On a frosty November day back in '90, my Colts teammates and I were stretching before practice and complaining about the frigid temps under our visible breath. Head coach Ron Meyer, sensing our lack of enthusiasm, called out in his high-pitched southern cackle, "Hey guys, face it, you could be selling insurance somewhere rather than getting paid to play ball for a living." I remember stifling a laugh; a nice, warm office is exactly where most of us would have liked to be at that moment.

Meyer would say something like that, I thought. Of course he was happy to be out there in the cold. What did he have to worry about? He never played in the league. What did he know about taking things for granted? He was a coach with lifetime membership in the coaching fraternity. Even if he got fired, he'd get another job with a six-figure salary. Look at Art Shell, Ray Rhodes, Dom Capers and Chan Gailey. Those guys failed, and then got snapped up like kielbasas at Lambeau. Hell, after the Colts fired him following an 0-5 start in '91, Meyer coached in the CFL, then got a job with CNN as an analyst. As each fall turned to winter, he was safe and warm inside the studio, making judgements on which teams weren't playing with emotion, or which QBs should be benched, or which coaches should be fired. Life's tough.

But a funny thing happened last week. Something made me take another look at Ron Meyer. He announced he was leaving the studio to take over as head coach for the XFL's Chicago Enforcers. What, I thought -- give up a cushy job talking about football? (Not that I would know anything about that.) He'd throw away his analyst job and risk his rep as a two-time AFC Coach of the Year to work in some unproven league? Why?

Then I remembered the last time I saw Meyer. It was at last year's Super Bowl, two days before the game, at one of those mosh-pit press conferences. Meyer was one of a host of people waiting for a chance to speak with Rams backup Trent Green. We exchanged pleasantries, then went our separate ways. But I noticed the look on his face that day. He seemed happy, but not necessarily excited like I remembered him. His eyes didn't shine like they used to. There was no annoying cackle. That's why his statement last week had a personal resonance. "I'm really enthused to be coaching again," he said. "It's my first love." It was a predictable statement, but there was an unmistakable sincerity that went along with it.

Right now, Meyer is evaluating 1,300 potential players in preparation for this weekend's inaugural XFL draft. And I bet he has that gleam in his eye again. And when the Enforcers play their first home game at Soldier Field on Feb. 24, he'll still be smiling.

But damn, it's gonna be cold.

Alan Grant writes football for ESPN The Magazine. You can e-mail him at alan.grant@espnmag.com.