AAF Beats NFL to Las Vegas with the Conquerors
Conquerors to Make Las Vegas Home
July 4, 2017
Las Vegas, NV - Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta along with Zuffa LLC are proud to announce they were granted one of the four Alliance expansion teams for the 2018 season and that they would be bringing the Conquerors to Las Vegas.
“This league is all about opportunity, and is there a better city in this country that represents exactly that.”
Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta established Zuffa LLC back in 2001, to buy the Ultimate Fighting Championships where they served as CEOs until August 2016 when they sold the UFC to Dana White for $4B. They're also the CEOs and chairmen for Red Rock Resorts Inc. in Las Vegas, the city they were born. The Fertittas along with Zuffa LLC bought the Las Vegas Conquerors for $15M.
However, the brothers weren't the only familiar faces at the press conference in Las Vegas. Rex Ryan was there as the Head Coach along with Offensive Coordinator Art Briles, Defensive Coordinator Rob Ryan and designated franchise player, Ryan Mallett.
Rex Ryan
Ryan served last as the Head Coach of the Buffalo Bills for 2015 and 2016 before being let go along with his brother Rob Ryan after going 16-16 in his two seasons failing to make the playoffs. Rex served as the Head Coach of the New York Jets from 2009 to 2014, and was the Defensive Coordinator with the Baltimore Ravens from 1999 to 2008.
Las Vegas Conquerors
Joining Rex Ryan in Las Vegas is his brother Rob Ryan as the Defensive Coordinator and Art Briles as the Offensive Coordinator. Rob served as the DC from 2004 to 2016 for the Oakland Raiders, Cleveland Browns, Dallas Cowboys, New Orleans Saints and Buffalo Bills. Briles was the Head Coach at the University of Houston from 2003 to 2007, and at the University of Baylor from 2007 to 2015 before being let go due to sexual assault scandals running rampant in his program.
Former NFLers Kurt Gouveia and David Diaz-Infante will also be joining Ryan's staff in Las Vegas. Gouveia played in the NFL from 1986 to 1999 before playing for the Las Vegas Outlaws in the XFL for the 2001 season. Gouveia will serve as the Linebackers Coach, a position he has previously had with the Berlin Thunder and Rhein Fire in NFL Europe, and for the University of Hawaii. Diaz-Infante also played in the NFL from 1987 to 2000 before playing one season in the XFL for the Las Vegas Outlaws. Diaz-Infante will serve as the Offensive Line Coach, after being an Assistant Offensive Line Coach with the Arizona Cardinals in 2015 and with the New York Jets in 2016.
Alan "Trip" MacCracken will serve as the General Manager of the Conquerors. MacCracken served as the salary cap manager for the Cleveland Browns from 1999 to 2009 and as a Director of Football Operations for the Kansas City Chiefs from 2010 to 2016.
Ryan Mallett will also be joining the team in Las Vegas as the franchise designated player and ideally the starting Quarterback. Mallett was a third round pick of the New England Patriots back in 2011 where he served as a backup to Tom Brady until he signed with the Houston Texans for two seasons and then the Baltimore Ravens for two seasons.
The Conquerors will be playing their home games at Sam Boyd Stadium in Whitney, Nevada.
Conquerors Admit Mistake and Move on from Art Briles
July 7, 2017
Las Vegas, NV - Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta along with Zuffa LLC announced Art Briles as the Offensive Coordinator of their Las Vegas Conquerors just three days ago but in the face of a firestorm of criticism and pressure from league officials, took a step back and announced that he would not be joining the team.
The owners conceded tonight that hiring Briles had been "a major blunder," and credited AAF Owner Vince McMahon with persuading the team to rescind the hire. The following day, Lorenzo Fertitta issued a statement apologizing for "a large and serious mistake." General Manager Trip MacCracken said that team officials got so focused on "the inner sanctum of football discussions" that they forgot about the larger questions of "our standing in the community."
A new Offensive Coordinator should be named within a few weeks.