Gene Therapy: USFL, Adapt or Die!
by Gene Clemons
The USFL is weeks into their return to action after 37 years of inactivity. Through the first few weeks the USFL has shown video technology and camera angles not seen on an NFL broadcast. That innovation is nice but it's adding questionable tech to a product that everybody else already enjoys. The real innovations that could separate them from the established game have not really been taken advantage of so far in the young season. Only one three-point conversion has been made this season. Nobody has tried the new onside kick and there are other little gameplay innovations that we have not seen used.
Outside of the players there are so many people who want the USFL to succeed. They know that there is room for football that is not the NFL that football fans will consume. But there is a quote from the movie Moneyball that applies perfectly to the USFL, the XFL and every other league that decides it wants to dip its toe in the water. Billy Beane is talking to his scouting department as they try to put a game plan in place to replace their three most influential players and he knows they can't keep doing things the way they have always done it. He announces their new direction, and all of the scouts think he's crazy. After dropping an expletive in response to Grady Fuson's answer, he bangs his fist on the table and says:
"If we try to play like the Yankees in here, we will lose to the Yankees out there."
If these leagues try to do what the NFL does or even try to garner affiliation with the NFL, their product will without a doubt flounder and fail. In other words, "lose" to the NFL. So the innovation can't simply be in the first down technology, these leagues can't be afraid to embrace playing offense and defense differently. The rules can't be afraid to go completely away from formatting that we have become accustomed to with the NFL and college football. One of the reasons Canadian football has been able to survive is that the game is played differently than the American game. 12 men, forward motion, three downs, and many other smaller modifications allows them to create a lane all their own. So much that success in the NFL does not automatically mean success in Canada.
In the first week of the USFL season, kickers blamed the new ball that was being used for all the missed kicks. The real question was why were there so many kicks attempted? Why were the offenses so conservative? Yes there is a new three-point conversion but why not promote scoring by making field goals more difficult? Reduce the field goal width to the size of an arena league field goal. That may make teams think three times about playing for a field goal. Back up the extra point to 35 yards so that teams understand the added value of the two and three-point conversions. Nobody comes to a football game to watch the four or five field goal performances seen regularly in the NFL. They want to see scoring or they want to see teams die trying.
The offensive end is where it is easiest to put in stipulations that reward aggressive offenses. Possibly changing the hash marks or even widening the field could encourage more offensive innovation. You can give an offense an extra 10 yards if they get a first down on a first down play. This would encourage offenses to abandon conservative play calling on third down. If the offense decides to punt beyond the 50 yard line or kick a field goal, the team should be penalized 10 yards. This would also encourage more people to go for it on fourth down once they get beyond midfield. Penalizing the conservative forces these coaches to innovate and adapt to a modernized game.
Another innovation that the USFL needs to make is to speed the game up. Traditional play clocks allow for slower play from teams which in turn bores fans who have the attention span of a garden fly. If the play clock was set at 20 seconds, it would force all teams into up-tempo play which means that teams have a better chance of making mistakes that lead to more scoring. A faster game also keeps the fan engaged because things are moving quickly. Football is a game of mistakes and the team who makes the least mistakes usually wins the game. Force the teams into a situation where mistakes are critical. Don’t pause the game to allow defenses to substitute when offenses substitute. The pace of the game would ultimately result in the clock running consistently and a faster overall game time.
Fans love scoring! The Arena League was one of the most popular professional football entities because they were a fast-paced league built on scoring. The USFL would be wise to bottle some of that excitement as they transition from Birmingham where all of the teams are currently playing, to their actual cities in year two of the league. That is when they can really make the league more personal like the AFL was able to do for years. The USFL has been consistently pulling ratings that rival or beat other professional leagues and with that it has proven it is a viable business. To grow in the right direction it will take foresight. The Arena League was able to tap into the community by offering an affordable experience for the family to come and attend. Many minor league baseball teams use similar models to draw in fans. The fan experience needs to be personal, much more personal than they get from the NFL and even big time college football.
The ability to innovate is there for the USFL, not just in technology used to broadcast the game, but on social media, in their game play and in their fan interaction. They need to adapt, to be open to constantly evolving as they explore various avenues. That willingness makes them unique and can make this league unique if they really want to be around forever.
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Gene Clemons is a Sports Analyst and Contributor to CWN Sports. His weekly column and podcast - Gene Therapy focuses on Sports, Politics and Social/Urban issues.
