Warner storms his way to arena football’s elite

A ringing endorsement from then-Northern Iowa Coach Terry Allen was good enough for John Gregory to take a chance on a long-shot quarterback.

Kurt Warner had only one season of starting experience with the Panthers, and only one of his game tapes was on the desk of the Iowa Barnstormers coach. But it was the right one.

"Terry Allen called me and said, ‘I've got this quarterback who only played one year and was behind a guy who started three years (Jay Johnson),'" said Gregory, who, like Warner, played at UNI. "He had a good year and great game versus Western Illinois, which is the film I watched. I thought he might have a chance.

"Kurt and I had a couple conversations and he came for a workout. I thought he looked good and had potential."

Warner threw for 356 yards and three touchdowns against the Leathernecks. That was a sign of things to come in the Arena Football League for this nobody-turned-somebody.

From 1995 to 1997, Warner made a name for himself in the indoor league, passing for 10,486 yards and 183 touchdowns and leading the Barnstormers to two straight Arena Bowl appearances. He was named one of the Top 10 players in Arena Football history to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the league.

"I had three great years in the Arena League and I couldn't ask for much more," Warner told The Gazette in 1998.

Warner, however, got much, much more in the National Football League. He was NFL

MVP in 1999 and 2001 and was Super Bowl XXXIV MVP after leading the St. Louis Rams to a victory over the Tennessee Titans. He will be quarterbacking the Arizona Cardinals in Super Bowl XLIII today.

"I didn't have that vision, of course," Gregory said about Warner's rise to NFL stardom. "He did a good job (with the Barnstormers) and is a very smart person and a very hard worker. But there are a lot of guys like that. He's paid extra dues to become a superstar.

"This means hope for players playing in the Arena League."

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