Post by Banana Cat on Jun 12, 2011 9:08:52 GMT -5
It's unusual to find an in-depth article on indoor football like this from a newspaper. The future of the market is covered very well here I think.
The advice to not trust Morris seems like good advice.
fayobserver.com/articles/2011/06/12/1101010?sac=Sports
The advice to not trust Morris seems like good advice.
fayobserver.com/articles/2011/06/12/1101010?sac=Sports
Some still believe in Fayetteville's indoor football future
Jun 12, 2011
By Sammy Batten / Staff writer
Quincy Malloy is still a believer.
The former Methodist University All-American defensive lineman thinks arena football can be successful in Fayetteville, despite the demise of three teams over the past eight years.
And Malloy should know. He spent time with the Cape Fear Wildcats of the af2 in 2002, then played seven straight seasons of arena ball for the Fayetteville Guard and the Fayetteville Force before the latter was sold in late May.
Malloy was still hopeful Saturday evening, even after watching from the stands at the Crown Coliseum as the Force was routed in their final game of the 2011 season by the Richmond Raiders, 88-6. The defeat, before a crowd of about 500, was the ninth straight for the Force, who finished with a 3-9 record in Southern Indoor Football League play.
"With the right owner and right organization, it can work,'' Malloy said recently.
John Morris is also a believer. That's why his corporation, AIFA, stepped forward to purchase the on-the-verge-of-collapse Force from NFL agent Andrew Bondarowicz and his company, Fanteractive LLC.
Morris made the move with the knowledge that community support had eroded and there was no chance of generating revenue with three of the four games left on the road.
"I had some people tell me I'm absolutely nuts, and maybe I am,'' Morris said. "But we didn't do this for four games to simply come in and walk away from it.''
It should be noted that by purchasing the Force, Morris saved three other teams from losing valuable gates and fulfilled agreements with local sponsors by fielding a team for the final home game.
Morris' goal is similar to his predecessors: rebuild community support, improve attendance and eventually cultivate local ownership. He's committed to financing the franchise until the latter can be achieved.
"I do believe fans in Fayetteville will come out and support this team in 2012,'' Morris said.
But for every optimist like Malloy and Morris, there are doubters and critics.
Doubters point to history and the fact that three owners have tried and failed to make arena football a profitable business in Fayetteville.
Critics call Morris "a cut throat type of guy,'' and urge county officials to be cautious in their dealings with him.
"I can't say anything good as far as he's concerned,'' former Guard coach Marcus Wall said of Morris. "Our Crown folks have to really be aware of what they jump into because I don't know much good that comes from dealing with John.''
Game experience
Morris does have something Fayetteville's previous two arena football owners were lacking - practical experience.
Morris has a lengthy resume in arena football as a general manager, team owner and as co-founder of the American Indoor Football Association in which the Guard competed from 2008 to 2010. The AIFA merged with the SIFL this season and Morris became owner of the Harrisburg, Pa., franchise.
Between 2006 and 2011, Morris has been involved with arena teams in Montgomery, Ala., Florence, S.C., Baltimore, Richmond, Va., Charlotte and Harrisburg, Pa. During the 2006 season, Morris and partner Michael Mink took over a Montgomery team in the National Indoor Football League whose previous owner made national news by terminating the contracts of all the players after they complained about not getting paid. The Maulers would rally from that disaster to make the NIFL playoffs.
"That was my first stint with outdoor football and we were called on to fill in with a similar situation to what's occurred here in Fayetteville,'' Morris said. "We took over a total dead expense. We took over that team and fronted it for the rest of the season.''
Morris did have his motives, however. The following year he and Mink established the AIFA and the Maulers were one of six teams to join the new league.
Arena sources have told The Fayetteville Observer that Morris may be using the Force in a similar scenario. The sources say he intends to break with the SIFL and re-establish his own league in 2012, bringing the Force, Harrisburg and several other franchises with him.
Because of the current obligation to the SIFL, Morris couldn't confirm that plan last week. But AIFA national director Jack Bowman admitted other league options will be considered in the weeks to come.
"After that (final Force game), we'll wait and see what the future holds,'' Bowman said.
Fighting history
Morris is hoping to change history in Fayetteville, where three previous owners tried and failed to make arena football profitable.
It all began when Raleigh businessman Roddy Jones created the Cape Fear Wildcats in 2002. The Wildcats competed for three seasons in the arenafootball2 and averaged 4,214 fans in their inaugural year. But despite winning two division titles in three seasons, the Wildcats cited losses of about $750,000, which prompted Jones to sell the team in September 2004. New owners relocated the franchise to Albany, Ga.
Local businessman and arena fan Richard King stepped in to fill the void, purchasing the Myrtle Beach Stingrays of the National Indoor Football League and bringing them to Fayetteville in 2005. The team was renamed the Guard and produced a number of highs and lows before being folded by King after the 2010 season. King, too, admits to losing thousands while trying to make the franchise work for six years.
NFL agent and New Jersey attorney Bondarowicz, and his company, Fanteractive LLC, were the next to trying to crack the Fayetteville market. Bondarowicz established the Fayetteville Force in November 2010, but his interest lasted just seven months. Poor attendance and growing financial losses led to Bondarowicz unloading the Force to Morris.
King isn't sure Fayetteville is ready to support yet another arena football owner at this point.
"I think that probably it might need to just go away for a couple of years, then maybe people will be eager to have it come back,'' King said. "Right now people look at it as the same old same old. I think it (arena football) can work, but I'm not sure if it should come back right away.''
King, too, has reservations about Morris.
"I like John. However, he's a cut throat type of guy,'' King said. "He's going to do whatever it takes to make it, even if he steps on you along the way.
"But let me also say that when he ran the AIFA, which it seems like he's starting again, he did a lot to help teams make it through the season. He didn't charge league dues and some things like that to help them make it. But he is a businessman, and he's going to take care of John Morris no matter what it takes.''
A local interest
Almost everyone agrees that if the Force and arena football do have a future in Fayetteville, securing some sort of local ownership is essential. But King and Bondarowicz both failed in their attempts to entice investors over the past year.
"I would love to be able to turn this team over to some local businessmen,'' Morris said. "I believe if we put the proper staff in place and do the right things, it will make the team more appealing. That (sell to local owners) is the ultimate goal. However, I am prepared to fund the team, if necessary, and I have no problem with that.''
King believes it will take a radical approach for Morris to attract local investors.
"The best thing John could do to get local businessmen involved is just to give them stock in the company,'' King said. "Just give it to them. Don't make them pay a dime. Then use them to get the message out about the team to all their customers, use their contacts and help him advertise.''
Wall, a former South View High School star and University of North Carolina receiver, thinks improved marketing will also be a key for the future of the Force.
"I think there's been a mentality that if you build the team, they will come,'' Wall said. "There are so many other things to do in Fayetteville now. Fans need more information (on arena football). I think that's the real reason why it hasn't worked. There hasn't been enough marketing.''
Making tough biz work
King claims an arena team needs to draw an average of 3,200 fans a game to succeed in Fayetteville. He expects Morris will lose lots of money before those kind of numbers can be achieved in the current local climate.
But Morris believes Fayetteville is worth the investment.
"Just like in any business, you're only going to lose money for so long, then be done with it,'' Morris said. "But we just felt like the positive things about Fayetteville outweighed all the negative, like the expenses of coming in and doing what we've done.''
Malloy's playing days may be over. But Saturday he was there cheering on the Force along with other former players like Antonio Dingle and ex-Guard and Force coach Charles Gunnings.
Like Morris, they were all hoping Saturday wasn't the end for arena football in Fayetteville.
"I guess we'll have to wait and see,'' Malloy said.
And keep believing.
Jun 12, 2011
By Sammy Batten / Staff writer
Quincy Malloy is still a believer.
The former Methodist University All-American defensive lineman thinks arena football can be successful in Fayetteville, despite the demise of three teams over the past eight years.
And Malloy should know. He spent time with the Cape Fear Wildcats of the af2 in 2002, then played seven straight seasons of arena ball for the Fayetteville Guard and the Fayetteville Force before the latter was sold in late May.
Malloy was still hopeful Saturday evening, even after watching from the stands at the Crown Coliseum as the Force was routed in their final game of the 2011 season by the Richmond Raiders, 88-6. The defeat, before a crowd of about 500, was the ninth straight for the Force, who finished with a 3-9 record in Southern Indoor Football League play.
"With the right owner and right organization, it can work,'' Malloy said recently.
John Morris is also a believer. That's why his corporation, AIFA, stepped forward to purchase the on-the-verge-of-collapse Force from NFL agent Andrew Bondarowicz and his company, Fanteractive LLC.
Morris made the move with the knowledge that community support had eroded and there was no chance of generating revenue with three of the four games left on the road.
"I had some people tell me I'm absolutely nuts, and maybe I am,'' Morris said. "But we didn't do this for four games to simply come in and walk away from it.''
It should be noted that by purchasing the Force, Morris saved three other teams from losing valuable gates and fulfilled agreements with local sponsors by fielding a team for the final home game.
Morris' goal is similar to his predecessors: rebuild community support, improve attendance and eventually cultivate local ownership. He's committed to financing the franchise until the latter can be achieved.
"I do believe fans in Fayetteville will come out and support this team in 2012,'' Morris said.
But for every optimist like Malloy and Morris, there are doubters and critics.
Doubters point to history and the fact that three owners have tried and failed to make arena football a profitable business in Fayetteville.
Critics call Morris "a cut throat type of guy,'' and urge county officials to be cautious in their dealings with him.
"I can't say anything good as far as he's concerned,'' former Guard coach Marcus Wall said of Morris. "Our Crown folks have to really be aware of what they jump into because I don't know much good that comes from dealing with John.''
Game experience
Morris does have something Fayetteville's previous two arena football owners were lacking - practical experience.
Morris has a lengthy resume in arena football as a general manager, team owner and as co-founder of the American Indoor Football Association in which the Guard competed from 2008 to 2010. The AIFA merged with the SIFL this season and Morris became owner of the Harrisburg, Pa., franchise.
Between 2006 and 2011, Morris has been involved with arena teams in Montgomery, Ala., Florence, S.C., Baltimore, Richmond, Va., Charlotte and Harrisburg, Pa. During the 2006 season, Morris and partner Michael Mink took over a Montgomery team in the National Indoor Football League whose previous owner made national news by terminating the contracts of all the players after they complained about not getting paid. The Maulers would rally from that disaster to make the NIFL playoffs.
"That was my first stint with outdoor football and we were called on to fill in with a similar situation to what's occurred here in Fayetteville,'' Morris said. "We took over a total dead expense. We took over that team and fronted it for the rest of the season.''
Morris did have his motives, however. The following year he and Mink established the AIFA and the Maulers were one of six teams to join the new league.
Arena sources have told The Fayetteville Observer that Morris may be using the Force in a similar scenario. The sources say he intends to break with the SIFL and re-establish his own league in 2012, bringing the Force, Harrisburg and several other franchises with him.
Because of the current obligation to the SIFL, Morris couldn't confirm that plan last week. But AIFA national director Jack Bowman admitted other league options will be considered in the weeks to come.
"After that (final Force game), we'll wait and see what the future holds,'' Bowman said.
Fighting history
Morris is hoping to change history in Fayetteville, where three previous owners tried and failed to make arena football profitable.
It all began when Raleigh businessman Roddy Jones created the Cape Fear Wildcats in 2002. The Wildcats competed for three seasons in the arenafootball2 and averaged 4,214 fans in their inaugural year. But despite winning two division titles in three seasons, the Wildcats cited losses of about $750,000, which prompted Jones to sell the team in September 2004. New owners relocated the franchise to Albany, Ga.
Local businessman and arena fan Richard King stepped in to fill the void, purchasing the Myrtle Beach Stingrays of the National Indoor Football League and bringing them to Fayetteville in 2005. The team was renamed the Guard and produced a number of highs and lows before being folded by King after the 2010 season. King, too, admits to losing thousands while trying to make the franchise work for six years.
NFL agent and New Jersey attorney Bondarowicz, and his company, Fanteractive LLC, were the next to trying to crack the Fayetteville market. Bondarowicz established the Fayetteville Force in November 2010, but his interest lasted just seven months. Poor attendance and growing financial losses led to Bondarowicz unloading the Force to Morris.
King isn't sure Fayetteville is ready to support yet another arena football owner at this point.
"I think that probably it might need to just go away for a couple of years, then maybe people will be eager to have it come back,'' King said. "Right now people look at it as the same old same old. I think it (arena football) can work, but I'm not sure if it should come back right away.''
King, too, has reservations about Morris.
"I like John. However, he's a cut throat type of guy,'' King said. "He's going to do whatever it takes to make it, even if he steps on you along the way.
"But let me also say that when he ran the AIFA, which it seems like he's starting again, he did a lot to help teams make it through the season. He didn't charge league dues and some things like that to help them make it. But he is a businessman, and he's going to take care of John Morris no matter what it takes.''
A local interest
Almost everyone agrees that if the Force and arena football do have a future in Fayetteville, securing some sort of local ownership is essential. But King and Bondarowicz both failed in their attempts to entice investors over the past year.
"I would love to be able to turn this team over to some local businessmen,'' Morris said. "I believe if we put the proper staff in place and do the right things, it will make the team more appealing. That (sell to local owners) is the ultimate goal. However, I am prepared to fund the team, if necessary, and I have no problem with that.''
King believes it will take a radical approach for Morris to attract local investors.
"The best thing John could do to get local businessmen involved is just to give them stock in the company,'' King said. "Just give it to them. Don't make them pay a dime. Then use them to get the message out about the team to all their customers, use their contacts and help him advertise.''
Wall, a former South View High School star and University of North Carolina receiver, thinks improved marketing will also be a key for the future of the Force.
"I think there's been a mentality that if you build the team, they will come,'' Wall said. "There are so many other things to do in Fayetteville now. Fans need more information (on arena football). I think that's the real reason why it hasn't worked. There hasn't been enough marketing.''
Making tough biz work
King claims an arena team needs to draw an average of 3,200 fans a game to succeed in Fayetteville. He expects Morris will lose lots of money before those kind of numbers can be achieved in the current local climate.
But Morris believes Fayetteville is worth the investment.
"Just like in any business, you're only going to lose money for so long, then be done with it,'' Morris said. "But we just felt like the positive things about Fayetteville outweighed all the negative, like the expenses of coming in and doing what we've done.''
Malloy's playing days may be over. But Saturday he was there cheering on the Force along with other former players like Antonio Dingle and ex-Guard and Force coach Charles Gunnings.
Like Morris, they were all hoping Saturday wasn't the end for arena football in Fayetteville.
"I guess we'll have to wait and see,'' Malloy said.
And keep believing.