The 1996 USISL Professional League was the second highest of the three outdoor men's leagues run by the United Systems of Independent Soccer Leagues during the summer of 1996.
This season, the USISL introduced several changes. First, the league added a third, higher league above the professional league. Consequently, several 1995 Pro League teams moved up and did not compete in the 1996 Pro League. Second, the USISL aligned its rules with the newly created Major Soccer League. In previous seasons, the USISL had used 60 minute halves and a shootout for every foul committed after the seventh foul of each half. Both of these were gone for the 1996 season. The USISL also changed its regular season points system to match MLS. This meant each win was worth 3 points and each shootout win was worth 1 point.[1] The average pay for Pro League players was $200 per week. The regular season began in mid-April 1996.
Prime Network provided live broadcast of the USISL All Star Game and delayed broadcast of the Pro League championship game.[2]
The USISL held its All Star Game on July 17 in Blaine, Minnesota. The game pitted the USISL Select League All Stars against a team composed of USISL Professional League and USISL Premier League players. The league coaches voted to select the players.[3] Players from the USISL Professional League included Goalkeeper Randy DeDini of the Chico Rooks, Defenders Paul Edwards (North Jersey Imperials) and Guy Norcott (Charleston Battery); Midfielders Craig Beeson (Everett BigFoot) and Pat O'Kelly (Central Jersey); Forwards Victor Medina (D/FW Toros) and Jon Payne (Charlotte Eagles).
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | SW | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Central Jersey Riptide | 16 | 11 | 2 | 3 | 44 | 24 | +20 | 35 |
| 2 | North Jersey Imperials | 16 | 11 | 0 | 5 | 42 | 26 | +16 | 33 |
| 3 | Rhode Island Stingrays | 16 | 10 | 0 | 6 | 26 | 20 | +6 | 30 |
| 4 | Reading Rage | 16 | 9 | 1 | 6 | 39 | 31 | +8 | 28 |
| 5 | Philadelphia Freedom | 16 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 40 | 25 | +15 | 26 |
| 6 | New Hampshire Phantoms | 16 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 32 | 40 | −8 | 25 |
| 7 | Baltimore Bays | 16 | 5 | 0 | 11 | 34 | 15 | +19 | 15 |
| 8 | Albany Alleycats | 16 | 4 | 0 | 12 | 34 | 44 | −10 | 12 |
| 9 | Worcester Wildfire | 16 | 0 | 1 | 15 | 19 | 57 | −38 | 1 |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | SW | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Charlotte Eagles | 16 | 12 | 0 | 4 | 49 | 25 | +24 | 36 |
| 2 | Charleston Battery | 16 | 11 | 1 | 4 | 46 | 23 | +23 | 34 |
| 3 | Wilmington Hammerheads | 16 | 6 | 1 | 9 | 20 | 30 | −10 | 19 |
| 4 | Washington Mustangs | 16 | 6 | 0 | 10 | 25 | 37 | −12 | 18 |
| 5 | Mobile Revelers | 16 | 3 | 2 | 11 | 15 | 33 | −18 | 11 |
| 6 | Chattanooga Express | 16 | 1 | 0 | 15 | 18 | 55 | −37 | 3 |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | SW | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Dallas/Fort Worth Toros | 16 | 9 | 0 | 7 | 33 | 31 | +2 | 27 |
| 2 | Rockford Raptors | 16 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 34 | 28 | +6 | 25 |
| 3 | Tulsa Roughnecks | 16 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 38 | 34 | +4 | 24 |
| 4 | San Antonio Pumas | 16 | 6 | 0 | 10 | 25 | 37 | −12 | 18 |
| 5 | Houston Hurricanes | 16 | 5 | 0 | 11 | 28 | 43 | −15 | 15 |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | SW | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hawaii Tsumani | 16 | 10 | 0 | 6 | 31 | 19 | +12 | 30 |
| 2 | Chico Rooks | 16 | 9 | 1 | 6 | 23 | 16 | +7 | 28 |
| 3 | Everett Bigfoot | 16 | 7 | 3 | 6 | 27 | 20 | +7 | 24 |
| 4 | San Fernando Valley Golden Eagles | 16 | 7 | 3 | 6 | 20 | 22 | −2 | 24 |
| 5 | Yakima Reds | 16 | 8 | 0 | 8 | 29 | 20 | +9 | 24 |
| 6 | Cascade Surge | 16 | 7 | 0 | 9 | 33 | 23 | +10 | 21 |
| 7 | Central Valley Hydra | 16 | 3 | 0 | 13 | 16 | 48 | −32 | 9 |
The Mobile Revelers made the playoffs despite having only eleven points. This happened because the South Atlantic Conference had four guaranteed play-off spots. The Charleston Battery received a bye into the playoffs as host of the championship final. Therefore, the league went to the Revelers as the next South Atlantic Conference team in line.
| Reading Rage (PA) | 1-2 | Central Jersey Riptide (NJ) |
|---|---|---|
Matt Woolley  25'Eric Puls  43'  Archie Moylan |
4' Pat O'Kelly 74' Pete Schneiders Pete Schneiders |
| North Jersey Imperials (NJ) | 5-0 | Central Jersey Riptide (NJ) |
|---|---|---|
| Dave Fitzgerald |
Attendance: 300
| Central Jersey Riptide (NJ) | 2-2 OT | North Jersey Imperials (NJ) |
|---|---|---|
| Ozrek Crowley |
DeLuca (PK) Lucey |
|
| Penalties | ||
| 2-3 | ||
Attendance: 2,004
| Charlotte Eagles (NC) | 0-3 | Wilmington Hammerheads (NC) |
|---|---|---|
| 31' Dewan Bader |
Attendance: 1,045
| Tulsa Roughnecks (OK) | 1-3 | DFW Toros (TX) |
|---|---|---|
| Berti Generes Victor Medina |
Attendance: 704
| DFW Toros (TX) | 1-0 | Tulsa Roughnecks (OK) |
|---|---|---|
| Chico Rooks (CA) | 0-0 | Everett BigFoot (WA) |
|---|---|---|
| Penalties | ||
Manny Ugbah  Dean Freeman |
2-1 |  |
Attendance: 1,056
The Sizzlin’ Six Tournament was a six-team, two group, round robin tournament. Each of the four conference champions entered the tournament, along with national finals host Charleston Battery and the Charlotte Eagles who had the best regular-season record among the conference runners-up.
Each team received 3 points for a win, 1 for a tie and 1 bonus point for each game in which they scored three or more goals. The top two teams in each group with the most points advanced to the semifinals in Charleston, South Carolina.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Charleston Battery | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 2 | +2 | 6 |
| 2 | Chico Rooks | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| 3 | DFW Toros | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 0 |
| Charleston Battery (SC) | 2-1 | Dallas/Fort Worth Toros (TX) |
|---|---|---|
72:07' |
Report |
|
Attendance: 1,526
| Chico Rooks (CA) | 2-1 OT | DFW Toros (TX) |
|---|---|---|
| Dean Freeman 27' Mauricio De Melo 120' |
8' Edgar Hernandez Baltazar Ascensio Jose Bazan |
Attendance: 320
| Charleston Battery (SC) | 2-1 | Chico Rooks (CA) |
|---|---|---|
| Patrick Olalere 12' Files 82' |
45' Juan Lojas |
Attendance: 1,539
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Charlotte Eagles | 2 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 2 | +5 | 7[a] |
| 2 | Wilmington Hammerheads | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 4[a] |
| 3 | North Jersey Imperials | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 9 | −7 | 0 |
| Wilmington Hammerheads (NC) | 3-0 | North Jersey Imperials (NJ) |
|---|---|---|
| Charlotte Eagles (NC) | 6-2 | North Jersey Imperials (NJ) |
|---|---|---|
| Keith Dakin 11' 24' 46' Jeremy Sorzano 36' Philibert Jones 50' Donovan Francis 59' |
12' David Price 30' Gerry Lucey |
Attendance: 236
| Wilmington Hammerheads (NC) | 0-1 | Charlotte Eagles (NC) |
|---|---|---|
| 33' Keith Dakin |
Attendance: 1,250
| Charlotte Eagles (NC) | 1-0 | Chico Rooks (CA) |
|---|---|---|
| Charleston Battery (SC) | 2-0 | Wilmington Hammerheads (NC) |
|---|---|---|
87' |
Attendance: 2,642
| Charleston Battery (SC) | 2–2 | Charlotte Eagles (NC) |
|---|---|---|
52' |
Report |
74' |
| Penalties | ||
|
|
2-1 | |
Attendance: 3,429
| Rank | Scorer | Club | Goals | Assists | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Philibert Jones | Charlotte Eagles | 18 | 20 | 45 |
| 2 | Patrick Olalere | Charleston Battery | 20 | 5 | 45 |
| 3 | Craig Beeson | Everette BigFoot | 17 | 2 | 36 |
| 4 | Jon Payne | Charlotte Eagles | 14 | 8 | 36 |
| 5 |  Carlos Rocha
|
Rhode Island Stingrays | 14 | 3 | 33 |
| 6 | Robert DeLuca | North Jersey Imperials | 14 | 3 | 31 |
| 7 | Pat O'Kelly | North Jersey Imperials | 12 | 6 | 30 |
All-League:
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