The Raleigh–Durham Skyhawks were an

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

team headquartered in

Raleigh, North Carolina Raleigh ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, second-most populous city in the state (after Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte) ...

that played for one season in 1991 in the

World League of American Football NFL Europe League (simply called NFL Europe and known in its final season as NFL Europa) was a professional American football league that functioned as the List of developmental and minor sports leagues, developmental minor league of the Nati ...

(WLAF). The name was inspired by the

Wright brothers The Wright brothers, Orville Wright (August 19, 1871 – January 30, 1948) and Wilbur Wright (April 16, 1867 – May 30, 1912), were American aviation List of aviation pioneers, pioneers generally credited with inventing, building, and flyin ...

' flights on the

Outer Banks The Outer Banks (frequently abbreviated OBX) are a string of barrier islands and spits off the coast of North Carolina and southeastern Virginia, on the east coast of the United States. They line most of the North Carolina coastline, separatin ...

of North Carolina. The three jet-trails and three planes in flight, as well as the triangle design in the logo, represented the three points of the Research Triangle area (Raleigh, Durham, and Chapel Hill). The team's cheerleaders were known as the "Kittyhawks." The name was chosen by Raleigh citizens, the choices being the Skyhawks, Daredevils, or Rogues as published in the ''

News and Observer ''The News & Observer'' is an American regional daily newspaper that serves the greater Triangle area based in Raleigh, North Carolina. The paper is the largest in circulation in the state (second is the '' Charlotte Observer''). The paper has be ...

''. The Skyhawks' home field was N.C. State's

Carter–Finley Stadium Wayne Day Family Field at Carter–Finley Stadium is a List of NCAA Division I FBS football stadiums, college football stadium located in Raleigh, North Carolina. It has been home to the NC State Wolfpack football, NC State Wolfpack football team ...

in Raleigh. Then-

Charlotte Hornets The Charlotte Hornets are an American professional basketball team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Hornets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team ...

owner George Shinn owned the franchise, and the head coach was former

NFL The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The N ...

player and N.C. State alumnus

Roman Gabriel Roman Ildonzo Gabriel Jr. (August 5, 1940 – April 20, 2024) was an American professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the NC State Wolfpack, twice earning first- ...

. The team had a 0–10 record in the 1991 season and averaged 12,066 spectators per game due in part to the lack of beer sales, which were not allowed at (technically) on-campus Carter–Finley Stadium. During the 1991 season, the three Europe-based teams dominated the franchises in North America. In mid season, the Skyhawks came close to beating the Frankfurt Galaxy in Germany, but lost 30-28 to a team that was coached by

Jack Elway John Albert Elway Sr. (May 30, 1931 – April 15, 2001) was an American football player and coach. He was the head coach at California State University, Northridge from 1976 to 1978, at San Jose State University from 1979 to 1983, and at Stanford ...

and finished the season 7-3, considered by some as the league's second best. The Skyhawks folded after their lone season of 1991. To replace them for the 1992 season, the WLAF established a new franchise in

Columbus, Ohio Columbus (, ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Ohio, most populous city of the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 United States census, 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the List of United States ...

, naming it the Ohio Glory. After a two year hiatus, the league resumed in 1995 with new focus as

NFL Europe NFL Europe League (simply called NFL Europe and known in its final season as NFL Europa) was a professional American football league that functioned as the List of developmental and minor sports leagues, developmental minor league of the Nati ...

. The Skyhawks' lack of success did not sour the NFL on the whole state, as in 1995, Charlotte welcomed the expansion

Carolina Panthers The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Panthers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South division. The t ...

franchise. Professional sports would return to the Triangle area eight years later when the

Carolina Hurricanes The Carolina Hurricanes (colloquially known as the Canes) are a professional ice hockey team based in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Hurricanes compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Con ...

of the NHL moved there from

Greensboro, North Carolina Greensboro (; ) is a city in Guilford County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 299,035; it was estimated to be 307,381 in 2024. It is the List of municipalitie ...

to play ice hockey in their newly constructed arena.

Season-by-season

Personnel

Staff

Roster

Schedule

References

External links

Team results @ the Football Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Raleigh-Durham Skyhawks Sports in Raleigh, North Carolina NFL Europe (WLAF) teams American football teams established in 1991 American football teams disestablished in 1991 Wright brothers Defunct American football teams in North Carolina 1991 establishments in North Carolina 1991 disestablishments in North Carolina