Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, August 14, 1995 TAG: 9508150015
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JACK BOGACZYK
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
It is 22 spectators on the ``visitors'' side of Victory Stadium, but more than 4,000 curious customers behind the home bench.
It is an assistant coach asking - 68 minutes before kickoff - ``Has anyone seen a football here?''
It is coaches and players holding pregame and halftime meetings under shade trees because it's 115 degrees in the locker room.
It is $8 tickets, $10 T-shirts and $15 caps.
It is the promise - repeated several times on a public-address system from the Eisenhower administration - that ``former Heisman Trophy candidate'' Major Harris will quarterback the West Virginia Lightning in the shadow of Roanoke Memorial Hospital on Sept.9.
The birth of the Roanoke Rush has been attended by even more than the club expected. On each of the past two Saturday nights, more than 4,000 spectators have checked out the newest game in town.
The names of most of the players and coaches are familiar. The game, as all sorts of polls say, has become America's most popular spectator sport. It's just a different niche. It's never going to be the bright lights, particularly when the venue is Victory Stadium.
Ten minutes before the Rush's season-opening kickoff Saturday, more than 30 customers were in line to enter the stadium - and the club has yet to start aggressively marketing its product.
The football is decent, if inconsistent, which isn't surprising for a new team with many players who practice - or don't - in Washington Park and play around full-time jobs.
There's a dance team and a mascot, too, although the ``Brady Bunch'' theme song on the PA didn't exactly bring fans out of their seats.
But will it work?
Team owner Nick Rush said he was ``pleasantly surprised'' by the 4,200 that attended the club's exhibition game Aug.5. The 4,000 - a legitimate estimate - who watched Saturday night's opening 14-12 loss to the Central Pennsylvania Piranha wanted more offense, however.
Whether the Rush has staying power won't be determined for a few more weeks. The club doesn't play another home game until that Major appearance Sept.9. The club has managed to schedule home dates when Virginia Tech isn't at Lane Stadium.
However, once high school football begins, and some of the same prospective Roanoke rooters watch college games elsewhere or on the tube Saturday and partake of an an NFL feast on Sunday, will they be so willing to rush to Victory Stadium among all those other kickoffs?
And just how organized is the NMLF? There are rumors the league, based in Charlotte, N.C., has a chance at brewery and athletic-apparel money starting in 1996, that perhaps the 29 teams might be pared to the 14 or 16 best-organized and best-supported clubs and act as a feeder for the NFL, Canadian League and World League.
The Rush's pluses are on the field. The game management, other than security, is a skeleton operation, however. The Rush hasn't provided the opposing team's roster to fans or media for either game, and numerous Roanoke players have changed jersey numbers.
Statistics aren't accurate. Some numbers aren't even kept. Minutes before Saturday's game, one stats crew member was told only to keep the Rush's numbers and not to worry about the visitors.
The legitimacy of a new organization is based on its organization, or lack of it. The Rush's owner said his club built a team first - concerning itself with players and a solid coaching staff. Now, it's time to finish the construction job.
Victory Stadium, although still a gray elephant, looks as good as it has in a decade, thanks to the expenditure of tens of thousands of dollars by the city.
Locker rooms - with real lockers, finally - and bathrooms have been painted and scrubbed for the first time in years. There was a broom lying on the press box floor Saturday night, indicating someone might have been thinking about sweeping.
As for the stadium lighting, it's brighter in my kitchen. Maybe the Rush could run a promotion where any fan attending with a flashlight gets $2 off the ticket price.
The Roanoke Valley's comparison sports shoppers also say the $8 admission is a bit high, especially when compared with the seats for hockey's Express and baseball's Avalanche, established operations with nicer facilities in the same market.
However, it seems the two August dates show the fan base is there. Rush said his team must average 2,500 paying spectators to break even. He believes the franchise can double that figure. The club has four more home games to get there.
No players are being paid until the club is profitable. If the Rush keeps drawing 4,000 per game when the curiosity factor wears off, that might not be too far in the future.
The Rush doesn't have difficulty attracting players who refuse to give up on a game they love. It's what happens off the field that will determine whether this team has a brighter future.
by CNB