ORLANDO – It is one and done for the United Football League at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, so says Commissioner Michael Huyghue at the press conference to introduce Jay Gruden as the new head coach for the Florida Tuskers.
The UFL will anchor the franchise in Orlando, a non-NFL town, where all five home games in the expanded schedule will be played at the Citrus Bowl which is alongside Tinker Stadium, the former home of the Orlando Rays. As such, Sunburst Entertainment Group, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Tampa Bay Rays, will sell its minority stake in the team back to the league.
“Attendance wise, it was not that much different from our other games, less so than Orlando,” Huyghue said about playing in Tampa Bay. The attendance was announced at 11,354 although many believed it was at best, half that. “We played in San Francisco and that was not the right venue. We played in New York City and that was not the right venue. We played in Tampa/St. Petersburg and that was not the right venue. We want to be in non-NFL markets and when we made that recognition it madder sense to keep the team in Orlando.”
The obvious became the next question. Will the California Redwoods and New York Sentinels relocate? “That’s correct,” the commissioner said.
While the Rays have been trying to expand their fan base into Orlando, having a piece of the Tuskers apparently did not make sense for Sunburst Entertainment.
“The Tuskers had a very successful season,” said Senior VP of Development and Business Affairs for Sunburst in a release. “But introducing a team in two different cities at the same time is challenging. Sunburst and the UFL agreed it was in the best interest of the Tuskers to play full-time in Orlando where the team can build a fan base it needs for long term success.”
Those same sentiments were echoed by Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer.
“Having five home games instead of two gives us a chance to develop a fan base,” he said. “It also helps having a local hero in Jay Gruden, who coached the [Orlando] Predators for so long adds an element you can underestimate.”
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