2021 The Spring League season

The 2021 season kicked off on Thursday, May 6 and was divided to two divisions that played in hub cities: The North Division in Indianapolis and the South Division in Houston. Each division champion advanced to the 2021 TSL Championship game that took place on June 19.^[5]

The 2021 season featured new rules that aimed to improve the game, specifically introducing a new overtime format, the "spot and choose" rule, which means that the team that wins the overtime coin toss was to pick the spot of the ball, while the other team would choose whether to play offense or defense.^[6] A similar rule was proposed by the Baltimore Ravens after the 2020 NFL season.^[7]

Summarize Timeline Fact Check

The player participation fee for the 2021 season was $2,000, with exception for players who had been in an NFL training camp within the past three years, who were not required to pay.^[8][9] According to league CEO Brian Woods, the preference was for TSL coaches, players and staff to be vaccinated for COVID-19 before the season begins. If not, they were asked for proof of a negative test upon arrival and were subject to daily testing thereafter.^[10]

Every team started the season with 35 to 41 players roster,^[11] and were allowed to make changes throughout the season.

In March 2021, TSL announced that they reached a partnership agreement with Stephen Austin's American National Combines,^[12] and were holding tryouts for the first time in league history.^[13] They also declared that players who were on an active roster during TSL's fall 2020 season were not required to participate in the tryouts.^[14][15]

On April 16, the first player for the 2021 TSL season was announced, as former Syracuse and Dallas Renegades QB Eric Dungey confirmed he will play for the Blues,^[16] although he was later accepted tryout invite to Cincinnati Bengals rookie minicamp,^[17] and was later signed to their 90-men roster.^[18] On a later date the league revealed the other Quarterbacks who would play, including seven-year NFL veteran Ryan Mallett (Generals),^[19][20] former XFL players Luis Perez (Jousters),^[21][22] Brandon Silvers (Conquerors),^[23] and Nick Fitzgerald (Sea Lions),^[24] and three former P5 colleges QB's Brian Lewerke (Alphas),^[25] Keller Chryst (Aviators),^[26] and Ryan Willis (Linemen).

On May 12, after the first week was concluded, TSL announced that former Super Bowl champion Brandon Marshall was joining the Generals^[27] after strong showing at HUB Football camp,^[28] but before the Generals game on week 2 it was revealed that Marshall decided to pursue NFL opportunities instead of joining the league.^[29][10]

39 players with XFL experience were on TSL rosters,^[30] and 19 players who participated in the Fan Controlled Football 2021 season (Joseph Putu, Roman Tatum, David Gilbert, Kwadarrius Smith, Curtis Collins, Dominique Martin, Jaylen Flye-Sadler, EJ price, JaMichael Edwards Lott, Deondre Francois, Lawerence Keys, Dwayne Wallace, Donald Boone, LaDarius Galloway, Andrew Jamiel, KaVontae Turpin, Saige Young, Cecil Cherry and Antonio Dawkins).

The league also featured three international players: Kicker Tadhg Leader (Aviators) from the Republic of Ireland, Defensive Linemen Orlovicius Laurynas (Blues) from Lithuania and Wide receiver James Tyrrell from Canada.

Alphas: Vad Lee, Brian Lewerke, Jawill Davis, Kristjan Sokoli, Christian DiLauro, Gabe Holmes, Azeem Victor and Mazzi Wilkins, while Brady White joined before week 4.

Aviators: Keller Chryst, Romar Morris, Malcolm Pridgeon, Lavon Hooks, Mark McLaurin and Irish-born American rugby union player Tadhg Leader,^[31] while Vad Lee joined from the "Alphas" before week 5.

Blues: Eric Dungey, Deondre Francois, Fabian Guerra, Davion Davis, Hakeem Valles, David Grinnage, Denzel Rice and Xavier Perston.

Conquerors: Brandon Silvers, Kevin Anderson,^[32] Cameron Jefferson, Anthony Morris, Robenson Therezie, Matt Seybert, Prince Charles Iworah and Vinny Papale (son of Vince Papale), while Ahmad Gooden joined before week 2.^[33]

Generals: Ryan Mallett, Case Cookus, Devin Gray, Jordan Suell, Sal Cannella, Ethan Westbrooks, Blair Brown, Carroll Phillips, Kamilo Tongamoa, Nevelle Clarke, Malik Gant^[34] and Lirim Hajrullahu.

Jousters: Luis Perez, Drew Anderson, Lavon Coleman, De'Lance Turner, De'Quan Hampton, Damore'ea Stringfellow, Donnie Ernsberger, Tejan Koroma, Damien Mama, Bunmi Rotimi, Tomasi Laulile, Christian Sam, Nyles Morgan, Derrick Jones, A. J. Hendy, Shalom Luani, Joshua Simmons, William Likely, Ricky Aguayo, Manoa Pikula and Colton Schmidt.

Linemen: Ryan Willis, Reece Horn, Frederick Mauigoa, Elijah Qualls and Jordan Wyatt, while Damon Sheehy-Guiseppi joined before week 6.^[35]

Sea Lions: Nick Fitzgerald, Matt Jones (released after week 1), Adam Choice, Kendrick Rogers, Nick Buchanan, Shaneil Jenkins, Levonta Taylor, John Baron II and DeAndre Johnson^[36] from Last Chance U' second season, while Jordan Mills and Robert Myers joined before week 2,^[37] and Garrett Hartley joined before week 4.^[38]

For the 2021 spring season TSL featured a mix of returning coaches from previous seasons and former college football college or minor leagues HC's.^[39] Terry Shea (Aviators), Ted Cottrell (Blues), Jerry Glanville (Conquerors)^[40] and defending champion Bart Andrus (Generals) returned to their 2020 Fall season teams, while Peter Vaas (Alphas) and Kevin Gilbride (Jousters)^[41] replaced Steve Fairchild and Chuck Bresnahan (respectively).^[42] Hal Mumme was appointed as the "Linemen" head coach,^[43][44] while Mike Riley was first announced as the "Sea Lions" coach,^[45] but it was later changed to Larry Kirksey.^[46] Shea is the only one that coached in every TSL season.

Some of the more recognizable assistants were Paul Spicer (DC, Sea Lions),^[47] A. J. Smith (OC, Conquerors),^[48][49] Derrius Bell (DC, Blues),^[45] Jay Hayes (DC, Jousters),^[50] Jeff Reinebold (DC/STC, Generals),^[51] Dale Carlson (WR, Linemen),^[52] Blake Brockermeyer (OL, Sea Lions)^[53] and Johnnie Mack (RB, Blues),^[54] while QB Stan Bedwell was a player-coach for the Linemen.^[55]

The 2021 season featured two new teams: The Linemen and Sea Lions, which were added to the six returning teams from the 2020 fall season.

Division	Team	Colors	First year	Roster	City	Stadium	Capacity	Head coach
North	Alphas		2020	[56][57][58]	Indianapolis, Indiana	Lucas Oil Stadium*	67,000	Peter Vaas
	Aviators		2020	[59][60][61]				Terry Shea
	Conquerors		2020	[62][63][64]				Jerry Glanville
	Linemen		2021	[65][66][67]				Hal Mumme
South	Blues		2020	[68][69][70]	Houston, Texas	Rice Stadium	47,000	Ted Cottrell
	Generals		2019	[71][72][73]				Bart Andrus
	Jousters		2020	[74][75][76]				Kevin Gilbride
	Sea Lions		2021	[77][78][79]				Larry Kirksey

^* Week 6 games were played at the Bud and Jackie Sellick Bowl.

The games were played mostly on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, with one game being played on Monday and one on Tuesday due to weather implications. For the first time, one game every week was broadcast on FOX (including the championship game). All other games were broadcast on FS1, with the exception of two games being shown on FS2.^{[80][81][82][83]}

Week	Date	Time (EST)	Team 1	Score	Team 2	Score	Site	Notes	TV	Viewership (millions)	Refs	Stats	Transactions
Week 1	May 6[84]	7:00 PM	Alphas	23	Aviators	9	Lucas Oil Stadium		FS1	0.095[85]	[86][87]	[88]	[89]
		10:00 PM	Conquerors	27	Linemen	20				0.051[85]	[90][91]	[92]
	May 7	9:30 PM	Sea Lions	12	Blues	15	Rice Stadium			0.114[85]	[93][94]	[95]
	May 8	3:00 PM	Jousters	19	Generals	21			Fox	0.38[96]	[97][98]	[99]
Week 2	May 15		Conquerors	21	Alphas	26	Lucas Oil Stadium			0.448[100]	[101][102]	[103]	[104][105][106]
		7:00 PM	Linemen	17	Aviators	3			FS2		[107][108]	[109]
	May 17	9:00 PM	Sea Lions	17	Generals	13	Rice Stadium	Originally scheduled for May 17 at 7:00 PM	FS1	0.106[110]	[111][112]	[113]
	May 18	8:00 PM	Blues	7	Jousters	28		Originally scheduled for May 17 at 10:00 PM [114]		0.05[110]	[115][116]	[117]
Week 3	May 20	7:00 PM	Aviators	7	Conquerors	34	Lucas Oil Stadium			0.059[118]	[119][120]	[121]	[122][123][124]
		10:00 PM	Linemen	47	Alphas	7				0.04[118]	[118]	[125][126]		[127]
	May 22	3:00 PM	Generals	24	Blues	9	Rice Stadium		Fox	0.408[128]	[129][130]	[131]
		7:00 PM	Jousters	22	Sea Lions	7			FS1	0.136[128]	[132][133]	[134]
Week 4	May 27		Linemen	46 (OT)	Conquerors	39	Lucas Oil Stadium				[135][136]	[137]	[138][139][140]
		10:00 PM	Aviators	6	Alphas	30					[141][142]	[143]
	May 29	3:00 PM	Blues	19	Sea Lions	10	Rice Stadium		Fox	0.365	[144][145]	[146]
		9:00 PM	Jousters	22	Generals	11			FS1		[147][148]	[149]
Week 5	June 3	7:00 PM	Alphas	10	Conquerors	27	Lucas Oil Stadium			0.075[150]	[151][152]	[153]	[154][155][156]
	June 4	8:00 PM	Aviators	19	Linemen	20				0.081[150]	[157][158]	[159]
	June 5	3:00 PM	Generals	39	Sea Lions	27	Rice Stadium		Fox	0.38[150]	[160][161]	[162]
		7:00 PM	Jousters	10	Blues	12			FS1	0.079[150]	[163][164]	[165]
Week 6	June 11	7:00 PM	Alphas	22	Linemen	27	Bud and Jackie Sellick Bowl[166]	Originally scheduled at Lucas Oil Stadium		0.095[167]	[168][169]	[170]	[171][172][173]
		10:00 PM	Conquerors	16 (OT)	Aviators	9				0.064[167]	[174][175]	[176]
	June 12	12:00 PM	Sea Lions	10	Jousters	27	Rice Stadium		Fox	0.461[167]	[177][178]	[179]
		8:00 PM	Blues	16	Generals	23			FS2		[180][181]	[182]
Championship [183][184][185]	June 19	3:00 PM	Linemen	26	Jousters	23		Mega Bowl[186]	Fox	0.418[187]	[188][189]	[190]	[191]

Spring League 2021
North Division
Team	W	L	PCT	PF	PA
Linemen	5	1	.833	177	117
Conquerors	4	2	.666	164	118
Alphas	3	3	.500	118	137
Aviators	0	6	.000	55	143
South Division
Team	W	L	PCT	PF	PA
Jousters	4	2	.666	128	68
Generals	4	2	.666	131	110
Blues	3	3	.500	78	107
Sea Lions	1	5	.166	83	135

Week	North Division				South Division
	Player	Pos.	Team	Ref.	Player	Pos.	Team	Ref.
1	Blake Morgan	RB	Alphas	[192][193]	Lirim Hajrullahu	K	Generals	[194][195]
2	Tevon Wright	WR	Alphas	[196][197]	LaDarius Galloway	RB	Sea Lions	[198][199]
3	Ryan Willis	QB	Linemen	[200][201]	Colton Schmidt	P	Jousters	[202][203]
4	Michael Dereus	WR	Linemen	[204][205]	Cameron Scarlett	RB	Jousters	[206][207]
5	Reece Horn	WR	Linemen	[208][209]	Darnell Holland	RB/KR	Generals	[210][211]
6	Cornelius Sturghill	DB	Alphas	[212]	Ryan Mallett	QB	Generals	[213]
Final	Ryan Willis	QB	Linemen	[214]	–

Records reflect statistics through regular season games only.^[215]

Type	Statistic	Qty	Player	Team
Passing	Yards	1,680 1,139 685	Ryan Willis Ryan Mallett Brandon Silvers	Linemen Generals Conquerors
	Touchdowns	13 9 7	Ryan Willis Brandon Silvers Luis Perez	Linemen Conquerors Jousters
Rushing	Yards	319 295 267	LaDarius Galloway Blake Morgan Tra Minter	Sea Lions Alphas Linemen
	Touchdowns	4	Tra Minter Sola Olateju	Linemen Conquerors
Receiving	Yards	435 424 346	Michael Dereus Tevon Wright Reece Horn	Linemen Alphas Linemen
	Receptions	37 37 34	Ben Putman Michael Bandy Tevon Wright	Linemen Conquerors Alphas
	Touchdowns	5 3 3 3 3 3	Isaac Zico KaVontae Turpin Ben Putman Michael Bandy Reece Horn Tavonn Salter	Linemen Sea Lions Linemen Conquerors Linemen Conquerors
Kicking	FGM	12 10 8	Lirim Hajrullahu Jonathan Song Nathan Hierlihy	Generals Linemen Alphas

Summarize Fact Check

The following players signed with NFL or CFL teams following their involvement with The Spring League in 2021:

Player	Position	TSL team	NFL team	Ref.
Evin Ksiezarczyk	OL	Generals	Minnesota Vikings	[216][217]
Case Cookus	QB	Generals	Denver Broncos	[218][219]
Christian DiLauro	OL	Alphas	Tennessee Titans	[220]
Devin Gray	WR	Generals	Baltimore Ravens	[221][222]
C. J. Saunders	WR	Aviators	Carolina Panthers	[223]
Tyrone Wheatley Jr.	OL	Blues	Chicago Bears	[224][225][226]
Salvatore Cannella*	TE	Generals	Chicago Bears
Siaosi Mariner	WR	Generals	Baltimore Ravens	[227][228][229]
Damon Lloyd	LB	Blues	Los Angeles Chargers	[230]
Willie Yarbary	DL	Conquerors	Los Angeles Chargers	[231]
Matt Seybert	TE	Conquerors	Los Angeles Chargers	[232]
De'Quan Hampton	TE	Jousters	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	[233]
Malcolm Pridgeon	OL	Aviators	Pittsburgh Steelers	[234]
Cole Boozer	OL	Linemen	Washington Football Team	[235]
Chris Okoye	DL	Alphas	Los Angeles Chargers	[236]
Lirim Hajrullahu	K	Generals	Dallas Cowboys	[237]
Brian Lewerke	QB	Alphas	New York Giants	[238]
Dominique Martin	DB	Conquerors	Green Bay Packers	[239]
Ethan Westbrooks	DL	Generals	Las Vegas Raiders	[240]
Elijah Qualls	DL	Linemen	New York Giants	[241]
Malik Gant	DB	Generals	New England Patriots	[242]
Lukayus McNeil	OT	Jousters	Seattle Seahawks	[243]
Anthony Ratliff-Williams	WR	Jousters	Seattle Seahawks	[244]
Donnie Ernsberger	TE	Jousters	Tennessee Titans	[245]
Jeff Cotton	WR	Alphas	Jacksonville Jaguars	[246]
Jon Hilliman*	RB	Jousters	Green Bay Packers	[247]
Case Cookus	QB	Generals	Minnesota Vikings	[248]
Salvatore Cannella	TE	Generals	Miami Dolphins	[249]
Gabe Holmes	TE	Alphas	Miami Dolphins	[250]
Josh Avery	DL	Alphas	Green Bay Packers	[251]
Davion Davis	WR	Blues	Cleveland Browns	[252]
Reece Horn	WR	Linemen	Cincinnati Bengals	[253]
Cameron Scarlett	RB	Jousters	Seattle Seahawks	[254]
Bunmi Rotimi	DE	Jousters	Washington Football Team	[255]
Ryan Willis*	QB	Linemen	Chicago Bears	[256]
Davion Davis	WR	Blues	Houston Texans	[257]

^* Workout/ Minicamp invite.

Player	Position	TSL team	CFL team	Ref.
Cole Boozer	OL	Linemen	Montreal Alouettes	[258][259]
David Brown	OL	Alphas	Montreal Alouettes
Johnathon Johnson	WR	Jousters	BC Lions	[260]
C.J. Worton	WR	Jousters	Winnipeg Blue Bombers	[261]
James Tyrrell	WR	Sea Lions	Winnipeg Blue Bombers
Reggie Cole	DB	Linemen	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	[262][263]
Drew Anderson	QB	Jousters	Edmonton Elks	[264][265]
Stefen Banks	DL	Linemen	Calgary Stampeders	[266][267]
Nyles Morgan	LB	Jousters	Edmonton Elks	[268]
A. J. Hendy	DB	Jousters	Saskatchewan Roughriders	[269]
Erick Browne	OL	Aviators	Edmonton Elks	[270]
Jordan Suell	WR	Generals	Saskatchewan Roughriders	[271]
Drew Richmond	OL	Linemen	Winnipeg Blue Bombers	[272]
Jordan Murray	OL	Generals	Hamilton Tiger-Cats	[273]
Taylor Tappin	OL	Aviators	Ottawa Redblacks	[274]