The Omaha Mustangs were a professional

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

team based in

Omaha, Nebraska Omaha ( ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Douglas County. Omaha is in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about north of the mouth of the Platte River. The nation's 39th-largest cit ...

. They began as an independent, semi-pro team in the early 1960s before joining the

Professional Football League of America The Professional Football League of America (PFLA) was an American football minor league that operated in the Midwest region of the United States from 1965 through 1967. With franchises based in the Midwest, the league played three seasons before ...

, a newly formed league based on remnants of the United Football League, in 1965. The Mustangs won the PFLA championship in their second season by defeating the Des Moines Warriors in a playoff game in front of 4,530 spectators. The Mustangs were affiliated with the

Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The tea ...

for the 1967 season (the Chiefs would later be affiliated with the

Kansas City Steers The Kansas City Steers were an American basketball team based in Kansas City, Missouri from 1961 to 1963. They were a member of the American Basketball League History The American Basketball League played one full season, 1961–1962, an ...

). Omaha moved to the

Continental Football League The Continental Football League (COFL) was a professional American football minor league that operated in North America from 1965 through 1969. It was established following the collapse of the original United Football League, and hoped to beco ...

for the 1968 season and finished 7-5 in the Central Division. In September 1968,

Glen Hepburn Gleanville Ervin Hepburn (November 4, 1938 – September 12, 1968) was an American football end and linebacker who played five seasons for the Omaha Mustangs in the Professional Football League of America and Continental Football League. He di ...

, a two-way player for the Mustangs, died from injuries sustained in a game. On December 15, 1969 the COFL revoked Omaha's franchise for failure to meet the league's financial obligations. The league itself quietly disbanded after the 1969 season and the Mustangs joined the

Trans-American Football League The Texas Football League (TFL) was a low-level American football minor league that operated in primarily in the United States from 1966 through 1968, and again between 1970 and 1971 as a new incarnation called the Trans-American Football Leagu ...

for the 1970 season. In February 1971 the Mustangs announced they would be joining the

Midwest Professional Football League The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of the United States. I ...

. The Mustangs did not operate for the 1973 season. They were revived as a fully independent team in 1974.

Season-by-season

References

External links

Mustangs recall memorable ride: Omaha semipro football team found a special time, place
by Rich Kaipust, ''Omaha World-Herald'', December 25, 2017 Continental Football League teams American football teams in Nebraska Sports in Omaha, Nebraska American football teams established in 1965 American football teams disestablished in 1970 1965 establishments in Nebraska 1970 disestablishments in Nebraska Professional Football League of America teams Defunct sports teams in Nebraska {{Nebraska-sport-team-stub