Four big games, four teams disappointed and four moving on. It’s Divisional Playoff Weekend and there is a lot to report. We will focus on the four games leading into the Conference Championships, preview next week’s big games, and then talk Resignings and Free Agents in the USFL. Let’s get to it.
BIRMINGHAM 7 MEMPHIS 31
The Showboats turned some heads and opened some eyes this week with a complete manhandling of the Birmingham Stallions. The two teams had jockeyed for the division title all season and clearly home field advantage was huge for Memphis. Over 61,000 fans attended the game on a glorious Saturday afternoon in July. While there were a solid 15,000+ who came from Birmingham to watch, they were drowned out by the Showboats home crowd and got very quiet as Memphis built up a 21-0 lead by the middle of the 2nd quarter. Everything seemed to work for Memphis as Mike Kelley completed 83% of his passes (19 of 23) and the duo of Greg Boone and Buford Jordan combined for 124 total yards and 3 TD’s. With Mel Gray sidelined, the lead receiver role went to the young Billy Joe Edmunds, who stepped up with 100 yards on 7 catches and a score as Memphis blew out the Stallions.
For Birmingham it was a humiliating end to a season that started off going their way. After sliding out of the division crown by losing to Portland at home, the Stallions could not get anything going against Memphis, as Reggie White and the Memphis D-line harassed Cliff Stoudt, leading to 4 sacks and several more hard hits. Joe Cribbs averaged a respectable 3.8 yards per carry, but it was not enough as Memphis rolls to the win and the Eastern Conference Championship.
LOS ANGELES 13 NEW ORLEANS 17
The night game on Saturday was expected to be a blowout, but LA proved that they are tough enough to hang with the Breakers and to limit the explosive New Orleans offense. The Breakers got the win, but the Express got a lot of respect for how they played the game. As expected LA relied on the run game to keep the Breakers off the field. Christian Okoye ended the day as the leading rusher in the game, with 19 carries for 91 yards, while both Tony Richardson and Nua Faaola also got carries in LA’s grind it out strategy.
That strategy kept it close all game, and led to LA outgaining New Orleans 361-239, but It could not entirely keep the ball away from the Breaker offense. New Orleans got two key scores from their big guns as Matt Robinson found Nolan Franz for one, and Dalton Hilliard rumbled into the endzone from 2 yards out for the other. In between those two Steve Young called his own number for a score and both teams traded some field goals. In the end it was a combination of Express penalties (9 on the day) and New Orleans’s strong 4th quarter that gave the Breakers the edge, and gave the fans a relieved sigh at the end of the game. The #1 seed advances and will host the Western Conference Championship next week.
NEW JERSEY 24 PHILADELPHIA 21
Sunday’s early game was perhaps the best of the weekend as two bitter division rivals went toe to toe. It was Walker against Bryant, Flutie against Fusina, and Spielman against Mills as the two traded haymakers all day. Philadelphia struck first as Fusina found Mike Quick for a score to open up the game, but New Jersey struck back immediately, with Walker finishing off a 9 play drive with a 2 yard plunge into the end zone. Philly again took the lead on a Jaime Mueller run from 9 yards out to make it 14-7 with 4 minutes gone in the first, but again New Jersey would not go away. Walker scored again, on his way to a 109 yard day, to equalize the score at 14 with 6:59 left in the half. After a Philly 3-and-out, the Generals took their first lead as Doug Flutie found Brent Jones for the score as time expired in the first half.
There would be no scoring in the third as both defenses dug in their heels. New Jersey’s Gary Jeter got a key sack on a Stars 3rd and 7, and Philly’s Jumpy Gaether returned the favor on the General’s next drive, pushing New Jersey out of field goal range with a sack of Flutie. But New Jersey was putting together some drives, and on their next posession they would score what would be the decisive points, a 50 yard field goal by veteran kicker Roger Ruzek gave New Jersey a 10-point lead at 24-14. Philly needed only 3 minutes to score and get back to within 3 as Chuck Fusina evaded a John Offerdahl sack attempt and found TE Abraham Davis in the endzone to make the score 24-21. They would get the ball back once again with over 5 minutes left, plenty of time for Kelvin Bryant, who finished the day with 140 yards on 22 carries, to push the ball down the field. Philadelphia got as far as the New Jersey 22, but then back to back penalties pushed them back to the 37 and gave them a brutal 3rd and 25. Fusina tried to hit Early deep, but it was swatted away by veteran Gary Barbaro, and on 4th down David Trout could not connect from 54 yards out. New Jersey held on, milking the clock and ending the game with a Flutie kneel down. High drama in Veterans Stadium as the always underachieving Generals took one from the usually unbreakable Stars.
HOUSTON 24 DENVER 10
The final game of the weekend was another road win for the underdog, though few saw Houston as a true underdog to the Denver Gold. Jim Kelly and the Houston Gamblers came into the game flush with confidence and it showed as they put up 342 yards of offense against the stingy Denver D. Kelly would go 26 for 33 for the day and find Greg Anderson twice for scores. Rookie Thurman Thomas also found his playoff legs after misplacing his helmet and missing the first few plays of the game. Thomas would run for 107 yards and a score as Houston overpowered the Gold.
Denver tried to keep pace, and got an early score from Harry Sydney as they hung tough 14-10 at the half, but when Bob Gagliano went out injured in the 3rd quarter you could see the air go out of Denver’s offense in the second half. Cody Carlson completed only 2 of 11 passing and the Gamblers shut down the run on their way to the 14 point victory. They will now face New Orleans in a divisional battle for the Western Conference Title.
CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP WEEKEND PREVIEW
Two really intriguing matchups highlight the USFL Championship weekend. We know for certain that we will have at least one first-timer in the USFL Championship in two weeks as both New Jersey and Memphis are in the Conference title game for the first time. In the Western Conference it is a divisional battle between last year’s runner ups, the Houston Gamblers, and this year’s #1 seed, the New Orleans Breakers.
NEW JERSEY GENERALS (4) @ MEMPHIS SHOWBOATS (2)
Two teams with no history of playoff success meet in Memphis with a trip to Philadelphia and the USFL Championship on the line. No one expected this to be the matchup when the season began, but here we are with two exciting teams and two of the league’s biggest stars in Herschel Walker and Reggie White facing off. We give Memphis the edge on defense, but that assumes they have an answer for Herschel Walker. New Jersey’s defense will likely focus on disrupting Mike Kelley, who led the league in pass attempts this year, but the General’s are not known for their pass rush, so blitzing may be necessary, and that leaves receivers open. Memphis will be without Mel Gray again, but as they proved against Birmingham, that does not mean that they are without weapons. Our prediction, New Jersey by a hair, 23-22.
HOUSTON GAMBLERS (3) @ NEW ORLEANS BREAKERS (1)
It’s explosive offense against stifling defense when the Breakers host the Gamblers. New Orleans won both matchups in the regular season, and they have been to the playoffs each of the past 4 years, so they are not lacking for playoff experience. Houston, on the other hand, has the experience of championship games, having won the Western title last year before falling by 1 point to the Stars in the USFL Championship Game. And while Houston’s D has struggled with the Breakers this year, they are a veteran group, whereas New Orleans is still a bit shaky on defense, which could be expoited by Kelly and Thomas. This one is likely to be a back and forth affair, and while we think it will be high scoring, we could be surprised if New Orleans shows the defensive fortitude this week that they showed against Los Angeles. We cannot go against the Breakers at home, so we are going to pick them to take the Western Title, but don’t be shocked if Houston gives them a serious scare along the way.
FREE AGENCY BEGINS
While official signings of USFL players cannot begin until after the Championship Game, non-playoff teams can negotiate with both USFL and NFL free agents during this “gap” in contracts. What we know so far is that several well-known players did not have their contracts renewed and could be hitting the market. Among those testing the free agency waters are:
ARZ: LB Stan White and CB Nolan Cromwell
BLT: HB Calvin Murphy and CB Vic Bellamy
BIR: WR Jim Smith
DEN: TE Bob Niziolek and QB Craig Penrose
JAX: K Vince Abbot
LA: QB Mike Rae and WR Mel Renfro
MGN: RB Boby Morse and QB Caleb Brown
OAK: CB Derrick Martin and T Clifton Flowers
ORL: DT Greg Meisner, HB Eddie Hunter, and QB Todd Blackledge
PHI: SS Todd Bowles and G Glenn Kohler
PIT: DT Alfonso Carreker, QB Glen Carano and RB Stanford Jennings
POR: LB Billie Ray Smith and WR Frank Lockett
TBY: TE Sam Bowers and T Basil Byrnes
TEX: CB Emmanuel Carrol and WR Richard Johnson
WSH: CB Lester Lyles, WR Duane Gunn, and LB Cliff Odom
Meanwhile rumors are flying that several teams are going to try to sway Miami Dolphin QB Dan Marino to jump leagues. Marino is contracted for one more year with the Dolphins, and the timing would be rough if he were to jump from the NFL to the USFL after a playoff run with Miami, but that is not stopping his agent from speaking to USFL teams. The other big NFL prospect that has a lot of USFL teams drooling is Lawrence Taylor, who has expressed an interest in testing the free agency market after the 1988 NFL season. The NY Giants are in no way looking forward to that, but there is already word that both New Jersey and LA are seriously considering signing LT to a futures offer before the season is even over. Either signing could fuel a full on legal and roster war between the two leagues.
Meanwhile, waiting in the wings in this year’s draft are some major talents the USFL would love to sign, including UCLA QB Troy Aikman, Oklahoma State HB Barry Sanders, West Virginia QB Major Harris, and Florida State CB Deion Sanders. The USFL could even go after a sophomore or junior player as they did in 1983 with Herschel Walker. There are many who feel that sophomore QB Todd Marinovich might want to jump into the pro ranks early, and there is also a lot of interest in Penn State HB Blair Thomas who had over 1,300 yards rushing for the Nittany Lions last year.