Arlington Renegades

 

 

On December 5, 2018, Dallas was announced as one of eight cities that would join the newly reformed XFL, as well as Seattle, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, Tampa Bay, and Washington, DC.^[2] On February 7, 2019, Bob Stoops, the longtime head coach of the Oklahoma Sooners football team, was hired as the Dallas team's head coach. Stoops was the XFL's first head coaching hire.^[3][4] On April 23, 2019, Stoops named Chris Woods as his defensive coordinator.^[5] On May 16, 2019, Stoops named Hal Mumme as his offensive coordinator.^[6] The team name and logo were revealed on August 21, 2019, as well as the teams uniforms on December 3, 2019.^[7]

On October 15, 2019, The Renegades announced their first player in team history, being assigned former NFL quarterback Landry Jones.^[8]

Dallas lost their first game, against the St. Louis BattleHawks, by a 15–9 final. Kicker Austin MacGinnis tallied all of the Renegade points via field goals, but Dallas' failure to reach the end zone came back to haunt them, as St. Louis scored nine unanswered fourth quarter points to erase a slim deficit. Linebacker Tegray Scales had 13 Dallas tackles, three for a loss. The Renegades picked up their first win on the road, a 25–18 triumph over the Los Angeles Wildcats. Running back Cameron Artis-Payne reached the end zone three times on two touchdowns and a one-point conversion. His final score, a 17-yard scoring run in the penultimate minute, was the final blow in a fourth quarter that saw the two teams combined for 34 points. Another road victory awaited the Renegades in Week 3, as they topped the Seattle Dragons 24–12. Two MacGinnis field goals sandwiched a 65-yard touchdown pass from Landry Jones to Donald Parham in a fourth quarter that saw Dallas break a 12–12 tie. Parham reached the end zone twice over the afternoon. The XFL announced that the remainder of the 2020 XFL season had been cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The team finished with a 2–3 record. On April 10, 2020, the XFL suspended operations, with all employees, players and staff terminated.^{[citation needed]}

 

 

On August 3, 2020, it was reported that a consortium led by Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, Dany Garcia, and Gerry Cardinale (through Cardinale's fund RedBird Capital Partners) purchased the XFL for $15 million just hours before an auction could take place; the purchase received court approval on August 7, 2020.^[9][10] The XFL hired Bob Stoops as a Head Coach on April 13, 2022, with the expectation that he would be coaching Dallas.^[11] On July 24, 2022, the return of a Dallas XFL franchise was confirmed, this time being known as "Arlington" instead of "Dallas", as well as the hiring of Bob Stoops.^[12] On October 31, 2022, the XFL officially announced that the Renegades name would be returning, with a brand new logo. The team went 4–6 in the 2023 season, but made the playoffs as the second team in the South Division. After beating the Houston Roughnecks in the South Division playoff game, it won the 2023 XFL Championship Game over the 10–1 D.C. Defenders by a score of 35–26.

In September 2023, Axios reported that the XFL was in advanced talks with the USFL to merge the two leagues prior to the start of their 2024 seasons.^[13] On September 28, 2023, the XFL and USFL announced their intent to merge with details surrounding the merger to be announced at a later date.^[14] The merger would also require regulatory approval.^[15] In October 2023 the XFL filed a trademark application for the name "United Football League".^[16] On November 30, 2023, Garcia announced via her Instagram page that the leagues had received regulatory approval for the merger and were finalizing plans for a "combined season" to begin March 30, 2024.^[17] The merger was made official on December 31, 2023.^[18]

The Renegades have won one XFL Championship and one South Division Championship, both in 2023.

The Renegades are in-state conference rivals with the San Antonio Brahmas. The teams currently hold a split series.

The Renegades are also in-state out-of-conference rivals with the Houston Roughnecks. Games between the former XFL team of the same name and the Renegades were marketed as the Texas Throwdown.^[19]

The Renegades and Defenders have met three times, DC leads the series 2-1. The two were scheduled to meet in Week 6 of the 2020 XFL season, but the league ceased operations one week before the game due to COVID-19 concerns. The first official meeting of the two teams occurred during Week 9 of the 2023 XFL regular season at Audi Field. DC won the game 28-26 when the game ended in overtime after Jordan Ta'amu completed a pass to wide receiver Josh Hammond for the sole 2 point play scored by either team. This however, would not be the last meeting of the season for the two out-of-division rivals. After successfully winning the XFL South Division title as underdogs, the Renegades found themselves up against the XFL North Division Champion DC Defenders once again in the 2023 XFL Championship Game at the Alamodome in San Antonio. Arlington quickly found itself with a 17-0 lead with 4:54 left in the second quarter. By the end of the game, Renegades Quarterback Luis Perez would throw for 288 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Renegades would finish the game never trailing DC, winning the game 35-26 and their first XFL title in franchise history. This would also mark the first win over Jordan Ta'amu for the franchise as well, reaching this feat on the third meeting of the quarterback and the Renegades franchise.

The two teams have met three times, with St. Louis winning all meetings in the series. The team, then the Dallas Renegades, first met the Battlehawks in each franchises inaugural game during the Week 1 of the 2020 XFL season. The game was played at Globe Life Park (Now Choctaw Stadium). St. Louis would win the 15-9 on the back of future familiar Renegades foe Jordan Ta'amu. The teams met for the second time during Week 4 of the 2023 XFL season, this time at The Dome at America's Center in St. Louis, falling short to the Battlehawks once again.

• Defunct teams in light gray.

The Renegades and the NFL's Dallas Cowboys are currently the two professional outdoor football teams that play in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. Dallas was previously home to the NFL's Dallas Texans in 1952 and the American Football League's Dallas Texans from 1960 to 1962. Other outdoor professional outdoor football teams included the Dallas Rockets and Fort Worth Braves of the Texas Football League which folded midway through the 1971 season. The metro area has been represented by numerous indoor teams, such as the Arena Football League's Dallas Texans, Fort Worth Cavalry, Dallas Desperados and Dallas Vigilantes, and the Allen Wranglers and Texas Revolution. It entered a relatively crowded sports market to share with the NHL Dallas Stars, NBA Dallas Mavericks, WNBA Dallas Wings, MLB Texas Rangers, MLS FC Dallas, NLL Panther City Lacrosse Club, and MLR Dallas Jackals

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Arlington Renegades.

• Official website