The importance of the entire fish – scales and all
August 23, 2023
GREEN BAY – The Green Bay Blizzard Indoor Football League (IFL) team may not have made the playoffs this season, but the team still has reason to celebrate.
The team was recently named the IFL Franchise of the Year.
Each season, the award is given to the best overall team in terms of attendance, sales, public relations, marketing, efforts to improve the IFL, performance on the field, community involvement, participation on league matters and overall representation of the IFL.
“When we look back on a solid season in regards to football, with barely missing the playoffs – winning Franchise of the Year means a lot,” Ryan Hopson, director of sales, said. “We joke around here that we put on a really good show and we hope a football game breaks out.”
Hopson said the last time the team was named Franchise of the Year was before Larry and Kathy Treankler took over ownership.
“I don’t think the Blizzard name would exist anymore if it weren’t for Larry and Kathy Treankler purchasing a team in 2013,” he said. “As cliche as it might sound – it was the right time, right place, they were the right people. They didn’t buy a football team to get wealthy by any means. But they understood not everyone can afford to go across the street to a Green Bay Packers game and wanted to impact the community by keeping something affordable around for families to do.”
Ryan Hopson said Blizzard players meet and talk with fans on the field after each home game. Photo Courtesy of The Green Bay Blizzard
Over the last nine years – since the Treanklers purchased the team – Hopson said game attendance has increased from about 1,500 fans to crowds averaging more than 5,000.
“We even had sold-out games last season,” he said. “It’s also flattering to see some of the in-game promos and theme nights that you do creep into other teams throughout the league.”
Community Relations Award
The team also took home the Community Relations Award for the 2023 season – which is given to the team that exemplified outstanding service and dedication to their surrounding community.
This award, Hopson said, is the “feel good” one.
“Yes, we are a sport, yes, we entertain – but hope you leave a mark on the Greater Green Bay area in a great way, and I think we truly think we have,” he said.
Hopson said a focus on community and family has been the Blizzard’s footprint throughout the league.
“The work we’ve done in the community with getting out in the schools reading, being a hall monitor, playing at recess, every step – those things matter to the kids and parents in the community,” he said.
During the 2023 season, Hopson said the Blizzard took part in 65 total community appearances – this included visiting schools, youth football clinics, assisted living homes and other various community events.
“Though players only get to spend a short time with community members, they make a huge impact,” Selena Cashman, Blizzard community relations manager, said. “Watching their faces light up when the Blizzard players walk into a room is such a heartwarming experience.”
Hopson said some of the outreach has ticket offers attached.
Ryan Hopson said game attendance has grown from about 1,500 fans nine years ago to crowds averaging more than 5,000 today. Photo Courtesy of The Green Bay Blizzard
“We get out into schools, implement a reading program and make a difference, and hope those kids attend a game,” he said. “And then some of that you do just to be out in the community. All the times we attended a farmers’ market, we didn’t even have a home game left, so we couldn’t say ‘we hope you join us for a game.’ There was just, let’s get out and interact with people and be present in our community, and I think that matters to young kids.”
Hopson said schools are often looking for role models to provide those impactful moments with kids.
“Some of our players come from a tough upbringing, and their story might change a young kid’s life during those few minutes in a classroom,” he said. “I’m proud of the other people in the front office who were hugely crucial to getting us out in area schools and community appearances.”
John Pettit Person of the Year
The team’s recognitions don’t stop there.
Owner Kathy Treankler was named the 2023 John Pettit Person of the Year – which is awarded to the individual who shows dedication and exemplary service to their team as well as their community.
“It’s the IFL’s version of the NFL Walter Payton Man of the Year and is awarded to a person who has had the most impact in not only their area but at the league level,” he said.
Named after the late John Pettit who was the vice president and chief operating officer of the IFL team Iowa Barnstormers – Treankler was selected for the award by a league-wide vote of her peers.
“John was not only a fellow owner in the league but a friend and mentor to me,” Treankler said. “He knew so much more about indoor football and taught me so much in the first few years we were in the league.”
Fans get an up-close-and-personal view of the game and players inside the Resch Center. Photo Courtesy of The Green Bay Blizzard
Treankler said it is an honor to receive an award which represents everything he was to his team and the league.
“He was a man who worked behind the scenes to make sure everyone else was taken care of before thinking of himself,” she said. “He was a great businessman but most importantly a good human being. I can’t even explain how much it means to me to have my partners and others in the league think I represent what this award stands for in John Pettit’s name. I will carry on the legacy of John Pettit as long as I am in the IFL and beyond.”
Hopson said this is the third year the IFL has awarded the John Pettit Person of the Year, with someone in the Blizzard organization winning it two out of those three years.
“The first year it was awarded to John’s daughter Juli Pettit who stepped into her father’s shoes as General Manager of the Iowa Barnstormers,” he said. “Last year, I was awarded that award. So, in the three years that award has existed, it was given to John’s daughter, myself and then Kathy – which I think is a testament to this organization. We understand it is a sport, but we also understand it is way more than that.”
The future
Hopson said though it’s the off-season for the Blizzard, much is happening in the front office as the team prepares for the 2024 season.
Throughout the season, Blizzard players volunteer at area schools to encourage reading. Photo Courtesy of The Green Bay Blizzard
“I’ve been working on our theme nights with Kathy for about two months now,” he said. “We get ahead of things – which I think is what makes us different. I won’t share too many trade secrets with our promo calendar, but a lot of planning goes into what our theme nights are and making sure they both make a difference locally and are immersive.”
Hopson said the experience fans have at a Blizzard game is like no other.
“A classic Kathy and Ryan statement is ‘if you catch a football you can keep it, if you catch a player you have to throw them back’ – you are that close to the action,” he said. “It’s like having a football player in your living room. The front row is a foot away from the players, it’s nonstop and affordable family fun.”
The Blizzard’s 2024 season kicks off next March.
For more information, visit greenbayblizzard.com.
