The San Antonio Wings were an American football team who played in the

World Football League The World Football League (WFL) was an American football league that played one full season in 1974 and most of its second in 1975. Although the league's proclaimed ambition was to bring American football onto a worldwide stage, the farthest the ...

in 1975. The team started as the

Florida Blazers The Florida Blazers were an American football team who played in the World Football League in 1974. The team moved to San Antonio in 1975 and became the San Antonio Wings. History The Blazers began in 1974 when oceanographic engineer E. Joseph Wh ...

in 1974, then moved to San Antonio in 1975 and became the San Antonio Wings.

History

The Florida Blazers never drew well, leading team owner Rommie Loudd to openly discuss moving the team to

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...

in the middle of the 1974 season. The players and coaches were not paid for three months. Shortly after the Blazers' defeat in the

World Bowl The World Bowl was the annual American football championship game of the World League of American Football/NFL Europe. The World Bowl was played each year from 1991 to 2007 (except 1993 and 1994). The game was conceived as the final of the NFL-r ...

, Loudd was arrested on tax evasion and cocaine trafficking charges. He was convicted on the latter charge and served three years in prison. He was also sentenced to two years in prison for possession and distribution of cocaine. The Blazers were one of two teams, the other being the

Detroit Wheels The Detroit Wheels were an American football team, a charter member of the defunct World Football League. Founding Soon after Gary Davidson announced the WFL's formation in October 1973, he was approached by a man named Bud Hucul about putting ...

, to outright fold after 1974 with no direct replacement in their markets in 1975 (not counting teams that moved midseason). Only one

expansion team An expansion team is a new team in a sports league, usually from a city that has not hosted a team in that league before, formed with the intention of satisfying the demand for a local team from a population in a new area. Sporting leagues also ...

would be added, with Norman Bevan buying the franchise rights and establishing a team in San Antonio. The new Wings were restocked with an

expansion draft An expansion draft, in professional sports, occurs when a sports league decides to create one or more new expansion teams or franchises. This occurs mainly in North American sports. One of the ways of stocking the new team or teams is an expansio ...

but retained 16 former Blazers, including running back Jim Strong and tight end Luther Palmer.

Larry Grantham James Larry Grantham (September 16, 1938 – June 17, 2017) was an American collegiate and professional football player. Biography A member of the Ole Miss Athletic Hall of Fame, he was a linebacker at the University of Mississippi who came to ...

, a linebacker on the 1974 Blazers, retired but joined the Wings' coaching staff. The team's head coach was Perry Moss, a former head coach at Marshall and a former NFL assistant coach; Blazers coach Jack Pardee, who wanted nothing more to do with the WFL, returned to the NFL during the offseason. Quarterback Johnnie Walton, a relic from the old

Continental Football League The Continental Football League (COFL) was a professional American football minor league that operated in North America from 1965 through 1969. It was established following the collapse of the original United Football League, and hoped to becom ...

who had spent most of the early 1970s bouncing around NFL

practice squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

s, led the WFL in passing in 1975. The Wings held their home games at

Alamo Stadium Alamo Stadium is a horseshoe-shaped football and soccer stadium in the Monte Vista Historic District of San Antonio, Texas. Nicknamed "The Rock Pile" due to its primarily limestone construction it was completed in September 1940 as a Works P ...

, which seated 25,000. San Antonio finished with a 7-6 record (winning all seven home games and losing all six road games) before the league folded on October 22, 1975.

1975 regular season

References

External links

San Antonio Wings 1975 season
at WorldFootballLeague.org
San Antonio Wings at FunWhileItLasted.net

{{WFL Sports teams in San Antonio Defunct American football teams in Texas 1975 establishments in Texas 1975 disestablishments in Texas American football teams established in 1975 American football teams disestablished in 1975

History

1975 regular season

See also

References

External links