Category: History and More

I spent 30 years working for daily newspapers, and I don’t think I wrote a single story about rugby during my entire career. In fact, the only times I even used the word was contextually – as in explaining how the Interprovincial Rugby Football Union merged with the Western Interprovincial Football Union to form the Canadian Football League.

However, I’ve become a pretty big fan of the game since my retirement, and thanks to NBC Sports Network’s coverage of Premiership Rugby and Six Nations competition, I’ve gotten up to speed on its rules and a bit of its history.

But being a guy tucked away in the southeastern portion of the United States, I kinda wanted to have a circuit rooted closer to home.

With Major League Rugby, which began its inaugural season last Saturday, now I do.

And I like it a lot.

I watched the debut match on CBS Sports Network, an exciting contest that saw the Glendale (Colorado) Raptors beat Austin Elite, 41-26. And throughout the weekend I tracked the other two games (there are seven active clubs this season, including the Seattle Seawolves, New Orleans Gold, Houston SaberCats, San Diego Legion and Utah Warriors. New York and Dallas entries are expected to join in 2019).

I’m hardly an expert, and I’m sure those who follow rugby closely had some nits to pick, but I was impressed. I thought there was quality across the board and it made me want to put it in my regular sports-watching rotation.

I even decided the NOLA Gold would be my favorite team this year because, well, why not?

I won’t bore your with a rules breakdown; if you’re interested, you can fire up the ol’ Google Machine and find them for yourself. But my favorite sports are association football and American football, and it combines the best elements of both.

I like the fast-pace of the games and how rugby successfully balances brute physicality with great skill.

So why hasn’t pro rugby ever caught on here before?

Although the game itself has been around since the 19th century, it didn’t spawn professional leagues until the 1990s.

So to that end, it’s still in its infancy.

But while it enjoys a strong following throughout much of the rest of the world, it has seemingly been stuck in neutral in the U.S.

Before MLR, a league called PRO Rugby tried to gain a foothold back in 2016. However, that five-team organization lasted just one season.

MLR – which has a single entity structure – has placed flagship franchises in hotbeds of the sport, and is attempting to build on the strong amateur rugby infrastructure of its communities.

The Gold, for example, is spawned from the New Orleans Rugby Football Club, which was formed in 1973 and has won several amateur championships during its existence.

And while there are some international players dotting the rosters (each team is allowed five), there are many more who have come up through the ranks of elite American-based clubs.

The result is a league that is serious about making pro rugby in the United States stick, and I hope MLR has found a recipe for success.

It’s certainly off to ambitious start; landing a TV contract right out of the gate was no small feat.

I plan to watch the Glendale vs. Seattle match on CBSSN this Saturday. In fact, I’m going to try to watch as many contests as I can going forward, because it’s worth my time and interest.

You might discover it’s worth your time and interest, too, if you give it a shot.

It’s a great sport with great players, and perhaps one day it’ll have even more franchises scattered across North America.

In the meantime, Geaux Gold.

With the staggeringly low success rate of alternative pro sports leagues, it’s easy to dismiss any new venture.

The Alliance of American Football, however, is now a bit harder to ignore.

Less than a month after the fledgling spring league came out of nowhere, the AAF hinted that it was serious about going somewhere when it named Steve Spurrier its first head coach and Orlando its flagship franchise.

All new business ventures need publicity, and signing the Head Ball Coach to a deal generated plenty of it – even during a weekend when The Masters was the top story.

In a statement posted on the AAF website, Spurrier says co-founders Charlie Ebersol and Bill Polian have created a league worthy of his time and effort. It didn’t take much convincing for him to agree to become the first coach in league history.

“What first captured my attention was Charlie and Bill’s commitment to putting top-flight, professional football on the field and creating a true alliance between fans, players and the game,” Spurrier said. “The Alliance offers a unique opportunity to get back into coaching, this time for a spring season, and work closely with hungry, talented athletes looking to begin, revive or extend their professional careers.

“The fact I can do this in Orlando makes it that much sweeter. I’m fired up and ready to go.”

Spurrier, of course, has a national championship and six SEC titles on his resume from his days at Florida; won an ACC crown at Duke; and even turned South Carolina into a top 10 program before things started going backward with the Gamecocks. After three consecutive 11-2 marks in Columbia, the team went 7-6 in 2014 and he resigned midway through the 2015 campaign with Carolina sitting at 2-4.

And while his two-year stint in the NFL was hardly memorable (12-20 with Washington), his last job in a pro spring football league certainly was.

Spurrier coached the United States Football League’s Tampa Bay Bandits during all three of its seasons (1983-85), creating the wide-open “Bandit Ball” attack and helping the team finish 35-21 overall with two playoff appearances.

The Bandits averaged 43,343 fans per game – second best in league history.

Now he’s back in Florida, and his name alone should be worth strong early ticket sales at Spectrum Stadium.

So why Orlando as AAF ground zero?

“When reviewing markets for the Alliance, we focused on cities who were looking for more football,” Ebersol said. “Orlando has already proven to be a passionate, loyal and engaged fan base that loves the game, yet they don’t have a professional football team to call their own.

“Well, we’re not just bringing professional football to town, we’re bringing the Head Ball Coach with us, a true Florida legend.”

Spurrier is a polarizing figure – I’m guessing the excitement level in Tallahassee and Miami is a bit more muted – but he’s still a big get and this is, after all, pro ball.

The AAF is planning on a territorial system for drafting and signing players, so expect most of the football-playing colleges in the Sunshine State to be represented on the 50-player roster.

And since the AAF can be considered an informal feeder league for the NFL, the best way to sell Double A (or optimistically, Triple A) football is to use players the fans already know.

Of course, it’ll all come down to whether or not people are willing to accept the fact that the AAF is a legitimate bridge between college and NFL ball.

To that end, Spurrier in Orlando is a good start, but what’s next?

The league will start play with eight franchises in 2019, so it’ll be interesting to see what other coaches and cities are matched up.

Based on Ebersol’s statement, you get the impression that maybe he wants to avoid NFL towns.

On the other hand – from a media and marketing standpoint – it never hurts to have a New York, Chicago or Los Angeles in the mix.

Whatever the case, I’m much more interested in the Alliance of American Football today than I was a week ago.

It’s still a longshot, but it’s off to heck of a start.

About a month ago I checked on the status of Pacific Pro Football, a new Southern California-based league that was set to start play this summer and one in which I have (had?) high hopes.

What makes it different from most alternative pro football leagues, according to its website, is this:

 “Pac Pro will be the first league to professionalize players who are less than 4 years removed from their high school graduation. Players will receive a salary, benefits, and even paid tuition and books for one year at community college. Players also will be able to market themselves for compensation, and begin creating a financial retirement plan if they so choose.”

That’s a novel idea. But the site hadn’t been updated in months and I assumed it would not be kicking off in 2018 since it still has no teams, coaches or players.

I assumed correctly.

On Feb. 28, Pac Pro sent out a release stating that adidas is a founding member of the league, which will “start play in 2019.”

That detail about the launch date was saved for the last line of the release, which is a textbook case of burying the lede.

But, if you’re one of those people like me whose ears always perk up at the sound of “new” football, allow me to introduce you to another circuit vowing to start in 2019 – the Alliance of American Football.

I knew Vince McMahon was planning an XFL reboot (or perhaps reimagining) in 2020, but I had no idea the AAF was coming.

Obviously, though, there has been some serious behind the scenes work.

While franchises won’t be announced until next month, the plan is to have eight teams playing a spring schedule as part of a single entity structure.

Some early major rule tweaks include no kickoffs and no PAT kicks after touchdowns; teams will be required to go for a 2-point conversion.

And on Monday, Alex Marvez of Sporting News reported that big names such as Steve Spurrier, Mike Singletary and Jeff Fisher were being targeted as potential coaches.

But beyond that, here are the two things that stand out to me.

One, the AAF already has a TV deal with CBS, which will show a game on opening day (Saturday, February 9) as well as the championship game at the end of April.

The rest of the contests can be seen on CBS Sports Network or a free “Alliance App.”

And two, aside from former Buffalo Bills GM Bill Polian, the league is co-founded by TV and film producer Charlie Ebersol – son of Dick Ebersol, who happened to run the old XFL along with McMahon. The younger Ebersol actually did the ESPN 30 for 30 documentary about that failed venture, “This Was The XFL.”

Beating Vince to his second football punch should make for some spirited conversation the next time the Ebersols and McMahons have a play date.

According to the AAF website:

 “Players will have state-of-the-art protection on the field and ample opportunities off it. The Alliance will provide players a comprehensive bonus system, post-football career planning as well as counseling and scholarship support for postsecondary education.”

That’s great, but it doesn’t matter to fans if all the AAF alums go on to get doctorates and gain acceptance into Mensa International. The key for ticket buyers and viewers is whether or not it’ll be fun to watch.

As is the case with every proposed spring circuit since the United States Football League, players targeted will be those who can’t find work with NFL teams. And after listening to Polian do the media rounds, it’s obvious this will be the proverbial “second chance league.” For those who can parlay an AAF gig into another NFL shot, more power to them.

So what are its odds of success?

Quite long.

Spring is a season of growth, but it has proven to be mostly barren for pro football apart from the USFL (1983-85).

It threw big money at big names, and was carving out a decent niche until New Jersey Generals owner Donald Trump convinced the rest of the owners to move to the fall and file an antitrust suit against the NFL in hopes of snagging a financial windfall.

We all know how that turned out, and there hasn’t been an NFL spring league “challenger” since that has even sniffed at stability.*

*The World League of American Football/NFL Europe/NFL Europa was a spring league that lasted from 1991 to 2007, except for a break in 1993-94, but had teams in North America for just its first two seasons. It received funding from the NFL and served as a developmental league.

Now to be fair, you don’t need the best talent in the world to have a viable product.

Great high school teams aren’t on the same level as good college squads, and college players aren’t as skilled as professionals.

That doesn’t mean a game can’t be wildly entertaining, regardless of whether you watch it on Friday, Saturday or Sunday.

But there are certain expectations when it comes to pro football, and when it’s considered “minor league,” it carries a stigma – fairly or not. Plus, I’m not sure there’s a real appetite for football from February through June anymore; perhaps fans aren’t in love with the game as much as they used to be. So aside from a few rule changes, this latest entry in offseason football really isn’t breaking ground that hasn’t already been broken time and time again.

Still, when it comes to the AAF, I wish it well, just as I give my well wishes to Pac Pro Football and all upstart leagues.

They provide more jobs for more people, and that’s a good thing.

And if, in fact, the league debuts as scheduled, I’ll watch it as long as I’m entertained.

There’s no harm in giving it a chance, even if I think its chances of survival are slim.