10/08/2024
The last time I dealt with the UFL was during it's previous incarnation when Bill Hambrecht was at the helm.
I was a young freshly-minted sports agent with a client roster made up of 2010 undrafted free agents. It was a time defined by hustling hard and banging that phone to get my players workouts with as many teams as possible. Some I got to CFL workouts, others to NFL workouts, and those that got cut right out of mini-camp I thankfully got them into UFL workouts.
Despite the fact that staff at UFL franchises were much leaner than at the NFL, it was strangely difficult to get through to those offices!
Here in Orlando, though, I lucked out. The owner of the team was Joe Theismann and the general manager and head coach was none other than Jay Gruden. As luck would have it, I had played NFL flag football on the same team with Coach Gruden a few short years earlier. So you can imagine my moxie when I strolled into the Florida Tuskers's offices at the Citrus Bowl fully intending on getting my client a workout.
I'm sure the fact that I had previously played ball on the same team as Jay Gruden had no major effect on the outcome of that conversation - in fact, the most he remembered from our time on the field together was how I snapped my left ACL on the field during a play. But I do believe that the connection did indirectly influence things because we had a good laugh about the world being small and 15 minutes later, my guy had a workout scheduled by the end of the week.
Though really, it was the moxie. Hustling hard, banging that phone, staying humble, and keeping my eye on the prize always gave me the gumption to knock on doors and walk into offices to make dreams come true.
Those were fun times.
Here's wishing the UFL's resurrection the best of luck in establishing a spring league for fans to fill that off season football void and for really good competitive football talent to have another league here at home through which they can develop and broaden their horizons.
I can't wait to smell what the Rock is cooking!!
https://www.facebook.com/share/v/kFfyqeMKMn5gXvRo/
