Saturday was one long day Larry Weir will not forget

Larry Weir might have thought he was asleep and momentarily dreaming last Saturday.

A little déjà vu, perhaps?

The veteran broadcaster was watching from the press box at the Spokane Veterans Memorial Arena as the Wichita Falls Nighthawks wandered in a stunned state on the artificial turf below.

The Spokane Empire were, on the other hand, jubilant and racing around, dishing out high-fives, jumping into the arms of teammates and coaches as they somehow survived to score a wild 66-65 win in their Indoor Football League home opener.

If Weir thought he was a bit foggy, he could be excused.

Better known as the voice of the Eastern Eagles, Weir was close to finishing a long day at the microphone. Saturday saw him travel about 200 miles on Inland Northwest roadways and begin his workday calling Eastern’s 66-62 Big Sky Conference loss to Idaho in Moscow.

The drama of the close loss for the Eagles in Moscow was nothing compared to the Houdini-like escape Spokane’s newly-branded arena football team had.

Trailing 66-65 after Spokane had scored a touchdown with 15 seconds remaining — and converted a gutsy 2-point conversion on a fake pitch and pass from quarterback Charles Dowdell to running back Trevor Kennedy — the Nighthawks had a can’t miss opportunity to win.

As is the nature of the indoor football game, scores are often rapid-fire and the game is never over until it’s over.

And sure enough, with the help of a penalty on the Spokane touchdown that would be walked off following the kickoff, the visitors were in instant 3-point territory.

As time ran out Wichita Falls’ kicker Rockne Belmonte, the IFL’s 2014 Special Teams Player of the Year, kicked what appeared to be the winning field goal from 18 yards out. But a curious exchange of penalties – a hold in the Nighthawks and personal foul on the Empire – put the ball on the 10 for a 20-yard try. Belmont promptly shoved the kick wide right.

The finish, Weir would remember and relate to his radio audience, was not entirely unlike the first indoor game he called. That was back in March 2006 when the fresh-out-of-the-box Spokane Shock blocked an extra point and beat Stockton 41-40 in their Arena Football 2 opening game.

The Shock would go on to shock by becoming the first-ever AF2 expansion team to win a league title. And that season would galvanize a loyal fan base that dressed in wild costumes, painted their faces and had made home turf a real advantage.

“That was the first thing I mentioned on the air was how similar were the two games,” Weir said. “They didn’t end the exact same way but it was fairly close — a blocked kick on one end and a miss on the other.”

The ending may have helped in reviving interest in the indoor game that has waned. It may have let the crowd of 6,300 forget the painfully slow pace of the contest that was marred by 36 penalties, 19 to Wichita Falls and 17 to Spokane.

“I think if everyone stayed awake to that point they ended up getting their money’s worth,” Weir said of the game that clocked out at the glacial pace of 3 hours and 35 minutes, give or take.

“It was 45 minutes too long, Weir said. “I think it will be better and it will get quicker.” Particularly when players and officials get more time with one another.

He knows he has called two games in one day but when — until now — did not stand out in his mind.

“It’s the first time I can think of I’ve done two different sports in one day in two different buildings and two different states,” Weir said.

And that, too, was special as the Eagles and Vandals tangled at quaint Memorial Gym, a relic of the 1930s pressed into action because the Kibbie Dome was hosting the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival.

“That’s a great old building,” Weir said. “It would have been something back in the day to see some of the old teams.”

Weir left the air just after 11 p.m. He said he slept quite well because it had been both a long and unique day.

Paul Delaney can be reached at pdelaney@cheneyfreepress.com.