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General Forums => The O' Club => Topic started by: Eagler on February 02, 2001, 03:40:00 PM

Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: Eagler on February 02, 2001, 03:40:00 PM
Are you going to tune in? Not a WWF fan here (wrestled 4 years in HS, without a script (http://bbs.hitechcreations.com/smf/Smileys/default/smile.gif)) I'm sure I'll flip through it, if nothing more than to check out the cheerleaders, err play quality and show format.

Eagler
Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: Fatty on February 02, 2001, 04:03:00 PM
Same.  I'm no fan of WWF, but I'm going to watch at least the first few weeks.  Depending on how much football there actually is, we'll see from there.
Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: LJK Raubvogel on February 02, 2001, 04:07:00 PM
I'll watch it just out of curiousity the first few weeks. I've heard that instead of a gatorade jug on the coach they use a metal folding chair.
Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: Yeager on February 02, 2001, 04:11:00 PM
Is it going to be a scripted performance?

I have never found any use for scripted sports........

Yeager
Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: Fatty on February 02, 2001, 04:17:00 PM
Vegas is taking bets on them Yeager, which tends to lend credibility to its integrity.

On the other hand, from what I understand betting limits are severely limited while they watch the league and see how things go.

I tend to believe it is legit, but no matter how legit it is if I'm stuck waiting for moments of football through large blocks of WWF-style soap opera (cheerleaders and players, etc) I'll be turning it off fairly quickly.
Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: J_A_B on February 02, 2001, 04:29:00 PM
I'll watch it for a coupel weeks at least

If nothing else, it should prove amusing watching the poor slob trying to return a punt get absolutely plastered. (no fair catch)

J_A_B
Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: Fury on February 03, 2001, 07:38:00 AM
I may watch a few weeks to see what it's like, but I'm really waiting for Rollerball.

Fury
Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: JimBear on February 03, 2001, 01:29:00 PM
ROFL Fury     Where James Caan when you need him ;-)
Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: Mk10 225th on February 03, 2001, 01:32:00 PM
Ah, Rollerball!  Woo-hoo!  JON-A-THUN!  JON-A-THON!

Seems like it will be hard for me not to watch the first game.

Kind of like turning to look at an accident on the highway, or watching a train wreck on TV.

Jesse Ventura as broadcaster.  Could pull it off, or look like a complete dork.

Primetime, NBC.  Wow.

No fair catches, punts over 25yds. are live balls, no "in-the-grasp", celebrations encouraged, no PAT's, only 1 pt. plays that have to go into the end zone like a 2 pt. conversion.

If they try and keep it as a light entertainment alternative, and stick to the short, 10-game schedule it might work.

The players are paid 35k a year for kickers, 50k for QB's, and 45k for anyone else, with a $2500 bonus per player if you win.

This alone will be interesting to watch, i.e. how people who feel about athletes being overpaid react to folks getting management corporate pay, for hanging it all out on the line.

Anyway, with the microphones and helmet cams everywhere, and the general feel of the whole deal, it should be better than all the other poopy shows like "Survivor" and "Screw-Around Island."

But mainly, like I said, it will be interesting to watch and see what happens...whether they can pull it off, or the whole thing fails miserably.

Also read something where they said that the NFL isn't all that upset about it, because they'll be able to watch, and then implement things if they are succesfull in the XFL, without having to pay for the experiment.

Interesting...

Mk
Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: LJK Raubvogel on February 04, 2001, 04:01:00 PM
The first play I saw, a defensive tackle jumped offsides and clotheslined the QB. I thought, "oh no, here we go." Then I notice that a player is wearing a jersey that says "He Hate Me" on the back. I think "what an odd name, must be swahili or something." The steady cam shots were annoying, the microphones everywhere were annoying, and the fact that the QB's snap count was broadcast over the stadium PA was annoying. I give it 2 seasons.

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LJK_Raubvogel
LuftJägerKorps (http://www.luftjagerkorps.com)

 (http://raubvogel.tripod.com/signew.gif)

[This message has been edited by LJK Raubvogel (edited 02-04-2001).]
Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: hblair on February 04, 2001, 07:11:00 PM
Same here raub. Too much dorky BS, from the announcer sounding like a WWF announcer, to the slut *cheerleaders* doing lapdances, while the female fans all around were obviously annoyed. In the saturday night game between NY and LV, the on-field guy was especially a dipwad. You could tell some of the players were embarassed. So much in-yer-face that it makes you wanna puke.

Thats my opinion for now anyway.
Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: Ripsnort on February 05, 2001, 07:41:00 AM
Didn't watch it, but apparently it got higher ratings than any other sports event for Saturday evening except the Olympics.

 
Quote
And that formula, devised by the fledgling league's
               owners NBC-TV and the World Wrestling Federation,
               could be precisely why the show drew impressive
               preliminary ratings Saturday night for the Las Vegas
               Outlaws against the New York/New Jersey Hitmen.

               An average of 10.3 percent of television households
               tuned in at any given moment, giving NBC a prime-time
               victory over the other networks. That rating – based on
               the country's 49 biggest markets, each preliminary point
               represents roughly 675,000 TV homes – is more than
               double what advertisers were told to expect.

               It's also about 25 percent higher than NBC's broadcast
               of Game 4 of the American League championship series
               between the Yankees and Mariners drew on a Saturday
               night in October.

[This message has been edited by Ripsnort (edited 02-05-2001).]
Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: Eagler on February 05, 2001, 08:19:00 AM
Saw 1st half. They need to keep the microphones out of the players faces. They aren't there for their gifts of gab. The in the field camera man got a heck of a work out running on and off the field each play. They need to get rid of that bouncy point of view too. If they turn it slightly more towards football and away from WWF, it might fly. Otherwise the audience will be 14 to 22 year old males waiting for the next cheerleading "cheer"  (http://bbs.hitechcreations.com/smf/Smileys/default/smile.gif)

The Orlando game which was won in the last second (FG), looked like a better game. But then I only saw the last 2 minutes of it...

Eagler
Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: sling322 on February 05, 2001, 09:09:00 AM
I was laughing at the names on the jerseys...LOL.  Saw a runningback with "Chuckwagon" on his back.  WTF?!?!?
Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: AKDejaVu on February 05, 2001, 09:59:00 AM
Ah.. the media thinking they can make football better.

I'm sure much of America watched it for 5 minutes.  I doubt much of America watched it much longer.

AKDejaVu
Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: NATEDOG on February 05, 2001, 10:38:00 AM
Yea, I think if they back off a little and let them play football, it could be a good filler between NFL seasons........ but I will be paying more attention to hockey.


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Nathan "NATEDOG" Mathieu
Art Director
HiTech Creations
-=HELLFIRE SQUAD=-

".... And on the eighth day, God created beer. "
Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: Mk10 225th on February 05, 2001, 10:51:00 AM
I thought it was pretty interesting, on a lot of sociological levels.

They didn't blow it as bad as they could have, that's for sure.

I'm sure Paul Tagliabue is mentally thanking Vince for experimenting with a bunch of different things that he won't have to pay for, or implement without seeing how they work on the field first.

And I don't know what the big deal about the cheerleaders is.  Hell, NFL cheerleaders have been looking like strippers for years.  If their shorts get any smaller ot tighter, they're just going to have to stand still.  

The main problem right now on keeping people tuned in is not to have an offsides penalty every other play.  That gets kind of boring fast.

The one thing that could make it work, on a somewhat limited scale, is if people start identifying with the players, i.e. instead of unconsciously (or consciously) despising the players for being immature little millionaires, they start thinking, "Hey, he's just like me!" about the XFL players.

After all, I don't think I'd get onto a field of battle for $45,000 for a whole 10-game season including training camp.  And $2500 a game bonus ain't jack when you could lose your knee.

"Hey, I may walk with a limp the rest of my life, but I paid off the car!"  Whoopee.

Also important would be to keep it short and sweet with the 10-game season, kind of a lark leading up to baseball season, and not to try and go head-to-head with the large market sports.

The players aren't there obviously to make a career in the XFL.  They may have taken a few more knocks than most of us, but they're not that stupid.

They're there to be seen.  If they can play at a decent level, it might be mildly entertaining.  

The announcers definitely need some work.  I saw about 10 minutes of the game yesterday with Brian Bosworth.  There's a reason he didn't do too well in films, and boy, does it show.

I did like the goal-post view.  Wobbly, agreed, but with a little refinement, I think it shows nicely how the two teams are lining up against each other.  The standard NFL shot doesn't really show you how far apart the guys are.  You can really see a hole develope fast.

On a side note, I was driving around yesterday listening to ESPN radio, and one guy made a comment that with the two levels of arena football, and now the XFL, if the NFL went on strike, it'd be pretty hard to find replacement players, because a lot of the arena and XFL players are on contracts for a year or two that would prohibit them from jumping to an NFL replacement team if they ever went on strike again.

Of course I don't think there are many players who would be excited about signing multi-year low-dollar contracts with either the XFL or arena leagues.

It will be interesting to see what they do with it.  I think if they tighten it up, and not try to beat the big boys, and keep the short'n sweet season instead of competing directly with baseball and such, they might stay in business for a bit.

Oh, and find someone half-assed decent to do the commentary.  I wonder if Bill Murray would do a guest color-man shot for the Chicago Enforcers?

Mk
Title: XFL .. Yea or Nay
Post by: Frosty1 on February 06, 2001, 10:26:00 AM
Well..out of yea or nay...I pick gay. XFL sucks.  (http://bbs.hitechcreations.com/smf/Smileys/default/smile.gif)

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===>Frosty
====>Exposure2k.com
=====>Frosty@exposure2k.com