2021 Fan Controlled Football season

The 2021 Fan Controlled Football season was the first season of the Fan Controlled Football (FCF), a professional indoor football league.

2021 Fan Controlled Football season
LeagueFan Controlled Football
SportIndoor American football
HostsInfinite Energy Arena
DurationFebruary 13 – March 20, 2021
Number of games11
Number of teams4
TV partner(s)Twitch, VENN, FTF (replays)
Regular season
Season championsBeasts (3–1)
  Runners-upWild Aces (2–2)
Playoffs
Game 1 championsGlacier Boyz
  Game 1 runners-upBeasts
Game 2 championsWild Aces
  Game 2 runners-upZappers
The People's Championship v1.0
VenueInfinite Energy Arena
ChampionsWild Aces
  Runners-upGlacier Boyz
Gatorade Finals MVPEd Crouch
FCF seasons
2022 →

The league began play on February 13, 2021, with four teams competing in a 12-game-format over six weeks. The league used Internet streaming as its main television platform and is streamed on Twitch and VENN on Saturdays, with reruns on FTF; the league championship is carried on the digital subchannel network LX. The FCF saw a steady increase in its viewership through its first five weeks, from 735,000 in the first week to 2.1 million in the playoffs.[1]

Following a four-game season where the Beasts took home the regular season championship, the playoffs concluded with the #1 seed Beasts losing to the #4 seed Glacier Boyz in an upset and #2 seed Wild Aces easily defeating the #3 seed Zappers.[2] The Wild Aces beat the Glacier Boyz 46–40 in the final, and were named the People's Championship, as voted by the fans, on March 20, 2021.[3]

Players were paid weekly minimum of $400 to $750 plus room and board, while coaches got paid $3,500 per month with housing and meal plan.[4]

Background

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The FCF, which sees itself as "Esports and traditional sports colliding together"[5] is unique because the league leans heavily on fan interaction to make important decisions, such as play-calling, drafts, rules, team names and seasonal awards.[6] Voting is done through a mobile app, a concept the owners first tested in the Indoor Football League when they owned the Salt Lake Screaming Eagles, and later giving up ownership of the team when they started the FCF.

The Fan Controlled Football League's (FCFL) first season's initial start date was set for 2018 but was postponed. It was then slated to start in summer 2020 in Las Vegas with eight teams,[7] but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The league shortened its name to Fan Controlled Football (FCF) and announced it would play with four teams in February 2021 in a bubble environment at the Infinite Energy Arena in Duluth, Georgia. FCF thus became the third different high-profile professional football league to play in the weeks immediately following the Super Bowl in as many years, following the Alliance of American Football in 2019 and the XFL in 2020; FCF was the first of those to complete its inaugural season as scheduled.

Teams

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The 2021 season was originally said to have eight teams, which was reduced to four due to the COVID-19 pandemic. All teams have no geographic location that they are based in, similar to ESports teams. All teams share position coaches, doctors and trainers, marketing staffs and practice squad.[7]

2021 Beasts season

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2021 Beasts season
OwnerMarshawn Lynch
Miroslav Barnyashev
Renee Montgomery
Results
Record3–1
League place1st
Playoff finishLost Semifinals (vs. Zappers)

The Beasts won their first franchise game 48–44 against the Zappers and former Heisman winner Johnny Manziel on February 13, 2021.[8]

On March 5, 2021, to load up for the Playoffs, The Beasts signed Robert Turbin, a former teammate of team owner, Marshawn Lynch.[9]

The Beasts finished the regular season 3–1, securing the #1 seed in the playoffs, but ultimately ended up losing to the #4 seed Glacier Boyz 38–20 in the semi-finals, Finishing the 2021 Fan Controlled Football season 3–2.[8]

2021 Glacier Boyz season

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2021 Glacier Boyz season
OwnerQuavious Marshall
Adin Ross
Richard Sherman
Results
Record1–3
League place4th
Playoff finishLost Finals (vs. Wild Aces)

2021 Wild Aces season

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2021 Wild Aces season
OwnerGreg Miller
Rachel Lindsay
Austin Ekeler
Results
Record2–2
League place2nd
Playoff finishWon Finals (vs. Glacier Boyz)

The Wild Aces won their first franchise game, 30–22, against the Glacier Boyz on February 13, 2021.[8] The Aces finished the season 2–2 and earned 2nd place in the league's regular season standings. Their week two franchise-tagged super back LaDarius Galloway was given the regular season Offensive MVP and Joseph Putu was given the Defensive MVP.[10] They ultimately ended up winning against the No. 3 seeded Zappers, 32–6, in the semi-finals, advancing to The People's Championship.

Right before the game, it was revealed that former Baylor and XFL defensive end Shawn Oakman had signed with the Wild Aces.[11] The Wild Aces won the People's Championship v1.0 game against the No. 4 seeded Glacier Boyz, 46–40, finishing the 2021 Fan Controlled Football season, 4–2, and earning their first championship in franchise history.[12] Dual-threat quarterback Ed Crouch was named People's Championship Gatorade MVP.[13] Crouch went 4 for 9 with 72 yards and 1 passing touchdown. He also rushed 6 times for 53 yards and added a rushing touchdown. His rushing touchdown came on the last play of the game where he faked a run to Galloway and outran a defender to touch the pilon with no time left on the clock.[12]

Final roster

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Wild Aces roster
Quarterbacks
  •  5 Ed Crouch

Super backs

  • 20 Berkley Edwards
  • 39 Daryl Virgies

Wide receivers

  •  1 James Harden
  • 17 Richaud Floyd
  • 27 Raphael Leonard

Tight ends

  • 41 David Meza
  • 43 Elkanah Dillon
  • 85 Jeremiah Houston
Offensive linemen
  • 61 Justin Brown C
  • 66 Lawrence Keys C
  • 71 Kamalie Matthews T
  • 74 Patrick Allen C
  • 79 D'Marcus Hayes T

Defense

  • 26 Benjamin Hunt IV CB
  • 29 Dillon Winfrey CB
  • 32 Darreon Jackson S
  • 36 Karheem Darrington CB
  • 46 Joseph Putu CB
  • 47 James Gales Jr. S
  • 50 Max Davis LB
  • 55 Fredrick Conyers LB
  • 56 Jeremiah Dadeboe LB
  • 67 Clavacia Love DE
  • 91 Dakavian Champion DT
  • 92 James Lee DE
  • 93 Travonte Valentine DT
  • 96 Joe Tito DE
  • 97 Owen Obasuyi DE

Keepers

  • 17 Richaud Floyd
  • 27 Raphael Leonard
  • 37 Ladarius Galloway
  • 46 Joseph Putu


Rookies in italics

Roster updated September 28, 2022

25 active, 0 inactive, 0 practice squad, 0 unsigned

Fan Controlled Football

2021 Zappers season

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2021 Zappers season
OwnerBob Menery
Trevor May
Ronnie Singh
Results
Record2–2
League place3rd
Playoff finishLost Semifinals (vs. Glacier Boyz)

On December 30, 2020, It was announced that former Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel had signed with the Zappers.[14]

The Zappers lost their first franchise game 48–44 against the Beasts on February 13, 2021.[8]

On February 27, 2021, it was announced that Josh Gordon had signed with the Zappers after being suspended indefinitely by the NFL.[15]

The Beasts finished the regular season 2–2, securing the #2 seed in the playoffs, but ultimately lost to the #2 seed Wild Aces 32–6 in the semifinals, finishing the 2021 Fan Controlled Football season 2–3.[8]

Players

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The FCF started its combines and scouting for players as early as January 2019, starting originally with asking fans to recommend players and then later holding combines in Atlanta, Dallas, Columbus and then Las Vegas.[16] Following the cancellation of the Summer 2020 season, the league held further combines in October 2020 in Houston[17] and Pittsburgh[18] then another in Atlanta in November 2020.[19] In December 2020, the FCF signed former Heisman trophy winner and NFL first round pick, quarterback Johnny Manziel[20] and Florida State quarterback Deondre Francois. They also signed former NFL player Quinn Porter,[21] Douglas McNeil III, Jeremiah Poutasi and former XFL players Damon Sheehy-Guiseppi and Quinton Flowers.

The league has no set teams with all players being drafted to teams before the first week of the season. This draft is done via voting by fans in the FCF app.[22] The same is done every week until the playoffs.[23] To stop a player from being drafted by other teams, fans can vote on using a "franchise tag" which will permanently attach the player to the team for the entire season.[24] Players can be selected by their own team in the draft to stop them from being drafted by another team.

Josh Gordon signed with the FCF on March 6, 2021 after being released by the Seattle Seahawks, entering the bubble soon after to appear in Week 4 as his FCF debut with the Zappers.[25] Robert Turbin also signed at the same time though entered the bubble later, making his debut appearance for the Beasts in the playoffs.[26]

2021 Fan Controlled Football final roster
Quarterbacks

Ed Crouch

T.J. Edwards II

Jackson Erdmann

Quinton Flowers

Deondre Francois

Johnny Manziel

Logan Marchi

David Pindell

Braden Smith

Running backs .

Calen Campbell

Berkley Edwards

LaDarius Galloway

Madre London

Quinn Porter

Ben Sieczkowski

Robert Turbin

Daryl Virgies

Wide receivers .

Joseph Boykin

LaMarcus Cardine

Alphonso Carter

Troy Evans Jr.

Richaud Floyd

Josh Gordon

James Harden

Treydonte Hill

Andrew Jamiel

Joshua Johnson

Isaiah King

Raphael Leonard

Yedidiah Louis

Douglas McNeil III

Elijah Rogers

Christian Saulsberry

Damon Sheehy-Guiseppi

Jordus Smith

KaVontae Turpin

Travis Toivonen

Tight ends .

Christopher Bazile

Elkanah Dillon

Darren Dowdell

Jeremias Houston

Deylon Key

David Meza

Offensive linemen

Pat Allen

Donald Boone

Justin Brown

Xavier Dampeer

Jaylen Flye-Sadler

D'Marcus Hayes

Lawrence Keys

Kamalie Matthews

Jeremiah Poutasi

Alan Randall

Elijah Smith

Saige Young

Defensive linemen .

James Bass

Dakavion Champion

Ja'Michael Edwards-Lott

Jordan Harold

Kyle Kitchens

James Lee

Jonathan McKinney Jr.

Shawn Oakman

Owen Obasuyi

Donte Rumph

Clavacia Smith

Joe Tito

Travonte Valentine

Nicholas Williams

Linebackers

Cecil Cherry

Fred Conyers

Jeremiah Dadeboe

Max Davis

Tigi Hill

T.J. Holl

Donte Lynch

Defensive backs .

Ikechukwu Adigwu

Curtis Collins

Karrheem Darrington

Marloshawn Franklin Jr.

James Gales Jr.

Glenn Harris

Benjamin Hunt IV

Styvis Latham

Darreon Jackson

Marquill Osborne

Joseph Putu

Dominick Sanders

Roman Tatum

Dillon Winfrey

Special teams .

Vacant

Reserve lists

Vacant

Rights list .

Vacant


22 Active, 0 Inactive

Franchise Players

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Franchise Players are players that were voted to be "protected" from other teams in the draft.[8]

Beasts

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Glacier Boyz

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Wild Aces

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Zappers

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Notable players

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Source[27]

Regular season standings

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2021 Fan Controlled Football standings
Team W L Pct. PF PA PD GB
Beasts 3 1 .750 132 126 6
Wild Aces 2 2 .500 144 138 6 1
Zappers 2 2 .500 138 134 4
Glacier Boyz 1 3 .250 126 142 -16 2
Bold indicates top seed

Playoffs

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Fans voted for which team would face the top-seeded Beasts in the semifinal.[29]

Semifinals[30]
March 13
People's Championship[31][32]
March 20
      
1 Beasts 20
4 Glacier Boyz[33] 38
4 Glacier Boyz 40
2 Wild Aces 46
2 Wild Aces[34] 32
3 Zappers 6

Statistical leaders

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Records reflect statistics through six weeks of games.[35]

Individual
Rushing yards LaDarius Galloway Wild Aces 313
Rushing touchdowns Ladarius Galloway Wild Aces 7
Passing yards Logan Marchi Zappers 421
Passing touchdowns Logan Marchi Zappers 9
Interceptions thrown Logan Marchi Zappers 2
Receptions Andrew Jamiel Glacier Boyz 23
Receiving yards Andrew Jamiel Glacier Boyz 308
Receiving touchdowns Andrew Jamiel Glacier Boyz 9
Combined tackles
Interceptions Joseph Putu Wild Aces 2
Sacks

Awards

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Award Winner Position Final team
Gatorade Offensive Player of the Year LaDarius Galloway SB Wild Aces
Progressive Defensive Player of the Year Joseph Putu CB Wild Aces
Champion of the Fans Jackson Erdmann QB Wild Aces
Gatorade Finals MVP Ed Crouch QB Wild Aces

References

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  1. ^ Williams, Randall (March 19, 2021). "Fan Controlled Football League Sees Growth, Eyes Expansion in Year Two".
  2. ^ Schuster, Blake. "Wild Aces vs. Glacier Boyz Set for 2021 FCF Championship; Manziel's Zappers Out". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  3. ^ "FCF Season v1.0: Week Five Game Summary – FCF NEWS". Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  4. ^ "Fan Controlled Football league salary: How much do the players get paid?". www.sportingnews.com. 15 February 2021.
  5. ^ Mastrangelo, Alison (31 January 2021). "A new football league is coming to Atlanta. The twist? Fans get to be in charge". WSBTV. Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  6. ^ Sharp, Walter (2021-02-16). "Fan Controlled Football: How to watch the FCF League on Twitch". www.sportskeeda.com. Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  7. ^ a b "Are you ready for some (fan-controlled) football?". Washington Post. Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  8. ^ a b c d e f "Fan Controlled Football is where FANS call the shots". FCF. Retrieved 2021-12-27.
  9. ^ "Gordon and Turbin In the FCF: What Does That Mean? – FCF NEWS". Retrieved 2021-12-27.
  10. ^ "FCF Season v1.0 Title Game: The People's Championship - 3/20/21". FCF. Retrieved 2021-09-22.
  11. ^ "Shawn Oakman Expected to Join Fan Controlled Football". Pro Football Newsroom. 2021-03-14. Retrieved 2021-12-27.
  12. ^ a b Zucker, Joseph. "Ed Crouch's Late TD Gives Wild Aces 2021 FCF Championship over Glacier Boyz". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 2021-12-27.
  13. ^ @FCFWildAces (March 21, 2021). "MVP!! MVP!! @Eddunkin7" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  14. ^ "Johnny Manziel Signs with Fan Controlled Football — Joins Zappers". Pro Football Newsroom. 2020-12-30. Retrieved 2021-12-27.
  15. ^ Wells, Adam. "Josh Gordon Signs Contract with Johnny Manziel's FCF Team After NFL Suspension". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 2021-12-27.
  16. ^ "Combine – FCF NEWS". Retrieved 2021-03-17.[dead link]
  17. ^ Breaking down the Houston Combine, retrieved 2021-03-17
  18. ^ Pittsburgh Combine, retrieved 2021-03-17
  19. ^ ATL combine, retrieved 2021-03-17
  20. ^ "Manziel returning for fan-based startup league". ESPN.com. 2020-12-30. Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  21. ^ "Johnny Manziel playing in new football league". al. 2021-02-15. Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  22. ^ Wells, Adam. "Johnny Manziel to Wear No. 2 Jersey in FCF; Full Roster of FCF Players Revealed". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  23. ^ Davis, Josh (20 February 2021). "FCF Week 2 Gives Us New Tags, New Draft, and New Games". Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  24. ^ "What Is the FCF and Why Should We Watch?". GMTM. Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  25. ^ "Josh Gordon's FCF debut: What to know, how to watch reunion with Johnny Manziel". www.sportingnews.com. 6 March 2021. Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  26. ^ Schulze, Brandan (2021-03-12). "Robert Turbin is the latest NFL veteran set to make his Fan Controlled Football debut". Field Gulls. Retrieved 2021-03-17.
  27. ^ "All Players". FCF.
  28. ^ Morona, Joey (March 1, 2021). "Ex-Browns Josh Gordon and Johnny Manziel to reunite in Fan Control Football League". Cleveland.com. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  29. ^ @fcflio (March 8, 2021). "You chose "pick your own adventure" for our playoff format. Who should the @FCFBeasts play this weekend? You decide" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  30. ^ "FCF Playoffs: Double Header - 3/13/21" – via www.youtube.com.
  31. ^ Zucker, Joseph. "Ed Crouch's Late TD Gives Wild Aces 2021 FCF Championship over Glacier Boyz". Bleacher Report.
  32. ^ "FCF Season v1.0 Title Game: The People's Championship - 3/20/21" – via www.youtube.com.
  33. ^ "FCF Week 5 Highlights: Beasts vs. Glacier Boyz" – via www.youtube.com.
  34. ^ "FCF Week 5 Highlights: Wild Aces vs. Zappers" – via www.youtube.com.
  35. ^ All statistics can be found on fcf.io. Click on the "Teams + Players tab", click on a team and then scroll to "Games", click on any game to get the boxscore and individual statistics.
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