Interview With Susan Harris, Horsemen Football Director of Public Relations

The Horsemen are in the hunt for the playoffs and every win counts for a lot. I was able to sit down with their Director of Public Relations, Susan Harris, and ask her some questions about the Horsemen as well as just arena football in general. Be sure to check it out below. If you have never been to a game and have always wanted to know more about the differences then her responses should help answer many of your questions. The Horsemen have only two games left in the season, both of which are very important.

Rupp Arena Blog: There are a lot of people who are interested in coming to a game but have never had a chance to. What would you tell those people about the team and league?

Susan Harris: One of the issues is that there is no defined market. While we may focus on targeting a certain group each year (i.e. single mothers or middle-aged men), our demographic is really anybody. The most exciting aspect is that there is a lot of fan interaction during the game. The games are high scoring and intense. Taking a game that is usually played on a 100 yard field and playing it in a much smaller area means that there is always somebody threatening to score. There is always something going on.

Although we are an expansion team (all except two of our players are rookies), we are still in the run for the playoffs. Lexington franchises have always been winning teams, going to playoffs and winning divisions. Moving up to this division has made a big difference.

Rupp Arena Blog: What are some of the unique experiences people will find at an arena football game that aren’t in NFL and college football games?

Susan Harris: With arena football, when you hit the wall, it doesn’t necessarily mean you are out of bounds. A defender has to push you into the wall, but if no one contacts you then the walls are live. Another thing is that the nets that are attached to the side of the goal posts are considered live nets. So if our kicker (Doug Daniel) kicks a field goal and misses it and it goes into the net, it is a live ball. Same thing applies if a quarterback overthrows the ball and it goes into the net, the ball is still live. With arena football it seems like games last forever. Each second is critical and many outcomes are decided in the last minute of the game.

Rupp Arena Blog: What sort of impact has the switch to the AF2 league had on the Horsemen?

Susan Harris: The biggest difference is for us to be in a league that has national recognition. With indoor football, there are so many leagues that being a national champion just means you are the champion of that league. With AF2, since it is arena football, when you are declared a national champion, it means you are the champion of all arena football. It also gives our players a greater opportunity to move up. AFL, which are our brothers, which you see on ESPN and ESPN2, are owned by a lot of NFL owners and NFL players so we have a close association with the NFL and the AFL is run a lot like the NFL.

Rupp Arena Blog: What do you think is the toughest loss the Horsemen have had?

Susan Harris: Every loss feels like a tough loss. It has been hard for us to go to the UIF Bowl, in the league we were in last year, and loose by a narrow margin. That is a tough loss. For this year, our toughest lost has been the Louisville game when we were up 50-40 and ended up losing the game. In this league any loss is tough, but the good thing is that once you go to the playoffs the season starts over. Right now we are 6th out of 8 looking to go to the playoffs. We are getting excited with three games left. Our division leader that is Green Bay, leading by one game at this time, actually plays us on July 12. That will be a huge game for us.

Rupp Arena Blog: On the other end of the spectrum, what is the most gratifying win they have had?

Susan Harris: There isn’t a single one that sticks out in my mind except when we won the National Championship back in ‘04. I think the biggest thing for this year is that there were a lot of doubters out there that didn’t think we would be able to handle it. So each time we win we are proving them wrong.

Rupp Arena Blog: What would you say is your favorite part of the game?

Susan Harris: I think my favorite aspect of the game is how fast paced it is and how talented these players are. I have a deep admiration for players that play on concrete and hit stationary walls all for the fans and the joy of the game. It amazes me how they can go out there and get hit time after time and then pick themselves up, practice all week, then go back out there next weekend and do it all again.

Rupp Arena Blog: What do you think is the most overlooked aspect of the game?

Susan Harris: A lot of people don’t understand how the mack-linemen and the jack-linemen come into play. That really impacts the game significantly. The other thing is the fact that you are playing off of nets. Receivers are used to facing the kicking team, catching the ball and then running down the field. In arena football 99% of the time the kicker will kick into the net, so the receiver is standing with his back to the kicking team, waiting for the ball to come down, then turn around and run it. It takes a lot of fancy footwork. Will Mulder who is our top return man is actually I think third in the league now for returns which is phenomenal with this being his first year out, and there are 29 teams out there.

Rupp Arena Blog: What are some unique statistics you can give us?

Susan Harris: We have three players who have received and run back a football for a touchdown this season (Will Mulder, Jonathan Hawks and Chris Royal) which is amazing. Eddie and Chad have played together for 10 years since they played together at Georgetown.

Our thanks goes out to Susan for answering all our questions and giving us some more insight into the game’s mechanics and players. Be sure to keep checking back here on the Rupp Arena Blog for more information about the upcoming games, a contest, and maybe even some more interviews. The last two Horsemen games are on July 12 (vs Green Bay Blizzard) and July 19 (vs Iowa Barnstormers).