1992 Week 6 Recap: Three Overtime Games and a Final Second Thriller Make for a Great Weekend.

PHI 24 WSH 27 OT

Browning Nagle had his best game as a pro, throwing for 318 yards and 3 scores, but it was not enough against the Federals as Don Majkowski threw for 3 scores of his own and Barry Word added 108 yards rushing to power the Federals to an overtime win. Joey Walters caught 2 scores and Ray Wersching kicked the game winner on the Feds’ opening drive in overtime to spoil Nagle’s solid performance.

BIR 38 ORL 33

Brett Favre’s solid play finally led to a quality win for the Stallions. The young QB threw for 399 yards and 3 scores, despite suffering 7 sacks at the hands of the Orlando defense. For his part, Reggie Collier matched Favre, with 3 scores of his own, but it was not enough as Birmingham scored 24 unanswered points in the 2nd half to upend the Renegades.

MEM 23 TBY 27

Memphis suffered its second consecutive defeat after a 4-0 start as Troy Aikman and the Bandits stayed close throughout and then got two 4th quarter field goals to pull ahead for good. Eric Truvillion was his usual dazzling self, catching 6 balls for 97 yards and both Aikman TD’s in the win. Despite the loss, Greg Boone climbed the rushing leaders list with 126 yards on the ground.

CHI 17 NOR 34

A big 2nd quarter propelled the Breakers to a home win against the division-rival Machine. Marcus Dupree and Erric Pegram combined for 112 yards rushing and 3 touchdowns as New Orleans relied on the run game to control the tempo of the game. Chuck Long went 32 of 44 for 298 playing catchup, but could not keep pace with New Orleans’s scoring.

MGN 0 TEX 24

It is the rarest of feats in the USFL, to pull off the shutout, and it is the first shutout of the Panthers in 10 years of play, but the Outlaws mustered just enough defense and Michigan made just enough mistakes to have it happen. The Michigan run game just never developed and the Panthers went 3 of 10 on third down as Texas dominated the game. Kelly Stouffer’s 79 yard TD pass to Quinn Early was all the scoring the Outlaws would need, though they also got TD’s from Reggie Cobb and Dokie Williams.

POR 10 ARZ 24

A solid three-phase game from the Wranglers moved them to 4-2 on the year. James and Clack combined for 130 yards rushing and Robbie Bosco found both Terry Orr and Trumaine Johnson for scores as Arizona pulled away in the second half. Oliver Luck had trouble on third down as the Wrangler pash rush repeatedly pressured him to make quick decisions. In the end, it was enough to slow down Portland and give Arizona a home victory.

OAK 12 STL 6

It was a game only a kicker could love. 6 field goals were all the scoring that came about as both defenses simply stifled the red zone offense of their opposition. Both QB’s threw for over 250 yards on the day, but neither could break the red zone defense of their foes, so it was kick after kick, with Oakland benefiting from a solid day from Matt Bahr. On defense Marcus Cotton was the star for St. Louis with 11 tackles, while Ron river paced the Invaders with 7 tackles, 3 for loss, and a sack.

NJ 23 HOU 26 OT

New Jersey loses another close one as Houston takes the game to overtime on a Kelly to Ernie Jones TD with 42 seconds in regulation. Herschel Walker had a solid game with 140 yards rushing, but it was not enough as Houston mixed things up, giving Tim Manoa and Keith Woodside carries to rest Thurman Thomas. The two combined for 72 yards rushing, paired with Thomas’s 77 yards to match Walker yard for yard.

JAX 21 DEN 24 OT

The third overtime game of the week saw Denver edge the Bulls at home for their third straight win. Both teams ran the ball well, with Jamie Morris leading the Bulls attack with 91 yards, while Lars Tate and Timmy Smith combined for 118 yards on the day. The big blow for Denver was a Mark Carrier TD catch and 2 point conversion that put them up 21-14. Jacksonville tied the game with only 14 seconds left, but they were spent and Denver easily moved into field goal position in overtime and secured the win with the foot of Brian Speelman.

BALTIMORE BLITZ 31 PITTSBURGH MAULERS 34

With three overtime games it was hard to pick just one game this week to highlight, and we ended up picking a game that did not go to overtime. In Pittsburgh the Maulers and Blitz battled down to the wire, but a final minute score from Alan Risher avoided overtime and raised Pittsburgh up to the best record in the league at 5-1. For Baltimore it was another near miss, as the team is playing hard each week but have not yet seen results in the Win column to prove it.

Both the Maulers and Blitz traded scores throughout the day. In the first quarter it was 2 field goals as well as a Mike Shaw TD catch for Pittsburgh and a Jackie Flowers reception for a score for Baltimore. In the 2nd quarter Pittsburgh took over, getting scores from both Mike Rozier and TE Pat Kelly. Baltimore stormed back in the 3rd, getting two TD’s of their own, one from Donnell Woolford on a pick-six of Risher, and another TD catch from flowers.

So, it all came down to the final quarter, with both teams tied at 24. Pittsburgh would score first, a 32 yard Rafael Septien kick. This was answered with a Barry Foster TD run, as Foster had his best day as a Blitz player, rushing for 112 yards on 21 carries. The Maulers had the final answer however, as they marched down field with time winding down and with only 30 seconds left on the clock, Risher atoned for his earlier pick-6 by finding Raynard Brown for the winning score. Baltimore tried a desperation drive and final Hail Mary but it was not enough as Pittsburgh escaped with a tough divisional win and stays in sole position of first place in the Atlantic.

It is safe to say that everyone watching the USFL this season has been impressed by the play of young QB Brett Favre. Since coming in for an injured Cliff Stoudt in Week 1, he has been lighting up the scoreboard, but often to no avail as the Stallions D has not helped him win many games. This week’s 399 yard performance is his highest yardage total to date, and adding another 3 TD’s to his previous total of 13 puts him among the league leaders.

With Cliff Stoudt scheduled to be able to play in 2 weeks, Coach Erhardt is going to have a tough decision in front of him. Favre has been hot, but facing four tough games against Tampa, Washington, Pittsburgh, and then Arizona, Erhardt may favor the veteran. Favre has won 3 of 5 starts, including the last two games, so if he can pull of a victory next week against Tampa, it may be tough for anyone to question the decision to keep him in when the Stallions host the Federals in 2 weeks. Having Stoudt available and prepped to sub in if needed may just be the best option when you have a young gun who is doing everything right but who may eventually hit a wall or encounter defenses better prepared to face him.

In a slow week for USFL news, we thought it would be fun to take a look at some of the USFL stars who departed for the NFL to see how they were faring in the senior league. Some have found true success, including Super Bowl trophies, while others have had solid careers but not attained the glory they had hoped for.

Among the stellar success stories is former Chicago and Baltimore Blitz Head Coach Marv Levy. After five seasons with the Blitz, including a USFL Championship Game appearance in 1985, Levy left the USFL and has since found a home in Buffalo with the NFL Bills. In his time with the Bills, Levy has turned the blue collar team into a Super Bowl Champion, His squad, led by DE Bruce Smith and QB Boomer Esiason have won their division each of the past 3 years and in Super Bowl XXV they knocked off the New York Giants on a last second Nick Lowery field goal. Congrats to Coach Levy.

Perhaps the biggest name made in the USFL to depart for the NFL is former Michigan Panther QB Bobby Hebert, who joined another former USFL coach, Jim Mora, with the New Orleans Saints. Since arriving in the Big Easy, Mora and Hebert have helped the Saints rise to new levels of success never before seen by the traditional also-rans. Moving the team from 8-8 in 1990 to 12-4 in 1991, and an early favorite for a Super Bowl appearance this season.

QB Steve Young and HB Christian Okoye have also had moderate success since their jump to the NFL before the 1989 season. Young spent a year and a half as the very high-priced understudy to Joe Montana before getting the starting job in San Francisco for the 1991 season. He started 10 games that year, finishing with a 5-5 record. Okoye started off very strong in Kansas City, racking up over 1,400 rushing yards in his first year with the Chiefs, but has had two injury-plagued seasons since then, though he did reach 1,000 yards in 1991, helping KC reach the divisional playoffs before dropping from the postseason.

Ricky Sanders, former receiver from the Houston Gamblers, got himself a Super Bowl ring, winning the title this past January with the Washington Redskins, who kept Buffalo from achieving a repeat, thanks in part to Sanders and his receiving mates, the "Posse". Other former USFL players to win Super Bowl rings include Center Kent Hull (NJ) and LB Ray Bentley (MGN), both with the 1990 Bills, and Safety Dave Dumars (DEN) who left the Gold and immediately found himself on a record-setting defense with the 1985 Chicago Bears.

Less fortunate was one of the USFL's brightest stars over the past few years, wideout Carlos Carson, who signed with the Philadelphia Eagles this past offseason, began Eagles camp only days after the end of his USFL season with Texas and developed a nagging hamstring injury which hampered his ability to play for Philly. Carson would appear in only 10 games for the Eagles and catch only 46 balls for 711 yards, far below his prime seasons in the USFL. With a full NFL offseason to recover, we hope for better things for Carson in the years to come.

Several teams are looking to hit the trade wires and the waiver lists as we hit the mid-season and injuries are beginning to pile up. Oakland will be without T Muhammad Elowinibi for the rest of the year, so look for them to sign a swing tackle to play either side of the line. Baltimore will likely be on the search for a run-stuffing DE after losing Charles Buchanon for the year with a torn ACL, and Jacksonville, who may be without MLB Charles Bratton for as much as 6 weeks, may try to snag a fill-in backer if they can. Houston will be missing Brett Perriman in their offense for at least 2 weeks with his fractured arm, while Portland is hoping that Kerwin Bell’s injury is on pace for a return as early as Week 8.

The Week 7 slate of games includes some interesting divisional battles. In the Atlantic both Baltimore and New Jersey find themselves at 2-4 and need upset wins this week against Pittsburgh and Washington to try to stay alive in the tough division. In the South Orlando is hoping to regain their form against 3-3 Jacksonville while Tampa Bay and Birmingham, both 3-3, hope to get a leg up when they clash this week. In the Central it is a battle royale for the division as Houston visits New Orleans. Meanwhile Texas and Chicago, both at 2-3-1 are hoping not to tie again as one of them is hoping to reach .500 with a win. Out West, St. Louis is hoping for some home cooking against Arizona, while Denver puts their 3-game win streak on the line as they visit Portland. In inter-divisional play, Michigan, losers of 3 in a row, now face the 1-5 Stars who have been playing better than their record indicates. Memphis is hoping to end their 2 game slide, but have a tough task against the defending league champs, who cannot be happy to be 3-3 at this stage of the year.