Raleigh-Durham Skyhawks
Encyclopedia
The Raleigh–Durham Skyhawks were an American football
team headquartered in Raleigh
, North Carolina
that played for one season in 1991 in the World League of American Football
(WLAF). The name was inspired by the Wright brothers
' flights on the Outer Banks
of North Carolina. The three jet-trails and three planes in flight, as well as the triangle design in the logo, represented the three points of the Research Triangle area (Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill). The team's cheerleaders were known as the "Kittyhawks."
The name was chosen by Raleigh citizens, the choices being the Skyhawks, Daredevils, or Rogues as published in the News and Observer.
The Skyhawks' home field was N.C. State's
Carter-Finley Stadium
in Raleigh. Then-Charlotte Hornets owner George Shinn
owned the franchise, and the head coach was former NFL player and N.C. State alumnus Roman Gabriel
.
The team posted a perfectly dismal 0-10 record in the 1991 season and averaged 12,066 spectators per game due in part by the lack of beer sales at Carter-Finley Stadium. The team folded after their lone season of 1991. To replace them for the 1992 season, the WLAF established a new franchise in Columbus, Ohio
, naming it the Ohio Glory
.
The Skyhawks' lack of success did not sour the NFL on the whole state, as in 1995, Charlotte
welcomed the expansion Carolina Panthers
franchise.
|1991 || 0 || 10 || 0 || 4th North American East || --
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
team headquartered in Raleigh
Raleigh, North Carolina
Raleigh is the capital and the second largest city in the state of North Carolina as well as the seat of Wake County. Raleigh is known as the "City of Oaks" for its many oak trees. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 403,892, over an area of , making Raleigh...
, North Carolina
North Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
that played for one season in 1991 in the World League of American Football
World League of American Football
The World League of American Football was founded in 1990 with support from the National Football League to play professional American football in North America, Europe and later possibly Asia...
(WLAF). The name was inspired by the Wright brothers
Wright brothers
The Wright brothers, Orville and Wilbur , were two Americans credited with inventing and building the world's first successful airplane and making the first controlled, powered and sustained heavier-than-air human flight, on December 17, 1903...
' flights on the Outer Banks
Outer Banks
The Outer Banks is a 200-mile long string of narrow barrier islands off the coast of North Carolina, beginning in the southeastern corner of Virginia Beach on the east coast of the United States....
of North Carolina. The three jet-trails and three planes in flight, as well as the triangle design in the logo, represented the three points of the Research Triangle area (Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill). The team's cheerleaders were known as the "Kittyhawks."
The name was chosen by Raleigh citizens, the choices being the Skyhawks, Daredevils, or Rogues as published in the News and Observer.
The Skyhawks' home field was N.C. State's
North Carolina State University
North Carolina State University at Raleigh is a public, coeducational, extensive research university located in Raleigh, North Carolina, United States. Commonly known as NC State, the university is part of the University of North Carolina system and is a land, sea, and space grant institution...
Carter-Finley Stadium
Carter-Finley Stadium
Carter-Finley Stadium is home to the North Carolina State University Wolfpack football team. It was opened in 1966 and now has a seating capacity of 57,583 seats....
in Raleigh. Then-Charlotte Hornets owner George Shinn
George Shinn
George Shinn is the former owner of the Charlotte/New Orleans Hornets as well the Charlotte Knights and Gastonia Rangers minor league baseball teams along with the Raleigh/Durham Skyhawks of the World League of American Football. He purchased the Hornets for $32,500,000 in 1987...
owned the franchise, and the head coach was former NFL player and N.C. State alumnus Roman Gabriel
Roman Gabriel
Roman Ildonzo Gabriel, Jr. is a former American football player. The son of a Filipino immigrant, he was the first Asian-American to start as an NFL quarterback and is considered by many to have been one of the best players at that position during the late 1960s and early 70s.Gabriel attended and...
.
The team posted a perfectly dismal 0-10 record in the 1991 season and averaged 12,066 spectators per game due in part by the lack of beer sales at Carter-Finley Stadium. The team folded after their lone season of 1991. To replace them for the 1992 season, the WLAF established a new franchise in Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
, naming it the Ohio Glory
Ohio Glory
The Ohio Glory played one season in the World League of American Football, which later became NFL Europe.Columbus, Ohio was awarded the WLAF franchise after the Raleigh-Durham Skyhawks posted an 0-10 season. Ohio didn't do much better, posting a 1-9 record after one season of play...
.
The Skyhawks' lack of success did not sour the NFL on the whole state, as in 1995, Charlotte
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...
welcomed the expansion Carolina Panthers
Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are currently members of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Panthers, along with the Jacksonville Jaguars, joined the NFL as expansion...
franchise.
Season-by-season
|-|1991 || 0 || 10 || 0 || 4th North American East || --
Schedule
| Week | Date | Opponent | Results | Game site | Attendance | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Final score | Team record | ||||||
| 1 | Saturday, March 23 | 4:00 p.m. | at Sacramento Surge Sacramento Surge The Sacramento Surge was a professional American football team that played in the World League of American Football in 1991 and 1992. The team played its first season at Hughes Stadium in Sacramento, and the second season in Hornet Stadium on the Sacramento State University campus. It was owned... |
L 3–9 | 0–1 | Hughes Stadium | 15,126 |
| 2 | Saturday, March 30 | 8:00 p.m. | at Orlando Thunder Orlando Thunder The Orlando Thunder was a member of the World League of American Football from 1991 to 1992 . The team played their games in the 70,000 seat Citrus Bowl, and was coached by Don Matthews in 1991 and Galen Hall in 1992... |
L 20–58 | 0–2 | Florida Citrus Bowl Citrus Bowl The Florida Citrus Bowl is a stadium in Orlando, Florida, USA, built for football, which currently seats around 70,000 people.... |
20,811 |
| 3 | Saturday, April 6 | 8:00 p.m. | Barcelona Dragons 1991 Barcelona Dragons season The 1991 Barcelona Dragons season was the inaugural season for the team in the World League of American Football.-Staff:-Roster:-Schedule:-Standings:... |
L 14–26 | 0–3 | Carter–Finley Stadium | 17,900 |
| 4 | Monday, April 15 | 8:00 p.m. | San Antonio Riders San Antonio Riders The San Antonio Riders were a professional American football team that played in the WLAF in 1991 and 1992. The team played in the Alamo Stadium in 1991 and then were forced to move to Bobcat Stadium on the campus of Southwest Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas, 45 miles northeast of San... |
L 15–37 | 0–4 | Carter–Finley Stadium | 11,818 |
| 5 | Saturday, April 20 | 8:00 p.m. | at Frankfurt Galaxy 1991 Frankfurt Galaxy season The 1991 Frankfurt Galaxy season was the inaugural season for the team in the World League of American Football.-Staff:-Roster:-Schedule:-Standings:-Honors:... |
L 28–30 | 0–5 | Waldstadion Commerzbank-Arena The Commerzbank-Arena is a sports stadium in Frankfurt, Hesse, Germany. Commonly known by its original name, Waldstadion , the stadium opened in 1925. The stadium has been upgraded several times since then; the most recent remodelling was its redevelopment as a football-only stadium in preparation... |
21,065 |
| 6 | Sunday, April 28 | 6:00 p.m. | at London Monarchs 1991 London Monarchs season The 1991 London Monarchs season was the inaugural season for the team in the World League of American Football.-Staff:-Roster:-Schedule:-Standings:... |
L 10–35 | 0–6 | Wembley Stadium | 33,997 |
| 7 | Sunday, May 5 | 1:00 p.m. | New York/New Jersey Knights New York/New Jersey Knights New York/New Jersey Knights was a franchise in the World League of American Football for the 1991 and 1992 seasons. They played in the North American East division, which they won in the 1991 season. They were coached by Mouse Davis, an architect of the Run & Shoot offense.After 1992 the NFL ... |
L 6–42 | 0–7 | Carter–Finley Stadium | 10,069 |
| 8 | Monday, May 13 | 8:00 p.m. | at Montreal Machine Montreal Machine The Montreal Machine was the sole Canadian team in the World League of American Football, a springtime developmental professional league set up by the National Football League that played in 1991 and 1992. There were also three European teams and six U.S.-based teams... |
L 6–15 | 0–8 | Olympic Stadium Olympic Stadium (Montreal) The Olympic Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium in the Hochelaga-Maisonneuve district of Montreal, Quebec, Canada built as the main venue for the 1976 Summer Olympics... |
20,123 |
| 9 | Monday, May 20 | 8:00 p.m. | Orlando Thunder Orlando Thunder The Orlando Thunder was a member of the World League of American Football from 1991 to 1992 . The team played their games in the 70,000 seat Citrus Bowl, and was coached by Don Matthews in 1991 and Galen Hall in 1992... |
L 14–20 | 0–9 | Carter–Finley Stadium | 4,207 |
| 10 | Saturday, May 25 | 3:00 p.m. | Birmingham Fire Birmingham Fire The Birmingham Fire was a professional American football team based in Birmingham, Alabama that played in the World League of American Football in 1991 and 1992. The team played at Legion Field, and it made the playoffs in both seasons.... |
L 7–28 | 0–10 | Carter–Finley Stadium | 16,335 |
Staff
| 1991 Raleigh–Durham Skyhawks staff | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Front Office
Head Coaches
Offensive Coaches
|
Defensive Coaches
Support Staff
|
|||||
Roster
| 1991 Raleigh–Durham Skyhawks roster | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Quarterbacks
Running Backs
Wide Receivers
Tight Ends
|
Offensive Linemen
Defensive Linemen
|
Linebackers
Defensive Backs
Special Teams
|
Operation Discovery
Rookies in italics |
|||