L.T. Fan
I'm Easy If You Are
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Thanks I looked at the broadcast networks. That’s where the rest were carried.
Spring League Thread...
- Thread starter BipolarFuk
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ABC, FOX, ESPN, ESPN2, FS1 and FS2 are the channels they we will be on.
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Kakaw
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Stl was a good bet ...
jsmith6919
Honored Member - RIP
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Yall are just lucky Landry Jones was hurt
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Hmm, I'm still not sure. Maybe an XFL forum with a Renegades thread in it, with a "Random XFL Stuff" thread in it?
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He is a bum. His interview was pretty telling in terms of his character.
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LT still wants him for the Cowboys
jsmith6919
Honored Member - RIP
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Probably not too much longer
L.T. Fan
I'm Easy If You Are
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Still?? When did I ever voice such a comment?
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I watched the XFL so you don’t have to (but you should!): 12 quick takeaways
By Bill Shea Feb 9, 2020
My Saturday afternoon was spent on the couch watching six-plus hours of the XFL’s inaugural games, and here are the highlights from my notebook: A pick-six. A blocked punt for a touchdown. A live F-bomb. Big hits, devastating sacks. Some fantastic throws. Some wounded ducks. Razzle-dazzle plays. Live in-game sideline interviews immediately after good and bad plays. Live audio of coaches calling plays. A camera and audio inside the replay booth. Jim Zorn in grandpa glasses.
Oh, and perhaps most important: No maddening debate over what the hell a catch is, which the NFL cannot define despite having exactly 100 years to do so.
So, not bad, Vince McMahon. Not bad.
McMahon is the billionaire WWE owner and showman who hatched the idea of trying a spring pro football league again, nearly 20 years after he and NBC blew through $70 million on what proved to be a tacky catastrophe of sex, dumb violence, gimmicks, bluster and bad football. There have been a few other attempts at spring pro football since then, including the Alliance of American Football, which ran out of money and failed after eight of 10 games a year ago.
McMahon reportedly plans to spend up to $500 million to stage a far more professional product, and on Saturday, it showed. While there are rule differences from the NFL, namely on kickoffs and extra points, they’re interesting and not about empty theatrics. I expect the NFL to take a serious look at what McMahon’s league is doing.
Here are my dozen observations from Saturday’s inaugural games:
The quality of play: They were fun games to watch. There were big plays and good plays. The quarterbacks could throw. The offensive lines could block. Defenders laid out some spectacular hits and whiffed elsewhere. The Los Angeles Wildcats had trouble in the second half, but that largely was because they were forced to start a quarterback with just five practices under his belt, then benched him for a third-stringer who was not good at all. Houston quarterback P.J. Walker threw four touchdown passes and could become the face of the XFL. Washington quarterback Cardale Jones, who started when Ohio State won the 2014 national title, also made some fun NFL-caliber throws. Seattle wide receiver Austin Proehl, the son of longtime NFL wide receiver Ricky Proehl, scored the XFL’s first touchdown.
The officiating: I absolutely love that the TV audience can hear the officiating crew discussing penalties and that there are cameras and microphones inside the replay booth. Viewers get to see the sausage made. The NFL should adopt that immediately but will not. The penalties were not intrusive. There was no Talmudic scholarship of an inscrutable rulebook over what is or is not a catch. Officials let players play, but not to the point of dangerous hits. That’s a critical balance not easy to maintain.
The differences: The biggest is the PAT rules. There are no placekicks. Instead, teams opt to go for one point from the 2-yard line, two points from the 5 or three points from the 10. So, a nine-point swing is possible. On Saturday, teams generally went for one point. On kickoffs, the teams line up at the receiving team’s 30- and 35-yard lines. The kicker kicks off from a tee at his own 30-yard line, and no one can move until the returner fields the ball. That should cut down on injuries, and it was a refreshing change. Will it spring more long returns or mostly eliminate them? We’ll see.
The sound: I love the live audio of the coach talking to the players — the quarterback and skill players have earpieces in their helmets available during the entire play, unlike the NFL, which limits such communication to the coach and quarterback (or the coach and defensive play caller) to a few seconds and never lets fans hear it. The network broadcast teams at times explained what the terms in the play calls meant, but much of what “trey right 52 pirate” means will be lost on the audience. The coach chatter has potential. Viewers get an understanding of the incredible complexity of football terminology and what players must quickly process.
ABC’s broadcast: Play-by-play man Steve Levy and analyst Greg McElroy did a serviceable job in the booth during the game between Seattle and D.C. They hyped the product without cheerleading. Sideline reporter Dianna Russini spent three hours madly chasing players and coaches on the sidelines for in-game live interviewers, which is a fascinating concept and included at least one F-bomb that was faster than the network censor. Some of the interviews took place immediately after bad plays, such as when D.C. kicker Ty Rausa missed a 35-yard field-goal attempt. She also talked to him after he nailed a 55-yarder. My sense is that ABC/ESPN need to be more tactical with such segments. There will be more F-bombs, and eventually some player or coach may say something unfortunate in the heat of the game. It’s a razor’s edge between a great soundbite and an intrusion. ABC had live shots inside the locker room at halftime, but the sound wasn’t great and it felt claustrophobic in the tiny space.
Fox’s broadcast: I’d listen to Curt Menefee do play-by-play of anything. Even traffic. His veteran presence in the booth for the game between the Wildcats and Houston Roughnecks gave instant credibility. He was teamed with lead college football analyst Joel Klatt, and the duo was solid. Brock Huard was the sideline reporter and his live in-game interviews were fewer and not as frantic as ABC’s scrambling. Overall, a less kinetic broadcast but equally enjoyable.
What to fix: On the field, the tackling at times was suspect. As in the NFL, quarterback play will define the product, so L.A.’s situation is critical to watch. That’s the second-largest market. For the technical broadcast, the sound occasionally was iffy during the live interviews because the subject wasn’t near enough to the mic or was facing away from it.
Game length: The XFL intends for its games to be crisper and faster than NFL telecasts, and to that end, the new league has fewer commercials, a shorter halftime, a 25-second play clock (versus 40 in the NFL), one official whose job is solely to spot the ball, only two timeouts per team, booth-only challenges and a running clock for all plays outside of two minutes. The XFL wants games to be two hours and 45 minutes, yet both on Saturday ran longer than three hours, with the early game bleeding over the second. Still, the pace of play felt faster than an NFL game. Maybe it’s just me?
The audience: The XFL was the No. 1 trending topic on Twitter on Saturday afternoon, and not for bad reasons. The consensus was largely positive. The Nielsen TV numbers aren’t out yet, but my sense is the league probably got decent viewership for having games air at 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. six days after the Super Bowl and with little competition from other programming. The inaugural game was up against the men’s basketball game between Kentucky and Tennessee and the third round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. The NFL Network was airing the 2009 Super Bowl. The inevitable comparison will be last year’s Week 1 of the AAF, which drew 3.3 million viewers.
The crowds: Four of eight XFL teams will play in stadiums that are smaller than NFL home fields (and the other four will play in current or, for St. Louis, former NFL stadiums). Saturday’s game in Washington had an announced crowd of 17,163 at 20,000-seat Audi Field, built for DC United. In Texas, the attendance was 17,815 at the University of Houston’s TDECU Stadium, which seats 40,000. The upper deck was mostly closed off. For second-tier pro football, not bad. Question is, how many were paid tickets versus giveaways? Will the novelty wear off and fans drift away regardless of play quality? The D.C. Defenders’ season tickets range from $100 to $500, while single-game tickets are $24 to $120. In Houston, the ranges are $100-$450 for the season and $24-$108 individually.
Gambling: The ABC broadcast included the over-under in the score bug, and each quarter included a graphic of the Caesars Sportsbook lines of all of the weekend’s games. The Fox broadcast didn’t include the wagering data throughout the game. The league has various gambling deals in place, which is probably smart given the growing wave of legalized sports wagering. The betting element was low-key during the broadcasts, which is probably smart because most fans still don’t bet on sports. But it was enough that you want to satisfy their thirst for information, too.
My overall verdict: The first two games were fun. I’d watch it again. Will the eight-team XFL expand to other markets if it makes it through this season? Will fans and viewers in non-NFL markets, or cities with a bad NFL team, opt for the XFL as an alternative? That’s the $500 million question. I’m a Clevelander in Detroit, so there is no local XFL team for me (and not much NFL for me, either, if we’re being honest). Forced to choose — and since I love In-N-Out Burger, Venice Beach and getting into trouble at the Chateau Marmont — I’ll adopt the Los Angeles Wildcats.
And, of course, they lost on Saturday.
By Bill Shea Feb 9, 2020
My Saturday afternoon was spent on the couch watching six-plus hours of the XFL’s inaugural games, and here are the highlights from my notebook: A pick-six. A blocked punt for a touchdown. A live F-bomb. Big hits, devastating sacks. Some fantastic throws. Some wounded ducks. Razzle-dazzle plays. Live in-game sideline interviews immediately after good and bad plays. Live audio of coaches calling plays. A camera and audio inside the replay booth. Jim Zorn in grandpa glasses.
Oh, and perhaps most important: No maddening debate over what the hell a catch is, which the NFL cannot define despite having exactly 100 years to do so.
So, not bad, Vince McMahon. Not bad.
McMahon is the billionaire WWE owner and showman who hatched the idea of trying a spring pro football league again, nearly 20 years after he and NBC blew through $70 million on what proved to be a tacky catastrophe of sex, dumb violence, gimmicks, bluster and bad football. There have been a few other attempts at spring pro football since then, including the Alliance of American Football, which ran out of money and failed after eight of 10 games a year ago.
McMahon reportedly plans to spend up to $500 million to stage a far more professional product, and on Saturday, it showed. While there are rule differences from the NFL, namely on kickoffs and extra points, they’re interesting and not about empty theatrics. I expect the NFL to take a serious look at what McMahon’s league is doing.
Here are my dozen observations from Saturday’s inaugural games:
The quality of play: They were fun games to watch. There were big plays and good plays. The quarterbacks could throw. The offensive lines could block. Defenders laid out some spectacular hits and whiffed elsewhere. The Los Angeles Wildcats had trouble in the second half, but that largely was because they were forced to start a quarterback with just five practices under his belt, then benched him for a third-stringer who was not good at all. Houston quarterback P.J. Walker threw four touchdown passes and could become the face of the XFL. Washington quarterback Cardale Jones, who started when Ohio State won the 2014 national title, also made some fun NFL-caliber throws. Seattle wide receiver Austin Proehl, the son of longtime NFL wide receiver Ricky Proehl, scored the XFL’s first touchdown.
The officiating: I absolutely love that the TV audience can hear the officiating crew discussing penalties and that there are cameras and microphones inside the replay booth. Viewers get to see the sausage made. The NFL should adopt that immediately but will not. The penalties were not intrusive. There was no Talmudic scholarship of an inscrutable rulebook over what is or is not a catch. Officials let players play, but not to the point of dangerous hits. That’s a critical balance not easy to maintain.
The differences: The biggest is the PAT rules. There are no placekicks. Instead, teams opt to go for one point from the 2-yard line, two points from the 5 or three points from the 10. So, a nine-point swing is possible. On Saturday, teams generally went for one point. On kickoffs, the teams line up at the receiving team’s 30- and 35-yard lines. The kicker kicks off from a tee at his own 30-yard line, and no one can move until the returner fields the ball. That should cut down on injuries, and it was a refreshing change. Will it spring more long returns or mostly eliminate them? We’ll see.
The sound: I love the live audio of the coach talking to the players — the quarterback and skill players have earpieces in their helmets available during the entire play, unlike the NFL, which limits such communication to the coach and quarterback (or the coach and defensive play caller) to a few seconds and never lets fans hear it. The network broadcast teams at times explained what the terms in the play calls meant, but much of what “trey right 52 pirate” means will be lost on the audience. The coach chatter has potential. Viewers get an understanding of the incredible complexity of football terminology and what players must quickly process.
ABC’s broadcast: Play-by-play man Steve Levy and analyst Greg McElroy did a serviceable job in the booth during the game between Seattle and D.C. They hyped the product without cheerleading. Sideline reporter Dianna Russini spent three hours madly chasing players and coaches on the sidelines for in-game live interviewers, which is a fascinating concept and included at least one F-bomb that was faster than the network censor. Some of the interviews took place immediately after bad plays, such as when D.C. kicker Ty Rausa missed a 35-yard field-goal attempt. She also talked to him after he nailed a 55-yarder. My sense is that ABC/ESPN need to be more tactical with such segments. There will be more F-bombs, and eventually some player or coach may say something unfortunate in the heat of the game. It’s a razor’s edge between a great soundbite and an intrusion. ABC had live shots inside the locker room at halftime, but the sound wasn’t great and it felt claustrophobic in the tiny space.
Fox’s broadcast: I’d listen to Curt Menefee do play-by-play of anything. Even traffic. His veteran presence in the booth for the game between the Wildcats and Houston Roughnecks gave instant credibility. He was teamed with lead college football analyst Joel Klatt, and the duo was solid. Brock Huard was the sideline reporter and his live in-game interviews were fewer and not as frantic as ABC’s scrambling. Overall, a less kinetic broadcast but equally enjoyable.
What to fix: On the field, the tackling at times was suspect. As in the NFL, quarterback play will define the product, so L.A.’s situation is critical to watch. That’s the second-largest market. For the technical broadcast, the sound occasionally was iffy during the live interviews because the subject wasn’t near enough to the mic or was facing away from it.
Game length: The XFL intends for its games to be crisper and faster than NFL telecasts, and to that end, the new league has fewer commercials, a shorter halftime, a 25-second play clock (versus 40 in the NFL), one official whose job is solely to spot the ball, only two timeouts per team, booth-only challenges and a running clock for all plays outside of two minutes. The XFL wants games to be two hours and 45 minutes, yet both on Saturday ran longer than three hours, with the early game bleeding over the second. Still, the pace of play felt faster than an NFL game. Maybe it’s just me?
The audience: The XFL was the No. 1 trending topic on Twitter on Saturday afternoon, and not for bad reasons. The consensus was largely positive. The Nielsen TV numbers aren’t out yet, but my sense is the league probably got decent viewership for having games air at 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. six days after the Super Bowl and with little competition from other programming. The inaugural game was up against the men’s basketball game between Kentucky and Tennessee and the third round of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am. The NFL Network was airing the 2009 Super Bowl. The inevitable comparison will be last year’s Week 1 of the AAF, which drew 3.3 million viewers.
The crowds: Four of eight XFL teams will play in stadiums that are smaller than NFL home fields (and the other four will play in current or, for St. Louis, former NFL stadiums). Saturday’s game in Washington had an announced crowd of 17,163 at 20,000-seat Audi Field, built for DC United. In Texas, the attendance was 17,815 at the University of Houston’s TDECU Stadium, which seats 40,000. The upper deck was mostly closed off. For second-tier pro football, not bad. Question is, how many were paid tickets versus giveaways? Will the novelty wear off and fans drift away regardless of play quality? The D.C. Defenders’ season tickets range from $100 to $500, while single-game tickets are $24 to $120. In Houston, the ranges are $100-$450 for the season and $24-$108 individually.
Gambling: The ABC broadcast included the over-under in the score bug, and each quarter included a graphic of the Caesars Sportsbook lines of all of the weekend’s games. The Fox broadcast didn’t include the wagering data throughout the game. The league has various gambling deals in place, which is probably smart given the growing wave of legalized sports wagering. The betting element was low-key during the broadcasts, which is probably smart because most fans still don’t bet on sports. But it was enough that you want to satisfy their thirst for information, too.
My overall verdict: The first two games were fun. I’d watch it again. Will the eight-team XFL expand to other markets if it makes it through this season? Will fans and viewers in non-NFL markets, or cities with a bad NFL team, opt for the XFL as an alternative? That’s the $500 million question. I’m a Clevelander in Detroit, so there is no local XFL team for me (and not much NFL for me, either, if we’re being honest). Forced to choose — and since I love In-N-Out Burger, Venice Beach and getting into trouble at the Chateau Marmont — I’ll adopt the Los Angeles Wildcats.
And, of course, they lost on Saturday.
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‘I think this league has got a real chance’: Thoughts on Dallas Renegades’ XFL debut
By Jon Machota 1h ago
ARLINGTON, Texas — For passionate football fans looking to learn more about the game via behind-the-scenes access, the XFL delivered in its opening weekend.
The Dallas Renegades entered Sunday’s season opener at Globe Life Park, the former home of the Texas Rangers, as the favorite to win the league’s inaugural championship. But with their starting quarterback, Landry Jones, sidelined because of a knee injury, Dallas didn’t showcase much offense in a 15-9 loss to the St. Louis BattleHawks.
Despite a lack of scoring plays and some less-than-ideal wet weather, the announced crowd of 17,206 was enthusiastic throughout. The attendance numbers were similar for the three other XFL games during the first weekend. Los Angeles at Houston led the group with 17,815, followed by Tampa Bay at New York (17,634), the Renegades opener and Seattle at DC (17,163).
“It was a great football environment,” said former Dallas Cowboy and current Renegades running back Lance Dunbar. “I wasn’t surprised. This is Texas, everybody loves football here. I was expecting that. I’m from here. I’ve been around it a while.”
One of the loudest cheers of the afternoon came in the final minutes when Dallas got the ball back with a chance to win. Backup QB Philip Nelson was struggling to put together a long drive, so Renegades fans began chanting for Jones, the former Oklahoma star.
“Yeah, that was terrible,” Jones said. “I just felt bad for Phil. I don’t understand that. I couldn’t go out there and protect myself. I couldn’t run around and stuff. It would just be me being a sitting duck in the pocket.”
One of the biggest differences from NFL or college football broadcasts is that the XFL has players and coaches interviewed on the sidelines throughout the game. Whether it’s after a touchdown or a mistake on punt coverage, sideline reporters get immediate reaction. So even though Jones wasn’t playing, he provided an injury update while the game was in progress. There’s a good chance he will play next week.
“This league, we’re trying to be entertaining and give fans access, so I think it’s great,” Jones said. “Most of the time, we’re taught to avoid (reporters) like the plague. It’s definitely different.”
Will he feel differently if a reporter is asking for an interview right after he throws an interception?
“It’s part of it,” Jones said. “It’s not like other people don’t say it on Twitter anyway, so whether he’s right in your face or you get it after the game, it’s the same thing.”
The original XFL’s increased access in 2001 led to several changes that we see in the NFL’s coverage today, including more TV cameras as well as players and coaches wearing microphones. It’ll be interesting to see if the NFL adopts any of the increased in-game media access from the new XFL.
One area that instantly makes the XFL stand out — one unlikely to change in the NFL — is the live access to play-calling. Several of BattleHawks offensive coordinator Chuck Long’s calls were aired during the ESPN broadcast. For instance, Long would say “Trips left, 902 change, Y-out.” The broadcasters would then explain the three receivers to the left set and the out-route the Y receiver was about to run. The same was done on plays Renegades OC Hal Mumme was calling from Dallas’ sideline.
During replay reviews, the officials reviewing the replays in the booth were mic’d up and put on camera, giving fans the opportunity to see how the officials work to come up with the correct call and where the ball should be spotted.
At halftime, Dallas head coach Bob Stoops’ speech to the team was aired in its entirety. When the players came up to huddle at the end, that was aired as well with the swearing muted. That’s very different than what Stoops dealt with while coaching at Oklahoma from 1999 to 2016.
“There’s people everywhere, in the locker room, following you around,” Stoops said. “I get it. I enjoyed watching it (Saturday), hearing the play calls and the interviews. It’s great access for people that are interested in it. I think it will just help continue it to grow.”
Stoops added: “Everything I’ve seen has been really positive. The games have been competitive and good. There’s good football players, exciting football players to watch across the league. … I think everybody saw how clean the play was and it’s exciting for them to watch. I thought the pace of play was positive in a great way.”
There was plenty of football star power on hand. Former Oklahoma star QB and NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Kyler Murray was in attendance on Sunday. So was former Florida, South Carolina and Washington Redskins head coach Steve Spurrier. Former OU star running back Adrian Peterson gave a pregame message of support that was played on the stadium’s big screen. Similar messages were provided by former Texas head coach Mack Brown and former Texas Tech head coach Mike Leach.
Troy Aikman was on the sidelines supporting his close friend and former Cowboys teammate Daryl “Moose” Johnston, the Renegades’ director of player personnel.
After the game, Aikman stopped for a second before entering the Renegades’ locker room. The Hall of Fame QB pulled out his phone and took a picture of the team’s logo on the locker room doors. Aikman said he needed to get a quick picture for Instagram, which he later posted on the social media site.
“It’s exciting to have football here after the NFL season,” Aikman said in an ESPN sideline interview during the game. “I think there are some things within this game, I think the kickoff is interesting. A lot of things the NFL is hoping to adopt. I think it’s a chance to see how it’s executed at this level. And I think we might see some of it.
“I think this league has got a real chance.”
By Jon Machota 1h ago
ARLINGTON, Texas — For passionate football fans looking to learn more about the game via behind-the-scenes access, the XFL delivered in its opening weekend.
The Dallas Renegades entered Sunday’s season opener at Globe Life Park, the former home of the Texas Rangers, as the favorite to win the league’s inaugural championship. But with their starting quarterback, Landry Jones, sidelined because of a knee injury, Dallas didn’t showcase much offense in a 15-9 loss to the St. Louis BattleHawks.
Despite a lack of scoring plays and some less-than-ideal wet weather, the announced crowd of 17,206 was enthusiastic throughout. The attendance numbers were similar for the three other XFL games during the first weekend. Los Angeles at Houston led the group with 17,815, followed by Tampa Bay at New York (17,634), the Renegades opener and Seattle at DC (17,163).
“It was a great football environment,” said former Dallas Cowboy and current Renegades running back Lance Dunbar. “I wasn’t surprised. This is Texas, everybody loves football here. I was expecting that. I’m from here. I’ve been around it a while.”
One of the loudest cheers of the afternoon came in the final minutes when Dallas got the ball back with a chance to win. Backup QB Philip Nelson was struggling to put together a long drive, so Renegades fans began chanting for Jones, the former Oklahoma star.
“Yeah, that was terrible,” Jones said. “I just felt bad for Phil. I don’t understand that. I couldn’t go out there and protect myself. I couldn’t run around and stuff. It would just be me being a sitting duck in the pocket.”
One of the biggest differences from NFL or college football broadcasts is that the XFL has players and coaches interviewed on the sidelines throughout the game. Whether it’s after a touchdown or a mistake on punt coverage, sideline reporters get immediate reaction. So even though Jones wasn’t playing, he provided an injury update while the game was in progress. There’s a good chance he will play next week.
“This league, we’re trying to be entertaining and give fans access, so I think it’s great,” Jones said. “Most of the time, we’re taught to avoid (reporters) like the plague. It’s definitely different.”
Will he feel differently if a reporter is asking for an interview right after he throws an interception?
“It’s part of it,” Jones said. “It’s not like other people don’t say it on Twitter anyway, so whether he’s right in your face or you get it after the game, it’s the same thing.”
The original XFL’s increased access in 2001 led to several changes that we see in the NFL’s coverage today, including more TV cameras as well as players and coaches wearing microphones. It’ll be interesting to see if the NFL adopts any of the increased in-game media access from the new XFL.
One area that instantly makes the XFL stand out — one unlikely to change in the NFL — is the live access to play-calling. Several of BattleHawks offensive coordinator Chuck Long’s calls were aired during the ESPN broadcast. For instance, Long would say “Trips left, 902 change, Y-out.” The broadcasters would then explain the three receivers to the left set and the out-route the Y receiver was about to run. The same was done on plays Renegades OC Hal Mumme was calling from Dallas’ sideline.
During replay reviews, the officials reviewing the replays in the booth were mic’d up and put on camera, giving fans the opportunity to see how the officials work to come up with the correct call and where the ball should be spotted.
At halftime, Dallas head coach Bob Stoops’ speech to the team was aired in its entirety. When the players came up to huddle at the end, that was aired as well with the swearing muted. That’s very different than what Stoops dealt with while coaching at Oklahoma from 1999 to 2016.
“There’s people everywhere, in the locker room, following you around,” Stoops said. “I get it. I enjoyed watching it (Saturday), hearing the play calls and the interviews. It’s great access for people that are interested in it. I think it will just help continue it to grow.”
Stoops added: “Everything I’ve seen has been really positive. The games have been competitive and good. There’s good football players, exciting football players to watch across the league. … I think everybody saw how clean the play was and it’s exciting for them to watch. I thought the pace of play was positive in a great way.”
There was plenty of football star power on hand. Former Oklahoma star QB and NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Kyler Murray was in attendance on Sunday. So was former Florida, South Carolina and Washington Redskins head coach Steve Spurrier. Former OU star running back Adrian Peterson gave a pregame message of support that was played on the stadium’s big screen. Similar messages were provided by former Texas head coach Mack Brown and former Texas Tech head coach Mike Leach.
Troy Aikman was on the sidelines supporting his close friend and former Cowboys teammate Daryl “Moose” Johnston, the Renegades’ director of player personnel.
After the game, Aikman stopped for a second before entering the Renegades’ locker room. The Hall of Fame QB pulled out his phone and took a picture of the team’s logo on the locker room doors. Aikman said he needed to get a quick picture for Instagram, which he later posted on the social media site.
“It’s exciting to have football here after the NFL season,” Aikman said in an ESPN sideline interview during the game. “I think there are some things within this game, I think the kickoff is interesting. A lot of things the NFL is hoping to adopt. I think it’s a chance to see how it’s executed at this level. And I think we might see some of it.
“I think this league has got a real chance.”