Wild Card Weekend provided us with a bit of everything, big performances, close contests, a blowout, an MVP performance, and an upset (though hardly a major one). Across the country we saw excitement for USFL Football in July, and in the 4 stadia we saw huge crowds, with the 4 games averaging 51,300 fans, including nearly over 60,000 in Birmingham on a muggy July afternoon and 55,000 who sat through a rain delay (lightning) in Denver). TV ratings were outstanding, and the games themselves were a lot of fun (well, 3 of 4, and it depends who you were rooting for). Let’s get to the action in the order of games this weekend, starting in B’Ham with a big win for the Stallions.
In the eternal battle between unstoppable offense and unbreakable defense, this one went hands down to the offense. Brett Favre put in an MVP performance with 432 yards passing and 5 TDs as the Stallions manhandled the Federals and put this one away by the half. The Federal defense has not been as stout as in past years and this game showed just how much it has declined. Yes, the Feds did sack Brett Favre 4 times on the day, but he threw for 432 yards on only 18 completions, an average of nearly 16 yards per completion. Stephen Davis also had a good outing after returning from injury last week. He rushed for 86 yards and a score in limited action as the Stallions found it easier to stay in the air most of the game.
The game started with Favre hitting Marcus Robinson, the 3rd receiver, on 2 consecutive drives, putting Birmingham up 14-0 and signaling that this could be a long day for the 8-8 Federals who only clinched a playoff spot on the last week of the season. The Feds would get on the board with an Andre Coleman TD catch, but that was followed by 21 unanswered Stallion points, including a 48-yard Stephen Davis run and Marcus Robinson’s third TD catch of the game. From that point on the result of the game was a given and Birmingham simply coasted to victory in front of a huge and very happy Birmingham crowd. CB Torey James ended the scoring at 49 points with a pick-six late in the 4th, sending the Federals back to DC on what had to be a very long, very dour flight.
Birmingham will now face Baltimore in the second round, another offense v. defense showdown, and after this week’s performance, Baltimore’s defensive coordinator might want to put in a few extra hours in the office this week.
An upset in San Antonio, but one that many of us expected, with even Las Vegas calling the game a push once it was confirmed that Kelly Stouffer was unable to play. Tommy Maddox got the start for the outlaws, and he had a solid, if unconvincing game, but Michigan came in expecting a close game and preaching mistake-free football, and they came very close to providing that for their small contingency of fans tucked away in the north end zone of the AlamoDome. For most of the fans in the stands, those sporting Outlaws colors, the game was an exercise in frustration.
Michigan dominated the first half, with Tyrone Wheatley carrying the ball 13 times for 42 yards and the Panthers milking the clock on their way to 3 field goals. Texas was able to hold them out of the endzone, but their offense was proving difficult to kick start. Michigan keyed on Reggie Cobb, who managed only 21 yards in the first half. Texas did get a break when Michigan TE Desmond Clark stretched for a first down and lost the ball, giving Texas the ball in field goal territory. They ended up getting the 3 and went into the half down only 9-6 despite being outgained 188-103 in the half.
Michigan opened the second half with yet another field goal drive, using up nearly 9 minutes slowly progressing the ball down the field. Texas had a shot to stop them, but a 3rd and 5 play that at first looked like a certain sack for Mark Mraz turned into one of the patented Flutie scrambles that saw him just pass the line before falling out of bounds. Down 12-3, Texas needed a big play.
They got that big play from the league’s reception leader, possession specialist Shawn Collins, not known for blazing speed. Collins caught a simple hook route, one of dozens this year, but this time he managed to spin away from the initial tackle and 48 yards later he was in the endzone, the first 6-pointer of the game, and a score that brought Texas back into the game, down only 2. That is how the 3rd quarter would close, with Outlaw fans feeling that the game might just turn their way.
The Outlaw faithful lost some hope when on their next possession Michigan managed to break through and score the TD after so many prior drives ended on the foot of Brett Conway. Texas helped Michigan get there with a huge offsides penalty called on 3rd and 3, and then a defensive pass interference call in the endzone to put the ball on the 1. Michigan pounded it in, with Wheatley diving off center left to increase the Michigan lead to 9 points.
Texas would get the lead back down to 2, but it took them too long to do so. The Maddox to Eugene Baker TD toss came with only 37 seconds to play, and when the onside kick was safely recovered by Michigan’s Butch Rolle, the Panthers celebrated as Flutie used the victory formation to wind down the clock.
Texas, who seemed to own the Central Division for much of the year, lost the division title last week, and bowed out of the playoffs this week. Fans will look at the injury to Kelly Stouffer as the reason, but in this game Maddox did enough to win, but the defense simply could not finish on 3rd down and get Michigan off the field, at least not before they got in field goal range, and that consistency on offense helped the Panthers advance to a huge game next week at Los Angeles.
Another tooth and nail battle, this time with two aggressive defenses making their mark on the game. On a humid Sunday afternoon at Three Rivers, just under 50,000 fans showed up to watch their Maulers take on the Renegades in a matchup of the two hottest clubs in the league. The focus of both defenses was on the halfback position, with Pittsburgh trying to limit Terry Kirby’s role as a receiver and Orlando hoping to bottle up Terrell Davis’s power run game. Both teams had midling success in their missions. Kirby would be the leading receiver for Orlando with 6 catches, but only gained 32 yards in the air (along with a rough 19 on the ground). Orlando managed to hold Terrell Davis to only 63 yards rushing, but his 3rd quarter TD was a huge momentum shift in the game.
Pittsburgh began strong, owning the first quarter by possessing the ball for 9 minutes in the period and putting up 2 Scott Blanton field goals to take a 6-0 lead. But, in the 2nd the tide turned after a Charlie Batch pick. The takeaway inspired the Renegades, who would go ahead 7-6 on an Amos Zeroue 9 yard run on that drive. After shutting down the Maulers in 3 plays on the next possession, Orlando expanded their lead to 14-6 on their next possession, moving the ball down the field with short passes to Reidel Anthony and Tamarick Vanover before Zeroue again plunged into the endzone. At the half, Orlando held the edge.
Pittsburgh began the 2nd half with the ball and in two big plays they turned the momentum. The first was a screen to Davis that went for 47 yards, shattering the image of Davis as a power back without much of a receiving game. 2 plays later, Davis took a pitch on a sweep to the wide side and plowed his way 16 yards for a score. Pittsburgh went for 2 and Charlie Batch used a pass-run option on a bootleg to find the corner pylon and convert. The score was now knotted up at 14 and all the momentum was on the Mauler sideline.
That momentum became destiny when Scott Mitchell fumbled after being hit by Godfrey Miles. The ball was recovered by Patrick Surtain, and Pittsburgh converted with a field goal to take the lead once again. The defense would continue to cause problems for Orlando throughout the second half, picking off Mitchell 2 drives later and causing the offensive line to get called for holding on 3 separate occasions. Orlando still had a chance after the 4th Mauler field goal put Pittsburgh up by 6 at 20-14, but on their final drive a miscue on a 3rd and 7 caused two Orlando receivers to compete for the ball and knock it away from each other. That forced a 4th and 7 and a pressured Mitchell could not get the ball to Donald Driver on a desperation toss, ending Orlando’s comeback hope and giving the win to the homestanding Maulers.
Pittsburgh now heads to Memphis to face the top seeded Showboats. They will need a huge defensive performance and a big day from Davis to upend the 12-4 Showboats in what should be a packed Liberty Bowl.
The weekend concluded with a Mile High matchup that took an unexpected turn when Denver QB Mark Brunell was knocked out of the game with a hit to the head that left him woozy and unbalanced after only 1 quarter. Eric Wilhelm and Jeff Lewis would have to split time for three full quarters if the Gold were to pull this one out.
Brunell had been looking good prior to the injury, completing all but 3 pass attempts on his way to 111 yards but the Gold had been unable to turn this success into points. Houston’s defense was effective in shutting down 3rd downs and as the Gold tried to adapt to a new QB Houston took advantage, building a 10-0 lead at the half.
Denver’s defense was also having a solid day, limiting Kevin Faulk to only 23 yards on the day, and Houston made the odd choice to mix Faulk in with Mario Greer rather than Dorsey Levins, perhaps believing that Denver was more susceptible to speedy outside runs than a power game. That strategy did not seem effective as the Gamblers were limited in their success on the ground, and Greer averaged only 1.6 yards per carry.
Denver started the comeback as the 3rd quarter began, with Eric Wilhelm in charge the Gold mounted two fairly successful drives, both ending with field goals, to bring the game to a manageable 10-6 deficit after 3 quarters. Most of the 4th quarter was a war of attrition, with neither offense able to muster anything, but with just over 3 minutes left in the game, Denver got their big break. Chuck Hartlieb tried to squeeze a ball in to Antonio Freeman, but was picked off by Denver CB Bruce Pickens. That play sparked the Gold and 6 plays later Wilhelm found Odessa Turner on a fade route to give the Gold the lead at 13-10.
Houston would need a 2-minute drill comeback to pull off the road win, what they got instead was a tipped ball at their own 22 yard line, a ball caught by veteran LB Kurt Gouveia, and that led to another Gold field goal with 48 seconds left to play, boosting the Denver lead to 6 and forcing desperation throws from Hartlieb as the game concluded.
Denver comes out on top despite losing Brunell. Early signs point to him being out next week as the Gold face the St. Louis Knights and the big question will be whether the Gold will go with Wilhelm or the more athletic but also more raw talent of Jeff Lewis at QB when they face the Knights. A tough break but a good win for a plucky Gold squad in their only home game of the postseason.
LEGACY IN THE FRONT OFFICE
Just as we expected, the Philadelphia Stars this week held a press conference to celebrate both the coaching career of retiring head man Raymond Berry, and to announce his replacement, Chicago Machine DC Jim Mora Jr.. The Stars recognized Berry for his successes, including a 1994 league title, five playoff appearances and an overall win-loss record of 65-47. This past year, a 5-11 disappointment, was the only losing season in Berry’s tenure with the team.
He will be succeeded by Mora, who has built up a reputation as an innovative coach with good motivational skills. His success with Chicago has been limited, but in prior stops in both the USFL and NFL he has impressed with his ability to maximize the talents of his defensive players. He now joins a team that finished 24th in points allowed and yardage allowed, a major defensive overhaul to be sure. He also will immediately have to work to see if Philly can convince QB Bobby Hebert to remain active, as it has been rumored that the “Cajun Cannon” was considering retirement. Mora is, of course, a legacy coach, son of current Memphis head man, and former 2-time USFL Champion coach with the Stars back in the 80s. That might come with some extra pressure, but it also comes with extra forgiveness if it takes Mora more than a year or two to turn around the Stars fortunes.
ON THE MARKET
It did not take long for the Wild Card losers to join the fray of the coaching carousel. By Tuesday, Texas DC Ray Rhodes was already lined up to meet with representatives of both the Portland Thunder and the Atlanta Fire. Rhodes has been a hot commodity for the past two years, as Texas’s defense has been among the league’s best. This may be the year he gets an offer and joins the ranks of the league’s head coaching staffs. He may also acquire some attention from NFL clubs, but this close to the start of the NFL season that would likely not come until later in the year, when NFL teams start dealing with failure at midseason and look to shake up their coaching staffs. That gap gives other USFL squads an advantage to sign the highly valued DC as their coach. We would honestly be surprised if he waits for an NFL offer as there are 4 open positions in the USFL and not a ton of available talent with Rhodes’s record of success.
SUMMER BOWLS LOCATED
As we build up for Summer Bowl 1999 in Los Angeles’s Farmers Insurance Field, an announcement from league officials about Summer Bowl 2001 and 2002. We already knew that next year the summer’s biggest game would be held in Tampa Bay in 2000, following the rotation of divisions to the South. That means that 2001 would be a Central Division host and 2002 an Atlantic Division host. It was announced this week that from the bids offered the game has been awarded to Chicago for 2001 and Pittsburgh for 2002. This will mark the first time each city has hosted the event.
Chicago beat out Houston for the honors in 2001 due to the desire of the league to favor cities with more hospitable August weather, along with concerns over the aging structure and limited amenities of the Astro Dome. Pittsburgh, normally not a high prestige market for the league’s biggest game, got a boost over Baltimore and New Jersey thanks to the scheduled opening of the city’s new stadium in fall of 2001, meaning that 2002 will be the first season in which the Maulers play in the new, as of yet unnamed, stadium. The league wanted to highlight the partnership between the Maulers and NFL Steelers as a model to follow around the league, and placing their title game in the Steel City’s newfangled and high tech stadium seemed a perfect option. So, it is LA in just 3 weeks, then Tampa, Chicago, and Pittsburgh. Start planning your travel accordingly.
Going into the Divisional round we have 8 clubs again to check in on. We all know the big injury story is Denver QB Mark Brunell, but what other issues might impact the league’s divisional games?
BAL: TE C. Cleeland (IR), QB T. Green (OUT), FB Obafemi Ayanbadejo (Doubtful)
Ayanbadejo’s is the only recent injury, but Baltimore often uses a 2 HB formation with Fenner and Cloud anyway, so this is likely not going to impact their offense much.
BIR: LB Lorenzo Styles (IR), DT Mike Wells (Out)
No new injuries to report from this week’s action, which leaves the Stallions in pretty good form.
DEN: T Jason Odom (IR) M. Brunell (Out), L. O’Neil (Doubtful),
FS Myron Guyton (Questionable)
We still don’t know whether it will be Lewis or Wilhelm at QB for the Gold, and clearly the loss of Brunell is huge. But let’s not underestimate the other potential issue, the loss of edge rusher Leslie O’Neill, whose left ankle buckled under him and cost him the last drive of the game this week. He is listed as doubtful, which probably means he is actually not able to go at all. That too is a huge loss for the Gold.
LA: HB M. Pittman (Out), CB Ray Crockett (Out), TE Tony McGee (Questionable)
Losing Michael Pittman is a big concern for the Express. They have relied on a rotation between Pittman and Antowain Smith all season. The weight of the run game now falls entirely on Smith. The other injury which should concern Coach Galen Hall is the loss of Ray Crockett. The LA secondary is not very deep, and while moving up Wendell Davis into Crockett’s #2 position is not a big drop off, it leaves the nickel and dime slots in relatively untested hands.
MEM: QB R. Johnson (Out), DT Montae Reager (Questionable), T Anthony Clement (Questionable)
Memphis QB Rob Johnson is out after an injury to his hamstring in training, but let’s be honest, if the Showboats needed to put Johnson in the game instead of Shuler the situation was likely not good to begin with. They will go with Shuler, backed up by Gino Torretta, and, worst case scenario if they need a 3rd QB they can put wideout Bobby Olive in that position and run a wishbone. Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.
MGN: CB Billy Austin (Out) CB Chris Canty (D), T Jeff Wright (Q)
Michigan came into the Wild Card round pretty healthy, they exited with a potential issue at corner with Chris Canty joining Billy Austin on the injured list. That is a concern to be sure, particularly as the Panthers will be facing a very dynamic passing offense in Los Angeles.
PIT: G Erik Andolsek (Out)
Pittsburgh is looking solid. They Get Rod Milstead back, which means the injury to Andolsek is actually not a big deal as Milstead will step right back to his starting position. A healthy squad overall.
STL: TE Reggie Kelly (Out), QB Todd Collins (Out), T Greg Bishop (Q)
The loss of Kelly is big, but it has been big for several weeks and the Knights have managed with Carlos Etheridge and Fred Baxter. While the Knights miss Todd Collins, Jim Miller has proven to be a solid game manager and occasional game winner when the pressure is on.
Four playoff games down, four this week. Let’s get right to the scenarios and our picks. We went 2-2 with last week’s games. Let’s see if we can get them all right in the Divisional Round.
Saturday, July 17, 3pm ET on ABC
Liberty Bowl Stadium
Normally we would call this a David v. Goliath matchup between a plucky Wild Card team and the conference’s best club, but Pittsburgh has now won 7 games in a row, comes into this game with a nearly 100% healthy squad, and has exactly the combination of power running and solid defense that tends to play well in postseason games. That said, we are still going to pick Memphis in this one. Coach Mora knows playoff football, and he knows what he has in this squad. They have a legend at DE in Reggie White, an offense that can attack you in a myriad of ways, and a QB who is either going to be the league MVP or the Offensive Player of the Year. That is a lot for the Mauler defense to have to prepare for, while Memphis fully understands that if they can limit Terrell Davis it puts a ton of pressure on Charlie Batch, who simply is not ready for what Reggie White can bring to him.
PREDICTION: We love Pittsburgh’s late season run, but it ends here. Memphis 31-16.
Saturday, July 17, 7pm ET on FOX
America’s Dome at St. Louis
How great would this game be if Mark Brunell were at QB for Denver? That would have likely been a slugfest, but without him we just don’t see a good path for the Gold. Yes, rely on Rashaan Salaam on offense, hope your defense can get to Jim Miller and force some bad decisions. We know what Denver will try, but we don’t have much expectation it will work. We see St. Louis winning this one handily.
PREDICTION: St. Louis 28 Denver 10.
Sunday, July 18, 3pm ET on ESPN
Farmers Insurance Field
Michigan barely scraped by against Houston and their reward is to go up against the best team in the West. But, that said, this is a very untested LA club, for a team with 11 wins. They have a rookie QB, only one healthy HB, and won a lot of close games, not blowouts, all year. That said, Galen Hall knows what he is doing. This is not his first rodeo. But, we promised ourselves that we would not pick all 4 favorites, and this is a game where we could imagine Doug Flutie pulling off a surprise. So, we are going to take a risk and pick Michigan in the upset.
PREDICTION: Flutie finds a way. Michigan 19 Los Angeles 17.
Sunday, July 18, 7pm ET on ABC
Aetna Stadium @ The Harbor
Las Vegas has this game as Baltimore -1, which means that they don’t even trust home field advantage to favor the Blitz. It is a tough one to call. Baltimore has been consistent all year long, but Birmingham has also been a juggernaut for most of the season. Can Favre have another 5-TD day like he did this week or will the Blitz get to him and force some bad throws? Can Stephen Davis make a bigger impact? Will the combo of Fenner and Cloud allow Baltimore to control the clock and keep that Birmingham offense off the field? Our head says Baltimore can win this game, but our heart leans towards the Stallions, maybe because we just want to see them face off against Memphis a week later. Be honest, you want to see that too.
PREDICTION: Birmingham edges Baltimore thanks to that passing game. Birmingham 33 Blitz 31