The Bills recently named former NFLer Marlon Kerner Dir of Alumni, and he will be "charged with connecting with the hundreds and hundreds of former Bills who have not been part of the organization since they left, and try to bring them back into the fold," according to Sal Maiorana of the ROCHESTER DEMOCRAT & CHRONICLE. Kerner, who played with the Bills from '95-98, said, "My job is to bridge the gap. We have an ownership and coaching staff and personnel within the organization that really want the players to come back and be part of the organization." Maiorana notes the Bills "have an active alumni association and the group gets together every year at a Bills game to reminisce about the old days." The alumni association is "populated by players from all decades of the Bills' 55-year existence, but that group has very little to do with the present team, and that's what Kerner will be trying to change." Bills President Russ Brandon's "vision in creating this position is to not only bring back ex-players for fan- or charity-related appearances in the western New York region, but to interact, share some of their post-football experiences, and lend some guidance to the young players on the roster." Bills Dir of Player Engagement Paul Lancaster "works closely with the current players in several areas including helping them transition into life as an NFL player, and then on the other side, preparing them for life after they hang up the cleats through educational programs and mentoring." Lancaster believes "mingling with alumni will be a huge benefit to the players, and Kerner is the perfect choice to foster that involvement" (ROCHESTER DEMOCRAT & CHRONICLE, 8/25).
CIRCLING THE WAGONS: The Bills yesterday announced that they have sold 60,102 season tickets for the '15 season, an all-time record, and the team has launched a website to recognize each account holder. Fans will be able to share a 60k graphic via social media from the site. The Bills also will produce a 60k graphic that includes each account holder's name. The graphic will be mounted in the tunnel at Ralph Wilson Stadium so players pass it each time they enter the playing field (Bills). The season-ticket mark "eclipses the old record" of more than 57,000 in '92, when the Bills reached the Super Bowl. It is estimated that 20%, or about one in five tickets, "will be re-sold for game day." Bills officials said that they will release details about the '16 season-ticket waiting list "in the near future" (DEMOCRAT & CHRONICLE, 8/25). In Syracuse, Matthew Fairburn writes it has "been quite a while since Western New York has been this excited about Bills football." The fan base is "starving for success after 15 seasons without the playoffs, so the pressure is now on the team to follow through on the mounting expectations" (Syracuse POST-STANDARD, 8/25).
