Flipping The Switch
Written by twhigham, Saturday December 05 2009
Women's professional tackle football comes to Tampa, Florida.
Flipping the Switch
Two days before my local LFL team’s debut, the newspaper ran an article about the players and the team. Comments from readers weren’t exactly ringing endorsements. “How much are the fines for disrobing? We could take up a collection.”; “This is a complete joke. There better be some disrobing going on.”; “tramps"; and “Do these women have any self respect at all?” were just a few of the opinions expressed.
On game day, similar catcalls were made towards the players themselves as they lined up for kick-off. I know they heard them, particularly #9 Brandyce Lee, who had the unfortunate duty of being strongside cornerback playing closest to the stands. The people there were taunting her, and these were supposed to be her hometown fans.
Before I spend money, I do my research, and deciding to go to an LFL game was no different. I had seen the games on the Internet. I had read the players’ bios. Former college athletes, soldiers, grad school students. Daughters, girlfriends, wives, mothers. And now, pro football players. I knew what these women were doing and why they were doing it. They loved the sport and were willing to play in skimpy uniforms if that’s what it took to get people to watch. Coaching high school girls’ sports taught me not to underestimate what athletic women are capable of doing and I knew this would be football played in a competitive spirit, with a feminine twist. The name and the uniforms were just the marketing hooks to get people interested. It’s why the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League played in dresses in 1943. It’s why Florence Joyner painted her nails on her way to an Olympic silver medal in 1984. It’s why Serena Williams designs her own outfits and started her own fashion line. And to be honest, for the sports I play and used to coach, the participants usually wear a lot less than what is on the LFL field. So I watched the game as I would any football game; youth, high school, college and pro, I’ve seen my share. I was there to study the strategy and the players’ abilities (and mistakes). I was there to watch good sport.
The catcalls continued through each team’s first possession.
But somewhere at about the 8-minute mark, the heckling stopped. The jeers became cheers. The guys who were there for the bikini show started watching a football game, and they started to cheer when the Breeze got a first down, and jeered #16 of the Chicago Bliss when she threw a cheap-shot elbow at the end of a play on the sideline in front of the Tampa fans.
The crowd had come for a lingerie show, and a football game had broken out.
The funny thing is, nothing had changed on the field from the opening kick-off to the 8-minute mark. The girls were playing just as hard. It was the people in the stands that had changed. They had become LFL football fans. They understood. They'd flipped the switch.
At halftime, there was a contest to see if one of the men in the stands could stop #2 Mandy Magnuson from scoring a touchdown. She lined up with the ball at one end of the field, and the fan sat at the other end. It was all in good fun, and Mandy ended up getting picked up and carried the length of the field while the guy chatted on his cell phone “Hey man! I’m at a football game and I’m carrying a hot blonde all the way to the end zone!”
Tasha Pryor of the Chicago Bliss, the Earl Campbell of the LFL, got stood up in an open field tackle by Ashley Thunder (who left the game with a concussion afterwards), and then earned the enmity of Tampa fans by dominating the home town team with her strong running in the second half. Shannon Bennett of the Breeze had to be carried off the field after making a great defensive stop on the goal line.
And Brandyce Lee, who had endured the heckling early in the game, nearly got her head taken off on an end-around play that she cut back into the middle. She later scored a touchdown, made the critical tackle that prevented
And the women did it in skimpy 2-piece uniforms.
The Tampa Breeze ended up losing, but the crowd didn’t seem to mind. They were having a good time and enjoying good football. Afterwards, the players circled the field and slapped hands with the fans, the same fans that had hurled insults at them at the beginning of the game. The girls were thanking the crowd for coming out and watching, and the fans thanked the players for coming out and playing. The souvenir stands were swamped by people exiting the field as the players led the crowd in an impromptu cheer session.
It was women’s professional tackle football, with a feminine twist.
Long live sport.
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6 comments
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"Any idea about switching from watching a 'bikini show' to a 'football game' is completely false." Negative. I rather enjoyed watching the game, and I'm looking forward to seeing the next one. If I wanted a bikini show, I'd go to the Hard Rock. The WFL failed in the 70's because it was too soon. The USFL failed because it moved from the Summer to the Fall to compete against the NFL. The XFL failed because it tried to be too extreme. The AFL survived for 20+ years; not a bad track record (certainly longer than the American Football League). If the LFL fails, it will be because it didn't flip its own switch and put the pieces in place to go from a bikini show to a real sport; or at least real enough that tv networks would pick it up. In sports, tv revenue is critical. Right now, it's biggest problem is it can go from a PG event to R at any time, and the money players are still skittish after the Jackson wardrobe malfunction.
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I don't doubt the ability of any of these women to play sports, but let's be serious. The only reason people will come to these games is because the women are scantily clad. Any idea about switching from watching a 'bikini show' to a 'football game' is completely false. If the men were there for the 'football game', other leagues would not have failed. I appreciate these women and their desire to do what they love, but let's be honest and call this what it is: men coming to watch real, live mud wrestling. So what that it happens to be over a football?
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You're right about the "burn-in period" for the sport itself. I think when try-outs are held next May, there will be a lot more women trying to make the squads, and with that will come better players and better play, and that will bring in more fans (and hopefully a tv contract). The LFL is already battling one obstacle, and that's the fact that its a professional women's sport. Women's sports are always going to be playing second fiddle to the men. Some sports change the equipment - the nets are lowered or the tees are shortened - but the LFL is the first I've seen that's changed the sport completely. Compared to the Arena Football League, the changes that were made are just about perfect for the field size and the speed of the players. The players are already proud to be in the LFL, and that pride will ramp up as the sport catches on. Now they just need the respect and recognition they deserve.
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I think there will be a running in period before the bulk of fans really get what the LFL is about but its the first season and I think its been going well. Its a whole new brand of football. A network TV deal would certainly boost the profile. As for the catcalls and jeers, that is something all professional athletes have to learn to accept as part of the game and not take it personally. In big superstadiums players may not hear the abuse levelled at them but its still there. Its just more noticeable in a half full small arena.
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I was embarrassed for the girls at some of the things the guys were yelling from the stands. I could see that it affected them, particularly when Mrs. Lee turned to the stands in response to one particular catcall. They had worked hard to learn a new sport and here they were being mocked. But, the game was good and the crowd warmed to the new version of football. Everyone had a good time and I believe that there will be a lot more people in the stands for the next home game (which, unfortunately, will also be the last home game of the season if the Breeze don't make the playoffs). I definitely see this gaining in popularity, with fans and with players. Playing for an LFL will be a badge of honor. Its just a matter of educating the people so that they understand what its all about.
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Excellent piece Twigham. Good to read a report from the fans perspective. I'm already sold on the LFL and in in my opinion it is a sport that will catch on and grow. As the fans buy into it and get on board then the LFL will be taken more seriously. The players certainly arent holding back and the coaches are moulding some fine players some of whom had never even seen a football game before. My own team Dallas Desire have really impressed me. Not just with the level of fitness and overall athleticism of the players but the range of plays and level of strategy that is actually brought to the field. Whats not to like ? Long live the LFL !!