POR 24 WSH 21
In a clash of likely playoff teams, Portland got two early scores from David Archer before a hip stinger forced him out of the game. Washington came back to tie the game in the third, thanks to 2 scores from Majkowski. In the end, it was Kerwin Bell leading the Thunder on a final drive to get into field goal range, and Al Del Greco barely getting the ball over the crossbar from 55 yards out to give the Thunder a key road victory. For certain the talk of QB controversy for the 7-4 Thunder will heat up after this clutch performance from Bell.
OAK 20 BAL 10
In Coach Cowher’s first game at the helm for the Blitz, the squad reacted well, holding tough through 3 quarters, down only 13-10 with 8 minutes left, but in the end, the offense could not get a final score, and Gale Gilbert found Mark Duper midway through the final period fr a 41 yard TD that put Oakland up 10 and sunk the spirits of the Blitz faithful.
LA 7 PIT 41
After struggling at first to a 13-0 lead, the flood gates opened in the second half and the Maulers ran away with this one. Mike Rozier had 82 yards in the 3 quarters, but was relieved of duty as Coach Marchibroda gave Pat Chaffey some playing time. He responded with 2 scores and 82 yards as the LA defense simply could not win at the line of scrimmage. The Maulers ended up outgaining the Express 148-38 on the ground and Jeff Hostetler also tossed 3 TD passes as the game was a complete shambles for the Express, who did not manage to get on the board until late in the 4th when the Maulers had subbed in pretty much everyone they could from the bench.
ARZ 26 PHI 25
The Philadelphia defense got winded late, and Arizona came back from a 25-9 deficit in the 4th to steal a win against the homestanding Stars. Two touchdowns ( a Lionel James run and a Terry Orr reception) were followed by successful 2-point PAT’s as Arizona stormed back late. The game winner was a Mick Luckhurst 40 yarder as time ran out as a stunned crowd in Veterans Stadium looked on in disbelief. Led by Kelvin Bryant, who had a powerful 57 yard TD run in the 2nd half, the Stars looked like a runaway winner until it all crumbled in the final quarter.
DEN 7 NJ 41
Denver scored first on a Kenan Travis run, but then everything turned New Jersey’s way. They scored 41 unanswered points, including 3 TD passes from Doug Flutie and 128 yards from Herschel Walker as the Denver Gold simply had no answers. Despite 111 yards rushing for the Denver trio of Smith, Tate and Travis, the Gold simply could not get in scoring position, and their defense was just horrible as the Generals simply overran them through the final three quarters for a blowout win.
NOR 17 BIR 20
Birmingham fans are beginning to believe that they are a legitimate contender, and a win over favored New Orleans certainly does not hurt. After 3 quarters the Stallions led 20-7 thanks to two early Joe Cribbs TDs. Matt Robinson tried to bring the Breakers back, finding both Michael Jackson and Herman Fontenot for scores, but Birmingham’s D was stout, picking off the Breaker QB three times, including a back-breaker late in the fourth when DT Colin Scotts tipped the Robinson pass into the air and LB Kevin Greene snapped it up to end a promising Breaker drive.
MGN 14 ORL 34
A statement win for the Renegades, who now take a 2-game lead in the division by thoroughly defeating the Michigan Panthers in the Citrus Bowl. Reggie Collier offset two interceptions by throwing 3 touchdowns, and the combo of Fowler and Bledsoe in the backfield gained 141 yards against the usually stingy Panther D. Orlando’s win was helped a great deal by the departure of Jack Trudeau after only 1 ½ quarters. Mark Hermann came in for the injured Trudeau, and was simply unable to connect with the Panther receivers.
CHI 37 MEM 10
Memphis’s woes continued as the Chicago Machine came into the Liberty Bowl and simply outplayed the Showboats. Albert Bentley rushed for 70 yards and Chuck Long threw three TD passes before being subbed late by Scott Zolak. Memphis’s Mike Kelley was just off all day, and painfully so, as he threw 5 interceptions into the waiting arms of the Machine secondary. And, with Tim Spencer on the injury list, Greg Boone struggled to carry the weight of the run game. Memphis falls to 3-8 and all but mathematically out of any playoff contention, while at 4-7 Chicago still has slim hopes.
HOU 31 JAX 33
Houston and Jacksonville played a thriller in the Gator Bowl, with both QB’s throwing for 3 scores each and both defenses focusing on slowing down the run game. You had the feeling with this one that it was all about who had the ball last, and while Houston got the last score, they needed one more possession to catch the Bulls. Brian Blades added two more TD catches to his outstanding season as both he and Hassan Jones topped the 100-yard mark for the Bulls. The win keeps Jacksonville within 2 games of Orlando, while Houston is now 3 games back of the Texas Outlaws.
TEXAS OUTLAWS 44 TAMPA BAY BANDITS 38 OT
Call it an instant classic. Call it the death of defensive-minded football. Call it the game of the year, the 44-38 victory of Texas over Tampa was unmissable action, a game that fans will be talking about for years to come. With 17 points scored in the final 3 minutes, including a game-tying field goal with only 7 seconds left on the clock, this overtime thriller kept everyone on the edges of their seats. Texas would finish the day with 570 yards of offense and only 2 punts. Tampa Bay with 408 yards and only 3 punts. Both quarterbacks threw for over 75%, with Troy Aikman completing 25 of 33 for 358 yards while Kelly Stouffer threw for a stunning 438 yards on a 22 of 29 day. Between the two we also had 8 touchdown passes (Stouffer 5, Aikman 3).
The first quarter gave no hint of what was to come, with the only score being a Jerry Kauric Field Goal for Texas. In the second quarter the game changed dramatically as both teams scored twice. Texas began with an Eric Metcalf 23 yard TD reception from Stouffer. Tampa countered with a 40-yard Keen fieldgoal. Texas drove the ball the length of the field and Reggie Cobb punched in a TD with only 1:39 left in the half. But Tampa would need only half of the remaining time to score its first TD, a 40 yard beauty of a pass from Aikman to Willie Gillespie. Texas led 17-10 at the half, and the fireworks were just starting.
The two teams traded scores again in the third quarter, with Tampa getting another Keen field goal, then Stouffer again finding Metcalf in the endzone to go up 24-13. Tampa countered with a long drive of their own, with Aikman hitting TE Abraham Davis for six, and with the Bandits converting on a 2-point play to bring the score to 24-21.
The fourth quarter saw a total of 31 points scored, again beginning with Texas as Stouffer hit TE Theo Young on a 5 yard TD pass just a minute and a half into the final quarter. Tampa was not going out without a fight, and on their next drive Eric Bienemy scored a TD to bring them to within 31-27 (the extra point was missed). Texas again spread out the gap, with yet another Eric Metcalf TD, his third on the day, as Aikman hit him deep for 51 yards and the score with 3:03 left to play. It was now 38-27, but again Tampa showed resolve. They drove the ball down into Texas Territory and on a 3rd and 3, Aikman found Eric Bienemy alone in the flat. He juked his way 25 yards to paydirt and after another successful 2-pointer, Tampa was only down 3, 38-35. They tried the onside kick and recovered the ball. A minute later keen was knocking the ball through the uprights and Tampa was all even with Texas.
The game went into overtime, and, as so often occurs, the key was winning the simple coin toss. Texas won the toss on a call of Heads, and took possession. That was all it took for the game to swing their way. The Outlaws had had the better of their matchup with Tampa’s defense all day, and within 8 plays they were knocking on the door at the Tampa 1 yard line. A simple off-tackle handoff to Cobb and the Texans had a 6-point win in one of the most memorable games of football in recent years. Both of these teams deserve to have won the game, but only one could, and this time around it was the Outlaws who got the better of the Bandits.
Make no mistake, the Texas Outlaws are for real, and can go as far as Kelly Stouffer can take them. Last year a late season injury to Stouffer led to a 4-game losing streak and the 8-4 Outlaws found themselves at 8-8 and outside of the playoff picture. This year, with a healthy Stouffer for most of the season (he did sit for 2 weeks) the Outlaws are now 9-2 and have a solid 2-game lead over their rivals in the tough Central Division. Stouffer has been playing MVP football all season, and is a top choice for the award, with perhaps the explosion of Tony Eason standing in his way. This week he demonstrated just how deadly the Texas passing attack can be, winning POTW with a 438-yard, 5 TD performance against the Tampa Bay Bandits.
As noted in our GOTW recap, the Outlaws needed every one of those yards and every one of those TD’s to knock off the Bandits in one of the greatest games in USFL history. One has to wonder what fans in Arizona are thinking. At one point they had both Robbie Bosco and Kelly Stouffer under contract, and opted to trade Stouffer to avoid a competition with Bosco. Bosco is a fine QB and helped lead the Wranglers to the Summer Bowl last year, but over the past 2 years no one has been more dynamic and more clutch than Stouffer. One can only wonder if the Wranglers had had the former Colorado State QB on their roster last year, if they would have been able to topple the Federals. And, let’s not even talk about the Denver Gold, who had the territorial rights to Stouffer out of Colorado State, stood pat, let Arizona draft him, and now find themselves in the middle of a QB mess, with Gagliano gone and the ageless Vince Evans trying to show he can still win in this league. Folks in San Antonio (and San Marcos, and likely Austin too) have to be pretty happy with the way this has all turned out, and will be even happier once it is official that Texas has won the Central Division and is in the playoffs.
If the playoffs started today Pittsburgh would be in and Philly, Tampa, and New Jersey would be out, but that can all change in 1 week. In the west, the 5 would be Texas, Oakland, New Orleans, Portland, and Michigan, with Houston and Arizona missing their shot. The real pressure right now is in the 6-5 and 5-6 cluster that will likely determine the final Wild Card shot. If the 5-6 teams can get to .500 and if the 6-5 teams falter, we could have a real cluster of clubs vying for a playoff spot. As for divisional titles, no race is more than 2 games apart, with Texas and Orlando holding 2 game leads while Washington has a 1 game lead over both Pennsylvania clubs, and Oakland is tied with Portland atop the Pacific. As we move into several weeks of primarily divisional play this could all be shaken up, but if either Texas or Orlando can gain another game on their divisional rivals, they might just be popping some champagne early this year.
Three short items this week as the league rumor mill is churning hard.
1. Coach Schottenheimer: The mid-season firing of former NFL coach Marty Schottenheimer by Baltimore has not gone unnoticed around the league. Schottenheimer was a huge signing by the league, and many in USFL circles believe that the disfunction of the front office in Baltimore may have led to his unsuccessful and short tenure with the Blitz. Schottenheimer is still a name that draws a lot of respect around coaching circles, and with several other clubs likely jettisoning their current coaching staffs after this season, do not be surprised if there is not a quick offer on the table for Marty Ball to stay in the USFL. Potential landing spots include Chicago, Memphis, New Jersey, and perhaps even Denver or LA/St. Louis, even though both the Gold and Express hired new coaches this year. There is a lot of buzz that the Blitz fired the wrong man, and should have gone after their GM for several questionable personnel choices, buzz that is also making the case for Schottenheimer to quickly find work with another club.
2. LA to St. Louis: Rumors abound that the league is close to an agreement that would approve the sale of the LA Express to the Orthwein group and the relocation of the franchise to St. Louis beginning in 1992. It is expected that the league will require Orthwein and his associates to pay up to $20M in transfer fees to allow the relocation and to offset anticipated losses in TV revenue as they renegotiate with ABC and ESPN. Additionally, it is possible that the league will announce that the Express name and logo will be retained by Los Angeles, with a guarantee of a franchise replacement, through either relocation or expansion, within 3 years. Rumors already have Fresno-based real estate magnate and current Texas Outlaws owner William Tatham interested in the LA market, and willing to sell his controlling interest in the first-place Outlaws for a chance at a franchise closer to home in Los Angeles.
3. Flutie’s Future: Despite the New Jersey Generals’ recent 3-game win streak with Doug Flutie under center, there are persistent rumors that the former BC quarterback is not happy with Coach Perkins and the Generals coaching staff, and that he is seriously considering leaving the team and testing the free agent market when his contract expires this July. Flutie’s agent had been in negotiations with the Generals, but with persistent issues regarding Flutie’s role vs. that of Chris Miller, and ongoing murmurs that Coach Perkins has been unhappy with Flutie’s production even in the winning streak, the negotiations have cooled and it may very well be that the former Heisman Winner will enter the open market, including potentially the NFL transfer window, in July.
A relatively low impact week on the injury list. The most notable new injuries to report include a rib injury to Orlando WR Alfred Jackson, a concussion for Portland LB Cedric Figaro, a neck injury for Memphis CB Derrick Cudrup, and a deep bruise, possibly a stress fracture injury, to QB David Archer of Portland. Jack Trudeau, who left the Michigan game in some pain, is cleared to play this week, as is Eric Truvillion for Tampa and John Rienstra for Houston. Expect to see Tim Spencer back for Memphis as well this week, as he has been cleared to play.
The final push for the playoffs begins with the first of 5 consecutive weeks of primarily divisional matchups. This is the home stretch and with so many divisional games a lot can shift very quickly as teams knock each other down and try to battle for position. We begin with some key matchups on the fringes of playoff contention. Washington hosts Pittsburgh in a game vital to both clubs. Orlando is at Tampa, who needs a win to get back into the playoff hunt. Houston is in New Orleans for a killer matchup, while Texas tries to hold off the Michigan Panthers in San Marcos. Oakland hopes to keep their streak going against 2-9 Denver. In other divisional matchups we have LA visiting Portland, Philadelphia hosting the winless Baltimore Blitz, and Birmingham in Memphis. This week’s inter-divisional games include New Jersey and Arizona, both on the fringe of contention at 5-6, and both hoping to hit .500. Finally, Jacksonville is in Chicago with a chance to gain on Orlando.
Bye bye Flutie.