| 2002 AF2 season | |
| League: | AF2 |
| Sport: | Arena football |
| Season: | Regular season |
| Season Champs: | Tulsa Talons |
| Playoffs: | Playoffs |
| Conf1: | American |
| Conf1 Champ: | Florida Firecats |
| Conf1 Runner-Up: | Cape Fear Wildcats |
| Conf2: | National |
| Conf2 Champ: | Peoria Pirates |
| Conf2 Runner-Up: | Birmingham Steeldogs |
| Finals: | ArenaCup III |
| Finals Champ: | Peoria Pirates |
| Finals Runner-Up: | Florida Firecats |
| Seasonslist: | List of AF2 seasons |
| Seasonslistnames: | AF2 |
| Prevseason Link: | 2001 AF2 season |
| Prevseason Year: | 2001 |
| Nextseason Link: | 2003 AF2 season |
| Nextseason Year: | 2003 |
The 2002 AF2 season was the third season of the AF2. It was preceded by 2001 and succeeded by 2003. The league champions were the Peoria Pirates, who defeated the Florida Firecats in ArenaCup III. This is also the first time that both conferences have the same division name (in that case, the American Conference Southern Division and the National Conference Southern Division, respectively). It is also the only season where both conferences have four divisions each, a la the 2002–present era of the NFL.
| New teams | Albany Conquest, Bakersfield Blitz, Cape Fear Wildcats, Fresno Frenzy, Hawaiian Islanders, Mobile Wizards, Mohegan Wolves, New Haven Ninjas, San Diego Riptide, Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers | |
| Renamed / Relocated teams | None | |
| Defunct teams | Baton Rouge Blaze, Iowa Barnstormers, Lafayette Roughnecks, Lincoln Lightning | |
| Total teams | 34 |
| Team | Overall | Division | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wins | Losses | Percentage | Wins | Losses | Percentage | ||
| American Conference | |||||||
| Atlantic Division | |||||||
| Cape Fear Wildcats | 13 | 3 | 0.812 | 6 | 2 | 0.750 | |
| Richmond Speed | 12 | 4 | 0.750 | 7 | 1 | 0.875 | |
| Norfolk Nighthawks | 8 | 8 | 0.500 | 4 | 4 | 0.500 | |
| Roanoke Steam | 8 | 8 | 0.500 | 3 | 5 | 0.375 | |
| Greensboro Prowlers | 3 | 13 | 0.187 | 0 | 8 | 0.000 | |
| Northeast Division | |||||||
| Albany Conquest | 13 | 3 | 0.812 | 11 | 1 | 0.917 | |
| Rochester Brigade | 7 | 9 | 0.437 | 6 | 6 | 0.500 | |
| Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Pioneers | 6 | 10 | 0.375 | 6 | 6 | 0.500 | |
| New Haven Ninjas | 6 | 10 | 0.375 | 5 | 7 | 0.417 | |
| Mohegan Wolves | 3 | 13 | 0.187 | 2 | 10 | 0.167 | |
| Eastern Division | |||||||
| Macon Knights | 13 | 3 | 0.812 | 5 | 1 | 0.833 | |
| Augusta Stallions | 13 | 3 | 0.812 | 5 | 1 | 0.833 | |
| Carolina Rhinos | 5 | 11 | 0.312 | 1 | 5 | 0.167 | |
| Columbus Wardogs | 4 | 12 | 0.250 | 1 | 5 | 0.167 | |
| Southern Division | |||||||
| Tallahassee Thunder | 9 | 7 | 0.562 | 7 | 3 | 0.700 | |
| Florida Firecats | 9 | 7 | 0.562 | 5 | 6 | 0.455 | |
| Jacksonville Tomcats | 8 | 8 | 0.500 | 7 | 3 | 0.700 | |
| Charleston Swamp Foxes | 7 | 9 | 0.437 | 2 | 4 | 0.333 | |
| National Conference | |||||||
| Southern Division | |||||||
| Tennessee Valley Vipers | 13 | 3 | 0.812 | 5 | 1 | 0.833 | |
| Birmingham Steeldogs | 11 | 5 | 0.687 | 5 | 2 | 0.714 | |
| Pensacola Barracudas | 8 | 8 | 0.500 | 6 | 6 | 0.500 | |
| Mobile Wizards | 0 | 16 | 0.000 | 0 | 12 | 0.000 | |
| Central Division | |||||||
| Tulsa Talons | 14 | 2 | 0.875 | 4 | 2 | 0.667 | |
| Arkansas Twisters | 11 | 5 | 0.687 | 4 | 2 | 0.667 | |
| Bossier City Battle Wings | 9 | 7 | 0.562 | 3 | 3 | 0.500 | |
| Memphis Xplorers | 5 | 11 | 0.312 | 1 | 5 | 0.167 | |
| Midwest Division | |||||||
| Peoria Pirates | 11 | 5 | 0.687 | 6 | 0 | 1.000 | |
| Quad City Steamwheelers | 10 | 6 | 0.625 | 3 | 3 | 0.500 | |
| Wichita Stealth | 6 | 10 | 0.375 | 3 | 3 | 0.500 | |
| Louisville Fire | 2 | 14 | 0.125 | 0 | 6 | 0.000 | |
| Western Division | |||||||
| Bakersfield Blitz | 9 | 7 | 0.562 | 7 | 2 | 0.778 | |
| San Diego Riptide | 7 | 9 | 0.437 | 5 | 4 | 0.556 | |
| Hawaiian Islanders | 5 | 11 | 0.312 | 4 | 5 | 0.444 | |
| Fresno Frenzy | 4 | 12 | 0.250 | 2 | 7 | 0.222 | |
* The Steamwheelers were banned from the playoffs for rule violations.
| Award | Winner | Position | Team | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offensive Player of the Year | Quarterback | Tulsa Talons | ||
| Defensive Player of the Year | Defensive Specialist | Tennessee Valley Vipers | ||
| Ironman of the Year | Wide receiver/Defensive back | Richmond Speed | ||
| Lineman of the Year | Lineman | Cape Fear Wildcats | ||
| Built Ford Tough Man of the Year | Lineman | Mohegan Wolves | ||
| Rookie of the Year | Defensive Specialist / Kick Returner | Peoria Pirates | ||
| Coach of the Year | Head Coach | Albany Conquest |
| III | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | August 23, 2002 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Arena | Carver Arena | |||||||||||||||||||
| City | Peoria, Illinois | |||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 7,552 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Offensive Player of the Game | Cornell Craig | |||||||||||||||||||
| Defensive Player of the Game | Lincoln Dupree | |||||||||||||||||||
| Ironman of the Game | Titcus Pettigrew | |||||||||||||||||||
| Winning Coach | Bruce Cowdrey | |||||||||||||||||||
| Losing Coach | John Fourcade | |||||||||||||||||||
ArenaCup III was the 2002 edition of the AF2's championship game, in which the National Conference Champions Florida Firecats were defeated by the American Conference Champions Peoria Pirates in Peoria, Illinois by a score of 65 to 47.