Miami Vise
Encyclopedia
The Miami Vise were an arena football
team formed by Arena Football League founder Jim Foster
for the purposes of playing a "test game" on February 26, 1987 at the Rosemont Horizon
against the Chicago Bruisers
. The best player in the contest, Chicago's Eddie Phillips scored three touchdowns, including one in the last minute, but the Bruisers fell to the Vise by a score of 33-30 (on Hawaii's Rich Salzer's TD). Today, this contest is known as the "showcase" game, as it had far more prestige and fanfare than the original 1986 test game between the Rockford Metros
and Chicago Politicians
.
This would be the only game the Vise (whose name was a take on the popular TV series Miami Vice
) would ever play, and Miami wouldn't get a team in the AFL until 1993. Actually, the Vise weren't even a Florida-based team to begin with, as they were created out of Foster's imagination and consisted of mostly of college players located in the Midwest. At the time, the players were sworn to secrecy so fans would believe the team was actually located in Miami.
Arena football
Arena football is a variety of gridiron football played by the Arena Football League . It is a proprietary game, the rights to which are owned by Gridiron Enterprises, and is played indoors on a smaller field than American or Canadian outdoor football, resulting in a faster and higher-scoring game....
team formed by Arena Football League founder Jim Foster
Jim Foster
James F. Foster is the founder and first commissioner of the Arena Football League. He, along with two other partners, owns Gridiron Enterprises, which acts as the sanctioning body of the sport of arena football...
for the purposes of playing a "test game" on February 26, 1987 at the Rosemont Horizon
Allstate Arena
Allstate Arena is a multi-purpose arena, in Rosemont, Illinois.It is home to the Chicago Rush, of the Arena Football League, DePaul University's men's basketball team, the Chicago Wolves, of the AHL, and the Chicago Sky, of the WNBA.It is located near the intersection of Mannheim Road and...
against the Chicago Bruisers
Chicago Bruisers
The Chicago Bruisers were a charter member of the Arena Football League, playing in the four-team "demonstration season" of 1987. They played their home games in the former Rosemont Horizon, now the Allstate Arena, home of the Chicago Rush.-History:...
. The best player in the contest, Chicago's Eddie Phillips scored three touchdowns, including one in the last minute, but the Bruisers fell to the Vise by a score of 33-30 (on Hawaii's Rich Salzer's TD). Today, this contest is known as the "showcase" game, as it had far more prestige and fanfare than the original 1986 test game between the Rockford Metros
Rockford Metros
The Rockford Metros was an Arena football team formed by Arena Football League founder Jim Foster for the purposes of playing a "test game" in Rockford, Illinois in the spring of 1986 at the MetroCentre. The team was named after the MetroCentre itself. Players were taken from different semi-pro...
and Chicago Politicians
Chicago Politicians
The Chicago Politicians was a team formed in 1986 by Arena Football League founder Jim Foster to play an initial "test game" in Rockford, Illinois at the MetroCentre. They were defeated by the Rockford Metros, 30-18...
.
This would be the only game the Vise (whose name was a take on the popular TV series Miami Vice
Miami Vice
Miami Vice is an American television series produced by Michael Mann for NBC. The series starred Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas as two Metro-Dade Police Department detectives working undercover in Miami. It ran for five seasons on NBC from 1984–1989...
) would ever play, and Miami wouldn't get a team in the AFL until 1993. Actually, the Vise weren't even a Florida-based team to begin with, as they were created out of Foster's imagination and consisted of mostly of college players located in the Midwest. At the time, the players were sworn to secrecy so fans would believe the team was actually located in Miami.