San Antonio Commanders
Defunct American football franchise
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The San Antonio Commanders were a professional American football team based in San Antonio, Texas, and one of the eight members of the Alliance of American Football (AAF).[1] The league began play in February 2019. The team played their home games at the Alamodome.[1][2] The team was led by head coach Mike Riley.
| San Antonio Commanders | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
| General information | |||
| Founded | 2018 | ||
| Folded | 2019 | ||
| Colors | Maroon, red, silver & white | ||
| Personnel | |||
| Head coach | Mike Riley | ||
| President | Vic Gregovits | ||
| Team history | |||
| |||
| Home fields | |||
| |||
| League / conference affiliations | |||
Alliance of American Football
| |||
On April 2, 2019, the league's football operations were reportedly suspended,[3][4] and on April 4 the league allowed players to leave their contracts to sign with NFL teams.[5] The league filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy on April 17, 2019.[6] The league left debts of over $1.4 million to three local hotels and $200,000 to a catering business.[7]
History
The Alliance San Antonio charter team of the Alliance of American Football spring league was announced on June 21, 2018. Also, the league announced former San Diego Chargers coach Mike Riley as head coach and former Dallas Cowboys fullback Daryl Johnston as General Manager of the team.[8][9] The western four teams' names and logos were revealed on September 25 with San Antonio as the Commanders.[10] The name is a tribute to San Antonio's military history, with maroon and silver representing the city and the small swords carried by military officers, respectively.[11][12]
The final 52-man roster was set on January 30, 2019.[13] The team's first game was a 15–6 win at home against the San Diego Fleet on Saturday, February 9, 2019.[14]
The Commanders, who drew an average of approximately 27,720 fans to each home game, were by far the best-attended team in the AAF.[7]
The league was suspended on April 2, 2019, with about 20 minutes left in the Commanders' practice. "It ended in the blink of an eye. Like that," Riley said later.[15]
The next year, the XFL began discussions about relocating one of its eight teams to San Antonio;[16] this would eventually bear fruit with the San Antonio Brahmas in 2023.[17]
Final roster
| Quarterbacks
Running backs
Wide receivers
Tight ends
|
Offensive linemen
Defensive linemen
|
Linebackers
Defensive backs
Special teams
|
Reserve lists
Rights list
|
Allocation pool
The team's assigned area, which designated player rights, included the following:[18]
|
Colleges |
National Football League (NFL) Canadian Football League (CFL)
|
Staff
|
| |||||
2019 season
| 2019 San Antonio Commanders season | |
|---|---|
| General manager | Daryl Johnston |
| Head coach | Mike Riley |
| Home stadium | Alamodome |
| Results | |
| Record | 5–3 |
| League place | 1st (tie), Western Conference |
Final standings
| Eastern Conference | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Club | W–L | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | DIFF | SOS | SOV | STK |
| (x) – Orlando Apollos | 7–1 | .875 | 5–0 | 236 | 136 | 100 | .406 | .375 | W2 |
| (x) – Birmingham Iron | 5–3 | .625 | 3–2 | 165 | 133 | 32 | .406 | .300 | W1 |
| (e) – Memphis Express | 2–6 | .250 | 1–4 | 152 | 194 | -42 | .578 | .500 | L1 |
| (e) – Atlanta Legends | 2–6 | .250 | 1–4 | 88 | 213 | -125 | .609 | .438 | L3 |
| Western Conference | |||||||||
| Club | W–L | PCT | CONF | PF | PA | DIFF | SOS | SOV | STK |
| San Antonio Commanders | 5–3 | .625 | 3–2 | 158 | 154 | 4 | .516 | .450 | L1 |
| Arizona Hotshots | 5–3 | .625 | 3–2 | 186 | 144 | 42 | .469 | .500 | W3 |
| San Diego Fleet | 3–5 | .375 | 2–3 | 158 | 161 | -3 | .469 | .417 | L3 |
| Salt Lake Stallions | 3–5 | .375 | 2–3 | 135 | 143 | -8 | .547 | .417 | W1 |
| (x)–clinched playoff berth; (e)–eliminated from playoff contention | |||||||||
Schedule
Preseason
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| – | January 28 | Atlanta Legends | W 37–11 | 1–0 | Alamodome |
Regular season
| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | February 9 | San Diego Fleet | W 15–6 | 1–0 | Alamodome | 27,857 |
| 2 | February 17 | Orlando Apollos | L 29–37 | 1–1 | Alamodome | 29,176 |
| 3 | February 24 | at San Diego Fleet | L 11–31 | 1–2 | SDCCU Stadium | 14,789 |
| 4 | March 3 | at Birmingham Iron | W 12–11 | 2–2 | Legion Field | 6,539 |
| 5 | March 10 | at Arizona Hotshots | W 29–25 | 3–2 | Sun Devil Stadium | 9,351 |
| 6 | March 17 | at Atlanta Legends | W 37–6 | 4–2 | Georgia State Stadium | 10,619 |
| 7 | March 23 | Salt Lake Stallions | W 19–15 | 5–2 | Alamodome | 30,345 |
| 8 | March 31 | Arizona Hotshots | L 6–23 | 5–3 | Alamodome | 23,504 |
| 9 | April 6 | Memphis Express | Not played | Alamodome | ||
| 10 | April 12 | at Salt Lake Stallions | Rice–Eccles Stadium | |||
Game summaries
Week 1: San Diego
Week One: San Diego Fleet at San Antonio Commanders – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fleet | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Commanders | 0 | 6 | 0 | 9 | 15 |
at Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas
- Date: February 9
- Game time: 7:00 p.m. CT
- Game weather: Indoors
- Game attendance: 27,857
- Referee: Jeff Heaser[21]
- TV announcers (CBS): Spero Dedes, Trent Green, Tiki Barber, and Jamie Erdahl
- NoExtraPoints AAF
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
With the win, the Commanders started 1–0.
Week 2: Orlando
Week Two: Orlando Apollos at San Antonio Commanders – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apollos | 0 | 17 | 3 | 17 | 37 |
| Commanders | 12 | 6 | 11 | 0 | 29 |
at Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas
- Date: February 17
- Game time: 3:00 p.m. CT
- Game weather: Indoors
- Game attendance: 29,176
- Referee: James Carter[22]
- TV announcers (CBS Sports Network): Ben Holden, Adam Archuleta, John Schriffen
- NoExtraPoints AAF
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
First loss in Commanders history. San Antonio fell to 1-1.
Week 3: at San Diego
Week Three: San Antonio Commanders at San Diego Fleet – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commanders | 8 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 11 |
| Fleet | 6 | 16 | 6 | 3 | 31 |
at SDCCU Stadium, San Diego California
- Date: February 24
- Game time: 7:00 p.m. CT
- Game attendance: 14,789
- Referee: Tra Blake[23]
- TV announcers (NFL Network): Dan Hellie, Marvin Lewis, Maurice Jones-Drew
- NoExtraPoints AAF
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
First time in Commanders history with consecutive losses. Commanders drop to 1-2.
Week 4: at Birmingham
Week Four: San Antonio Commanders at Birmingham Iron – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commanders | 3 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 12 |
| Iron | 0 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 11 |
at Legion Field, Birmingham, Alabama
- Date: March 3
- Game time: 3:00 p.m. CT
- Game weather: Storm warning[24]
- Game attendance: 6,539
- Referee: John O'Neill[25]
- TV announcers (CBS Sports Network): Ben Holden, Adam Archuleta, John Schriffen
- NoExtraPoints AAF
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
First road win in Commanders history. Commanders improve to 2-2.
Week 5: at Arizona
Week Five: San Antonio Commanders at Arizona Hotshots – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commanders | 14 | 12 | 0 | 3 | 29 |
| Hotshots | 0 | 0 | 8 | 17 | 25 |
at Sun Devil Stadium, Tempe, Arizona
- Date: March 10
- Game time: 7:00 p.m. CT
- Game attendance: 9,351
- Referee: Brandon Cruse[26]
- TV announcers (NFL Network): Matt "Money" Smith, Marvin Lewis
- NoExtraPoints AAF
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
First time in Commanders history with consecutive wins. Commanders improve to 3-2.
Week 6: at Atlanta
Week Six: San Antonio Commanders at Atlanta Legends – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Commanders | 6 | 20 | 3 | 8 | 37 |
| Legends | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
at Georgia State Stadium, Atlanta, Georgia
- Date: March 17
- Game time: 3:00 p.m. CT
- Game attendance: 10,619
- Referee: James Carter[27]
- TV announcers (CBS Sports Network): Ben Holden, Adam Archuleta, John Schriffen
- NoExtraPoints AAF
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Commanders improve to 4-2.
Week 7: Salt Lake
Week Seven: Salt Lake Stallions at San Antonio Commanders – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stallions | 3 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 15 |
| Commanders | 6 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 19 |
at Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas
- Date: March 23
- Game time: 7:00 p.m. CT
- Game weather: Indoors
- Game attendance: 30,345
- Referee: John O'Neill[28]
- TV announcers (NFL Network): Dan Hellie, Steve Mariucci, Jason Fisher
- NoExtraPoints AAF
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Commanders improve to 5-2. Also, this game marks the first time in league history that single game attendance was above 30,000.
Week 8: Arizona
Week Eight: Arizona Hotshots at San Antonio Commanders – Game summary
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hotshots | 6 | 9 | 0 | 8 | 23 |
| Commanders | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 6 |
at Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas
- Date: March 31
- Game time: 7:00 p.m. CT
- Game weather: Indoors
- Game attendance: 23,504
- Referee: Tra Blake[29]
- TV announcers (NFL Network): Matt "Money" Smith, Marvin Lewis
- NoExtraPoints AAF
| Game information | ||
|---|---|---|
|
Media
In addition to league-wide television coverage through NFL Network, CBS Sports Network, TNT, and B/R Live, Commanders' games were also broadcast on local radio by KZDC, an ESPN Radio affiliate.[30] The team also had a television agreement with local station KMYS of the Sinclair Broadcast Group to carry all Commanders' games that were not broadcast nationally.[31]