2006 Playoffs
Following a drumming by the top ranked Fayetteville Guard, the Maulers were 6-7 overall with the surprising opportunity to still make the playoffs. Tied for 7th place in the conference with the Charleston Sandsharks who was scheduled the final game of the regular season, the winner was to receive the final playoff spot (only 6 teams per conference qualify). The Maulers lost the game 28-39, but Charleston's general manager Al Bannister had already stated the organization would skip the playoffs and refocus its energy on next season. It was noticed that the official NIFL web site had an asterisk by the teams name and stated no team with outstanding operational items (stats) would be eligible for the playoffs. Later, it was revealed the franchise had cheated by using at least six illegal players and also had outstanding fines due to administrative issues (not exchanging film with opponents or keeping statistics at home games). Subsequently, the Sandsharks were banned from the playoffs for the infractions, with the Maulers being awarded the sixth Atlantic conference spot. However this all proved academic as the Maulers lost in the first week of the playoffs on July 8 at Lakeland. Falling behind 27-0 in the first quarter, Montgomery stormed back but could not quite complete the comeback falling 70-62, ending their season 7-8.
After the 2006 season, the team announced they were changing their name to the Montgomery Bears and moving to the American Indoor Football Association.
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