Arena football is back in Nashville, and for longtime fans, it's been a long time coming.
“I hope you understand how good they were doing,” said Bowling Green's Bob Vavnis, who was an avid Cats fan when the team was here from 1997-2001 and 2005-2007. said Bob Bavnis. (His son Bob Jr. also) had a hard time sleeping last night, but I think a lot of other people got tickets as soon as they found out they were coming back.
“Nashville needs offseason football like this.”
The Cats, in their third season in Nashville, opened Saturday night at Municipal Auditorium, defeating the Minnesota Mythology 47-12 in front of an announced crowd of 5,704.
The arena was about half full for the game, but the crowd was loud and lively. Pregame celebrations included a performance by Blanco Brown, who sang the national anthem.
“The fan base is still here,” Cats director of football operations Jeff Fisher said. “Some demographics are different. People are (moving) every day to have a good time. These are good times.”
The crowd's enthusiasm was matched by the Cats' players.
“That's what I expected…I didn't expect anything less from the Nashville fans,” said quarterback Ramone, who was an Indoor Football League veteran before joining the Cats. Atkins said. “We were looking forward to it. And they showed up and came out strong. We all felt what they were going to give us tonight. We carried that energy onto the field.” ”
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Fisher and Cats play-by-play announcer Eli Gold, the longtime legendary voice of University of Alabama football, are big names helping usher in a new era of Cats football.
However, the two come into this season with completely different backgrounds in indoor football. In fact, Fisher, a former Tennessee Titans and Los Angeles Rams coach, admitted he didn't have time to watch his former Cats team's games.
“We didn't even know they were practicing behind us indoors (at the practice facility) at night while we were in the office,” Fisher said. He added that he was able to keep up with the team better the second time around at Tennessee. Titans owner Bud Adams also owned the Cats.
Fisher most recently served as head coach of the USFL's Michigan Panthers in 2023 and as an advisor to Eddie George's Tennessee State football staff in 2021. Why Arena Football and the Cats are his latest football venture?
“This city has blessed me and my family,” Fisher said. “I'm just going to keep going and always say thank you in any way I can. This is one of the ways to do that. This is entertainment. It's fun. We still have a great fan base here and we Introducing it to a new generation is a fun opportunity to recapture what was special to many families. ”
Gold, who has been behind the microphone at the University of Alabama for 35 years and was an AFL broadcaster in the past, was quick to jump at the new opportunity.
“I've made a lot of appearances in the Arena Football League over the years,” said Gold, who was joined by Nashville Predators announcer Pete Webber for Saturday's opener. “I know this game very well and I’m really looking forward to it. It’s a great product.
“It really was a great atmosphere (Saturday). We had a really good crowd. I'm looking forward to seeing how it turns out.”
Nashville Cats overwhelm Minnesota Mythology in opening game
The Cats dominated in the opening game, building a 47-0 lead and eventually coming away with a 47-12 victory over Shinhwa.
Atkins was 8-of-14 for 161 yards and four touchdowns as Nashville outscored Minnesota 234-74 in yards.
Cecil Joyce covers high school sports and MTSU athletics for the Daily News Journal. Contact him at cjoyce@dnj.com and follow him on X, the platform @Cecil_Joyce formerly known as his Twitter.
