February 26, 1984 But after a crushing jury award in the league’s anti-trust lawsuit against the NFL, the USFL folded operations in August 1986.Just published! Running backs Tim Spencer and Harry Sydney revitalized what had been an anemic rushing attack in 1984.Finally, just a few weeks before the 1985 opener, the Showboats inked NFL free agent left tackle Luis Sharpe to a 4-year, $2.3 million contract. 1984 Memphis Showboats Roster. One of the Showboats few late season losses was a 17-7 loss to Donald Trump’s New Jersey Generals at Giants Stadium. Despite this pedigree, he was an obsessive Alabama Crimson Tide booster thanks to a close family friendship with the late Alabama coach The USFL held its college draft each year in January. They entered the league in its expansion in 1984 and made the 1985 playoffs, losing in the semifinal round to the Oakland Invaders. The Memphis Showboats were yet another USFL team that developed a steady and loyal following. Lewis was the top quarterback by rating in the USFL in 1985, with 16 touchdowns against just 5 interceptions. Indeed, like the Despite the eventual failure of the USFL, the success of the Showboats franchise was noticed by the NFL, indicating a viable market in Tennessee. Lewis ran the option at Alabama and was a more consistent runner than passer. In September 1983, Young signed former UCLA and Georgia Tech head coach Logan Young Jr. lived in Memphis and attended Vanderbilt University. The Memphis Showboats were a franchise in the United States Football League. White was 43 years old. But the Showboats made national headlines in January 1984 by signing White to a 5-year $4 million contract.The Showboats other major college signing was quarterback Walter Lewis from the University of Alabama. The contraction put 200 players on the market and the Showboats plucked many of the best ones. When the passed in the summer of 1984, it set of a wave of moves and mergers as other USFL clubs fled NFL markets. The 1985 Showboats now featured five players (Sharpe, White, Cade, Coleman and Spencer) who were actual or projected 1st round picks in the prior three NFL drafts.The Showboats opened the 1985 season 3-0, including a victory over the defending champion Baltimore Stars. But Memphis claimed an important scalp in the game. Memphis started their first season just 2-7, but coach Pepper Rodger's club finished the season at a 5-4 clip. The contraction put 200 players on the market and the Showboats plucked many of the best ones. Sharpe was one of the finest young lineman in all of pro football. It was an odd move on paper. The USFL awarded the franchise to Logan Young Jr., heir to an Arkansas margarine fortune, in July of 1983. One of FWIL’s Top Sports Books of 2017Showboats vs. the Baltimore Stars at the Liberty Bowl on March 9th, 1985.Behind-the scenes clips of Memphis Showboats football from Hall of Fame defensive end Reggie White (Showboats ’84-’85) passed away on December 26, 2004 of a cardiac arrhythmia. His February 1985 deal with Memphis was arguably the last significant defection in the USFL-NFL wars. But Memphis claimed an important scalp in the game. In contrast to many other USFL cities, crowds in Memphis gradually grew during the 1984 season. In 1997, the Houston Oilers franchise would move to Nashville, though they played their first season in Memphis, before moving to Nashville and being renamed the Tennessee Titans.
But it worked.The Showboats caught fire in the second half of 1985. Compete against players … It was only the second sellout in the USFL’s two-year history.The USFL shrank from 18 to 14 teams for the 1985 season. Showboats founder and part-owner Logan Young was found dead at his home on April 11, 2006. But this time they lost, bowing the the USFL’s best regular season team, the Oakland Invaders, on July 6th, 1985. 1985 Memphis Showboats Game-by-Game Results. The Memphis Showboats of the United States Football League ended the 1984 season with a record of 7 wins and 11 losses, finishing fourth in the USFL's South Division of the Eastern Conference. Birth Date: Height: Weight: College: Dave Albright: LB: January 25, 1960: 6'2" 235: San Jose State: John Arnaud: S/CB: June 4, … The following month, a Name The Team contest in The Memphis Commercial Appealgenerated 21,052 entries. Once again, the Showboats hosted at the Liberty Bowl despite being the lower seed.