While still an upset, based on the Las Vegas lines, a lot of folks saw this one coming. Memphis, playing without Mike Kelley, has struggled to move the ball and put up points. Their defense is still elite, but without an offense to sustain drives, they tire by the end of the game. Orlando, with veteran Reggie Collier at the helm, can still put together a solid offensive game. In this week’s matchup, Orlando took advantage of the tiring Memphis D, scoring on 3 late game drives to turn a 24-16 deficit into a 31-24 victory.
The first quarter of this game saw both teams move the ball well in the middle of the field, but bog down in the red zone, leading to 3 field goals, two from Orlando’s Fuad Reveiz, and one from Memphis’s Kevin Shea. Memphis would get the first TD of the game, midway through the 2nd quarter, with a Jo-Jo Townsell TD from former Heisman winner, Gino Torretta, who came in for an injured Shawn Moore and played most of the 2nd and 3rd quarters.
Orlando responded with a field goal to make the score 10-9 in favor of the Showboats. Memphis then got another solid drive from Torretta, ending with a short TD pass to TE John Embree and Memphis led 17-9 at the half. They began the second half in much the same way, with Keith Jackson now getting in on the scoring. Up 24-9, things looked good for Memphis, but their defense, which had held the Renegades to only 3 field goals, was tiring, and making mistakes, and those would end up becoming huge for Orlando.
Orlando started to shift the momentum late in the 3rd, when on two consecutive 3rd and long downs, Collier made plays, one a scramble, one an impromptu shovel pass to Boone, to make first downs. The drive concluded with Collier finding Wamon Buggs for 6. Everyone from the stands to the broadcast booth saw the momentum shifting, and only 2 minutes later, helped by a Tommy Agie fumble, Orlando got evenc closer. Just 2 plays after the costly fumble, Collier hit Carlos Etheridge for another score, and it was now tied up at 24 with a bootleg Collier run for the 2-point play.
On their next drive, Orlando would take the lead. Collier passed them down the field, with some good running by both Dalton Hilliard and Todd Fowler, and from the 1 it was Fowler who dove off center and got the score that would determine the game. Orlando kept a returned Shawn Moore in check, and the Renegades hung on to win, only their 3rd victory of the season. For fans of the Showboats, a promising start of the season seemed to be melting away as they looked at the prospect of 5 more weeks with either Torretta or Moore at QB. The defense could not do it all alone. They would need more from the offense to eat up clock, keep the D off the field, and get some points on the board.
STL 24 TBY 14
In a game that saw Coach Spurrier actually pull Troy Aikman out of frustration, the Tampa Bay offense simply did not have a coherent plan to attack the Knights defense. Meanwhile, TD’s from both Thompson and Jordan for the Knights, paired with a defense that had Aikman and Fourcade running for cover, was all St. Louis needed to earn a 4th win and a slim shot at Wild Card contention.
TEX 14 WSH 17 OT
It took an extra period, but he homestanding Federals got a win against a plucky Texas squad. The Feds nearly blew it, starting with a 14-0 lead on TDs from Kirby and Walters. But in the second half, the tide turned, and Texas got 2 early field goals and a last minute TD from Stouffer to Early. They needed 2 to tie, and they got it on a Roosevelt Potts run. Washington pulled it out with an overtime field goal, and Texas saw Reggie Cobb go down to what might be a season-ending injury, so it was doubly painful for the Outlaws.
OAK 30 POR 16
The Oakland offense found its rhythm with Hebert back under center and got a 20-point 2nd quarter to outpace the Thunder. Siran Stacy was the hero of the day with 16 carries for 157 yards, a whopping 9.8 ypc average. Mark Duper was back and caught a TD to go with 120 yards receiving, and Henry Ellard benefited, scoring also for the Invaders in a solid win for Coach Vermeil.
DEN 23 ARZ 17
The Wranglers played Denver tough, and Mitchell avoided costly turnovers, but the offense was just not there for Arizona, and Denver eked out a win thanks to a late TD from Krieg to Novacek. Neither team had a distinct advantage in yardage, yet somehow the Gold capitalized while the Wranglers could not. Mick Luckhurst went 1 for 3 on field goal attempts, which helped Denver get the tight win.
MGN 13 NOR 31
Timm Rosenbach got the start after several poor McManus games, and got New Orleans a win for the first time in nearly 2 months. Marcus Dupree was a huge weapon for Rosenbach, scoring both on the ground and on a 61 yard play that started with a 5 yard swing route. The New Orleans defense, absent for many weeks, did their part as well, sacking Jack Trudeau 4 times and snagging 2 of his passes to help kill Michigan drives as the Breakers get back in the win column.
CHI 24 HOU 45
In a battle for first in the Central, the homestanding Houston Gamblers proved too much on offense for the Machine. Jim Kelly won offensive POTW honors with his 393 yard, 3 TD week, but it could have just as easily gone to league leading rusher Thurman Thomas, who ran for 112 and 2 scores, and added another 32 yards in the air. Ernie Jones continued to grow into his role, catching 4 balls for 132 yards and 2 scores as the Gamblers dismantled the Machine defense and held Bernie Kosar in check (3 TDs but also 2 Ints).
BIR 41 JAX 31
A matchup between Brett Favre and Mike Shula hardly seems fair, but the plucky former Alabama QB did himself proud, throwing for 442 yards and 3 TD’s against the Stallions defense. It was, in the end, not enough, as Favre also had 3 scores, and both Clarence Collins (Subbing for a dinged up Lawrence Dawsey) and Ernest Givens went over 100 yards receiving.
PIT 16 PHI 10
Another smashmouth game in the Atlantic Division as the Keystone State Classic had two teams clawing for victory to the final minute. In the end, 101 yards from Mike Rozier, and a 3rd quarter bomb from Risher to Louis Lipps was enough to give Pittsburgh the win and retain their hold on 1st place in the tight division.
BAL 17 NJ 20
Don’t look now, but the Generals seem to be making a late run for a Wild Card, winning their last 3. Doug Flutie has been playing better of late, avoiding the picks and setting up the New Jersey offense. In this game he went 33 of 44 for 348 (145 of that to Lam Jones), and got a good game from rookie TE Mark Chmura. New Jersey held on for the win despite a strong game from Baltimore wideout Mervyn Fernandez, who caught 6 for 118 yards and a score.
While Jim Kelly was a pretty clear choice for offensive POTW with his big game against a tough division rival, there were two defensive players who nearly split the defensive POTW vote down the middle. The first was Pittsburgh DE John Bosa, who did a bit of everything to help the Maulers upend the Stars. He had only 2 tackles on the day, but recorded 2 sacks, one being a late safety when he took down Chuck Long in the Philly endzone. He also caused and recovered a key fumble near the end of the 2nd quarter to keep the Stars from taking momentum with a late first half score.
The second candidate was another big DE, George Hinkle of the Jacksonville Bulls. Hinkle had 3 tackles, which does not say much, but he had one masterful play which almost turned the tide for the Bulls against Birmingham. Midway through the 3rd, Hinkle got around the Birmingham tackle, caught the arm of QB Brett Favre, popping the ball out. It bounced right back up to Hinkle, who grabbed it and rumbled into the endzone for a sack-fumble-recover-TD. It was a crazy play that saw Favre seemingly unaware of just what happened until he watched it on the big screen replay in disbelief.
In the end the AP voters went with Bosa and his whole-game performance, but that one play for Hinkle is likely to get a lot of replays over the years as a great example of both hustle and good luck.
Not a lot shifted with this week’s results. All 4 division leaders remain in the lead. Houston expanded their lead to a healthy 3 games, While Denver and Oakland creeped a bit closer to Arizona. Memphis is clearly fading, and now both New Jersey and Philadelphia are in range to leapfrog the ailing Showboats. Birmingham still looks like the team to beat in the East, although we are not sure who can beat them now that Favre is back under center.
A double dose of sad news for Tampa Bay Bandit fans this week as the franchise lost both their head coach and their owner in the span of 3 days. On Monday, after another tough loss for the Bandits, Head Coach Steve Spurrier announced he would be leaving the Bandits to take on the vacant head coaching position at his alma mater, the U. of Florida. The mid-season resignation comes as Tampa has all but collapsed from preseason predictions of a deep playoff run to a reality beset by injuries, sloppy play, and losses. Spurrier’s defensive coordinator Ron Zook takes over as the interim coach for the Bandits.
More tragically, the Bandits, the league and the world lost one of the USFL’s great pioneers this week, as Bandits owner John Bassett lost his battle with cancer. Bassett will be remembered in the sports world as one of the innovators who helped the USFL become a part of the American sports landscape. It was his leadership that guided the USFL through its opening years, even more, say many, than that of Commissioner Chet Simmons. When a challenge to the spring football concept rose in then New Jersey Generals owner Donald Trump’s push to move the league to the Fall in hopes of forcing a merger with the NFL, it was Bassett who led the opposition and helped many owners see the benefits of a spring season. League officials have already been in discussion about how to properly memorialize one of the league’s founders, leaders, and innovators. Black ribbon decals will be worn on helmets on all 20 teams this week, and we expect further honors to come. To the Bassett family, the entire league and all who love the USFL wish to offer their condolences and loving memories of John Bassett.
Bad news for fans of the ground game as two quality backs go down for the rest of the year this week. In Texas the Outlaws will need to make a playoff push without Reggie Cobb, as the big back tore his ACL this week and will need up to a full year to rehab after surgery. In Washington, promising rookie Terry Kirby also suffered an ACL injury, but his is only a partial tear, still likely to require 2 months to heal. Texas will turn to rookie Roosevelt Potts to carry the load on the ground, while Washington will have Barry Word as their lead back and now will turn to former Renegade Curvin Richards to spell Word.
The other spot where we saw significant injuries this week was in defensive secondaries, where we several quality players are now looking at 1-2 weeks of inaction due to a variety of injuries. This includes St. Louis SS Al Burleson (neck), Arizona SS David Fulcher (arm), Tampa SS Chris Crooms (foot), Denver FS Charles Mincy (abdominal), and New Jersey CB Kirby Jackson (collarbone). New Jersey is expecting Eric McMillian back from injury in Week 12, but in the short term they will be shorthanded. Others expected to return to action, perhaps as soon as this week, include Arizona DE Jon Carter, Pittsburgh FS Pat Terrell, Stallions tackle Emory Yates, Oakland LB Randy Kirk, Memphis DT Curtis Maxey, and Oakland TE Sam Bowers.
Week 12 offers more vital divisional games, headlined by the matchup of 7-4 Atlantic Division leaders as the Federals visit the Maulers. Philly and New Jersey are also facing off in the Meadowlands, where the winner will move to 6-6 and remains alive in the Wild Card hunt. In the South, a reeling Memphis squad has a tough task in the Gator Bowl against the Bulls. Tampa and Orlando face off again as well, each trying to avoid the division basement.
In the Central it is Chicago at New Orleans and Michigan at Texas, with both favorites trying to move a step closer to a playoff berth. Out West we find Arizona hosting the 5-6 Portland Thunder, and Oakland traveling to St. Louis, with all 4 teams still hoping to string together some wins to finish the year in playoff position. In our interdivisional games we have two of the league’s most dynamic offenses in action as the Houston Gamblers travel to Baltimore and the Birmingham Stallions host Denver.