL Long Island Indians and jumped leagues.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">American football in the United States</span> Most popular sport in the United States

American football is a form of gridiron football and the most popular sport in the United States. In the United States, the game is most often referred to as simply "football". Football is played in leagues of different size, age and quality, in all regions of the country.

The Albany Metro Mallers were a semi-professional football team. The team has regularly appeared in national semipro playoffs and won the national semipro title in 2008, 2013, and 2016. Some of the team's players have gone on to play professional football.

The Watertown Red & Black is a semi-professional American football team based in Watertown, New York. The team is the oldest active semi-pro football team in the United States, and can trace its history to 1896, although the Professional Football Researchers Association (PFRA) claimed it was founded as an Athletic Club in 1899. Because of this, the team has the second most wins (661) and most games played (1,022) of any semi-professional team. They have an overall record of 661–318–43 for a win percentage of .647. The Red & Black have their own showcase in the Pro Football Hall of Fame as being the oldest semi-pro team in the nation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ultimate Frisbee Association</span> Sports league

The Ultimate Frisbee Association (UFA), formerly the American Ultimate Disc League (AUDL), is a professional ultimate disc league that consists of 24 teams divided between the South, Central, East, and West divisions. The UFA is located in North America. Each UFA season has 12 regular season games which run from April to July. Following the conclusion of the regular season, the top three teams from every division advance to the playoffs, a single elimination tournament that culminates in a final four style showcase known as the UFA Championship Weekend, which is contested in late August over two days.

The Fall Experimental Football League (FXFL) was a professional football minor league that played two seasons in 2014 and 2015. This league's stated goal was to become a professional feeder-system for the National Football League (NFL).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MLS Cup 2014</span> 2014 edition of the MLS Cup

MLS Cup 2014 was the 19th edition of the MLS Cup, the match that determined the champion of Major League Soccer's 2014 season. The LA Galaxy of the Western Conference hosted the New England Revolution of the Eastern Conference. The soccer match was held at StubHub Center in Carson, California, as the Galaxy were awarded home advantage by finishing the regular season with more points than the Revolution. The Galaxy won 2–1 after extra time, winning their fifth MLS Cup title and also sending all-time U.S. national team goal scoring leader Landon Donovan into retirement with his sixth MLS Cup crown.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Boston College–Holy Cross football rivalry</span> American college football rivalry

The Boston College–Holy Cross football rivalry is an American college football rivalry between the Boston College Eagles and Holy Cross Crusaders.

The Glens Falls Greenjackets are a semi-professional American football team in Glens Falls, NY. The Greenjackets compete in the New England Football League. They were founded in 1928 as the Hudson Falls Greenjackets, making them the second oldest semi-pro team in the United States. Home games are played at local highschools in the Glens Falls, NY area. Preseason games are played at Putt LaMay Memorial Field.

References

  1. "North Shore Generals Football - League Information". north-shore-generals.com.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Love of the game drives semipro football players - The Boston Globe". BostonGlobe.com. 2015-07-26. Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  3. "East Coast Football League (ECFL) Joins American Football Association for 2022 and Becomes Largest AFA Member League In United States". PRWeb . American Football Association. Retrieved 2024-07-01.
  4. 1 2 "New England Football League - Champions". www.semiprofootball.org. Retrieved 2015-12-14.
  5. Gasper, Christopher L. (2004-08-29). "Blue-collar bruisers". Boston.com. Retrieved 2015-12-12.
  6. 1 2 "Semipro football players in it for love of the game - The Boston Globe". BostonGlobe.com. 2014-09-09. Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  7. COLLINS, ED. "Foundation set for South Coast Outlaws semi-pro football team". southcoasttoday.com. Retrieved 2016-03-02.
  8. William J. Ryczek. Connecticut Gridiron: Football Minor Leaguers of the 1960s and 1970s, McFarland & Company, 2014. ISBN   0786478330
  9. THOMAS, BUDDY. "McCann has Clippers 'D' primed for title game". southcoasttoday.com. Retrieved 2016-03-02.
  10. Correspondent, Rob Duca. "SOUTH COAST OUTLAWS: The boys are back in town". Wicked Local Wareham. Retrieved 2016-04-01.{{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)