Bighorns Looking for Big Splash

Photo courtesy of Secret Houston

ATLANTA, GA-- There's a saying, "Everything is big in Texas." Next spring, no one hopes this statement will be more accurate than United Football League (UFL). The new professional spring football league will launch in March of 2023 with fourteen teams, one of which will call the Houston area home in the Houston Bighorns. 

Home to four major sports organizations, the NFL's Houston Texans, MLB's Houston Astros, MLS's Houston Dynamo, and the NBA's Houston Astros, the city is a vibrant sports hub. Of course, not every large city in America can handle four professional sports teams and soon-to-be five, but the UFL believes the city of Houston is one of few metro areas that can comfortably support five. In addition, over 7 million reside in one of America's most sports-loving towns. With such a large base to draw from, UFL officials are confident the team can succeed in the market. 

Houston is no stranger to spring football. There have been previous spring football organizations in the city with the XFL's Houston Roughnecks and the USFL's Houston Gamblers. But the UFL is hopeful to be the one spring football organization that can become a mainstay in the city. In each previous effort, attendance has been strong relative to league attendance in other league markets, with the Roughnecks garnering over 20,000 fans in attendance for home games. 

So, how did the Bighorns get their team's name? The Bighorns were gifted their name by league officials from the famous saying, "Everything is big in Texas," along with free-ranging bighorn sheep living within state lines. Bighorn Sheep are large mammals that are relatives of goats. Male Bighorn sheep are called rams and can be recognized by their massive horns that curl back over the ears, down, and up past the cheeks, earning their bighorns' name. Texas has eleven herds of free-ranging desert bighorn sheep. The result of restocking efforts began in 1954 and continues to the present day.

The Bighorns will first take the field on Saturday, March 4th, against the Oklahoma City Wranglers in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Game TV and radio broadcast information will be made available soon. 

Please continue to visit houstonbighorns.com for the latest UFL news and information.