(cid:48)(cid:72)(cid:72)(cid:87)(cid:3)(cid:87)(cid:75)(cid:72)(cid:3)(cid:45)(cid:68)(cid:74)(cid:88)(cid:68)(cid:85)(cid:86) H ow long does it take to build a winning football team You’ll get different answers to that question However one thing is certain Fans still wonder how in the world the Jacksonville Jaguars did it in only two years While many seasons have passed since the Jags nearly reached the Super Bowl the thrill of that season remains Fans of the Jaguars will tell you that they had something to do with that miracle They filled the stadium each game to root for their team When the Jags needed a lift the fans stood and cheered The players still count on them for an extra boost of energy It is what makes a football game in Jacksonville Florida unlike any other This book tells the story of the Jaguars They created a winning tradition faster than almost any other team in sports That tradition continues today It means that the team looks for players with a winning attitude and the players win by always putting the good of the team first The Jaguars celebrate a touchdown The team looks for players with great skills and a winning attitude (cid:24)
(cid:42)(cid:79)(cid:82)(cid:85)(cid:92)(cid:3)(cid:39)(cid:68)(cid:92)(cid:86) I n the early 1990s there were 26 cities in the United States that could say they were part of the National Football League NFL Plenty more wanted to join The league decided to add two more teams for the 1995 season Among the cities that wanted one was Jacksonville Many doubted whether the people there would support a professional football team because college football was already very popular in the area A businessman named Wayne Weaver convinced the NFL to take a chance The fans showed their appreciation by buying 55,000 season tickets In their early years the Jaguars were led by coach Tom Coughlin The first player taken by the team in the draft was offensive lineman Tony Boselli Jacksonville also drafted a running back (cid:25)
named James Stewart traded for quarterback Mark Brunell and signed receiver Jimmy Smith Although they won only four games in their first year the Jaguars had a good foundation for the future That future arrived sooner than anyone expected The Jags gained confidence early in the 1996 season and then began winning on a consistent basis Brunell led the NFL with 4,367 passing yards Smith and newcomer Keenan McCardell both caught more than 80 passes Running back Natrone Means was unstoppable in the final two months of the year Jacksonville fans watched in amazement as their team won its last five games and made the playoffs The Jaguars kept on winning and advanced all the way to the championship game of the American Football Conference AFC They lost to the New England Patriots but the game was very close until the end The Jaguars almost made it to the Super Bowl in just their second season LEFT Tony Boselli ABOVE Mark Brunell (cid:26)
