Bernard Williams and Corey Johnson draw a crowd at King of Prussia Mall (PA).
A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of spending a Saturday afternoon watching Electric Football being played at the highest level. The event — a “Demo Day” and mini-tournament organized by Philadelphia Electric Football all-pros Corey “National” Johnson and Ed “Smokestack” Scott — was held at the Sports Vault in the King of Prussia Mall in suburban Philadelphia. Also on hand was base-tweaking wizard James Harris, along with his delightful wife Tee. Coming down all the way from New York to be part of the event were Bernard Williams and Edwin Hinton.
James Harris’ Seahawks and Ed Scott’s Vikings on Ed’s board.
It was eye-opening to see the game played on a “professional” size field, with complex adjustments and rule implementations being done at speed to make the play as realistic as possible. The quickness and precision of James Harris’ “looping” rushers had to be seen to be believed. And actually I saw it, but it’s still hard to believe.
There were nice crowds throughout the day, with many staying for long periods, totally fascinated by what they were seeing. Corey, an MFCA National Champion and Hall of Famer, took time to talk about Electric Football with every single person who stopped by, earning full all-pro honors for his promotional skills. Ed Scott also spent at least 15 minutes working with a young couple (in their 20’s) on the finer points of the Tudor QB figure. Ed made sure they actually got the QB in their hands for a full-on kicking and passing “tryout.”
Corey introduces Electric Football to a boy whose never seen the game before.
Most of the kids, teens, and college age spectators who stopped by had never seen an Electric Football game before. For them, watching the game being played seemed to be a major revelation. You could see it no their faces. The youngest, of course, were totally taken by the entire miniature NFL player concept (yes, Corey had brought along Eagles).
James and Edwin made it to the championship game, with James’ stingy Seahawks’ defense keeping Edwin’s Jets in check until the final play. On 4th down Edwin’s running back burst through a small hole in the line and seemed on his way to touchdown…until he hooked arms with one of his own teammates. They spin began and the play was over. James was the day’s winner.
It was a true Electric Football day right down to the core. A great group of guys showing off the game that they love. And passing it on. The future of Electric Football is bright indeed.
Earl