AFA Hall of Fame Weekend
January 4 , 2008
Sarasota, Florida – Thursday, December 6th marked the beginning of the 2007 American Football Association Hall of Fame weekend, where past and new football legends from all over the country flocked to sunny Sarasota, Florida to celebrate the enshrinement of the class of 2007.
The 27th annual induction ceremony took place at the prestigious Helmsley Sandcastle Hotel, where 26 new inductees were enshrined into the AFA Hall of Fame. Chris Chudada, Owner of the Ironman Football League, was one of the new inductees.
“It was a great experience,” Chudada said. “It is truly an honor and a privilege to be selected by my peers for the AFA Hall of Fame.”
On Friday, friends, family, and alumni witnessed the 26 inductees join an elite group of semi-pro football over-achievers as they received their commemorative Hall of Fame rings and recognition plaques. After a successful and memorable evening, the newly inducted Hall of Famers socialized with each other and shared some old football stories.
American Football Association Hall of Fame Class of 2007
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Mike Aquino Frank Biachini Frank Cooney Chris Chudada Richard Disanti Fritz Fiorelli Brett Friedman Bill Simon Scott Smith Gary Thomas Calvin Williams John Kennedy Chris Lawson |
Mel Busler William Coleman John “Butch” Mahoney Jeff Mann Bill Meyer Anthony Pecorella Ed Penn Chris Pivovar Steve Rannochio Troy Roberts George Robinson, JR Micheal Sampson Richard Sargent |
The following afternoon, the AFA held its 3rd annual “Old-Timers-Game” on the beach. The touch tackle game pit the class of 2007 against the Hall of Fame alumni. The series was tied at 1-1 as both current teams fought hard for their respective honor. The class of 2007 was victorious on this day as they won 13-6 against the Alumni, making the series record 2-1 in favor of the rookies.
Over the past 27 years, the American Football Association has inducted 553 devoted and deserving people: Players (301), Coaches (93), Executives (72), Officials (22), Pioneers (19), Media/Historians (20), Trainers (10), Youth football representatives (6), International Footballers (5), Women’s football category (4) and even one super fan.
All in all, the AFA held a very professional and quality Hall of Fame weekend in which everyone who attended enjoyed themselves greatly. Once again, congratulations to all the new inductees.