SCORES
MEM 13 BOS 23 Eason’s return under center sparks Boston to 2nd consecutive win.
BIR 25 NJ 28 Rookie Covington spells Walker and New Jersey ekes out a W.
TBY 38 PHI 21 Reaves tosses 5 TDs in statement game over the Stars.
JAX 25 WSH 28 136 yards and 2 scores from James knocks off Jacksonville.
DEN 6 CHI 13 Defensive struggle produces only 1 TD as Blitz edge Gold.
ARZ 20 PIT 17 Louis Lipps catches 5 for 113 to help Wranglers earn the win.
LA 17 HOU 34 Houston shocks LA as Lynn Cain rushes for 2 scores in upset.
GAME OF THE WEEK
Oakland Invaders 20 Michigan Panthers 13
Last year’s punching bag, the Oakland Invaders, are proving that they are for real this season. A huge win at Michigan moves Oakland within 1 game of LA for the final Western Conference playoff spot, and helps Chicago gain ground on the once dominant Panthers. With the win, Oakland moves to 8-6, a far cry from their 3-13 season a year ago. With their second loss of the year, Michigan has to be concerned that 11-3 Chicago is right on their heels with only 2 weeks to go.
Oakland did it with a combination of stingy defense and opportunistic offense, as the combination of Albert Bentley and Arthur Whittington kept the clock rolling and the ball out of the hands of Michigan’s All-USFL QB Bobby Hebert. Whittington, who for the first time all season had more carries than Bentley, would also add a key score in the 3rd quarter, starting a 17-0 run that vaulted Oakland into the lead and on to the win. Early on it looked like Michigan had things under control as two field goals and a 48 yard Hebert to Holloway connection put the Panthers up by 10 at 13-3. But the second half was all Invaders, as they kept Michigan away from the ball and made good use of their possessions to score 17 unanswered points. First Whittington drew the Invaders closer, then a short pass from Brian Sipe to TE Richard Venable put Oakland on top to stay. They added a late Kevin Shea field goal to salt away a 7 point win.
The fact that Oakland was able to use ball control, and solid coverage, to keep Michigan off the scoreboard was doubly impressive in that the Invaders were missing some key players due to injury. LB Frank Manumaleuga is out for the year with a fracture in his left leg. CB Derrick Martin was also out, as was young OLB Ron Rivera. And when Albert Bentley was lost in the 2nd quarter to a torn bicep (possibly for the remainder of the year), things did not look good for Oakland, but they rallied behind LB Gary Plummer, and with the return of Whittington to the lead role, the Invaders were able to combine keep-away offense and hard-hitting defense to stun the Panthers and get their 4th straight win. They will need to keep up the intensity as they play their final 2 games, knowing that 2 wins will, in all likelihood, propel Oakland into the playoffs just one year after ranking as the worst team in the league.
PERFORMANCE OF THE WEEK
We are honestly shocked that it took John Reaves this long to win this designation. Reaves has been one of the bright stars of the USFL since the league began, winning the MVP award in 1983. This week those MVP credentials stood out, as Tampa went into Philadelphia, who may be resting a little too much on their laurels after clinching the #1 seed in the East. Reaves shredded the Stars defense, hitting 4 different receivers for scores, including a hat trick to likely 1985 MVP Eric Truvillion. After missing some games this year to injury and watching Jimmie Jordan perform well (though often in losses) Reaves seems determined to ensure that he retains his role as the commander of the Bandits offense. And while the Bandits 8-6 record is not the league’s most impressive, this win puts the rest of the USFL on notice that Tampa Bay is going to be a contender now that playoff time is nearing.
PLAYOFF OUTLOOK
Speaking of the playoffs, we prepare for the final 2 weeks of the season with a lot to decide. Sure, 6 of 8 spots are claimed, with only the Pacific Division in real doubt, but division crowns are still largely up in the air. Philly has locked down the Atlantic and the East’s #1 seed, but every other division has tight battles. Tampa and Jacksonville are tied at 8-6, Michigan has a slim 1 game lead over Chicago in the Central, and in the Pacific, Arizona needs 1 win to clinch, but LA, and now Oakland, are still in the mix. If Oakland wins out, they would leapfrog LA for the final spot. LA can still catch Arizona as well, so there is a lot to be decided as the league enters 2 weeks of divisional play.
We probably ought to mention as well that New Jersey’s win over Birmingham also throws the USFL draft into some debate as well. Most felt the Generals had the #1 spot wrapped up, but now they share a 3-11 record with Birmingham and Memphis. Even Pittsburgh, at 4-10, might still be in play for the #1 pick, and while no team will deliberately lose to try to score the top pick, there will be a good deal of scoreboard watching at the bottom of the standings as well as at the top.
NEWS & NOTES
For the first time in the USFL’s short tenure, the League MVP Award this year may just go to a player other than a quarterback. The three front runners for the title seem likely to be Philadelphia HB Kelvin Bryant, Tampa Bay WR Eric Truvillion, and Chicago DE Junior Ah You. We give the slight edge to Truvillion simply because he has a legitimate shot at being the first receiver in professional football to gain more than 2,000 yards In a season. Pair this with his astonishing 23 touchdowns to date and you have to celebrate that season. What is more, he has accomplished this with 2 different quarterbacks as 1983 MVP John Reaves has missed several games due to injury and been subbed by Jimmie Jordan. If Truvillion somehow goes off the rails, we expect the award would then likely go to Bryant, who has powered Philadelphia’s 12-2 season with dynamic tackle-breaking runs all year.
INJURIES
Albert Bentley’s season-ending bicep injury is the biggest knock of the week, though certainly not the only one. Oakland also lost Ron Rivera for the rest of the regular season with a torn quad. Meanwhile, Jacksonville will likely miss DE James Lockette for their playoff run with a neck injury. Birmingham lost good looking rookie LB Kevin Greene to a knee sprain, though he may return for the season fnale. Finally, Arizona’s rookie TE Terry Orr, who leads all TE in yards and receptions, will be day to day after it was revealed that he suffers from migraines and is unfortunately in the middle of a cluster of the debilitating headaches at present.
LOOKING AHEAD
We return to divisional play for the final 2 weeks of the season, and week 16 could prove pivotal. Jacksonville faces Birmingham at home, as Tampa travels to Memphis. A loss by either could give the division crown to the other. Arizona and LA face off for the second time this season, with the Express hoping to catch the Wranglers and even the division. Oakland hopes that LA falls to the Wranglers, allowing them to catch LA with a big game between the two in week 17. The Invaders travel to Denver this week and must avoid an upset themselves. But, the biggest game of the week is Chicago traveling to Michigan. If the Blitz can upset the Panthers as Oakland did this week they could find themselves atop the Central division. Quite a feat for a lame duck team whose staff is already house hunting in Baltimore.