Southern Indoor Football League


The Southern Indoor Football League was an indoor football league based in the Southern and Eastern United States. The most recent incarnation of the league was a consolidation of an earlier league of the same name that was formed by Thom Hager along with Dan Blum, Robert Winfrey and Dan Ryan in 2009 and the American Indoor Football Association, which traces its roots to the founding of the Atlantic Indoor Football League in 2005. The SIFL broke up into three regional leagues after the 2011 season.

History

2009 season

Based in Texas and Louisiana, it had five teams for its inaugural season. The Acadiana Mudbugs, Austin Turfcats, Houma Conquerors, Texas Hurricanes, and Louisiana Swashbucklers are the teams that comprised the first season. The 2009 SIFL staff included Commissioner Dan Blum, Director of Operations Robert Winfrey, Director of Communications Dan Ryan, Director of Quality Control Bryan Shoemaker and Director of Creative Services Scott Blanchard. The first round of the playoffs had #1 Louisiana defeating #4 Houma, and #2 Austin defeating #3 Acadiana. The inaugural SIFL season concluded with the President's Cup Championship Game which saw the Louisiana Swashbucklers defeat the Austin Turfcats 59-38.

2010 season

The second season of the SIFL played with five teams. The loss of the Austin Turfcats, Houma Conquerors, and Texas Hurricanes were countered with the addition of the Albany Panthers, Columbus Lions, and Greenville Force. The Lafayette Wildcatters, who changed its name from the Acadiana Mudbugs, and the Louisiana Swashbucklers returned for the 2010 season. The 2010 SIFL staff included Commissioner Dan Blum, Director of Operations Robert Winfrey, Director of Communications Matthew Hester, and Director of Quality Control Bryan Shoemaker.

2011 season

After the 2010 season, the Greenville Force was dropped from the SIFL. With the exit of the Force, the SIFL added the Alabama Hammers, Houston Stallions, Mobile Bay Tarpons, Rio Grande Valley Magic, and Trenton Steel for the 2011 season. At the same time, the Abilene Ruff Riders and Corpus Christi Hammerheads made the move to the SIFL from the IFL.
Gary Tufford took over the reins of the league as Commissioner and over extended the SIFL into the 16 team league that would compete in the 2011 season.
On November 9, 2010, the SIFL announced its merger with the East Division of the American Indoor Football Association, adding the Carolina Speed, Erie Explosion, Harrisburg Stampede, and Richmond Raiders. It was thought that the Fayetteville Guard would also move to the SIFL but another sports marketing group from Fayetteville announced it would field a new team from the Fayetteville market independent to the Guard. This brought the league total to 16 clubs. In March 2011 it was reported that sports management company Fanteractive was acquiring the league, with plans to make it "interactive" by giving fans a voice in team decisions.
The Lafayette Wildcatters suspended operations the day before the 2011 season started and the Mobile Tarpons folded roughly a month into the 2011 season.

Breakup

A June 2011 New York Times article noted the league's instability. In September 2011, the majority of teams in the SIFL broke off to join two new leagues, the Texas-based Lone Star Football League and the Southeast-based Professional Indoor Football League. The remaining three teams were claimed by the revived American Indoor Football Association. The SIFL itself has been silent since July 2011, and its Web site was taken down several months later and it is assumed that the league is completely defunct.

Former teams


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ImageSize = width:900 height:auto barincrement:20
Period = from:2009 till:2012
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bar:1 color:green from:2009 till:2011 text:Acadiana Mudbugs/Lafayette Wildcatters
bar:2 color:green from:2009 till:2010 text:Austin Turfcats
bar:3 color:green from:2009 till:2010 text:Houma Conquerors
bar:4 color:green from:2009 till:2012 text:Louisiana Swashbucklers
bar:5 color:green from:2009 till:2010 text:Texas Hurricanes
bar:6 color:green from:2010 till:2012 text:Albany Panthers
bar:7 color:green from:2010 till:2012 text:Columbus Lions
bar:8 color:green from:2010 till:2012 text:Greenville Force
bar:9 color:green from:2011 till:2012 text:Abilene Ruff Riders
bar:10 color:green from:2011 till:2012 text:Alabama Hammers
bar:11 color:green from:2011 till:2012 text:Carolina Speed
bar:12 color:green from:2011 till:2012 text:Corpus Christi Hammerheads
bar:13 color:green from:2011 till:2012 text:Erie Explosion
bar:14 color:green from:2011 till:2012 text:Fayetteville Force
bar:15 color:green from:2011 till:2012 text:Harrisburg Stampede
bar:16 color:green from:2011 till:2012 text:Houston Stallions
bar:17 color:green from:2011 till:2012 text:Mobile Bay Tarpons
bar:18 color:green from:2011 till:2012 text:Richmond Raiders
bar:19 color:green from:2011 till:2012 text:Rio Grande Valley Magic
bar:20 color:green from:2011 till:2012 text:Trenton Steel
ScaleMajor = gridcolor:line unit:year increment:1 start:2009

Champions

President's Cup

Award winners and notable players

2009 SIFL Award winners