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| Nathan Branch, Memphis |
New Jersey won 10 in a row to close out the regular season, then topped the New York Stars and Pittsburgh Maulers in the playoffs. Memphis closed out the regular season with wins over playoff teams Los Angeles and Portland, then topped the defending champion Express in the wild-card round, knocked off No. 1 seed Oklahoma in the second round, and beat Cleveland in the conference title game.
Memphis will be without two injured starters on the defensive line, LDE Nathan Branch and DT John Biggs. New Jersey CB Gregory Johnson has a concussion, but is probable. LDE James Lockette (leg) is at 53 percent.
We will be interested to see which QB the Showboats choose to start. James Perry and Antonio Wilson split the 16 starts during the regular season. Wilson started the conference championship game against Cleveland, but threw four interceptions.
New Jersey leads the series, 2-0. The Generals won, 25-18, in Week 13 this season and 16-13 during the 1975 season.
In the most recent meeting, the Generals scored 10 points in the final 6:12 to win. Stephan Labelle threw a 63-yard TD pass to Clarence Collins to give New Jersey a 22-18 lead and Dustin Henry's field goal with 23 seconds remaining clinched it. The Generals defense intercepted James Perry three times and the Showboats also lost a fumble.
New Jersey 37, Pittsburgh 13
New Jersey won its 12th in a row with dominant defense and a record-setting day from rookie running back Rudi Johnson.
The Maulers had 11 offensive drives in the first three quarters and came away with one field goal and a 31-3 deficit. Pittsburgh QB Scott Deal ended the day with a 59.51 QBR and was sacked six times. Pittsburgh's two former All-Pro running backs managed a combined 25 yards on the ground.
Johnson shredded the Pittsburgh defense for a playoff-record 195 yards on 22 carries (8.6 YPC) and scored the game's first two TDs. RDE Roy Sullivan and LDE Tom Woodland combined for five sacks.New Jersey led, 24-3, at halftime.
Memphis 26, Cleveland 19
The American Conference championship game saw the Showboats win on Billy Williams' 2-yard TD run with 2:15 to play. But there was a lot more action before and after that score.
Memphis knotted the score, 19-19, on Gregory Shea's 2-yard TD run with 9:59 to go. But James Ewing missed the extra point kick, leaving the game tied. Cleveland's Gary Spence missed a 52-yard field goal attempt with 7:04 remaining,
An exchange of punts preceded the game-winning drive. Memphis moved 66 yards in seven plays. Of those 66 yards, 38 came on three plays in which Cleveland was penalized for defensive overuse. Then, with 1:32 to play, the Thunderbolts decided to punt the ball away.
Cleveland somehow got the ball back and got to run one play from the Memphis 35, but a Nathan Branch sack of backup QB Lon Musso ended the game.
The Showboats won despite QB Antonio Wilson throwing four interceptions. Cleveland defensive star Jim Zarate did not record a tackle or a sack, but did intercept a pass. Adam Velasco rushed for 108 yards and a TD for the 'Bolts.
