NGFFL 2MD MAY 2012 GAY BOWL TO FEATURE 1ST EVER SEPARATE A & B DIVISIONS This month, city

y leaders began receiving phone calls from members of the Gay Bowl Progress & Evolution Task Force about some big format changes in store for the Gay Bowl community in Denver this September. Early this month, the Board unanimously approved a significant body of recommendations from the all-volunteer task force to make Gay Bowl fairer, more competitive, more welcoming, and more ready for the future. These changes also help align Gay Bowl with the NGFFLs Vision 2011-2015. In perhaps the most noteworthy change, Gay Bowl Denver will feature the tournaments first ever separate A and B Divisions, but imagined with some very clever ways of giving aspiring B-Division teams a clear path into the A Division during the tournament if they want it enough and bring it on the field. The process will include a very creative and exciting wild-card round, which has generated overwhelmingly positive response from those whove heard the idea in detail. And seeding will work a good bit differently: simpler, easier to understand, more welcoming, and more consistent with what the tournament aspires to be. The task force appointed by the Board brought perspectives from cities large and small, established and new. People will undoubtedly have questions, which is why task-force members have divvied up assignments to contact city leaders this month. Your city will be hearing much more soon. Special thanks are due to the following volunteers who put so much time and effort into this project: Mark Barr (SLC/NYC), Lance Burage (ATL), Sean Greenleaf (NYC), Wayne Knaub (PHL), Ty Law (CHI), Shawn Rea (PHX), Chris Whitlow (ATL), and Thurman Williams (ATL/DC).

NGFFL BOARD ANNOUNCES PROCESS FOR HALL OF FAME 2012 NOMINATIONS Continuing a tradition that started at Gay Bowl X in Phoenix, the NGFFL will consider candidates for enshrinement this September at Gay Bowl XII in Denver. Nomination is open to anyone who meets the criteria for eligibility. Candidates elected must survive two rounds of voting one from a committee of members of the Hall of Fame as well as the Board (Tier One Voting Committee or TOVC), and one of city leaders (Tier 2).

There is no set number of new inductees, but as a guiding principle, two to five new members are considered each year. The voting members may vote for a maximum of five nominees. Each nominee will be carefully scrutinized and must receive 80% approval within the TOVC, then 60% approval from Tier 2. Members of the TOVC are Jim Buzinski (LA Inaugural HOF Member), Cyd Ziegler (LA/NYC Inaugural HOF Member), Demond Adams (LA HOF), Ivan Solis (SD HOF), Thurman Williams (ATL/DC HOF), Shane Kinkennen (DEN Board), Jared Garduno (PHX Board), Phil Clawson (BOS Board), Sam Lehman (NYC Board), Chris Cormier (DC Board), Patrick McIntyre (DC Board), Lance Burage (ATL Board), Shawn Albritton (CHI Board), Russel Garrison (HOU GBXI Director), and Joe Cooper (DEN GBXII Director) The NGFFL Board announces the following timeline and process for consideration and induction at GBXII: July 1: All nominations are due by July 1, 2012 to the attention of Jared Garduno at jared_garduno at yahoo dot com July 14: The initial vetting process will be conducted by Jared Garduno, and Joe Cooper no later than Saturday, July 14. Nominee information will be sent to the Tier One Voting Committee (TOVC) by July 14 July 24: The TOCV conference call to discuss nominees will be held Tuesday, July 24 July 31: TOVC results will be sent to voting member cities (Tier 2) by Tuesday July 31, 2012 August 14: The Tier 2 conference call will be held Tuesday, August 14, 2012 August 28: Final Votes due Tuesday, August 28 September 23: Results will not be shared until Gay Bowl XII in Denver Those inducted into the Hall receive a trophy with logos of the NGFFL Hall of Fame and the host city that year, as well as an NGFFL jersey with the inductees surname and number representing the year of induction (i.e. 12 for 2012). Those who nominated the inductee will have the honor of presenting the inductees for celebration at the induction ceremony.

NEW 3-POINT TRY AMONG POTENTIAL RULES CHANGES CITIES WILL VOTE ON The Board decided during its May 8 monthly meeting which among this years proposed changes to Gay Bowl rules of play will be sent along to member cities for passage or rejection. Many are merely cleanups to the existing rule book. The most interesting is a proposal to add a 3-point try option from the 20-yard line. Voting will be held by Survey Monkey in the coming weeks.

NGFFL SEEKS TO CONNECT PLAYERS AND FANS WITH LOCAL LEAGUE FACEBOOK PAGES Mentioned in last months 2MD, the Board has launched a push to make the NGFFL and its member organizations more attractive to corporate partners by demonstrating that we are, among many other things, an active and dynamic Facebook community. Please visit and Like the Facebook pages of each of the NGFFLs local leagues across the country! And please share this request with your respective email lists the more, the merrier (and more profitable!). If you do not see your leagues Facebook group page featured

below and you would like to have it appear in future 2MDs, please contact our Director of Communications, Patrick McIntyre (DC), at patrickbmcintyre at hotmail dot com. Please check out these following pages: NGFFL Gay Bowl XII San Antonio

THE BEST AND BRIGHTEST: DC Captain Dinners / QB Self-Trainings After the league in the District of Columbia conducted their player evaluation survey, they found that a major determining factor for returning players was the strength of their captains leadership (or lack thereof). In an effort to improve retention, the board organized Captains Dinners, taking the approach that they could help improve each other by sharing tips and lessons learned to overcome common challenges. Captains shared openly and helped talk through common team problems (scheduling practices, getting newbies play time, controlling hot-headed players, etc). Similarly, in an effort to help narrow the gap between the best and the worst QBs, the board will soon organize a training led by the QBs to help them collectively improve as a group where they each share their skills (play calling, reading the field, rolling, etc). This approach of collective selfimprovement has been critical to strengthening and growing the league in DC.

SHORT GAINS Interested in officiating Gay Bowl XII? We'll even train you! If interested, please contact our Director of Officials, Lance Burage of Atlanta, at lburage at gmail dot com! Keep an eye out for a big sponsorship announcement next month! Ready for Chicago?! Keep checking in for the latest and greatest!