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Storm

Ratings encouraging in league's NBC debut

If the opening week numbers are any indication, NBC and the Arena Football League could be a successful match.

NBC's regional coverage of four opening-week games Sunday generated a 2.2 overnight rating/5 share. The numbers were comparable to the NHL All-Star Game (2.4/5) and 83 percent higher than ABC's overnight rating (1.2/3) for last season's ArenaBowl.

"That's very, very encouraging," Storm coach Tim Marcum said. "That's an excellent number."

NBC aired the Orlando-Chicago, New York-Dallas, San Jose-Arizona and Georgia-Colorado games as well as a studio show featuring former NFL players Michael Irvin and Glenn Parker.

Tampa Bay's 60-20 victory over Carolina on Friday was not televised. The Storm will make its NBC debut Sunday at Orlando. The network's lead announcing team of Tom Hammond and Pat Haden will call the game.

"I think we're off to a heck of a start," Marcum said.

ATTENDANCE WOES: Leaguewide attendance for the first week of the season was up 26 percent from last season's opening week and 31 percent from the 2002 season average, but the Storm bucked the trend.

The announced attendance of 8,354 at Friday's game was the league's second lowest behind Grand Rapids at Buffalo (8,342) and more than 4,000 below the league average (13,064).

Marcum was puzzled, considering the excitement generated by the Bucs' Super Bowl victory.

"I would think that this would be such a football town right now that you'd just want to go see football," he said.

EARNING NOTICE: Defensive specialist Corey Sawyer was named the league's Defensive Player of the Week after he intercepted two passes and made four tackles against Carolina. A knee injury forced Sawyer to miss the final five games of last season.

WHERE'S ALVIN? Faced with choosing three wide receivers/defensive backs from among Alvin Ashley, Clif Dell, Keita Crespina and Hurley Tarver, Marcum de-activated Ashley, one of three players in league history with more than 6,000 receiving and 6,000 combined kick return yards.

"I went with Tarver, because he's more of a defensive-type player," Marcum said. "In case you get an injury at a defensive specialist, Tarver could have gone in and been the defensive specialist."

RE-KICK: After reviewing video, Marcum said he picked up a few things he hopes will help kicker Pete Elezovic, who missed three of seven extra-point tries and his only field-goal attempt.

"His plant foot is wrong, his swing through is wrong, his head is popping up too quick," Marcum said. "There are just some fundamental things that I think come when you are trying too hard."

UP THE GUT: The defensive line received much of the credit for Tampa Bay's strong pass rush, but the push up the middle from linebackers Basil Proctor and David White was equally important.

"Your middle rush between your nose guard and your linebacker in the middle puts so much pressure on a quarterback on a five-step or a three-step drop because it's right in his face," Marcum said. "He may feel an end coming around a corner, and it may or may not affect him. But when it's right in your face and you're seeing the ability to knock balls down, balls up and so forth, that's critical."

EXTRA POINTS: Tampa Bay's five interceptions were one fewer than it had last season. ... The Storm, which unveiled white uniforms with blue stripes down the sides, won the ArenaBowl the past four times it changed uniforms.

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