2015 Arena Football League season

2015 Arena Football League season
League Arena Football League
Sport Arena Football
Duration March 27 – August 29
Regular season
Season champions San Jose SaberCats
Season MVP Dan Raudabaugh (PHI)
League postseason
American Conference champions Jacksonville Sharks
  American Conference runners-up Philadelphia Soul
National Conference champions San Jose SaberCats
  National Conference runners-up Arizona Rattlers
ArenaBowl XXVIII
Champions San Jose SaberCats
  Runners-up Jacksonville Sharks

The 2015 Arena Football League season is the twenty-eighth season in the history of the league. The regular season began on March 27, 2015 and ended on August 8, 2015.

League business

Teams

The city of Las Vegas, Nevada was awarded an expansion team on June 18, 2014. The team, named the Las Vegas Outlaws, was the first AFL team to call Las Vegas home since the Las Vegas Gladiators in 2007. Vince Neil, lead singer of the rock band Mötley Crüe, was the majority owner of the expansion franchise.[1] The Outlaws' expansion draft took place on December 22, 2014.

Two teams that competed in 2014 suspended operations, (Pittsburgh Power & San Antonio Talons) and their rosters became signable upon offseason assignment process held on December 23, 2014.

The Iowa Barnstormers were the third and final team to leave the AFL for the 2015 season when they joined the Indoor Football League (IFL) on August 27, 2014. In 2015 all games were televised, most on ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNEWS, and especially on ESPN3 (available online through WatchESPN) and some on the CBS Sports Network.[2]

On July 15, the league took over the daily operations of the Las Vegas Outlaws and New Orleans VooDoo after financial problems and declining attendance. As a result, their game against each other (which was set to be played on the 25th) was cancelled and declared a tie, only the 3rd in AFL history and the only cancellation in league history. The league ran both teams to the end of the season with the intent of looking for new ownership in the offseason but on August 9, the day following the conclusion of the regular season, both teams ceased operations. Las Vegas had qualified for a playoff spot, the final one in the National Conference, but the league's Board of Directors voted against their inclusion in the postseason, considering that with no team ownership, there was no funding for the team.[3] The Outlaws were replaced in the playoffs by the Portland Thunder, who had finished last in their division but had the better record of the two remaining non-playoff National Conference teams, meaning that all teams in the Pacific Division made the playoffs.

Alignment

Conference Division Teams
American East Cleveland Gladiators, New Orleans VooDoo, Philadelphia Soul
South Jacksonville Sharks, Orlando Predators, Tampa Bay Storm
National Pacific Portland Thunder, San Jose SaberCats, Spokane Shock
West Arizona Rattlers, Las Vegas Outlaws , Los Angeles Kiss

Standings

2015 American Conference standings
Team Overall Points Records
W L T PCT PF PA DIV CON Home Away
East Division
(1) Philadelphia Soul 15 3 0 .833 1060 823 6–0 11–3 9–0 6–3
(4) Cleveland Gladiators 8 10 0 .444 953 959 3–3 6–8 3–6 5–4
New Orleans VooDoo 3 14 1 .194 692 919 0–6 2–12 3–6 0–8–1
South Division
(2) Orlando Predators 12 6 0 .667 1023 951 5–1 10–4 7–2 5–4
(3) Jacksonville Sharks 10 8 0 .556 971 901 2–4 8–6 7–2 3–6
Tampa Bay Storm 7 11 0 .389 820 942 2–4 5–9 5–4 2–7
2015 National Conference standings
Team Overall Points Records
W L T PCT PF PA DIV CON Home Away
Pacific Division
(1) San Jose SaberCats 17 1 0 .944 1061 662 6–0 13–1 8–1 9–0
(3) Spokane Shock 7 11 0 .389 847 971 2–4 6–8 4–5 3–6
(4) Portland Thunder 5 13 0 .278 819 908 1–5 4–10 5–4 0–9
West Division
(2) Arizona Rattlers 14 4 0 .778 1003 825 5–1 10–4 8–1 6–3
Las Vegas Outlaws 5 12 1 .306 740 909 3–3 5–9 3–5–1 2–7
Los Angeles Kiss 4 14 0 .222 724 915 1–5 4–10 3–6 1–8

Playoffs

Conference Semifinals Conference Championships ArenaBowl XXVIII
         
1 Philadelphia 47
4 Cleveland 35
1 Philadelphia 56
American Conference
3 Jacksonville 61
2 Orlando 33
3 Jacksonville 55
3 Jacksonville 47
1 San Jose 68
1 San Jose 55
4 Portland 28
1 San Jose 70
National Conference
2 Arizona 67
2 Arizona 72
3 Spokane 41

Conference semifinals

Conference Date Kickoff Away Score Home Game site Recap
National August 14 11:00 p.m. EDT Portland Thunder 28–55 San Jose Sabercats SAP Center at San Jose
American August 15 5:00 p.m. EDT Cleveland Gladiators 35–47 Philadelphia Soul Wells Fargo Center
American August 15 7:30 p.m. EDT Jacksonville Sharks 55–33 Orlando Predators Amway Center
National August 15 9:00 p.m. EDT Spokane Shock 41–72 Arizona Rattlers Talking Stick Resort Arena

Conference finals

Conference Date Kickoff Away Score Home Game site Recap
National August 22 8:00 p.m. EDT Arizona Rattlers 67–70 San Jose SaberCats Stockton Arena[4]
American August 23 5:00 p.m. EDT Jacksonville Sharks 61–56 Philadelphia Soul Wells Fargo Center

ArenaBowl XXVIII

Date Kickoff Away Score Home Game site Recap
August 29 7:00 p.m. EDT Jacksonville Sharks 47–68 San Jose SaberCats Stockton Arena

References

  1. ↑ "Vince Neil gets AFL approval". www.espn.go.com. ESPN Internet Ventures. June 20, 2014.
  2. ↑ "Iowa Barnstormers Announce Future Plans, Barnstormers Join Indoor Football League, Hire Head Coach". www.theiowabarnstormers.com. Iowa Barnstormers. August 27, 2014.
  3. ↑ "VooDoo, Outlaws Cease Operations". www.arenafootballleague.com. Arena Football League. August 9, 2015. Retrieved August 9, 2015.
  4. ↑ "Local sports digest: SaberCats' potential ArenaBowl clincher would be in Stockton". San Jose Mercury News. mercurynews.com. August 12, 2015. Retrieved August 15, 2015.
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