2009 United Football League season
Regular season
Duration	October 8, 2009 – November 20, 2009
2009 UFL Championship Game
Date	November 27, 2009
Site	Sam Boyd Stadium,Whitney, Nevada
Champion	Las Vegas Locomotives
Runner-up	Florida Tuskers
2010 →

The2009 United Football League season—referred to by the professionalAmerican football league as theUFL Premiere Season—was the inaugural season of theUnited Football League. The regular season featured 4 teams playing 6 games each (twice against each of the other teams), and both began and ended atSam Boyd Stadium inLas Vegas. Sam Boyd Stadium was the site of the2009 UFL Championship Game on November 27, a game that saw the Locomotives defeat the previously unbeatenFlorida Tuskers 20–17 in overtime.

Preparations for theUFL Premiere Season kicked off in the summer with player signings and adraft. Training camps for the players began on September 9 inCasa Grande, Arizona for the Western teams and September 10 inOrlando, Florida for the Eastern teams.^[1]

The league announced its game schedule in the first week of August, a schedule that features games in teams' primary cities as well as secondary sites (a few of which are potential future UFL homes). Certain game sites were not finalized, however, and changes were made both before the schedule's release and after play had begun:

• The season opener, originally planned forSan Francisco, was played instead inLas Vegas.
• James M. Shuart Stadium inHempstead, New York was considered a probable game venue before the schedule's release, but the league did not set a game for that site until moving the New York Sentinels' November 4 home game that was originally set forCiti Field inFlushing, a move that was announced on October 22.
• Sacramento'sHornet Stadium andSan Jose'sSpartan Stadium were also mentioned as potential playing venues. The league did not choose Hornet Stadium for a site in 2009, and did not set a game for Spartan Stadium until moving the Redwoods' November 14 home game fromAT&T Park, a move also announced on October 22. (The Redwoods would relocate permanently to Sacramento in 2010.)
• The November 20th regular season finale, originally set forHome Depot Center in theLos Angeles area, a candidate for UFL expansion in 2010,^[2] was moved back toSam Boyd Stadium, the Las Vegas Locomotives' regular home. It was the first of the in-season venue change announcements made by the league, which publicized the change during week 2 of the season.^[3]
• Secondary market games were played as scheduled atTropicana Field inSt. Petersburg, where Florida defeated Las Vegas on October 30, andRentschler Field inHartford, where the Tuskers defeated New York on November 12. (The New York Sentinels moved to Hartford following the 2009 season.)^[2]

During the week of August 10, the four team names and their uniform jerseys were revealed. Each of the uniforms (and the team logos and helmets that were unveiled on October 2)^[4] incorporated the UFL's signature color scheme into their designs, including silver (primary color for the Las Vegas Locomotives), blue (Florida Tuskers), black (New York Sentinels), and lime green and white (California Redwoods). Each of the team jerseys had the same design template, complete with a horizontal arc across the top front that resembles the arc on the UFL's logo.

The UFL launched play on October 8, 2009, with the Las Vegas Locomotives defeating the California Redwoods 30–17 at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas. Locos' kickerGraham Gano's 33-yard field goal with 3:20 remaining in the 1st quarter were the first points in league history, while a 5-yard run by Redwoods' quarterbackShane Boyd was the league's first touchdown. The Locos, who trailed 14–3 at one point in the 2nd quarter, rallied for the win via 2 touchdown passes by quarterbackJ. P. Losman.

The top team during the regular season was theFlorida Tuskers; with a roster of players including quarterbackBrooks Bollinger and receiverTaye Biddle, the Tuskers finished the season with a perfect 6–0 record, officially securing a berth in theUFL Championship Game with an October 30 win overLas Vegas.^[5] The Locomotives clinched 2nd place and the other title game spot with a November 14 win over California.^[6]

Sparsely attended games were a noticeable part of the UFL's regular season, with announced crowds ranging from as low as 4,312 for California's November 14 home game in San Jose^[7] to as high as 18,187 for the October 8 inaugural game in Las Vegas,^[8] (though media observers at the game suggested the actual in-house attendance for that first game was considerably less).^[9][10] The twelve regular-season contests drew a total of 116,132 fans, or an average of 9,678 a game. Florida led the league in average attendance (13,225), while California (5,836) and New York (6,637), hampered in part by shifts in game sites and competing in major markets with an NFL presence, brought up the rear in attendance average. Further, two New York home games were held the same nights as Games 2 and 6 of the2009 World Series, featuring theNew York Yankees.^[11] Other factors—including the lack of aseason ticket package, large-scale college football in Florida, the death of UConn football playerJasper Howard andTim Lincecum'sCy Young Award press conference just prior to a Redwoods home game—hampered attendance severely.^[12]

Though Florida Tuskers' coachJim Haslett was among those expressing some disappointment^[13] in the league's marketing approach for the season (a possible cause of low attendance), league commissionerMichael Huyghue was among league and team executives who countered that rather than heavily marketing the UFL, the league's premiere season was meant to be a "dress rehearsal"—start small, promote modestly, emphasize quality of product, and take the results and lessons learned from the season in determining the league's plans for 2010 and beyond.^{[2][14][15][16]}

  Win  Loss

y-denotes team advanced to2009 UFL championship game

The UFL's Premiere Season concluded on November 27, 2009 (one day afterThanksgiving) with the championship game atSam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas. The matchup between theFlorida Tuskers andLas Vegas Locomotives was dominated by defense until the 4th quarter, when a total of 24 points were scored, highlighted by 2 touchdown runs by Locos running backDeDe Dorsey. A 33-yard field goal byGraham Gano in overtime (the first overtime game in UFL history) gave Las Vegas the championship (and denied Florida an undefeated season) by a 20–17 score. The final score of the game was set up by a Locos takeaway deep in Tusker territory on Florida's first overtime possession.

Note: Statistical numbers cover both the regular season and Championship Game

• Motorola Season MVP:Brooks Bollinger, Quarterback,Florida Tuskers
• Men's Wearhouse Coach of the Year: Jim Haslett, Florida Tuskers^[19]

• United Football League (2009–2012)
• UFL premiere season draft

• 2009 UFL Media Guide^{[dead link]}

• 2009 United Football League season

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