1984: Express Defeat Panthers in 3rd Overtime Period

The United States Football League first round playoff matchup on June 30, 1984 at the Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles featured two teams that completed the regular season with 10-8 records. The host Express, champions of the Pacific Division, were up against the Michigan Panthers, the defending league champions who had finished second in the Central Division and qualified for the postseason as a wild card entry.

The Panthers, under Head Coach Jim Stanley, had looked bound to win the title again as they broke out to a 6-0 start. However, the loss of key players to injury - in particular WR Anthony Carter, SS David Greenwood, and G Thom Dornbrook - caused the club to sputter. Michigan proceeded to lose four consecutive games, and seven of eight, before winning three of the last four contests to make it into the playoffs. QB Bobby Hebert, who had played so well as a rookie in ’83 in leading the team to the title, was still effective but was forced to play through injuries and clearly missed the presence of Carter as his primary receiver after the sixth game.

Los Angeles had started slowly at 2-5 under Head Coach John Hadl and had difficulty putting points on the board. However, the insertion of rookie Steve Young (pictured above) as the starting quarterback began to pay off in the second half of the season, and the team went 8-3 the rest of the way to win the league’s weakest division.

The Express had experienced difficulty in drawing fans, and even though it was a playoff game there were just 7964 in attendance at the huge Coliseum. LA scored first, keeping the ball on the ground for seven of ten plays in an opening drive that concluded with a five-yard touchdown run by RB Kevin Nelson, the club’s leading rusher during the season.

That was it until midway through the second quarter when the Express extended the lead to 10-0 thanks to a 32-yard field goal by Tony Zendejas. Michigan got on the board late in the period on a three-yard TD run by RB Cleo Miller and then scored quickly again after intercepting a Young pass that was followed by a 22-yard touchdown throw from Hebert to RB Ken Lacy. The Panthers took a 14-10 lead into halftime.

Zendejas narrowed the margin to 14-13 late in the third quarter with a 34-yard field goal. However, Hebert threw a two-yard touchdown pass to TE Mike Cobb in the fourth quarter to stake the Panthers to an eight-point lead.

With 8:57 left in regulation, LA took possession at its 20 yard line. On first down, Young looked set to pass but took off on a seven-yard run. He didn’t slide at the end of the play, attempting to pick up more yardage, and was hit hard by Michigan LB Kyle Borland. Appearing dazed by the hit, the rookie quarterback ignored a request by Coach Hadl to leave the game and trotted back to the huddle – an act that seemed to inspire the offense.

RB Mel Gray carried for six yards and a first down on the next play, and a screen pass to WR JoJo Townsell picked up nine more. The drive stalled on the Panthers 47, but on a fourth-and-one play Young ran for four yards before taking yet another hard hit, this time from FS Ron Osborne. He followed up with a 22-yard pass to TE Darren Long and then, on a third down play at the Michigan 12, took off on another run that ended just short of the goal line. From there, Nelson scored with just 52 seconds remaining. The Express went for the two-point conversion and Young ran it in to tie the contest at 21-21.

The game went into overtime, and for two periods neither team could break the deadlock. Michigan’s normally reliable placekicker, Novo Bojovic, who had been successful on 22 of 29 field goal attempts during the season, missed twice during OT – the first a near-miss from 37 yards out while the second, from 36 yards, was badly shanked. Hebert had been knocked out of the game after being blind-sided while sacked by DT Eddie Weaver and was replaced by backup Whit Taylor.

The Express offense couldn’t move during the first 30 minutes of overtime, but finally in the third OT period Young hit Townsell on two slant passes that totaled 47 yards and Gray ended the contest with a 24-yard burst for a touchdown. It was a painful end to the marathon game for Gray, who was hit hard as he reached the goal line and suffered a broken arm that had him lying on the field in pain rather than celebrating.

At 93 minutes and 33 seconds (the winning score came at 3:33 into the third overtime period), it had been the longest pro football game ever played, breaking the 82:40 mark of the 1971 NFL Divisional playoff between the Miami Dolphins and Kansas City Chiefs. As John Hadl summed up afterward, “I’ve never been through anything like that in my life.”


Steve Young completed 23 of 44 passes for 295 yards with two interceptions, ran for 44 yards on 7 carries, and received praise for his gritty performance, particularly in the game-tying drive in the fourth quarter. Mel Gray (pictured at right), who would go on to an outstanding NFL career as a kick returner, rushed for 124 yards on 31 carries including the game-winning TD. JoJo Townsell led the LA receivers with five catches for 96 yards; TE David Hersey also caught five passes, for 68 yards.

In defeat, Bobby Hebert completed 13 of 27 pass attempts for 201 yards with two TDs and two interceptions. RB John Williams gained 113 yards on 23 carries while Ken Lacy added 60 yards on five rushes. Lacy was co-leader in pass receiving with four catches for 57 yards and WR Derek Holloway had four receptions for a team-leading 67 yards.

Both teams topped 200 rushing yards, with Michigan outgaining the Express 236 to 217. The Express had the net passing yardage advantage at 285 to 245 and also led in time of possession, 51:59 to 41:34. The Panthers suffered four turnovers (three interceptions, one fumble) to LA’s three (two interceptions, one fumble). But the kicking game proved crucial, as Tony Zendejas was successful in both of his field goal attempts for the Express while Novo Bojovic missed all three of his attempted three-pointers for Michigan, including the two failures in overtime (Bojovic is pictured at bottom after one of the missed attempts).

The Express lost the Western Conference title game to the Arizona Wranglers the following week, 35-23. The marathon game proved to be the finale for the Michigan Panthers, although it wasn’t known at the time – the franchise was merged with the Oakland Invaders in 1985 and abandoned the Michigan home base and identity altogether.

1983: Newcomer JoJo Townsell Scores Winning TD as LA Defeats Wranglers

The Los Angeles Express were tied for the lead in the United States Football League’s Pacific Division as they hosted the Arizona Wranglers at the Memorial Coliseum on June 5, 1983, but with a mediocre 6-7 record. While the defense was adequate, the team was at the bottom of the league in running the ball while Head Coach Hugh Campbell split the quarterbacking between CFL and NFL veteran Mike Rae and rookie Tom Ramsey.

The Express also sought to bolster the receiving corps as the season progressed, adding WR Anthony Allen midway through and, two days prior to the contest with the Wranglers, rookie WR JoJo Townsell, a local talent out of UCLA (where he had been a teammate of Ramsey’s). It did not take long for the 5’9”, 180-pound receiver to make an impression.

Arizona, 4-9 coming into the contest, scored in the first quarter on a 25-yard field goal by Phil Denfeld, but Rae staked LA to a 7-3 halftime lead thanks to a one-yard touchdown plunge in the second quarter. The Wranglers moved back ahead in the third quarter with a 13-yard scoring run by RB Darryl Clark. Vince Abbott tied the score with a 33-yard field goal later in the period.

Arizona regained the advantage in the fourth quarter due to another Denfeld field goal, this from 34 yards. But with 2:38 remaining in the game, Ramsey passed to Townsell for a 26-yard touchdown to win the game for the Express, 17-13.

Neither team mounted much of a running attack, with LA actually outgaining the Wranglers 79 yards to 72. Time of possession was virtually the same, but the Express defense sacked Arizona’s quarterbacks a total of 9 times – both LB Eric Scoggins and NT Eddie “Meat Cleaver” Weaver recorded three apiece.

Of the two Los Angeles quarterbacks, Mike Rae completed 12 of 20 passes for 115 yards with no TDs and two interceptions; Tom Ramsey was successful on 11 of 14 throws for 101 yards with the winning TD and none picked off. Townsell was the headliner with two catches for a team-leading 57 yards and the critical TD, but Anthony Allen led the club in receptions with 6 (totaling 44 yards). RB John Barnett led the runners with 32 yards on 7 carries.

QB Alan Risher completed 14 of 17 passes for 143 yards with no interceptions for Arizona; QB Dan Manucci added another 41 yards while completing 5 of 12 passes with an interception (RB Harold Blue also completed a nine-yard pass). TE Mark Keel caught 6 passes for 44 yards and WR Neil Balholm gained 53 yards on four catches. RB Calvin Murray gained 44 yards on 10 carries to lead the team.

While the win over the Wranglers allowed the Express to stay even with Oakland at the top of the Pacific Division, ultimately LA finished second to the Invaders with an 8-10 record. It did not help that they had difficulty drawing fans to the Coliseum (there were 13,826 on hand for the June 2 contest). Arizona lost its remaining games to stay at the bottom of the division with a 4-14 tally.

The two late-arriving receivers performed well overall, with Allen catching 37 passes for 613 yards (16.6 avg.) and three touchdowns in eight games and Townsell making 21 catches for 326 yards (15.5 avg.) and three TDs over five contests. TE Ricky Ellis, who was with the Express all year (although not initially in the starting lineup) was the leader of the club’s solid group of receivers with 69 receptions for 716 yards and 6 TDs (he grabbed three passes for 21 yards against Arizona). But the lack of a running game badly hindered the offense (LaRue Harrington led the team in rushing for the year with just 547 yards and a 3.8 average).

1983: Gold Loses to Express After Firing of Head Coach

As the Denver Gold hosted the Los Angeles Express on May 22, 1983, they not only were in the midst of a four-game losing streak but were under the direction of an interim head coach, Charley Armey. Owner Ron Blanding, concerned that the team was on the verge of falling out of the running in the Pacific Division, had dismissed Head Coach Red Miller (pictured) following the previous week’s 17-9 loss to the Boston Breakers. Miller thus became the first USFL head coach to be fired.

However, the move was not a popular one with Denver football fans. Miller had coached the NFL’s Broncos to their first Super Bowl appearance in 1977 and was thus held in great esteem. He had compiled a 42-25 record in four seasons with the Broncos, easily the best up to that time in the club’s history. For Blanding to hire him to coach the Denver USFL franchise was great for public relations – firing him was not. Moreover, even though the Gold was a mediocre 4-7, they were only a game out of first place in a weak division.

The Express, 5-6 and tied for first with Oakland, had lost three of their last four contests. The teams may have been far from the cream of the crop in the league, but were in the running for the postseason, thus making this a key division matchup.

At halftime Denver held a 7-0 lead thanks to a 31-yard touchdown pass play from QB Alvin White to RB Harry Sydney. LA tied the score in the third quarter as QB Mike Rae connected with RB John Barnett for a 19-yard TD. Brian Speelman moved the Gold back in front later in the period with a 50-yard field goal, but the Express won in the fourth quarter as Barnett dove into the end zone from a yard out with 3:32 left to play. Los Angeles went home the winner by a 14-10 margin.

The lackluster effort by the Gold was reflected in the statistics. The Express led in time of possession (34:28 to 24:32), first downs (22 to 10), and yards from scrimmage (373 to 185). There was no dominant runner for LA - RB Wilbert Haslip led the club with 36 yards on 8 carries while John Barnett, with the two TDs, contributed 33 yards on 9 attempts and RB LaRue Harrington added 30 yards on 12 rushes. Mike Rae, formerly of Toronto in the CFL and a backup with Oakland and Tampa Bay in the NFL, completed 21 of 43 passes for 275 yards with the one TD and two interceptions. WR Anthony Allen led the receivers with 5 catches for 68 yards.


As he did all season, RB Harry Sydney (pictured at left) led Denver in rushing with 46 yards on 13 carries and added another 44 yards on three pass receptions, including the team’s lone touchdown. Alvin White saw his only action of the year at quarterback, completing 2 of 7 passes for 38 yards with two interceptions and the one TD. QB Ken Mortensen completed 9 of 15 throws for 109 yards with no touchdowns and none picked off. Along with Sydney, two other receivers had three catches apiece (TE Bob Niziolek and WR Johnnie Dirden), with Dirden accumulating the most yards with 54.

Owner Blanding sought to mollify the loyal Denver fans (the team led the USFL in attendance in 1983, averaging 41,736 per game). He hired Craig Morton, quarterback of the 1977 AFC Championship team, as head coach in the week following the loss to the Express. The Gold won their first two contests with Morton at the helm, but ultimately ended up in third place with a 7-11 record. Los Angeles also missed out on winning the league’s weakest division, finishing second at 8-10.

Denver had sought to remain competitive while adhering closely to the original USFL philosophy of eschewing high-priced players in order to control costs. The defensive unit was respectable, but the offense lacked firepower – the Gold had the lowest-rated passing offense. Harry Sydney was one of the few notable offensive performers, rushing for 801 yards on 176 carries (4.6 average) with 9 touchdowns and catching 31 passes for 306 yards and another two scores. Bob Niziolek also performed well, catching 37 passes for 373 yards and three TDs. But the quarterbacks combined for just 4.6 yards per pass attempt with 36 interceptions against 19 touchdowns.

1984: Steve Young Debuts with USFL’s LA Express

The April 1, 1984 matchup between the Los Angeles Express (2-3) and visiting New Jersey Generals (4-1) at the Memorial Coliseum before a small crowd of 19,853 didn’t provide any surprises; the Generals won handily, 26-10. But it did mark the first professional start for QB Steve Young, who had signed a 10-year, $40 million contract to join the USFL club after an outstanding career at Brigham Young.

The Express had failed to score more than 14 points in any of its first five contests, with Tom Ramsey and Frank Seurer splitting time at quarterback, and were ripe for an infusion of new talent. Young gave them that, completing 19 of 29 passes for 163 yards with a TD and an interception and also leading the club in rushing with 32 yards on six carries. His first pro touchdown pass was a nine yard toss to fellow rookie WR JoJo Townsell late in the second quarter, and at one point he completed nine consecutive throws.

“Steve is going to be a great quarterback,” said LA’s Head Coach John Hadl afterward. “He went up against one of the best defenses in the league and performed well. I like his leadership. He saw some things on the field that another quarterback wouldn’t see for a year.”

With his outstanding mobility to complement his passing, Young put together a solid rookie season. He completed 57.7 % of his 310 passes for 2361 yards with 10 touchdowns and 9 interceptions and ran for 515 yards on 79 attempts for a healthy 6.5-yard average and seven TDs. Moreover, he rallied the Express to a 10-8 record and the Pacific Division title. After averaging 10.7 points and 296.8 yards per game over the first five contests, the Express averaged 22.9 points and 338 yards the rest of the way.

It was a rather ordinary performance for the Generals, with star RB Herschel Walker gaining just 59 yards on 16 rushing attempts but scoring on a 50-yard pass play from QB Brian Sipe as he accumulated 66 receiving yards on three catches. The Generals outgained the Express on the ground, 111 yards to 56.

The 34-year-old veteran Sipe, a high-profile signee from the NFL’s Cleveland Browns who had started slowly in the USFL due to injury, completed 13 of 21 passes for 219 yards with two touchdowns. It was a solid outing for him as well, and afterward he commented, “This was probably my best game. I felt more comfortable than I have felt so far. And it was nice to see us do a lot of different things. My knee injury was a real setback to me, but each week, I seem to feel more and more comfortable.”

New Jersey went 14-4 for the season, finishing in second place in the Atlantic Division and qualifying for a wild card playoff spot. They lost convincingly in the first postseason round to the team that finished ahead of them in the division (and went on to win the USFL title), the Philadelphia Stars.

The greater significance of the game, however, which lasted far beyond the ’84 season and the USFL itself, was the beginning of Steve Young’s 17-season career (two in the USFL, 15 in the NFL) that ultimately earned enshrinement in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.