The Bridgeport Jets were a minor league

American football American football, referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada and also known as gridiron football, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular American football field, field with goalposts at e ...

team based in

Bridgeport, Connecticut Bridgeport is the List of municipalities in Connecticut, most populous city in the U.S. state of Connecticut and the List of cities in New England by population, fifth-most populous city in New England, with a population of 148,654 in 2020. Loc ...

. They began play in the

Atlantic Coast Football League The Atlantic Coast Football League (ACFL) was a professional American football Minor league football (gridiron), minor league that operated from 1962 to 1973. Until 1969, many of its franchises had working agreements with National Football Leagu ...

in 1966 as the Waterbury Orbits. The Orbits, already officially affiliated with the

New York Jets The New York Jets are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Jets compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East division. The team p ...

of the

American Football League The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, AFL–NFL merger, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Foot ...

, became the Bridgeport Jets in 1968. After relocating from

Waterbury Waterbury is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. Waterbury had a population of 114,403 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 Census. The city is southwest of Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford and northeast of New York City. Waterbury i ...

, the Jets played their homes games in John F. Kennedy Stadium.

History

The Jets were founded in 1966 and owned by Fiore Francis “Hi-Ho” D’Addario. The “Hi-Ho” commonly used on Jets program covers alludes to D’Addario’s nickname. In the 1980’s after the folding of the Jets, D’Addario became the primary sponsor of the

Connecticut Brakettes The Connecticut Brakettes is a women's fastpitch softball team based in Stratford, Connecticut. The team has won many state, regional, national, and international tournaments (28 ). History The team was founded in 1947 by William S. Simpson as ...

, a women’s softball team who were known as the Hi-Ho Brakettes during his time as sponsor. The ACFL suspended operations for the 1972 season after losing several franchises. While the Jets did not dissolve they were inactive for the year. They returned as part of a six-team ACFL in 1973 and enjoyed their most successful season. They finished atop their division with an 11–1 record and faced the New England Colonials in the league championship game, which they lost 41–17. It turned out to be the final game for the ACFL, which folded soon after. The Jets moved to the

Seaboard Football League The Seaboard Football League was an American football minor league that operated from 1971 to 1974.Bob Gill, with Steve Brainerd and Tod Maher, ''Minor League Football, 1960-85'' (McFarland and Co., 2002), pp84, 99-100 It folded during the 1974 ...

in 1974, and advanced to their second league title game in a row. Once again they lost, this time 20–9 to the Wilkes-Barre Bullets. Both the Jets and Bullets were the only teams in the league to complete their seasons. With the cessation of the Seaboard Football League, the Jets' franchise ended.

Season-by-season

References

Atlantic Coast Football League teams American football teams in Connecticut Sports in Bridgeport, Connecticut 1966 establishments in Connecticut 1974 disestablishments in Connecticut American football teams established in 1966 Sports clubs and teams disestablished in 1974 {{amfoot-team-stub