Any given Sunday is the cliché about football, that any team on any week is capable of winning a game against a heavily favored foe. Well, clichés are built on a basis of truth, and that was made very evident this week as two huge upsets highlighted a weekend slate of games between the Eastern and Western Conferences. Arizona notched its first W of the season as the Wrangler defense finally put together a solid game and Jake Plummer had a white hot first quarter to give Arizona a lead they would not relinquish. As if that were not enough, the LA Express, in their first game under interim HC Mike Nolan, got two Mike Pritchard TDs and held New Jersey to only 200 yards of offense to record only their second win of the season. Add to this a home win for the Houston Gamblers over the favored Jacksonville Bulls and an ascendant St. Louis using home cooking to knock off Atlanta and you have a week that the folks in Vegas hated but fans across the country enjoyed thoroughly. It’s why they play the games.
Despite all the upsets this week, our GOTW was just a straight up battle between two evenly matched teams, both 6-3 and both in the thick of the early playoff hunt. Birmingham, with a share of the Southern lead on the line, was in Chicago, where the Machine have been very good but still find themselves trailing both Michigan and Texas in the Central Division.
The first half saw both clubs bend but not break on defense as a flurry of field goals defined the half. Birmingham was the only club to reach the endzone as Favre connected with Lawrence Dawsey on a blown coverage, a 64-yard TD that helped the Stallions go into the locker room with a 13-6 lead. They would expand that lead in the 3rd before Chicago battled back, led by Alex Van Pelt, who came in when Dan McGwire was ineffective and roughed up.
Favre hit on his 2nd TD of the day, this time to TE Shannon Sharpe, to give the Stallions a 14-point lead just 3 minutes into the 3rd. Chicago again answered with a field goal, as again McGwire was ineffective in the red zone. On the final play before John Carney was trotted out, McGwire missed a wide open Wendell Davis, and appeared to hobble off the field after an awkward collision with a Stallion rusher. It would be the last we saw of the starter on the day.
Alex Van Pelt began the next series and did what McGwire had been unable to do against the Stalliion defense, he put the ball in the endzone with a TD pass to Aubrey Matthews. The score, combined with a 2-point conversion, pulled Chicago to within 3 at 20-17. Things were looking up for Chicago. But, on their next possession, Birmingham tried to slam the door on a Machine comeback as again Favre found Shannon Sharpe, this time from 44 yards out. The big TE blew past the LB, caught the Favre pass in stride and shrugged off a diving tackle from the safety before crossing the goal line. Back up by 10 with only 9 minutes left to play, things looked good for Birmingham.
But, 9 minutes can be an eternity in football, and it is certainly enough time for a club to score 10 points. Coach Marty Schottenheimer, concerned about time, made a shrewd decision that may have helped his club come back. On a 3rd and 13 from the Birmigham 40, rather than desperately try to pick up the first and keep driving for a touchdown, he used a screen play to gain 9 yards and put John Carney in a better position for a field goal. Carney connected and with over 5 minutes left to play, the Machine were only down 7. They would rely on their defense to get the ball back and give Alex Van Pelt a chance to tie the game.
The defense did its job, holding Birmingham to one first down and then sacking Favre on a 3rd and 6 to get the ball back with just over 2 minutes left to play. It would come down to Van Pelt and the Machine offense to tie the game. With all 3 time outs still available, the Machine did not play the sidelines on their final drive. Instead they used the full field, with Van Pelt connecting with Wessley Walls and Ricky Proehl over the middle, and even mixing in an 11 yard Ricky Watters draw play to get down to the Birmingham red zone. On a 3rd and 6, Van Pelt connected with Aubrey Matthews for a first down on the Birmingham 2, and followed that with a perfect play action, faking the dive by Duce Staley and finding second TE Tony Cline all alone in the endzone for the tying score. This game was going to overtime.
Chicago won the toss, and with all the momentum on their side, pushed their way back into Stallion territory again. The home crowd at this point was in full voice, but on a 3rd and 4 the slant pass was just a bit behind Ricky Proehl and glanced off his fingers. Chicago sent out John Carney for a 52-yard attempt to take the lead, but the Chicago winds were a bit stronger than Carney anticipated and the ball hooked to the right. Birmingham would have a chance to take back the game that once seemed solidly theirs. Favre relied on Mike Alstott, who rushed the ball 4 times against a tired Machine D-line. He would gain 32 yards on those 4 carries, pairing an initial 7-yard run, with a 12 yarder, a 6 yarder and finally another 7-yarder to get Birmingham into Chicago territory. Favre then faked the ball to Davis, and instead found Ernest Givens in single coverage to reach the Chicago 28. After a failed 3rd down pass to Walter Reeves it was Olindo Mare’s turn to try to end the game. With the wind blowing right to left on this side of the field, Mare lined up, took aim at the right upright and the ball sliced left and through to give the Stallions the win.
It was a game between two very good clubs, both with a solid set of weapons. Birmingham came away with a key victory and at 7-3 looks very good for a playoff spot. Chicago dropped further behind the leaders in the division, and may now have a QB controversy on their hands, but still looks like a very dangerous club down the stretch.
PIT 18 ARZ 24
A disappointing crowd of only 21,033 saw the Wranglers rustle up their first W of the year as Jake Plummer connected with both Rocket Ismail and TE Keith Cash in the first quarter to take a 14-0 lead and then pin their ears back to harass Robbie Bosco for 3 quarters. Bosco would struggle, throwing for only 197 yards, and a 4th quarter Tim Lester run helped Arizona put the game away for the upset win.
NJ 11 LA 14
Los Angeles took a different path to earn only their 2nd win of the season, though they too did it before a sparse home crowd (only 18,202 in Farmer’s Insurance Field). Jeff Garcia connected on two TD tosses to Mike Pritchard and Antowain Smith carried the ball 25 times for 88 yards as the Express kept New Jersey out of the endzone for 3 quarters before a late Wayne Chrebet score closed the gap. Spence Fischer looked vulnerable as he missed on several key 3rd down passes despite a relatively weak LA pass rush. The loss knocks New Jersey back down to .500 at 5-5.
PHI 24 DEN 23
Back among the league leaders, Philadelphia got a big win in Mile High thanks to a fluke play that avoided overtime. Down 24-17, denver got a Keith Jackson TD with only 13 seconds left on the clock, but as the Mile High faithful celebrated, the snap on the PAT was botched and punter Josh Miller could not bring the ball down for Jeff Wilkens. Miller was swarmed by Philly defenders and the game ended with a 1-point Stars win.
WSH 30 OAK 3
The Federals did not need dramatics to move to 7-2-1 and remain atop the Atlantic. With Bobby Hebert knocked out of the game midway through the 2nd quarter, the Invaders were nullified on offense and Washington just methodically increased their lead over the course of the game, thanks in large part to 145 yards rushing from Barry Word.
BAL 17 POR 20
Baltimore continues to struggle on the road, dropping a close game to the Pacific Division leaders, Portland. Jack Trudeau hit on 2 TD tosses and Robert Drummond carried the ball 22 times for 81 yards, but the big star was DT Mike Golic, who amassed 9 tackles, a sack, and a huge hit on Chris Miller that, while not injuring the Blitz QB, clearly had him looking over his shoulder the rest of the game.
OHI 14 SEA 10
In a downpour in the Emerald City, Seattle slogged through standing water to build a 10-0 lead, but it all fell apart in the 4th quarter as Ohio scored twice to steal a road win. First it was Eddie George who splashed down in the endzone from a yard out, and then, wth only 48 seconds left, it was Hostetler finding Joey Galloway, who seems to be coming on after a very slow start to the year, for a score as Ohio wins their 3rd game for Coach Saban.
JAX 10 HOU 30
That Houston won at home against Jacksonville is not that big an upset, that they did so by 20 points is a bit of a shocker. Thurman Thomas was up to his best form on the day, rushing for 71 yards and catching 4 passes for 80 more as he helped Houston treble the Bulls. The key was the rush defense, which simply shut down both Natrone Means and Kenny Bynum. Jacksonville all but gave up on the run in the second half, already down 14, and that did not help.
MEM 3 MGN 27
The Panthers rolled to their 8th victory of the year as Tyrone Wheatley and Rodney Culver combined for 98 yards and 2 scores on the day. Memphis QB Heath Shuler threw for 255 but could not find the endzone all game as the Michigan secondary toughened up in the red zone.
TBY 27 NOR 22
The Bandits got a much needed win to snap a 5-game losing streak, thanks to 3 second half TDs, two from Errict Rhett and a Shannon Baker 75-yard TD catch and run to blow past the Breakers. Troy Aikman only completed 11 of 23 passes on the day, for 187, but the one time he found Baker deep was deadly.
ATL 27 STL 30
The Knights win their 3rd in a row, and this time it was more about the offense than the D. Todd Collins threw for 251 and a pair of scores, and Darrell Thompson averaged 4.9 YPC on his way to 79 yards and a score on the day for the Knights.
ORL 13 TEX 23
The defense and backup Tony Sacca proved that the Outlaws could win without Kelly Stouffer at the helm. The D limited Kirby and Kantroy Barber to only 73 yards rushing and Tony Sacca threw for 282 with no picks as the Outlaws picked up their 9th win of the year and their first without Stouffer under center.
MVP ALL WRAPPED UP
Yes, we are only 10 weeks into the season, but it is looking more and more like Brett Favre is the only MVP candidate. He is having an absolute monster season with the Stallions, and that has them poised for a possible #1 seed and a deep playoff run. All you need to see to understand how well Favre has been playing is this ratio, 27:1. That’s 27 touchdowns in 10 games to only 1 pick. He has always had high TD numbers, even in down years, but he is keeping his picks so far below what we have gotten used to, and that is all Birmingham needs to be really dangerous. Just compare his 27:1 against last seaosn’s 30:17 total or 1995’s 35:25 monstrosity and yo ucan see why Birmingham is looking so good. His comletion average is also a full 10% higher than last season (63.7% to 53.3%). It has certainly helped that he has not seen injuries to his big receivers, Sharpe, Givens, or Dawsey, unlike last year, but we should also praise the work he is putting in and the focus he has demonstrated this year.
SUPER SOPH
Since we are handing out kudos, we have to recognize how amazing the growth of Philadelphia Stars’ free safety Anthony Dorsett has been in his 2nd year. In his first campaign Dorsett worked his way into the starting lineup, starting the final 7 games of the year, but he finished the season with only 18 tackles and no picks. Ten games into his sophomore season and he leads the league with 6 picks. He also has 41 tackles and has a forced fumble and a recovery. Dorsett has become a major factor in the gameplans of opposing offensive coordinators, and his ballhawking skills are allowing the Stars to play more man coverage, devote more to the passrush and run coverage and feel secure in their secondary. That is a big deal, and the future only looks bright going forward.
OUT OF THE RACE?
So we all went into this season thinking that the Houston Gamblers were gearing up to make a run at either Peyton Manning or Ryan Leaf in the 1998 draft. Clearly Chuck Hartlieb was just a transition QB who would last a season, hopefully play adequately and then make room for the next future franchise QB for the Gamblers, but a funny thing happened on the way to the draft, Hartlieb has looked pretty darned good. Yes, he is hovering only around 50% completions, which is not ideal, and he was hurt for several weeks, missing 2 starts, but in the games he has started and finished Houston is 5-2 and Hartlieb has thrown for 13 TDs to only 4 picks. Does this mean Houston bows out of the QB race? Not entirely, but it may mean that the Gamblers will not throw everything and the kitchen sink into a trade to move up to a top 2 position in the USFL draft. They may very well finish the year at or above .500, and that may mean that they opt to fill other needs in the first round and then either sign a free agent to compete with Hartlieb (assuming free agency is possible with a new CBA) or draft a lower-cost QB in a later round. It must feel good to no longer be considered a team in desperate need for a franchise QB, and while we are not sure that the front office still does not covet one of the Big 2, at least we know that they don’t feel it is an all or nothing bet.
Week 10 means we are ready to look at playoff scenarios and this year there may actually be some clarity early on. Texas, Portland, Washington and Michigan seem to be all but assured a playoff spot, though the Panthers and Outlaws seem destined for a clash atop the Central. Washington and Philly will likely come down to the wire, as might the south with both Birmingham and Jacksonville tied at 7-3. As always it will be the Wild Card slots where we may see some drama. Can New Jersey, Pittsburgh, Tampa or Houston put together a string of wins to move solidly above .500? Can Orlando, Denver and Chicago hold them off? Even St. Louis is only 2 games out and have won 3 in a row to bring back some life to the club.
The grind of a pro season is beginning to take its toll on clubs across the USFL. New Jersey is likely playing with two backup guards for the rest of the year as both Corbin Lacina and Jesse James could be done for the year. Houston will be without their starting free safety Todd Bowles, thanks to a torn MCL. Both Baltimore and New Orleans are going to miss starting CB’s with Torin Dorn and James Hasty ruled out at least 8 weeks. Denver’s top CB, Anthony Tuggle, is expected to miss at least 2 weeks, as is Chicago QB Dan McGwire (out again, after just returning to action 2 weeks ago). Oakland could be without Bobby Hebert for 2 weeks as the QB is dealing with a deep thigh bruise, and in Seattle, top receiver Eric Metcalf looks to be at least a week away from returning from broken ribs.
On the positive side, Michigan is likely to have Doug Flutie back this week, though they certainly are not complaining about the performance of Jeff Lewis in relief as the Panthers are sitting pretty at 8-2. In Seattle edge rusher Jim Reynosa is expected to be back for the first time in over a month, and in Baltimore the Blitz get back one of their key defenders as Duane Bickett is expected to return to action after missing the past 3 weeks with a shoulder injury.
This week the USFL tried to take some attention off its labor concerns by releasing (2 weeks earlier than anticipated) the names of the 5 former players who will be enshrined in Canton as members of the class of 1997. Three players will be inducted into the hall in their first year of eligiblity while two others are in after previously barely missing out in their first eligible year. Here are your 1997 USFL inductees into the Pro Football Hall of Fame
JOE CRIBBS
Halfback, Birmingham Stallions (1984-1992)
Cribbs was an almost shoe-in for first ballot induction. The Auburn product came to the Stallions from the NFL Buffalo Bills after a heated contract dispute between the two leagues. In the USFL he became an instant league leader. He finished his career with 12,557 yards rushing, a lifetime yards per carry average of 4.4 yards and 83 rushing touchdowns. Cribbs was the USFL Offensive Player of the Year in his first season in Birmingham, and was named to All-USFL teams 7 times. He retired as the #4 all time rusher in the USFL in attempts, yards, and touchdowns. His 1,765 yards rushing in 1984 remains the second highest total ever, just behind Herschel Walker’s 1983 record of 1,767, and he still holds the single game record with 262 yards rushing in a game against the Memphis Showboats in 1986.
WILLIAM CESARE
Safety, Birmingham Stallions (1983-1987), Chicago Machine (1988-1992)
A 2 time All-USFL player at Strong Safety, Cesare retired after splitting his career between the Birmingham Stallions and Chicago Machine. He left the game with 82 passes defended, 13 interceptions, and 945 tackles (2nd among Safeties) to his name. Cesare was known as a violent hitter and was unafraid to take on rushers out of the backfield. His best season was 1986 with Birmingham, when he recorded 104 tackles, including 14 in one game against Pittsburgh.
JACKIE FLOWERS
Receiver, Arizona Wranglers (1983), Chicago/Baltimore Blitz (1984-1992)
A bit of a surprise as a first ballot entrant. Flowers never got the press of more flamboyant receivers like Eric Truvillion or Anthony Carter, but was a quintessential speed receiver in the league for a decade. Starting with a single season in Arizona, Flowers was part of the full roster swap between the Wranglers and Blitz in 1984, and would remain with the Blitz for the rest of his career. He retired with 739 career receptions for 11,803 yards and 93 touchdowns. Known for his speed and his willingness to leap to catch balls that might seem out of reach, Flowers was named an ALL-USFL player 4 times in his 10 year career. He reached the 1,000 yard plateau 8 times in his steady career, with his best season being a 1,574 yard, 19 touchdown season in 1986.
CRAIG JAMES
Halfback, Washington Federals (1983-1989)
James beat out Michigan’s John Williams to earn induction, despite only playing 7 seasons in the league. A straight-ahead runner, James was the focal point for the early Federals squad, rushing for over 1,000 yards every season of his career, including a 1,400 yard season in 1984. He retired due to ongoing knee issues in 1987 with a total of 8,908 yards rushing and 53 rushing touchdowns. Like Cribbs, his squads never saw playoff glory, but he was still seen as one of the league’s early season stars coming out of the Pony Express of SMU in the early 80’s.
JUMPY GEATHERS
Defensive Tackle, Boston Breakers (1983-1984), Michigan Panthers (1985), Philadelphia Stars (1986-1990)
A little love for the defensive side of the ball as in his third year on the ballot, Geathers is awarded with hall induction. A six-time All-USFL selection and key defensive cog in the 1987 Philadelphia Stars championship, Gaethers retired with 43 sacks (4th all time for a DT), 368 tackles, and 67 tackles for loss. Considered one of the first pass-rushing DTs, Gaether’s power rush was an early predecessor for later stars like Jerome Brown and Michael Dean Perry.
We are in the home stretch with 6 games left to play and a lot on the line. Week 11 has the Western Conference back to divisional play while the East has interdivisional games. A huge game for Chicago if they hope to make up ground in the Central as they host the Texas Outlaws without Kelly Stouffer. If Chicago can get the win, they pull within 2 games of Texas, and Michigan could move into a tie. All the Panthers would need is a win in Houston. St. Louis and New Orleans are bringing up the rear in the division but the Knights have been hot lately and could get to 5-6 with a win.
In the Pacific both Portland and Denver have to take care of business against struggling opponents. Arizona got their first win of the year last week, but are a big 13 point underdog at home to the Thunder. Denver are at home in Mile High to face an Invaders team playing without Bobby Hebert. Meanwhile in LA, the Express and Dragons are both hoping for their 3rd win, LA with an interim head coach and Seattle with a coach very much on the hot seat.
In the East, the best game has Philadelphia headed south to face the Orlando Renegades, though we are also hoping to catch the battle between two clubs surprised to be 5-5 when Pittsburgh travels to Tampa Bay. Jacksonville will host the Generals, Baltimore travels to Birmingham, and Washington is hoping to get the better of Atlanta in Bobby Dowd Stadium. Finally, neither Memphis or Ohio seem to be playoff bound, but for Coach Cameron and Coach Saban every win is key as they try to hold onto their jobs.
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