Joe Ferg Answers Novaffl's Questions

1. Why do you think your league's rules have been met with such criticism from Novaffl veterans? Do you think its because of the fact your rules put little emphasis on line play, downfield blocking, too many eligibles, or because of personal reasons -- such as their lack of obtaining wins this last weekend?

First off I'd like to thank you for having me. It was a bit of a surprise that you wanted to sit down with me, a potential league rival, and chat it up. As far as the question, I don't think it's personal criticism, but more so the players being pro Novaffl. Novaffl has built something that is considered monumental amongst its players mainly because the rules are like no other league's rules. If I'm not mistaken, the rule differences are what the Novaffl was built on and JFS just follows suit with most other leagues.

Do you think your current linemen rules lead your 7 on 7 league games to be suitable for co-ed flag football play and if not, care to explain what option there is for the cuter gender in your league?

Not even close -- my men's FFL7 league is very physical. To play on the line in JFS you have to be a real man because there are guys that will pancake you if you take it lightly. I have highlights on the site that prove that.

The Co-Ed division rules vary. For one, same gender blocking is the only blocking allowed.

2. In considering a possible JoeFerg, Novaffl merger, what rule changes would you be willing to make as a compromise? Would you share financial information with Novaffl's own treasurer? More importantly would you keep with the nova tradition of keeping costs low and reduce some of your steep charges? Novaffl carries no profit margin and only gives stipends to J.gentili and Yang. What is the profit margin for Joeferg?

The idea of a JFS and Novaffl merger is definitely welcomed, but there won't be any modifications to my rules. This past Fall '07 season JFS merged with Bethesda Flag Football and it was great. Fortunately, we played under the same rules so the transition was smooth. The BFFL teams added another notch to the JFS competition meter and they loved how the league was run.

JFS was established solely by me. I did all the marketing, brokered the sponsoring deals, developed the website, purchased all the equipment, and everything else that it takes to start a sports league. With that said, sharing any financial information with a potential merging league's treasurer is probably not going to happen because the league won't gain anything from it. I'm only interested in actions that benefit the league's growth. If you line JFS up with any other sports league in the DMV area you'll find that we have the best package for serious teams. Competitive talent, a solid website, stability, professionalism, affordable team fees, great playing environment, family-friendly playing atmosphere, and a commissioner that listens. JFS' fees are at least $150 cheaper than the lowest-charging league's in the area; and that league is not as good.

Sources say some of your referees are no better than a volunteer Nova mod who is paid nothing and does it for the love of the game. What is your response to this?

This may actually be true because we use guys that have played the game for a while and we use guys that have never ref'd before. Our refs get better each play and at this point our refs have gained the respect of our players. Being that our refs are paid they make an extra effort to get better and they are always on time. I'm a true believer of people getting what they pay for. Not to mention, since we do offer payment, the competition exists for our refs also. I have a lot of people who want to ref for JFS so I have the luxury of picking only the best.

3. Would you allow such practices as bribing the refs and player trades in your league? Player trades, add to the excitement and often create a lot of media attention by expert writers. What is your take on this?

Bribing the refs is not acceptable at all and luckily I haven't had to deal with this issue so far. Our refs are stand up guys and I doubt if anyone of them would accept a bribe, not to mention our players follow suit and would not offer a bribe. Mid-season player trades ruin the integrity of the league and reduce the competition level b/c you create an environment where players don't want to work harder to make their team better mostly because they may have a back-up plan which would involve a better team picking them up. Our rosters lock after the third game and once a player is on the roster and plays for that team he cannot switch teams. Player trades are only allowed between seasons.

4. Would you ever consider a draft for free agents?

I currently do, somewhat, draft our free agents. At the beginning of each season I host a free agent day where captains can come out and recruit players. It's a proven system and JFS can proudly say it was pioneered here.

5. What kind of changes would you make to your lackluster forum and poor media personnel?

I am not changing anything. If you recall Cap we go way back. Both JFS and Novaffl started at the same time; it was the Summer of '06. The only difference was that Novaffl started with teams because of a merger, JFS on the other hand started with one person - yours truly. I launched an aggressive marketing campaign which yielded a free season that had 6 teams. Since that summer season we've had solid seasons with at least 6 paying teams. If you check our season records all those teams keep coming back. JFS even landed an article in the Washington Post Express. Word of mouth is now our most power media force which says a lot because most people only tell others about good things they experience. If you ask me that's a pretty productive media history.

6. Some have stated that your organization and ability to find good fields, makes you topnotch for Nova and DC flag football players------and is a major factor in keeping players in your system. Care to explain how you do this and whther you have a large staff to support you?

Fields are definitely important. I have a good rapport with the county's park staff and it pays off. A large staff ? (smiles). In hindsight I guess you can say my staff if pretty large with respect to productivity, but as far as man power it's small because it's only me. I put a lot into my website which serves as 10 staff members. It does everything for me and has more than paid me back for the hours I put into it. Each season it literally takes me 3 hours to get it going which includes setting the dates for the season, creating the schedules, creating the necessary legal documents, notifying the teams and free agents, and notifying the officials. The process is pretty smooth.

7. As far as the JoeFerg All Star team coming to play at novaffl, will you explain why you are so hesitant to play under Novaffl's rules even though they agreed to your system when they ventured to your house?

JFS didn't have an event that included Novaffl. The upcoming game will be the first official event between the two leagues. You know what, I'm going to go on record and say we will play under Novaffl rules. What's the big deal anyway?? At the end of the day it's football.

8. Do you feel San Fran is a spy for Novaffl, or is playing both sides of the field with his immense love of the game and football knowledge?

At the beginning I thought he was a mole but it didn't make a difference to me. I don't reveal any valuable info to the players anyway nor can I handcuff a player to my league, so I just concentrate on providing a solid service which will keep the players no matter who they come in contact with. Sanfran is a good guy and he loves the game. I think he plays in both leagues because he likes what both have to offer.

9. Any final comments, place them here:

Viva JFS and good luck to Novaffl come January 5^th!!