Tampa Tornadoes

Last updated
Tampa Tornadoes
Established 2017
Play in Leto High School
in Tampa, Florida
Capital City Cyclones.png
League/conference affiliations
Current uniform
Team colorsBurgundy, black, grey, white
    
Personnel
Owner(s)Alton Walker
David J. Daniels, Jr.
Luther Lee
Marcus Dupree
PresidentAlton Walker
General managerDavid J. Daniels, Jr.
Head coachD.J. Daniels
Team history
  • Tampa Bay Tornadoes (2020–2021)
  • Tampa Bay Cyclones (2022)
  • Capital City Cyclones (2023)
  • Tampa Tornadoes (2025-beyond)
Championships
League championships (0)
Conference championships (0)
Division championships (0)
Home arena(s)

The Tampa Tornadoes are a professional developmental football team based in Tallahassee, Florida.

Contents

The team was founded in 2017 as the indoor football team the Tampa Bay Tornadoes and later joined American Arena League (AAL) for the 2020 season, but did not play due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The team was announced to have joined the National Arena League for the 2021 season; however, the team was terminated from the league after failing to provide letters of credit. Following the dismissal from the National Arena League, the team rejoined the AAL and began play in 2021 as a member of the East division, but did not finish the season. They then left the AAL for a newly formed league called the American Indoor Football Alliance for the 2022 season. The team succeeded the region's previous arena football team, the Tampa Bay Storm, that ceased operations in 2017.

The team "relocated" to Tallahassee after the 2022 season as the Capital City Cyclones, but played as a traveling team from that point until 2024 when they became an 11-man developmental team and rebranded as the Tampa Tornadoes.

History

Tampa Bay Tornados (2020-2021) Tampa Bay Tornadoes Logo.png
Tampa Bay Tornados (2020-2021)

Following the dissolvement of the Tampa Bay Storm in 2017, after playing for thirty years and being the only remaining charter member from the Arena Football League's inaugural season, [1] the Tampa Bay Tornado advertised themselves as the successor to the former team. In 2019, the Tornadoes were an expansion team in the South Division of the American Arena League (AAL) for the 2020 season [2] with Arena Football Hall of Famer and former Storm player Stevie Thomas serving as the team's first head coach and home games at Expo Hall in Tampa, Florida. [3] [4] The 2020 season was then cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tampa Bay Tornadoes/Cyclones (2020–2022)

In July 2020, they were approved to join the National Arena League (NAL) for the 2021 season, where they were to play against former Tampa Bay Storm rivals, Jacksonville Sharks and a relaunched Orlando Predators. [5] The team was terminated from the NAL after not providing letters of credit, although the Tornadoes had notified the league about their intentions to withdraw and rejoin the AAL. [6] [7] Shortly after, the team rejoined the AAL for the 2021 season, but were instead playing home games in Lakeland, Florida, at the RP Funding Center. [8] The team did not finish the 2021 season and have since joined the American Indoor Football Alliance (AIFA), along with other former AAL teams. [9] The team appears to have been rebranded as the Tampa Bay Cyclones prior to the 2022 season. [10] [11]

Capital City Cyclones (2023–present)

On October 20, 2022, the Cyclones and the AIFA announced their intentions to relocate to Tallahassee, Florida. [12] [13] The team subsequently rebranded as the Capital City Cyclones, but played no home games in the 2023 season. [14]

On August 26, 2023, Jeffery Singletary, speaking on behalf of Cyclones owner Alton Walker, announced that the Cyclones would be joining the Arena Football League. [15] The AFL had announced a team from Tallahassee in July. [16] The Cyclones wouldn't join the AFL, but instead was announced as one of the inaugural teams in the International Football Alliance (an outdoor developmental league) as the Tampa Bay Tornadoes. [17]

Statistics and records

Season-by-season results

League ChampionsConference ChampionsDivision ChampionsPlayoff berthLeague leader
Season League Division Regular season Postseason results
FinishWinsLossesTies
2020 AAL SouthSeason cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
2021AALEastDNF310

    Head coach records

    Note: Statistics are correct through week six of the 2021 AAL season.

    NameTermRegular seasonPlayoffsAwards
    WLTWin%WL
    Stevie Thomas 2020–present310.800

    2021 season

    2021 Tampa Bay Tornadoes season
    General managerAlton Walker
    Head coach Stevie Thomas
    Home field RP Funding Center
    Results
    Record3–1
    League placeDid not finish

    Tampa Bay Tornadoes

    The 2021 Tampa Bay Tornadoes season was the team's inaugural season. Prior to the season, the Tornadoes were originally scheduled to play at the St. Louis Bandits (March 27), Georgia Cobras (April 3), at the Spokane Shock (May 8), and Northern Arizona Wranglers (August 8); however, these games were not played during the course of the season. The Tornadoes withdrew from the rest of the season near the end of May.

    Schedule

    2021 Tampa Bay Tornadoes schedule [18] [19]
    WeekDateOpponentResultRecordGame site
    1March 13 Carolina Predators W 48–201–0 RP Funding Center
    2March 21 Georgia-Lina Lions W 45–212–0RP Funding Center
    3April 10 Charlotte Thunder L 46–92–1RP Funding Center
    4April 17at Mississippi Raiders Cancelled Forrest County Multipurpose Center
    5 Bye
    6May 2 Mississippi Raiders W 49–343–1RP Funding Center
    7May 15Arlington LonhornsCancelledRP Funding Center
    8Bye
    9May 29at Charlotte ThunderCancelled Bojangles Coliseum
    10June 5 Pennsylvania Union CancelledRP Funding Center

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    References

    1. ↑ "Tampa Bay Storm suspending operations". Tampabay.com. December 21, 2017.
    2. ↑ "AAL homepage". AAL. Archived from the original on August 5, 2020.
    3. ↑ "Hi all, here is an updated Tornadoes 2020 Season schedule with updated team names. - Trace". Tampa Tornadoes Facebook. January 10, 2020.
    4. ↑ "The Tampa Bay Tornadoes 2020 season schedule". Tampa Bay Tornadoes YouTube. January 8, 2020.
    5. ↑ "Expansion Alert: Tampa Bay Tornadoes Joins The NAL". National Arena League. July 24, 2020. Archived from the original on 2020-07-24.
    6. ↑ "Podcast Preview: Alton Walker: 'COVID was a curse and a blessing'". usforacle.com. July 12, 2020.
    7. ↑ "Tampa & Louisville Memberships Terminated". National Arena League. October 30, 2020. Retrieved May 6, 2021.
    8. ↑ "Tampa Bay Tornadoes hope to ride winds of Bay Area arena football success". Fox 13 Tampa Bay. April 2, 2021.
    9. ↑ "TAMPA BAY TORNADOES JOINS THE AIFA!". goaifa.com. July 5, 2021. Archived from the original on July 9, 2021.
    10. ↑ "TAMPA BAY CYCLONES JOINS THE AIFA!". AIFA. July 5, 2021. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
    11. ↑ "AIFA teams". AIFA. Archived from the original on February 3, 2022. Retrieved February 3, 2022.
    12. ↑ "The AIFA has approved the request of the Tampa Bay Cyclones to relocate to Tallahassee, FL". AIFA. October 20, 2022. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
    13. ↑ "The AIFA has approved the request of the Tampa Bay Cyclones to relocate to Tallahassee, FL". Capital City Cyclones. October 20, 2022. Retrieved April 7, 2023.
    14. ↑ "Schedule For Capital City Cyclones". Capital City Cyclones. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
    15. ↑ https://twitter.com/HuddleTouch_CEO/status/1695358726205583677 [ bare URL ]
    16. ↑ "16 ORG. LOCATIONS REVEALED Chicago, Philly Get Teams" . Retrieved 2023-07-18.
    17. ↑ "Meet The Teams". International Football Alliance.
    18. ↑ "American Arena League 2021 Schedule". Americanarenaleague.com. Archived from the original on May 4, 2021.
    19. ↑ "Tampa Bay Tornadoes 2021 Schedule". Tampa Bay Tornadoes. Archived from the original on May 4, 2021.
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