Mark Gorscak

A Cold Call Ogden, UT, Spring of 1987, I cut out a blurb about Arena Football League in The Sporting News (that publication was the Bible of Sports at a time before the internet!). I was a graduate assistant football coach at Weber State making $249 a month and needed a job! The 1-inch by 2-inch blurb said that Arena Football was going to start that, Summer. Jim Foster, the creator and founder said the 4-team league will play an 8-game schedule with the top 2 teams playing in the Arena Football Championship. The league’s headquarters was based in Chicago. I needed a job, and I had big brass balls, so I cold called Jim Foster of Chicago. There was no internet/google at that time but there was 411 on the telephone. 411 was phone information. The long-distance operator assistant gave the names of 4 Jim Foster’s that lived in Chicago. I proceeded to call them. My first call was The Jim Foster that was the Arena Football founder. I introduced myself and convinced himself that he should interview me. I flew out to Denver to meet him and bullshited my way into a job as a Team Manager for the Pittsburgh Gladiators (I changed the title to General Manager to have more clout in the job). Who would have thought a cold call would work! It turned out to be just a Summer job, and I ended back at Weber State. This is the short version of the story. Lots of twists and turns getting out to Denver. I now encourage young men and women who want to get into my profession or any profession to cold email employers that they want to work for! It is only an email – what could it hurt! You might plant a seed to grow a tree down the road! Some seeds grow faster than others, but we all need a JOB! Have conviction or a big set of brass balls and try it. Stranger things have happened to us!!

This Post is Dedicated to All the Scouts that have been Released. A LETTER TO A FOOTBALL FRIEND! I saw a friend at a college football game I was covering for the Senior Bowl, and we talked about Football and Life, my two favorite subjects. He was fired from a big time football position mostly from a lack of support from the TOP (Ownership). We talked about how people perceived him after his firing. Great conversation about Life. When we went up to the press box, I thought about people’s perception of how they label people in sports as Winners and Losers. After the game, I wrote this note and mailed it him. "Anonymous Football Friend", Good to see you and talk about Life and Football! Wins and Loses are not a measure of the Person’s Success. Both are part of the life we chose Our Longevity in the Sport is our Success! We have experiences that Fans and Media wished they had, except for the Losing! The meetings, the draft, the practices, the games, the half-times, the comradery, the highs, the lows, the joy, the sorrow of Football. They (the Fans, the Media) don’t know how hard we worked and the sacrifices we made to get involved with our passions! You are Successful! Yours in Football Mark “Gors”

May the 4th be with You… May the Gors be with You!!

May the 4th be with You… May the Gors be with You!!

May the 4th be with You… May the Gors be with You!!

May the 4th be with You… May the Gors be with You!!

May the 4th be with You… May the Gors be with You!!

Director of Player Personnel position at a FCS program is volunteer only…. Wild times we live in