1977 – 1992

PRELUDE

     The actual history of the league doesn't begin until 1992, but the foundations of the league began way back in 1977 when an 8 year old kid discovered Pro Football. From that point forward football was the greatest thing in life to that kid. The desire to play, watch, eat, drink, and sleep football superceded everything else in life. That pure love of the sport became the driving force for the creation of this league.

 

1992

THE BEGINNING

     The Utah Football Association is the one and only adult flag football league in Salt Lake City, Utah. The league was formed in 1992 by Steve Higgs after the Salt Lake County Parks and Recreation department decided to abolish its flag football program. Higgs was a player in the Salt Lake County league and simply wanted to continue to play flag football. After all, football is the greatest sport on earth and the concept of "flag" football offers you the thrill of football without the risk of serious injury.

     The league was formed upon the idea of using rules that would make the sport as close to real football as possible, while still maintaining the recreational aspect by reducing the risk of serious injury. The league began with a mere 8 teams, all of which were from the Salt Lake County league from the year before. The defending champions, Francesco's did not play in the league. In fact, they probably didn't even know about the league. The county decided that Flag Football wasn't profitable enough and abolished the program without prior notice. The 8 teams that played in the league that first year scrambled to put a team together at the last minute after Higgs came up with the idea while daydreaming during a Political Science class at the University of Utah. Everything was done quickly and "hap-hazardly". The officiating was extremely suspect and the rules needed refinement. The teams were forced to use "make-shift" equipment and the league didn't even use printed materials. Never the less, the whole idea was to offer a group of die-hards the opportunity to play football, and the league succeeded in that task. The league was formed by a player, from a player's perspective, and for the players. The business aspect was not carefully planned and the league ended up losing lots of money the first few years. The league offered twice as many games as the Salt Lake County league at half the price, which was great for the players, but not so great for the security of the league's future.

     National Semi-Conductor won the championship that first year, defeating their rivals The Steelers on a last second touchdown. That rivalry may now seem pretty minor compared to the rivalries that would be formed later on in the league's history, but it was the league's first rivalry, and who's to say it wasn't the greatest rivalry ever. Troy Staley led the National Semi- Conductor team along with core players such as Rick Carter, Anthony Peterson, Max Anderson and Rex Fivas. The Steelers were led by Marty Jaramillo and Orin Munoz. All of those guys were high school rivals and friends. Now they were continuing their rivalry as adults, rekindling their glory days by playing the greatest sport on earth with their closest friends.

 

1993

COPPERVIEW YEARS

     The financial woes continued for the league, even though the size of the league doubled in the second year. Games were played at Copperview Community Center back in those days on the outfield of the softball fields. We had insane rules back then, such as, it was legal to push the ball carrier out of bounds. On one memorable rainy day that season, a non suspecting 160 pound receiver was running down the sideline and Joe Clausi, a former linebacker for the Detroit Lions, pushed the poor guy out of bound so hard that the ball carrier went sliding head first in the mud all the way from the edge of the infield to the pitchers mound. Even though that was a classic moment in league history, the rule was changed after that season to avoid spectators from getting injured.

     The 1993 season welcomed a lot of players that are still playing in the league. Andy Evans, Mark Rudd, Randy Hall, Chuck Conover, Tony Barker, Phil Leonti, Chris Bricker, Brandon Peterson, Dave Hansen, and others. Even though the league had its share of problems, there were 16 very dependable teams so no one had to worry about forfeits. This was also the last year of total league parity. Powerhouse teams began to rise in 1994, but in 1993 most of the teams were on the same competitive level.

     National Semi-Conductor repeated as champions, defending their title against a new team called the Waikiki Wave Warriors (with out a doubt, the greatest name in league history). Tony Barker was the mastermind behind the Waikiki Wave Warriors. He was responsible for recruiting Chuck Conover as a receiver and back-up Quarterback. Conover is now one of the best QB's in the league. National Semi-Conductor's QB Rick Carter was the MVP as he led the team to a second straight title. Carter would move to St. George after that season. He resurfaced a few years later leading a team from St. George to the State Championship.

     The most memorable game of that year came in the first round of the playoffs. Meadowgold, led by former Weber State Quarterback Bill Reiser, went into the playoffs as the number one seed after going undefeated through the regular season. A former intramural team from the University of Utah, Sigma Chi Alums pulled off an unbelievable upset. Meadowgold led with just seconds to play. Sigma Chi QB Mike Pembroke threw a desperation pass on the last play of the game that was tipped at the 5 yard line and ended up falling into the arms of a Sigma Chi receiver in the back of the end zone giving them the victory in dramatic fashion. Sigma Chi eventually lost to National Semi-Conductor in the semi-finals, but it was the beginning of a great run for the former intramural team.

1994

WEST VALLEY BASEBALL PARK YEARS

     In 1994 the league was forced to move from Copperview Community Center. Salt Lake County decided they didn't want us using their fields anymore. The nice thing about Copperview was that we got lots of exposure since it was right off the freeway. The league was forced to move to a more obscure location, settling on West Valley Baseball Complex. Again, we played in the outfield of the baseball fields, but this park was much bigger than Copperview and there was even shelter for rainy days. The most memorable thing about that field was the championship game that was played in at least a foot of snow. This was by far the worst year for weather in the league's history. Snow, ice, sleet, rain, hail, lightning, wind, you name, we experience it.

     The biggest improvement to the league was that weeknight games were offered for the first time in 1994. Lighted fields are very hard to find in this city. The county will not let us play on any of their fields, and the various city recreation departments were very limited in the lighted fields that they had to offer. We ended up playing at Jordan Park on weeknights. For anyone who is unfamiliar with Jordan Park, it is in a very bad part of town. It is known for it's drug trafficking and crime. One night we watched a person with a gun running after a car full of people on the road next to the field. We even had a person pull a gun on some of the players. Needless to say, this was a very scary place to play, but we didn't have much of a choice.

     The size of the league nearly doubled again in 1994 and a parity gap started to form. The Gators, Regulators, Sigma Chi, Michigan, National Semi-Conductor, and the Wave Warriors were clearly in a level above the rest of the teams. The Gators, led by QB Bill Reiser, won the Saturday A Division without losing a game that they didn't forfeit. Reiser was the leagues first superstar QB. He was probably the best Quarterback in league history. The Gators beat the Regulators in a foot of snow for the title. The Regulators had the best athletes in the league, but attitude problems prevented them from winning championships. Michigan was the Gators biggest rivals but Michigan fell apart after a few years in the league. Sigma Chi went undefeated playing in the Wednesday night league. They were the first team to prove that team unity and organization leads to success in this league. Their rugby style of football overwhelmed everyone in the weeknight league. QB Mike Pembroke was a superb athlete with intelligence and great leadership abilities. Captain Kurt Dewitz, receivers Brandon Peterson and John Kimball surprised everyone with their deceptive speed and athletic abilities. They were the only competitive team on that first Weeknight league but they proved themselves in the first ever State Championship Tournament.

     Sigma Chi and the Gators never did end up playing in the overall championship due to time constraints and scheduling problems. There will always be an asterisk for the champions of 1994. The first ever Utah State Championship Tournament was held that year. It was a last minute idea that brought teams from Ogden, Provo, St. George, and Salt Lake together to decide a state champion. Sigma Chi represented Salt Lake and surprised everyone by working their way through the losers bracket to make it to the championship game against Ghetto Magic from Provo. Jeff Graham's powerhouse from Provo was the heavy favorite going into the tournament, but Sigma Chi took them to Triple Overtime before Ghetto Magic finally prevailed. This tournament changed the league forever by opening the doors to a whole new flag football experience.

1995

OUTSIDE INFLUENCES

     The State Championship Tournament opened the door for a team from Orem to play in the league in 1995. Like Sigma Chi, Aw Hell was originally a college intramural team. Aw Hell, or ADM, as they were also known as, came from the BYU intramural program. ADM had won the national intramural championship tournament in New Orleans in 1994. They came to Salt Lake and changed the league more than any team in the history of the league. They brought a whole new style of flag football to the league. Their spread-out, quick, short passing style overwhelmed all of the Salt Lake teams and forced the competitive teams to adjust to a new style of football. Their relentless, swarming defense dominated every team except for the Gators. Reiser was the only QB who seemed to be able to cope with Aw Hell's pass rush, but in the end the team from Orem was too much for even Reiser and company.

     1995 brought many positive changes for flag football in Salt Lake City and the state of Utah in general. The first major change for the league in 1995 was the addition of a spring season. A mere 8 teams played that spring but it was a blast for those who did play. These die-hard teams soon learned that there were actually quite a few advantages to playing in the spring. The weather is better than the fall, the heat gets you in better shape, you usually don't have sportsmanship problems, better fields are available, better referees are available, teams improve by playing year round, etc. The Steelers, led by Marty Jaramillo and Orin Munoz, defeated the Pine Riders for the first ever Spring League title. The Steelers finally won a title after coming up 2 points shy back in 1992. The Pine Riders were led by Andy Evans, who has become one of the best QB's in the league today. The Pine Riders are one of only 7 teams from 1995 that are still playing in the league. The others include Aw Hell, Falcons, Pepsi, Quick 6, Sod Hogs (formerly National Semi-Conductor), and the Vindicators.

     Another big change in 1995 was the league's new found affiliation with the American Football Association from Las Vegas. The AFA is a national organization that hosts flag football tournaments with participants from all over the country. They hosted a tournament in Salt Lake City that spring with 10 teams from Denver, Boise, Los Angelas, and Salt Lake. Two teams from Denver ended up meeting in the finals, but the tournament offered some of the league's teams exposure to the competitive level of teams on the national level. The AFA hosts Nationals every January in Las Vegas. After the AFA came to Salt Lake in 1995 the league sent teams to Nationals every year afterwards, with at least one team from the league making it to the final 4 every year except for 1999.

     Another big addition in 1995 was a new format of flag football: 5 on 5. It was designed to appeal to people who couldn't find enough people to form an 8 on 8 team and for players who didn't want the physical contact that goes along with the 8 on 8 format. The 5 on 5 format is an all passing, no blocking, fast paced, and high scoring sport. It immediately caught on and developed a faithful following. Quick 6, led by Chuck Conover, won the first 5 on 5 championship, beating the Dark Side (now known as the Vindicators) on a last second controversial play. Perhaps it was a fitting way to begin the new format. The 5 on 5 format has continued to grow ever since its origins. The rules have remained relatively unchanged since its beginning, while the competitive level has continually risen to an all-time high in the year 2001.

     Many people would argue that the best thing that happened to the league in 1995 was the split of competitive levels. For the first time the league offered two levels of competition in the 8 on 8 format. The addition of a B league helped to increase interest in the league with a total of 49 teams. The league still tried to separate leagues based upon the teams' preferences as to the day that they played. There were 4 leagues: a Tuesday night B Division, a Wednesday night A Division, a Saturday B Division, and a Saturday A Division. This softball style of league management became a thing of the past after 1995.

     What The Fuss?, a young team from Bountiful won the Tuesday night B division, beating the Stainless Steelers in the finals. The Stainless Steelers (no affiliation with the Steelers) were an interesting story in that they went 0-10 in the regular season but came back in the post season to upset several teams before losing to What The Fuss? in the championship. Associated Gas Services won the Saturday B division over the Predators. Associated Gas Services was led by the most interesting QB to ever play in the league. Russ Boone, nicknamed "The Gun" and "Mr. Quarterback" was an older, immobile QB, but he had a canon for an arm, like no other that the league has seen since. He would line up 15 yards behind the center to give his receiver time to run their patterns before the pass rush reached him. All plays were timing patterns in which he would release the ball before his receivers had even made a break. The style was interesting and surprisingly successful. Mr. Boone will always be remembered. He was a great sportsman, a gratious competitor, and an amazing quarterback. Scott Dewell of Big Toe is probably the only QB who has since thrown harder than Russ Boone, but Boone was amazingly accurate from 15 yards deep and was an intelligent playmaker, which made him lethal and fun to watch.

     Sigma Chi repeated as the Wednesday night A division champions, defeating their former intramural rivals the Untouchables in the championship. However, they were defeated by Aw Hell in the overall championship. Led by Derek Briggs, Sean Varner, Tim Varner, Lamar Smith, and Troy Riding, Aw Hell beat the Gators in the Saturday A division championship and overwhelmed Sigma Chi in the overall championship. They single handedly forced the other competitive teams to make adjustments to reach a new level. Aw Hell had proven to be winner on the national level and they brought that experience to the league. I often wonder how the old Francescos dynasty would have compared to Aw Hell. A few core members of the old Francescos squad actually formed a team in a later year but they weren't the same and didn't match the competitive level of Aw Hell.

     The 1995 State Championship was moved to St. George. Participants from Ogden, Bountiful, Salt Lake City, Orem, Provo, St. George, and Mesquite played in the 12 team tournament. After 1994's spur of the moment idea to crown a state champion, the Utah Football Association was formed in early 1995 to provide funding for the state championship tournament. Prior to that year the league was called the Valley Flag Football League (VFFL). The UFA's prime objective was to expand interest in the sport and the state championship tournament throughout Utah by uniting all the leagues in the state under a single organization. The UFA succeeded in keeping all the teams in Utah informed of what was happing with the sport throughout the region. A monthly newsletter was sent out to all the teams in the state and the state tournament was a huge success. It was one of the most enjoyable tournaments ever. The whole experience was something to be treasured forever. Aw Hell entered the tournament as the heavy favorites after destroying everyone in both the Salt Lake league and the Provo league, but they were upset in the finals by a team called "7" from St. George. 7 was led by QB Rick Carter, who used to be the QB for National Semi-Conductor before moving to St. George, and WR Bob Stookey, who was named the tournament's MVP. The success of the 1995 state tournament opened the door for a very ambitious 1996 for the UFA.

 

1996

THE YEAR OF TOURNAMENTS

     The formation of the Utah Football Association was an ambitious idea but it didn't really succeed in getting the other leagues in the state to get involved in tournaments and other events as it was originally intended. The UFA developed a point system to offer discounts for the State Tournament for the top 10 and hosted numerous tournaments in 1996 throughout the region. Most of the tournaments only had participants from the Salt Lake league. Due to lack of interest from other leagues, after 1996 the Utah Football Association focused solely on Salt Lake City and became the name associated with the Salt Lake league.

     Utah teams, Utah County teams in particular, fared very well at the AFA Nationals in January of 1996. Aw Hell made it to the semi-finals and Back in Black (from Provo) took fifth. A few months later Aw Hell won an AFA tournament in Long Beach, California. 1996 was the year of tournaments and the three Utah County teams that played in the UFA dominated most of them. Back In Black won the UFA pre-season spring tournament in Salt Lake City, defeating Meadowgold from Boise, Idaho in the finals. The tournament was quite successful, drawing teams and players from Idaho, Ogden, Salt Lake, Provo, and California. Two more successful UFA tournaments followed in the Fall of 1996. The first one, held in Provo, was directed by Aw Hell's Sean Varner. Back In Black won that tournament as well, beating the Falcons from Salt Lake City in the finals. The second tournament, held in Salt Lake, had the misfortune of being plagued by the worst weather of the year. Snow, freezing rain, sleet, hail, wind, and sub- degree temperatures. Despite the weather, the nice thing about the tournament was being allowed to play at a stadium. Yesterday's Gone, from Provo, defeated their bitter rivals Aw Hell in the finals to win the tournament. Yesterday's Gone also went on to win the 1996 State Championship Tournament as well. They beat the other team from Utah County, Back In Black, in that tournament. 1996 was most memorable due to the formation of the triple rivalry between those three teams from Utah County. Every time they played each other it was a battle to the end. I don't remember a game between those three teams that wasn't close.

     While the 1996 State Tournament, held in St. George once again, was a lot of fun, the participants were all from the league except for 2 St. George teams. A 5 on 5 division was also offered but a mere 6 teams (all from Salt Lake) participated in that format. Quick 6 won the 5 on 5 division, beating X-Factor in the finals. Without the support of other leagues the third annual State Championship Tournament became the last. There has been talk about attempting to try the idea once again in 2001 targeting Idaho and Northern Utah for the participants.

     The UFA tried many new ideas in 1996. Many of them were not successful, but they proved to be valuable learning experiences. Franklin Quest offered an indoor league beginning that winter, allowing teams to play year round. The league only lasted for two years, most likely due to having to play on a basketball court. The UFA attempted to draw interest for a women's or co-ed league, but the idea did not take off. The league also tried to include individual competitions in the tournaments and a fantasy football league, both of which were unsuccessful. A basketball tournament idea was also unsuccessful.

     Despite those failures, there were some ideas that were very successful and that changed the league for the better. First and foremost, the league found a new field that could accommodate a full length field and added a second referee to the 5 on 5 format. The league also brought back kickoffs in the 8 on 8 format and changed to a better playoff format. Most people would argue that the best improvement of 1996 was the addition of individual statistic tracking. The league started to keep stats for all the major categories. A weekly newsletter listed the league leaders in each category and the league began tracking all-time records (actually some categories had been tracked since 1994, such as TD passes, Interceptions, sacks, etc. Many players liked the statistic tracking idea and liked to see their name or team in the leaders section, but officiating suffered because of the stat system because they were forced to use micro- cassette recorders to keep stats after the league was unable to find reliable kids to keep stats on the sidelines for all games. The league also featured an all-star game for each division for the first time. The games were quite successful. Everyone who participated had a lot of fun, but too many people were resentful for not getting selected and the league decided not to pursue the idea despite its success.

     The 1996 spring season was also dominated by the Utah County teams. Back In Black beat Aw Hell in the Championship continuing their success from the pre-season tournament. QB Stan Parish and WR's Brett Johnson and Tyson Williams shredded defenses and their defense was nearly as tough and relentless as Aw Hell's defense. Many teams would become victim to their awesome offense as they went undefeated through the spring season and post- season. Back In Black's success continued through the fall season but the competition was better than ever. The league's A division peaked in 1996 with 16 teams in the fall league. Never before and never again would there be so many teams in the A division. Most of those teams were at the same competitive level. The competition in that league was unbelievable. The three Utah County teams, Falcons, Gators, TNP, Extreme Risk, Sigma Chi, 3 Alarm Saloon, Rainbows, Gators, and BTO were all on the same level. The Gators very well may have won the league except that they forfeited in the first round of the playoffs. Sigma Chi failed to continue their yearly success and 1996 became their last season. The Rainbows used to be Francesco's in the old Salt Lake County league. Former U of U QB Mark Stevens led the team to numerous victories, but they were defeated by TNP in the playoffs. Yesterday's Gone was taken out by Back In Black in the quarterfinals, but Back In Black's success also came to a screeching halt in the semi-finals.

     The 1996 fall league semi-finals featured two of the most memorable games in league history. Back In Black led Aw Hell by 21 points early in the second half and seemed to have the game well in hand. After a long touchdown pass by Sean Varner, a punt return for a touchdown by T.C. Peete, and a safety after a bad snap, Aw Hell found themselves back in the game down by 5. With under a minute to play Aw Hell's Troy Riding intercepted a Stan Parish pass to give Aw Hell another shot. After a few short passes and a 15 yard run by QB Sean Varner, Aw Hell had the ball at midfield with under 20 seconds to play. The Varner brothers hooked up on a long pass to take the lead in the most dramatic comeback in league history. To make thing more exciting, Back In Black returned the ensuing kickoff to midfield. On the last play of the game Parish completed a long pass to Tyson Williams but Aw Hell stopped him just shy of the endzone to advance to the Championship, beating their nemesis in an unforgettable comeback. The other semi-final game between TNP and the Falcons was nearly as dramatic. TNP, led by Andy Evans, had a two touchdown lead with under 3 minutes to play. A shovel pass was intercepted by the Falcons and returned for a touchdown to narrow the lead. On the next drive, with the Falcons out of timeouts, a bad snap was recovered for a touchdown by Adolph County to give the Falcons a miracle win to advance to the championship against Aw Hell.

     In the championship the Utah County dominance was finally interrupted. The Falcons, with Chuck Conover at QB for that season, won a defensive struggle in overtime to claim the league championship in the most competitive league in UFA's history. The Falcons' dominating WR duo of Harold Ragin and Greg Hooks were named the league MVP's. Conover seemed to have a knack for winning championships as his 5 on 5 squad, Quick 6, won their second straight title defeating the Noles in a classic high scoring affair. The Contenders, the league's most organized team, won the 8 on 8 B division against Voltron. Team captain Travis Hull was the league's most dominant lineman and he built a successful team around QB Troy Coil and a running offense.

1997

END OF THE EARLY DYNASTIES

     After 1996 boasted the biggest A division in league history many of the powerhouse teams from the past years disbanded, leaving a mere handful of A division teams in 1997. Sigma Chi, BTO, Rainbows, Yesterday's Gone, Gators, National Semi-Conductor, 3 Alarm, and TNP were all history and the B division became by the far the biggest division in the league.

     The year started with Back In Black winning the AFA Nationals. It was the most successful year for teams from the league at the national level. Back In Black beat Aw Hell in the Semi-Finals and then beat Yesterday's Gone in the Finals on a last second field goal by Darrin Hougard. Back In Black would continue their dominance by winning both the spring and the fall leagues. They completely dominated everyone. They did slip once during the spring season. Another team from Utah County, the Heat (now known as the Raiders), pulled off one of the biggest upsets in league history. Back in Black had given up a mere 7 points in their previous 5 games. The Heat had just recruited a new QB, Joey Covey, who had been a great high school QB and was highly recruited by several colleges. This game against Back in Black was Covey's first came in the UFA and he led the Heat to a dramatic upset. Covey finished the game with 3 TD passes to Brian Gephart, Dave Ludwig, and Harold Ragin (the ultimate free agent played with the Heat and No Air in the 8 on 8 format in 1997 after the Falcons disbanded as an 8 on 8 team). Ragin also returned a kick off for a TD to help the Heat to a 26 to 18 victory. That would prove to be the only blemish on an otherwise perfect year for Back in Black.

     The biggest change in 1997 was the addition of a Sportsmanship policy. The past two years had seen the league grow so large (nearly 60 teams in 1996 and 1997) that it was inevitable that the league would face sportsmanship problems. The newly formed Sportsmanship policy allowed referees to fine teams for certain unsportsmanlike acts. The policy seemed to work wonderfully. That idea was probably responsible for saving the league. 1997 saw its share of problems (the league was actually threatened by the Sheriff's department to be shut down if the problems were solved), but once it started costing teams additional money the problems started to decrease. In fact, in the year 2000 it was not necessary to fine any team. The league separated the spring league into two levels of competition in 1997. The A division was dominated once again by Back In Black and Aw Hell. They met in the finals for the second straight spring season and the results were the same, with Back In Black winning the title. No Air, featuring league MVP Harold Ragin, won the B division against the Contenders.

     The league added the 5 on 5 division to the spring league in 1997. 5 on 5 was growing steadily every year. 1997 saw the creation of some of the leagues best rivalries ever in the 5 on 5 format. The Falcons decided to try the 5 on 5 format and became an instant rival of the 2 time defending champions, Quick 6. Every game between the two teams seemed to come down to the last play and they seemed to trade victories every other game. The Falcons ended up dethroning Quick 6 in the 1997 spring championship, with Harold Ragin and Adolph County dominating the division.

     Aw Hell also tried their hand at 5 on 5 in a pre-season fall tournament. They beat the Falcons to win the tournament in their one and only attempt at 5 on 5, adding yet another accomplishment to their growing list. They also made it to the finals in the 8 on 8 A division in the fall season, but they lost to Back In Black once again. This marked the end of that rivalry as Back In Black retired after 1997. The Barbarians, another intramural team from the U of U, would replace Back In Black as Aw Hell's biggest rivals.

     The Barbarians made their first appearance in the UFA's mid-season fall tournament in 1997. They surprised everyone and made it to the finals against Big Toe. Led by QB Scott Dewel, Big Toe won the tournament, which featured cash awards for the first and second place teams. Big Toe also won the 8 on 8 B division that year, defeating No Air in the Championship.

     1997 also featured the addition of a C division for the first time. This division allowed the "weekend warriors" to compete against each other without having to try to stay with more competitive teams. The Associates won the first C league championship beating B.O.H.I.C.A. in the finals. The Associates' captain, Dave Hansen, is one of the few players left in the league who played in the very first year of the league.

     The 5 on 5 league also added a second division in the fall of 1997. The Pine Riders won their first title, beating Quick 6 in the A division championship.  Pine Riders' QB Andy Evans had become the league's best quarterback and now had a championship to go along with the respect. The Vindicators, led by QB Chuck Taylor and superstar WR Troy Stoudnor, won the B division by defeating the Brats in the finals.

 

1998

YEAR OF FEW CHANGES

     By the time 1998 rolled around the UFA had become a fine-tuned machine. There was really no reason to make additional changes. In fact, the UFA stopped advertising, relying solely on word of mouth for participants. The league did move once again to a new field. This time, the league simply move down the street to Moss Elementary to avoid conflicts with the soccer association. The soccer association assured us that they wouldn't use Moss Elementary so we were free to use it without conflict. This lasted for one season. The soccer association then forced the league to schedule around them again after they changed their mind and decided to use the elementary school after all. The league only needed one place to play, as opposed to the soccer association who gives every team a home field and uses nearly every field in the area even though they may only use it for a couple of hours per day. Scheduling 50 teams became more difficult having to schedule around soccer and the league was forced to use blue paint for the lines to avoid conflict with soccer lines.

     The 1998 spring season featured the rise of the Barbarians in the 8 on 8 division and the continuation of the Falcons/Quick 6 rivalry in the 5 on 5 league. The league tried something new in the 8 on 8 spring league's post-season. Teams from both the A and B divisions were placed in the same bracket. Teams that lost the first round dropped down to the B division tournament and teams that won the first round stayed in the A division tournament. Xcel, led by a great QB Heath Davis, went undefeated during the regular season. The Barbarians, led by a group of athletes such as Brad Harris, Darrin Wickens, and , surprised everyone with their rugby style of football, losing only 1 game during the regular season. Both teams surprised everyone even more by getting upset in the first round of the playoffs. They then met in the finals of the B division tournament with the Barbarians winning in convincing fashion. The Falcons decided to re-form their 8 on 8 squad for one last time and won the A division tournament by beating the Pine Riders in the finals. Both of those teams played in both the 8 on 8 and 5 on 5 leagues. The Falcons also won the spring 5 on 5 league against their fierce rivals Quick 6.

     The fall season featured a new rivalry for Aw Hell as the Barbarians were the only team to beat them in the regular season. Aw Hell went on to beat them in the championship in triple overtime, reinforcing the new found rivalry. That was a memorable game. It was played under the lights at Bicentennial Park in Sandy and it was extremely cold. The Barbarians had a shot to win the game in overtime but Tim Varner blocked a field goal attempt and Aw Hell capitalized to reclaim the league title. I think that was the last time anyone attempted a field goal in league play. Quick 6 did the same thing that the Falcons did in the spring by winning the 8 on 8 B division championship against the Pirahnas and the 5 on 5 A division title against the Pine Riders. The 5 on 5 title will always have an asterisk next to it. They did not play in the regular season but were allowed to play in the playoffs. They ended up beating the Vindicators, who had only lost 1 game during the regular season, in the first round, the Locos, who had lost 2 games, in the second round, and then the top seeded Pine Riders in the Championship. The league fell under heavy scrutiny for letting Quick 6 play in the 5 on 5 playoffs even though they didn't play during the regular season.

     The 5 on 5 B division was won by the Transplants. QB Mark Rozello led the team to several upsets to win the title. They were the third seed and ended up beating the top seed Redemption in the finals. Redemption (now known as the Muddogs) was notorious for finding a way to lose in the last seconds of games and they did it again in the finals against the Transplants.

     The 8 on 8 C division was won by Skymail, who returned after a 3 year absence (they used to be National Semi-Conductor). They beat Matchless Construction in the championship on a very fortunate play. Matchless QB K.C. Peisley ran in for the apparent winning touchdown, but he jumped into the endzone, which was illegal at the time. There was no one even near him so the jump was unnecessary and simply out of excitement. The next play was unsuccessful and the game ended with Skymail as the champions once again. Because of that very play, the "no jumping" rule was eliminated the following year.

1999

SURVIVAL LEAGUE

     1999 was the year of double headers. The spring and fall seasons were shortened while the UFA still offered the same number of games, which meant lots of double headers were scheduled. The schedule definitely favored teams who were in good shape. Aw Hell recruited Stan Parish, former QB for Back In Black, making them tougher than ever. The 1999 spring, or "Survival" league as it was called, had more teams than ever in a spring season.

     Teams such as Quick 6 and the Wolfpack began to emerge as top contenders in the 8 on 8 division while that spring season brought the end to some of the most competitive teams such as the Barbarians, the Falcons, Pine Riders, Stray Dawgs, and the Contenders. The Falcons and the Pine Riders stayed in the 5 on 5 format but disbanded as 8 on 8 teams. The Barbarians continued their rivalry with Aw Hell during the spring, but the team captain moved away after the season and the team disbanded.

     Aw Hell continued their perseverance and dominance by beating the Barbarians 26 to 0 in the spring championship game. Matchless Construction avenged their heartbreaking loss in the previous fall season by beating Invictus in the spring 8 on 8 B division championship. In the 5 on 5 league the Falcons continued their spring dominance by winning their 3rd straight spring league title, this time against the Pine Riders.

     The 1999 fall season was plagued with scheduling difficulties. The soccer association began scheduling even more games at Moss Elementary and the league lost their privilege of playing at Bicentennial Park on weeknights. Ever since 1994 the league had played weeknight games under the lights at Bicentennial Park. The park had softball leagues that played there until October, so the league was forced to use other fields until that one became available. The league stopped playing at Jordan Park because of the nature of the area. In 1997 games were played at Riverton Baseball Park until Bicentennial became available, and in 1998 games were scheduled before it got dark at Moss until Bicentennial became available. Unfortunately, the league made a huge mistake by playing games at Bicentennial during horrible rain storms. As a result the field was damage pretty severely and Sandy city would not allow the league to play there in 1999. The league was forced to schedule games before it got dark and on Saturday's. It became evident that a larger field was necessary to accommodate such potential problems.

      Aw Hell continued their dominance in the fall 8 on 8 A division regular season, but Quick 6, who had recruited players from the disbanded Falcons and Pine Riders, beat them in the championship game. This would become the most heated rivalry in league history. The two teams would end up playing each other at least a dozen times during the next couple of years. With that victory Quick 6 QB Chuck Conover had led various teams to 7 titles spanning both formats (5 with Quick 6 and 2 with other teams).

     The 8 on 8 B division was won by the Sod Hogs (formerly Skymail and National Semi- Conductor). They beat Dana Blue in the championship for their 4th title. They have never lost a championship game. Merrill Lynch, led by an awesome quarterback, Paul Schumaker won the 8 on 8 C division over Punt, who boasts the leagues toughest athlete Kurt Domain. The Vindicators returned to glory in the 5 on 5 league by winning the A division by beating Pepsi in the title game. The B division title went to the Poons, who upset the top seeded Jelly Bellies in the title game.

 

2000

NEW MILLENIUM

     The new Millenium brought changes to the UFA's spring league. The UFA had stopped hosting tournaments after the other leagues in the state stopped participating. In an effort to get teams interested in tournament situations again and to decrease the number of forfeits in the spring, which was a problem in the past, the UFA decided to use a tournament format instead of a normal spring season. There were a series of 4 tournaments in each format, the last of which decided the winner of the spring season.  The first few tournaments in the 8 on 8 format were successful but then some teams lost interest and the forfeit problem was not resolved. The tournament structure also ended up costing more for the teams that played in all the tournaments. The tournaments in the 5 on 5 format, on the other hand, were successful and there wasn't a single forfeit the whole spring season in that format.

     In the past it seemed that the league switched fields every even numbered year. 2000 was no exception. Moss Elementary was becoming hard as concrete because the school stopped watering the fields for some reason. Soccer was taking over and the league needed a bigger field. West Jordan Middle School became the league's savior. The field was no longer being used by soccer because of a new soccer complex built in West Jordan. The grass was in great condition, the field was huge (big enough to put three 8 on 8 fields plus two or three 5 on 5 fields. With the adjacent elementary school it is possible to put up to thirteen 5 on 5 fields at that location, which led to talk about having huge 5 on 5 tournaments in the future. The league had finally found a home that could accommodate the size of the league.

     The size of the league started to decrease in 2000 due to lack of advertising. The past few years of relying on word of mouth advertising took its toll as older teams started to retire. Now that the league had found a field big enough to accommodate more teams it needed to spread the word through various mediums to help the league grow. It seems that teams run on an average of a 5 year cycle. Very few teams can stay together for longer than that. Aw Hell is the rare exception. They have seemed to adapt to changing times and remained intact and competitive through more than 8 years of playing together. Quick 6, the Falcons, Ravens and Pine Riders have managed to remain intact for more than 5 years by switching formats. Quick 6 from 5 on 5 to 8 on 8 and the Falcons, Ravens, and Pine Riders from 8 on 8 to 5 on 5.

     The spring of 2000 saw the Wolfpack and the Rats rise to the elite in the 8 on 8 A division. While Quick 6 defended their title and remained league champions by winning the spring tournaments, the Wolfpack and the Rats finally emerged as top competitors by beating Aw Hell and/or Quick 6 at some point during the spring season (feats that had previously eluded them.) The tournament format favored Quick 6, who had recruited so heavily that they always had extra players to stay fresh playing two or three games in a day. The Associated returned to glory by winning the spring B division. Earl Ankers led the team to their first title since winning the C division several years prior.

     In the 5 on 5 format, the Ravens won their first title by defeating the Pine Riders in the final tournament. The Ravens were the league's most improved team. They had spent years building into a top contender and the year 2000 was their year. The core of the team, Steve Still, Casey Robinson, and Tyler Stewart, had remained intact through years of changes and the current team structure finally gelled. The Falcons had won the first three tournaments but the Ravens beat them for the first time ever when it counted, in the semi-finals, and went on the beat the Pine Riders in the championship.

     The 2000 fall season marked the end of statistics tracking, even though it was one of the most popular features of the league. Stats were taking far too much time and they were causing the referees to focus on keeping stats rather than officiating the game. On a positive note, Sandy city allowed the league to return to Bicentennial for night games on the condition that the league would cancel games if it rained. Fortunately, the weather was very moderate in 2000 (at least until the fall league playoffs started.)

     Quick 6 continued their dominance by beating Aw Hell once again in the championship, this time on a controversial play at the end of the game. Conover added yet another title to his "belt", while Adolph County was the league MVP. However, Aw Hell may have won the game on the last play of the game on a Parrish pass to the back of the endzone, but the referees were out of position to see whether or not the receiver caught the ball in bounds. It was ruled incomplete, but no one will ever know what the correct call should have been. The Pirahnas (formerly known as No Air) won the B division beating their old rivals Big Toe in the championship. The Pirahnas, with Harold Ragin shredding defenses, scored at least 24 points in every game except for one during the regular season, but relied on defense to win during the playoffs with 6 inches of snow on the ground. In the championship Big Toe seemed to have the game well in hand but two goal line stands and a 70 TD by Ragin turned the tide and the Pirahnas won the title on their last game ever (the team retired on a winning note, much like Back In Black did in 1997.)

     The Ravens proved that the spring was not a fluke by beating the Pine Riders again in the fall to claim the 5 on 5 A division title in the most competitive division in league history. There were 10 A division teams and every one of them could beat any of the other teams on any given day. Evidence of that was Pepsi, who was the 8th seed going into the tournament and ended up taking 3rd. Randy Hall and company proved that experience is sometimes better than youth and speed. Hall is one of very few players that remain in the league who played back in the Copperview years of the league. The Jelly Bellies finally won the B division, beating CommComm in the finals after losing only 1 game all year.

2001

2K1- A NEW BEGINNING

     The 2000 fall season featured the biggest and most competitive 5 on 5 league ever, while number of teams in the 8 on 8 division continued to fall. The lack of advertising caused the 8 on 8 A and C divisions to suffer. It was definitely time to start advertising again. The year began with Aw Hell making it to the semi-finals in the AFA Nationals once again. A 5 on 5 team, the Muddogs, went to Florida to play in an AFTFL tournament and ended up winning the 5 on 5 division and placing 4th in the 4 on 4 division. Quick 6 beat Aw Hell once again in an AFA tournament that was held in Salt Lake City. The excitement of flag football had started to spread once again. It seems that everything runs in cycles. The size of the league had peaked in 1997. That was about the time that the UFA gave up on the other leagues in the state and stopped advertising. The level of excitement was building at the start of 2001, similarly to the excitement before the 1995 season. The 2K1 season looked more promising than ever. A huge 5 on 5 tournament, promoted on several radio stations, got the league more exposure than ever before.

     The spring 5 on 5 tournament was a huge success. There were a total of 59 teams spread throughout 5 divisions. This marked the first time that the UFA had been involved with youth divisions. 16 of the 59 teams were Junior High or High School age teams. Millcreek Broadcasting did a magnificent job promoting the tournament and gave the league valuable exposure. There were several sponsors present, along with a concession stand ran by the UFA, and 102.3 The Blaze had music playing throughout the tournament offering a perfect atmosphere for football. The Junior High division was the one and only division that was dominated by one team. The Alpine Knights, led by amazing 15 year old QB Mike Jensen, destroyed every team they faced. They probably could have won the high school division. It was amazing to watch a 15 year old with such an incredible arm and presence on the field. The High School division was won by a team called Hush, who was led by MVP Terrell Richards. The Adult C Division was dominated by 2 or 3 teams that probably should have been playing in the B division. The Piles defeated The Guys for the championship. The Stallions were another competitive team. The Piles featured several players that had played 8 on 8 in the league in previous years. Most notibly, Heath Davis, who owns the UFA all-time records for the most TD passes and passing yards in a single season. Davis actually played receiver in this tournament and won the MVP award for the C division. The B division featured the most exciting game of the tournament. The Midvale Red Devils (a team that plays in a full contact adult league) made it to the championship against Saphire, who is one of the upcoming, young teams in the UFA 5 on 5 format. The Red Devils intercepted a pass and returned it for a TD with a few minutes to play to take a 3 point lead. They then stopped Saphire on 4th down to get the ball with less than a minute to play and Saphire only had 1 timeout remaining. The Red Devils seemed to have the game well in hand, but poor clock management gave Saphire another shot. The Red Devils even achieved a first down, forcing Saphire to use their last timeout. Then an incomplete pass, a reception ran out of bounds, a reception that took the clock down to about 15 seconds and a QB sack on fourth down gave Saphire one last shot with a few seconds to play. QB Tony Rushton threw a TD pass to his brother, Chris, on the last play to win the B division title in an incredible finish. The A division featured a cash pot and a lot of very competitive teams. The Falcons earned the title by playing a few of the best games that they have ever played. In the semi-finals they played a team called Doing Them that featured several starters from the University of Utah's football team, including Stevonne Smith, who was just drafted by the Carolina Panthers. The Falcons played the best game they have ever played to beat Doing Them 34 to 28. Harold Ragin, Matt Fankhouser, and Courtney Overstreet continually beat Doing Them's bump-man coverage and the Falcons scored on every offensive series in the game. The Falcons were on an emotional high after that victory and went on to beat Cornerstone (an 8 on 8 team from Utah County) in the championship in a rout.

     The 2K1 Spring League got off to a great start after the tournament. There were more teams than ever before for that spring season. The competitive level increased dramatically in the 8 on 8 A division. New teams started to emerge as contenders to Quick 6's dominance. A young, new team called Pun Goda went undefeated through the regular season before being knocked out of the playoffs by one point at the hands of the Ratts. The Wolfpack, Wolverines, and Invictus also stepped up into the class of the elite. In the end, Quick 6 won their 4th straight title, dating back to the 1999 Fall season, but they had to work hard to get there. The Ratts nearly beat them in the first round of the playoffs. Invictus came one score short of upsetting them in the second round. The Ratts worked their way through the loser's bracket to earn another shot at Quick 6 in the championship, but they fell short once again, despite great performances by QB Spencer Morris throughout the playoffs. Quick 6 QB Chuck Conover was named league MVP. He certainly earned it. After going down early in the season with a broken finger on his throwing hand that required surgery, he came back late in the season and led Quick 6 to their 8th title overall, counting both formats. The 8 on 8 B Division was won by Scoreboard (formerly known as the Young Guns). They had played in the league for 3 or 4 years and championships had eluded them until now. The most spectacular thing about this team is that they won numerous games even though they only had 6 or 7 players. Jeremy Back, Mick Garrision, and Nick Webb led the team with the most heart to the B division title, beating the Gladiators in the championship. Travis Burbage of the Gladiators was definitely the division's MVP. He scored an incredible 10 TD's in the playoffs. In fact, all 10 TD's were scored on the same day. The Gladiators ended up playing 5 games on the final day before running out of gas in the championship. They showed incredible resilience and courage in their run and Burbage was a big part of their success.

   The 5 on 5 format featured more parity than ever before. Nearly all the teams had a legitimate shot at the title. A young, new team called the Panthers earned the number one seed going into the playoffs. They continued their streak by beating Pepsi, the Falcons, and the Ravens to reach the championship. The Falcons ended up playing 6 games in a row on the final day while working their way through the loser's bracket to make it to the championship and earn a chance at revenge against the Panthers. The Falcons beat the Pine Riders, Pepsi, the Ravens (the 2 time defending champions), and then beat the Panthers twice to earn the title. The Panthers had a lead late in the final game, but injuries took their toll and the Falcons scored 18 unanswered points to win their 4th 5 on 5 Spring League title. The Falcons are certainly a fair weather team. They have never won a Fall League 5 on 5 title. The Panthers are certain to be a great team of the future. While the 5 on 5 league continues to grow, the parity seem to be increasing as well.