Charles Puleri

Last updated
Charles Puleri
No. 7
Position: Quarterback
Personal information
Born: (1969-03-01) March 1, 1969 (age 54)
New York, New York, U.S.
Height:6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:195 lb (88 kg)
Career information
High school: New York (NY) Lehman
College: New Mexico State
Undrafted: 1993
Career history
 * Offseason and/or practice squad member only
Career Arena statistics
Comp. / Att.:128 / 257
Passing yards:1,604
TDINT:20–14
QB rating:66.35
Rushing TD:3
Player stats at ArenaFan.com

Charles "Charley" Puleri (born March 1, 1969) is a former professional football quarterback.

Career

Puleri signed to the Sacramento Gold Miners in 1993. He spent the vast majority of his career in the minor leagues, playing at various points in his career with the Miami Hooters, Texas Terror, Iowa Barnstormers, Detroit Fury, Buffalo Destroyers, London Monarchs and, during the 2000 preseason, the Dallas Cowboys. Unusually for a quarterback, Puleri played ironman in arena football, seeing limited playing time on defense and special teams. [1] [2]

Puleri is best known for his time with the New York/New Jersey Hitmen of the XFL. In 2001, Puleri, a native of New York City, signed with his hometown team. Puleri would be the starting quarterback in the XFL's first game, leading the Hitmen against the Las Vegas Outlaws on national television. Puleri's tenure as the Hitmen's starting quarterback proved to be a disastrous embarrassment for both him and the league as a whole, as he was repeatedly sacked and turned the ball over numerous times, making the league's level of talent look bad and partially prompting the mass decline in viewers as the season progressed. After a short quarterback controversy, Puleri was benched in favor of Wally Richardson (a former NFL backup for the Baltimore Ravens and Atlanta Falcons) during the second week of the season. [3] Puleri's struggles were later attributed to the ball's slippery texture, which was later solved by using sandpaper and wirebrush to roughen the surface. [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">XFL (2001)</span> Former American football league

The XFL was a professional American football league that played its only season in 2001. The XFL was operated as a joint venture between the World Wrestling Federation and NBC. The XFL was conceived as an outdoor football league that would begin play immediately after the National Football League (NFL) season ended, to take advantage of the perceived lingering public desire to watch football after the NFL and college football seasons conclude. It was promoted as having fewer rules to encourage rougher play than other major leagues, while its telecasts featured sports entertainment elements inspired by professional wrestling, including heat and kayfabe, and suggestively-dressed cheerleaders. Commentary crews also featured WWF commentators joined by sportscasters and veteran football players. Despite the wrestling influence, the games and their outcomes were legitimate and not based on scripted storylines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Las Vegas Outlaws (XFL)</span>

The Las Vegas Outlaws were an American football team in the XFL. They played in the Western Division with the Los Angeles Xtreme, San Francisco Demons and Memphis Maniax. They played their home games at Sam Boyd Stadium. On February 3, 2001, The Outlaws hosted the first nationally televised XFL game on NBC against the New York/New Jersey Hitmen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Birmingham Thunderbolts</span>

The Birmingham Thunderbolts were a short-lived springtime American football team based in Birmingham, Alabama. This team was part of the failed XFL begun by Vince McMahon of World Wrestling Entertainment and by NBC, a major television network in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Francisco Demons</span>

The San Francisco Demons were a short-lived springtime American football team based in San Francisco, California. This team was part of the failed XFL begun by Vince McMahon of World Wrestling Entertainment and by NBC, a major television network in the United States. Originally they were to be based in San Jose but prior to the start of the season they were moved to San Francisco. They were in the Western Division with the Los Angeles Xtreme, Las Vegas Outlaws and Memphis Maniax.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New York/New Jersey Hitmen</span>

The New York/New Jersey Hitmen were an American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey. The Hitmen were the members of the Eastern Division of the XFL. The team played their home games in Giants Stadium of the Meadowlands Sports Complex.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jim Zorn</span> American football player and coach (born 1953)

James Arthur Zorn is an American former professional football player and coach. Zorn was a left-handed quarterback, and is best known as the starting quarterback of the Seattle Seahawks for their first eight seasons. He was the quarterback coach for the Seattle Seahawks from 2001 until the 2007 season. Before the 2008 season Zorn was originally hired by the Washington Redskins to serve as offensive coordinator. Two weeks after being hired, he was promoted as the team's head coach.

José Antonio Cortez is a former American football placekicker. He played for 10 National Football League (NFL) teams, as well as short stints in NFL Europe, the XFL, and the Arena Football League (AFL). His longest stints were two season stints with the San Francisco 49ers and Minnesota Vikings. He played college football at Oregon State University. He is the first Salvadoran to play in the National Football League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jim Jeffcoat</span> American football player and coach (born 1961)

James Wilson Jeffcoat, Jr. is a former American football defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys and Buffalo Bills. He was most recently an assistant football coach for the Dallas Renegades of the XFL. He played college football at Arizona State University. He won two Super Bowls with the Cowboys over the Bills.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oliver Luck</span> American football player and sports executive (born 1960)

Oliver Francis Luck is an American business executive and former football quarterback. He is currently the executive director of the United Athletic Conference, a new NCAA Division I FCS conference starting play in 2023 as a football-only merger of the ASUN Conference and Western Athletic Conference. He was the CEO and Commissioner of the XFL until it suspended operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to that, he was Director of Intercollegiate Athletes at West Virginia University (WVU), his alma mater, and an executive with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in charge of the organization's regulatory functions. Luck is a retired American football player who spent five seasons in the National Football League (NFL) as a quarterback for the Houston Oilers (1982–1986). He was also the first president and general manager of the Houston Dynamo of Major League Soccer (MLS). Under his watch, the Dynamo won the MLS Cup in 2006 and 2007.

Kirby David Dar Dar is a retired American professional football wide receiver. He played college football at Syracuse as a running back. He was signed by the Miami Dolphins of the National Football League (NFL) as an undrafted rookie free agent in 1995. He also played for the New York/New Jersey Hitmen of the XFL in 2001.

Shante Carver is a former American football defensive end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys. He also was a member of the Memphis Maniax and Dallas Desperados. He played college football at Arizona State University.

Wallace Herman "Wally" Richardson is a former American football quarterback.

Mike Cawley is a former professional American and Canadian football quarterback who played in the Canadian Football League (CFL), NFL Europe and the XFL. He was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the sixth round of the 1996 NFL Draft. He played college football at James Madison.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kony Ealy</span> American football player (born 1991)

Kony Montoy Ealy is a gridiron football defensive end for the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at Missouri and was drafted by the Carolina Panthers in the second round of the 2014 NFL Draft.

William Lamont "Will" Smith is a former American football linebacker. He was a member of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers and Hamilton Tiger-Cats in the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at Texas Tech University.

Taylor Reed is a gridiron football linebacker who is currently a free agent. He played college football at Southern Methodist University. He has also been a member of the Dallas Cowboys, Winnipeg Blue Bombers, New England Patriots, Hamilton Tiger-Cats, Calgary Stampeders, Ottawa Redblacks, Toronto Argonauts, and Houston Roughnecks.

Tawambi Jahmon Settles is a former American football defensive back who played one season with the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Duke University and attended The McCallie School in Chattanooga, Tennessee. He was also a member of the Detroit Lions, Green Bay Packers, New York Giants, New York/New Jersey Hitmen, Grand Rapids Rampage, Detroit Fury, Toronto Argonauts, and Hamilton Tiger-Cats.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taylor Cornelius</span> American gridiron football player (born 1995)

Taylor Cornelius is a professional gridiron football quarterback for the Edmonton Elks of the Canadian Football League (CFL). He played college football at Oklahoma State.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ben DiNucci</span> American football player (born 1996)

Benjamin Anthony DiNucci, is an American football quarterback for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at James Madison and was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys of the NFL in the seventh round of the 2020 NFL Draft.

Ryan Albert Collins is a former American football tight end for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League, the Amsterdam Admirals of NFL Europe, and the New York/New Jersey Hitmen of the XFL. He played college football at St. Thomas.

References

  1. "Charles Puleri". Arenafan.com. Retrieved 2012-08-02.
  2. Associated Press (2000-06-09). "Cowboys sign QB Cunningham". Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. Lubbock Online. Retrieved 2012-08-02.
  3. "NY/NJ Hitmen Roster: Charles Puleri". All-xfl.com. Retrieved 2012-08-02.
  4. "How the XFL solved the slippery ball problem with sandpaper". ESPN via Youtube. January 25, 2018. Retrieved February 23, 2020. (excerpt from This Was The XFL)