Event Date: March 28th, 1987
Event Description: USFL Championship Preview
Source: Football News
The 1986, and possibly last, USFL Championship game will be played tonight in Jacksonville. Here is a preview of the matchup:
QUARTERBACKS-Veteran Doug Williams had a solid season with over 4,000 passing yards and 34 touchdowns. He is cool under pressure and still boasts a cannon for an arm.
League MVP Walter Lewis has been stellar this season with 4,136 yards and 30 touchdowns despite missing a series of games due to injury.
EDGE: Memphis
RECEIVERS-With three 1,000 yard receivers, the Showboats have the best group of receivers in the league bar none. Greg Moser led the team with over 1,600 yards and 14 touchdowns, with Derrick Crawford adding 1,500 yards and ten scores respectively. Perry Kemp was brought in during the off-season and had a solid year of his own with 1,270 yards and eight touchdowns. Veteran Sam Bowers is both a solid blocker and efficient pass catcher.
Arizona wideout Eric Truvillion has been on fire as of late, his 1300 plus yards and 15 touchdowns led the team. Unfortunately for Arizona this will be his last game with the team as he signed a futures contract with the Detroit Lions. The other receivers are solid if unspectacular with Al Williams, Derek Holloway, and Greg Anderson sharing the duties alongside Truvillion. Tight end Mark Keel was also productive piling up 826 yards and four scores.
EDGE: Memphis
RUNNING BACKS-Stopping Reggie Brown will be a top priority for the Memphis defense this Saturday. Brown led the team with 1,376 yards with 11 scores and is the key to the Arizona ground game. Mel Gray and Mack Boatner are change of pace backs who will help to spell Brown.
Harry Sydney and Anthony Parker head the Memphis ground attack, but are often used to compliment the Showboats passing game. Walter Lewis is also a threat to run as he piled up 512 rushing yards of his own.
EDGE: Arizona
OFFENSIVE LINE-The Showboats have an underrated line that is anchored by Ken Smith and Bob Gruber. Veterans Tyrone McGriff and Dale Markham are solid.
The Outlaws line struggled at times due to injuries and inconsistent play. Donnie Hickman and Alvin Powell have been solid as of late.
EDGE: Memphis
DEFENSIVE LINE-Defensive end Kenny Neil and tackle Mortrandy Taylor had all-star seasons for the Outlaws. Veterans Kit Lathrop and Monte Bennett are solid with Kenny Neil adding additional support.
Calvin Clark, Jay Hayes and Jearld Baylis all received regular season accolades and nose guard Ron Simmons was a solid anchor in the middle.
EDGE: Even
LINEBACKERS-Kiki DeAyala was named league Defensive MVP as he led the team with 147 tackles, added 14 stuffs, six sacks, six fumble recoveries and 10 interceptions. DeAyala is also surrounded by a solid corps of vets led by Bruce Gheesling and Howard Carson.
Bill Roe is the captain of the Mephis defense as he led the unit with 12 sacks with 127 tackles and four picks. Ray Bentley and Will Cokeley also help to solidify this group.
EDGE: Arizona
SECONDARY-The Showboats feature a dominate secondary with Barney Bussey (143 tackles), Vito McKeever (10 interceptions) and Doran Major.
Derrick Martin (8 interceptions/23 deflections) and Jesse Armstead (11 interceptions) are solid, but they will have their hands full with the Showboats receivers.
EDGE: Memphis
SPECIAL TEAMS-Memphis kicker Roger Ruzek was perfect on PATs (67/67) while racking up 166 points. The return game is solid with Leonard and Gizmo Williams handling those duties.
Luis Zendejas handled both the kicking and punt duties with varied success this year. Shawn Faulkner is one of the best return men in the league.
EDGE: Memphis
COACHING-Pepper Rodgers was named Coach of the Year with Frank Kush finishing second.
Pepper would prefer an old-school shoot-out, while Kush would like a low-scoring defensive contest.
EDGE: Even
Prediction: Memphis survived an epic contest last week against New Jersey, whilst Arizona drubbed Jacksonville. Look for the Outlaws to try and slow the Memphis offense with a series of blitzes and new looks to try and shake Walter Lewis off of his game. In the end however, the Showboats have been the best team all season and they should again show that to the nation tonight.
