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I
t's about more than the sport, if the recently
rebranded Fayetteville Marksmen hockey team
shoots their shot right. "Our mission is to get
people into the building for every reason other
than hockey," new co-owner and team president
Jeff Longo told the North State Journal in May. "en, the
hockey speaks for itself."
I had a chance to meet with CEO and majority owner
Chuck Norris (not that one, although he does have a favorite
Chuck Norris Fact, "the one where he won the World Series
of Poker with an Uno card.") He spoke eagerly and with
crystal clarity about how those intentions are shaping up
for the Southern Professional Hockey League squad known
since 2002 as the Fayetteville FireAntz. e 47-year-old
Charlotte-based business owner, developer, and contractor
started off by saying he knows we have 500 to 1,000 "pretty
hardcore" hockey-heads in town.
"Fayetteville as a whole has 200,000-plus very casual fans.
We have to bring them out, actually entertain them, and
ensure they have a good time," Norris said. "at's where
we've failed in the last few years."
Last year, Fayetteville hockey had the lowest attendance in
the league. e Marksmen are competing against restaurants,
movies, and nightclubs, whatever it is people are spending
Fayetteville Marksmen
BY ZACH DIONNE
PHOTOGRAPHY BY MATTHEW WONDERLY
S P O R T S
Marissa Reighard, Jeff Longo, Nathan Driscoll & Chuck Norris
