Hawgs rolling after meeting
January 18, 2005 - National Indoor Football League (NIFL)
Daytona Beach Hawgs News Release
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Buoyed by a meeting with Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, the Daytona Beach Hawgs returned from this weekend's National Indoor Football League winter meetings with an increased sense of optimism for their inaugural season.
Owner Tony Pewonski, Head Coach/General Manager Ervin Bryson, Asisstant Coaches Leon Bright, Chad Rhodes and Marcus Pearson, and Assistant General Manager Tara Gibson attended the two-day conference held at the Omni Resort at Champions Gate located west of Orlando.
Jones visited the second day of league meetings. NFL Director of Officials Ron Baines also was in attendance.
The Hawgs' staff got the photo op with Jones and briefly discussed their progress in building the expansion franchise that begins play March 19 against the Lakeland Thunderbolts.
"Since I'm a Pittsburgh Steelers fans, it left me kind of woozy being next to the Dallas Cowboys owner,'' said Bryson. "But from the perspective of being a football professional, it was an honor to meet one of the most succesful businessmen of our era."
Jones talked about his early days as the Cowboys owner and the work and dedication required for a team's success on and off the field. He also talked about the National Football League's search for an acceptable format for football as an Olympic event and eluded to indoor football as a strong consideration.
Other topics on the two-day agenda featured discussion of rule and rule clarifications, communication and cooperation between teams and between the teams and the league, branding of NIFL and team merchandise, national advertising, video web casting, travel issues, game promotion and the Sports for Education program.
"We left this meeting feeling extremely positive about the future of our league,'' Bryson said. "This was one of the best league meetings that I've attended... there is a definite vision for the growth and development of the league that will allow more athletes the opportunity to pursue their dream of playing professional football. League President Carolyn Shiver is to be commendd for holding the league together and forging alliances to ensure its growth."
Season tickets for the Hawgs' 2005 inaugural season are available by calling (386) 257-9890 or the Ocean Center at (386) 254-4545.
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National Indoor Football League Stories from January 18, 2005
- Lakeland ThunderBolts visit The Halfway House - Lakeland ThunderBolts
- Hawgs rolling after meeting - Daytona Beach Hawgs
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