DC DEFENDERS-DC SPORTS HISTORY IN THE MAKING IN 2026

Members of this championship team celebrate their first championship at Ladd Stadium in Mobile, Alabama. The DC native Washingtonians on that team read like a Who;s Who: Number 22, is the great cornerback and punt returner, Robert ‘”Blue” Johnson, a graduate of Cardozo High School, standing directly behind johnson is the great player-coach Earl Richards, one of my childhood heroes growing up in my Parkside housing project. Standing two players to Johnson’s left is the great Woodrow Wilson High School All-Met running back, Mike Summer. Summer played briefly for the Baltimore Colts, and later became a surgeon in a Hagerstown, Maryland Hospital. Last but not least is No. 82, Harold Bell, an all-around athlete out of Spingarn High School. I was always open, and I never saw a football I could not catch. Most of the times I was right.

MY RUNNING PARTNER ED BUTNER AND I CELEBRATED OUR SECOND STRAIGHT ATLANTIC COAST FOOTBALL LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP IN 1967.

No. 12 QB JOHN THOMAS OUT OF SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY WAS THE GLUE THAT HELD THE VIRGINIA SAILORS TOGETHER. HE COULD RUN, PASS AND OUT THINK ANY QB IN THE LEAGUE. IT LOOKS LIKE I AM SAYING, “JOHN, JUST THROW ME THE DAM BALL.”

IN 1967 WASHINGTON POST LEGENDARY SPORTS COLUMNIST BOB ADDIE WROTE A COLUMN THAT MADE THE VIRGINIA SAILORS THE TOAST OF THE TOWN.

In high school I was a headache for my coaches, I always wanted the ball in my hands, especially, when the game was on the line. My confidence was mistaken for selfishness. My baseball coach, Leo Hill, asked me to turn in my uniform after I had stolen second base, and third base, Coach Hill called time out, and walked over to third base, he politely said, “Bell great job, it is the 7th inning and the score is 5-4 hold your position. Our best hitter Donald “Cornbread” Malloy was coming to bat.”

I said, “Okay coach”, before he he could get to back to the bench, I tried to steal home. I was out by a mile-game over. On our arrival back to school, Coach Hill came in the locker room, and asked me to turn in my uniform. He walked out of the locker room saying, “There is only one Willie Mays, and he plays in New York City.”

Moving to football, the coach was Dave Brown, he had to lock me on the bus at half time against our next door neighbor Phelps Vocational. He overheard me blaming QB Duck Wills after I jumped off-side before the snap count.

What bothered me, I caught a touchdown pass, and it was called back. I was blaming Duck, and had no idea Coach Brown was listening as we headed for the bus for half time. We were playing at Eastern High School, Phelps was the home team, but had no field to play on.

Again thinking I was the man, I wanted the ball, The Phelps defensive backs were shutting me down, with double teams, and they were shutting us out-0-0.

Once on the bus, Coach Brown addressed the problem I had with Wills. He asked me to explain myself. I said, “Coach I could not hear Wills calling the signal.”

Coach Brown’s response, “Son you are at the end of the line, all have to do is look down the line and watch for when the ball is hiked.”

He then went over the game plan for the second half, and we started to get off the bus heading back to the field of play. Coach Brown stopped me in my tracks and said, “Bell, stay here on the bus, we are going to try to win this one without you.”

Well there was still basketball season, Coach William Roundtree invited me to try out for the team. They were loaded with talent. There was Duck Wills, Irving Brown, Andrew Johnson, Spotswood Bolling, Slim Coleman. Lyman Williams, a tuff roster to make.

Coach Roundtree, had already decided to make me a defensive stopper in a basketball maneuver called “The Box in One.” I was assigned to play the other team’s hot shooter, while everyone else played a zone defense. I felt special coming off the bench to guard the other team’s star player.

That did not last for long, the newspaper stories went to the top scorers. Going into my senior year, I spend my time on the basketball courts at Brown, and Kelly Miller Middle schools developing, the art of shooting and scoring.

Big mistake, I messed up the chemistry of what could have been a threat to win the East against a powerful Eastern High School team. They had Bernie Chavis, Bobby Johnson, Robert Cephas, Jimmy “Blondie” Jones, Ronnie Bruce, and James “Pretty” Thomas. They were our rivals, and “The Beast of the East.”

To make a long story short Coach Roundtree, kicked me to the curve, and decided to bring several players up from the junior varsity. I transferred from Spingarn to Eastern, and was welcome by basketball Coach Bobby Hart with open arms.

SPINGARN HIGH SCOOL 1957 FOOTBALL TEAM-I AM STANDING IN THE BACK WITH MY HELMET UNDER MY ARM.

HAROLD BELL ALL-EAST FIRST TEAM WR 1958

Fifty-nine years later, the DC Defenders will be trying to capture their second straight United Football League Championship on Sunday June 13,2026.. The only other pro football team outside of the Washington Redskins to accomplish that feat were, the Virginia Sailors of the Atlanta Coast Football league in 1967.

Harold Bell, a Washington DC native, was a pass catching wide receiver on both of those championship teams. The DC homegrown talent all played important roles in the success of the Virginia Sailors.

THE DC CREW: L-R TOP ROW MO TIGHMAN-EARL RICHARDS-MIKE SUMMER-?-HBELL-NORRIS LITTLE KNEELING: JOE MONA-CHARLIE MAYOR-BOB HEADEN AND DAN DROZE

While the DC Defenders and the historical Virginia Sailors both represent professional football in the Washington, D.C. area outside of the NFL, the structural design of their respective leagues is fundamentally different.

The minor league setup that Harold Bell played under in the late 1960s was built on a direct farm-system model, whereas today’s spring football landscape operates as an entirely independent entity.

1. The Atlantic Coast Football League (ACFL) vs. The United Football League (UFL)

The organizational models highlight the contrast between a traditional “farm system” and a modern “independent spring league”:

The ACFL & The Farm System Model: Operating from 1962 to 1973, the Atlantic Coast Football League was arguably the closest professional football ever came to a true “Triple-A” minor league baseball setup. Teams like the Virginia Sailors signed formal working agreements/affiliations with NFL franchises.The Sailors functioned directly as a pipeline for the Washington Redskins, regularly taking on players from Washington’s taxi squad to develop them under former Redskins player and head coach Billy Cox.

The UFL & The Spring League Model: The United Football League (formed via the XFL and USFL merger) is an independent premier spring league. It does not feature direct team-to-team affiliations with NFL franchises. While its primary goal is to showcase emerging talent and serve as a developmental platform for players aiming to make NFL rosters, the DC Defenders operate entirely under corporate league ownership rather than as a “farm club” for a specific NFL franchise.

2. Player Status and Competition Levels

The standard of play and player contracts also underscore the differences between the eras:

• The Virginia Sailors Era: Players in the ACFL were strictly minor-leaguers or NFL hopefuls working their way up. Active rosters consisted of 36 players who earned a base salary of roughly $150 per game-$350 was top of the salary scale. Despite the modest pay, the Sailors were a dominant powerhouse, capturing the ACFL championships in 1966 and 1967.

The Modern UFL Era: The UFL is a highly structured, fully professional spring league.Under the active collective bargaining agreement, players earn a minimum base salary of $6,400 per game, alongside comprehensive health insurance coverage. The rosters feature a mix of high-profile undrafted rookies, seasoned NFL veterans, and elite college talent playing a highly visible, nationally televised 10-week schedule.

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1967-2026 Times Have Changed

Feature	The Virginia Sailors (ACFL)	The DC Defenders (UFL)
Active Era	1966–1968	Present (2026)
League Structure	Regional minor league	National independent spring league
NFL Connection	Direct affiliate (Washington Redskins farm club)	Independent (De facto pipeline to all 32 NFL teams)
Roster Source	Local talent & Redskins taxi squad players	Drafts, regional allocations, & former NFL veterans
Venues	Local high school stadiums (Wakefield, George Washington)	Major professional stadiums (Audi Field)

While Harold Bell’s era relied on localized farm clubs to keep the pro football dream alive, the modern DC Defenders represent a highly commercialized, independent league built to sustain football fandom long after the Super Bowl concludes.