News - 08/02/2004

Arena Football League - Nashville Kats

Nashville Kats to return for 2005 season

NASHVILLE, TN, Aug. 2, 2004 -- What goes around comes around. The Nashville Kats will return to action in the Arena Football League in January 2005 at the Gaylord Entertainment Center.

The addition of the Kats to the Nashville sports landscape will mean that area football fans have the opportunity to enjoy the sport on a year-round basis, with the Titans season running from August through January and the Kats from February to June. K.S. “Bud” Adams, Jr., a founding member of the AFL (American Football League) in 1959, and owner of the Titans/Houston Oilers franchise for 45 years, came full circle on Aug. 18, 2001, when his application to purchase an AFL (Arena Football League) team for Nashville was accepted.

“I am thrilled that we were finally able to put an Arena Football League team on the field for the football fans in the Mid-South,” said Adams. “One of the things I did when the original Nashville arena team was sold and moved in 2001, was to hire their coach, Pat Sperduto, to work for the Titans until we were able to negotiate a lease with the Gaylord Entertainment Center. Now that things are in place I will hand the head coaching duties of the Kats over to Pat.”

Titans owner K.S. "Bud" Adams, Jr. (center) joined (from L to R) Kats minority owner Mark Bloom, AFL Commissioner David Baker, head coach Pat Sperduto and General Manager Bob Flynn in the Monday announcement that the new Nashville AFL club will begin play in the 2005 season. Pat Sperduto spent three seasons as head coach of the Kats from 1999-2001, producing a 32-18 record, three playoff appearances and two ArenaBowl berths. As a player and coach, Sperduto has advanced to the ArenaBowl on five occasions and won three AFL Championships with Tampa Bay.

In December of 2003, Bob Flynn was hired to be the General Manager of the new AFL team and will handle all aspects involved in the administration of a team, including tickets, marketing and promotions. Flynn is a 14-year veteran of the Arena League with stops in Los Angeles and Orlando. During his tenure in Orlando, Flynn was part of an operation that played in four ArenaBowls and won a championship in 1998.

The Kats also will have additional stockholders, including the Kats original ownership group (Corner Partnership), led by Mark Bloom.

Tickets for the games will range from $5 to $99 per game with season ticket packages starting at $45 for the nine-game home season (eight regular season games and one post season game). Starting today, the team will begin taking orders for season tickets either by calling the Kats ticket office at 615-565-4700 (ticket office fax number is 615-565-4212) or by going to titansonline.com and obtaining an on-line order form. A $50 per seat refundable deposit is required to reserve seats. Priority seating will be based on the date that the deposit is received. For former Kats season ticket holders, every effort will be made to locate their seats near their previous seats, but exact placement cannot be guaranteed.

“Our goal in structuring our ticket prices was to create exciting and affordable entertainment that is accessible to families and young adults,” said Adams.

The original Kats played in Nashville from 1997-2001, amassing a 51-29 record and advancing to two ArenaBowls (2000 and 2001). The Arena Football League is entering its 19th season of operation in 2005, and the success of the league continues to skyrocket.

The league has grown to 20 teams, playing a 16 game regular season schedule with games televised regionally on NBC. Six (Nashville, New Orleans, Dallas, Detroit, Georgia, Colorado) of the 20 teams have NFL ownership ties. Games are played on Friday and Saturday nights and Sunday afternoons. Training camp for the Kats will begin January 3, 2005 with the opening week of the regular season scheduled for February. Kats administrative offices can be reached at 615-565-4699, by e-mail at katsinfo@titans.nfl.com or by fax at 615-565-4252.