By Matt Manetti and Alisa Perocevic
The Chicago Rush is back and bringing its exciting brand of football to the Chicagoland area after sitting out last season due to the Arena Football League bankruptcy.
“It’s great to be back,” Rush coach Bob McMillen said. “I love the game of Arena Football. I believe the Arena Football League is the top indoor league around. For arena football fans, this is exciting. This is exactly the way it should be.”
However, a new season means new changes. Chicago Rush legend Bob McMillen, named one of the top 10 arena football players of all time, takes over as head coach for Mike Hohensee, who left the Rush to take the same position with the Philadelphia Soul.
What some people fail to realize is there is another side of sports, a side not too many people know about. The business side of sports can be a somewhat messy side, a side most fans try to ignore, but it can sometimes show its ugly head.
Exhibit A: The current NFL lockout. Currently, the sides are stuck in litigation and awaiting for an appellate court to overturn Judge Susan B. Nelson’s decision to lift the lockout. We could see another example of sport greed if the NBA decides to go into a lockout this summer.
Still, Rush officials admit that attendance has been down since the team returned to the field this season. The Rush hasn’t gotten the same type of media attention they are accustomed to, as seen by the numerous empty seats in press row during their game against the New Orleans Voodoo, a game in which the team retired McMillen’s iconic No. 44.
During his post-game press conference, McMillen recalled how they would pack 14 reporters into the tiny room used for press conferences at the All-State Arena. Upon arriving to the press conference Quartez Vickerson said he felt like Eli Manning when Manning showed up to the post-game press conference and no one was present.
Two years ago, before the AFL went into bankruptcy, the Rush was averaging about 14,000 fans. One executive estimated there were maybe 8,000 fans in attendance against the Voodoo.
The team understands it is a second-tier sport and they may never be able to attract the type of attention and media hype as a team such as the Bears draws on a week-by-week basis. Still, the team remains dedicated to winning and bringing another championship to Chicago.
The Rush prides themselves on being a fan friendly environment and a place where fans can go to enjoy a great game at an affordable price. Seats to a Rush game start at just $10, making it more affordable for a family.
“This is exactly the way it should be,” McMillen added. “Come to a game, buy four tickets, park, eat a couple hotdogs, and for what, 80 bucks. [One fan can’t go to an NBA or NFL game for that.”
McMillen and Co. also know that there are very few leagues that allow these players to play. Besides the NFL, there is the United Football League and Canadian Football League. That’s it, so the Rush staff recognizes how special this league is.
“Arena Football is fun, it’s exciting, it’s affordable,” and blue-collar priced, McMillen said.
Despite the lower attendance and the reduce media coverage contrasted to prior seasons, the Rush continue on, hoping they can once again get the exposure they had in 2008, when they were crowned Arena Bowl Champions.
It won’t be an easy hill to climb, but the team remains confident that if it takes care of business on the field, everything else will work itself out.