For years, the University of Maryland at College Park, had only one football team playing on campus. The team is the Maryland Terrapins and they play at Byrd Stadium. In addition, until the Comcast Center was built a few years ago, only one major sport was played inside the Cole Field House, basketball. Since, basketball moved to its new home, a new sport took over inside the indoor facility, an indoor football team called the Maryland Maniacs.

The Maryland Maniacs began their inaugural season in 2008 in the Indoor Football League playing at a multipurpose
venue located close to College Park in Upper Marlboro, Maryland. The Indoor Football league is the world’s largest indoor football league having been born, in 2008, from a combination of smaller leagues, the Intense Football League and United Indoor Football. Their major competitors are the Arena Football League and the Southern indoor Football League. All of the leagues and teams are semi-pro or minor league quality with players recruited from defunct leagues such as the Canadian Football league.

The game is played on a reduced-sized field to accommodate the area inside the indoor stadiums or arenas in which they play. The field is about half the size of a NFL surface so to work within the smaller area, the teams are made up of only eight players. Some particular differences is that it is a two-way street on the field and no punting is allowed.

Since its inception, all of the leagues and teams have had tumultuous backgrounds. Both come and go with regularity. As of this writing, it is unclear where the Maryland Maniacs will play the 2011 season, or even if they will play. There are rumored negotiations with the American Indoor Football Association. However, that league remains largely a regional grouping having their western division cease operations in 2011.

It seems as if it’s anyone’s guess which leagues and teams are in or out of the indoor football game much less the Maryland Maniacs.