The Oregon Blackbears were a professional indoor football team based in Salem, Oregon. They were announced as one of the inaugural teams for the revived Arena Football League (AFL), beginning play in 2024. They play at the Oregon State Fairgrounds Pavilion in Salem. The Blackbears spent much of its existence in a state of uncertainty after a league reorganization early in the 2024 season, having twice been removed from, then restored to the league, as original owner and original league president Travelle Gaines was ousted from the league midseason and never sold the team to an ownership group that had agreed to take over the team's operations and allow it to continue. Because of this, the Blackbears were not carried over to Arena Football One but were replaced with a different team, the Oregon Lightning, with new ownership and much of the same staff.
| Oregon Blackbears | |
|---|---|
 Current season | |
| Established 2023 Folded 2024 Played in Oregon State Fairgrounds Pavilion in Salem, Oregon OregonBlackBears.com | |
 | |
| League/conference affiliations | |
Current uniform | |
| Team colors | Black, Gray, Red |
| Personnel | |
| Owner(s) | Travelle Gaines Arena Football Management, LLC (minority) Justin Butler (minority stake) |
| President | Patrick Johnson |
| Head coach | Chuck Jones |
| Team history | |
| |
| Championships | |
| League championships (0) | |
| Conference championships (0) | |
| Division championships (0) | |
| Home arena(s) | |
History
editThe Blackbears were the third official (and likely final) Oregon-based team to play in the Arena Football League, but were the first to play outside of the Portland, Oregon, area. They were also the first "major" sports team based in Salem.
Oregon AFL History
edit
The first team representing the state of Oregon in the Arena Football League were the Portland Forest Dragons, who played from 1997 to 1999 before relocating to Oklahoma City and being rebranded as the Oklahoma Wranglers. Oregon would not see the AFL again until 2013 when the Portland Thunder were established by Clackamas billionaire Terry Emmert and would take the field a few months later. The Thunder were rebranded as the Portland Steel in 2016 after the league took control of the franchise from Emmert, then abruptly folded at season's end with no explanation. The second incarnation of the league would fold three years later. Both teams played their home games at the Moda Center.[1]
Birth of the Blackbears
editFour years after the original AFL folded for the second time, it was announced on February 1, 2023 that the league intended on relaunching in 2024.[2] On July 18, the 16 intended market cities were announced, including Salem.[3] Like some other locations, Salem city officials were surprised about the announcement, but stated that they "look forward to learning more".[4]
On October 25, 2023, a press release announced that the team would be called the Oregon Blackbears. The ownership group was announced to have been led by former Oregon Ducks standout and current New York Giants linebacker Kayvon Thibodeaux and that their head coach is former player Chuck Jones.[5][6][7][8] In a statement to Arena Insider, Thibodeaux stated that he was never an owner of the team and that "(t)he league used my name for publicity.".[9] Travelle Gaines, who served as league president under commissioner Lee Hutton, was the listed majority owner of the team, through a limited liability company, with the league holding an additional minority stake.[10] Before the start of the 2024 season, Patrick Johnson was named the team president.[11] Their main rivals in the new AFL were the Washington Wolfpack and Billings Outlaws.
On April 27, 2024, the Blackbears won the debut at home over the Wolfpack 47-40.
League turmoil
editWith the ouster of commissioner Lee Hutton on May 14, 2024, the Blackbears were initially left out of the reorganized ten-team league. League officials expressed openness to continuing to schedule games against the Blackbears.[12] In a statement, Johnson expressed surprise that his organization had not been involved in the decision and that he would accept the ruling and disband the team, beginning negotiations with other leagues to ensure Blackbears players could finish the season elsewhere.[13] In a statement to the Statesman-Journal, he indicated plans to discuss the team's exclusion with the other ten remaining owners before taking any further action.[14] As of May 16, the Blackbears are still scheduled to play the Washington Wolfpack on May 18.[15] filling a schedule hole left when the Rapid City Marshals, one of the ten surviving teams, cancelled an upcoming game amid in-team turmoil that had forced the sudden forfeiture of that team's previous game.[16] The Blackbears announced an agreement to finish the 2024 season on May 17[17] after a local ownership group was found to cover the league's shares in the team;[18] ultimately, Gaines and Hutton never sold their stakes, and the entanglement of these "legal relationships" ultimately prevented the team from returning to the field.[10]
Franchise turmoil
editAfter declining a Week 5 reassignment to play the Southwest Kansas Storm in place of the Billings Outlaws "due to unforeseen circumstances,"[19] the Blackbears were briefly removed from the Arena Football League's list of teams on May 27 without their knowledge before being restored later that day.[20] On May 28, 2024, coinciding with the naming of new league president/chief operating officer Jared Widman, the league officially removed the team from the remainder of the 2024 season schedule.[21] The team continued to negotiate with the league while also exploring other options and the team announced the renewal of its contract with HUMBL (which had been the AFL's online platform under Hutton) for ticket sales for "any future home games."[22] On June 17, after the team was unable to find opponents for their two remaining scheduled home games, the Blackbears formally concluded their season, finishing 3-1 in their inaugural season.[10] Gaines and Hutton left rent bills of $30,000 unpaid for the three games held at the fairgrounds.[10]
Attempts to reach team officials went unanswered in early September, and the team has not made any social media posts since June 17.[23]
Enter the Lightning (2025-future)
editOn October 22, 2024, Arena Football One, which absorbed the eight surviving teams from the end of the 2024 AFL season, announced it would return to Oregon with a new team co-owned by former Blackbears coach Chuck Jones. The new team will play in Redmond, Oregon, a suburb of Bend, and takes on the history and intellectual property of the former Oregon High Desert Storm, which played three seasons in the American West Football Conference before that league dissolved in 2023. Due to the coexistence of another Storm team in AF1 (the Southwest Kansas Storm), and continued entanglements over the Blackbears brand, the new team will bear the name Oregon Lightning.[24] Johnson also carries over to the Lightning as a senior advisor.[25]
References
edit- ^ AFL Staff (January 13, 2024). "AFL West Division Preview". AFL. Retrieved January 25, 2024.
- ^ Thompson, Jaylon (February 1, 2023). "Arena Football League announces it's returning for 2024 season with 16 teams". USA Today. Retrieved October 5, 2023.
- ^ Arnold, Geoffery C. (July 18, 2023). "Salem, Oregon to get an Arena Football League team in 2024: Report". The Oregonian. Retrieved October 26, 2023.
- ^ Streng, Nik (July 21, 2023). "New Oregon Arena Football League team based in Salem seems to be a surprise to all: 'We look forward to learning more'". The Oregonian. Retrieved October 26, 2023.
- ^ Arnold, Geoffrey C. (October 25, 2023). "Former Oregon Ducks star Kayvon Thibodeaux leads ownership team of Arena Football League's Oregon Blackbears franchise". The Oregonian. Retrieved October 26, 2023.
- ^ Arnold, Geoffrey C. (October 25, 2023). "Oregon Blackbears' launch is 'a full go' for Arena Football League franchise in Salem". The Oregonian. Retrieved October 26, 2023.
- ^ White, Austin (October 25, 2023). "Oregon Blackbears announced as new team in Arena Football League". Portland Tribune. Retrieved October 26, 2023.
- ^ KGW Staff (October 25, 2023). "Salem gets an Arena Football League team: Meet the Blackbears". KGW. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
- ^ Carter, Anthony (May 26, 2024). "Thibodeaux denies involvement with Blackbears ownership despite AFL announcement". Arena Insider. Retrieved May 27, 2024.
- ^ a b c d Carter, Anthony (2024-06-19). "Oregon Blackbears facing $30k outstanding balance at OSFE Center from 2024 season". Arena Insider. Retrieved 2024-06-19.
- ^ McKenna, Dave (May 5, 2024). "Is The Newest Arena Football League Already Collapsing?". Defector. Retrieved May 5, 2024.
- ^ FISHER IN AS AFL COMMISSIONER. Retrieved May 14, 2024.
- ^ OREGON BLACKBEARS LEFT OUT OF REALIGNMENT, FORCED TO CEASE PLAY FOR REMAINDER OF 2024 SEASON. Retrieved May 15, 2024.
- ^ Poehler, Bill. "Salem-based Arena Football League team Oregon Blackbears cancels remainder of season". Statesman Journal. Retrieved 2024-05-16.
- ^ "Stream Live Sports, Concerts and Special Events on VYRE TV".
- ^ "Marshals Cancel Saturday's Game". 15 May 2024.
- ^ In a dramatic turn of events, the Oregon Blackbears executive team has agreed in principle with (the Arena Football League) on a new licensing agreement that allows for the completion of the 2024 season and the addition back onto the remaining 2024 AFL schedule.
- ^ Poehler, Bill. "Salem-based Oregon Blackbears arena football team restarting days after canceling season". Statesman Journal. Retrieved 2024-05-20.
- ^ SCHEDULE CHANGE: Due to unforeseen circumstances with The Oregon Blackbears The AFL has adjusted our schedule to play The Cedar Rapids River Kings.
- ^ List of Arena Football League teams as of May 27, 2024
- ^ "Arena Football League (AFL) Appoints New President & COO Jared Widman". Arena Football League. 2024-05-28. Retrieved 2024-05-28.
- ^ HUMBL and the Oregon BlackBears Deliver Innovative Digital Ticketing Program. Globe Newswire (press release). Retrieved May 28, 2024.
- ^ Streng, Nik (2024-09-05). "Oregon Blackbears again missed in Arena League realignment". The Oregonian. Retrieved 2024-09-05.
- ^ "Oregon Lightning Joining Arena Football One for 2025". Arena Football One. 2024-10-22. Retrieved 2024-10-22.
- ^ Oregon Lightning staff directory. Retrieved October 28, 2024.