Sports stats



AFL I Arena Football League (1987-2008)

John Elway vs. Neil Smith, Part II

April 13, 2006 - Arena Football League (1987-2008) (AFL I) News Release


Football games are won and lost on the field - not in the owner's box. But, when the Colorado Crush visit the Kansas City Brigade this Sunday at 1:00 p.m. ET on NBC at Kemper Arena, a lot of eyes will be focused on a pair of high-profile owners.

Pro Football Hall of Fame quarterback JOHN ELWAY, formerly of the Denver Broncos, is the co-owner of the Crush, while former Kansas City Chiefs defensive lineman NEIL SMITH is vice president and co-owner of the expansion Brigade.

Colorado (American Conference, Central) and Kansas City (National Conference, Southern) are in different divisions in the AFL, but Sunday's game opens a new chapter in the unique rivalry.

The cities of Kansas City and Denver have a long history on the football field. In the NFL, the Broncos and Chiefs have squared off a total of 91 times in the regular season. Smith and Elway faced each other on 18 occasions during their NFL careers with Elway winning 10 of those head-to-head matchups. The last time the two squared off against each other was October 27, 1996 and Elway escaped with a 34-7 win in Denver.

Elway spent his entire 16-year NFL career with the Broncos, while Smith played nine seasons (1988-1996) in Kansas City before joining the Broncos (1997-99) and San Diego Chargers (2000).

"When I played against John (Elway) he always brought my game to another level," Smith said. "Then, after all those years of hating him, I finally joined him and I saw that he was an elite individual. It never crossed my mind that we would be going against each other again."

Smith, a member of the Kansas City Chiefs' Ring of Honor and a six-time Pro Bowl selection, used to terrorize Elway in their AFC West duels. Smith sacked Elway a total of 14 times, the most on Elway by any player. The pair later teamed up to win two consecutive Super Bowl titles with the Broncos from 1998-99.

"(Neil) was a great player," Elway said of his former rival and teammate. "If he didn't sack me the most of anybody I played against, he sure was pretty close.

"We had a good rivalry with him when he was in Kansas City, but then he left the dark side and came over to the good side. He was a leader, a competitor and a great teammate."

Despite Smith's on-field success as a player, his expansion Brigade hasn't exactly started their inaugural campaign in storybook fashion. The club wasn 't even supposed to field a team in '06 until the devastating affects of Hurricane Katrina forced the New Orleans VooDoo to suspend operations.

Once it was decided that the VooDoo players still under contract would be allocated to Kansas City for this season, the Brigade had just three months to pull things together - everything from getting equipment to selling tickets.

"I feel good about what we've got here," Smith said. "The fan support has been great and that's probably what I'm most proud of.

"In a short period of time, we went from having zero tickets sold to nearly 10,000 season tickets and we're at 15,000 for every game. The fans have been supporting us regardless of what our record is."

Since joining the expansion Brigade, Smith's competitive spirit hasn't swayed. He's enthusiastic that the Brigade can improve upon their 2-9 start.

"I've been doing whatever I have to do to make us better," he said. "I get down on the field and coach a little. I work with player personnel. I'm a champion and I hate to lose.

"We're making moves to get better now and getting ready for the future. Our fans know it's our first year and it's good to know there's room to grow."

If anyone knows about the frustration of struggling through an expansion season it's Elway. In 2003, Colorado went 2-14, including 0-8 at home, despite leading the League in attendance with an average of 17,427 fans per game.

"It's hard when things start to snowball on you and it's tough to get out of that, but you have to keep fighting," Elway said.

Elway made a few changes and the next season the Crush improved to 11-5 and qualified for their first playoff appearance. In 2005, Colorado finished with a 10-6 regular season mark and went on to win the ArenaBowl.

"We had a good base and a good core group of guys that took over the leadership after the 2-14 season," Elway said. "We were able to get things turned around in a hurry."

Smith saw first-hand that it doesn't necessarily have to take years to right the ship in the AFL as Colorado proved last year. If Elway and the Crush can do it, why can't the Brigade?

"I'm committed," Smith said. "I know what it was like for John the first year in Colorado. We've talked a lot. I know I can call John because he's always there for me. I just hate the fact that he never wants to let his players go - but that's how he is. He's a competitor and I can respect that."

Smith and the Brigade will get their shot at Elway and the Crush on Sunday in front of a national television audience on NBC. The Crush are still fighting for a top playoff spot, while Kansas City's postseason hopes are likely done for this season.

But, Smith is still looking forward to seeing his friend.

"This is a national TV game for us. We will make a few hundred PA announcements letting everyone know he's in the building," Smith joked. "Because you know they love him here in Kansas City."

• Discuss this story on the Arena Football League (1987-2008) message board...

Arena Football League (1987-2008) Stories from April 13, 2006


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.


Sports Statistics from the Stats Crew
OurSports Central