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For those of you who just weren’t ready for football to be over, you’re in luck. The Alliance of American Football (a new spring pro league spearheaded by a group of former NFL players, coaches, and executives) kicked off this weekend. This past Saturday saw Steve Spurrier’s Orlando Apollos steamroll the Atlanta Legends 40-6 and former OSU coach Mike Riley lead the San Antonio Commanders to a 15-6 win over the San Diego Fleet.
Sunday afternoon, the action continues with Birmingham hosting Memphis and Arizona hosting Salt Lake.
Here’s a refresher of Oregon State connections in the league as of opening weekend:
Dennis Erickson: head coach, Salt Lake Stallions
Mike Riley: head coach, San Antonio Commanders
Ryan Navarro: long snapper, Memphis Express
Fred Lauina: offensive line, San Antonio Commanders
Richard Mullaney: receiver, Arizona Hotshots
Connor Hamlett: tight end, Arizona Hotshots
Obum Gwacham: linebacker, Arizona Hotshots
Tim Cook: running back, Arizona Hotshots
The league is already picking up some steam in terms of fan support dominating Twitter on Saturday night as well as in the ratings.
Two hours in to its history, @TheAAF is responsible for 11 of the 20 top trending topics on Twitter in the US. Relevance badge unlocked. pic.twitter.com/YDX8uX8zjf
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) February 10, 2019
According to sources at CBS and ESPN, @TheAAF and NBA on ABC both averaged a 2.1 metered market rating.
— Front Office Sports (@frntofficesport) February 10, 2019
That number is the same as @nbcsnl, making all three tied for the highest rated prime time show last night.
So which team are you throwing your support behind this season?
Personally, I’m just glad we get to see Fred Lauina dancing on a national stage again.
Gameday mood #mandernation #sanantoniocommanders @aafcommanders pic.twitter.com/272YtDSzmG
— Fred Lauina (@tokouso64) February 9, 2019
Let us know what you think by voting in the poll (if you didn’t come to this link via Twitter on your phone because technology), letting us know in the comments, or tweeting at us. Go Beavs!
Poll
Who’s your AAF Team This Spring?
This poll is closed
-
16%
Salt Lake Stallions
(10 votes) -
18%
Arizona Hotshots
(11 votes) -
44%
San Antonio Commanders
(27 votes) -
3%
San Diego Fleet
(2 votes) -
3%
Orlando Apollos
(2 votes) -
4%
Memphis Express
(3 votes) -
4%
Birmingham Iron
(3 votes) -
4%
Atlanta Legends
(3 votes)