"Ang" and the AFL

[Jeremy Crowhurst]

Are you referring to Pro Football Focus? Why would one of their guys get run out of here?

Yes and it was on our old forums which unfortunately we lost most of that info in the switch, and I don't remember the details since it was years ago.

The guys who are heavily stat-oriented tend to have an approach to the game that is 180 degrees from lots of the people on this site. It gets mentioned occasionally on sites like Football Outsiders. One reference I saw was by one of the Pro Football Prospectus authors. He said he was on the (old) site and suggested that if somebody was one of the greatest wide receivers of all time, shouldn't he have caught the occasional football every now and then? He said the response he got was such that he didn't feel further participation on the PFRA boards was a worthwhile expenditure of his time. IIRC he was talking about Warfield, but if I'm wrong on that then it was Swann. From what I've read elsewhere, I get the sense that that exchange was a typical result when those guys posted here.

[Reaser]

IIRC he was talking about Warfield, but if I'm wrong on that then it was Swann. .

Fairly certain it was Warfield.

[Ken Crippen]

Let's not see this thread turn into the "Known Issues" thread. I am seeing long-time PFRA members being referred to as "visitors" here. They are not visitors and are long-time members.

If Ang wants to come back, he is more than welcome to post here. However, one of his main complaints with the PFRA is that we recognize that there were other leagues that played besides the AFL. We are allowed to talk about those leagues and will continue to talk about those leagues. That does not mean that we have a bias against the AFL.

[Mark L. Ford]

On a sad note, my sympathies go out to Mr. Coniglio, who lost his son two months ago. I don't know Ang Coniglio, though I had written about him in a book because of his landmark role in trying to fight the practice of NFL teams requiring season-ticket holders to pay for preseason games as part of the package. The case that he filed, Coniglio v. Highwood Services, Inc. , is famous. He didn't prevail, but he filed suit on behalf of the fans.

In any event, but I agree with Olde Cape Cod in hoping that anyone who does know Mr. Coniglio will, indeed, reach out to him in this sad time.

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/buffal ... =173891529

[oldecapecod11]

I hesitated to post that here because of how nasty people were with him in the past.
In fact, I sent an edited excerpt from that link this very morning to a member here.

Following is a message I received from Ange (and, it is my bad, he uses Ange not Ang.)
The Guest Book in the Obituary is closed but, if you wish to send a message of condolence, let me know.

Thanks very much for your condolences. My son was a fighter, but he is truly better off without the pain he suffered for so many years. He's on my family website, at _.

Thanks, too for your comments about PFRA. I know I may have seem overly impassioned, but most of my antagonists just couldn't recognize that much of my postings were tongue-in-cheek sarcasm, mimicking the put-downs that AFL teams, players and fans suffered from NFL devotees for the ten year history of the AFL, and beyond.

[Mark L. Ford]

I appreciate that, and thank you. Yes, I'd like to send condolences to him. I'm glad that you reached out to Mr. Coniglio when you learned of his tragedy. The loss of one's son or daughter is especially painful, and the younger Ange put up a brave fight for decades after being injured. Ange Coniglio's "Remember the AFL" website (including the AFL Hall of Fame that he had set up to honor its best) has been a great contribution to the history of the game. He became part of the game's history himself when he filed a case on behalf of the Bills' fans.

[rockhawk]

I appreciate that, and thank you. Yes, I'd like to send condolences to him. I'm glad that you reached out to Mr. Coniglio when you learned of his tragedy. The loss of one's son or daughter is especially painful, and the younger Ange put up a brave fight for decades after being injured. Ange Coniglio's "Remember the AFL" website (including the AFL Hall of Fame that he had set up to honor its best) has been a great contribution to the history of the game. He became part of the game's history himself when he filed a case on behalf of the Bills' fans.

I completely agree with everything in this message.

Despite all of the disagreements I'm sure everybody is saddened by this news.

[BD Sullivan]

NFL Films was obviously aware of him since he was used during the Full Color Football documentary.

[oldecapecod11]

All text below this line was sent moments ago to Ange. It is not the entire message.
-----
We have gone through some turbulent times at the PFRA. I am sure you know we lost Bob Carroll, our founder and the leader here from the very first. We have been in some disarray but I believe the purpose of the founder has been the tie which held this group together.
I had made posts about reaching out to people such as you who can only be positive contributors at a time when a righted vessel need not behave as a rudderless bark in an unchartered sea. For the most part, this was deemed an idea worth pursuing.

So, your name appeared in a thread here.
I had not mentioned your tragedy but it was put forth in a kind and gentle manner by another party. Frankly, because there are still some nasty people here, I did not offer your e-address but a person who truly wanted it can easily reach you. Instead, I suggested that anyone who wished to offer condolences could let me know.

I will drop the ball on your side of the net and ask what you would prefer.
I can post your address. I can send it to those who request it but there is always the bozo who thinks he is doing the world a favor and go "lookie what I have." Or, as a an alernative, I can forward mail to you.
It is entirely up to you.

[Gary Najman]

My condolences to Mr. Coniglio. Hope he can get through these difficult moments.

On a side note, I met him in Wikipedia long before I came to the PFRA forum. In 2006 the bios of former pro football players were by far the least of the 4 large sports in the USA, and world soccer players had tons of bios in Wikipedia, so I decided to start many bios of former players: A) who were selected to the Pro Bowl, B) played 10 years in the NFL and C) who were inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. Ange corrected many bios (of the players which at least played one season in the AFL, or were drafted by that league, even that they didn't play a down for the AFL). He also had a disdain for the common draft of 1967-1969, he continually changed from NFL Draft or Common Draft to AFL Draft. Even today, it's common to read a bio that player A (Bill Thompson, for example) started his pro career with the AFL Denver Broncos in 1969, then played for the NFL Denver Broncos from 1970-1981. I respected him that he stood bravely for the AFL, but even in Wikipedia it was annoying that he corrected your article when you hadn't finished yet.