THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, October 29, 1995 TAG: 9510290171
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C13 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY HARRY MINIUM, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 90 lines
Lonie Glieberman acknowledges he has made his share of mistakes in his four-plus years as a youthful president of two Canadian Football League franchises.
But none, he says, was worse than a decision in 1993 in which he briefly considered moving an expansion franchise to Norfolk but chose Shreveport, La., instead.
``I read that the population of Norfolk was about 300,000,'' said Glieberman, who at the time was in the process of selling the Ottawa Rough Riders. ``I thought that meant the area, not just the city. I didn't know that Hampton Roads had 1.5 million people.
``If I'd known, I'd have come here then. I admit my mistakes, and that was a big one.''
Shreveport, a community of almost 300,000 people, looked good on paper, but its romance with Glieberman was shortlived.
``Everything was in a crisis mode from day one,'' Shreveport City Councilman Cedric Glover said. ``It started at a cardiac pace, with a ticket sale in February. We never got out of a crisis mode.''
Among the problems in Shreveport:
Their first year, the Pirates received commitments for more than 10,000 season tickets in 17 days, but many of those fans did not follow through with purchases.
John Huard was hired away from Division III Maine Maritime to be the first-year head coach. Players nearly called a strike early in training camp when Huard housed them in a barn-like building with 16 players to a room and ran them unmercifully in 104-degree heat. When Glieberman discovered there was no depth chart, that the team was hopelessly disorganized and that the health department was ready to close down training camp because rooms were not being cleaned, he fired Huard and hired NFL Hall of Famer Forrest Gregg.
Football director of operations J.I. Albrecht was fired along with Huard after it was learned he was signing players reportedly represented by his son, Dean, a player agent. ``J.I., in hindsight, was a big part of the problem,'' Glover said. Both Albrecht and Huard are suing Glieberman for wrongful dismissal.
The Pirates drew well that first season, despite a 3-15 record. But just weeks after the season, Glieberman asked Shreveport to guarantee the team $1 million if the team lost $2 million. He also indicated that the team's financial condition had to improve if the team was to stay in Shreveport. The team got its money, ``but it may have cost them $2 million in revenue,'' Shreveport attorney Dale Sibley said. ``People here were excited. . . . Lonie's statements at that time just turned them off.''
When asked at midseason this year whether the Pirates were thinking of moving elsewhere, Glieberman acknowledged they were. Attendance plummeted.
Some creditors in Shreveport still are owed money. Glieberman says all debts will be paid by Jan. 1: ``We sometimes pay slow, but we always pay our debts.''
Ottawa, the first town Glieberman tried, has been a graveyard for owners. The ownership group that purchased the team from the Gliebermans declared bankruptcy, as had the owners before them.
And, as in his first year in Shreveport, Glieberman was heavy-handed in dealings with his front office. He brought in Dexter Manley, the former Washington Redskins star who failed numerous NFL drug tests, and insisted he be given a chance.
Coaches delayed until Glieberman insisted. Manley, they said, was out of shape and disruptive. When Glieberman forced them to play Manley, two coaches quit.
``We were 2-9,'' Glieberman said. ``My position was, what did we have to lose?
``A lot of the players were jealous of Dexter. They were unfair to him. Dexter was clean while he was with us. I would say it was a good gamble that didn't work out.''
In two years in Ottawa, Glieberman fired one general manager - the night before training camp started - and one coach.
``There's no doubt that they cared what was going on with the football team - perhaps too much,'' said Don Brennan, who covers the Rough Riders for the Ottawa Sun. ``Instead of standing back and letting others run the team, they played a big role.''
The Gliebermans' brief stand in Ottawa led to a court case now two years old. The city is suing them for $365,000. The Gliebermans have countersued, saying they're owed about the same amount by Ottawa.
At issue is a complicated lease agreement that calls for the city and Rough Riders to exchange revenues. CFL chairman John Tory says the league has placed $158,000 of the Gliebermans' revenue in an escrow account, but said: ``I'm not sure that Ottawa doesn't owe them money.''
Ottawa's mayor, Jacquelin Holzman, doesn't agree. When asked about the Glieberman ownership group, she said, laughing: ``I'm sure by now the Gliebermans have learned a lot about football, but I'm not sure they're expert enough to be hands-on managers.'' by CNB