A team from Washington traveling to Texas to take on a team from the Dallas suburbs in a gridiron showdown with everything on the line: history, bragging rights, the championship trophy. Sound familiar?
Only this matchup isn’t a modern-day reprise of Redskins versus Cowboys.
This is Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s new iteration of the XFL. with Saturday night’s championship game in San Antonio pitting the D.C. Defenders aganst the Arlington Renegades.
The XFL North-winning Defenders led their division wire-to-wire, clinching a playoff spot in Week 8 of the season and posting a league-best 9-1 record.
The Renegades hoed a tougher road, squeaking into the playoffs in the final week with a 4-6 record.
But the Renegades upset the Houston Roughnecks 26-11 to become XFL South Division champs on April 29, even though the Roughnecks had swept them in the regular season.
The Defenders slew the Seattle Sea Dragons 37-21 on April 30, taking the XFL North Division crown and completing their three-game sweep of the team from the other Washington.
Defenders quarterback Jordan Ta’amu won the XFL Offensive Player of the Year award, while Defenders coach Reggie Barlow won the XFL Coach of the Year award, and seven Defenders made the 2023 All-XFL team.
The 2023 All-XFL team also featured one Renegade, defensive lineman DaVonte Lambert.
Half of the league’s eight teams, specifically the top two teams in each division, made the playoffs.
The league’s owner, Mr. Johnson, will be in attendance at Saturday’s title bout.
“We’re pumped to bring this historic event to the Alamodome. On a very personal note, I started my wrestling career in San Antonio, specifically at the Alamodome. The city, the fans — San Antonio and the state of Texas helped shape my career,” the movie star and former wrestler said in February when announcing that the city would host the inaugural XFL championship.
Fans hoping to score last-minute tickets are likely in luck.
There were numerous seats still available as of Tuesday, with only two sections of the lower bowl sold out. For single ticket buyers, the cheapest non-resale seats available are $44.22 after fees, while the most expensive are $142.18 after fees.
On its website, the XFL suggested fans check out the tourist-friendly city’s other attractions — the Alamo, the San Antonio Riverwalk, the San Antonio Zoo, and the city’s botanical gardens — but the big draw, of course, is the inaugural championship of the revived XFL.
The previous revival attempt in 2020, under the aegis of former WWE head honcho Vince McMahon, was aborted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The first XFL, which had WWE-esque sports entertainment elements, including microphones and cameras in the huddle, public address announcers that talked trash, and nicknames like “He Hate Me” on the backs of jerseys, played a single season in 2001.
