With New England’s victory in Super Bowl LIII on Sunday, we entered the long, dark offseason for football. Which this year will last all of, oh, five days.

Yes, pro football restarts Saturday with the introduction of a new NFL-adjacent league, the Alliance of American Football. The eight-team league, based in eight warm-weather cities, will play a 10-week spring schedule with national telecasts each week (on CBS, TNT and the NFL Network, among others), followed by two weeks of playoffs.

While rosters are mostly based on the college, NFL and CFL teams in their regions, a few folks with Michigan ties made the cut. Let's take a look at the local connections in the league:

Column: Can spring football really work? AAF says yes

Michigan

RB Denard Robinson, Atlanta Legends: A record-setting quarterback in Ann Arbor, Robinson switched to running back with the Jacksonville Jaguars after being drafted in the fifth round of the 2013 NFL draft. The Florida native rushed 263 times for 1,058 yards and five touchdowns in four NFL seasons. Robinson is expected to backup former Notre Dame RB Tarean Folston. Former NFL star quarterback Michael Vick is Atlanta's offensive coordinator.

RB Ty Isaac, Birmingham Iron: Isaac went undrafted by the NFL in 2018 after missing most of his final season at Michigan with injuries. Isaac, an Illinois native, averaged 6.1 yards a carry in his three seasons at Michigan after transferring from USC.

DB Channing Stribling, Memphis Express: After bouncing around NFL practice squads for two seasons — he spent time with the Browns, Colts, 49ers and Chargers in 2017-18 — Stribling will get a chance to make an impact under Express head coach Mike Singletary. Stribling had 12 passes defensed and four interceptions as a senior for the Wolverines.

RB De’Veon Smith, Orlando Apollos: Smith, who had 2,235 rushing yards for the Wolverines over four seasons, spent the 2017 season with the Dolphins after signing with Miami as an undrafted free agent. He was an early signee with the AAF, though he spent time in Washington Redskins camp before getting cut at the start of the 2018 season. Smith will be competing for carries with former NFL back Akeem Hunt and ex-USF standout D’Ernest Johnson.

DL Matt Godin, San Antonio Commanders: Godin had 27 tackles and three sacks as a senior with the Wolverines, then was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Houston Texans. Godin spent time on the Texans’ practice squad before tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in late 2017.

Michigan State

DB Kurtis Drummond, San Antonio Commanders: The Ohio native finished his time in East Lansing with 233 tackles and 12 interceptions. He signed with Houston as an undrafted free agent and appeared in 24 games for the Texans in the 2015 and 2017 seasons, gaining a reputation as a special-teams star.

Central Michigan

OC Mike DeBord, San Diego Fleet: CMU’s head coach from 2000-03 retired in 2018 but is back in football for the Fleet. (More on them later…) DeBord also spent 11 seasons as an assistant at Michigan as part of a well-traveled route through the college and pro ranks. DeBord was actually hired by the Fleet as offensive coordinator to replace former Lions QB Jon Kitna, who took the quarterback job with the Dallas Cowboys.

Eastern Michigan

LB Ike Spearman, Birmingham Iron: Spearman was one of the MAC’s best linebackers as a senior in 2017 despite missing two full seasons in Ypsilanti with a broken leg. He went undrafted in 2018, though he did attend the Vikings’ rookie mini-camp in May.

Grand Valley State

WR Charles Johnson, Orlando Apollos: Johnson was just the sixth Grand Valley player to be drafted by the NFL, going to the Packers in the seventh round in 2013. He made the Vikings’ 53-man roster in 2014 and appeared in 39 games with Minnesota, catching 60 passes for 834 yards and two touchdowns before signing with Carolina, where he was injured in the offseason. He should have plenty of chances to catch passes in coach Steve Spurrier’s high-flying offense.

Grand Rapids Community College

TE Nick Truesdell, Salt Lake Stallions: Truesdell didn’t make it through his freshman year at Cincinnati before being dismissed for off-field issues. He transferred to Grand Rapids, but tore his ACL in his first game. From there, he had a productive three seasons in the AFL, earning notice from NFL scouts and a stint in training camp and on the practice squad with the Vikings.

Detroit Lions

Rights to Lions players are owned by the San Diego AAF franchise, nicknamed the Fleet. (It checks out, too, since the Lions can barely keep their heads above water every year.) San Diego is coached by ex-Lions offensive coordinator Mike Martz, and Martz’s former speedy wide receiver, Az-Zahir Hakim, is the wide receivers coach. Former Lions practice squad members Alex Barrett, Dontez Ford and John Montelus are also on board in San Diego. One former Lion who isn’t? Former tight end Joseph Fauria, who landed with the Arizona Hotshots thanks to his time with the Arizona Cardinals.

More:Everything you need to know about Arizona Hotshots and the inaugural AAF season

Contact Ryan Ford at rford@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @theford.