Are you one of many who miss the XFL? If you answered yes, you better make sure that you watch ESPN’s latest 30 for 30 documentary, This Was The XFL. We got the chance to attend the premiere in New York City.
As a seventh grader, I had never heard of the XFL. So you can imagine my excitement over learning about this 30 for 30 documentary. You can put the blame on my overly Latino household that was and is still obsessed with baseball.
Thanks to the power of Google and Twitter, I quickly learned about the league that could have been but failed miserably. Which brings me to my question, what’s your fondest memory of the short lived XFL? For those of you who are like me and never watched it, this documentary will put you on to what was the XFL.
Director Charlie Ebersol turned into quite the storyteller as he able to illustrate the XFL in its entirety. By sharing a brief history of how NBC lost a fundamental sport, in other words the NFL, this idea was watered with then chairman of NBC Sports Dick Ebersol. But the mastermind behind this idea is none other than Vince McMahon. This was and will always be McMahon’s baby.
This Was The XFL took us through one of the biggest journeys in sports. It also illustrated the peak and then decline of the XFL. In it, we learn of the special friendship that both Ebersol and McMahon shared as well as how the two really put this together although they had no idea who was going to play. Before you downplay the XFL, there are a few things that it did pioneer such as spider cams above the field, putting microphones on players, and player introductions.
Without giving it away, this documentary will make you laugh and then really make you reflect on what could’ve been. We also got the chance to chat with He Hate Me. Much like Rod Smart said, aka He Hate Me, he believes that the XFL could have survived in 2017. That may be a bit of stretch but with more planning, it could’ve lasted longer than a season.
Don’t forget to tune in to ESPN on February 2, 2017 at 9 pm to watch this untold story.
Here is a photo of He Hate Me and Ebersol soaking it all in at the XFL Hall of Fame.
This trophy may bring back some memories.