It Really is a Fan’s Sport
Kevin Sedelmeier
Tuesday May 2, 2006
It was a game that saw the Fire hang on to defeat the Green Bay Blizzard 45-39. And it was also a game I watched from a unique, new perspective. A few days earlier, I won three front row tickets to the game by answering a trivia question on the Fire’s local radio show. So, thanks to Fire Ticket Manager Adam Luken, I was able to take in the action from the boards. Needless to say, it was quite a different vantage point from my former seats in the third row of the upper deck.
Now for season tickets, those upper deck ones at midfield are hard to beat. You really see all of the action from there. But for the occasional game, resting your elbows on the padded walls is the way to go. Here’s a few observations:
1. Some of these guys are (say it in a Zoolander voice) really, really big. Peter Lazare for Green Bay was arguably the largest man I have ever seen. Here’s perspective for University of Louisville fans; he looked even bigger than Robert McKune. No kidding. He was enormous, and he once crashed into the wall right in front of us. I guess my advice for those sitting in the front row is: be careful. Be aware of screen passes and sweeps to your side. Fast, large athletes in full pads and helmets may have a distinct advantage over a fan in a Dave Matthews t-shirt holding an order of nachos if the two collided. The front row doesn’t seem very kid-friendly simply because of the potential danger.
2. The turf is hard. Elementary you say. Well, there’s not much give to it. There are spots where it’s raised and uneven. It’s like playing on Berber that covers your drive way. I’ve gotten rug burns playing Batman-Joker at home with my four-year old. Now, imagine throwing a couple 300 pounds guys on me. In addition to my entrails splattering, I’d have some patches of skin rubbed off for sure.
3. There was a lot less cussing than I expected. I saw what I imagined was trash talking, but honestly didn’t hear much of anything. There was some shoving and jawing between the lines, but at least receiver-defensive back communication was civil and even cordial at times. Even the coaches were well behaved. Of course, that’s not a surprise for the Fire’s Tommy Johnson. Sure, he let a player or official know when they did something wrong, but he doesn’t badger people. Across the field, Green Bay coach Bob Landsee was constantly talking. Barking at players and officials, and I doubt he was saying, "Hey, look at me, don’t I look like former Packer coach Mike Sherman?" The truth is, he sort of does.
4. Collisions are pretty loud – especially helmet to helmet. The Fire’s Kabote Sikyala leveled a big Green Bay lineman, who unexpectedly was running with the ball, simply by lowering his helmet. That impressed me close up and nearly gave me sympathetic neck pains.
5. The officials really stay focused. Sure they miss some calls, but this bunch is proof that the professionalism of af2 officials has come a long way in the past five years. The line judge standing in front of us didn’t flinch when my brother-in-law said to him, "Hey buddy, those cheerleaders have been checking you out all game." Nothing. He focused on the play. Later during a break in play when my brother-in-law told him that again, the official joked with him. I learned that referees really do have a sense of humor. Sometimes, you lose that perspective in the upper deck.
6. Just because you sit in the front row, that doesn’t guarantee you you’ll get a souvenir football. It also actually hurts your chances at getting free handouts. The cheerleaders toss the free t-shirts well beyond your reach. Perhaps they think, "You’re sitting in a $43 seat; you can afford your own t-shirt." Can’t argue with that logic I guess. This year’s bunch of Wildfire includes a lot of new faces, and it also includes some good arms. Unlike in years past, some of the t-shirts they threw made it to the upper deck … sure just as I leave the upper deck.
7. Players talk to each other a lot. OK, again no surprise. But the defensive backs seemed to have constant conversations, making sure they knew what the other would be doing on each play. Also, this is the only sport that permits a coach to be on the field with players. Coach Johnson shouted instructions such as, "Watch the slant." He told certain backs to stay on certain receivers. It was interesting to watch the coach-player interaction.
8. Late in the game, Green Bay DS David Crocker injured his arm, and he lie on the field next to the wall where we were standing. He entered the game as the Blizzard’s leading tackler and blanketed the Fire’s exceptional receivers all night. He was hurt when a mass of humanity converged at the wall, and Crocker didn’t get up. He could barely move his right arm. It was surprisingly quiet. Other players were respectful as the team physician and head coach came over to check him out. It would not have be kind of me to gawk over the wall to stare at him. So, we, like everyone else, just clapped for him as he walked off the field.
The AFL and af2 are perhaps the only professional sports organizations that have a Fans’ Bill of Rights. Few leagues offer such open access to their players. Standing along the wall, you get high fives from players, and even Fire mascot Axe slapped offered his paw up for some pre-game greetings. In the af2, fans feel almost a part of their team. They respect the players; they know the players hustle and try. There’s no arena football equivalent of a multi-millionaire baseball player failing to run out a routine groundball.
Oh and on top of the fun and spectacle of being in the front row, the Fire pulled out a victory and evened their record to 2-2. Despite the many roster changes, this year’s team has the makings of another title contender. The offense has signs of coming to life and will with a receiving corps that includes Rob Mager, Dennis Fryzel, and the re-acquired crafty veteran Anthony Payton. The defensive backfield looks promising as does our pass rush.
Oh-oh. I used the term "our." That’s a media no-no. Well, now that I’m writing this article as just a fan, I suppose it’s permissible. "Our" Louisville Fire will be out of town on Derby Day this Saturday taking on the Birmingham Steeldogs. If the Kentucky Derby is considered "the greatest two minutes in sports," maybe arena football should be considered "the greatest two hours in sports."
Kevin Sedelmeier is a native Louisvillian. A graduate of the University of Louisville with a B.A. in Communication and M.A. in English, he works as a technical writer and has written fifteen screenplays and numerous short
stories. He lives with his wife Elizabeth, son Lukas, and their dog Springsteen.
