The Florida Marine Raiders (formerly the Lakeland Raiders) were a professional indoor football team; though they began play in 2012 as a member of the
Ultimate Indoor Football League
The Ultimate Indoor Football League (UIFL) was a regional professional indoor football league that began its inaugural season on February 18, 2011 as the Ultimate Indoor Football League before playing as the United Indoor Football League in 2012 ...
, for 2014 they became a charter member of the
X-League Indoor Football
X-League Indoor Football (X-League) was a professional indoor football minor league that began play in 2014. The league was co-chaired by Michael Mink and Kacee Smith. On September 19, 2015, the league announced a merger with the future "North ...
(X-League). The Raiders were based in
Lakeland, Florida
Lakeland is the most populous city in Polk County, Florida, part of the Tampa Bay Area, located along Interstate 4 east of Tampa. According to the 2020 U.S. Census Bureau release, the city had a population of 112,641. Lakeland is a principal c ...
, with home games played at the
Lakeland Center
The RP Funding Center (formerly the Lakeland Civic Center and the Lakeland Center) is a multipurpose entertainment complex in Lakeland, Florida, comprising a convention center, arena and theater. Currently, it is home to the Florida Tropics SC o ...
. The Lakeland Raiders were founded by Michael Mink in his mother's vision of helping players get a second chance.
The Raiders were the second indoor football team to play in Lakeland, after the
Lakeland Thunderbolts
The Lakeland Thunderbolts were a professional indoor football team. They were a member of the American Indoor Football Association (AIFA). They played their home games at the Lakeland Center.
History
The Lakeland Thunderbolts began in 2005 as ...
which played in the
National Indoor Football League
The National Indoor Football League (NIFL) was a professional indoor football league in the United States. For their first six years, the league had teams in markets not covered by either the Arena Football League or its developmental league, A ...
for the
2005
File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...
and
2006
File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...
seasons, then joined the
American Indoor Football Association
American Indoor Football (AIF) was a professional indoor football league, one of the several regional professional indoor football leagues in North America.
The AIFL began as a regional league with six franchises on the East Coast of the United ...
for the
2007 season, winning the league championship before folding that offseason.
At the conclusion of the 2013
UIFL season, the Raiders announced that they would be joining the newly formed X-League. On July 11, 2013, the franchise announced that they would be changing their name to the Florida Marine Raiders. In August 2015, the Marine Raiders announced they would not be returning in 2016.
2012 season
2013 season
2014 season
Players of note
Roster
All-League selections
* RB Levi Raines, Jr. (1)
* WR Reggie Ellis (1)
* OL Adam Duckett (1)
* DL Kendrick Stewart (1)
* LB Prince Hall (1)
* DB Maurice Francois (1)
Awards and honors
The following is a list of all Raiders/Marine Raiders players who won league Awards
Season-by-season results
References
External links
Florida Marine Raiders official website
2014 establishments in Florida
2015 disestablishments in Florida
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