They’ll Be Taking Out the Trash

As the XFL prepares for its inaugural season, the league faces the marketing challenge of selling fans on a vision. The league cannot show highlights from last season, since there was no last season.

So here’s a suggestion for the XFL: Ask for permission to place microphones on UCLA receiver Freddie Mitchell and Wisconsin cornerback Jamar Fletcher during Friday’s Sun Bowl. So long as the XFL encourages trash talk--it’s run by the World Wrestling Federation, so who are we kidding?--the verbal exchanges between Mitchell and Fletcher ought to provide fans with a perfect example of what the fledgling league plans to offer.

UCLA tight end Bryan Fletcher was a teammate of Fletcher at Hazelwood East High in St. Louis, so we asked him to rate the matchup between Fletcher, winner of the Thorpe Award as the nation’s best defensive back, and Mitchell, a finalist for the Biletnikoff Award as best receiver.

“Freddie has a mouth. Jamar has a mouth. It will be trash talk on every play,” said Bryan, no relation to Jamar.

And the edge goes to?

“It has to be Freddie,” Bryan said. “He’s going to catch a lot of balls. And, once he starts catching balls, you won’t be able to shut him up.”

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The press release was inviting. Jesselynn Desmond, 22, a student from Los Angeles and a UCLA fan, screamed 111 decibels recently to win a national contest to find America’s loudest college football fan. At 111 decibels, standing next to her would rank between standing next to a power mower and a jet at takeoff.

So what if few UCLA fans are traveling to El Paso for the Sun Bowl? With Desmond along, surely the Bruin fans could shout down the Wisconsin fans.

Turns out Desmond isn’t going to El Paso. She isn’t a UCLA student; she attends the American Academy of Dramatic Art. And she didn’t attend any UCLA games this year, though she said she had attended several in previous years.

She did attend several Nebraska games this fall while visiting relatives nearby.

“Those games blow your mind,” she said. “I really like school spirit. Los Angeles doesn’t really have that kind of school spirit. No one really cares. It’s kind of sad.”

Even without Desmond, the Bruins set an attendance record this season, drawing 470,961 fans to the Rose Bowl. They may leave early and yell with restraint, but at least they show up.