Wikipedia

Florence Phantoms

The Florence Phantoms were a professional indoor football team based out of Florence, South Carolina, in the United States. They were an expansion member of the American Indoor Football Association (AIFA) in 2006, and were the AIFA Champions of the 2008 season. They played their home games at Florence Civic Center.[3]

Florence Phantoms
Founded2006
LeagueAmerican Indoor Football Association
Team historyFlorence Phantoms
(2006–2009)
Based inFlorence, South Carolina
ArenaFlorence Civic Center
ColorsPurple, Black, Grey, White
       
PresidentBennie King
Head coachTavares Bowens[1]
Championships1 (2008)[1]
Division titles1 (2008)
DancersSpirit Dancers[2]
MascotDoom

On Saturday, April 8, 2006, after losing their first four games, the Phantoms got their first win in a 54–30 home upset against the Raleigh Rebels.[4]

On Friday, June 23, 2006, the Phantoms announced that they would return for the 2007 season.

2008 was the Phantoms' best season by far: after winning the Eastern Division Championship with a 10–4 record, the Phantoms went on to defeat the Huntington Heroes in the first round of the playoffs, followed by the Reading Express in the Eastern Conference championship, and finally defeating the Wyoming Cavalry 48–12 to win the AIFA Championship Bowl on their home turf.[5]

The Phantoms did not return after the 2009 season.[6]

Season-by-season

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Season records
SeasonWLTFinishPlayoff results
Florence Phantoms (AIFL)
200641007th Southern--[7]
Florence Phantoms (AIFA)
20074906th Southern--[8]
200810401st EC Eastern[9]Won ECE Round 1 (Huntington)
Won EC Championship (Reading)
Won AIFA Championship Bowl II (Wyoming)
20096805th Eastern--[10]
Totals27310 (including playoffs)

Game Results

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2007

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Date Opponent Home/Away Result
February 17 Carolina Speed Home Won 64-36
February 25 Lakeland Thunderbolts Away Lost 25-69[11]
March 3 Huntington Heroes Home Lost 40-43[12]
March 17 Mississippi Mudcats Away Lost 14-63
March 23 Lakeland Thunderbolts Home Lost 18-54[11]
March 31 Tallahassee Titans Away Lost 36-41
April 7 Montgomery Bears Away Won 46-40[13]
April 14 Pittsburgh RiverRats Away Lost 60-66
April 21 Baltimore Blackbirds Home Won 65-33
April 28 Tallahassee Titans Home Lost 33-69
May 5 Montgomery Bears Home Lost 40-48
May 12 Carolina Speed Away Lost 22-32
May 19 Mississippi Mudcats Home Won 45-44

2008

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Date Opponent Home/Away Result
March 15 Baltimore Mariners Home Lost 32-35
March 21 Huntington Heroes Away Lost 32-47[14]
March 29 Canton Legends Home Won 55-39
April 13 Fayetteville Guard Away Won 39-38
April 19 Reading Express Away Lost 30-66
April 25 n/a Home Won 66-12[15]
May 3 Mississippi Mudcats Away Lost 39-40
May 10 Florida Stingrays Away Won 61-30
May 17 Florida Stingrays Home Won 58-13
May 23 Erie RiverRats Home Won 57-27
May 30 Fayetteville Guard Home Won 50-6
June 6 Columbus Lions Away Won 40-35
June 14 Augusta Colts Home Won 56-22
June 21 Carolina Speed Away Won 53-35
July 7 Huntington Heroes (Div. Playoffs) Home Won 55-9
July 12 Reading Express (EC Championship) Away Won 52-37
July 25 Wyoming Cavalry (Championship Bowl II) Home Won 48-12[5]

2009

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Date Opponent Home/Away Result
March 7 Carolina Speed Home Lost 29-37
March 13 Harrisburg Stampede Home Won 19-12
March 28 Columbus Lions Home Won 55-36
April 4 Fayetteville Guard Home Won 50-49
April 11 South Carolina Force Away Won 63-59
April 18 Carolina Speed Away
April 24 Baltimore Mariners Away
May 2 Reading Express Home
May 16 Carolina Speed Home
May 30 Columbus Lions Away
June 6 Fayetteville Guard Away
June 13 South Carolina Force Home
June 19 Columbus Lions Away Lost 61-12[16]
June 27 Erie RiverRats Away Lost 60-20[17]

References

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  1. 1 2 Kemp, Bill (April 8, 2020). "Long journey leads Tavares Bowens to Northern Colorado". The Ledger. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  2. ↑ "Phantoms announce dance team tryouts". OurSports Central. November 23, 2005. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  3. ↑ Boardwine, Andrew (August 2, 2018). "Georgia arena football team will relocate to Florence". Greater Florence Chamber of Commerce. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  4. ↑ "AIFL names players of the week". OurSports Central. April 14, 2006. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  5. 1 2 Singleton, Shawn (July 28, 2008). "Philadelphia Captures Arena Bowl Title". The Ledger. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  6. ↑ White, Chris (July 5, 2009). "Playoffs can be too costly for Columbus Lions, other AIFA teams". Ledger-Enquirer. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  7. ↑ "2006 Florence Phantoms Statistics". Stats Crew. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  8. ↑ "2007 Florence Phantoms Statistics". Stats Crew. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  9. ↑ "2008 Florence Phantoms Statistics". Stats Crew. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  10. ↑ "2009 Florence Phantoms Statistics". Stats Crew. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  11. 1 2 "Thunderbolts defeate the Phantoms". OurSports Central. March 24, 2007. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  12. ↑ "Heroes rally to outscore Phantoms". The Ironton Tribune. July 3, 2007. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  13. ↑ "RiverRats Host Florence Phantoms on April 14". OurSports Central. April 10, 2007. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  14. ↑ Walsh, David (March 21, 2008). "Heroes win again, 47-32 over Florence". The Herald-Dispatch. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  15. ↑ "Heroes don't show for game". The Herald-Dispatch. April 26, 2008. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  16. ↑ "Lions exterminate Phantoms in 61-12 win". OurSports Central. June 20, 2009. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  17. ↑ "Erie Ends 2009 Season With 60-20 Blowout of Defending Champs". OurSports Central. June 29, 2009. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
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