XFL failing - new football league idea based on college teams
I think Sam Webb or Eric Adelson said it best, that these new teams don’t command loyalty, since people aren’t necessarily loyal to players. So how about a league that capitalizes more directly on college teams and rivalries?
You’d place teams in college towns with rabid followings, the Ann Arbor Wolves, Columbus Cashews, South Bend Popes, etc. Then you create the roster from ex-players from those adjacent college teams. Maybe give it an XFL, WWE comical style to it, because it’s not the very best of that alumni, but there’s so many pretty good players that don’t make the NFL for long (DRob, Higdon), the quality should be watchable enough for a loyal college fan base.
The teams are maybe more sustainable and can operate as an organization tied to the local community, since they’re already full of local stars. The college team could probably practice against them, use them as a resource in a bunch of ways.
As a Michigan fan, we’d get to see DRob maybe play on a team with fewer gaping roster holes. Maybe we can beat OSU for once, kind of? Even if the quality is lower, if it’s UM vs OSU football, I know I have no choice to watch, probably buy a shirt, get pissed off.
Good idea? What am I missing?
Yes that is a great idea!
The problem is that they are not the best. It's no different from any other league. People like the real thing. You have some people that will purchase the knock off brands or lower tier items, but people tend to like the best, and this is not the best. I tried watching, and I only knew 2 or 3 players a game. It's football, but something is missing. It's a niche, just like minor league baseball. Put it in smaller arenas, and take it off of TV, and try to develop something of a cult following and then branch out.
This is exactly the problem. I tried watching the 1st couple of weekends but it just didn't hold my attention like I hoped it would. I watch the NFL because I like watching great football. I watch college football because I've been a die hard Michigan fan since I was in diapers (and there's something about watching kids represent their school). These lesser leagues simply don't have good enough play to hold my interest and I don't care about any of the teams.
How do you keep professionals tied to a certain team? What if you have some injuries and need some players to fill that. You can't recruit. You just have to hope some guy graduates who doesn't go to the NFL but wants to continue playing? It does sound cool in theory but it doesn't sound practical.
Hmm, I had been running with the assumption there would be many classes/years of former players to draw from. But if that isn't sufficient...borrow from other local alumni? For Michigan, the directional schools. Or other B1G team alumni that don't have the capacity or demand for a team in this league. Northwestern? I don't have the exact solution, but there must be options for filling out the roster given the number of athletes that go through the college level.
For tying professionals to a team, that's just the league requirement. You have to be a former player from UM to play for the A2 Wolves (then you introduce roster need exceptions).
How about teams drawn from conferences. BIG, SEC, ACC, BIG12, PAC, CUSA/MAC, etc... There would be plenty of guys to draw from and you could probably support 8 teams.
There would be many classes to draw from now. But each year your pool of eligible players only grows by about 15 or so. You would be doing a tremendous amount of borrowing from local schools. And if there's an Ann Arbor team, why not an East Lansing team that would also have to borrow from the same local teams as roster exceptions.
I think it’s a great way to start a league bc the local fans are somewhat emotionally connected out the gate.
Free agency for local talent could almost function like NFL Restricted Free Agency... give the hometown team the offer to match any offer. If they choose not to, then they can move on.
XFL is very fun. I live near Seattle and have been to 2 games, and it was great fun and a great atmosphere. Also, very affordable. Watching games on TV has also been fun. I admit that part of the fun for me is three Wolverines are on the Seattle Dragons: Jeremy Clark, Channing Stribling, and Will Campbell. And I like watching them play.
Oh, I don't doubt the XFL is fun. It just sounded like they might not make it to a second season due to financial issues.
March 12th, 2020 at 10:42 AM ^
Supposedly Vince McMahon sold a bunch of his WWE stock to be able to afford to run the league on his own for at least 3 seasons to get it up and running.
The All American Football League tried that about a decade ago. The teams were made up of players who graduated from local colleges in the state where the team was located and they were to play in college stadiums if possible. Further details are fuzzy. The below Wiki page doesn't help much. The league never played a game.
They need to start a minor league. For all the people who don't want to play school so that the NCAA can clean up this garbage that permeates throughout college football now. It can also consist of guys who get cut from the NFL too.
The problem is they’re trying to market this as if it’s some off season high level professional football league, and it just isn’t.
I mean think of how many starting QBs there are in the NFL where you say “Good god this guy stinks. How the hell is he in this league?” And now you’re trying to market QBs who aren’t even good enough to be in the NFL as BACKUPS?!?!
The XFL didn’t fail the first time because of marketing, it failed because it was an inferior product. And it’s going to fail again this time for the exact same reason
How is the the xfl failing? Seems like people are having a good time at the games. The competition appears to be sufficiently entertaining.
Or make it an all state team. You can only have players that played at a college in that state or went to high school in that state. It would be cool to see former Michigan players and then your buddy's nephew who went and played at northern Michigan or something like that. We could have Antonio brown on the team...jkjk
Is it really failing? I know with COVID-19 they are going to be hit, but I'd say so far it's been pretty successful. Everyone who has watched so far has seemed to enjoy it. QB play isn't great that is for sure, but it still is a decent product that can be followed casually. I initially had no real interest in the league, but I've found my self casually watching parts of games on the weekends.
Minor league baseball actually has a decent following. I think the XFL, or something similar, acting as a minor league system for the NFL could actually work.
The league has been active for a couple weeks, its far too soon to label it a failure, IMO.
March 12th, 2020 at 10:46 AM ^
This was my reaction to the post too...
also, G league and minor league hockey have sufficient followings (and investments from the top tier) to be successful...
... so is the OP's original point really that the NFL doesn't support multiple leagues like other professional sports do.
I used to do something like this playing Front Office Football, created by one of our very own (former?) posters here on this board, Jim Gindin. I'd only be allowed to sign players from the colleges in the state of the team I was running. If I ran out of players, I could sign guys born in that state. If there was somehow still a shortage, which happened maybe a couple times tops, I'd go for a guy from a neighboring state. It was kind of fun for a change of pace. I don't think it would work at all IRL.
The XFL is not failing in any way. They never expected it to be the NFL. The league is fully capitalized by billionaire Vince McMahon, and all metrics have it performing on par with expectations.
No fan loyalty? You clearly have not seen a St Louis Battlehawks game. Fan attendance has been so high that they've started opening the upper deck. Ka-Kaw!!!
Loyalty takes time to build up. A new league needs to get established and stick around for a few years. Most pro teams were around before most fans were born and they grow up as fans
The problem isn't that we can't get a 2nd football league started. It's that we can't get a 19th one started. And that is fine! There are 549 college football teams between division 1, 2, & 3. That's like an extra 18 30-team leagues.
Compare it to the English Soccer Pyramid. NFL is your premier league. Power 5 is like your Champions League. Group of 5 is like League 1. You have your division two FBS powerhouses building up a League 2. Everything below that is real localized, small time stuff.
Shoving in a competitor who you want to compete with the NFL, but isn't as good of a product as the top end of the NCAA is a joke. Most football fans already have 2 favorite teams. No one needs a third...
Building loyalty for a sports league takes time and investment. MLS is just starting to see the success of its labor as cities like Seattle, Portland, KC, and Atlanta become soccer "hotbeds". But, there's also places like Chicago, Boston, and Philly where teams that have been around for a while don't draw fans or much interest.
It took the NFL 30 years to become a fraction of what it is today. The NBA tape-delayed Finals games 30 years after the league started and the NBA only became a thing because a bunch of guys who owned arenas needed something to fill in the gap between hockey games and Ice Capades - which actually made them money.
It's an uphill climb. You need a group of owners with deep pockets that's okay taking significant losses for years.
March 12th, 2020 at 10:16 AM ^
I don't know why the XFL doesn't just have players wear their college helmets. It would look kind of like the senior bowl.
It'd be cool to easily spot the winged helmets out on the field and know who to focus on and root for.
March 12th, 2020 at 10:49 AM ^
I don’t tune in to watch my local ECHL hockey team or minor league baseball team. But I do go to the sporting events.
I’d imagine a significant portion of the operating costs is to put on these productions. And doing so before building the fan bases up seems like they’re jumping the gun and are misinterpreting their market research.
March 12th, 2020 at 11:20 AM ^
I think its way too early to say its failing. They're backed with Vince McMahon money so they should be in business for at least a year or two. Granted, COVID-19 is not doing their attendance or brand building any favors. Especially if games start getting cancelled, but should that happen I think they will still get another fresh start when all of this has passed.
Simply put, it takes time to build loyalty to a team. People love their NFL teams or college teams, in part, because they have been mainstays for decades. Countless all-time greats have come through, left their mark, and made the team what it is. The XFL has been in existence for all of a few weeks. They need time to establish themselves and show that they can be a watchable, entertaining product. The biggest mistake they could make, in my mind, is to try and be like the NFL. They never will be, and will never have that kind of following. So hopefully they can find a way to make themselves unique and offer something the NFL doesn't.
March 12th, 2020 at 12:04 PM ^
I don’t understand why the NFL just doesn’t do a Summer League with B-squad rosters...like an extended preseason/spring training.
No other league/brand is ever going to be able to compete.
Can we please get cheerleaders from outside of Ann Arbor?
March 13th, 2020 at 11:37 AM ^
I really liked this idea (genuinely) until I asked myself, "Double up the now-annual ass beatings by OSU?"
Hard pass.