Alabama Outlawz
The Alabama Outlawz is a minor-league Spring football team, one of 5 teams that debuted in 2014 as part of the newly-formed "X-League", headed by Michael Mink. The Outlawz play in the Bill Harris Arena at the Birmingham CrossPlex at Fair Park.
The X-League plays with 8-man teams on an 85'x150' surface with 8-yard end zones with 4-foot tall sideline walls. A standard size football is placed at midfield and one player from each team sprints from the 15-yard-line to claim first possession and 2 points on the board. Teams play four 15-minute quarters, with the clock running through stoppages in play until the last minute of each half. That minute, dubbed the "X-Bonus" period, is played with a different-colored ball and all scores are given double points.
In normal play touchdowns are worth 6 points, place-kicked extra points are worth 1, drop-kicked extra points are worth 2, and a conversion from the 25-yard line is worth 3. Field goals by place kick are 3 points, or 4 if by drop kick. Punts are not part of the game, and the receiving team can field any missed field-goal attempts. All defensive stops are worth 1 point, and defensive scores are worth 8. Two extra point are awarded for scores caught in the 6-foot-square "X-Spot" in the center of the end zone. Receivers must keep one foot in bounds, but a ball bouncing off the sideline wall is a live ball.
Team owner Lee Ellison formally announced the new franchise with Mayor William Bell at Birmingham City Hall on November 12, 2013. Team tryouts were held on November 22 at Sports Blast on U.S. Highway 280 in Shelby County. The inaugural game for the league occurred on March 3, 2014 with the Outlawz playing against the Georgia Rampage at Dalton, Georgia.
X-League teams
- Alabama Outlawz
- Florida Marine Raiders (Lakeland, Florida)
- Georgia Rampage (Dalton, Georgia)
- Pennsylvania Steam (Reading, Pennsylvania)
- St Louis Attack (St Louis, Missouri)
References
- Crenshaw Jr, Solomon (November 11, 2013) "New spring indoor football team launching in Birmingham in March 2014." The Birmingham News
External links
- Alabama Outlawz website
- X-League website