Stars Football League
| Sport | American football |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2011 |
| Commissioner | Peter Hulthwaite |
| Country(ies) |  United States Bahamas (proposed) |
| Most recent champion(s) | Daytona Beach Racers (2012) |
| Official website | starsfootballleague.com |
The Stars Football League (SFL) is an American football league currently operating only in Florida. The league is headquartered in Grosse Pointe, Michigan.[1] Its inaugural season began June 30, 2011 with two teams;[2] the league phased two more teams into the schedule over the course of the 2011 season to finish the season with four teams. Three of the four inaugural teams were located in metropolitan areas that have National Football League franchises.
Contents |
Rules [edit]
The league follows standard American football rules, with two exceptions. Field goals of over 50 yards are awarded four points instead of three, as in NFL Europe. The league also offers a three-point conversion from ten yards, just as the XFL did in its playoffs. These rule changes are intended to help teams that fall behind in a game to catch up more quickly.[3] The league will not use instant replay (the league has no television contract, making instant replay impossible).[4] The league also will use a slightly shorter play clock.[2]
Teams are restricted to 35[5] or 36 players on each roster,[2] with any person 18 years of age or older eligible to play.[6][7] Its level of play can be classified somewhere between minor league and semi-professional; players are compensated between $100 and $500 per game, on par with most indoor football leagues, but must pay their own travel expenses for away games.[8]
Broadcasting [edit]
Brokered station WWNN in the Fort Lauderdale area carried Barracudas games and a weekly talk show devoted to the league in 2011; WWNN also broadcast those events on the Internet. Mark Perl served as the play-by-play announcer.
All league broadcasts moved exclusively online for the 2012 season, with live video of the games becoming available for the first time.
The SFL announced it would air on WUUB in West Palm Beach for the 2013 season.
Teams [edit]
Current [edit]
- As of the 2013 SFL season
| Team | City | Stadium | Joined | Head coach |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daytona Beach Racers | Daytona Beach, Florida | Municipal Stadium | 2011 | Dahryll Brown |
| Ft. Lauderdale Barracudas | Fort Lauderdale, Florida | Central Broward Regional Park | 2011 | Bobby Thompson |
| Fort Myers Swampdogs | Fort Myers, Florida | Bishop Verot High School | 2012 | Joe Skladany |
| Fort Pierce Orange | Fort Pierce, Florida | Lawnwood Stadium | 2013 | TBA |
| Ironmen F.C. | Miami, Florida | TBA | 2013 | Brian "Hurricane" Jones |
Former [edit]
| Team | City | Stadium | Seasons |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michigan Coyotes | Pontiac, Michigan | Traveling team | 2011 |
| New Orleans Jazz F.C. | New Orleans, Louisiana | Tad Gormley Stadium | 2011 |
2011 season [edit]
The League awarded charter memberships to eight cities in seven states. Teams were awarded to Las Vegas Nevada, Little Rock Arkansas, Pontiac Michigan, New Orleans Louisiana, Mobile Alabama, Charleston South Carolina along with Daytona Beach and Fort Lauderdale Florida. For reasons unknown the Las Vegas Gamblers, Little Rock Ironmen, Charleston Admirals and the Mobile Gladiators never made it to play; the Ironmen, in particular, have been the subject of repeated relocations (the SFL has indicated the Ironmen club would play in Little Rock, then Bradenton, Florida, then Cleveland, Ohio, then Miami, Florida, but the team has yet to play in any of those locations).
The Michigan Coyotes, having a much greater distance between themselves and the rest of the league, were declared a traveling team for their two games in the 2011 season. Had any home games been scheduled the team was to play at the Silverdome. Fort Lauderdale played its first season at Lockhart Stadium.
The league released its 2011 schedule on July 2, 2011; said schedule was abruptly cut short in early August after several on-the-fly schedule and venue changes. In the end, each of the four teams played two of the other three teams at least once, with Daytona Beach and Fort Lauderdale playing each other three times, due to their proximity to each other. Winners of each game are underlined.
- June 30, 2011
- Daytona Beach 26 @ Fort Lauderdale 13
- July 16, 2011
- Fort Lauderdale 22 @ Daytona Beach 4
- July 22, 2011
- Fort Lauderdale 9 @ New Orleans 15 (OT)
- July 23, 2011
- Michigan 18 @ Daytona Beach 38
- August 4, 2011
- Fort Lauderdale 29 @ Daytona Beach 31
- August 12, 2011
- Michigan 6 @ New Orleans 21
Final standings [edit]
TEAM W-L ( PCT ) -------------------------- --- ------- New Orleans Jazz 2-0 (1.000) Daytona Beach Racers 3-1 ( .750) Fort Lauderdale Barracudas 1-3 ( .250) Michigan Coyotes 0-2 ( .000)
2012 season [edit]
The 2012 season was originally scheduled to begin on Armed Forces Day (May 19, 2012) and continue through July;[1] although a northern division was originally planned in addition to the Florida teams, neither of the two new proposed teams (in Cleveland and Canton, Ohio) meant to complement the existing Michigan Coyotes (who were to play that year at Atwood Stadium in Flint) would form, eventually forcing the Coyotes' mothballing. (The league intends on recruiting investors for a North Division in 2013.) New Orleans left the league and joined other semi-pro leagues. In Florida, the SFL also proposed a team named the "Orange" (initially in Tampa and then in Fort Pierce) and a team based at South County Stadium in Port St. Lucie, neither of which came to fruition; likewise, the plan to play a game in Freeport, Bahamas's Grand Bahama Stadium also never occurred. In the end, of the roughly eight teams originally announced as participants in the 2012 SFL season, only three would make it to play: Daytona Beach (who had originally left the league, only to return) and Fort Lauderdale, in addition to the Fort Myers Swampdogs. Daytona Beach's lone home game (the season opener) would be held at Lawnwood Stadium in Fort Pierce.
The season finally began on June 9, 2012, with a matchup between Daytona Beach and Fort Lauderdale in Fort Pierce. Fort Lauderdale won the contest on a last-second field goal.[2] Fort Myers played its first game June 16.[3]
- June 9, 2012
- Fort Lauderdale 13 @ Daytona Beach 10 in Fort Pierce
- June 16, 2012
- Fort Myers 14 v. Fort Lauderdale 0 in Fort Pierce
- June 30, 2012
- Daytona Beach 16 @ Fort Myers 9
- July 7, 2012
- Daytona Beach 6 @ Fort Lauderdale 0
- July 14, 2012
- Fort Myers 10 @ Fort Lauderdale 21
- July 28, 2012
- Daytona Beach 16 @ Fort Lauderdale 14 (SFL Championship Game)
2012 standings [edit]
TEAM W-L ( PCT ) -------------------------- --- ------- Daytona Beach Racers 2-1 ( .667) Fort Lauderdale Barracudas 2-2 ( .500) Fort Myers Swampdogs 1-2 ( .333)
References [edit]
- ^ Shea, Bill (2010-12-10). New pro football league plans franchise at Pontiac Silverdome. Crain Communications. Retrieved 2011-06-29.
- ^ a b c Shacklette, Buddy (2011-06-29). Ready or not, Racers to start season. Daytona Beach News-Journal. Retrieved 2011-06-29.
- ^ Berardino, Mike (July 21, 2011). Tiger Woods, Steve Williams and the four-point field goal (Three Things). South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved July 25, 2011.
- ^ Buda, Joe (2011-06-29). Stars Football League to Debut on June 30. The Las Vegas Informer. Retrieved 2011-06-29.
- ^ Semipro football: Fort Pierce Orange set tryouts for Saturday. Treasure Coast Newspapers. Retrieved February 27, 2012.
- ^ Menning, Rick (2011-03-21). Players sought for pro spring football league team... South Florida Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved 2011-06-29.
- ^ Harris, Michael (July 22, 2011). New Orleans Jazz is back ... as part of new professional football league. NOLA.com. Retrieved July 25, 2011.
- ^ Berardino, Mike (July 25, 2011). Money isn't the driving force in the fledgling, four-team Stars Football League. Sacramento Bee. Retrieved July 25, 2011.
