Luck — Oliver Luck, actually — is on Vince McMahon’s side and it gives hope to the second incarnation of the XFL.
Rather than partner with an Ebersol, again, the WWE impressario hired Luck as his commissioner for this go-round at a spring league. In his first run he teamed with Dick Ebersol and NBC, which led to grandiose ratings on opening night and an 100-yard circus following it, which resulted in the end of the league after one season.
McMahon watched Ebersol’s son, Charlie, launch the AAF in 2019 and saw it sink faster than the 2001 version of the XFL. Meanwhile, this verison of the XFL took its time in reaching kickoff and the results have been good football, enthusiastic fans and reasonable results.
The kickoff
Start with the kickoff. A completely unique look that could give the NFL something to think about. Talk about a 100 percent turnaround from the first go-round when the coin toss turned into a demolition derby.
Then
Now
The gambling gambit
ESPN took full advantage of incorporating the betting lines into the game. The over/under and spread were a constant on the game graphic at the bottom of the screen. It was unobtrusive and led to some great television with Steve Levy and Greg McElroy. When Jim Zorn took a field goal off the scoreboard due to a running into the kicker penalty that gave Seattle a first down, the announcers were quick to realize it took the game from “over” back to “under.” It also sent Seattle from covering to having Washington cover the 9.5-point spread as the score went from 31-19 to 31-22 back to 31-19. The over/under was 51.5. Levy and McElroy had fun — but not too much — as the game finished at 50, sinking the Dragon supporters. FOX took a “slightly pregnant” attitude toward lines, which did not work as well. The network popped the lines in on occasion, which only served to make you wonder what it was when it wasn’t part of the graphic. Would love to have either network address with Vegas insiders/experts how they came up with the lines on these games and how much action was actually bet in their properties.
The broadcasters
ESPN’s team of Levy and McElroy brought a great tone to the game. They called the game nicely and made it entertaining. There were the obligatory “first” lines since it was the inaugural games, but they were not over the top. The duo kept the game moving smoothly and delivered a strong mix of facts and fun. Levy would be a fine choice to be the play-by-play guy for “Monday Night Football.” Curt Menefee did a strong and solid job on PBP for FOX. He was calm and straightforward, showing he is far more than just a studio host. This was no more evident when he read a promo saying Sunday’s game was on FS1 when it was on FOX. Menefee smoothly corrected himself and continued without missing a beat. Joel Klatt brought his credible college game to pro football, which was not successful. He turned the XFL booth into a lovefest, which was particularly curious. This was the first game of a new league. Everything can’t be lovey-dovey, yet Klatt took that tact throughout. Makes one wonder if he believes the league has an “unprecedented level of talent” as he pitched in a FOX promo commercial. Also, wonder if Klatt would have appreciated opponents having a chance for nine-point scores when he was playing football. The FOX broadcast Saturday was far drier than ESPN’s, which was surprising given how entertaining the network’s productions usually are. FOX’s Sunday team of Kevin Burkhardt. NFL TE Greg Olsen and Jenny Taft was far more entertaining. While Olsen sometimes repeated the same phrases, it is easy to see why networks view him as a top priority once his football career ends. Taft did exceptional sidelines work, although she did almost get in the way of Jamar Summers returning to play after he scored a TD on a fumble recovery.
Sideline interviews
ESPN had a pair of sideline reporters Saturday. Tom Luginbill was excellent. He knew where to go, what to ask and how to get out quickly. Dianna Russini was nowhere near as successful. She was overmatched. It was not her fault Seattle’s Dillon Day decided to curse when asked about being called for a personal foul. The attempt to interview players in the end zone was fruitless and useless. She would do well to study Pat McAfee and Luginbill’s work as well as that of Brock Huard for FOX. Huard was strong on the sidelines. Good questions, was in the right place. Could have done without him patting a Wildcat on the backside after an interview heading into halftime and Sammie Coates on the back after speaking to the wideout before the third quarter. The interview from the FOX booth with June Jones didn’t work well. It felt awkward with the coach trying to do his job while speaking to people in the abyss. This works well with NASCAR because drivers know the people on the other end of the conversation. Jones did drop the gem of gems in the interview, saying he recalled PJ Walker from a game in 2015 when the quarterback lit up his SMU team for Temple. Would have been wonderful to have known this beforehand to have been able to drop in video from the game. As mentioned above, FOX’s Jenny Taft did a superb job with the Vipers-Guardians game.
The production
FOX was crisp with lots of great replays and angles. Loved that they took us inside the replay room for extended periods, allowing viewers to see the process how decisions are made. It is something the NFL has to be tempted to consider. Having Dean Blandino as the XFL officiating guru puts FOX in a great position. ESPN’s broadcasts were not as sharp as FOX. FOX having Taft interview the quarterbacks at midfield with both teams lined up for the opening kickoff didn’t quite seem like wisdom.
Charles Kanoff and knowing the rules
When Winston Moss wanted to punt from the 36, Charles Kanoff, a Princeton man, came out strong against the decision. The Ivy Leaguer knew what he was talking about and was able to convince the Los Angeles Wildcats’ coach to go for it on fourth down. FOX was quick to inform that touchbacks come out to the 35 so if the punt went into the end zone it would have been a one-yard net. Loved hearing Kanoff saying he was acting like a lawyer to make his case. Kanoff being mic’d up was great throughout, hearing him battling through injury and addressing his pain.
No WWE presence
Luck has to be one of the strongest forces in sports. The fact the XFL launched without any serious WWE mentions, talent or theatrics made the debut a success. Luck had to make a strong and convincing case to Vince McMahon about the importance of keeping this league a total, separate entity from his sports-entertainment empire. Had the league been full of WWE hype and mentions it would have only conjured memories of the 2001 nightmare. Great call by Luck and his management team.
Scheduling
Having the games on Saturday and Sunday afternoons work. It is asking a lot, though, to think people can watch 12 hours of XFL action on weekends. There will be a couple Thursday night games later in the season. The league is in a bit of a box, though, as it won’t play on Friday or Monday nights since there is no way WWE would want the XFL to compete head-to-head with its flagship programs. Given the success of MNF, that could be a lost opportunity for this league. There have to be reasonable expectations for viewership.
Attendance
DC drew 17,163 fans to Audi Field and Houston drew an announced crowd of 17,815 to TDECU Stadium. The Guardians drew 17,634. Dallas, which played in Globe Life Park, drew 17,206.
The balls
Each team has its own ball with an individual design. One of the cooler video aspects of watching the games was tracking the markings on the end of each ball as they headed to the receiver. It was a cool look to follow.
Opportunities and challenges
The CFL does some great in-game sponsorships/promos that involve interactivity. The XFL would be wise to follow suit. One that works is picking a fan who entered a contest who can win a prize for a kickoff return for a touchdown and gets a huge prize if the team has a pair of kickoff return TDs in a game. That would help engage a TV audience. The challenge, of course, is to get FOX and ESPN on board. … Any sort of fan engagement would be beneficial. … There needs to be better stats presence on ESPN and FOX. There was none on the opening weekend. And the stats package on XFL.com, while timely, visually looked like something out of the 1970s. XFL.com also could use a work to make it more robust. This was an exceptionally clever presence to have on the home site.
