Fireside Chat – WR/LB Dennis Fryzel
Kevin Sedelmeier
Monday July 18, 2005
He’s the consummate iron man who has a great attitude and work ethic, and if you’ve followed the Fire for past few seasons, you know he plays like every down is his last. In another installment of Fireside Chat, Dennis Fryzel is the guest, and he talks about his game and a few other topics.
1. You're been with the Fire a few years now, when not practicing with the team, what do you like to do in Louisville? What do you like about the city?
I don’t have a whole bunch of time when not playing with the Fire, especially during the season. I work full time for Yum! Brands, Inc. When I do get a little time, I like to spend it going to see a movie or two with my girlfriend or taking my dog to the park. Louisville is a great city. It supports all its sports teams at every level, or any event that comes through town. I am amazed there are no bigger market professional teams in the city because I believe the city would back it 100%. The city has all the variety and activity of a larger market city, but does not carry the attitude and abruptness of most larger cities. The people here are very supportive and kindhearted.
2. You went to Valdosta State. They are one of the more prominent Division II football programs, known for their high-scoring offense. Tell a little about your time there. Did that type of offense at all help make the transition to arena ball any easier?
Playing at Valdosta State taught me a great deal about the business of football. I played under two systems in college which both benefited me. The first was a pro-style offense where you had to make adjustments during the play, according to what the other team was doing. The second, and current system, was more wide open. It contains a combination of stretching the field vertically complemented with underneath and crossing routes, which is somewhat similar to the arena game. Also, playing receiver and running back prepared me for the iron man aspects of the arena game. However, even playing in a pass heavy offense in college did not help with preparing for the arena football game itself. Arena football is a totally different game from the outdoor game.
3. You play hard every down. You never give up on any plays. You're always focused, giving your all, yet you aren't demonstrative, or as Al Michaels would say, loquacious. Your play speaks for itself. Do you do any specific pre-game preparation to help you concentrate on the upcoming game?
I do not have any set pre-game rituals I feel I must do. What I try to do is find something to get me mad, something to get my temper going, and translate that to the field then take it out on the other team.
4. We haven't seen many of your patented two-point conversion runs from the holder's spot this year. Do you like those, or is it just a case of a futile mass of humanity wedged in the three yards in front of you.
I love running the two-point conversions. Anytime you can be the focus of putting points up for your team, that’s the reason you play. It’s a credit to our offense that we have not gone for two much this season. We feel we can score anytime we need points, that we do not have to "manufacture" points in a special manner. We can take the points given to us, then later, score what we need at any time of the game.
5. What af2 city do you like visiting the most? Or is it a case of get off the bus, play, and get back on the bus, and you can't really enjoy road trips?
For the most part, road trips consist of the inside of your hotel room, a casual restaurant or two, then play the game and get back on the bus. However, our game at Rio Grande Valley earlier this year was a great trip. We flew to Texas and had some down time to go out and enjoy the city. Everyone in the city was polite and fun. Even the hotel manager setup an after game party for us in the hotel with food and drinks, and then socialized with us at the party like we were the home team. The city made the long trip very comfortable.
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.