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Prior to being known as one of the toughest defenses in the region through the 2010's and 2020's, The "Dirty Birds" were a member of the National Nine Man Football League in the Eugene, Oregon area during the 2006-07 seasons where they claimed the 2007 Championship with a 7-2 record. The following season, team owner Kevin Pardy and Wyatt Ledbetter, original founders of the Buzzards entered the Buzzards into the Oregon Football League, an 11-man organization, while also playing with the Oregon Outlaws during the 2008 season, slowly building the foundation of the franchise. Springfield as a smaller market than Portland, would continue to be a thorn in the side of the Monarchs and later the Raiders over the next 15 years. During the building phase though, it was the Rogue Warriors who would be chief rival into the 2011 season, twice the Warriors bounced Springfield from the OFL playoffs in '08 and '09 winning the first five meetings over the Buzzards.
Springfield, now in the Pacific Football League which combined the
Washington and Oregon leagues, shocked the Northwest by ending the
longest regional winning streak at the time in a playoff victory
over the undefeated Portland Monarchs
to advance to the 2011 PFL South title game against the
Southern Oregon Renegades. 2011
marked two beginnings; a long-standing rivalry with the Renegades
and frequent overtime games where the Buzzards would take part in a
record-setting 9-extra-quarter games from
2011-2022. When 2013 kicked off it would begin four consecutive seasons of seven wins, a franchise best at that point. Starting the season 1-3, the Buzzards defeated the Monarchs twice on their way to a first-ever championship game appearance against the Bellingham Bulldogs. The Bulldogs would win the Pacific League and GNFA Regional title that season with a 40-7 win over South Lane. Over the 2014 and 2015 seasons, South Lane again won 7 games but were exited from the playoffs by the Seattle Stallions. Taking on all-comers in 2016, the Buzzards got a shot at the rare California team as the Pacific Islanders agreed to an April date. The Buzzards played the west coast stalwarts tough falling 24-13, but setting the stage for another run at a league title. An overtime loss to the Portland Raiders pushed South Lane on a surge late in the season posting a shut out over the South Sound Nighthawks and back-to-back wins over the Renegades including in the playoffs to set up the Raider rematch. The Oregon juggernauts would slug it out to a stalemate once again when regulation ended and for the second time in the season the Raiders pulled out the overtime win for the Pacific League championship.
Chaos ensued in 2017 as the Pacific Football League collapsed. Washington and Oregon teams separated once again into their separate corners and the Buzzards were orphaned as an independent team. Many players scattered to the Pacific Northwest League teams and the Portland teams while the Renegades suffered a collapse as well. Finishing 2-3 on the season, the Buzzards looked for a new beginning. That beginning would be in the Oregon-based Pacific Northwest Football League which played an early winter-spring season from January to March. South Lane flexed early with a win over Corvallis followed by an 87-0 annihilation of the Cavaliers enroute to a 6-0 season and PNFL Championship. After three championship game appearances, the Buzzards finally took home the hardware. The team to beat in 2019, the Buzzards rolled to 3-0 before slipping against the Sentinels in a offense-less performance. The Sentinels would get bounced from the PNFL playoffs before retribution could be had, but South Lane repeated as PNFL Champions with a dominant 27-0 victory over the Rip City Mafia to finish 9-1 and back-to-back PNFL Champs.
2020 was scheduled to kick off on March 14th, however the State of Oregon shut down all sporting events due to Covid-19. This was enforced for two seasons as the Buzzards were not allowed to play the 2021 season either. During the lull Kevin Pardy was inducted as a member of the GNFA Hall of Fame Class of 2021 and his #81 Buzzard Jersey retired by the team. Finally able to play football again, the season started with another overtime game, then a loss to the Raiders starting the season 1-1. QB Kelly Christensen etched his name in the regional record books with an 8-touchdown performance against the Emerald City Bills in Week 3. Team officials revealed to some privately, the dire health of beloved team founder and player Kevin Pardy. On April 27th, Kevin passed away due to ALS. The team would come out with a vengeance on May 7 winning the next two games by a combined 91-6 followed by an emotional overtime win against the Trojans to reach the PNFL championship game for the third season in a row. Unfortunately the gas tank was empty as the offense disappeared in a 14-2 loss to their old Raider foe. A new league with the top teams of Washington, the Buzzards 2023 season had two cancelations to teams that never made it to the field after much internet hype. The newly formed I-5 Cobras were trounced 46-0, before a road trip to Tacoma, returning home with a frustrating 22-25 loss. The yo-yo season would culminate with a 47-0 payback to the Grit City Knights before a highly anticipated rematch with defending Division Champion West Sound Rebels. Having played the Rebels the tightest all season in two previous meetings in losses by a combined 16 points, West Sound was too much taking the win for a third time and advancing to a west coast win over Inglewood and a Washington D.C. trip to face Racine for the GDFL Championship. The Buzzards management announced the franchise was suspending operations and would not return for 2024 after 16 seasons as one of the most competitive Oregon teams posting a 78-53 overall record and two league championships. Numerous players earned awards during the franchises existence and extended the careers of over 120 players.
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