af2 set to induct first Hall of Fame class

Friday July 17, 2009

CHICAGO – The arenafootball2 (af2) league will help cap off its 10th anniversary season by inducting its very first class into the af2 Hall of Fame. The inaugural Hall of Fame class will consist of 10 inductees and will be chosen by a unique combination of fan, media and af2 Hall of Fame Committee vote, the League office announced today.

Candidates will be chosen from five categories: Players, Coaches, Administrators (owners and front office), Officials and At-large/Contributors to the game. The criteria for player and coach nomination are that they must have played or coached for at least one season. 

The af2 Hall of Fame Committee will be a panel of nine individuals which includes current League President Jerry Kurz, Arena Football League founder and longtime AFL and af2 operator Jim Foster – both members of the AFL Hall of Fame – as well as various af2 head coaches past and present.  

“So many great people have been a part of this league over the past decade that it’s only fitting to honor a special group of 10 individuals to be our first af2 Hall of Fame class,” said af2 President Jerry Kurz. “I’m looking forward to being a part of the process.”

The voting process will begin at the conclusion of the 2009 regular season. After ballots are collected and tabulated, a list of 15 potential inductees will then be cut to 10 by way of a final vote among the committee, media and fans.

The list of 15 finalists will be announced three weeks prior to the 2009 ArenaCup. At that time fans and media will be given an opportunity to contribute to the process by voting for the final 10 via a special email address. 

The inaugural af2 Hall of Fame Class of 2009 will be announced during the lead-in week of ArenaCup10. The class will be honored at the ArenaCup celebration.   

Tickets to the 2009 ArenaCup in Las Vegas are available by visiting www.orleansarena.com, all Coast Casinos box offices, The Galleria at Sunset or by calling 800-675-3267 and mention code: ARENACUP.

About af2

In Week 17 of its 10th anniversary season with a 25-team membership, af2 serves as a vehicle to bring Arena Football to small-to-midsize cities and as a developmental league with an unmatched history of sending players, coaches and officials to major professional football leagues each year. Log on to www.af2.com for more information.