![]() It was the original home to the run 'n' shoot offense, which the Kelly-led Houston Gamblers used to perfection. #Generals replay player professional#The USFL was the first stop for the professional two-point conversion and instant replay. But, as former Birmingham Stallions quarterback Cliff Stoudt recently told me, "We had a legitimate passion to succeed. Was the overall play equal to the caliber of the NFL? Probably not. In its three years of existence, the USFL thrived as a pigpen for an odd mixture of top collegiate stars (Doug Flutie, Mike Rozier, Jim Kelly, etc.), NFL washouts (Chuck Fusina, Vince Evans, Matt Robinson) and All-Pros lured by the phat wads of cash dangling from afar (Gary Barbaro, Raymond Chester). When, three days later, the Michigan Panthers signed All-American receiver Anthony Carter from the University of Michigan, the obscure turned obvious: The USFL was here to fight.įuture Hall of Famer Jim Kelly threw for 9,842 yards and 83 touchdowns in two seasons with the Houston Gamblers. 23, 1983, when Heisman Trophy winner Herschel Walker inked a three-year, $3.9 million deal to play for the Generals. The USFL never issued a direct verbal challenge to the NFL, but its intentions were obvious from the get-go: send Grandpa to Kevorkian's lair. 5, Tim Wrightman, an All-American tight end from UCLA, became the league's first player, signing with the Blitz and opening the gates to a flood of personnel. Within days, some of the sport's top names were hired as coaches Chuck Fairbanks with the Generals, George Allen with the Chicago Blitz, Red Miller with the Denver Gold. On May 24, 1982, just two weeks after the league's introductory news conference, ABC and ESPN agreed to a $13 million deal with the USFL. Buses broke down, charters never arrived, players vanished, coaches never showed up, pregame spreads were peanut butter and water.Īnd yet, the USFL took a novel idea (spring football played by unjaded men) and however briefly found legitimacy. There was Steve Young signing a then-ludicrous 10-year, $40 million contact with the Los Angeles Express Steve Spurrier coaching the part-Burt Reynolds-owned Tampa Bay Bandits. There was the swapping of rosters between the Chicago Blitz and the Arizona Wranglers. From the moment it first began play in 1983, the USFL was everything the NFL was not: weird, wacky, bizarre, unpredictable, unpretentious, groundbreaking and goofy. #Generals replay player free#and Tom Brady and Tiki Barber and bring back the Boston Breakers, who moved to New Orleans to become the New Orleans Breakers, who moved to Portland to become the Portland Breakers who, well, you get the idea.įor those too young to remember, the USFL came into being in 1982, when a handful of rich businessmen with free time decided the galaxy needed more than anything spring football. While millions of Americans blankly stare at their TVs each Sunday to watch yet another jarringly dull battle between the Browns and Bengals or Raiders and Chargers or (egad) Jets and anyone, I lie alone under the covers, begging God to smite T.O. Especially now, on the 20th anniversary of the end of what was hands down the greatest sports endeavor to ever grace mankind. Just writing those four words causes my eyes to mist. We're guessing that Steve Young didn't receive all of the $40 million owed to him by the Los Angeles Express.Īh, the United States Football League. ![]()
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