Week 9 saw the Central teams travel out West, while the Atlantic Division played another intradivision week of battles. Will teams start to separate? And what upsets are in store?
PHI 27 NJ 24—In a game that was not as close as the final score indicated, the Philadelphia Stars took firm control of the Atlantic Division, moving to 7-2 and putting 3 games up on the New Jersey Generals. Philly combined a strong day for Chuck Fusina (337 yards and 77% completion) with a solid run game (Bryant with 90 yards and Russell another 62) to build a lead on NJ in the first quarter and never relinquish it. The run game once again was the only bright spot for the Generals as Walker gained 125 on 24 carries and FB Maurice Carthon added another 59 spelling the premier back in the league. The loss moves New Jersey below the .500 mark.
WSH 20 BOS 41—Washington tried mixing things up by starting young Mike Hohensee (U of Minnesota) but the results were still the same. The Washington D once again proved to be a liability as Boston rolled. Johnny Walton had one of his best games of the year, throwing for 335 and 4 TD’s, two to Nolan Franz. The Breakers D held Washington to 2 of 9 on third down and 0 for 1 on fourth down as Boston improved to 5-4 and moved into 2nd place in the Atlantic, 2 games behind the Stars.
MGN 13 DEN 19—In a week when the Central Division teams were hoping to feast on the weaker Pacific Division, the Michigan Panthers learned a valuable lesson about underestimating an opponent. It was Denver’s defense that dominated early, shutting Michigan out and picking off Bobby Hebert twice as they built up a 16-0 halftime lead. In the second half Michigan adjusted and was able to score twice, but it proved to be just too little to come back. Gold QB Ken Johnson was efficient, throwing at 78% completion rate, if not spectacular, and kept drives alive to kill clock and hold the lead. It is a costly loss for Michigan, who fall to 5-4 and possibly out of wildcard contention, while Denver solidified their spot in 1st place of the Pacific Division.
CHI 14 ARZ 39—What has gotten into the Wranglers? Most wrote off their back to back wins against the LA Express as a bad team beating another bad team. Chicago was an early favorite to win the league title, and while their performance has been spotty at times, most saw this week’s game in the desert as an easy win. No one told the Wranglers. Alan Risher was largely untouched by pressure, going 23 for 32 for 331 yards and 3 TD’s, while Chicago signal caller Greg Landry was sacked 4 times and was under constant pressure. It did not help at all that the visiting Blitz were called for 13 penalties for 100 yards, including several calls against a beleaguered offensive line. Arizona notched their 3rd straight win after starting the season a miserable 0-6, while Chicago drops below the Mendoza line at 4-5.
BIR 26 OAK 33—Chicago was not the only Central team to underestimate their Pacific foe this week. The Oakland offense, which can be dangerous if not always consistent, came to play today. Fred Besana threw for 3 scores, but it was the running of Alfred Whittington that set the tone for the game. AW rushed for 129 yards and a 5.2 yard average. Perhaps more shocking, the usually porous Invader D was stout today, holding Birmingham to only 43 total yards rushing and putting the pressure on Bob Lane to deliver a win. Lane struggled and his 2 interceptions helped Oakland score the big upset win.
TBY 45 LA 10—Having seen what happened to Michigan, Chicago and Birmingham, the Bandits, playing the night game this week, were not about to make the same mistakes. John Reaves threw for 4 TD’s and by the 4th was relieved by the young Jimmy Jordan. For LA it was not the QB that let them down, it was the run game. LaRue Harrington carried 21 times but for only 17 yards against a Tampa D not known as run stuffers. Tom Ramsey tried, but failed to sustain drives with his arm, and the LA defense just had no answers for the Tampa pass game. The win gives Tampa a nice cushion of 2 games in the Central Division and another loss moves LA into sole possession of the Pacific basement.