New York Guardians

The Orlando Guardians are a professional American football team based in Orlando, Florida. The team was founded by Vince McMahon's Alpha Entertainment and is an owned-and-operated member of the XFL. The Guardians played their home games at MetLife Stadium in 2020 and will play at Camping World Stadium in 2023. They were originally named the New York Guardians, which they were known as for their first season.

In July 2022, Alpha (under Dwayne Johnson and Dany Garcia ownership) announced that the XFL would not return to New York for the 2023 XFL season. Guardians president Janet Duch was reassigned to the league's central office, and the Guardians brand was transferred to Orlando.

History

New York (2020)

New York, joined Seattle, Houston, Los Angeles, St. Louis, D.C., Tampa Bay, and Dallas as the XFL's inaugural cities. All teams have 40-man active rosters and play a 10-week season. Vince McMahon said "the game will feature simplified rules for a faster pace of the game that should complete in under three hours", and draws from former college and NFL players.

On April 15, 2019, the team hired Kevin Gilbride, who most recently was the Offensive Coordinator for the New York Giants as their first head coach.

The Guardians won the first game in franchise history, topping the Tampa Bay Vipers 23–3 at MetLife Stadium. Quarterback Matt McGloin scored the first touchdown in team history on their first possession, a one-yard score that put them up 6–0. McGloin would later find Colby Pearson for a passing touchdown. Defensively, the Guardians forced three turnovers, including a fumble return for a touchdown by Jamar Summers. Tampa Bay reached the red zone five times, but emerged only with a field goal thanks to a standout defensive effort.

The Guardians' first road game saw them become the victims of the first shutout in the new XFL's history, as they fell to the DC Defenders by a 27–0 final at Audi Field. The game became notable for a McGloin sideline interview with ABC/ESPN's Dianna Russini, in which he was very critical of the team's offensive gameplan. McGloin was eventually pulled from the game for backup Marquise Williams in the second half.

New York's next game was a visit to The Dome at America's Center to take on the St. Louis BattleHawks. Another one-sided loss awaited the Guardians, as they fell by a 29–9 final in St. Louis' home opener. McGloin was injured on the Guardians' first possession. He returned to the game, but missed the entire second half. New York did manage to end a streak of 26 consecutive possessions without a touchdown when third-string quarterback Luis Perez found Austin Duke for an eight-yard score in the fourth quarter.

With McGloin out with an injury, Perez was the Guardians' starting quarterback for their Week 4 return to MetLife Stadium. Assisted by a strong rushing attack, Perez was able to guide the Guardians to a 17–14 victory over the Los Angeles Wildcats. The Guardians tallied 122 yards on the ground, led by a tally of 82 from Darius Victor. New York took the lead for good on a 47-yard field goal from Matthew McCrane, which was set up by a Summers interception. Jarrell Owens led the way defensively for the Guardians with two sacks and a blocked field goal.

Perez earned another start when the Guardians hit the road again, taking on the Dallas Renegades at Globe Life Park in Arlington. The Guardians would go on to put up their most dominant effort of the season, crushing the Renegades by a 30–12 final. New York's key to victory was a series of 21 unanswered points in the third quarter. Williams came in to score a rushing touchdown from one yard out before Perez hooked up with Pearson for an 80-yard touchdown pass, the longest play in Guardians history. Linebacker Ryan Mueller capped the barrage off by returning an interception for a touchdown, the Guardians' second defensive score of the season. New York once again had a stellar rushing day, earning 144 yards on the ground. Victor once again led the way, this time with 58 of those yards.

The Guardians were set to take on the undefeated Houston Roughnecks at MetLife Stadium prior to the XFL's decision to suspend its season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. New York finished their inaugural season with a 3–2 record and engaged in a three-way tie for first place in the XFL's East Division.

Orlando (2022–present)

On July 24, 2022, the XFL announced that it would move its Florida-based team to Orlando, a relocation that had been discussed since the premature end of the 2020 season. In September 2022, a leak on the XFL's online store indicated the team would take the name of the defunct New York Guardians (and thus become the Orlando Guardians) while the Vipers brand would be transferred to the Vegas Vipers, in homage to the rattlesnakes in the Las Vegas Valley.XFL Teams Names Leaked Online, Some Old, Some New, Some Surprising Changes
Retrieved September 23, 2022. The league confirmed this on October 31, also revealing the teams' color schemes, in that Orlando would retain Tampa Bay's green-based color scheme, while Vegas would get the black-and-red-based color scheme used by New York in 2020.

Players

Current roster

Staff

Former Notable Players

* T. J. Barnes
* Tanner Gentry
* Matt McGloin

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Orlando Guardians
American football teams established in 2018
American football teams in New Jersey
American football teams in Orlando, Florida
XFL (2020) teams
Sports in Orlando, Florida