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Post by daytonadan on Mar 10, 2009 14:29:23 GMT -5
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- LAKE CHARLES, La. (March 10, 2009) -- The Southern Indoor Football League begins a four-part "Seven Points With ..." today on its southernifl.com website to give fans an opportunity to meet the staff for the league's inaugural season. Commissioner Dan Blum is featured today, with Director of Operations Robert Winfrey slated for Wednesday, Director of Communications Dan Ryan Thursday and Creative Services Scott Blanchard profiled on Friday. ``Seven points’’ will be a regular feature on the site, asking SIFL players, coaches and staff seven questions. To access the feature, visit www.southernifl.com. Blum’s segment is at www.southernifl.com/news/2009-03-09/seven-points-with-sifl-commissioner-dan-blum.htmlThe SIFL continues preparations for its inaugural game on Saturday, April 18 when the Austin Turfcats host the Acadiana Mudbugs. __________________
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Post by Caballo Diablo on Mar 11, 2009 15:46:17 GMT -5
SEVEN POINTS WITH SIFL COMMISSIONER DAN BLUM[/U]
Q - 1: - What will make the SIFL different from other leagues?
A - Professionalism and an organizational structure. ....................
Q - 2: - Why do you think indoor football teams and leagues fail?
A - Teams probably fail due to lack of funding and no knowledge about what it takes to be successful in minor league sports. ....................
Q - 3: - As a commissioner, have you ever wanted to just haul off and backslap an owner who didn’t know the first thing about football?
A - More than once. ....................
Q - 4: - What are some of the things fans need to know about being successful in indoor football that they probably don’t?
A - Fans really don't want or need to know about what it takes to be successful in indoor football. If they leave a game having a good feeling about the whole experience then that franchise has been successful. ....................
Q - 5: - Your expertise is officiating. How do you go about insuring that the refs know what they’re doing? And be honest – you ever blown a call?
A - The key to success is in hiring the right people and then training and evaluating their performance. Any official who has been around a while and says he's never blown a call is lying. Over the years I have blown some, not many. ....................
Q - 6: - What do you think works better – one big league or a group of small leagues?
A - As in any business, competition is good. In indoor football a key is to recognize that we really don't compete against other leagues. Our product is consumed locally, so our focus needs to be on selling our community that we have an enjoyable outlet for their disposable income. ....................
Q - 7: - You’re an NIFL survivor … have you completely recovered?
A - Every indoor league I've been involved with (this is the fifth) has taught me something. Mistakes observed previously hopefully will work to our benefit in the future. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ TOMMOROW: Director of Operations Robert Winfrey ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Post by Caballo Diablo on Mar 11, 2009 15:48:01 GMT -5
SEVEN POINTS WITH SIFL DIRECTOR OF OPERATIONS ROBERT WINFREY[/U]
Q - 1: - What will make the SIFL different from other leagues?
A - The SIFL territory is more regional then any other indoor league playing in 2009. That allows fans to have the opportunity to travel to away games and follow their favorite teams with more ease. This should help in building true rivalries between our cities. Another difference will be our rules. We have come up with a rule book that will be easier to follow, coach, play, and referee. That should make for a better quality game. ....................
Q - 2: - People think it’s easy to run a football team or league. What don’t they know?
A - It is really amazing what goes on, twelve months out of the year, to make sure that the three months of football goes off without a hitch. With the SIFL, we started from scratch, for the most part in December, and have had even less time to get our first season off the ground. I could spend hours going over every detail that it takes to make a league successful before the first game is even played. We have a strong league staff that is making sure everything is getting done, which is the key! ....................
Q - 3: - You made the transition from fan to administrator. Is that difficult or easy?
A - This is my second season working for an Indoor Football league Office. Last season, I was the Director of Communications for the Intense Football League, and that included the in season Football Ops. It has been a smooth transition from being just a fan, because i will always be a fan of this sport. I bring a different perspective to the table. Most front offices make decisions on what they think the fan wants, I have been there as a fan, and i have the chance to bring the voice of the fans directly to the owners. ....................
Q - 4: - How do you know if what you’re doing is successful?
A - That is easy, when the fans see the season going along without any issues! That means that as Operations Director, I have made sure that everything has been conducted correctly. The fan wants to spend his/her money to come enjoy the sport and his team, and not worrying about the internal workings of the league. ....................
Q - 5: - Best moment for you in football?
A - There have been so many. I would say being a part of building the Southern Indoor Football League from the ground up. This has become my passion to see it succeed, what could be a better moment then that? ....................
Q - 6: - Have you ever had a OMG! moment with an owner or coach or even league?
A - I have seen a number of coaches make in game decisions that made me scratch my head. I have seen owners go onto the field during the game and get escorted out. I try not to comment on other leagues, just trying to focus on what we do here within the SIFL. ....................
Q - 7: - You’re commissioner for one day. What do you change or implement?
A - Since we are building the SIFL from the ground up, I have had the ability to see some of my thoughts come to life for year one. I have been involved from helping bring teams into the league, to input on the rules, creating the schedule, and making sure all teams are ready to play. I honestly would not do anything different!
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Post by Caballo Diablo on Mar 12, 2009 9:42:35 GMT -5
LAKE CHARLES, La. (March 12, 2009) -- Part three of the four-part ``Seven points with ..." featuring the Southern Indoor Football League staff spotlights Director of Communications Dan Ryan, who recently was named the ``seventh most influential person in indoor football by'' Our Sports Central.
SEVEN POINTS WITH SIFL DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS DAN RYAN[/u]
``It helps to know the writer,'' Ryan said. ``I'm happier that [SIFL president] Thom Hager was ranked third and that I was included among the best front office staff in the sport.''
Q - 1: - Another year, another league. Is there a league you haven’t been a part of?
A - Yeah, the Justice League. Wonder Woman and Black Canary didn’t like the way I dangled my participles. (I love recycling that joke.) Seriously, it’s just been the nature of the sport the past three years. Sometimes I feel like Al Pacino in Godfather 3 – ``I want to get out, but it keeps pulling me back.’’ Bottom line, I’m still here. I can't walk on water, I just know where are the rocks are. ....................
Q - 2: - What do you like better, being a sports writer or a sports PR person?
A - PR is just journalism with an agenda. These days, a team web site and e-newsletter can serve as a team’s newspaper, radio station and television station. Most of the folks in charge of indoor football STILL really haven’t gotten that. The occasional NBA, NFL or college bowl game is a nice perk, but Carl Hiassen was right – the problem with journalists is they don’t participate. Except for now, they get their own radio and TV shows and become the news. Doing this is like being part of the team. ....................
Q - 3: - You were running the WIFL PR when a player died on the field? What was that experience like?
A - I’ve developed two philosophies: 1) You’re never given a challenge you can’t handle and 2) It’s not what happens to you, it’s how you react to it. What to this day stands out wasn’t the tragedy itself, it’s how people reacted to it. It was bad enough to see a great kid you know die before your very eyes, but follow that up with owners b****ing you out because they’re not speaking first at the press conference or the web edition of a prestigious mainstream media outlet running raw footage of a death with commercials leading in. Oh, yeah, trying holding back when a news reporter who’s never been to a football game ask you if there’s a difference between an outdoor football helmet and an indoor football helmet or the managing editor of that prestigious outlet justifying everything because the video ``wasn’t as bad as Joe Theisman breaking his leg.’’ Theisman didn't die, you frakkin idiot. From a media standpoint, it proved that the sports department needs to be the point in covering a sports-related tragedy, not the news side.
I saw Dale Earnhardt die at Daytona, but that situation was worse because we were involved. Very sad, but in a way, a good feeling came out of because we handled the situation the best we could and insured the memory of Javan Camon was preserved as someone who died doing was he passionate about. ....................
Q - 4: - You’ve been around the game awhile. Has it truly improved or has it gotten worse?
A - The problem with that is those who shall not be named in infamy back in the day set the bar so low that for a while, doing what you’re supposed to be doing was cause for celebration. Play all your games, pay your players and bills – those should have been the minimum. And some of those now legendary antics still linger over the sport and have caused the growth to slow and gain any credibility.
Is it better? Yes. But the sport still goes around in circles… and like I’ve said before. I’m from Daytona Beach where you learn how to make money off people doing that. Can it be better? Much. Will it ever get better? Those who are strong survive and those who think they're right endure as long as possible. ....................
Q - 5: - Greatest game you’ve ever seen.
A - The lone WIFL championship was cool. Not because it was decided in the final seconds, but because for the first half, all I had to do was watch because everything I was responsible for was in place and working. There were two Florida Classics where my Bethune-Cookman Wildcats were down big to FAMU and won in the final minute or overtime. There was a 65-64 high school game I covered in McKinney, Texas this year. The Orlando Predators’ ArenaBowl wins were both cool. All games are great, when you think about it. ....................
Q - 6: - What’s your reaction to the AFL shutting down for 2009?
A - Royally p---ed off. My PR colleagues are out of jobs, as are the players, coaches and staffs, not to mention those who made a few extra bucks on game days. I’m out a couple hundred dollars because that’s eight less Utah Blaze games I could have worked this year.
It’s been kind of fun to watch us indoor types try to take the place of AFL. I snicker when I see teams brag about signing AFL players all of sudden makes them more legitimate. Sheesh. You’re a double AA team signing a triple AAA player or two. Get [former Dallas Desperado ] Clint Dolezel and you might get my interest. Heck, we had frakkin' Barry Wagner – the greatest arena player of all-frakkin'-time in Daytona Beach and did that cause little more than a ripple? Nope. Get off that mentality. Focus on putting on a family-friendly affordable product on the field.
If AFL and af2 don’t get their stuff together, then there is an opportunity for the entire sport to grow in 2010. I’d like to see more co-operation between the indoor leagues to help the sport grow, but we know that ain’t gonna happen. ....................
Q - 7: - You’re going to be a grandfather in April?
A - Step-grandfather, but still. How cool is that? Grandma won’t let me take the kid to Hooters, though. And I’m going to make sure the kid doesn’t play for BYU. If indoor football is still around in 20 years, let's talk.
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