About Us

ABOUT THE 2010 GAINESVILLE GLADIATORS

The Gainesville Gladiators is an Adult Full Contact Football Organization. Back in 2006, Coach Nate Stephens began his coaching journey after 5 seasons of Adult Full Contact Football, as Offensive Coordinator for the Georgia Panthers. That season the Panthers went 14-1 and won the SFL Championship after dominating the league competition. In 2007, Coach Stephens joined up with Neal Bennett and formed the Georgia Pride. The Pride ran for 2 years, the first year in the SFL and the second year in the USFL. The Pride made the playoffs both seasons.

After the 2008 season, Coach Stephens moved back home to Gainesville and decided to form the Gladiators, which he did so with the help of Co-Owner and his brother Coach Matt Dyer. The Gladiators went through 2009 with a record of 6-6 and failed to make the playoffs based on a technicality. For the 2010 season the Gladiators were expecting to have a rebuilding season. It was anything but that. Fresh new talent came in with a desire to win and work hard. The Gladiators finished 2010 with a 9-3 record and DSFL Championship.

2011 brought much promise as the "Road to the Repeat" began. The Gladiators started the season with more talent than ever before and a chance to make history as the first back to back champs in the DSFL history. The Gladiators talent rose to the top and they defeated opponents by an average score of 35-12. The Gladiators were the only team to score 40 or more points in a regular season game and did so 4 times (44, 69, 48, 51). The Gladiators headed into the playoffs looking to avenge an early season loss to the Upstate Vikings. In the first round of the playoffs, the Gladiators took it to the Vikings and built a 37-0 lead with 2 minutes left before halftime. The Vikings moral was broiken and they packed it in and called it a game. The Gladiators were to face the Georgia Pirates in the Divisional Championship game. The Gladiators had home field advantage by way of tie breaker from their mid season victory over the Pirates, 26-22. The Gladiators were forced to play at an unfamiliar field however due to scheduling conflicts and thus lost the home field affect. The younger Gladiators had become complacent and lost the game 28-21. Mo Issak's pass was intercepted to stop the Gladiators drive that had made it inside the 20 yard line.

For 2012, the Gladiators have moved to the XSFL. A step up in talent and organization as a league. The Gladiators also have moved to their new home field located at North Forsyth High School. The Gladiators new home field boasts synthetic turf and state of the art facilities.

The purpose of the Gladiators is to give young men an opportunity to continue their playing careers after their high school days are over. The vast majority of players don't get the opportunity to move on to the collegiate level. The most influential years in a young man's life falls between the 18-26 year range. These are the years that mold them into the men they become. We strive to not only continue their education on the football field, but to also continue a positive influence on their everyday life, by encouraging them to pursue their dreams.

These guys are not the only people that make up our organization. The rest are a variety of different ages and skill levels that make up our team. From guys that have never played the game before to guys that have played one or more seasons at the collegiate level. Ultimately our goals depend on the players goals. If they want to pursue a chance at playing at the collegiate level, the Gladiators will assist them. If they want to pursue playing professional football, the Gladiators can do that too.

Over the past 4 years the Gladiators have had a variety of different situations come about for players. such as players get into school playing collegiate football at places like Clarke Atlanta and Valdosta State. Two players from the 2011 roster were offered full ride scholarhsips by Livingstone College in North Carolina. The Gladiators also have helped place players in Europe, most recently in 2007 with the Cologne Falcons. Also a variety of players have came upon opportunities for Arena 2 and Indoor Football teams.

The ultimate goal is a collective agreement between player and team. The Gladiators will do as much as possible to help our players obtain their goals and the players must push themselves to reach those goals.

The Gladiators do not hold true tryouts. The '"tryouts" that are held are more or less an evaluation of talent. The organization feels that anyone willing to put the time and effort into this great sport and adhere to the rules of the team can then call themself a Gladiator.

As the team pushes forward into the next decade, the organization will look for continued growth and also look for new ways to establish ourselves and become an asset to the community. For more information, please refer to the Questions and Answers page or call 678-410-0818.