The Tampa Bay Bandits were a professional American football team in the United States Football League (USFL) which was based in Tampa, Florida. The Bandits were a charter member of the USFL and was the only franchise to have the same principal owner, head coach, and home field during the league's three seasons of play (1983–1985). The Bandits were one of the most successful teams in the short-lived spring football league both on the field and at the ticket booth. Spurrier's "Bandit Ball" offense led them to three winning seasons and two playoff appearances, and their exciting brand of play combined with innovative local marketing helped the Bandits lead the league in attendance. However, the franchise folded along with the rest of the USFL when the league suspended play after the 1985 season.
The Birmingham Stallions were a franchise in the United States Football League, an attempt to establish a second professional league of American football in the United States in competition with the National Football League. They played their home games at Birmingham, Alabama's Legion Field. They competed in all three USFL seasons, 1983–1985. During their run, they were one of the USFL's more popular teams, and seemed to have a realistic chance of being a viable venture had the USFL been better run.
Timothy Arnold Spencer is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the United States Football League (USFL) and National Football League (NFL) from 1983 to 1990. He played college football for the Ohio State Buckeyes.
Daniel Buggs is an American former professional football player who was a wide receiver for the New York Giants and Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL), the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and the Tampa Bay Bandits and San Antonio Gunslingers of the United States Football League (USFL).
Anthony Davis, also known as "A.D.", is an American former professional football player who was a running back. He played in four professional leagues: the World Football League (WFL), Canadian Football League (CFL), National Football League (NFL), and United States Football League (USFL).
James Robert Brooks is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football played for the Auburn Tigers. He played for four teams in the NFL, earning all four of his Pro Bowl selections with the Cincinnati Bengals.
Vincent Tobias Evans is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the USC Trojans and was the most valuable player (MVP) of the 1977 Rose Bowl after the team's 14–6 victory over Michigan. He was selected by the Chicago Bears in the sixth round of the 1977 NFL draft.
Micheal Curtis Spurlock is an American football coach and former wide receiver who is the wide receivers coach for the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers. He was signed by the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent in 2006. He played college football at Ole Miss.
Thomas Johnson "John" Reaves was an American professional football player who was a quarterback for 11 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) and three seasons in the United States Football League (USFL) during the 1970s and 1980s. Reaves played college football for the Florida Gators football, and earned first-team All-American honors.
Albert Timothy Bentley is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) and the United States Football League (USFL). Bentley began his professional career in the USFL with the Michigan Panthers and Oakland Invaders from 1984 to 1985. After the USFL folded, he played for the NFL's Indianapolis Colts and Pittsburgh Steelers from 1985 to 1992. Bentley played college football for the Miami Hurricanes.
The 1985 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's ninth season in the National Football League, the ninth playing their home games at Tampa Stadium and the first season under head coach Leeman Bennett. The team failed to improve on a 6–10 season, once again finishing at 2–14, the same as in 1983.
The 1986 Tampa Bay Buccaneers season was the franchise's 11th season in the National Football League playing their home games at Tampa Stadium and their second under head coach Leeman Bennett. The team matched their 2–14 season from 1985, for one of the worst seasons in franchise history, and according to statistics site Football Outsiders, the sixth-worst team in the NFL since 1950. There is some sentiment that the 1986 team was even worse than the winless team of 1976, and the 473 points conceded was not beaten by any NFL team until the 2001 Indianapolis Colts gave up 486. The Buccaneers selected Bo Jackson with the top pick in the draft, but were unable to convince him to join the team. Three weeks after the draft, Jackson signed a three-year baseball contract with the Kansas City Royals. Despite holding four of the first forty selections in the draft, and the presence of a great influx of fresh talent from defunct USFL teams, the Buccaneers were unable to find any impact players in either the draft or free agency. They entered the season with a roster nearly identical to the previous season's 2–14 team.
Jerious Montreal Norwood is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Mississippi State Bulldogs and is the school's second all-time leading rusher. He was selected by the Atlanta Falcons in the third round of the 2006 NFL draft.
Anthony Derrick Allen is a former professional American football player who played wide receiver for five seasons for the Atlanta Falcons, Washington Redskins, and San Diego Chargers. He played college football at the University of Washington and was drafted in the sixth round of the 1983 NFL Draft.
Frank Murphy is a former gridiron football wide receiver. He was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the sixth round of the 2000 NFL Draft. He played college football for the Kansas State Wildcats.
Clifton Smith, Jr. is an American former professional football player who was a running back and return specialist in the National Football League (NFL), Canadian Football League (CFL) and United Football League (UFL). He played college football for the Fresno State Bulldogs. He was signed by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of the NFL as an undrafted free agent in 2008, and also played for the Miami Dolphins and Cleveland Browns of the NFL, the Virginia Destroyers of the UFL, and the Calgary Stampeders of the CFL.
Christopher Alan Faulkner is a former American football tight end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Los Angeles Rams, San Diego Chargers and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the fourth round of the 1983 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Florida.
John Franklin III is an American football wide receiver for the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football for Florida State, Auburn and Florida Atlantic. He also played junior college football for East Mississippi, where he was featured prominently in the first season of Last Chance U. He was signed by the Chicago Bears as an undrafted free agent in 2018.
Wesley Ed Hills is an American professional gridiron football running back for the Michigan Panthers of the United Football League (UFL). He played college football for Delaware and Slippery Rock. He signed with the Arizona Cardinals as an undrafted free agent in 2019 and played for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL), Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League (CFL), and New Orleans Breakers of the United States Football League (USFL).
B. J. Emmons is an American professional football running back for the Calgary Stampeders of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at Florida Atlantic, Hutchinson Community College, and Alabama. Emmons has also been a member four different NFL teams; the Seattle Seahawks, Las Vegas Raiders, Jacksonville Jaguars, and Houston Texans. In the USFL he played for the Tampa Bay Bandits.
