Greater Tulsa Moving Forward with Talons, af2
By HENRY PRIMEAUX III
Crown Bristow and Primeaux Kia
NEW TEAM: Paul Ross and I are very pleased and excited about our new ownership partners, Michael P. Johnson, Bill Cameron and David Box. From left are Paul, David, Michael and yours truly. The photo was taken during the press conference of May 6 at the BOK Center to announce the addition of the new partners.
DANIEL C. CAMERON for GTR Newspapers
Things are really looking up throughout our great city and region. Tulsa has been named the best city in the United States, the economy is getting better, and we have new ownership partners with the Tulsa Talons that will help us to reach our goals of continued championships and to being the best indoor football program anywhere.
Paul Ross and I are excited to welcome Michael P. Johnson, Bill Cameron and David Box to our ownership team. Michael is well known in our region because of his tenure as a top executive with the Williams organization. Bill and David have an impressive sports management background with their company, Cameron Box Sports. These gentlemen will help bring the Talons to new heights.
Paul and I looked at the teams in our league and found that those teams have several owners, not just two. Mike, Bill and David give us the opportunity to reshape our organization for the future.
The Tulsa Talons have the most wins in Af2 history, including two National Championships in the 10 years of the league’s existence. We hope to build on that record.
As Paul points out, Mike will be involved in defining the Talons’ corporate culture. In addition he will use his local and national contacts in helping to establish the Talons’ position in this market.
We see Mike as helping to reshape our organization for the long term. His addition, together with Cameron Box Sports, will make the Tulsa Talons the most viable medium-market sports franchise in Oklahoma.
All of us think that the Talons are the best minor league sports organization in Oklahoma, and we want to broaden that to being the best in the nation.
By the way, the next home games at the BOK Center are Saturday, June 6 with Wilkes-Barre/Scranton and Saturday, June 13 with Arkansas. Both games start at 7 p.m. Make plans now!
Af2 Headquarters
Our af2 indoor arena football league, now headquartered in Chicago, plans to relocate, and we hope to bring it to Tulsa. President Jerry Kurz says he expects to receive bids from a total of six cities that have af2 teams plus Jacksonville, Fla., and Nashville, Tenn. Oklahoma City, Bossier City, La.; Spokane, Wash.; Des Moines, Iowa; and Albany, N.Y., are also expected to bid for the headquarters.
The league office has 12 full-time employees and up to 12 interns per college semester and hosts af2’s annual league meetings and officials clinics. Kurz hopes to recommend a new home for the league headquarters to af2’s executive committee by June 1. We are working hard with Mayor Taylor and the Tulsa Metro Chamber Sports Commission to bring the headquarters to Tulsa.
TU Tennis and Softball
Congratulations to the University of Tulsa tennis and softball teams for having successful seasons. Watch for Senior Arnau Brugues, the nation’s top-ranked singles tennis player, to become a great professional. He picked up his fourth-straight Conference USA Player of the Year award and third consecutive Outstanding Singles Player of the C-USA Championship. Congratulations to Head Coach Vince Westbrook, who was named the Coach of the Year for the fourth straight year after leading Tulsa to its fourth-straight conference title.
Go Drillers
When you get a chance, catch the Tulsa Drillers in their final season at Drillers Stadium. We are looking forward to the new ballpark in downtown next season.
Automobile Future
As most of you know, we have the Crown Bristow dealership as well as the Primeaux Kia dealership in Tulsa. Our product at Crown Bristow is Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep. We are proud to announce that we will continue the dealership, and we look forward to the future of the automobile industry. New vehicles and technologies will come to the market, and buyers will be pleased to see the offerings. As always, in both our dealerships, we will continue to work hard to beat any deal! We’re excited about the future!
Updated 05-18-2009
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