PROFESSIONAL INDOOR FOOTBALL LEAGUE/
INDOOR PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE
(1998 -
2001)
PIFL - 1998
COLORADO WILDCATS
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The Wildcats played in Denver, CO, compiling a 9-5 record in their only year of play. They struggled financially, even folding for two weeks before a new owner, Tom Shafer, bailed the team out and allowed them to finish the season. When Bombers and Mad Dogs owner Kerry Ecklund announced his intentions to start a new league in 1999, Shafer stood by him and proclaimed the Wildcats would be a part of the IFL. Unfortunately, that was the last anyone heard of the team, which soon folded for good.
The first helmet above was apparently displayed on their web site. Because it too-closely resembled the Michigan Panthers helmet of the USFL, they obviously couldn't use the design. They wore the second version on the field instead. Also, the facemasks may have been black. Any info is much appreciated.
GREAT BRITAIN SPARTANS
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The Spartans came all the way from England to play two exhibition games against the Bombers and Mad Dogs. The team still exists, playing in an outdoor American Football league in Britain.
GREEN BAY BOMBERS
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The Bombers played in Green Bay, WI. Following the first season, they left the league to help form the IFL.
HONOLULU HURRICANES
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One of the founding members of the PIFL, the team finished the year 6-8. However, the team nearly made the playoffs when commissioner Dick Suess nearly expelled the Bombers, Mad Dogs and Wildcats after the announcement that they were leaving to start a rival league following the season. Unfortunately for the Hurricanes post-season hopes, the 3 defectors remained in the league. The team folded due to the mounting financial burden of having to travel to the mainland for games and was replaced by the Hammerheads the following year.
I have photos that show both helmets were worn at some point during the PIFL's only season. Since there are far more photos of the red design, perhaps the white was only used during exhibition.
LAS VEGAS OUTLAWS
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Apparently the Outlaws played a single exhibition game against the Hurricanes in the hopes of becoming an expansion team in 1999. It's near impossible to tell what the helmet looked like from the single photo I've seen.
LOUISIANA BAYOU BEAST
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The Bayou Beast played in Monroe, LA. They survived the first, and only, season of the PIFL and would play in the re-organized IPFL before later jumping ship to the NIFL in 2000.
MADISON MAD DOGS
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The Mad Dogs would leave the PIFL following the 1998 season to help found the IFL with the Green Bay Bombers.
MINNESOTA MONSTERS
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The Monsters played just outside of Minneapolis, MN. A loser on the field and perpetually in debt, the team struggled through the seventh week of the season before folding.
I have photos of a game worn helmet in which the facemask seems to be the dark blue shown in the first helmet above. However, black facemasks may have also been used as in the second helmet shown.
SYRACUSE BLITZ
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Apparently the Blitz played a single exhibition game against the Bayou Beast in the hopes of becoming an expansion team in 1999.
According to Football helmets to Infinity, video evidence of the game shows that black helmets with white facemasks were worn. However, some helmets had a logo, some did not, and some helmets had black facemaks as well.
TEXAS BULLETS
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The Bullets played in Belton , TX. The team was very unstable financially and forfeited several games during the season.
TUSCON MIRAGE
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The Mirage played two exhibition games against the Hurricanes and the Catzz in hopes of being an expansion team in 1999. When the PIFL became the IPFL, the Mirage never resurfaced.
UTAH CATZZ
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I believe the Catzz were one of the first franchises to join the PIFL. They were based in Orem, UT. After a single financially strapped season, they left the league during its reorganization and started their own semi-pro indoor league based in Utah the following year.
WEST VIRGINIA WIZARDS
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The Wizards played a single exhibition game against the Catzz prior to the start of the 1998 season. Once the PIFL was official organized, they were no longer a part of the league.
I have a single photo of the Wizards from the game. They wore white helmets with blue facemasks. No logo can be seen in the photo, but that doesn't mean they didn't wear one.
IPFL - 1999-2001
BOISE STALLIONS / IDAHO STALLIONS
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IDAHO STALLIONS |
BOISE STALLIONS |
1999-2000 |
2001 |
The Stallions were based in Boise, ID. The team tweaked it's identity in 2001, but were basically the same franchise for the life of the IPFL. The team was owned in part by former commissioner and PIFL founder Dick Suess, who had stepped down from his post following the league reorganization.
In an interesting experiment, the team played some of it's 2001 games on a grass field set up inside its home arena.
FORT WAYNE SAFARI
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| 2002 (never played) |
The Safari were announced as a 2002 expansion team for the IPFL during the 2001 season. Unfortunately, the league disbanded following the season and the team never saw the field.
HAWAI'I HAMMERHEADS
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| 1999 |
The Hammerheads replaced the Hurricanes in Honolulu when the league reorganized in 1999. The team won the 1999 championship, but mounting financial struggles forced the team to fold after the win.
LOUISIANA BAYOU BEAST
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| 1999 |
As stated above, the Bayou Beast played in Monroe, LA. They survived the restructuring of the PIFL and played in the IPFL for a single season. Following 1999, they left the league for the NIFL.
I've recieved reports from visitors that the team also worn helmets without the center yellow stripe for some games.
LOUISIANA RANGERS
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| 2000 |
The Rangers replaced the Bayou Beast in 2000, but they also left the league for the NIFL after a single year.
MISSISSIPPI FIRE DOGS
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| 1999 - 2000 |
The Fire Dogs played in Biloxi, MS. They played two years in the IPFL before leaving to join the NIFL following the 2000 season.
MOBILE SEAGULLS
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| 2000 | 2000 (?) |
The Seagulls were based in Mobile, AL. Like many teams, they too left the league for the NIFL after a single season.
I have game photos of the first helmet seen above, but the team may have also played some games without the stripe on the helmet as seen in the second image.
OMAHA BEEF
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| 2000 - ? | ? - 2001 |
The Beef played for two seasons in the IPFL and were one of the more successful franchises. When they left to join the NIFL, the IPFL was finally forced to pack it in.
I have game photos of both helmets above being used on the field. I know the team wore the second version when they joined the NIFL, so I believe that was worn in 2001. However, I don't know exactly when the change occured -- i.e. when the stripe was removed. It may have happend during the 2000 season, before the 2001 season or during the 2001 season. Who knows?
PORTLAND PROWLERS
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| 2000 - 2001 |
The Prowlers were based in Portland, OR. Led by former Cincinnati Bengal QB Erik Wilhelm, the team made it all the way to the championship game before losing to the Mississippi Fire Dogs.
ROCKY MOUNTAIN THUNDER
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| 1999 |
The Thunder were based in Colorado Springs, CO.
SHREVEPORT-BOSSIER BOMBERS
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| 2000 |
The Bombers were base in the Shreveport-Bossier City area of Louisiana. I've seen several different logos associated with the team, but I believe the above helmet was the only one used. Following their first somewhat unsuccessful season, a new arena was built in Bossier City. Unfortunately for the Bombers it was leased to the AF2's Battle Wings, ending the team's hopes of playing another year.
ST. LOUIS RENEGADES
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| 2001 |
The Renegades played in the final year of the IPFL. They became the River City Renegades when they joined the NIFL following the season.
TENESSEE THUNDERCATS
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| 2001 |
The Thundercats played in the final season of the IPFL. When the league disbanded, they joined the NIFL.
The helmet stripe is actually a lightning bolt tapering to a point near the back. It's hard to tell from the image. It may have been outlined in orange, but I can't tell from the photos I have.
TEXAS TERMINATORS
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| 1999 | 1999 |
The Terminators were based in Austin, TX, and played in the IPFL's first season. I believe they were somehow related to the Texas Bullets, who played when the league was know as the PIFL in 1998.
The team may have used dark blue facemasks in addition to black ones, hence the second helmet above.
TRENTON LIGHTNING
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| 2001 (?) | 2001 |
I Believe the Lightning were based in Trenton, NJ. They played in the final season of the IPFL, but folded prior to the end of the year.
The first helmet above was used on the team and league website. However, the only game photo I can find is of the second helmet shown. I believe the second helmet was the only one actually used on the field.
COMMENTS
The PIFL was started by Dick Suess in 1998. Dick Suess was deeply involved in football on the semi-pro/minor league level, and at the time of this writing heads up the Minor League Football News. In 1996, he began shopping around the idea of the PIFL, an indoor league created from the top minor league programs around the country. The league was finally formed in late 1997 and began it's first season in 1998.
The PIFL was rife with problems from the start. The Wildcats changed coaches during the preseason. By the third game, many teams were in serious financial trouble and started forfeiting games. The Minnesota Monsters folded after week 3. Many other teams missed payrolls and the best players quit.
After the first season, the owner of the Madison Mad Dogs and Green Bay Bombers ditched the PIFL to form the rival IFL. The IFL excelled for two years, while the PIFL retooled and became the IPFL. Dick Suess, the owner of the Idaho Stallions, was still in charge. Unfortunately, where all the IFL teams were franchised out by the league, the IPFL was still struggling with individual ownership. As a result IPFL teams came and went throughout the season. Still, the IPFL managed to survive through three seasons from 1999-2001, and was planning a fourth, when it folded. Some of the teams disbanded, while others moved to the NIFL.
The above information was generously provided by Tom Thomas, a former player for the Colorado Wildcats. Any further information about either incarnation of this league would be much appreciated.