USA Today, July 6, 1987
Wild Card Weekend gave us exactly what the USFL had hoped, 4 teams, each intent on getting through to the next round and two games that went down to the wire. The two hosts, both crushed by Week 16 losses which placed them here, and two visiting teams who had to scratch and claw just to qualify. The results were intense, hard hitting, and highly entertaining games.
WASHINGTON 21
TAMPA BAY 24
Tampa had led the Southern Division for most of the year, so their final game loss to Memphis and sudden dethroning by Birmingham was a shock. But the Bandits have been to this rodeo before and knew that you had to come out strong. They did, scoring on two Gary Anderson runs in their first two drives to stun the Federals and take a 14-0 lead after only seven and a half minutes.
But this Washington team had been resilient all year. Led by NFL import Neil Lomax, and a defense that quickly got the measure of Tampa’s strategy, the Federals slowly built back, moving the ball into Bandits territory on three consecutive drives spanning the end of the first and beginning of the second quarter. Each time they would be stymied as they reached the red zone and each time they had to settle for field goals. But, back in the game at half 14-9, Washington was not going down without a fight.
Tampa began the third with a field goal of their own to extend the lead to 17-9, but on the next drive, Washington finally found the endzone. Craig James, who was a cannonball all day, going off tackle left or diving right, able to average 5.5 yards on the day, for a total of 155 by game’s end, dove in from 2 yards out. The Feds tried to tie the game on a 2pt conversion, but Lomax was unable to connect with Joey Walters and the Bandits held a precarious 17-15 lead after 3.
In the fourth Washington again moved the ball well, but was unable to punch it in, settling for two more field goals to move the score first to 18-17, their first lead all day, and then to 21-17 with only 40 seconds left in the game. It looked like the long, slow push for the lead had paid off and the Federals were on their way to the next round. But this is the USFL, so the game is never over until the whistle sounds.
With only 40 seconds to play, Tampa did the unthinkable, they went the length of the field in only 2 plays. The first was the kickoff runback. Halfback Speedy Neal got the kick at the 3, made the first man miss and found a seem down the right side, taking the ball all the way to the 31 to give Tampa solid field position. But, with only 33 second left, it would take either a brilliant 2-minute strategy by Tampa, who had only 2 timeouts left, or a major Washington defensive bungle to get in the endzone and upend the Federals. Tampa got the latter. On the very first play of the drive, Tampa shifted CB Eric Truvillion into the slot and Washington did not shadow him with their best corner, Lester Lyles. They left nickel corner Eric Thomas on Truvillion, counting on deep safeties to provide help. But the safety now had both Truvillion and Gillespie to deal with. He chose poorly, shadowing Gillespie on a post route. Truvillion started up the seam and then cut to the corner where John Reaves found him with a perfectly placed ball. Thomas went for the deflection, and just missed, which meant that Truvillion was free to run down the sideline. A last gasp diving tackle attempt by free safety Mark Kelso came up short and in just one play the Bandits had snatched victory from the jaws of defeat.
For Washington, this will be a defeat that lingers for a long time. For Tampa, this dramatic example of Bandit Ball could only provide them confidence as they moved on to face the Philadelphia Stars in the divisional round. And for the fans who were there at Tampa Stadium, it confirmed all the hype about Bandit Ball and the USFL as exciting, well-played football.
NEW ORLEANS 20
MICHIGAN 23 (Overtime)
Those who tuned into the Tampa-Washington game and then prepared for Michigan-New Orleans could not have anticipated yet another heroic comeback, but that is what they got. Many had predicted that the savvy, battle tested Michigan Panthers would dominate from whistle to whistle, but New Orleans dominated early, requiring a Panther comeback and an overtime period to decide the game.
The first quarter looked as many do, with both teams testing and probing the defense, setting up future plays and trying not to give too much away. The only score of the quarter was a 44-yard Tim Mazzetti field goal set up by a 15 yard Dalton Hilliard run. Hilliard would be the run game for New Orleans with Marcus Dupree unable to rehab his hamstring in time for the game. He would carry the ball 17 times for 74 yards on the day, helping to take the pressure off Eason on several key drives.
Michigan, as always, would use John Williams (83 yards on the day) to set up deep ball throws to Holloway and Anthony Carter, but they would be plagued on the day by errant throws and tipped balls, leading Trudeau’s final stat line to include no touchdowns and three picks.
In the second quarter, following the first of the three Trudeau picks, the Breakers expanded their lead on a short Eason to Mark Boyer pass. Boyer feigned staying in to protect Eason and then leaked out into the flat where no one from Michigan followed him. An uncharacteristically easy score against the usually methodical Michigan D. Only 2 plays later, the Breakers would shock the Panther faithful in the Silver Dome with their 2nd interception of Trudeau and a runback for another 6 to make the score an unexpected 17-0 in favor of the Breakers.
With the game slipping away from them, the Panthers changed strategies as the 2nd quarter winded down. They started hitting receivers on curls, short crosses and swing routes, moving the ball methodically down the field until John Williams was able to dive in from 2 yards out to tighten the score with Michigan’s first points of the day. They would receive the kickoff for the 2nd half, having deferred at the game’s start, and again the short passing game would prove effective against a Breaker defense that was doing all it could to avoid giving up the deep ball. Again Williams crashed over the line and in for the score, and now it was only a 3 point lead for the Breakers.
The fourth began with another Trudeau interception, though this time we really need to put the blame on wideout Daron Carter, who let a well-thrown Trudeau pass slip through his hands and into the arms of CB Andrew Kitchens, for his third pick of the day. The game’s defensive MVP had to dive to get the ball, but it was ruled a catch after the instant replay review, and it allowed New Orleans to expand the lead back to 6 with another Mazzetti field goal.
But from here on out the Panthers defense would not allow Eason and the Breakers to pass midfield, and the foot of kicker Novo Bojovic would slowly chip away at New Orleans’s hopes for an upset. The Breakers defense gave up significant yardage on two 4th quarter Panther drives, both times stiffening up in the red zone, but Bojovic hit from 22 and from 34 yards out, and with 5:34 left in the game, the score was tied. It would remain that way as neither team could mount a 2-minute offense against the other.
New Orleans got the ball first in overtime, but a costly 1st down holding call immediately put them in a hole they could not get out of. They punted and Michigan got the ball on their own 43 after an 18-yard return by Johnny Holloway. Trudeau hit Carter for 29 yards on the first play, then, after two unproductive Williams runs, he found Carter again, this time for 9, moving the ball to the New Orleans 22. Bojovic would come out again, and again it would be a very makable 39 yarder in the controlled environment of the Silver Dome. The kick sailed through the uprights and the Panthers were moving on.
OTHER LEAGUE NEWS
As expected, it was a relatively quiet Black Monday after the conclusion of the regular season, with only one release as Pittsburgh indeed did opt to let Roman Gabriel go after only one season at the helm. The former quarterback and offensive-minded coach simply did not produce enough with his offense to impress Ed DeBartolo Sr, and the Maulers, who finished with only 4 wins on the year, decided that a change was needed. While there is no word yet on who is favored to replace Gabriel, and with a team that has significant issues on both sides of the ball, it is likely that there will be a lot of interviews before a new head coach is chosen. Pittsburgh could look at an offensive guru to bring more dynamism to what has been Mike Rozier and Mike Rozier only, or they could finally address their pretty poor defensive record over the past 4 years. Either way, it is likely that DC Ernie Stautner will be out as well as Gabriel.
A second release came 2 days later, and again it was expected. The now merged San Antonio Gunslingers and Oklahoma Outlaws made it official that they would be retaining the services of Oklahoma head man, Woody Widenhofer, and releasing Gunslinger coach Gil Steinke. There had been reports that Steinke was considering retirement even before the decision, and persistent rumors that it was truly his assistants and coordinators who kept the team together throughout the season made the decision an easy one for the new lead owner, William Tatham, to keep on the man he had brought over from the NFL for his Oklahoma franchise.
The third release was truly the only surprise. Just hours after the Breakers played in the Wild Card matchup in Michigan it was announced that Dick Coury, the only coach the Breakers have ever had, would be stepping down. It seems that a series of 8- or 9-win seasons, coupled with a now 1-5 playoff record would not satisfy owners David Dixon and Joe Canizaro. The defeat, which included a Michigan comeback from a 17-0 lead, was one more example of the Breakers’ inability to get over the hump and become a truly dangerous club. Rumors were in the wind, but with New Orleans making a 4th straight postseason (including 2 in Boston) most did not expect such a swift and decisive end to the Dick Coury era in New Orleans.
While nothing official has been said about a replacement, the recent departure of the very popular Bill Arsparger from LSU means that the Breakers have a top candidate just waiting for them if they want to go that direction. Arnsparger, who led the Tigers to two Sugar Bowls and who has significant pro experience as the DC in Miami and New York (Giants) would be a good candidate to shore up what has always been a hit or miss defense. He would also clearly be a popular choice in Louisiana as his success with the LSU Tigers is not unknown in the region. It is rumored that the University of Florida is looking at Arnsparger for their open AD position, but the lure of pro football may make this a perfect match for the veteran defensive coach and the bridesmaid Breakers.