New Football Organization Helps You Stay in the Game

Summary: Maybe you started playing football when you were 8 years old and never quite lost your love of the game. Perhaps you even went on to play college ball. Whatever level you played, it's a good bet that your passion for the game didn't stop when the last whistle blew and the last play ended.

Maybe you started playing football when you were 8 years old and never quite lost your love of the game. Perhaps you even went on to play college ball. Whatever level you played, it's a good bet that your passion for the game didn't stop when the last whistle blew and the last play ended. So how would you like to rub elbows with NFL Hall of Fame inductee Sam Huff, who played for the New York Giants when they won the championship in 1956? Or, if you're drawn more to the art of coaching, how would you like to talk shop with Barry Switzer, head coach of the Dallas Cowboys when they won the Super Bowl in 1995, or Willie Wood, the first black head coach in professional football? You can be a part of it all -whether you're still in the game or watching from the sidelines -by becoming a member of American Football Alumni, an organization of current and former football players, coaches and others who actively support the sport. Its advisory board of directors includes some of football's most storied players and coaches. AFA was created as a social and networking organization to give its members the opportunity to get back in the game and recapture the energy and excitement of their playing years. While some alumni organizations currently exist, AFA's organizers say there is still a great need for an alumni community that will allow interaction among football players and coaches on both a personal and professional level. Recent surveys conducted by AFA reveal that 70 percent of former football players would be interested in joining an alumni association with high school and college players. Seventy-nine percent are interested in reunions with former teammates and 55 percent said they'd be interested in purchasing their old school football jerseys, especially if their names were included. AFA has numerous member benefits, including special pricing for Football Fest 2006 and other AFA conferences and conventions, discounts on AFA merchandise and voting in local and national alumni polls. The group plans on sponsoring annual conventions beginning in Las Vegas in 2006.