Post by rkb on Jun 29, 2007 9:46:51 GMT -5
This is from the North Mississippi Dailey Journal...
www.djournal.com/pages/story.asp?ID=246071&pub=1&div=Sports
By John L. Pitts
Daily Journal
TUPELO - The Mississippi MudCats may be under new ownership long before the 2008 version of the team takes the field - perhaps even today.
Minority owner Jim Waide, a Tupelo attorney, confirmed Thursday that he's in negotiations with founding owner Todd Ellis to take control of the indoor pro football franchise.
"I'm hoping to be the sole owner next season," Waide said. "That's what I'm working on this week, and I'm hoping to have it done soon."
Ellis was headed to a meeting with Waide early Thursday afternoon. Contacted at the MudCats office, Ellis said Waide initiated the discussion about purchasing the team and added that a transfer of majority ownership could take place quickly if negotiations are successful.
The current majority owner, Ellis, said he spoke with American Indoor Football Association officials on Thursday to confirm the formalities of transferring the team's league membership in the case of a sale.
Waide ackowledged that he and his representatives spent time last week looking at the MudCats' financial records. "What I'm trying to do is get an accurate picture of the financial status of the team," he said. A full accounting of the team's financials may eventually be made public, he added.
Part of that effort appears to be an assessment of the team's debt. According to those familiar with the team's operation, the MudCats owe thousands of dollars to various companies in the region. That debt includes more than $3,000 owed to the Daily Journal for advertising.
A representative of Waide's office recently contacted the Journal office for a copy of that bill.
Head coach Brian Brents, who guided the first-year team to a 12-4 record, is under contract with the team until September. In an interview last week, Brents said he was "in no hurry" to decide his future with the organization and added that he would "wait and see" about other developments relating to the team before making a decision.
Contacted Thursday, Brents declined to comment.
Ellis, an Atlanta-based businessman and former Georgia Tech football player, revived indoor football in Northeast Mississippi last winter.
At one point this season, Ellis estimated the MudCats' value at $500,000, based on the sale of other franchises in the AIFA. That figure was greeted with some skepticism by those familiar with the indoor game, and with the local team's operations.
In a television interview in May, Ellis described the team's financial prospects as "fantastic," but team officials painted a bleaker picture earlier this month, at the time Waide's initial investment in the team was first made public.
On June 6, Waide said he initially bought a 10 percent share of the team in May and then purchased an additional 10 percent about a week later.
A previous locally owned venture here, known as the Tupelo FireAnts, operated from 2001 until fizzling after the 2005 season.
But the MudCats got off to a fast start, winning their first eight games and averaging crowds in excess of 4,000 in a schedule that was front-loaded with home games.
Privately, team insiders noted that a late-season slump -three road losses in five games -roughly coincided with persistent problems making the team payroll before Waide's investment.
Attendance at home began to dwindle as the weather warmed up.
A playoff game on Sunday, June 10 -the first postseason game in local indoor football history -drew a disappointing crowd that numbered less than 2,000.
Appeared originally in the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, 6/29/2007, section D , page 1
The Mid South's Premier Entertainment Complex
www.djournal.com/pages/story.asp?ID=246071&pub=1&div=Sports
By John L. Pitts
Daily Journal
TUPELO - The Mississippi MudCats may be under new ownership long before the 2008 version of the team takes the field - perhaps even today.
Minority owner Jim Waide, a Tupelo attorney, confirmed Thursday that he's in negotiations with founding owner Todd Ellis to take control of the indoor pro football franchise.
"I'm hoping to be the sole owner next season," Waide said. "That's what I'm working on this week, and I'm hoping to have it done soon."
Ellis was headed to a meeting with Waide early Thursday afternoon. Contacted at the MudCats office, Ellis said Waide initiated the discussion about purchasing the team and added that a transfer of majority ownership could take place quickly if negotiations are successful.
The current majority owner, Ellis, said he spoke with American Indoor Football Association officials on Thursday to confirm the formalities of transferring the team's league membership in the case of a sale.
Waide ackowledged that he and his representatives spent time last week looking at the MudCats' financial records. "What I'm trying to do is get an accurate picture of the financial status of the team," he said. A full accounting of the team's financials may eventually be made public, he added.
Part of that effort appears to be an assessment of the team's debt. According to those familiar with the team's operation, the MudCats owe thousands of dollars to various companies in the region. That debt includes more than $3,000 owed to the Daily Journal for advertising.
A representative of Waide's office recently contacted the Journal office for a copy of that bill.
Head coach Brian Brents, who guided the first-year team to a 12-4 record, is under contract with the team until September. In an interview last week, Brents said he was "in no hurry" to decide his future with the organization and added that he would "wait and see" about other developments relating to the team before making a decision.
Contacted Thursday, Brents declined to comment.
Ellis, an Atlanta-based businessman and former Georgia Tech football player, revived indoor football in Northeast Mississippi last winter.
At one point this season, Ellis estimated the MudCats' value at $500,000, based on the sale of other franchises in the AIFA. That figure was greeted with some skepticism by those familiar with the indoor game, and with the local team's operations.
In a television interview in May, Ellis described the team's financial prospects as "fantastic," but team officials painted a bleaker picture earlier this month, at the time Waide's initial investment in the team was first made public.
On June 6, Waide said he initially bought a 10 percent share of the team in May and then purchased an additional 10 percent about a week later.
A previous locally owned venture here, known as the Tupelo FireAnts, operated from 2001 until fizzling after the 2005 season.
But the MudCats got off to a fast start, winning their first eight games and averaging crowds in excess of 4,000 in a schedule that was front-loaded with home games.
Privately, team insiders noted that a late-season slump -three road losses in five games -roughly coincided with persistent problems making the team payroll before Waide's investment.
Attendance at home began to dwindle as the weather warmed up.
A playoff game on Sunday, June 10 -the first postseason game in local indoor football history -drew a disappointing crowd that numbered less than 2,000.
Appeared originally in the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal, 6/29/2007, section D , page 1
The Mid South's Premier Entertainment Complex
