Humble Thanks and Minor League Football

First things first, I want to thank the folks at Dawgbone.net, Paul Westerdawg's Georgia Sports Blog, and T. Kyle King's blog for linking to and/or mentioning this blog. If I missed anyone whom I haven't noticed yet, you have my thanks as well. As the blog has only been up and running for less than a week, this is a huge surprise for me. It's also a little unnerving because I figured I would have a little more time to get my feet under me before people actually started paying attention to what I'm doing. Recognition from the above folks is sort of like being a kid hanging out at the park tossing the pigskin and having David Greene walk by and say "Hey kid, nice arm." My ego may never recover. By the way, if you're not visiting the above sites on a regular basis, you are depriving yourself of the news and content that does a dawg good, especially in these lean times before practice starts.

Seeing this place empty really drives home the fact that Summer is the season of our discontent.

And speaking of the addiction that is football, word comes today that a group of former college officials is looking to start a sort of minor league football league which would have teams headquartered in college towns, playing either at bowl sites or college stadiums. The league would play from late spring into the summer.

Among the twists that separate this league from the XFL and other failed experiments in pro football: it would utilize players from surrounding colleges, and require that players have exhausted their college eligibility and graduated.

Another thing that separates the league from others is that at this point it's just a concept. Former NCAA President Cedric Dempsey, the current spokesman for the league says that they will have affiliations with several power conferences (though with the exception of the ACC, Big Ten and SEC he didn't want to give specifics). Dempsey says his group has been in contact with some potential coaches, but doesn't mention any names and says they don't have any commitments. He also says that they are "exploring television options", which sounds to me like a tacit acknowledgement that this plane won't get off the ground without some TV money to grease the skids. I say this even though Dempsey says the league is being bankrolled by a single businessman who, you guessed it, Dempsey won't identify. Are there any other details you would like for Mr. Dempsey to fail to fill you in on?

Clearly, this announcement is essentially a trial balloon, meant to guage public and media interest. While it's only a dream at this point, I think it's an interesting concept. One advantage it has is that it cuts the schools in on the cash. Dempsey speculates that schools could receive as much as $3 million for allowing the league to use their stadiums, and would get the concession and other associated revenue. That ought to speak to the administrations.

I'm also a bit fascinated by this concept because the eligibility requirements seem calculated to draw in those "tweener" players who aren't going in the early rounds of the NFL Draft, and may have trouble sticking in the league. I immediately think of Fred Gibson, drafted late by the Steelers and cut in camp, only to end up with the Dolphins. I also think about Eric Zeier, who had a cup of coffee in the NFL then spent some time in Arena ball. I think for some guys this is a great gig: stay in the collge town where you are adored and get paid a nice salary to play football.

I'm praying that the Knoxville Coonhounds of the AAFL draft this guy to be their franchise quarterback. I bet they try to take him in the fifth round of a four round draft.

I'm betting that the state of Tennessee gets a franchise given that former Ewe T athletic director Doug Dickey is helping organize this shindig. Besides, over the past few years Fulmer has found himself inundated with former five star recruits who can't cut it in the big show (paging Jabari Davis . . .), so they've got a ready made roster, and an easily entertained fanbase. However, if Athens got a team, I think I could be induced to go now and then. How 'bout you?