A Look Back: #This Was The XFL /The XFL “Pop-Up Hall of Fame”

Once upon a time, WWE’s Vince McMahon and NBC Sport’s Dick Ebersol created an “extra fun league” in the spring to rival the National Football League (NFL). In 2001, this sports league-the XFL- came into the homes of the viewers for its one and only season.  It had a mix of entertainment and sportsmanship, but also some bad luck which doomed it. However fleeting, it left an impression-be it good or ill.

On January 14^th, 2017, The Cooper Union Building hosted a one-day exhibit honoring the XFL’s short legacy.  Entitled The XFL “Pop-Up Hall of Fame”, it featured some of the league’s gear and technology.  A row of XFL helmets representing their 8 teams, which included the Orlando Rage, L.A Extreme and Las Vegas Outlaws, lined the staircase as one descended to the main exhibit. The Sports Illustrated cover and promotional posters were along the walls on either side of the long corridor leading to the Hall of Fame created for the event.

As for the room of XFL memories, it was a small collection of what the football venture represented.  A table of merchandise was laid out that showed what the marketing campaign came up with for the fans. On a nearby table, there were the press kits and other promotional packets the media received announcing the XFL’s concept along with the guides sent to the video crew and league staff.  Uniforms for the cheerleaders and players were on display, including a signed “He Hate Me” Las Vegas Outlaws jersey.  In the center of the room was the XFL Million Dollar Game Trophy-engraved for the champions L.A Extreme-and an “XFL” logo helmet. Finally, the sky-cam and “Bubba-Cam”, technology that revolutionized future NFL games, were included in the exhibit.

There was also an advanced screening of the ESPN’s feature “30 for 30: This Was The XFL”. The movie was directed by Charlie Ebersol, the son of NBC Sports’ Dick Ebersol.  Charlie was on hand to introduce the film and take audience questions.  He seemed impressed by the turn-out, and promised a surprise guest or two.  One of those surprise guests was “Mr. He Hate Me himself” Rod Smart of the Las Vegas Outlaws, who arrived before the second screening of the day; the other was Orlando Rage GM “Tom V” Tom Veit.

The documentary, which aired this past Thursday on ESPN, was an interesting story that told the story about the league’s inception and its eventual demise. Along the way, there were laughter in the room as a story or an interview segment captured a moment fans did not know about.  To add perspective, players Rod Smart of the Las Vegas Outlaws and Tommy Maddox of the L.A Extreme, Orlando Rage GM Tom Viet, and others were able to give the viewer a sense of their experience in the short-lived league.

After the “30 for 30” ended, fans applauded and awaited the Q & A that would soon follow. Charlie Ebersol and Rod Smart answered questions regarding the possibility of re-releasing XFL jerseys as well as the origins of the nickname “He Hate Me”. Orlando Rage GM Tom Viet arrived during this time, and added his voice to the conversation.

Sports history will know the XFL as the experiment of Vince McMahon and Dick Ebersol.  The NFL should know it as the football league that introduced technology and the emergence of a players whose individuality only enhances a fan’s enjoyment of the game.  As for me, I remember it as an “extra fun league”.