Post by Monika on Oct 28, 2021 17:16:43 GMT -8
Overview
The following is the 2022 schedule for the Frisco Fighters.
This Year will mark the 13th complete season of the Indoor Football League. It follows a successful 2021 campaign in which the IFL navigated through a global pandemic, a shooting near at a hotel near to where the away team was staying and the termination of the Louisville Xtreme after five games due to that team not meeting financial obligations. The season saw several bright spots with playoff semifinals appearances from two teams moving over from other leagues; the Massachusetts Pirates from the National Arena League and the Duke City Gladiators from Champions Indoor Football. The season also saw the return of indoor football to Spokane, which came back as the Shock. Two expansion teams debuted in 2021; the Frisco Fighters and Northern Arizona Wranglers.
Twelve teams began the season last year before the Xtreme were dismissed from the league. Eight teams made the playoffs as 10 of the 11 remaining teams didn't find out their playoff destinies until the final week. The Pirates, Gladiators, Fighters and Arizona Rattlers advanced to the semifinals. A pair of hard-fought games resulted in the Pirates and Rattlers punching their respective tickets to the United Bowl. The championship game was a back-and-forth affair, ending with the Pirates winning their first championship on a 31-yard field goal in overtime.
Four teams sat out the season due to concerns and meeting state mandates due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Cedar Rapids River Kings, Quad City Steamwheelers and San Diego Strike Force last played in 2019 and will make their returns this season. The Bay Area Panthers (formerly Oakland Panthers) were set to make their expansion debut in 2020 prior to the league cancelling the season because of the pandemic. The Panthers will enter 2022 as their expansion season. Two true expansion teams -- the Columbus Wild Dogs and Vegas Knight Hawks will also debut this season.
The IFL schedule will span 19 weeks with each team playing 16 games (eight home and eight away). The season opens with the Frisco Fighters visiting the Massachusetts Pirates on March 12. Eight teams from two conferences will reach the playoffs in a standard bracket format. The conference alignment appears below.
The Fighters did not look like an expansion team last season. Sure, they had been slated to start in 2020 before that season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, they came out with a punch in 2021 by winning their first five games. They had a chance to gain the first seed in the playoffs with a battle against the Arizona Rattlers in the final week of the season, but they were turned back by the Rattlers, 55-38. The Fighters earned the third seed in the playoffs and were pitted at home against the Spokane Shock in the first round. After defeating the Shock. 44-33, they advanced to the semifinals where they fell to the eventual champion Massachusetts Pirates, 43-22. The Fighters announced on November 9 that they had hired Billy Back as head coach to replace Clint Dolezel, who resigned October to pursue another venture. Back was head coach of the Shock during the 2021 season. The Fighters play their home games at the Comercia Center in Frisco, Texas.
Click for the entire IFL 2022 schedule.
All games will be broadcast locally on the radio. Most IFL games will be broadcast live on the league's official YouTube ChannelSCtoC will provide previews each game, as well as recaps of games upon their conclusions. In the schedule below. Home games are noted in bold blue. Times and dates are subject to change. All times are pacific. Where applicable, click for SCtoC's original recap of the game.
Note: This article was updated on November 9, 2021 to reflect the hiring of Billy Back as head coach of the Fighters.
Schedule
MARCH
Week 1 -- Sat., March 12 - at Massachusetts Pirates (L 27-30) - Recap
Week 2 -- BYE
Week 3 -- Sat., March 26 - at Duke City Gladiators (W 60-33)
APRIL
Week 4 -- Fri., April 1 - Tucson Sugar Skulls (W 56-34)
Week 5 -- Sat., April 9 - at Green Bay Blizzard (W 38-36) - Recap
Week 6 -- Sat., April 16 - at Quad City Steamwheelers (W 68-51)
Week 7 -- Sat., April 23 - Duke City Gladiators (W 42-41)
Week 8 -- Sat., April 30 - Arizona Rattlers (L 35-49) - Recap
MAY
Week 9 -- BYE
Week 10 -- Sat., May 14 - at Sioux Falls Storm (W 57-39) - Recap
Week 11 -- Sat., May 21 - at Arizona Rattlers (W 48-35)
Week 12 -- Sat., May 28 - Vegas Knight Hawks (W 42-21)
JUNE
Week 13 -- Sat., June 4 - at Bismarck Bucks (W 55-24)
Week 14 -- Sat., June 11 - Duke City Gladiators (W 47-46) - Recap
Week 15 -- Sat., June 18 - at Iowa Barnstormers (W 62-42)
Week 16 -- Sat., June 25 - Green Bay Blizzard (W 50-27)
JULY
Week 17 -- BYE
Week 18 -- Sat., July 9 - Quad City Steamwheelers (W 50-44 - 2OT)
Week 19 -- Sat., July 16 - Sioux Falls Storm (W 35-28) - Recap
PLAYOFFS
JULY
Semifinal -- Fri., July 22 - Iowa Barnstormers (W 64-39) - Recap
Eastern Conference Championship -- Fri., July 29 - Quad City Steamwheelers (L 41-48) - Recap
IFL Team Venues
Arizona Rattlers - Footprint Center; Phoenix, Arizona
Bay Area Panthers - SAP Center; San Jose, California
Bismarck Bucks - Bismarck Event Center; Bismarck, North Dakota
Duke City Gladiators - Rio Rancho Events Center; Rio Rancho, New Mexico
Frisco Fighters - Comerica Center; Frisco, Texas
Green Bay Blizzard - Resch Center; Green Bay, Wisconsin
Iowa Barnstormers- Wells Fargo Arena; Des Moines, Iowa
Massachusetts Pirates - DCU Center; Worcester, Massachusetts
Northern Arizona Wranglers - Findlay Toyota Center; Prescott Valley, Arizona
Quad City Steamwheelers - Taxslayer Center; Moline, Illinois
San Diego Strike Force - Pechanga Arena; San Diego, California
Sioux Falls Storm - Denny Sanford Premier Center; Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Tucson Sugar Skulls - Tucson Convention Center; Tucson, Arizona
Vegas Knight Hawks - Dollar Loan Center; Henderson, Nevada
IFL Team Geographical Map
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