Going to be a quick blog for Week 11 since we've already played Week 12, and there weren't many compelling games.
Showboats 23 Gamblers 16
Memphis and Houston have been battling each other for division supremacy since 1985 and both teams entered this game with identical 9-1 records. In these last 8 seasons, they have a combined 5 World Bowl wins, so the eyes of the USFL were on this game.
These teams are so evenly matched they both scored the same amount of points in each of the first 3 quarters. They were tied 3-3 after 1, tied at halftime 13-13, and it was 16 all after 3 quarters. Then came the 4th quarter, where Memphis scored a TD, thanks to a Norman Maldonado 1 yard pass to Mark Glenn and the Showboats defense forced Houston into 3 three and out drives to win the game and control of the Southwest.
Stats wise, the difference was the running game of Memphis. Erik McNamee ran 19 times for 161 yards and a TD and the Showboats got 7 yards per carry today, holding Houston under 3 ypc. The Gamblers frustrated Maldonado today, as he was less than 50% passing, completing 22/47 for 204 yards with 1 TD and 2 INTs. Houston also sacked Maldonado 3 times, but the Memphis running game allowed the Showboats to convert 7/18 3rd down opportunities, while Houston was just 3/13. Adding to Houston's woes was 12 penalties for minus 75 yards while Memphis had 2 flags for minus 15 yards. The rematch is set for Week 16.
Panthers 13 Thunderbolts 3
Cleveland and Michigan played for the second time this season as they battle it out with Chicago to see who wins the Midwest. Panthers QB Larry Henderson threw a 4 yard TD pass to Walter Simmons in the 2nd qtr for the game's only TD and the Michigan defense made that stand up for the win. Henderson completed less than 50% of his passes and was intercepted twice but still wasn't as bad as Tony Romo today. Romo was barely over 50%, 23/45, but he also threw 3 INTs and was sacked twice. For now, the win gives Michigan a 1 game lead on Cleveland and Chicago.
Blazers 37 Stars 23
This was a rematch of last season's National Conference Championship, and while Florida enjoys a big lead in the Southeast, Baltimore is fighting for their playoff lives. Florida QB Sidney Maggard threw a pair of 1st qtr TD passes as the Blazers had a 17-7 lead after 15 minutes but Baltimore tied it up by halftime as Jon Snow found John Warkentin for scoring passes in the first and second quarters.
In the second half, the Florida defense forced a fumble, then 4 straight three and out drives while Maggard led the Blazers to 17 more points and a 34-17 lead with under 6 minutes to play. Both QBs threw for over 300 yards and had 3 TD passes to 1 INT, with John Warkentin the leading skill player catching 6 balls for 122 yards and 2 TDs. The Florida win gives them a 4 game lead over Tampa Bay while the Baltimore loss hurts their playoff chances, and they will need to bounce back against 10-1 New Jersey next week.
Federals 33 Maulers 17
Washington and Pittsburgh faced off in an important Atlantic division game, and this was all about the QB play and Robert Trammell. Scott Bieber is having his worst season, but he had a good game today, completing 23/37 for 257 yards, 3 TDs and 1 INT. Pittsburgh QB Will Allison threw for more yards than Bieber, completing 33/54 for 332 yards, but for just 1 TD with 4 INTs. Washington built up a 33-3 lead entering the 4th before the Maulers made the final closer the final 15 minutes.
Pittsburgh WR Joel Davis was the only skill player on either team to top 100 yards, catching 7 for 114 yards and a TD. RB Robert Trammell had 164 combined yards to lead Washington, gaining 79 on the ground, adding 85 more and a TD on 10 receptions.The victory gives Washington a 2 game edge on both Pittsburgh and Baltimore in the Atlantic.
SaberCats 31 Hawaiians 6
San Jose and Honolulu faced off in an important Pacific division game, as the Hawaiians entered the game 1 game back of the SaberCats for the top spot. The teams took different approaches to this game, with Honolulu deciding to air it out, throwing 68 times today. Derek Henry completed 38 for 318 yards, with 0 TD and 0 INT, getting sacked 4 times. San Jose ran twice as often as they passed, with RB Rodney Richardson gaining 98 yards on 24 carries. Jake Plummer only attempted 17 passes, completing 12, but the completions went for 365 yards as the SaberCats had the big play working today. Plummer threw 4 TD passes, 3 to Mark Hsu, who caught 4 total for 271 yards.
Storm 27 Gold 6
The hangover season continues for our defending champs, as they have now been swept by Portland and are 2 games behind in the wildcard race. Denver had 330 offensive yards to 399 for Portland but the Storm were much better at turning their yards into points. Portland QB Melvin Driggers threw for 301 yards and 3 TDs, all to Richard Robinson, who caught 8 in all for 197 yards. The Storm scored the last 17 points of the game after Denver cut the lead down to 10-6 in the 2nd qtr. Portland improves to 10-1 and is very close to clinching the West division crown.
Generals 49 Force 22
New Jersey used to win with defense back when they lost World Bowls with regularity, but now they are winning with the league's #1 rated offense, with QB Don Ferguson throwing the ball all over the field. Georgia put up 381 yards of offense today, including 353 passing yards by Milton People, but the Force defense couldn't stop Ferguson. The Generals scored TDs on all 6 of their red zone possessions as Ferguson completed 35/50, 387 yards, 7 TDs and 1 INT. WR Duncan Meyer caught 6 passes for 157 yards and 2 TDs, while RBs Sam Beckett and David Koresh also caught 2 scores apiece. Beckett caught 6 for 50 yards while gaining 91 on the ground for 141 combined yards.
Bandits 41 Bell 32
The box score of this game is pretty even all the way down, and the score indicates a possible hard fought, back and forth type game, but things played out differently on the field. The game was tied at 10 after a quarter, but Tampa Bay scored 21 points in the 2nd for a 31-10 halftime lead. Following a scoreless 3rd qtr, Philadelphia cut the lead to 31-19 with 6:50 to play and they tried an onside kick that failed. Tampa Bay used the field position to pad the lead by 3 with a FG. Philadelphia then went down the field for a TD, but again the 2 point try failed so the Bell were still down 9. This onside kick was successful and the Bell went down for another TD, cutting the lead to 2 with a little over 3 minutes to play. Philadelphia tried a 3rd onside kick but this one failed, allowing the Bandits to score a TD and put the game away.
For Philadelphia, Robert Hernandez completed 29/38 for 390 yards and 4 TDs while Craig Hines caught 2 for 113 yards and a TD. Tampa Bay QB Antonio Martinez was 20/39, 358 yards, 5 TDs and 1 INT. Most of the damage was done by Garry Fowler, who caught 8 passes for 254 yards and 3 TDs.
Stallions 26 Hornets 7
Both teams had 296 yards of offense, but Birmingham forced 5 Charlotte turnovers and sacked Robert Ament 3 times, including once for a safety. Willie Benge threw for 3 TDs, all to different receivers to lead Birmingham to the win that ties them with New Orleans atop the South. Birmingham spread the ball around for their 296 yards while Charlotte RB David Delgadillo had a combined 133 yards, with 70 rushing yards and 63 receiving on 8 catches.
Gunslingers 23 VooDoo 3
San Antonio beat New Orleans today thanks to defense, ball control rushing, and a couple of long pass plays. The Gunslingers kept Thomas Thomas and the VooDoo offense in check, allowing only 169 total yards and forcing Bruno Wilson into 2 interceptions. Offensively, San Antonio got 136 rushing yards as a team, with Randy Leger scoring a TD and Charlie Shanks gaining 89 yards on 26 carries. QB Robert Fanelli only threw 16 passes today, completing 10 for 186 yards and a TD. WR Eugene Bufkin led the way with 5 receptions, 137 yards and a TD.
Blitz 33 Wranglers 0
Chicago made Arizona look like the 1992 version of the Wranglers as the Blitz allowed just 94 total yards, getting 3 turnovers and 7 sacks, with Douglas Russell taking an INT to the end zone for a TD. With the defense dominating, Chicago played it safe on offense, mostly handing off to Dale Davis and Jay Kinder. Davis ran for 127 yards and a score on 31 carries, adding 57 yards on 3 receptions while Kinder ran for 73 yards on 10 carries. Chicago stays 1 game behind Michigan in the Midwest.
Renegades 23 Bulls 20
Orlando scored the first 3 times they had the ball as they built a 20-3 halftime lead. Jacksonville chipped away with a FG and a pair of Derek Joyce TD passes to Anthony Holland to tie the game at 20 just before the 2 minute warning. Orlando QB Emory Howard led the Renegades downfield quickly, getting the eventual game winning FG with 1:41 left, then the defense intercepted Joyce on the next play to seal the win. Howard finished 27/36, 286 yards, 1 TD and 2 INT while RB Ben Dehaven had 143 combined yards and a TD to lead Orlando.
(NY) Stars 17 Steamer 9
New York RB William Hall ran for 62 yards and a TD while Willie Bust's 2nd qtr TD pass to Stanley Hart gave the Stars an early 14-0 advantage. Shreveport was forced to punt on 6 of their first 7 possessions, with their 1 play "drive" at the end of the half the lone exception. The Steamer offense started gaining yards in the second half, but they had to settle for FGs on all 3 red zone trips as they could not get any closer than 8 points to New York.
Express 30 Outlaws 17
Oklahoma got off on the wrong foot, fumbling the opening kickoff to give Los Angeles a short field. Two plays later, William Mauriello fired a TD pass for a quick 7-0 lead. The Outlaws came back to tie it, but Mauriello would throw 2 more TD passes in the first half, both to Corey Gibbons (6-157-2) as the Express built a 27-7 halftime lead. Oklahoma QB John Crisp tried to bring the Outlaws back, completing 25/29 for 260 yards and a TD, but the RBBC was ineffective, gaining 78 yards on 32 carries (2.44 ypc). Oklahoma got as close as 10 at the 2 minute warning, but the onside kick failed and Los Angeles added a FG to pad their lead and seal the win.
Wheels 31 Invaders 10
Detroit had 460 offensive yards and the Wheels defense forced 3 turnovers in today's win over Oakland. The Invaders did get big games from RB Ronald McDevitt (94 rushing yards, 60 receiving) and Nelson Martinez (9 receptions, 118 yards) but those turnovers and a bad defensive day hurt the cause. Andrew Moreno threw 2 INTs while his counterpart for Detroit, Gabriel Flanagan, was on fire. Flanagan completed 27/35, 408 yards and 4 TDs, each to different receivers. His favorite target Matthew Houston did not catch a TD, but he did catch 9 for 148 yards to lead the receivers.
Sun 28 Breakers 0
Boston traveled to Southern California and they got way more Sun than they bargained for, as the Breakers were shutout. Boston QB Joseph Haight threw 4 INTs and the Breakers offense generated only 158 yards today. Southern California QBs also threw 4 INTs, backup Gary Wiggins threw 1 while Wilmer Kimble threw 3. While Boston struggled as a whole, the Sun moved the ball well when they weren't turning it over as they ran for 137 yards and passed for 283. Kimble finished the day 24/41, 260 yards, 4 TDs and 3 INTs, with Victor Smith catching 2 of the scores. RB Gene Ingram led the rushing attack with 72 yards on 11 carries, adding 36 yards and a TD on 5 receptions.
