Interconference, cross country games can sometimes be the wildest, because the two teams do not know each other well and because the long journey for the visiting team can either galvanize the team or drain them. Well, this matchup of Pacific coast vs. Atlantic coast was no exception, it was wild from the very beginning and finished with one of the most action-packed 2-minute drills ever.
Both teams traded touchdown drives in the first half, leading to a 14-14 halftime score. Oakland had a nice, sustained drive on the first possession of the game, ending with Siran Stacy going off tackle from the 2 to open scoring. Jacksonville responded with a long drive of their own, 82 yards to be exact, a drive capped off by a nicely designed flood pattern that allowed Tony Eason to find HB Jamie Morris for the score to even things up. In the second quarter the Bulls took the lead on a 1 yard Vince Workman run made possible by a 32-yard pass from Eason to Hassan Jones that should have gone for 6 if not for a misstep on the sideline that put the ball out just shy of paydirt. Oakland responded and 4 minutes later it was Stacy again crossing the plain, this time on a really nice sweep play from the 11.
The 3rd quarter began with the first of two pick-sixes thrown by Bobby Hebert. This one, unlike the later one, was really not Hebert’s fault. He threw a good ball to WR Wyatt Henderson, but the ball careened off of Henderson’s hands and right into the waiting arms of Alex Clark for the Bulls. Undeterred, Hebert continued to air the ball out. He would finish the game with 403 yards passing on a 28 of 44 day. On the next drive he found TE Sam Bowers from 18 yards out to even the score once again at 21.
As the 4th opened, Oakland took the lead on a Matt Bahr field goal, but the lead would not hold long. Brian Blades quickly put Jacksonville back on top with the 2nd TD for Tony Eason. Eason would finish the day with only 186 yards passing, but, thanks largely to the ballhawking secondary of the Bulls, Jacksonville would still prevail. Down 28-24 with less than 2 minutes to go, Oakland moved the ball well into Bulls territory, but got impatient. Hebert threw into double coverage, trying to get a big play to Ellard, but former Gambler Domingo Bryant came away with the jump ball, and with blockers out in front was able to return the pick 71 yards for a score that put the Bulls up by 10. Stoyanovich clunked the PAT off the upright, meaning that Oakland was still in range, but needed 2 scores.
After a fair catch on the kickoff, it took Bobby Hebert only 1 play to get Jacksonville right back in the game. He found Mark Duper on a hook & go, the corner bit on the hook, and Duper was gone, 75 yards in one play to pull the Invaders within 3. They, as expected, went for the onside kick. The ball took the big hop that every kicker wants, and was muffed by the Jacksonville up man. Oakland recovered and needed only 15-20 yards to get into field goal range for Matt Bahr. Hebert hit McCaffrey for 9 on the first play, then an 8-yarder to HB Fred McAfee took the ball to the Jacksonville 30. A quick spike and Matt Bahr came out for a 47 yarder. He lined it up, but just as he took his first steps, the refs granted Jacksonville a timeout. Bahr followed through and the ball went between the uprights, but it would not count. The timeout was granted and Bahr would have to line up again. This time he hit the ball and it immediately started slicing left. The ball sailed about 2 feet wide of the mark and Jacksonville escaped with a win. Despite being outgained by Oakland 483-244 the Bulls came away with a win thanks to an opportunistic defense and a very shrewd timeout at the game’s conclusion. That almost certainly made for a very quiet plane ride back to Oakland for the Invaders squad.
BAL 24 PIT 20
A very nice win for Coach Infante and the Blitz as they go on the road and hold Pittsburgh to only 20 points. Mike Rozier was held in check by the Baltimore D, gaining only 32 yards on the day, while Barry Foster had one of his better games, rushing for 55 on the day. The big star for the Blitz was Bill Brooks, who caught 8 balls for 120 yards and a sore despite being double covered most of the day.
PHI 10 WSH 26
The Federals got their first win of the year, beating Philly at home despite an impressive 136-yard effort from Kelvin Bryant. The game marked the return of Barry Word to the Feds backfield after going out early in Week 1 with an injury. Word was also impressive, rushing for 140 on 22 carries and adding a key TD to help the Feds get in the win column for the first time this year.
BIR 38 ORL 28
Birmingham’s offense continued to hum along, despite Brett Favre throwing 4 interceptions. He also threw for 4 TD’s so it was a bit of a give-and-take from him. Tight Ends Shannon Sharpe and Walter Reeves were huge for the Stallions, catching a combined 8 balls for 121 yards and 2 scores between the two. For Orlando the star was John Jefferson, who caught 11 balls for 106 yards and 2 scores in a losing cause.
MEM 34 TBY 21
Jo-Jo Townsell had a huge game for Memphis (10 receptions for 140 yards and 2 scores) as the Showboats relied on the passing game to upend the Bandits in Tampa Stadium. Santana Dotson and Reggie White accounted for 3 of the team’s 4 sacks of Troy Aikman, and CB Deon Figures added 2 picks, including one for a TD to help the Showboats move to 2-1 and stay 1 game behind the Stallions.
TEX 38 CHI 24
A big day for Reggie Cobb and 3 Bernie Kosar interceptions helped Texas upend the Machine in front of the largest crowd Chicago has had in 5 seasons (41,202). Cobb rushed for 116 yards and 2 scores to help pace Texas to the win. His 4th quarter TD broke a 24-24 tie and was followed by a tip-drill interception that turned into a game-clinching TD for LB Garth Jax. It was Kosar’s third pick of the day as Texas applied constant pressure.
HOU 24 NOR 38
In a game that saw Houston backup David Klingler get knocked out of the game early, and even saw Ricky Proehl lineup at QB for several plays after 3rd stringer Chuck Hartlieb was temporarily sidelined, the Gamblers just did not have enough consistency to hang with a red hot Danny McManus. The Breaker QB had a career game, throwing for 337 yards and 4 scores in a game the Breakers knew they had to win.
DEN 41 POR 20
The Denver Gold have apparently figured out how to play offense this year. Dave Krieg threw for 3 scores, and the combo of Means and Timmy Smith gained 120 yards and 2 scores as Denver rolled in Portland’s Civic Stadium. The score was close, 24-20 until Denver ripped off 17 unanswered points to finish the game.
ARZ 34 STL 16
The Knights are still seeking their first win after being shut down by the Arizona defense. Dan McGwire threw 3 interceptions and missed on several key 3rd down throws, leading to questions of whether David Archer would be subbed in. He was not, but McGwire cannot afford too many games like this. Meanwhile, Arizona, despite being outgained in the game, got two big scores from HB Darryl Clack to propel them to a comfortable win.
MGN 20 NJ 24
Doug Flutie threw for 303 yards and 3 scores as Michigan held Herschel Walker to 50 yards on 20 carries. Walker seems to be off his game this season, causing fans to wonder if he has reached the wall that so many HBs seem to hit. Fortunately Doug Flutie was on his game, finding Lam Jones for all 3 scores on the day.
We could give the POTW award to several QB’s who had strong games, including Flutie’s outstanding performance against the Panthers, but rather than focus on the QB position, let’s celebrate the wideouts who make those impressive games possible. Lam Jones has never made an ALL-USFL team, but he has been one of the constants for the Generals since coming into the league in 1985. He has had 1,000 yard seasons 7 times in 8 years, missing that mark by only 4 yards in 1988. He also has 61 TDs in 8 years, nearly an 8-per-year average.
This year he has started strong, with 17 receptions in 3 games and a huge 3-TD performance this week. Known for his deep ball speed, Jones has improved his route running and has taken well the advise provided by teammate Irving Fryar. The duo give Doug Flutie two deep ball options, and with Herschel Walker averaging only 55 yards per game so far this year, the ability to get big chunks of yardage in the air has been key to New Jersey’s offense.
With two new head coaches this year (Phillips in Denver and Berry in Philly) as well as 13 new coordinators (6 offensive and 7 defensive) around the league, it seems that there is hardly a USFL squad that is not adapting to a new scheme, or in some cases, entirely new systems on both sides of the ball. We thought this would be a good time to look at they offensive and defensive schemes used by all 20 franchises. Here is the basic breakdown, with comments to follow:
EAST OFF/DEF WEST OFF/DEF
BAL: West Coast/4-3 ARZ: West Coast/3-3-5
BIR: Pro Set/4-3 CHI: Smashmouth/4-3
JAX: Vertical/3-3-5 DEN: Power Run/3-4
MEM: Smashmouth/4-6 HOU: Spread/3-4
NJ: Power Run/3-3-5 MGN: Vertical/3-4
ORL: Pro Set/4-3 NOR: West Coast/4-3
PHI: Smashmouth/4-3 OAK: West Coast/3-4
PIT: Pro Set/3-4 POR: Power Run/4-3
TBY: Vertical/4-3 STL: West Coast/3-3-5
WSH: Pro Set/4-3 TEX: Pro Set/3-4
The biggest surprise we see is that there are not teams imitating the multiple-receiver sets and single back offense of the Houston Gamblers. The Run & Shoot which began in Houston with Coach Jack Pardee and OC Mouse Davis was experimented with in other locations, but the tendency for this offense to lead to a lot of sacks and QB injuries seems to have caused teams to shy away from it. Not surprising the Western Conference as more teams utilizing a West Coast offense, while Smashmouth and Power Run strategies are more prevalent in the East. A lot depends on personnel as teams either opt for a single power back (Bryant, Rozier, Walker, Boone) or focus on multiple speedy receivers and a HB rotation.
On defense the trend is to play more nickel personnel sets (3-3-5) to offset the prevalence of the pass in the USFL. Buddy Ryan remains the only holdout with his 4-6 defense, though several other 4-3 teams often align in 4-6 formations. Again personnel have a lot to say in the defensive preferences of each team as the league’s limited cap & exemption system does not often permit teams to have top level talent in both the D-line and the linebacking corps. You can almost predict which teams are trying to cover up weaknesses in one team or another by the defensive formation. Teams with strong DT play tend to line up in a 4-3, while others, with speedy backers, tend to favor the 3-4. Just a little insight into the strategy and personnel decisions in the USFL this year.
An unfortunate truth about pro football is that with each game there is greater chance of injury. While we have yet to see any season-ending injuries (knocking on wood), the number of multiple-game absences continues to grow. This week Texas CB Najee Mustafaa, who has struggled with injuries of late, has gone down with an abdominal tear, which could cost him up to 8 weeks of action. St. Louis wideout Emile Harry will not miss that much time with a pulled hamstring, but expect him to be out at least a month. Oakland guard Harry Grimminger could miss as much as a month with an ankle injury, and Washington SS Louis Oliver will be out at least 2 weeks after suffering a knee injury on Sunday.
As we mentioned, both David Klingler and Chuck Hartlieb were knocked out of the game for Houston this week, forcing them to use Ricky Proehl as an emergency QB (He did not complete a pass.) Fortunately Hartlieb was able to return, and Jim Kelly is expected back next week. Klingler, who injured his throwing hand, could be out for 1-2 more weeks.
Week 4 continues our streak of divisional play, with some intriguing matchups. Denver at 2-1 is hoping to keep their good start rolling as they visit winless St. Louis. Arizona has a huge road game as well, heading up to Oakland to face the defending division champ. In the Central Division Chicago has another huge divisional game, heading to Michigan to face the Panthers, while Texas and Houston will once again face off, this time in the AstroDome. In the South it is Orlando at Jacksonville and Tampa traveling to undefeated Birmingham. And in the Atlantic Division first place New Jersey is at home to last year’s division champion, Pittsburgh, while Washington and Baltimore engage in their I-295 rivalry. In inter-divisional play it will be Philly hosting the Breakers and Memphis hosting the Portland Thunder.