Open tryouts held for Green Bay Chill lingerie football team



MILWAUKEE -- Fans of lingerie football are going to have to wait until next year after the Lingerie Football League canceled this year's games because they're moving the season from fall to spring and summer.

Green Bay Packers' Hall of Famer Gilbert Brown - affectionately known as "The Gravedigger" has a passion for football that endures to this day. Therefore, it's not surprising that he chose to stay close to the game. Coach Brown coaches ladies in the Lingerie Football League. "It's fun, number one. Number two when you've got a guy like me that loves the game of football, it's kinda hard to stay away from it. Number three, it's a challenge because some of these ladies have never played the game before and don't even know what a three-point stance is, so I think every coach should go through this at least once, to really appreciate coaching," Brown said.

On Sunday, April 15th, players from Coach Brown's "Green Bay Chill" worked out during an open tryout for prospective team members. Chill quarterback Anne Erler grew up in the shadows of Lambeau Field, rooting for the Pack. Now, the recruiter for Dish Network gets to play for a true Titletown legend. "He's amazing. I mean, his mentality for the game is just unbelievable, and we learn every single day from him, as well as just the support that he gives us. He is there for us any time of night - you text, you call, and he answers," Erler said.

The Lingerie Football League started as an offshoot of the game played at halftime during the Super Bowl. Even though it is hard-hitting seven-on-seven tackle football with helmets and shoulder pads, critics may dismiss the LFL as nothing more than an effort to use sex appeal to sell the game. Receiver Jess Peyton is a registered nurse when she's not trying to avoid big hits from bigger opponents. "(Sex appeal) is an aspect of it, but mostly, we want athletes out there to play. It's high-intensity, it's a hard-hitting game, and it's scary out there sometimes. Those girls can be big!" Peyton said.

Anne Heasman has been in the United States for all of two weeks. She moved to Milwaukee because her husband was transferred. Heasman said she heard about the LFL from the media back home and the stenographer hopes to transfer her sprinting background into a spot on the Chill roster. "I'd be absolutely thrilled, and everyone back home would be proud as well, and to represent Milwaukee and a little bit of Australia as well," Heasman said.

Amber Mane is a month away from a teaching degree from UW-Whitewater. Mane, who wrestled during high school in East Troy could join the team as a receiver or a running back. Mane figures the Lingerie Football League is: "I think it's the best of both worlds. I think it's showing that beautiful women aren't just beautiful faces - that we can do this, and if they actually watched a full game, and not just what they've heard, they would see it, and they would understand," Mane said.

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