Dick Vermeil Returns to Philadelphia Football With Soul Investment

Dick Vermeil, the famed Eagles coach of the 1970s and ‘80s, has returned to Philadelphia football, along with his old quarterback. The coach, a longtime resident of Chester County, has agreed to purchase a stake in the Arena Football League’s Philadelphia Soul.

Vermeil, who coached the Eagles from 1976 to 1982 and took them to their first-ever Super Bowl after the 1980 season, has acquired a 2.5 percent stake in the club, the Daily News reported. Also buying into the team is Jahri Evans, a current player for the New Orleans Saints who is a Philadelphia native. Another Saints player, Marques Colton, became a part-owner of the Soul last year.

Ron Jaworski, the former Eagles quarterback under Vermeil and an original Soul owner, had teased a major announcement in a radio interview Wednesday. Rock star Jon Bon Jovi was also an owner of the Soul when the team was founded in 2004, but departed the organization when the AFL temporarily folded in 2009.

Vermeil won the Super Bowl with the St. Louis Rams after the 1999 season- using a quarterback, Kurt Warner, who had been signed out of the AFL.

“The last time I invested in the Arena Football League, it resulted in me finding a quarterback that led our team to a Super Bowl Championship,” Vermeil said in a statement. “I love the Arena Football game, and I am excited to be working side by side with Ron Jaworski once again, along with my other new partners whom I have a tremendous amount of respect for.”

Arena Football is played similar to NFL football, only in indoor arenas, with a much smaller field and rules that involve the ball bouncing off nets. The league has also sought to cultivate a more affordable and fan-friendly