AFL Arena Football League

Covering Alternative Leagues Important Part of Writer's Life

by Fran Stuchbury
Published on February 22, 2011 under Arena Football League (AFL)


Covering the Arena Football League, the XFL and the United Football League had a huge impact on my life.

It all started the day I graduated in June of 1998, at the College of Staten Island when I got my Bachelors Degree in Communications Media Studies. When I got home that night after celebrating I checked my answering machine and got turned down for a job I applied for at Phoenix Communications in New Jersey. I would have worked as a sports highlights logger, something I did when I interned at ABC a year before. I was very down because getting my degree was my accomplishment but I felt getting a job in my field was even more important.

That summer I was continuing to do a weekly sports talk radio show for my college radio station WSIA. In July I got an email from Ken Gill telling me about a new fan site on Arena Football called "ArenaFan" so I decided to check it out and saw they had a mailing list. I decided to join and was getting emails from Arena Football fans all over the country talking about the sport.

I was a huge fan of Arena Football, I watched its first every game in June of 1986 when I was 12 and was hooked and watched as many games on television as I could. I was stay up at late hours of the night to watch games on tape delay and loved watching the championship game ArenaBowl every year.

On the ArenaFan email list I started talking to a former player Pete Porcelli, a former OL/DL who played seven years in the AFL from 1990 to 1996 with four different teams: the Albany Firebirds, Las Vegas Sting, Connecticut Coyotes and Anaheim Piranhas.

A few months prior, WSIA started streaming over the internet; I had no idea how that worked. I asked Pete if he would like to come on my sports show to talk about Arena Football. He said he would love to.

The interview went pretty well and Pete told me a show on Arena Football could be successful. After the interview a guy named Buddy Oakes called in from Nashville and told me it was great having Pete on the show and he hoped to see more shows on Arena Football.

Later on ArenaFan mailing list, I found out fans across were listening to the interview, so I was thrilled and decided to do a weekly show on Arena Football.

I came up with the name "ArenaZone" and did a couple of shows including an interview with league founder Jim Foster talking about the history of the sport.

Things were going fine until around mid-August until one night after I did an interview with a guy who ran the Nashville Kats fansite Neal Cook, members of my sports department decided to attack me on the air for covering Arena Football and they wanted me to cut back from one hour of covering the sport to 30 minutes. We were doing three hours of sports so I didn't think one hour of Arena Football was bad since people were listening and responding compared to when we did our regular sports nobody would ever call in.

I was embarrassed and even thought about quitting the station, but I realized if I did that they would have won. So I decided to agree to cut the show to 30 minutes. In two weeks ArenaBowl XII was going to take place. I needed an impact guest to get the fans across the country to listen in so I got league founder Jim Foster on again.

That week on the mailing list I posted about me being attacked on the air for covering Arena Football. The fans on the list wanted to do everything they could to support the show.

When Jim Foster called in, he told me he could only talk for 10 minutes so I was bummed, but the Arena Football fans flooded me with questions during the interview and Foster was enjoying the interview so much it went on for 45 minutes. The one thing about league founder Jim Foster was he loved to talk about Arena Football and loved all questions that were being asked.

When the interview was about to end I told Foster I was on a mission to prove an Arena Football radio show could work and tonight I proved that. He referred to me as a pioneer and told me he appreciated what I was doing. That compliment meant the world to me.

My friend Ferdinand Cesarano from Queens, NY was taping the interview and transcribed it so fans on the mailing list were able to see all of Jim Foster's comments.

What happened after the interview was over shocked me. Rory Webb from Tampa Bay called to tell me how great the interview was and wanted me to cover ArenaBowl XII in Tampa Bay the following week, other fans also wanted me to cover the game and do a post game show.

Rory went even further telling me one of his friends owns a resort in St. Petersburg and would be more than happy for me to stay there for free.

My parents paid for my plane ticket for a graduation present so I went to Tampa Bay to cover ArenaBowl XII. I felt a little like a celebrity, when I got off the plane Rory had a "Fran ArenaBowl" sign and picked me up from the airport.

He was an awesome host, showing me a lot of the town and was thrilled to have me giving Arena Football the coverage it deserved. The Orlando Predators won ArenaBowl XII defeating the Tampa Bay Storm 62-31. Later that night I called in and did a post game show from my hotel room recapping the game.

I decided to take another class that fall so I could still be involved with WSIA and that turned out to be a great decision.

That fall I set up an interview with St. Louis Rams quarterback Kurt Warner. This was his first season with the team and I wanted to interview him because he played with the Iowa Barnstormers of the AFL. I wanted to talk about him making it the NFL.

I had pneumonia but I conducted the interview anyway because I didn't want to disappoint fans, who wanted to hear him. The interview was outstanding; I introduced him as the future starting quarterback of the St. Louis Rams. Kurt was happy to play Arena Football and talked very highly of the league. After the interview a fan from Iowa called in stating that he loved that I had Warner on.

I was sick for five days but it was well worth it. A year later Warner was named NFL and Super Bowl MVP. I was thrilled to tell people I interviewed him before he became a star. Now there is a good chance that Warner will be a Hall of Famer so talking to him made me even happier.

HOW I ENDED UP WORKING FOR THE SPORTS NETWORK

When I was covering ArenaBowl XII in Tampa Bay I met the CEO of the Dick Butkus Football Network, Bob Smith, he already knew me pretty well because he was a lurker on the ArenaFan email list, and read the transcript I did with Jim Foster. He was impressed with my passion for Arena Football and asked to me if I wanted to write for his site, which I ended up doing.

I told Bob I was having a hard time finding a sports job. He helped me and gave me a couple of leads. One day he told me to try "The Sports Network" in Pennsylvania. I sent my resume and went up for an interview. In April I went up for a second interview and was offered a job that I accepted. They told me Bob Smith's reference helped me get the position: another example of how networking is so important.

I was thrilled; I was setting up and delivering audio visual equipment for eight bucks an hour at my college. I was running out of money and was a month away from having to move back home. Landing a job in sports was a dream come true.

In May I'll be working for The Sports Network for 12 years, and I really enjoy it.

MY EXPERIENCE COVERING THE XFL

When the XFL launched in 2001 I was very excited about it. I was a big wrestling fan and believed Vince McMahon could make this football league work.

The column I wrote was called "Inside the XFL." I created a long team-by-team preview before the season kicked off and wrote a weekly column all season long.

The play never matched all the hype the XFL manufactured, but I really enjoyed covering the league. What I loved about the XFL was, since players were interviewed on the field, I was able to watch the games on television to get the quotes to use for my columns.

During week two of the XFL season, I saw one of the best football games I ever saw in my entire life when the Los Angeles Xtreme defeated the Chicago Enforcers in double overtime, 39-32. Xtreme WR Jermaine Copeland caught 17 passes for 190 yards and one touchdown.

You can easily make an argument that the game was more exciting than the Super Bowl that year. At least both teams brought some offense and kept the fans tuned in for the entire game. No one wants a defensive standstill. Commentator Jesse Ventura agreed, saying, "Wouldn't the NFL have loved a Super Bowl like this?"

Later in the season I conducted an interview with Orlando Rage QB Jeff Brohm and the following week I did mid-season report cards and made this comment that got me a lot of fan support from XFL fans: "It's time my fellow journalists grow up and stop criticizing the league unnecessarily. They have to find other outlets to vent their frustrations. The XFL is not all about Vince McMahon. It is basically football with a twist. Watched a WNBA game lately? Not a chance. The ratings for WNBA games were just brutal last year and no journalists were bashing them in fear of the 'sexist' tag. But the XFL, that's open game. Time to grow up!"

I was tired of all the XFL bashing from media sites so I felt I had to make that statement. I got a lot of emails from XFL fans thanking me for those comments.

A few weeks later I interviewed head of XFL Operations Mike Keller, and XFL fans loved reading the interview. Keller thought the XFL was committed for the long term.

I wasn't surprised the XFL folded after one season, mainly due to low TV ratings on NBC and a lot of money the league lost. If the XFL didn't start out on NBC the league could have lasted longer.

Ten years later, I either wear a NY/NJ Hitmen or Orlando Rage jersey when I bowl to show my support for a league I enjoyed covering.

HOW I GOT INVOLVED WITH OURSPORTS CENTRAL

In 2000 I got an email from Paul Reeths, telling me he was starting a site called "OurSports Central" and asked me if I wanted to write for his site. Paul was very familiar with my work; he was a lurker on the ArenaFan email list and listened to some of my "ArenaZone" shows.

In 2001 I started writing for his site and had many wonderful experiences.

In November that year I drove with a friend from New York to Montreal to cover the 89th Canadian Football League Grey Cup. The Calgary Stampeders defeated the Winnipeg Blue Bombers 27-19. Over 65,000 fans were at the game. I have always followed the CFL and would watch games anytime they were on television. The past couple of years I have watched games on the computer, and every season I watch the Grey Cup.

The CFL has different rules from the NFL and the pace of the game is much faster. I loved watching QB Doug Flutie play in the CFL as he won three Grey Cup Championships.

In August 2003, I went to Villanova to cover the Major League Lacrosse Championship. The Long Island Lizards won a thrilling game defeating the Baltimore Bayhawks in overtime, 15-14. It was the first lacrosse game I ever covered and since then I became a fan of Major League Lacrosse.

That September I was at the first press conference welcoming the Philadelphia Soul to the Arena Football League. I was happy to have a team close by to finally cover.

In November of 2007, the Philadelphia Soul held a press conference at the restaurant Chickie and Petes welcoming free agent WR Chris Jackson to the team. Soul owner Jon Bon Jovi was also there so I was able to interview him. People told me not to be intimidated by him and to just walk up to him to interview him, I wasn't at all intimidated, and I finished a nice interview with him. At that time The Soul still played some games at the Spectrum, and Bon Jovi's response to them playing there was, "They're good, they're at the good 'ol sweaty Spectrum that I went to as a kid, so I like that.

At the other side of the restaurant the Philadelphia KiXX of the Major Indoor Soccer League held a season ticket holder party. So I put myself on the spot and interviewed KiXX President of Internal Operations David Deal and was able to complete a nice interview with Deal talking about how involved the KiXX were in the community to get fan support and talked about some of the players and head coach Don D'Ambra.

I was just as proud of that interview compared to when I spoke to Bon Jovi because I was able to do work on the spur of the moment without having to do any preparation for it.

I talk to Paul Reeths regularly, he has been a very good friend, and he's always asked for my input on how to make the site better.

THE REBIRTH OF ARENAZONE

Starting with the Arena Football League's 2002 season I brought back the show I did in college for ArenaFan called "ArenaZone." Every week during the AFL season I would host a two-hour show virtually going nonstop, only taking five second breaks to drink Gatorade.

It was a simple yet very effective format. The first hour I spent recapping the prior week's games, revealing my power rankings and previewing the next week's games. The second hour of the show was an open forum where everything was discussed about the game of Arena Football. Fans from across the county gathered in a chatroom to interact with me and other fans.

As always I made the show very interactive. When games where being previewed, I would ask the fans who they would pick in the game. I would ask the fans questions like should a head coach be fired, should a quarterback be replaced, where the best place for future expansion would be, etc.

The show had a good following of fans who would listen for the entire two hours. When the Philadelphia Soul started playing in 2004, I covered most of the home games and would play some interviews when I went to the lockeroom during the post game during my show.

The toughest show I had to do was in April of 2005 when Los Angeles Avengers OL/DL Al Lucas died after suffering a spinal cord injury while trying to make a tackle on a kickoff in a game against the New York Dragons. He was 26 years old.

It was tough to talk about his death during the show; I did the best I could to let fans speak their minds about what happened. In general fans were happy with how I handled the show and were pleased with how the difficult subject was examined.

ArenaZone was therapeutic for me. The show gave me a place to talk about a sport I had a lot of passion for on a weekly basis. One of my listeners was unemployed for a while and he told me he loved my show because it gave him a couple of hours to forget that and be informed and entertained about Arena Football.

In April 2007 my mom was in the hospital dying from cancer, it was tough for me to deal with but doing the show helped me be strong for my mom. On May 19, 2007 my mom passed away from cancer. She was only 57.

For the first week in its six years history, I missed doing the show to be with my family. My friend Jeff Gargiulo who was a loyal listener went to my mom's wake and scanned the speech from the Mass card and posted it into the chat room that was silent that week. It meant a lot to me. A lot of Arena Football friends across the country gave me condolences.

In July of 2008 I traveled to New Orleans to cover ArenaBowl XXII. I was working radio row and interviewed Arena Football Commissioner David Baker. I thanked him for having the league involved in the V-Foundation for cancer research because my mom passed away from it a year ago.

In my column recapping my trip I wrote about the V-Foundation and my mom's death. I was happy I had a chance to honor her in my column.

The Philadelphia Soul went on to win ArenaBowl XXII defeating the San Jose SaberCats 59-56. Little did I know at the time the league had huge money problems and ended up suspending their 2009 season.

The AFL came back in 2010 but by that time I was involved in a new football league that I will talk about right now.

HOW I GOT INVOLVED IN UFL ACCESS

A new outdoor football league - the United Football League - was supposed to launch in the fall of 2008 but its operators decided to wait until 2009.

I found a new fan site was created to support the UFL called UFL Access so I decided to join the message boards in September of 2008. Later that day I got an email from a guy who was responsible for creating the site, Nation Hahn, welcoming me to the site. He told me was a regular reader of my "Inside the XFL" column when he was only 14 years old and thought it was great work and wanted me to be part of the site. I was happy to be involved in covering another football league.

On February 2, 2009 I made a huge impact for the site, revealing from one of my contacts that Jim Fassel would be named the Las Vegas UFL head coach. Within two days that story was mentioned all over the place including ESPN. My contact was right and Jim Fassel was named the Las Vegas head coach. It was great to be able to break a story like that.

The main thing I wanted to do for UFL Access, was a radio show when the league kicked off in the fall 2009. I called the show "Inside the UFL" and Nation was my co-host for that first season.

Like ArenaZone I made the show very interactive and the fans were a big part of it. One big improvement was that Blog Talk hosted the show which allowed us to have guests call in for the show and it was podcasted so fans could listen at their convenience.

That year I went to Las Vegas to cover the UFL Championship and the Las Vegas Locomotives defeated the Florida Tuskers in overtime, 20-17.

Went Nation subsequently landed a job with the UFL, I had a new co-host for season two of "Inside the UFL" with Dusty Sloan. Dusty was a walking football encyclopedia, he always came up with great stats during the show. Dusty ended up also getting a job with the UFL. I was in Omaha for the championship this past season and the Locomotives won the championship the second year in a row defeating the Florida Tuskers, 23-20.

Since Dusty is now working for the UFL, it was best to find a new-cost for the third season and I found an excellent choice in UFL Access news director Rob Brown. We did one show together a month ago and the fans were very happy with it. They like that Rob is critical like me on issues around the league. What helped a lot was Rob was a regular listener to the show last season, and was a huge fan of how the show is very fan friendly and interactive. When we have guests on, we let fans ask guests any questions they have when they are on. It makes them feel a big part of the show.

WILL I EVER COVER ARENA FOOTBALL AGAIN

When the AFL came back in 2010, I had very little interest in watching. With salaries being significantly lower (three players make $1,000 a game while the rest make $400), many of the players who used to play, no longer do and I simply had a hard time following the league because honestly I'm not familiar with most of the players.

Even with Philadelphia Soul coming back, I'll actually watch some games but won't be going out of my way to watch them all. I'm not going say I will do "ArenaZone" again but for the time being I am committed to covering The United Football League and doing "Inside the UFL" with Rob Brown this season.

ALWAYS FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS

To sum things up, covering alternative football leagues had a huge impact on my life. I'm doing two things I love: working in sports and broadcasting. I also have a lot of good friends across the country.

The one thing I learned from this is that when you experience setbacks in life, you sometimes have to take a step back and realize things happen in life for a reason.

If I got that job with Phoenix Communications I would have never continued doing my sports talk show for WSIA during the summer, which would have never led me to create my show "ArenaZone," writing for OurSports Central and my job with The Sports Network.

The XFL may have lasted for only one season but if I didn't cover the XFL I probably wouldn't be doing a radio show on the United Football League. I had no idea when I was covering the XFL, I was going be friends with Nation Hahn seven years later.

The best advice I can give anyone is do anything you can to get your work published. You never know who is following your work and who can help you out down the road.

My freshman year in college I was a business major but wasn't enjoying the classes I was taking so my sophomore year I switched to Communications because I wanted a sports job. That turned out to be one of the best decisions I made. I could have stayed in business and ended up with a career I would not have liked.

If you want to achieve anything in life and you work hard enough at it, it will happen. I'm proof of that.

If you have any questions or comments about this story feel free to drop me an email at arenazone@yahoo.com and I will be more than happy to get back to you.

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Arena Football League Stories from February 22, 2011


The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer(s), and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.


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