1987 Week 7 Recap: A Star is Born in Jacksonville.

SCORES

BLT 20 JAX 28

After only 3 plays, Ed Luther is knocked out of the game, but rookie Chris Miller comes in and throw for 4 TDs to lead the Bulls to a much needed W. Is there now an unexpected QB controversy in Jacksonville?

NJ 24 MEM 11

Herschel Walker looks almost back to 100% as he rushes for 98 yards on 19 carries, and Doug Flutie again tops 300 as the Generals move to 5-2, their best record ever after 7 weeks.

PHI 22 ORL 7

Philly’s Kelvin Bryant runs around, through, and over the Orlando defense for 146. The loss is Orlando’s 3rd in a row. Curtis Bledsoe sits after an injury in practice, and the Renegades cannot move the ball without him.

PIT 21 TBY 28

Alan Risher has his best game of the year, but it is not enough as John Reaves throws for 309 and 2 scores to secure the win for the Bandits. After trailing 21-10 at half, Tampa shuts Pittsburgh out in the 2nd half and scores 18 unanswered to take the 7 point win.

CHI 24 DEN 34

With Todd Blackledge at the helm, the Machine only gain 162 total yards of offense, but capitalize on 3 takeaways to score 24, but it is simply not enough once again, as Denver rolls up 398 yards and Bob Gagliano throws for 3 scores against the opportunistic but overmatched Machine defense.

HOU 20 LA 3

Houston’s D smothers Steve Young and the Express on the way to a comfortable win. Jim Kelly is efficient, throwing 22 of 29 for 240 yards in the victory and taking over the top spot in the QBR rankings.

MGN 14 OAK 26

Oakland’s defense bends but does not break, holding Michigan to only 2 scores, as the Invaders defend home turf. Four sacks of Jack Trudeau and 3 forced fumbles, 2 by veteran Gary Plummer, help Oakland stifle the Panthers and move to 4-3 for the year, atop the Pacific Division.

NOR 31 OKL 16

Matt Robinson and the Breakers feast on the Oklahoma defense. Robinson throws for 3 scores, 2 to wideout Nolan Franz, and the Breakers shut down Doug Williams (168 yards passing) to get a much needed win. Hilliard and Dupree combine for 141 as New Orleans platoons their two backs.

SAN 20 ARZ 35

Robbie Bosco’s 4 TD passes lead Arizona to a win over the expansion Gunslingers. Damon Allen plays well, completing 71% of his passes and throwing for 2 scores, but the dink and dunk strategy of coach Gill Steinke cannot match Arizona’s offensive production.

GAME OF THE WEEK

Washington Federals 17 Birmingham Stallions 20

Cliff Stoudt is not showing up on the QBR leader board, but only because he has simply not thrown enough passes to qualify. His numbers would put him on top, and this week, he completed nearly 80% of his throws (27 of 34) to lead Birmingham to a third straight win as they come roaring back in the 4th quarter to defeat the Federals.

Washington had built a 17-10 lead over 3 quarters, with Neil Lomax hitting Webster Slaughter for 2 scores along the way. But in the 4th the Birmingham D found a way to shut down the Federals and on 2 consecutive drives Cliff Stoudt led the Stallions to a TD and the game winning field goal with only 24 seconds left on the clock. Of course, this being Birmingham, it was not all Stoudt. Joe Cribbs contributed 75 yards on the ground, a slow day for him, but a solid day. Ernest Givens had his usual 5+ receptions (7) but was another Stallion held below his yardage average with only 58 yards, but a steady, efficient Stoudt kept the chains moving and the Stallions defense held Craig James to only 54 yards on 18 carries to help Birmingham win 3 straight after and 0-4 start.

The win moves Birmingham only one game below Jacksonville and Orlando for 2nd in the Southern Division, something unthinkable just a few weeks ago. The loss, moves Washington to 4th place in the Atlantic, but only 1 win away from 2nd as they chase the Stars and Generals.

PERFORMANCE OF THE WEEK

When starter Ed Luther came out of the game after being sacked on only the 3rd play of the afternoon, the Jacksonville faithful were an understandably nervous lot. But after the day rookie Chris Miller put on against the Blitz’s vaunted defense, they could not be more excited about their young QB. The only problem is now there may be a true quarterback battle in Jacksonville.

Luther had played well enough to win 3 games but had not shown the ability to carry the team on his shoulders. Miller, fresh out of the U. of Oregon, came in after Luther suffered what looked like a knee injury, and lit up the Blitz for 273 yards, an 81% completion rate, and 4 scores. You can chalk some of that up to unfamiliarity on Baltimore’s part. Miller had not seen any game action to date so there was no film of him in the Bulls offense, but that does not explain it all. Miller was able to use his legs to avoid pressure, but never looked to run, instead finding dump off receivers when needed.

Miller also made maximum use of Jacksonville’s two best receivers, hitting Gary Clark 6 times for 103 yards and a score, and Daniel Corral, the speedster, 7 times for 115. He also used unheralded players like fullback Larry Bachman (2 receptions for 2 TDs) and backup TE Tim Lear (TD catch) to disrupt the Blitz defensive scheme. It was the kind of game that legends are made of. So now the big question in Jacksonville is whether or not Lindy Infante sticks with the effective but unspectacular Luther, who is listed as doubtful for next week, or sticks with Miller moving forward. Next week’s game, with Miller now on film and Orlando now fully aware of what he is capable of, will be a bit test to see if this was a flash-in-the-pan performance or the sign that the Bulls may have found a franchise quarterback for the long haul.

NEWS & NOTES

We are nearly half way through the season and our four expansion clubs have had very different introductions to the league. Both on and off the field there have been successes, but also some significant concerns about the franchises. We knew this going into the year, as 2 of the 4 had to essentially relocate prior to their first game due to stadium lease issues. On the field early success for some clubs has now melted away while for others wins have been hard to come by. Let’s look at the four newest USFL clubs and assess where they stand as we near the season’s midpoint.

CHICAGO

Still winless, the Chicago Machine clearly seem to be the weakest of the four clubs on the field. While their financial situation is quite solid, the lack of offensive talent on the team has made it tough to watch most games. The recent switch from rookie Chuck Long to veteran and former Heisman hopeful Todd Blackledge could help, but Chicago is certainly going to have attendance issues in the tough Chicago market if they cannot string together some wins and start playing a more attractive brand of football. They have only played 3 home games so far, but attendance has dipped already, and a winless team is unlikely to see those numbers improve as the year moves on.

OKLAHOMA

The Outlaws have drawn well enough in the tiny market of Tulsa, averaging 27,000+ in Skelly Stadium so far, and they have leaders on both sides of the ball in Doug Williams and league tackle leader Brian Bosworth, but this has not translated into many wins. Their only W so far was a 1-point 21-20 win over Arizona in week 2. Since then they have seemed to tail off rather than improve with time. Their loss this week at home to New Orleans was typical as it seemed that Doug Williams and Stump Mitchell were trying to carry an otherwise uninspiring roster to victory. They need more from their receivers and on defense to compete. Meanwhile there are rumors flying around town that the Tatham ownership group is still shopping the franchise around to other markets, with recent visits to Kansas City and Dallas. That will not help grow a fanbase in Tulsa and there is only so much the appeal of “The Boz” can do to keep butts in seats in Tulsa.

ORLANDO

By far the biggest surprise to start the year, the relocated Miami franchise has apparently found an eager fanbase and a solid home field advantage in Orlando. The Renegades are averaging over 43,000 a game in the Citrus Bowl, enhanced by their 4 game win streak to start the season. Since that high mark, the Renegades have lost 3 in a row, and will need to regroup to keep the fans coming in. The team averages a solid 22.5 points per game behind the combo of Reggie Collier and Curtis Bledsoe, and their defense is currently solid enough to win games, but the schedule does not get easier with the Bulls, Blitz and Panthers all in the next 4 weeks. Not much was expected of the Renegades this year, so even an 8-8 season will be seen as a huge positive, especially compared with the other expansion clubs’ struggles.

SAN ANTONIO

The loss of QB Rick Neuheisel for the year may spell the end of a pretty solid year to date for the Gunslingers. Playing in tiny Alamo Stadium, the Gunslingers have come close to selling out the 24,000 seats each game. That is good, but what is not good is the fact that even with a 22,000 attendance average over 4 home games there are already stories coming out of San Antonio of delayed paychecks, delinquent bills and other signs that the finances are not as solid as the league expected for Clint Manges, the team owner. On the field the Gunslingers have been a mixed bag. They are only averaging 18.1 points per game, but have been able to garner wins against some of the league’s lesser teams. Blowout losses to Houston and Michigan are to be expected in an expansion year, but the Gunslingers, now with Damon Allen at QB need to find ways to win games against weaker foes to keep the folks in San Antonio engaged. As for Manges, he had better find some additional owners because the USFL is not going to stand by and watch a team tarnish the league’s reputation with poor financial management.

INJURY REPORT

Ed Luther was knocked out of the game, as reported above, but is expected to miss only 1 more week of action for the Bulls. Similarly Brian Sipe (Migraines) is expected back next week. New Orleans will have to go back to Tony Eason after Matt Robinson was knocked out of the game in the last minutes of the 4th quarter with a rib injury and could miss up to a month. We also mentioned that Curtis Bledsoe for Orlando was injured, but it is not expected to be serious and he could return as early as this week. It is midseason and dings are the norm around the league. As far as major injuries go, this was a pretty clean week, as the only anticipated long term injury was to New Orleans reserve tackle Dan Slaughter, who will miss the rest of the year with an ankle injury. Otherwise it is a week here, a questionable status there, which is not bad for 7 weeks in.

LOOKING AHEAD

Week 8 marks the halfway point of the year, and there is a lot to play for pretty much everywhere. A lot of big divisional games highlight this week’s slate as Philly travels to Washington, Jacksonville and Orlando tussle in the Citrus Bowl, Houston faces off against Michigan in the Silverdome, and all 4 top teams in the Pacific face off: Arizona @ Oakland and Denver in LA. In other divisional games New Jersey is in Pittsburgh, Memphis visits Tampa Bay, and Chicago heads down to the Big Easy to face the Breakers. Our two inter-divisional games this week are perhaps the least interesting games as Baltimore heads to Oklahoma and Birmingham tries to make it 4 in a row with a visit to Alamo Stadium in San Antonio.