| Dinos de Saltillo | |
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| Current: | 2023 Dinos de Saltillo season |
| Uniformsize: | 230px |
| Helmetsize: | 135px |
| Location: | Saltillo, Mexico |
| Field: | Estadio Francisco I. Madero |
| League: | Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional |
| Colours: | Purple, black, turquoise and white |
| Nickname: | La Ola Morada (The Purple Tide) |
| Coach: | Javier Adame |
| Owner: | Francisco Javier Orozco |
| Div Champ Type: | Division Championships |
| Div Champs: | 2017 |
Dinos de Saltillo (English: Saltillo Dinos) are an American football team based in Saltillo, Mexico. The Dinos compete in the Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional, the top American football league in Mexico. The team plays its home games at the Estadio Francisco I. Madero.
The team was founded on 28 September 2016, in resemblance of the semi-professional team with the same name that played in the Mexican Master Football League from 1995 to 1996 in the city of Saltillo.[1]
The team participated in the Liga de Fútbol Americano Profesional for the first time in the 2017 season. Under head coach Guillermo Ruiz Burguete, the team finished with a 2–5 record, nevertheless, due to the competition system, Dinos still classified for playoffs and defeated Raptors for the North Division championship, classifying for the Tazón México in their first year in the league.[2] The Dinos lost the Tazón México to the Mayas 18–24, played at the Estadio Jesús Martínez "Palillo" in Mexico City.[3]
A new coaching staff arrived to the team for the 2018 season, led by head coach Carlos Cabral. The Dinos had a 4–3 regular season record, qualifying to the playoffs for second consecutive season, this time as division leader. In a rematch of the 2017 game, Dinos lost 6–21 to Raptors in the Division Championship game.[4]
In May 2018, Dinos signed Javier Adame as head coach, ahead of the 2019 season. Adame had previously worked as offensive line coordinator for the Dinos.[5]
From its inception until 2021, the Dinos played their home games at the Estadio Olímpico Francisco I. Madero.[6] In 2022, due to an agreement between the Dinos and the baseball club Saraperos de Saltillo of the Mexican League, the team moved to the Estadio Francisco I. Madero.[7]
In the 2022 season, the Dinos had finished with the best record in the regular season. In the playoffs, Saltillo had faced Gallos Negros, who defeated them.
The Fundidores and the Dinos are from northern Mexico and divisional rivals since the establishment of the divisional system in the LFA in 2017. Besides that, the rivalry dates back to the times of the Liga Nacional de Futbol Americano (National American Football League) in the late 90s, when both cities (Saltillo and Monterrey) had fierce matches between their two teams: the Dinosaurios (Dinosaurs) and the Cerveceros (Brewers).[8] The rivalry goes beyond the gridiron, since both teams fight season after season to get the best college players from Nuevo León and Coahuila.[9]
| Dinos de Saltillo vs. Fundidores de Monterrey season-by-season results | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Results | Location | Overall series |
| Dinos 33–16 | Estadio Olímpico Francisco I. Madero | Dinos 1–0 | |
| Fundidores 14–6 | Estadio Tecnológico | Tie 1–1 | |
| Fundidores 17–0 | Estadio Nuevo León Unido | Fundidores 2–1 | |
| Dinos 30–20 | Estadio Olímpico Francisco I. Madero | Tie 2–2 | |
| Fundidores 26–13 | Estadio Nuevo León Unido | Fundidores 3–2 | |
| Dinos 8–0 | Estadio Olímpico Francisco I. Madero | Tie 3–3 | |
| Dinos 23–15 | Estadio Borregos | Dinos 4–3 | |
| Dinos 24–17 | Estadio Francisco I. Madero | Dinos 5–3 | |
| Dinos 38–31 | Estadio Francisco I. Madero | Dinos 6–3 | |
| Fundidores 55–34 | Estadio Borregos | Dinos 6–4 | |
The Raptors de Naucalpan and the Dinos play each season the so-called Jurassic Duel (Spanish: Duelo Jurásico). Due to these teams being two of the strongest in the league in recent years, this rivalry is considered amongst LFA's most important rivalries.[10]
| Dinos de Saltillo vs. Raptors de Naucalpan season-by-season results | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Results | Location | Overall series |
| Raptors 34–27 | Estadio Jesús Martínez "Palillo" | Raptors 1–0 | |
| Raptors 19–6 | Estadio Olímpico de Saltillo | Raptors 2–0 | |
| Dinos 13–10 | Estadio Jesús Martínez "Palillo" | Raptors 2–1 | |
| Dinos 29–27 | Estadio José Ortega Martínez | Tie 2–2 | |
| Dinos 23–20 | Estadio Olímpico de Saltillo | Dinos 3–2 | |
| Raptors 21–6 | Estadio Olímpico de Saltillo | Tie 3–3 | |
| Raptors 21–7 | Estadio Olímpico de Saltillo | Raptors 4–3 | |
| Raptors 19–7 | Estadio FES Acatlán | Raptors 5–3 | |
| Dinos 30–29 | Estadio Olímpico de Saltillo | Raptors 5–4 | |
| Raptors 28–27 | Estadio FES Acatlán | Raptors 6–4 | |
| Dinos 24–14 | Estadio Francisco I. Madero | Raptors 6–5 | |
| Quarterbacks Running backs Wide receivers Tight Ends | Offensive linemen Defensive linemen | Linebackers Defensive backs Special teams
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| Italics indicate International player Roster updated 10-03-2024[11] | |||||||||
| Season | Head coach | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Won | Lost | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | |||
| 2017 | Guillermo Ruiz Burguete | 2 | 5 | .286 | 2nd | 1 | 1 | .500 | bgcolor=silver | |
| 2018 | Carlos Cabral | 4 | 3 | .571 | 1st | 0 | 1 | .000 | ||
| 2019 | Javier Adame | 3 | 5 | .375 | 3rd | – | – | – | – | |
| 2020 | Javier Adame | 3 | 2 | .600 | 2nd | Postseason cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | ||||
| 2021 | Season cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic | |||||||||
| 2022 | Javier Adame | 5 | 1 | .833 | 1st | 0 | 1 | .000 | ||
| 2023 | Javier Adame | 7 | 3 | .700 | 2nd | 1 | 1 | .500 | ||
| Total | 24 | 19 | .558 | 2 | 4 | .333 | ||||