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Week 11 was headlined by a bizarre incident on the sideline of our game of the week, the bigger story should have been quarterback changes, some forced, some by choice. Yes, watching a head coach punch his OC mid-game was bizarre, and led to an immediate change at the top, but we really should focus on the field and not some weirdness on the sideline. On the field this week Robbie Bosco defeated his former club in his first start as a Pittsburgh Mauler. Seattle went with unheralded rookie Jon Kitna while Atlanta turned back to veteran Cliff Stoudt. LA eked out a win with Jeff Garcia subbing for an injured Brent Pease, while Chicago thrived after Coach Schottenheimer made the switch to Dan McGwire. In a week that saw QB play at its core, the message was clear, no position is more pivotal to a team’s success than their QB. Michigan ends up with an unprecedented 3rd straight GOTW, and in a game that saw a lot of heroics from the Panthers, particularly QB Doug Flutie, all anyone can talk about is the bizarre situation that unfolded on the Memphis sideline, when, after scoring just at the 2-minute warning to tie the game, Coach Buddy Ryan went ballistic on OC Cam Cameron, first verbally and then with a completely outlandish sideswipe to the head. Cameron looked shocked, players nearby looked shot, and a quick camera shot of Showboats owner William Dunavant in the owner’s box did not bode well for the tenacious and often outrageous Coach Ryan. By 5pm that night, only 2 hours after the game concluded, Ryan was out as Head Coach and Cam Cameron became one of the youngest coaches in the league. To make matters even more bizarre, it was Ryan’s defense that failed against Michigan all day long, not the Heath Shuler-led offense, which had managed to keep pace until the final minute. That Ryan was upset at Cameron for scoring “too quickly’ in the tight game is an astounding way to admit that his own defense was incapable of preventing a final drive by the Panthers to win the game. That is exactly what happened as a distracted and disoriented Showboat defense could not keep Doug Flutie from perfectly orchestrating a 2-minute drill, hitting Weegie Thomspon with the game-winning touchdown with 17 seconds left to play. The game had been a back and forth battle between the two offenses all day, with Cameron’s offensive squad relying on Heath Shuler’s arm to rack up 401 yards passing and 3 TDs. Shuler also threw 2 picks, which helped Michigan take the lead on both occasions, once on a Tyrone Wheatley 1 yard run, and once on a Flutie to Butch Rolle TD toss. Flutie would finish the day with 379 yards and 3 scores in a triumphant return to action, while Wheatley would again assert his role on the squad with 16 carries for 131 yards. Memphis’s D, while able to flush Flutie out of the pocket on numerous occasions, was unable to deal with the ramifications of that, as Flutie rushed for 37 yards on scrambles and completed 12 of 15 passes when outside the pocket. Had it not been for a strong day from Shuler, hitting TE Adrian Cooper 13 times for 128 yards, connecting with Carl Pickens twice for scores, and making good use of rookie Joe Horn for 8 receptions, 98 yards and score, the Showboats might have been blown out. And that is why it is so bizarre that Ryan went after his OC, but that appears to be easier than acknowledging that your pride had to accept that it was your defensive scheme that was failing miserably. After Shuler hit Carl Pickens for a score to equalize the game at 34 apiece, the first play after the 2-minute warning, Ryan exploded. He began berating Cameron, was held back by one of his assistants, but then let loose with a half-slap, half-punch to the OC’s head. He was immediately separated by several players, including DE Reggie White, who seemed utterly shocked by his coach. Ryan remained distracted and visibly distraught as the Panthers mounted their winning drive, and refused to come out for the post-game interview. Within hours he was out and Owner William Dunavant was on TV apologizing to the league, the Memphis fanbase, and Coach Cameron, even as he announced his promotion to the Head Coach position. Cameron did not make a public statement, and while his ascension is well-deserved based on Memphis’s offensive prowess this season as well as the clear developmental role Cameron has had with QB Heath Shuler, the naming of Cameron as the head coach mid-season, and one of the least experienced head coaches in the league, is a longshot. But, better a longshot than a cheap shot any day. ARZ 16 PIT 23 Around the rest of the league the story was at QB, with no matchup more anticipated than Arizona’s trip to Pittsburgh, with recently traded Robbie Bosco set to start. Bosco got the start and while his 21 of 32, 259 yard, 2 score, 2 interception game was hardly the thing of legend, it was a strong enough performance to allow Pittsburgh to win despite having to hold league rushing leader Mike Rozier out with a sprained ankle suffered in practice. Dorsey Levins proved very capable in relief, rushing for 99 yards to help balance the Mauler attack. DEN 38 PHI 14 A huge win for the Gold as they seek respect at 8-3. Denver got 106 yards from Rashaan Salaam against a weakened D-line for the Stars, and Mark Brunell hit on 3 TD passes, including 2 to deep threat Odessa Turner, as the Gold owned the second half, going on a 17-0 scoring run to end the game and put Philadelphia away. Chuck Long was injured in the game and replaced by Eric Kramer for most of the second half, but is expected to return next week. LA 20 NJ 15 Coach Knox is learning just how hard USFL football can be as his Generals drop another one to a team that on paper simply does not look as good. LA got a late Marcus Allen TD run to survive 3 picks by backup Jeff Garcia (who came in after 1 quarter when Brent Pease took a blow to the head). New Jersey QB Tommy Maddox struggled again, completing only 48% of his passes and throwing a costly interception in the final period as New Jersey just did not have enough offensive support to hold off the Express. OAK 7 WSH 21 In a game where the final score does not reflect the weirdness of how it got there, Washington scored on 5 field goals and a late TD with missed PAT to reach 21 points as they dominated the Invaders on defense. Oakland converted only 3 of 13 third downs and gained only 46 yards on the ground as the front 7 of the Federals came alive for 5 sacks of Hebert and consistently stuffed Siran Stacy. POR 7 BAL 22 Portland could not decipher Baltimore’s top-rated defense, falling down 22-0 before a late score got them on the board. Chris Miller hit Brooks and Rob Moore with scores and a safety helped add to Baltimore’s solid win at home. Robert Drummond, who was hoping to catch up to Rozier in rushing, made little ground, rushing for only 22 yards on 14 attempts against the Blitz D. SEA 20 OHI 30 Rookie Jon Kitna attempted 60 passes for the Dragons as they all but abandoned the run game against Ohio. He completed 39 for 377 yards and 2 TDs while also throwing 2 picks in an up and down performance, his first in pro football. On the other sideline Jeff Hostetler played a more conservative game, completing 19 of 23 for 273 while absorbing 6 sacks as he protected the ball all game long. An Eddie George 25-yard run and yet another 100-yard game from Joey Galloway proved more than enough for Ohio to get the home win and move to 6-5 on the season. CHI 28 BIR 22 Coach Schottenheimer made the call mid-week to replace ineffective Scott Zolak with Dan McGwire, and the red-headed hurler rewarded him with an Offensive POTW performance, completing 28 of 44 passes for 432 yards and 3 scores to lead the Machine over Birmingham in Legion Field. The Machine D showed signs of their former glory as well, holding Brett Favre to 228 yards and only 1 TD in the Chicago victory. HOU 27 JAX 17 Houston used a balanced attack, with Thurman Thomas rushing for 115 yards and Jim Kelly throwing for 329 and 2 scores as they upended the Bulls in Jacksonville. Antonio Freeman joined the league leaders in receiving yards with a 118-yard performance and his one-handed grab on what would be a 60-yard TD toss from Kelly was the play of the week as Houston improved to 7-3-1. NOR 20 TBY 27 The Bandits retained sole possession of first in the Southern Division with a win over a plucky Breaker’s squad. Troy Aikman threw for 295 and 2 scores and the Bandits D frustrated Breaker QB Jamie Martin with a complex mix of zone coverages all game. The big play for the Bandits was a 30-yard pick-six from Chris Crooms as the late score helped them overcome a 20-13 deficit to tie the game. They would win it on a Shannon Baker TD in a game that saw all facets of the Bandits roster contribute. STL 20 ATL 26 Amazing what some veteran experience can do. Against St. Louis’s tough D, the savvy of Cliff Stoudt, named the starter on the Monday prior, was key to Atlanta pulling off the home upset. Stoudt connected with Terrance Mathis for 102 yards on the day and found 3rd and 4th receivers Sanjay Beach and Glenn Kozlowski for scores as the Fire finally found some offense. TEX 14 ORL 27 A good home win for the Renegades as Terry Kirby rushed for 2 scores and the Renegades’ D forced 5 Texas turnovers, including 3 fumbles in the same game by backup HB Rodney Thomas. The score would likely have been more in Orlando’s favor, except that they too had issues holding the ball, with Scott Mitchell throwing 2 picks and punt returner Robert Bailey muffing a punt. COACH RYAN NO MORE: We don’t want to drive this into the ground, but in a season that had Memphis at a respectable 5-5 and within range of a playoff drive, the actions of Coach Ryan are one of the biggest self-destructions we have ever seen. Sure, Coach Ryan has always been a bit of a hothead, and that has served him well as a defensive coordinator, but the combination of a mediocre record as Memphis’s head man, and the insane moment on the sideline this week was clearly enough for ownership to pull the trigger with 5 weeks left in the season. So now the focus turns to Cam Cameron. His title was cited as Head Coach, not interim head coach, but sources around the club make it clear that the next 5 weeks will be something of an extended job interview. Will it take a playoff surge for Cameron to hold off a full-fledged coaching search in the offseason, or will the team rallying behind him be enough? Time will tell, but for now Coach Cameron has the tough task of uniting a team that has very mixed feelings about the departure of Coach Ryan. ROUGH FIRST YEAR: While Coach Knox in New Jersey is certainly not the only first-year coach with more problems than praise for his squad this year, his position is certainly an interesting one. Considered a candidate for retirement when he left the Rams after the 1994 season, things have not gone well for him with the Generals. It is clear that New Jersey needs an infusion of talent, particularly on offense, where the combo of Rob Johnson and Tommy Maddox has not proven pro-ready and the run game, led by Bam Morris has also been AWOL. With the retirements of Herschel Walker and Lam Jones, and with Doug Flutie’s resurgence in Michigan, the Generals look like a team unprepared to reload and now in need of a full reinvention. Coach Knox, being a fan of veterans over rookies, may look to free agency to find more offensive power, but he also needs to address an offensive line that is getting long in the tooth and a defense that, while the strength of the club, still has some holes to fill. Just how much Coach Knox is willing to play the long game vs. seek quick fixes could tell us a lot about how the Generals approach the offseason, and what should be a top 5 draft position. GENERALS WEST: The other club that seems to have similar issues is the Jim Mora-led Oakland Invaders. The Invaders clearly need a youth movement on a roster that seems to have held out at least 1 year too long with an aging roster. The defense is the big issue in Oakland, where Bobby Hebert, Henry Ellard and Siran Stacy can still produce. Oakland currently ranks near the bottom in points allowed, and while their rush defense is statistically in the Top 5 at 63 yards allowed per game, this is largely due to the ease with which teams are exploiting their pass defense. The Invaders don’t have a player with more than 5 sacks on the squad, and even quality starters like Aeneas Williams are having trouble covering the holes in the defensive lineup. You know Coach Mora wants to build this defense around the LB corps, as he did in Philly and with the New Orleans Saints, but with all 4 starting LB’s in their 30’s and some, like Ron Rivera and Randy Kirk showing their age and years of battle scars, the Invaders need to bring in young blood, and preferably some speed across the entire LB group. INJURY REPORT: Injuries are really beginning to become a major concern for some USFL squads as the list of walking wounded keeps growing. Birmingham has 9 players on this week’s injury list, and while many are in the Doubtful-Probable range, several are not. Ernest Givens will likely miss 1-2 weeks with a knee injury, while LB Kevin Greene is dealing with a shoulder concern and both starting DE’s are going to be in limited service next week. Houston will be without 2 corners as both Ashley Ambrose (Questionable) and Mike Adams (IR) are out. Philadelphia is also down 9 players, including losing center John Flannery for the year, Free Safety Tim Hauck likely for the season, TE Marcus Pollard at least 2 weeks, and TE Leon Lett still 2-3 weeks away from returning to practice. In LA it is not about numbers, as only QB Brent Pease is reported this week, but after x-rays did show a fracture in his radius bone (left arm) he could be out up to a month. Pittsburgh could be without Mike Rozier for another week and Dorsey Levins, while listed as probable, could be limited in snaps as well. Putting the weight of the Mauler run game on Jaime Mueller. In New Orleans, Jamie Martin is listed as probable, but could be a game time decision, while LB Jeff Herrod is likely to miss up to 3 weeks. Not what these teams want as they head down the home stretch. We prepare for Week 12 with the first possible playoff clinching game on the line. A win by Baltimore and a loss by Philadelphia this week would give the Blitz the Atlantic title. Denver could also potentially clinch if all the cards fell right as their 8-3 record is already 3 games up on Portland. In a season where Denver may be the only Pacific Division club to qualify for the postseason, it would not be surprising if they wrapped up the title this week along with the 1-loss Blitz. The real battles are in the Southern and Central Divisions. Tampa currently holds a 1 game lead on the South, but both Jacksonville and Birmingham are right there at 6-5. In the Central you have a strong group of clubs who will knock each other off for a chance to qualify. Michigan has the slimmest of division leads, a half game up on Houston, but 7-4 New Orleans and 6-4-1 St. Louis are also right there. Even Texas and Chicago at 5-6 are not out of the running, though a more realistic position might be a shot at a Wild Card. The 1-10 Arizona Wranglers are the only team officially eliminated, but only mathematical calculations are keeping Atlanta, New Jersey, Seattle and Oakland from being added to the list. The list of improbable events needed for any of these 4 to make the playoffs is too long to outline here. Give it a week and we could see several of these squads slip into the “eliminated” category along with the Wranglers. As we enter the last 5 weeks of the season, it is time to look at which players on the last year of their contracts have yet to resign. There are some big names who may work the system to see if they can get value on the free agency market or make the jump to the NFL. No name on the list of potential free agents is bigger than that of QB Troy Aikman. The Tampa Bay stalwart is having a solid year, as are the Bandits, but the club and Aikman’s agent have yet to make strides on a new contract, and that has to worry fans in the Tampa Bay area. Another big name that is potentially looking to test the market is halfback Marcus Allen, who has had absolutely no luck at all since coming over from Michigan to the LA Express. We would not be shocked to see Allen take the chance to either switch teams or return to the NFL. Others to keep an eye on include Generals’ LB Chris Spielman, Birmingham tackle Emory Yates, Houston safety LeRoy Butler, Texas DE John Bosa, and St. Louis WR Rocket Ismail. We could also see Jacksonville part ways with wideout Dokie Williams, and there are rumors that several older players (on big contracts) may be cap cuts, including LB Ron Rivera in Oakland, C Roy Hemphill in Pittsburgh, WR Bruce Hill in Portland and CB Domingo Bryant with the Bulls. And while it is not a high demand, high value position, we expect two of the league’s best fullbacks to be available, with Seattle’s Zach Crockett and Portland’s Mike Cade both potentially hoping to find greener pastures. It is still early, and there is time for these and about 100 other final year contracts to be renewed, extended, or for new deals to be cut, so don’t assume that your team is about to lose one of your favorite players, but with both the NFL and USFL embracing a more open free agent pool, this could be an interesting offseason. Week 12 will be one that sorts out some playoff situations as once again all 24 clubs are in divisional play for a big weekend ahead. Starting in the Pacific we find Denver hoping to wrap things up as they host the sad sack Wranglers at Mile High. Portland hopes to rebound and reach .500 as they face Seattle in Husky Stadium, while LA and Oakland resume the NoCal-SoCal Classic without much on the line for either club. In the Central division the big game should be Michigan traveling to New Orleans to face the Breakers, though the Chicago-Houston clash still holds some cache as well. St. Louis and Texas also both need a win to stay relevant in the playoff hunt, with Texas in the weaker position at 5-6 and trailing the Knights for the final playoff spot. In the South the best matchup is clearly the in-state clash between 7-4 Tampa Bay and 6-5 Jacksonville. Both teams need this win to keep moving towards a clinch scenario. Memphis and Birmingham also meet in a game important to both clubs, while Orlando heads to Atlanta, where Cliff Stoudt’s return under center has some hoping the Fire get restoked. Finally, in the Atlantic, we want to catch the game between Washington and Philadelphia, as the two clubs seem to be heading opposite directions. Washington has won 3 in a row, while Phllly has been floundering a bit after a strong start to the season. Pittsburgh is hoping to get back to .500 with the visiting Generals in town, while Ohio has a gut check moment as they head to Baltimore to face the Blitz and that devastating defense.

Week 10 of the 1996 USFL season gave us an epic battle in Pontiac, a battle of expansion clubs with a coach’s livelihood on the line, a Knights club making a statement, and another crushing defeat for Dan Reeves and the Atlanta Fire. We saw Tyrone Wheatley and Jim Kelly go off in their matchup this week, and we saw Baltimore’s John Randall rack up 4 sacks from the DT position against the Stallions. Joey Galloway continued to impress and John Fourcade got a rude homecoming to Tampa Bay. In other words, it was a good week for football fans. We had a feeling that the matchup of the Gamblers and Panthers in Pontiac would be a fun one, but even we could not have anticipated the craziness of this game and that the Panthers would end the weekend as the top seed in the season’s first playoff rankings. Michigan and Houston both had their offenses in tune and ready to roll this week. For Houston, as usual, it was the aerial assault, with Jim Kelly throwing for 440 yards and 4 TDs, while for Michigan, which had Sean Salisbury under center for yet another week, it was the Tyrone Wheatley show, as he carried the ball 22 times for 122 yards and 4, count them, 4 rushing TDs. The game started fast from the opening whistle, as Houston made a statement with a rapid fire 4-play, 77 yard drive, culminating in laser of a pass from Kelly to Antonio Freeman for a 19-yard score. Houston never even saw 2nd down on the drive, picking up big chunks through the air on each play as their initial scripted plays just fileted the Michigan defense. The Panthers would respond, though not quite as quickly, but their 11-play drive yielded equal results as they drove down to the Michigan 7, where Salisbury found Jeff Campbell on a fade route for an equalizing score. They doubled down to take a 14-7 lead after a tipped ball led to a Jim Kelly interception. Michigan capitalized as Tyrone Wheatley got the first of his 4 rushing TD’s with a 19-yard run along the sideline on a perfectly executed pitch out play. Houston would answer with a field goal after a controversial offensive pass interference call against Brett Perriman negated an apparent TD. On replay it was clear that Perriman pushed off of the defender to create space, and the Michigan crowd was not going to give any benefit of the doubt to the visiting Gambler receiver. Houston settled for a field goal, a capitulation which would come back to haunt them by the game’s end. Michigan took no time to come back, going on their own quick strike attack, and in 5 plays they were back in the end zone, this time with Wheatley’s longest run of the day, a 3rd and 2 run off right tackle that broke through the initial defense and went for 25. The score gave Michigan a 21-10 lead, but there was still time in the half for Kelly and the Gamblers to draw closer. They did just that with Jim Kelly now hitting Perriman for an undisputed score with just under 1 minute left in the half. The two teams would go to the intermission knowing they had a battle on their hands, Michigan up 21-17. The second half looked like it would be all Houston, as halftime adjustments allowed the Gamblers to race out to 14 3rd quarter points and a 31-21 lead. After a short drive by Michigan to open the half stalled, leading to a punt to the Houston 31, the Gamblers again struck quickly, 6 plays and only 1:22 off the clock and Kelly found Thurman Thomas on a 17-yard scoring toss. After a Rodney Culver fumble on the next drive for Michigan gave Houston great field position, Kelly struck again, this time hitting James Pruitt on a play action bomb on the first play from scrimmage. But, despite the quick strikes of the Gamblers, Michigan was not discouraged and maintained their balanced attack. Starting a drive with just under a minute to go in the 3rd, Michigan burnt up 8:30 and once again Wheatley found the endzone, this time on a 1 yard plunge on 2nd and goal. Back to within 3, the game was far from over. Houston’s first drive of the 4th was thwarted by a 3rd down holding call, which led to a 3rd and 17 that the Gamblers failed to covert. Michigan was equally ineffective on their next drive, with Salisbury missing on an out route to Weegie Thompson on 3rd and 7. Houston would get the ball back, and after gaining 2 first downs, one by penalty and one on a 7 yard Thomas draw play on 3rd and 4, the Panthers got a stroke of luck. On a 2nd and 7, Kelly did not see Hardy Nickerson coming on his blindside. The speedy LB clipped Kelly just as he released the ball, causing it to flutter in the air, well short of his intended receiver, Antonio Freeman, and into the arms of Garland Rivers for his second pick of the day. Rivers returned the ball 17 yards and set Michigan up with a short field. The Panthers would not let this opportunity pass them by, and, burning clock as they moved down the field, they again entrusted the ball to Wheatley within the 5 yard line. Wheatley fell short of the goal line on 1st and goal, but used a well-seen cutback to find a gap in the Houston line on 2nd and goal from the 2, sliding into the endzone and giving Michigan the lead once again, 35-31. But with just over 2 minutes left, and with two time outs left in their pocket, the Panthers had time to regain the lead before the game would end. Houston started strong, with Kelly hitting Thomas on a 13 yard screen to open the drive. He then hit Ron Heller for 7. Thomas got stuffed by the Michigan D on 2nd down, but Houston seemed to have converted on 3rd and 3 when Antonio Freeman caught a slant over the middle, but there was a flag on the field. Holding was the call and on 3rd and 13 Kelly could not connect with Perriman, setting up a 4th and 13 that the Gamblers had to go for. Kelly looked for Perriman again, but Chris Snyder was there to get a hand between the ball and Perriman’s awaiting hands. Turnover on downs with just over 1 minute to play. Sean Salisbury took a knee and the Panthers had not only taken over the lead in the division, but the entire conference with their 7-3 record. That they had done this over a span of games when Doug Flutie was out with an injury spoke to the team effort and the depth of the roster that Coach Holtz had put together. With Flutie expected back next week Michigan would now be the hunted instead of the hunter. For Houston, a strong game from the offense, but the defense let them down. They will need to regroup as they had a second tough road game to come the next week in Jacksonville. CHI 17 TEX 20 While Houston-Michigan was the big ticket this week, the other Central Division clashes were no slouches themselves. In the Alamodome Texas got a late touchdown to sink the Machine’s hopes for a road win. After an ineffective first half, Coach Schottenheimer pulled Scott Zolak in favor of Dan McGwire, and Chicago responded with 10 3rd quarter points to take the lead, but Texas had enough in them for one more drive and Reggie Cobb put them on top for good with a short pass for a score. NOR 7 STL 14 The Knights defense is getting some believers as 31,202 showed up in the Gateway City to root on their squad as St. Louis shut down the New Orleans offense. Terrell Davis was brickwalled, rushing 21 times but gaining only 23 yards as New Orleans appeared not to have a plan B. The Knights’ offense was not exactly explosive, but they did enough to secure a win and now find themselves at 6-3-1 and in serious playoff discussions. ARZ 9 POR 26 The job is Trent Green’s for the rest of the season after Arizona traded away Robbie Bosco, but he is going to have to show more if he hopes to stave off a potential move to sign a rookie QB. 19 of 43 with 2 interceptions is not going to do it. For Portland, Jack Trudeau played well, throwing for 3 scores, and when Arizona bottled up Robert Drummond (26 carries for only 55 yards) it was Amp Lee who had a bigger impact, gaining 30 yards on the ground and another 45 in the air. DEN 23 OAK 20 OT It was not easy, but Denver got the road win in Oakland that they needed. Ken Harvey had a strong game for the Invaders, recording 2 sacks, 11 tackles and a forced fumble to keep Oakland in the game and help send the affair to overtime, but in the end the right foot of Denver’s Jeff Wilkens gave Denver the W. LA 24 SEA 27 With rumors swirling that coach Woody Widenhofer was on the hotseat the Dragons responded with their best game of the year to help keep coach on the sideline. Loville and Potts combined for 91 yards and Timm Rosenbach found Robert Claiborne for the winning score as regulation wound down. BIR 17 BAL 27 Baltimore bounced back from their first loss of the season by clamping down on Birmingham’s Brett Favre. Favre went 18 for 28 with only 1 TD and a pick, and was sacked a stunning 11 times by the Baltimore defense. John Randall’s 4 sacks set a team record, but it was a nightmare for Favre all day as his line could not account for the injury to T Emory Yates and just had no answer for the Baltimore rush. JAX 27 NJ 10 Despite a strong game from the Generals on defense, their offensive ineptitude gave Jacksonville a solid 17-point win. New Jersey focused on Natrone Means and held him in check all day, but with 2 TD passes to rookie Terrell Owens, the Bulls had more than enough to outpace the punchless Generals offense. MEM 44 OHI 21 Memphis dealt Ohio a stunning blow to their ego, manhandling the Glory all day. Heath Shuler threw for 358 and 4 scores against an Ohio defense that simply did not have an answer. And while Joey Galloway’s 6 receptions for 134 yards were impressive, it was not enough as the Glory simply could not slow down the Memphis offense. ORL 10 PHI 17 A defensive struggle as Philly comes back from a 10-9 deficit with their only TD of the game in the final 3 minutes of regulation. Chuck Long hit TE Eric Green to get a 15-10 lead, and then found Green again for the 2 point PAT to go up 17-10. It was then up to the Stars’ defense to hold off a late Orlando rally. A 4th and 5 deflection from Lorenzo Lynch did the trick and Philly kept pace, 2 games behind the Blitz in the Atlantic. TBY 38 PIT 24 John Fourcade got a rude return welcome to Tampa Bay, as the Bandits kept the pressure on all day. Fourcade would throw for 2 scores, but his 2 picks helped Tampa build up a lead they would not relinquish. Troy Aikman took advantage of Pittsburgh’s poor pass coverage to the tune of 384 yards, and Errict Rhett scored twice as the Bandits got the road win. ATL 0 WSH 23 Atlanta looked helpless against a Federals’ defense that was out for blood. The Fire had only 6 first downs on the day, and none until the 2nd half. They also rushed for a pitiful 3 total yards as neither Blair Thomas or Fred McAfee could get anything going. Expect Coach Reeves to return to veteran Cliff Stoudt next week in a last gasp effort to salvage something out of the year. RECORD PACE: This could be a major season for broken records in the USFL. We are seeing some numbers that are already making headlines, and more may be to come. Here are just a few of the stats to keep an eye on: Yards Receiving: The current record is 1,959, set by Eric Truvillion of the Bandits in 1986, but Joey Galloway is on pace to shatter that record with yards already under his belt in 10 weeks. Passing TDs: The record of 47 was set by Brett Favre in 1992, but Jim Kelly has an outside shot with 6 games left. Kelly sits at 31, so he needs 17 in the final 6 weeks, which is a tall order, but not out of the ballpark. Passer Completion %: Joe Montana set the record in his first year in the league with Michigan, locked in at 72.5%, but don’t look now, with 10 games down Denver QB Mark Brunell sits at 74.5%. Six weeks and a playoff run can lead to more risks and completion percentage is not exactly a stat that players can easily pad, but Brunell is in range and ahead of the record at this point. Rushing TDs: Tyrone Wheatley sits at 11 after 10 games, with the record being 18 set by Robert Drummond only 2 years ago. Can Wheatley equal or surpass that total? The Michigan offense revolves around him, so it is not out of the question. Sacks: Phil Hansen set the mark at 23 three years ago, but he now stands at 16. Are another 8 out of the question in 6 remaining games? We are not so sure. Interceptions: New HOF entrant Raphel Cherry has the league record with 9 picks in his 1990 season, and while several players have reached 8, no one has caught that key 9th pick. But, with 6 games to play, Michigan’s Chris Snyder sits at 7, only 2 picks away, so it becomes a question of whether teams continue to throw in his direction or not. GIVE THE D SOME LOVE: This is the first time in a long time that we can say this, but we have a real shot of seeing a defensive player take both the MVP and the Rookie of the Year awards. MVP may be a bit of a longshot for DE Phil Hansen, especially if the Generals continue to lose, but his 16 sacks, 3 forced fumbles and 2 fumble recoveries are a shining light in a dark season in New Jersey. If Joey Galloway keeps up his scorching pace, and especially if Ohio manages to stay in the playoff hunt, the MVP may be tough for Hansen to get, but he is certainly not out of the running at this poin. The Rookie of the Year award may be more attainable as Philadelphia is in the middle of a division title hunt and rookie DE Regan Upshaw is making a huge difference for the Stars. His 11 sacks are 4th best in the league and his presence has made life that much easier for the rest of the Stars line. With Leon Lett now injured, things may get a bit tougher for Upshaw, but with Moe Williams slowing down in Memphis, and Terry Glenn playing on a bad Generals team, the path seems wide open for Upshaw to become the ROTY and not just the best defensive rookie. INJURY REPORT: Seattle got news it did not want on Monday, when it was determined that Timm Rosenbach’s bad knee was not just a strain but a full on ACL tear. He will be gone the rest of the year and now Coach Widenhofer has to look to David Klingler or to one of his 2 rookies to start. In Ohio backup Dave Brown suffered a broken leg in limited action this week, so he too is gone for the year. Expect the free agent market for QB’s to heat up with both teams looking for depth. Other injuries of note this week include Washington CB Lorenzo Lyles, who could be out for some time with a fracture in his right arm. WR Lawyer Tillman could also miss significant time with a shoulder injury, while Philly suffered a defensive setback when DT Leon Lett went down. He could miss as much as a month of the seasons’ final 6 weeks. No big surprises as we take our first long look at the playoff standings for this 10th week of the season. Baltimore controls their own destiny, with a 2 game lead over Philadelphia in the division, and 3 games up on Birmingham for the #1 seed. In the West it is Michigan winning the tiebreaker over Denver and New Orleans for the #1 seed at present, but there are a lot of battles to come. St. Louis is the surprise entry in the current mix, but the way their defense has been playing all season it should not be a shocker to see them currently in 4th position. The Eastern Conference looks to be one that could come down to the final weeks as the current #5 seed, Washington, is there due to tiebreakers against Memphis and Ohio. Pittsburgh, losers of 5 straight, are fading fast, while Jacksonville and Memphis seem to be headed in the right direction. Texas holds onto the final spot in the West at present, but Portland is right there as well. Week 11 showcases the two conferences going against each other, with no divisional or conference matchups on the docket. Among the high profile games we find Mark Brunell and the Gold headed to Philadelphia to play the Stars. We also like the look of the showdown in Jacksonville, where the Houston Gamblers face off against Chris Chandler and the Bulls. Michigan is in Memphis in an intriguing game, and we expect Flutie back under center for the conference-leading Panthers. In Tampa, the Bandits will have a tough task as they face off against the Breakers, while in Orlando, the 4-6 Renegades are hoping for some home cooking against the Texas Outlaws. In other action, 1-9 Arizona is at Pittsburgh. You know Robbie Bosco is hoping to get the start against his former team in this one. LA is in New Jersey, the former being all offense with no D, and the latter being all defense with no O, so something has to give. Oakland is in Washington, while Portland has a tall order ahead of them as they head to Baltimore to face the Blitz. Seattle and Ohio battle in a showdown of 2nd year teams and Chicago will be in Birmingham to face the Stallions. Finally, it is Atlanta at home against the Knights and that tough defense. Not what Cliff Stoudt will want to see in his first start of the season.

All good things must come to an end, and for Baltimore that end came this week, when their unexpected eight game win streak was foiled from a 9th victory by their arch rivals, the Washington Federals. The Federals victory was not unexpected, as the Feds always play Baltimore close, but it was the closest we came to a surprise this week as across the league favorites found ways to avoid a stumble, to secure a win when they were expected to, and to keep up the chase for a playoff spot. The only other big surprise this week came later, as the trade deadline approached on Wednesday and a flurry of moves shifted some things across the league. More on that later, for now let’s start with the games themselves. While the Baltimore-Washington game was the week’s marquee matchup, the best game on the field was about 900 miles to the west, in Michigan, where the Panthers hoped to boost their strong start to the season with a 6th win in 9 games as they took on the Oakland Invaders. It was a homecoming of sorts for former Panther Bobby Hebert, and a game both clubs felt was pivotal for the second half of their season. Michigan got off to a strong start in the game, despite missing starting QB Doug Flutie. Sean Salisbury had a solid, workmanlike, game, throwing for 186 yards and a score while avoiding negative plays. He was helped by a defense that kept Oakland in check for most of the day. While the Invaders outgained the Panthers 321-186, they could not capitalize against Michigan’s bend-but-don’t-break defensive stance. The biggest play of the game was one of the first as Oakland received the opening kickoff and on 2nd and 9 Hebert faked to Stacy and tried to hit Henry Ellard on a deep ball. Ellard was well covered by Michigan’s league leading interception specialist, Chris Snyder, and Snyder made Hebert pay, snagging the ball in stride and turning it back against Oakland. Snyder would weave the 51 yards to the endzone, setting Michigan up with a 7-0 lead after less than 1 minute of play. Oakland’s next drive would not start off any better. A muff by the return man left Oakland on the 7 yard line, and a false start on their first play from scrimmage in the drive left them with 1st and 13 on the 3 ½ yard line. After a Stacy run went nowhere, Hebert went for play action on 2nd down, only to find himself in the grasp of Michigan’s Renaldo Turnbull. 5-0 Michigan and their offense had not even seen the ball yet. Oakland would pull back into the game, scoring on an Hebert to Ellard pass as the first half ran down. With Michigan’s offense only putting together one solid first half field goal drive, Oakland trailed 12-7 despite their early mistakes. In the 3rd quarter neither team found much success, so it was surprising to see 24 points scored in the final period. Oakland started it off, with Ellard catching his second TD on the day. When the 2-point conversion failed, the Invaders would have to settle for a 13-12 lead. Michigan quickly wiped that short-lived lead away, scoring on the next drive as Tyrone Wheatley finished off a 12-play drive with a 2-yard scoring run. 5:45 left to play and Michigan was back on top 18-13. Oakland came right back, finding more success through the air, with Carlester Crumpler scoring on a short pass play to give Oakland the lead once again. Again they went for 2, and again they failed. A miss that would play large when it was all said and done. With only 1:40 left, Michigan would have one more drive, down only 1. They would cash in 80 seconds later, when Brad Daluiso connected from 54 yards out, sending the Pontiac Silverdome crowd into cheers of celebration. Despite gaining only 26 yards on the ground as a team, and despite going only 4 of 14 on third down, the Panthers had found a way to win and now sat in good shape for possible playoff football at 6-3. For Oakland, which has simply not been able to put together strong offensive production with defensive muscle, the 3-6 record sent the opposite message, that the rebuild was on, and Coach Mora would likely be looking to shake things up in the offseason. BAL 13 WSH 21 In a game that could reinvigorate their season the Feds outmuscled the Blitz at home, getting 73 yards and a score from Barry Word, while Don Majkowski hit Herman Moore for 2 scores. Washington built up a 21-6 lead until Chris Miller found Rob Moore for a late score, but Baltimore would never see the ball again as the Feds were able to convert on a risky 4th and 2 to keep possession and run out the clock. NJ 13 OHI 17 Coach Saban’s Glory continue to impress and Joey Galloway continues to be unstoppable, adding another 114 yards and 2 scores to his remarkable season. New Jersey used 5 different ballcarriers as they tried to win with the run game, but even with this they only managed 82 total yards in the game. PHI 33 PIT 17 A big win for the Stars and a last straw for the Maulers as Pittsburgh struggled in the passing game again, leading to a midweek trade (see below). Chuck Long threw for 330 and 3 scores, and even with 130 yards rushing from Rozier, the Maulers simply could not equalize Philadelphia’s offensive production, falling to 4-5 with 7 weeks left to find a path back to winning football. ATL 3 BIR 34 Coach Reeves is feeling the heat in Atlanta as his team again proves that they cannot compete with the league’s better teams. Held to only 178 total yards of offense, Atlanta was never in this game despite the fact that Brett Favre had a horrible game, sacked 7 times and only able to complete 8 passes all game. JAX 44 MEM 26 Jacksonville got a POTW performance from Chris Chandler and blew past the Showboats in Memphis. Chandler completed 71% of his passes on the way to 409 yards in the air, with 3 different receivers going over 100 yards receiving. ORL 32 TBY 24 Tampa Bay suffered another setback as Orlando punched them in the mouth in Tampa Stadium this week. The Renegades once again unleashed a solid run game with Barber rushing for 66 yards on 12 carries and Kirby adding 37 yards on 12 of his own. Throw in a solid short passing game from Mitchell and Memphis was able to keep the ball away from Tampa’s offense long enough to get the win. DEN 6 CHI 24 Denver was forced to start Billy Joe Tolliver this week after a midweek injury to Brunell, and with a short week to prepare, Tolliver was ineffective against a rejuvenated Chicago defense. Ricky Watters rushed 24 times, gaining 92 yards and a score along the way. LA 9 HOU 48 Jeff Garcia struggled in the start and Jim Kelly had his usual monster game against an overwhelmed Express defense as Houston cruised to 45 unanswered points after LA scored on their first drive. Only a late safety of backup Chuck Hartlieb got LA back on the board in this one-sided affair. POR 20 NOR 31 New Orleans got 2 scores and 85 yards from Terrell Davis and the Breaker D was able to corral the Thunder offense despite 110 yards from Robert Drummond to get the W. Lamar Lathon was a beast against the Thunder, garnering 11 tackles and disrupting the Thunder run game all day. SEA 6 STL 27 The Knights defense is beginning to get some respect as they again keep the pressure on, sacking Timm Rosenbach 5 times. Todd Collins looked good as the Knights relied more on the passing game in the absence of Darrell Thompson, with Collins throwing for 263 and 3 scores on the day, including a nice over the shoulder catch by rookie Amani Toomer. ARZ 14 TEX 26 Arizona made it a game early, but eventually fell behind and were unable to answer the Outlaws, as Texas used 4 Chris Boniol field goals to pull away from the Wranglers. Rodney Thomas took over when Reggie Cobb went down early in the game and the young back rushed 19 times for 133 yards to impress the Texas coaches. TRADE DEADLINE PRODUCES A FLURRY OF ACTIVITY: Most years there is not a lot happening at the Week 10 Trade deadline, but that was certainly not the case this year. While only one of the trades could really be considered a major development, the fact that we saw 6 trades within the final 48 hours in itself is a big deal. The newsmaker of the bunch came out of Pittsburgh, where the Maulers, desperate to turn the season around before it is too late, made a deal with Arizona for former starter Robbie Bosco. Bosco will come to the Steel City, and Pittsburgh sends the Wranglers a 3rd round pick in next year’s draft and developmental QB Doug Nussmeier. For Arizona this ends the QB controversy as Trent Green now seems to be the only hope, and some pundits see this as a prelude to the Wranglers making a play for local hero, Arizona State’s Jake Plummer in the 1997 draft. For Pittsburgh, expect John Fourcade to get the start in Week 10, but we expect to see Bosco in action immediately after that. Oakland, recognizing that their passing game needed some help, traded away a 4th round pick and backup TE Dennis Ransom to get an upgrade at the position with Memphis’s Christian Fauria the newest Invader. Fauria was viewed as expendable behind Adrian Cooper and with a developing A. J. Ofodile gaining more snaps. In a move that is likely to help both clubs, the LA Express parted ways with LB Bryce Paup, but brought in former All-USFL SS Carnell Lake from Michigan. The Panthers get a solid pass-rushing LB in Paup while LA gets a solid corner to help their depleted secondary. Jacksonville acquires St. Louis CB Ron Pitts, sending guard Paul O’Connor to the Knights in exchange. The two also swapped picks with the Bulls giving up a third rounder and getting a 5th rounder in return. Atlanta and Chicago pulled off a trade, with the Fire sending FS Myron Guyton to Chicago in return for some D-line help in the form of veteran DE Ray Agnew. The move helps Chicago deal with the passing games of Houston, New Orleans and Texas in their division, while Atlanta does what it can to shore up their run defense with Agnew’s veteran leadership. Finally, in the most complex move of the week, Philadelphia sends a 3rd rounder, DT John Jurkovic and guard Jay Leeuwenberg to Denver in order to get two players, DT Mike Taliferro and FS Anthony Dorsett. The 33 year-old Taliferro is a solid contributor, but the real catch is the 20-year old Dorsett, in his rookie year, who has shown real potential subbing for Charles Mincy in Denver, but who now may become an immediate starter in Philly. COACH WATCH: Add Dan Reeves and Woody Widenhofer to the list of potential hot seat coaches, along with Arizona’s Ted Tollner. While Ohio and LA are seeing definite signs of improvement over their expansion seasons, Seattle and Atlanta seem to be regressing, and a lot of pressure is being put on Reeves and Widenhofer to explain why. Of course, as with all expansion teams, there is a lot of pressure on the player personnel team, and that will certainly be the case in both Atlanta and Seattle, but the on field performances have been at times embarrassing, and that tends to be laid at the feet of the coaches. We feel pretty confident that Tollner will be out as Arizona garnered their 8th loss this week, but if Seattle and Atlanta, both 2-7 cannot outdo their modest win totals of last season, we will not be shocked if both Reeves and Widenhofer are shown the door. And speaking of coaches who may be on their way out, there are rumors swirling that this season may be the last for Ted Marchibroda in Pittsburgh. After last year’s ascension to glory and a league title, Marchibroda is seeing it all fall apart after 1 key injury. He is clearly working to repair the damage, trading for Bosco this week, but there is a tired feeling around the Mauler team, and some internal sources have indicated that this vibe may be emanating from a head coach who may be looking to step down and try something different after the season. INJURY REPORT: Denver got some bad news when what was thought to be a minor injury turned out to be much more for RG O’Neill Glenn. What was first expected to be an issue with cramping, turned out to be a significant hamstring injury for Glenn. The big man could miss the rest of the season after further examination revealed a partial tear. As if Oakland needed more bad news, it appears that WR Ed McCaffrey, who was having a solid year, may miss as much as 6 weeks of the remaining 7 due to a broken wrist. The team says they will look at a flexible cast after 4 weeks, but that is no guarantee to work. In Birmingham, RT Emory Yates is likely out for 1-2 weeks after dislocating his knees. Fans watching on TV got to see the injury, which looks much worse than it is internally, on an awkward replay that showed the cap totally out of position, but the good news is that there appears to be no tearing of the tendons, so the knee should be good to go in only a couple of weeks, though Yates will wear a brace to support it. Expected back this week, from injury or from being knocked out of this weeks game, we find WR Terrell Owens (Bulls), T Lomas Brown (SEA), T Wayne Gandy (BAL), G Jamie Dukes (MEM), DT Antonio London (HOU), WR Ricky Proehl (HOU) and TE Kyle Brady (BAL). We have passed the midpoint of the year, and there are some surprises among the team leaders around the league. We don’t think anyone is shocked to see Houston at the top of team scoring, but few would have expected the Breakers, Panthers, Gold, and Showboats to be the next four clubs. Doug Flutie's arrival in Michigan and Mark Brunell’s growth in Denver have played big roles in their success, while Heath Shuler continues to impress for the Showboats. Denver also boasts the league’s best rushing attack, the only club to have over 1,000 yards rushing on the year to date. While in the air, the big revelation this year has been Joey Galloway and the Ohio Glory. Ohio ranks 3rd in passing yards, behind only Houston and Tampa Bay, and a big part of that success has been the speed and elusiveness of their 2nd year receiver. If you are looking for the reason Baltimore was able to jump out to an 8-0 start, look no further than their top ranked scoring defense. They have allowed 150 points over 9 weeks, an average of only 16.6 points per game. Contrast that with Oakland (3rd worst) with 261 points over the same span (29 PPG). After Baltimore we find the Bulls and then the surprisingly hard-hitting St. Louis Knights. The Knights boast the league’s best rush defense, allowing only 470 yards (52.2 yards per game) over the season’s first 9 games. Even more shocking is that the Maulers, whose defense was a huge factor in their championship last year, are currently ranked dead last in pass defense, allowing over 2,700 yards in their first 9 games. If it were not for a solid rush defense (5th best) they would be a disaster. As it is, their defense is currently the 4th worst in the league in yards allowed and the 5th worst in points per game allowed. That is not the path to a repeat. And what to do about Atlanta? Things have not started off well, and while the club has managed to win a game here and there, staving off talk of the 1976-1977 Buccaneers, that is about the best thing you can say about the club they have put on the field. Atlanta is currently dead last in scoring (13ppg), Total Yards (2,198), Passing (1,747), and Rushing (451). Eric Zeier is struggling and the trade for Blair Thomas produced no benefit at all. And as if that is not bad enough, Atlanta is also dead last in the league in Points Per Game Allowed (32.3 per game), 2nd to last behind only LA in yards per game allowed, and second to last, again behind LA, in rush yards allowed per game. None of these indicators can make Dan Reeves feel confident, despite his past track record of success in the NFL. Atlanta clearly needs a total overhaul, and that may start at the top. The battles within the Pacific and Central Divisions resume in Week 10 as we find Chicago and Texas, both 4-5 hoping this week’s game in San Antonio sparks them to a playoff run. Houston has a tough game on their schedule as they head into Michigan to face a surging Panther squad, and the return of Doug Flutie at the helm. In St. Louis the Breakers will try to solve the puzzle of the Knights’ defense and retain a solid grip on first place in the Central. Denver hopes their loss this week was a blip, and with Mark Brunell returning, they hope to get a road win against Coach Jim Mora and the Oakland Invaders. Arizona is in Portland, facing a tough challenge against a solid offense led by Robert Drummond. LA and Seattle battle in the Emerald City, in a game that could determine if Seattle is going to battle to keep Coach Widenhofer at the helm. This is a winnable game for Seattle as LA has major defensive problems. In the Eastern Conference the six Atlantic teams are all at home as the Southern Division comes calling. First off their first loss of the season, Baltimore has to get their top-rated D ready for Brett Favre, himself coming off a win but a really odd day under center that saw him complete only 8 of 32 passes. Jacksonville is in New Jersey and Coach Knox is hoping for more from his offense against a pretty tough Bulls defense. Memphis is in Ohio in a battle of clubs on the cusp of playoff relevance. Orlando looks like a tough foe for Philadelphia, but the Stars see a chance to gain more ground on Baltimore and will be ready to go. Tampa Bay is hoping that former Bandit John Fourcade does not see this as a revenge game, as the Bandits face the Maulers in what is likely Fourcade’s only start of the year. Finally, Atlanta will get no mercy from the Washington Federals, who need this win to get back to .500. Expect the Feds to go for the kill early in this one.

We have reached the halfway point of the season and we still have one undefeated team, a ton of tight divisions, and several teams who have coaches on the hot seat. The defending champion is struggling without their field marshal at QB, and one expansion club has managed to be at .500 after 8 games. A lot left to be decided, but what a season it has been so far. This is going to be one that causes Coach Chuck Knox to go ballistic afterwards. The Generals struggle all day to put away the 1-win Seattle Dragons, and in the end that lack of killer instinct comes back to bite them as Seattle gets the score they need at the end to knock off the visiting Generals. On a windy Sunday with light rain and a slick field, Seattle frustrated the Generals all day, found a run threat and a pass rush, and the right foot of Mike Hollis gave the home squad their second win of the year. Timm Rosenbach came out throwing darts against one of his three former clubs, finding O.J. McDuffie for the game’s opening score on a perfect corner route. He would come back on the Dragons’ next drive and find Eric Metcalf for a second score to shock the Generals and go up 14-0. New Jersey found their sea legs on the slick Seattle turf and when QB Tommy Maddox hit rookie Terry Glenn from 8 yards out, the game was back on. New Jersey would go on to score 12 of the next 15 points as both clubs settled for field goals. New Jersey took the lead 19-17 with only 3:33 left in the game, but they had difficulty containing Seattle all day, and the final drive of the game would be no different. Seattle’s secret weapon on the slick field was scatback Derick Loville. Unlike the lumbering backs, like Bam Morris and Leland MacElroy, which New Jersey employed, Seattle did not feed the ball to Roosevelt Potts but instead played the outside game with Loville. The result? Loville glided, slid, and scooted fro 95 yards on 15 carries, while Potts, Morris, and MacElroy found themselves bogged down. On the final drive, Loville carried the ball 3 times to only 1 down for Potts. Seattle mixed in 3 passes from Rosenbach, and with 1:03 left on the clock they lined up for a 46-yard Hollis attempt to retake the lead. Hollis slipped a bit on the approach but righted himself and the ball went right through the uprights to give Seattle the 20-19 lead. New Jersey cold not respond, and when Maddox tried in desperation to hit on a 4th and 7 throw to Jeff Spek, FS Terry Hoague stepped in front of it and batted it away from the slowfooted tight end. Seattle got their second win, and New Jersey got a long flight home to contemplate how they let this one slip away. PHI 27 ARZ 14 Very different weather greeted the Stars when they touched down in Tempe. With a gametime temperature hovering around 100 degrees, the Stars kept cool with misting fans and twice the normal allotment of Gatorade. The strategy worked, and while the Stars were outgained by Arizona 357-317, they got the better of the Wranglers with 27 unanswered points to finish the game with the win after giving up the initial 14 to Trent Green and Arizona. Charlie Garner was hot in his return to full-time action, gaining 126 yards on 16 carries to take the Player of the Game honors. PIT 14 DEN 37 The Gold stayed hot and Pittsburgh continued to struggle with Shane Matthews under center. Matthews completed only 12 of 32 passes (37.5%) against the Denver defense, turning the ball over 3 times as well. Meanwhile, Mark Brunell was the model of efficiency with the short passing game, completing 12 of 13 in the first half before a hard hit to the head sidelined him in favor of Billy Joe Tolliver. The two QB’s combined for 282 yards passing, finding Odessa Turner for 135 yards and Mark Carrier twice for scores in the big home win. OHI 34 LA 19 The Glory won the matchup of ’95 expansion clubs, and in doing so evened their record at 4-4 at the season’s midpoint. It was a solid game for all aspects of the Ohio offense as Eddie George rushed for 98 yards, Ernest Byner scored twice from within the 5, and Jeff Hostetler threw for 322 yards against a depleted LA defense. Joey Galloway, who is on pace to set a league receiving yardage record, gained 179 on the day in only 6 catches as he remained the league’s most dynamic deep threat. WSH 25 POR 38 The Federals and Thunder each wanted to get to .500 with a win, but in the end the home team was the one who got the breaks as won the takeaway battle 2-0 to overtake the Federals. Don Majkowski was back under center, and threw 3 TDs but it was not enough as Jack Trudeau and Robert Drummond found holes in the Federals defense and exploited them. Webster Slaughter finished the day with 100 yards receiving and TE Lonnie Johnson proved his worth in the red zone, scoring twice for the Thunder. ATL 14 NOR 44 Atlanta was totally outmatched, falling behind 41-0 before the Breaker bench gave up some yards and 2 scores to the Fire. Jamie Martin played only 1 half, going 10 of 14 for 153 before giving way to his backup, rookie Bobby Hoying in the second half. Terrell Davis rushed for 83 yards and backup Erric Pegram added another 72 and 2 scores during the blowout win. BIR 16 HOU 38 Jim Kelly got the clear W in the battle of two of the league’s best gunslingers. Kelly won OPOTW with a 403 yard, 5 TD day, while Brett Favre was limited to only 269 yards and 1 score with 2 picks on the day. Antonio Freeman took advantage of double coverage on Brett Perriman to catch 6 balls for 143 yards and score. Thurman Thomas rushed for 66 yards and caught 2 balls for 67 and 2 TDs, including the play of the game, a 64-yard catch and run as the Gamblers won handily. JAX 24 CHI 27 Chicago’s offense finally found some rhythm under Scott Zolak as Mario Bates and Ricky Watters combined for 184 yards rushing, including a brilliant 43-yard romp from Bates in the 2nd quarter. Zolak threw for only 179 but the balance of the Chicago offense paid off as they kept Jacksonville off balance all day. Chris Chandler would throw for 295 and 3 scores but could not a score when it was needed most as a last second hail mary fell uncaught in the endzone. MEM 27 TEX 21 Memphis got TD runs from Moe Williams and Tommy Agie to outpace the Texas Outlaws in the AlamoDome. The Showboat defense rediscovered its mojo as they sacked Kelly Stouffer 6 times on the day, including 2 from blitzing LB Eddie Simmons. ORL 19 MGN 21 Michigan scored all 21 points in the first half and then held off the Renegades to preserve the win, moving to 5-3 at home. With Doug Flutie out, Sean Salisbury played well, throwing for 2 TDs and completing 74% of his throws, mostly short slants and hooks, to keep the ball moving. The Michigan defense got to Scott Mitchell 3 times and limited Terry Kirby to only 3.4 yards per carry to preserve the win. BAL 38 OAK 17 Baltimore put an unceremonious end to Oakland’s 3 game win streak, preserving their own record at a perfect 8-0. They did it with a relentless pass rush that harassed and tormented Bobby Hebert all day, to the tune of 9 sacks, including 2 each for Mike Piel and Charles Buchanon. Barry Foster rushed for 2 scores and Lamar Thomas had a solid game with 2 scores, but it was Bill Brooks who kept Oakland guessing, catching 11 balls from 14 targets and keeping the Blitz offense on the field. TBY 14 STL 32 Todd Collins had a brilliant game, throwing for 335 and managing the Tampa pass rush to help the Knights get over .500 after 8 games for the first time since relocating from LA. Troy Aikman struggled to keep the ball moving as the St. Louis defense sacked him 7 times on the day. DE Tony Tolbert for St. Louis was named Defensive POTW with his 2 sacks, one for a safety as the Knights staked a claim to possible playoff relevance for the first time in years. RECORD PACE: Three players are on a pace to set league records, and while we know that the second half of a season can grind down these record-setting paces, it is exciting to see the potential for major records to be set. Jim Kelly has 2,732 yards passing, ahead of the pace Brett Favre had when he set the league passing yardage record in 1992, the only passer ever to surpass 5,000 yards in a season. In New Jersey, DE Phil Hansen is on pace to break his own record of 23 sacks. With 8 games under his belt, his 14 sacks has him on pace for 28 on the year. He is well on his way to a 3rd 20-sack season since his rookie year in 1991, an amazing accomplishment even if he cannot reach 24 sacks over the second half of the season. Finally, 2nd year receiver Joey Galloway has found chemistry with QB Jeff Hostetler. At the halfway point of the year he is already over 1,000 receiving at 1,010 yards. He is on pace to become the first receiver to ever reach 2,000 yards in a season. The current record is 1,959 from Eric Truvillion in 1986, and, we have to remind everyone, that after 8 games in ’86 Truvillion was at 1,072 yards, ahead of Galloway’s pace, but the heat of summer has a way of melting energy from offenses, so for Galloway to keep pace he will need both determination and a lot of luck. COACHING CONCERNS: Things are looking bad for Ted Tollner in Arizona. Not only has his decision to bench QB Robbie Bosco not produced wins, he seems to be losing the locker room. The man who has coached the Wranglers since 1989 has received plenty of criticism from the press in Phoenix, but now he must deal with discord in his own locker room as this week we heard critiques of the team from within the locker room. Both veteran LB Bill Romanowski and HB Tim Lester have been less than complimentary. And while we cannot place all the blame on Coach Tollner, after all the Wranglers have not found solid talent in the draft in several years, a lot of the issues seem to be on offense, which is meant to be Tollner’s strength. It was not explosive with Bosco under center, but it has been outright putrid under Trent Green. Arizona currently ranks 23rd in Points Per Game and 22nd in Yards Per Game, and that translates into 1 win in the season’s first 8 weeks. Tollner is likely safe to finish out the season, but any chance at finishing out his 3 year contract depends on if he can regain the faith of his players and get them to play for him. STEEL CITY SLUMP: The Maulers have one of the deepest rosters in football, but when they lost Alan Risher it became clear that QB may not be a position of strength. Shane Matthews has been mediocre at best, throwing 6 picks along with 6 TDs and completing only 56% of his throws. What is worse, the Maulers have not taken advantage of the 8 and 9 men boxes they face each week to use play action effectively. Teams are ganging up on Mike Rozier, and Pittsburgh is not forcing them to stay honest with deep balls. Rumors have Coach Marchibroda possibly turning to journeyman John Fourcade if Matthews continues to struggle. Fourcade has only been with the club a few weeks, and did not fare particularly well in relief of Troy Aikman in his time in Tampa Bay, so it is a bit of a longshot, but the Maulers have to do something after 3 of the last 4. The defense has remained steady, but they cannot do it all alone, so Coach Marchibroda needs to find an answer at QB if the Maulers want any chance to defend their title in the playoffs. INJURY REPORT: Washington got bad news on Monday when an MRI revealed ligament damage in CB Lester Lyles knee. He will miss the rest of the season and his rehab could require a significant portion of the offseason as well. Houston will also be without one of their key defenders as nickel back Mike Adams could miss the rest of the year with a hip fracture. In New Orleans the concern is for LB Jeff Herrod who suffered a hamstring injury on Sunday and was unable to even hobble to the sideline. He may miss as much as 2-3 months if the muscle is as damaged as initial indications seem to highlight. Oakland is likely without their flanker for up to 2 months as Ed McCaffrey suffered a broken wrist on an awkward landing on the hard pitcher’s mound area of the Oakland infield. In Seattle LB Tommy Thigpen suffered a sprained knee in the win over New Jersey and could miss as much as a month, while Michigan QB Doug Flutie is still expected to miss at least another week due to his wrist. Likely returning this week are Jacksonville FB Edgar Bennett, Ohio T Romen Oben, Orlando LB Tim Green, Tampa HB Errict Rhett, and Memphis G Jamie Dukes. The injury to Alan Risher and the QB crisis it created in Pittsburgh has highlighted for football fans everywhere the importance of a solid 2nd QB. Despite having a talent-laden defense and solid offensive stars like TE Mike Shaw, WR Louis Lipps, and HB Mike Rozier, the Maulers have been unable to win games without Risher. We have seen this before, and yet so often it seems near impossible for clubs to ensure that they have backups ready to go if called upon. Sure, we expect a backup QB to struggle when asked to come in mid-game, but even with a week or more of prep, so many backups seem to struggle. In this week's episode of Around the League, we rank the 24 current #2's, including those that have already been pressed into action this week. This is clearly subjective, as some of these players have never really had a chance to shine. We did not think much of Jamie Martin as the backup to Timm Rosenbach in New Orleans and now he is not only starting but has New Orleans poised as a potential top seed in the Western Conference. Only time will tell if we are right or wrong about this list, but let's try anyway. FORMER STARTERS ARIZONA: Robbie Bosco. A starter for nearly a decade, Bosco can be effective, but rarely makes the big play needed in tough situations. He can win you games if he has support, but he will not take the team on his shoulders. ATLANTA: Cliff Stoudt. He is a backup only because Atlanta wants to see what Eric Zeier has to offer. Stoudt could start for 8-10 teams in this league, and is still a respected QB by anyone who watched him play in Birmingham. MEMPHIS: Mike Kelley. Kelley was a quality starter for the Showboats for several years, and we are quite frankly shocked he has been willing to play second fiddle to Heath Shuler. We expected him to demand a trade, but so far he has kept his nose clean and towed the company line as Shuler's understudy. ST. LOUIS: Frank Reich. True, he was never a USFL starter, nor really a Bills starter when he served as Boomer Esiason's backup on 2 championship Bills squads, but when called upon, he came through big time, like that epic comeback against the Houston Oilers. He is older now, and perhaps more of a "player-coach" for Todd Collins than a true starter-level player, but he brings a lot of leadership, which seems to be rubbing off on St. Louis's young and improving starter. UP & COMERS HOUSTON: Chuck Hartlieb-- Were Jim Kelly to retire, we fully expect Hartlieb to get a full season to prove himself. He is not a physical specimen, but when he has been called on he has been able to produce with the talent Houston has around him. LOS ANGELES: Jeff Garcia: With Brent Pease's recent injury we are all getting a first look at the former San Jose State QB. It is way too early to tell if he can be a possible starter in this league, though we do love his mobility. He is raw, but he has some skills that could be of use to the Express. WASHINGTON: Kordell Stewart-- The heir apparent for the Feds. He has had opportunities and we have been impressed. His 5 starts this year for Washington showcased his arm and his legs. His last game before Majkowski came back was a 408 yard monster of a game. We fully expect him to take over the reins for the Feds in the near future. TOTAL UNKNOWNS BIRMINGHAM: Jay Barker/Danny Kanell: A 2nd year player and a rookie, neither of whom we have a good sense for. Kanell showed some things at FSU and he is #2 on the depth chart, but right now we just cannot say how they would perform were Brett Favre to miss a few games. NEW ORLEANS: Bobby Hoying: The rookie from Ohio State has talent, we saw that with the Buckeyes, but does his game translate to the pro game? Too early to tell and too few opportunities as Jamie Martin is clearly the starter for now and perhaps the future too. PORTLAND: Bill Musgrave/Eric Wilhelm: These two seem interchangeable, and, in fact, both have been activated or deactivated in different weeks by the Thunder. At least with two interchangeable backups you don't get the fans calling for a replacement when the starter struggles, as we used to see when Kerwin Bell was on the bench. TEXAS: Tony Sacca. The definition of "we have no idea". Sacca has been in the league for 2 full seasons and has not played 1 snap of football, not even in garbage time mop up duty. Can he play? We don't know. It is just that basic. WILL DO IN A PINCH, BUT NOT A FUTURE STARTER BALTIMORE: Cody Carlson. Has never really been given a chance to start but has several years behind him and has shown an ability to win games when called upon. DENVER: Billy Joe Tolliver: BJ has already gotten some action this year and he has acquitted himself well. He has a lively arm but sometimes gets flustered under pressure and tries to play "hero ball" when he should just throw the ball away. JACKSONVILLE: Browning Nagle: Had a shot as a starter in Philly and it did not go well, so being a backup seems just about right. If Chris Chandler went down for the year, we are not sure Nagle would be the long term solution. MICHIGAN: Sean Salisbury. Had Michigan thought Sean was starting material they would not have gone after Joe Montana after trading away Trudeau, and they certainly would not have traded to get Doug Flutie. It seems clear that the Panthers view Salisbury as a consistent, but lackluster, option who hopefully only sees the field in garbage time. OAKLAND: Cary Conklin. A vagabond backup if ever there was one. Conklin has spent 7 years in the league and has started 1 game in the last 4. Should anything happen to Bobby Hebert, we don't know if Conklin can do the job at all. NOT WHAT ANYBODY WANTS NEW JERSEY: Rob Johnson/Tommy Maddox: We are just not sure if Maddox is the new starter or if Johnson will reclaim the job when he is healthy. Regardless of which QB is the backup moving forward, we are not sure New Jersey really has a potential starter in either one. OHIO: Dave Brown: A high draft pick by New Jersey in 1992, Brown is just not showing us anything. He was a stretch when the Generals signed him, proved that in limited action in New Jersey and was an easy guy to let slip away in the expansion draft. Ohio should be looking for a better option as Jeff Hostetler is not getting any younger. PITTSBURGH: Steve Matthews: The whole reason we decided to write this article. Matthews has not been able to get it done for the Maulers this year. So much so that they have signed John Fourcade, hardly a top flight option, and Fourcade seems to be on target to start this week if rumors out of Mauler camp can be believed. SEATTLE: David Klingler: We have seen enough of Klingler in past years, both in Seattle and Houston that we know that if he gets a start, Seattle will likely get a loss. There is an interesting dynamic behind him as both Damon Huard and Jon Kitna showed some skills in camp, but Huard is on the practice squad and Kitna sits as the emergency QB, so who knows? SHOULD BE STARTING CHICAGO: Dan McGwire: McGwire did an outstanding job leading the Machine when Scott Zolak went down last year, just as Zolak had done when Kosar went down and then retired. So, who should be the starter? Based on this year's Machine production, we think it is just a matter of time before McGwire gets the call again. ORLANDO: Craig Erickson: All he does is win games. Erickson has gotten a solid number of starts over the past 3 years and while he does not look good doing it, he wins games. He is smart with the ball, and while he will not scare defenses with his arm talent, in the right system he would be a solid starter. PHILADELPHIA: Eric Kramer: Another guy who will not wow you, but who will win games for you. Kramer is not pushing to start, not demanding a trade, but the potential is there if the right team comes calling. Philly would be wise to lock him up for a few more years. TAMPA BAY: Kerwin Bell: We know, we know, when Bell started for Portland we used countless articles to say he should not be starting, but the truth is that he has the talent, if only he could be more consistent. He is not All-USFL quality, but he is a better option than several of the guys we see under center each week around the league. We are back to a split schedule again, with the Atlantic and Southern divisions headed off to face rivals while the Pacific clubs visit their Central Division opponents. In the divisional games we find a really intriguing Keystone Clash between the struggling Stars and Maulers, while Baltimore is in DC to face their rivals, the Washington Federals. New Jersey is also in Columbus to face the surprising Ohio Glory. In the South it is Birmingham hoping to rebound with a win in Atlanta against the struggling Fire. Jacksonville is in Memphs, both at 4-4 and both hoping for a better second half to the season, while Tampa Bay hosts their in-state rivals, the Orlando Renegades, hoping home cooking can take them to 6-3. In the Western Conference, the best game may be 5-3 Michigan hosting 3-5 Oakland as the Invaders try to recoup after being dismantled by Baltimore. Denver travels to Chicago in a key game for both clubs. New Orleans hosts Portland and Houston hosts LA as both clubs hope to keep pace in the Central. St. Louis hopes to gain ground as they host the 2-win Dragons, and Texas hopes that a homestand against the sad sack Wranglers can help get them back on the right track.

Hey, True Believers. Before we get into the action this week, a quick note that I have added a new feature to the website. We have a new page where each week I will post a poll so that you can weigh in on questions related to this Alt History USFL, the real USFL, and the new USFL 2.0 expected to begin this April. I am going with the free poll app, which limits how many options I can provide, but you are always invited to use the comment section in our blogs entries to add your thoughts as well. We kick off with a question about the new USFL 2022 and your initial impression. Enjoy. With all 24 USFL clubs playing division rivals this week, we knew it would be a wild one. We were not disappointed. Houston and New Orleans came down to a 2 point PAT to decide it, New Jersey and Washington redefined what an overtime game could look like. Oakland reminded everyone that they are not dead yet, and Baltimore gave us yet another reason to believe. Here it is Week 7 of the USFL 1996 season. We knew this would be a great game. New Orleans is hungry and they see a chance to wrest the division title away from the Gamblers, while Houston is still a very dangerous club and clearly will be there the entire season. This one looked like a New Orleans win from the beginning, but all came down to one key play to tie at the end. The Breakers got off to an amazing start as Jamie Martin hit Qadry Ismail twice for scores in the first half. Martin would finish the day with only 128 yards passing, but three scores, as the Breaker offense relied on a 3-headed run game to confound Houston’s D. Second year back Terrell Davis rushed 20 times for 88 yards, and got huge assists from fullback Greg Paterra (4 for 17 yards) and backup Erric Pegram (4 carries for 56 yards). Down 14-0 early, Houston rallied with 2 field goals to go in down by 8 at the half. New Orleans boosted the lead to 15 in the 3rd thanks to a Martin to Fontenot TD toss, but Houston had a rally in them. The Gamblers scored late in the 3rd, a Brett Perriman TD, which brought them again back to within 8 at 21-13. After a missed Kasay field goal on their next drive, Houston needed a 2-minute drill, complete with a 2-point conversion to get them to a tie as time wound down. Thurman Thomas took over in the final 2 minutes, touching the ball 6 times on a 9 play drive. He would finish the day as the leading rusher and leading receiver with 105 on the ground and another 82 yards in the air, including a brilliant 44 yard gain on the final drive on a simple screen pass. Houston got the TD they needed when Jim Kelly found James Pruitt in the back of the endzone, but it would come down to a successful PAT to tie the game and send it to overtime in front of a feverish 57,200 in the AstroDome. Kelly faked a quick slant to Perriman and handed to Thomas on a draw, but when Lamar Lathon clipped Thomas’s ankles behind the line of scrimmage, the PAT failed and the Breakers only had to successfully receive the onside kick and take a knee to end the game. The win is huge for Coach Ditka and the Breakers, as it moves New Orleans to 5-2, a half game ahead of the Gamblers and all alone atop the division. While a tiebreaker is unlikely to be needed due to Houston’s tie against St. Louis, the advantage of having beaten the Gamblers in Houston is huge for the Breakers. WSH 20 NJ 23 We almost picked this one as game of the week, because how often do you see 3 scores in overtime. After playing to a 17-17 draw in regulation in Tommy Maddox’s first start replacing Rob Johnson, New Jersey took the lead in overtime on a 50 yard Vinatieri kick. On the next possession Washington equalized on an astounding 57-yard try by Doug Pelfry, meaning the game was tied again. New Jersey took the win with only 40 seconds left in the extra period, thanks to Vinatieri once again. All this despite Kordell Stewart throwing for 408 yards. PHI 14 BAL 30 Eric Kramer, filling in for Chuck Long, was no match for the Baltimore defense, and with Barry Foster rushing for 101 yards for the Blitz, play action became a highly effective weapon as well. The Blitz scored 30 unanswered points to put the game out of reach before a late Cris Carter TD got the Stars within 2 scores. Blitz fans are over the moon with their 7-0 start, to be sure. PIT 10 OHI 31 The Maulers, and particularly Shane Matthews, continue to struggle with Risher gone for the year. Pittsburgh converted only 3 of 15 third downs on a day when the Ohio Glory looked good on both sides of the ball. Both Eddie George and Ernest Byner scored for Ohio in one of their biggest wins in the 2 year history of the club. BIR 35 ORL 28 Brett Favre went off for 397 yards and 4 TDs as the Stallions needed every bit of that to knock off the Renegades in Orlando. Favre hit Cedric Tillman with the winning score in the 4th, his 3rd receiving TD of the day as he took over for an injured Ernest Givens. Scott Mitchell threw for 349 and 3 scores in a losing cause, with all 3 TDs going to Bert Emmanuel. MEM 31 TBY 38 Kerwin Bell, subbing for the injured Troy Aikman had one of those “Good Kerwin” games, throwing for 429 yards and 4 TDs. And just as in Orlando, it was needed, as Heath Shuler also had a strong outing for the Showboats, throwing for 4 scores as well. Neither defense seemed particularly problematic on the day as the two clubs combined for just under 900 yards of offense. ATL 3 JAX 26 The Bulls got themselves above .500 with a solid game in all phases as they limited Atlanta to 199 total yards of offense while putting up 357 themselves. An impressive 10 of 17 third down conversions and a solid run game with Means and Morris gave the Bulls the convincing win. STL 31 CHI 24 The Knights hit .500 at 3-3-1 with a big road win against the spiraling Machine. Chicago fell to 2-5 largely due to a lack of run game as St. Louis held Rickey Watters to only 33 yards on 13 attempts. The combination of Darrell Thompson (62 yards) and Alfred Jackson (22) was enough to power St. Louis to a solid divisional road win. TEX 23 MGN 21 Texas built up a 23-7 third quarter lead before two late Michigan TDs made it close. As in Houston it came down to a final 2-point conversion to tie, and as in Houston the Panthers failed to convert, giving Texas the 2 point margin of victory. Tyrone Wheatley did well in a losing cause, rushing for 111, but 2 Flutie picks and 3 sacks were harmful for the Panthers. Texas got 90 yards form Reggie Cobb, but it was a Stouffer to Shawn Collins TD that gave Texas the points to put them over the top. OAK 42 ARZ 20 The Invaders have won 3 in a row and looked ready to go for more as they obliterated the usually tough Arizona defense. Bobby Hebert threw for 3 scores and both Siran Stacy and Glyn Milburn rushed for scores as the floodgates opened in the desert. Trent Green continues to struggle, throwing 2 picks and only gaining 174 in the air for the besieged Wranglers. SEA 20 DEN 38 Mark Brunell was the picture of consistency, going 23 of 27 and connecting on 4 scoring throws to power the Gold to a divisional win against the Dragons. Rashaan Salaam also had a big day, rushing for 115 on 20 carries. Rookie TE Marco Battaglia had himself a day as well, catching 4 balls for 20 yards and 2 TDs. POR 34 LA 24 The Portland offense finally woke up after several bad weeks as they gained a total of 434, including 174 rushing. Robert Drummond found lots of holes on his way to 155 on 19 carries and Jack Trudeau became yet another USFL QB to throw 4 TDs on the week. Brent Pease was knocked out just after the half, which meant that largely untested Jeff Garcia came in to replace him. Garcia struggled, completing only 15 of 33 passes as the Express played catchup in the 2nd half. Oakland Rising: I guess we lit a fire under the Oakland Invaders with our critiques a few weeks back. Either that or Coach Mora has made his adjustments and the team is responding. Oakland has rattled off 3 straight wins, and shown a lot of offensive firepower in doing so. Bobby Hebert has now surpassed Jim Kelly for the passing TD lead, having thrown 11 scoring tosses in just the past 3 weeks. In that time, Oakland has scored 48, 34 and 42 points, overwhelming their opponents and allowing their somewhat shaky defense some breathing room. But, before you bet the ranch on the Invaders, note that those three wins were home against Texas and away against the 1-6 Dragons and Wranglers. They face the 7-0 Blitz this week. If they can win this one at home, then I think we start taking this revival a lot more seriously. Stars Falling: On the opposite side of the momentum swing we find Philadelphia. After a 4-0 start the Stars have lost 3 in a row. Unlike Pittsburgh (Losers of 3 of 4), they cannot point to a season ending injury to a key player as the reason. Yes, they have had to shuttle running backs in and out of the lineup over the past month due to injury, and they did lose Chuck Long this week, but the issues have been more complex than that. Their usually stout run defense is now ranked 18th in the league, and overall the defense has not been as reliable as we have gotten accustomed to. The offense has been uneven all year, and if the defense has lost its swagger it may be very tough for Philly to keep pace with Baltimore, which already has a 3-game lead on the division. Parity Reins: The USFL has a well-deserved reputation for mobility among clubs (not relocation, mobility in the standings) and that is certainly the case again as we have 14 of 24 clubs within 1 game of .500 after seven weeks. While we have some clear success stories, Baltimore at 7-0, or the Breakers, Stallions, Bandits, and Gold at 5-2, and we have some teams looking lost, like Seattle and Arizona at 1-6 each, for the most part this is a 4-3 and 3-4 league. That is, of course, good for ticket sales, and good for playoff drives late in the year. There will be a lot of season-determining games in the final weeks if the season keeps up this model into June. Award Watch: Over the first half of the season, some names have already been clearly placed into the races for MVP, Offensive and Defensive POTY, Rookie of the Year, and Coach of the Year. In the MVP race, as usual, it looks like a QB battle, with Kelly, Favre, and possibly Chris Miller surprisingly in the hunt, each with 16 TDs or more already this year. You can add Mike Rozier, Rashaan Salaam, Joey Galloway and Henry Ellard into the mix for OPOTY, while on the defensive side the frontrunners are New Jersey DE Phil Hanson, who already has 13 sacks on the season, on pace for a league record 27, and Michigan CB Chris Snyder, who leads the league with 6 picks for the Panthers. Among rookies, it is still a bit more muddled, which is typical as these new players get more action as the season progresses. Terry Glenn’s 483 yards and 4 TDs place him among top contenders, but more Generals wins would help the cause. Moe Williams with 5 TDs to date and Mike Alstott with 4 could also be in the running, making Alstott the first fullback to get any serious consideration. On the defensive side we have contenders in Washington DE Tony Brackens, with 7 sacks to date, and Portland DB Je’Rod Cherry, with 2 sacks, 2 interceptions, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery so far this year. Finally, the Coach of the Year looks like it could be a runaway for Baltimore’s Lindy Infante. This 7-0 start was not expected, even though the Blitz have seen steady improvement under Infante. Should the Blitz stumble, other coaches getting some props include Breakers’ head man Mike Ditka, Tampa’s Jerry Glanville, and Michigan’s Skip Holtz. But it will take a lot for Infante not to run away with this one. Injury Report: A few potentially rough injuries impacted the league this week. Chief among them was the news that Birmingham would be without their All-USFL tackle Richmond Webb for the rest of the year with a broken leg. The fracture occurred due to an illegal chop block as Webb was leading a sweep for Stephen Davis, and sadly it could cost him the rest of the year. The Stallions got better news on wideout Ernest Givens, though missing their top receiver for a month is no great news, it was initially feared to be a much more serious injury. Memphis is likely to be without CB Deon Figures for longer than originally estimated as an infection has complicated his healing process. It could be another month before the speedy DB can return to play. New Jersey will be without QB Rob Johnson for at least 2 weks as he deals with a sprained wrist. However, if Tommy Maddox can show something, this could be a more permanent shift for Coach Knox, who has managed Johnson well, but still clearly has lingering doubts about the USC product. Former Generals QB Doug Flutie will also be sidelined, though perhaps for only 1 week, due to an elbow injury in his non-throwing arm. Likewise, LA QB Brent Pease is listed as doubtful for this upcoming week after getting knocked out of the game against Ohio with a shoulder injury. Jeff Garcia will start in his place. Washington DT is listed as questionable with a groin pull, as is Texas wideout Dokie Williams, Orlando tackle Matt Patchan, Chicago fullback Kimble Anders, and Philadelphia QB Chuck Long (after missing this week it is an upgrade to Questionable). Troy Aikman may return as he was cited as a game-time decision this week, but with Kerwin Bell showing he still has some skill in his arm, the Bandits will not rush Aikman. Arizona is expected to get rookie Karim Abdul-Jabbar back, and we also expect a return to action for Chicago T Romen Oben, Baltimore back Derrick Fenner, Bulls fullback Edgar Bennett and Outlaw CB Jerome Henderson. Texas becomes the first club to reveal their proposed 1997 looks from Nike, which is not surprising considering that they are the only club of the 3 projects this year not to be looking at a full rebranding with new logos. The Outlaw logo remains the same, though the wordmark gets a bit of home town flair with the addition of an Alamo silhouette above the team name to drive home the permanent home of the club in San Antonio. The uniform remains largely the same with two major exceptions. First is the addition of the Alamo roofline as a piping element on the jerseys. The second is a new stripe pattern mean to resemble both rattlesnake skin and traditional Native American patterns of the region. The diamond pattern contained within solid stripes uses all 4 Outlaw colors (Kelly, Royal, Black and White) and can be seen on the helmet and the pants for the Outlaws. Here are mockups as well as the league’s new “Figure Display” version of the designs. After a week in which all 24 clubs faced divisional games, we have one where none of the 24 clubs are in their division. The midway point of the season still has some interesting matchups, led by Pittsburgh, on the heels of a 3 game losing streak, heading to Denver to face a hot Gold club. Birmingham is in Houston in a very interesting matchup of potent offenses, while we also have some interesting games between foes sitting at 3-4 and hoping to even their records as Washington is in Portland, Memphis is in Texas, and Ohio heads out to LA in a battle of two clubs who are headed in the right direction. Undefeated Baltimore will have a challenge as they head to Oakland to take on Bobby Hebert and an Invader squad that has won 3 in a row. Jacksonville is in Chicago hoping to continue Coach Schottenheimer’s woes this year, while the Breakers, hot off their big win in Houston, host the Atlanta Fire. New Jersey hopes to even their record at 4-4 when they play the 1-win Seattle Dragons at Husky Stadium, and Philadelphia hopes they can keep pace with the Blitz as they face a reeling Wranglers club in the desert. Orlando will head up to Michigan, and the St. Louis Knights hope they can continue their run of good play as they host the 5-2 Tampa Bay Bandits.

It was a classic battle of wills in Memphis, where the Showboats took on the Washington Federals. Both clubs entered the week needing a win. With a victory Washington would reach .500 and stay in range of the 2nd and 3rd place Atlantic clubs, while still 3 games back of undefeated Baltimore. For Memphis, moving to 4-2 gave them a chance to earn a share of first place in the South. Two motivated teams, two defenses trying to prove they still had it, and two offenses still testing out their options. What we got was a low scoring game, but not a low action game. It would take overtime to settle the game’s final score, and along the way the two clubs accounted for 800 total yards of offense and 6 turnovers in a game that had a lot more than its 16-10 final score would indicate. For one thing we got to watch two young QB’s strut their stuff. Memphis’s Heath Shuler had a strong day, despite two picks, by throwing for 311 yards and largely frustrating Dexter Manley and the Feds’ pass rush. On the other side Kordell Stewart had himself a game, throwing for an equal 311 yards but without a pick on his stat sheet. On the ground, Washington had the better day, with Terrell Fletcher hitting the home run ball, rushing for 49 yards on only 3 carries, while Barry Word did the dirty work, rushing for 55 yards and a 4.2 YPC average. Both clubs also spread the ball around, with Shuler hitting 8 different receivers, led by Carl Pickens and Adrian Cooper. Washington got the ball to Herman Moore for 104 yards but Stewart found 9 different receivers on the day, including 62 yards in the air for Mike Williams and 6 receptions for TE Travis McNeal. And yet, with all this offense, the two respective defenses played to a 10-10 tie after 60 minutes. Herman Moore scored the only TD for Washington in regulation, while Jeff Query got the equalizer for Memphis in the 4th quarter to lock up the game and send it to extra time. In overtime, both clubs traded short drives, but neither got their kickers in range. On their 3rd drive, and with time running out Washington got the break they needed. On a drive that started on their own 8 yard line, the Federals rushed on 5 consecutive plays, but found themselves with a 3rd and 5 on their own 47. Kordell Stewart was chased down on the play, and appeared to get called for grounding on a late throw to avoid a sack, but the Memphis joy turned to jeers when the ref instead called DT Tony Savage for Unnecessary Roughness for a blow to Stewart’s head on the sack attempt. Boos rained down from the Liberty Bowl crowd, but the damage was done. First down for Washington on the Memphis side of the field. 4 plays later Stewart found Moore for a second time and the Feds got a walk-off TD to end the game. A bad call? Possibly. Savage definitely clocked Stewart with a forearm to the back of the head, but it was largely because Stewart was headed to the ground already and slipped lower than Savage’s swing expected. At the same time it was clear that Stewart’s attempt to avoid the sack by throwing the ball away should have constituted illegal grounding, but the call did not go Memphis’s way. The Feds had their .500 record and now Memphis slipped to 3-3 as well. CHI 14 NOR 24 The big clash in the Central was a shot for New Orleans to lay claim as a contender, and they did just that. Jamie Martin outplayed Scott Zolak and WR Qadry Ismail had a season-best 11 receptions and a score to help New Orleans get the home win. Ricky Watters managed 105 on the ground, but the offense for Chicago just could not convert yards into points as they fell to 2-4. HOU 27 TEX 12 Even after Jim Kelly was sidelined with a concussion in the first quarter, Texas simply could not shut down the Gambler offense. Chuck Hartlieb threw for 3 scores and Thurman Thomas contributed 89 on the ground and another 59 in the air to help Houston keep their hold over the top spot in the division. MGN 24 STL 21 Michigan made it a sweep by the Central Division road teams as they got a Snyder pick-6 and 2 Doug Flutie TD passes to spoil the weekend in St. Louis. In another game where the starter went out early, Frank Reich got into the game after Todd Collins went down, but looked quite rusty, going 11 for 28with 3 picks as Michigan held down the Knights despite a rough game for Tyrone Wheatley (only 27 yards rushing). ARZ 16 LA 23 The Express evened their record at 3-3 at the expense of the spiraling Wranglers. The Wranglers struggled to run the ball against the Express and Marcus Allen had his best game of the year for LA, rushing for 92 yards and 2 scores to pace the Express to a comfortable home victory. Ted Tollner has to worry that his job may be on the line if this season keeps going south. DEN 36 POR 17 The Gold put on a show of strength in Portland, with The combo of Rashaan Salaam and Ricky Whittle accounting for 94 yards rushing, while backup Billy Joe Tolliver threw for 262 and 2 TDs. Add in a busy day for Jeff Wilkens, who kicked 5 field goals and you get a decisive Gold victory on the road. OAK 34 SEA 22 Seattle got a better showing out of their offense, but the Invaders were just too much for them as Bobby Hebert showed his best form of the season, throwing for 4 scores, including 2 to Henry Ellard. Tim Rosenbach played well, but with the run game of the Dragons only accounting for 24 yards all day it was a lost cause. Only Eric Metcalf (11 receptions for 134 yards) seemed up to the task on the day. OHIO 10 ATL 13 Torrential rain made this one a tough slog for both offenses. Somehow the Fire managed not to get put out as a late Zeier to Wycheck TD saved the day for the home team. Ohio struggled all day, despite Jeff Hostetler completing 72% of his throws. Two picks and a lot of penalties (9 for 70 yards) hindered the Glory all game, and the Fire came away with their 2nd win of the season. PHI 20 BIR 25 The rain that blanketed the South this weekend did not slow down the Stars and Stallions, who combined for over 800 yards of combined yardage. But, once again an injury impacted the game, as Chuck Long threw only 1 pass before succumbing. Eric Kramer would go 21 of 45 in the rain, but it was not enough as Brett Favre tossed 2 TD’s and the combo of Alstott and Stephen Davis rushed for 96 yards to pace the Stallion offense to the needed W. Both clubs now sit at 4-2 on the year. PIT 10 JAX 23 The Bulls handed the Maulers another loss as their D pressured QB Shane Matthews into 2 picks and hurried him all game. Rozier still got his 100 yards (102 to be exact) but Chris Chandler’s 26 of 34 day came with 2 TD passes as the Bulls held off the Maulers to snag their 3rd win. BAL 20 ORL 17 Orlando came close to ending Baltimore’s win streak at 5 games, but a last second Charlie Baumann FG to tie the game doinked off the right upright and sank the Renegades’ chances. Baltimore relied heavily on Barry Foster, who rushed the ball 18 times for 91 yards, while Orlando continued to split carries between Kirby and Barber as the two combined for 92 yards and a score. NJ 26 TBY 31 Generals’ QB Rob Johnson had one of his best games, throwing for 3 scores, and Bam Morris averaged 4.9 yards against the Tampa defense, but it was not enough as Errict Rhett paced the Bandits. Tampa too saw their QB go down, though Aikman’s injury appears to be minor and may not cost him another game. Kerwin Bell came in and did enough to get the Bandits the home win over the Generals. Robert Brooks caught 2 Bell TDs and helped Tampa outpace New Jersey. Who will lead us? A week that saw a lot of nervous fans as QB’s across the schedule were knocked out of games. The good news is that for most the blows were temporary and they will be back next week. Among the lucky were Houston’s Jim Kelly, and St. Louis’s Todd Collins, both of whom enter this weekend as probable starters. A little more unsure is Denver’s Mark Brunell, who joins Majkowski on the injury list as “Questionable” to play. But, that is better than what we saw in Tampa Bay and in Philly, where both Troy Aikman and Chuck Long are expected to miss at least 1 week, perhaps two, Aikman with a shoulder concern, and long with an abdominal strain that makes any pass attempt a painful experiment. Who Saw This Coming? Baltimore’s 6-0 start is mystifying league pundits, who each week seem to revel in picking upsets against the Blitz. Baltimore is not 1st in the league in any major category, though their 2nd ranking in both total yards allowed and passing yards allowed is pretty darn close. Their rush attack has found new life with Barry Foster among the league leaders for the first time in his career. The Blitz are doing what needs to be done each week to keep the streak going. They will have a big test this week against the Stars, but caught some good fortune in that Philly will be without Chuck Long under center. Having already knocked off Pittsburgh and Washington, Baltimore can really solidify their position with a win over the Stars. If you are looking for stars on this Blitz squad, there are a few, but not the names you might expect. First among them is Foster, who is only averaging 3.5 YPC, but who is bludgeoning defenses. Bill Brooks is having a really strong start to the year as well, catching 41 balls for 430 yards and 3 scores in the league’s first 6 weeks. Not a record-breaking pace by any stretch, but he is consistently open when Chris Miller needs a key third down. Second on the team in receptions is Kyle Brady, whose 9.9 yards per catch translates into a lot of key first downs. The real story however is on defense, where the Blitz are getting contributions at every level. Donnell Woolford is doing a bit of everything, leadin the team in tackles with 37 (tied with LB Tracy Rogers), but also has 2 sacks and 2 picks. DE Mike Piel is having a solid season with 5 sacks, and even William “The Refrigerator” Perry is seeing some success, having lost about 30 pounds in the offseason and seems quicker in his 11th season than at any other point in his career. Finally, we have to recognize the leadership of LB Barney Bussey. His stats are not out of this world, but his leadership as the QB of the defense is obvious and he has the ears of his entire squad. When he adjusts a called defense, the Blitz defenders follow his directives to the letter. So Long and Good Night: While not entirely unexpected, Pittsburgh QB Alan Risher’s announcement that he will not return to the USFL and the Maulers after recovering from a season-ending injury was still a shock to fans of the club. Risher, citing the wear and tear on his body over 13 seasons (11 in the Steel City), announced that he will make his retirement from pro football official at the end of the season, but that he wanted to give the club the best chance to strategize his replacement. The extra time this early announcement gives Pittsburgh opens up more options for the club to evaluate where they are with Steve Matthews and Pat O’Hara on the roster. Pittsburgh also has Doug Nussmeier under contract, but currently on the practice squad. Do they stand pat with these three options, or do they look elsewhere? Well, there are going to be options when the 1996-1997 offseason comes around. Looking around, this is what we see as options: Rookies expected to come out this year: If Matthews plays adequately, the Maulers may feel they can use him as a transition QB and develop a young star. So who may be coming out this year that could make their way to Pittsburgh? The most highly-touted college QB is likely Arizona State’s Jake Plummer, who has the kind of run-pass combo of skills that Ted Marchibroda has used so well with Risher. Other potential senior QBs include Florida’s Danny Wuerffel, Cal’s Pat Barnes, and local hero, Penn State’s Wally Richardson. Of course, the real question is if Tennessee QB Peyton Manning will declare after his Jr year, making him the clear #1 QB prospect in this year’s draft. Inside sources say it is unlikely, but stranger things have happened. What about possible USFL Free Agents?: While it is too early to know which QB’s may eschew contract renegotiation and opt to play the market, we can guess a few who may be available for Mauler management to recruit. Among QB’s with tenuous relationships with their current clubs, and in the final year of their contracts, we find Arizona’s Robbie Bosco, who is not happy about being benched by Coach Tollner. We could also imagine Scott Zolak being on the market, though his season has been rough this year, coming off a season-ending injury last year. Not a good combo for the Free Agent market. What about Houston backup Chuck Hartlieb? Both he and Kelly are at the end of their contracts, and we all know Houston will want to resign Kelly. In Tampa both Troy Aikman and Kent Graham are on 1 year deals, but we expect Tampa to work hard to resign both. That leaves Texas QB Kelly Stouffer as perhaps the best prospect in the Free Agency Pool, but only if the Outlaws see another option available. Not looking like a home run prospect here. So, the last option, signing an NFL QB away to the Spring. Right now there are no really intriguing free agents out there, but if a player is willing to jump from NFL in January to USFL in March, there are some potentially interesting free agents expected after the 1996 NFL fall season. The most intriguing is Ram and Saint veteran Jim Everett. Everett has some talent and a few years left in his body, but his style is very different from the one we have seen Marchibroda develop in Risher. Does Marchibroda have it in him to retool to fit Everett? The same could be said for Cleveland/Baltimore QB Vinny Testaverde, who is more of a classic pocket passer and not exactly swift of foot. A possible longshot, but an intriguing one is Minnesota QB Warren Moon, another pure pocket passer, but one with HOF credentials. So what are the Maulers to do? The decision may actually have to wait until Mike Rozier’s future is determined. If the veteran HB decides to retire also, then Pittsburgh may retool to a more conservative, ground & pound offense with Dorsey Levins, and having a veteran with a gun for an arm like Moon, Testaverde or even Everett may make sense. But if they want to maintain a faster, more diverse offense, the best option may be to muscle out the Wranglers to get a shot at Jake Plummer, the hotshot gunslinger for the Sun Devils. INJURY REPORT: We focused on the QB position earlier in the report, but, as always, QB is not the only position of importance on the field, and certainly not the only one to see some losses this week. Among the big hits this week, the harshest of all is likely the loss of Texas WR Lawyer Tillman for the year. Tillman took a hard hit on the turf this week and then caught a knee to the head. The result was a fracture in his vertebrae within his neck. Doctors report that he has feeling in all extremities, but his recovery is likely to require a long rehabilitation period. In Philadelphia, the hits just keep coming. This week it was FS Tim Hauck who is now expected to be out for the rest of the year with an MCL tear. In Orlando it is guard Joe Onosai, thanks to a ruptured Achilles. In Birmingham the bad news is that Ernest Givens could miss up to 2 months, though there is speculation that his abdominal injury could allow him to play by week 10 or 11. Houston will be without guard John Rienstra for 2-4 weeks with a torn meniscus and Ricky Proehl is still expected to be gone several more weeks as well. Some players upgraded to “Probable” this week include Washington tackle Ken Lanier, Portland DE Hugh Douglas, Birmingham HB Stephen Davis, Ohio tackle Romen Oben, and Oakland CB Aeneas Williams. Another year, another spring league meeting without a lot happening. Yes, several teams were approved to add minority owners, including the Steinbrenners in Orlando. And, yes, some minor rule changes were approved, including a new penalty for “Taunting” which will be treated as a 10-yard infraction for either offense or defense, but the big stories did not happen. A new nationwide radio deal was not approved, though it likely will come up again in the Fall, a proposal to change the Defensive Pass Interference rules failed to garner adequate votes, and a decision on the 1997 alignment and schedule was postponed. The league is taking seriously a proposal to realign the league into 6 divisions of 4 teams rather than the current four 6-team divisions. This proposal comes with another, potentially deal-breaking, tenet, to shift from a 16-week season to a 14-week option. The goal of a shortened regular season is to free up some time pre and post season to allow for greater use of the NFL-USFL transfer window without forcing teams to restructure their rosters during camp or to have the playoffs overshadowed by player departures. The shorter season, while certainly reducing the revenue generated and forcing yet another renegotiation of TV contracts, would allow the league to begin in the first week of April and end the season a week earlier in July or August, creating larger gaps between the USFL schedule and the NFL schedule. Of course the NFL is entertaining no such ideas, but the USFL, which has suffered in recent years from poor weather in its opening weeks and sweltering heat in August playoff games (especially in the Southeast and Arizona), could seriously opt to reduce their immediate revenue stream by reducing the season in hopes of creating a healthier ecosystem and maximizing attendance at both ends of the schedule. A select committee is exploring this, but a delay on a vote until Fall or even Winter almost certainly means that 1997 will move ahead without adjustments to either the divisional alignment or the 16-game schedule. Week 7 brings us more divisional mayhem as all 24 clubs are facing off against rivals. With the Blitz threatening to run away with the Atlantic, Philadelphia has to win to reel them back in, but doing so at Memorial Stadium will be tough. In New Jersey the Generals are going to try to get into the hunt as they face the Federals, and in Columbus, the Maulers hope to derail the Glory and get back into the playoff mix themselves. Atlanta got their 2nd win last week, and now have to take the show on the road as they visit Jacksonville. Birmingham is in Central Florida to face the Renegades and Tampa Bay hosts the Memphis Showboats, hoping to hold onto their share of the division lead. In the Central it’s a classic Heartland rivalry as St. Louis heads up to Chicago to face the Machine. A win would get St. Louis to .500 at 3-3-1 and would put Chicago’s season in jeopardy. In Houston the Gamblers hope to have Jim Kelly back as they face the hard-charging New Orleans Breakers. Texas is on the road to face Michigan in the Silverdome with both clubs hoping to get a key divisional win. On the West Coast Portland needs to find their offense if they are going to defeat the surprising LA Express in their new home. Seattle has a tough task as they head down to the division leaders, the Denver Gold, and in Arizona, this may be the last gasp for the 1-5 Wranglers. If Oakland can win their third in a row against Arizona, the season may be over before it really began.