For three strange, memorable seasons, Omaha had professional football.

The Omaha Nighthawks arrived in 2010 as the newest franchise in the fledgling United Football League — a would-be NFL alternative stocked with recognizable names, second chances and just enough legitimacy to make people wonder whether this one might actually last.

Writer and Nebraska native Ross Benes ("Remembering Pro Football in Omaha") joins us to remember the Nighthawks’ brief, wonderfully odd run and the night it all seemed possible.

Playing inside aging Rosenblatt Stadium — the beloved former home of the College World Series, already awaiting demolition — the Nighthawks debuted before more than 23,000 fans with a roster featuring former NFL Pro Bowler Jeff Garcia, hometown hero Ahman Green and one-time Ohio State phenomenon Maurice Clarett. Omaha rallied from behind to win in the final seconds, Nelly performed at halftime, and for one evening a startup football league felt like something considerably bigger.

Benes recalls why Omaha embraced the team so quickly, how the UFL’s collection of former NFL stars and local heroes made it feel different from ordinary minor-league football, and what it was like watching figures such as Clarett and later Nebraska Heisman winner Eric Crouch chase one more opportunity on the professional stage.

The conversation also follows the story’s rapid unraveling: a move from intimate Rosenblatt to a cavernous new stadium, declining crowds, mounting financial trouble, unpaid players and a league that eventually disappeared altogether.

It’s a story about football, nostalgia, doomed leagues — and why some of the sporting experiences least likely to endure can become the hardest to forget.