...but not his ego, as it's still turned up to "11".
Nice job by Mike Tollin and his crew on this one. I didn't really remember too much about the USFL, other than the fact that they lured some real talent (Herschel, Steve Young, Flutie, Mike Rozier, Jim Kelly, etc.) away from playing in the NFL, and played a fun brand of football in the spring. I maybe watched a few games on the tube, but living in No. Dakota at that time, I was more interested in getting the hell outdoors after a crappy winter than watching more football when mid-March rolled around. But this league really did have some avid fans around the country to go with their credibility, especially when compared to that crap XFL league Vince McMahon tried unsuccessfully to shove down America's throats earlier this decade.
Tollin's film brought it all back, including showing how the league really did thrive in a bunch of markets (including Philly, Tampa & NYC). But then the owners got greedy and awarded 6 more teams the 2nd season, pocketing their expansion cash but also overextending themselves in markets where the demand for the product just wasn't there. I especially liked Rick Neuheisel's story about the San Antonio Gunslingers' owner bouncing paychecks and having their players race to a bank to cash make-up checks.
When "The Donald" bought the Big Apple team and pushed for fall football, including filing an anti-trust lawsuit against the NFL that really didn't work (it netted $3.00 total in damages), the end of the league came quicker than it really should have. I think people hated seeing his mug all over the sports news then and kind of soured on the USFL (and things really haven't changed much in that regard---do you know anybody that actually watches "Celebrity Apprentice"?). Being an all-around asshole to Tollin in a present day interview makes Trump look even more pompous, it that's possible.
P.S.-it was also worth the viewing just to see (future Minn. Viking) Anthony Carter catch a curl route, turn upfield, and blow by two defenders to pay dirt. That guy could really motor back in the day, and I'm still mad the '87 Vikes didn't make it to the Super Bowl after A.C. went off for 227 receiving yards in a playoff win against the 49ers.
Nice job by Mike Tollin and his crew on this one. I didn't really remember too much about the USFL, other than the fact that they lured some real talent (Herschel, Steve Young, Flutie, Mike Rozier, Jim Kelly, etc.) away from playing in the NFL, and played a fun brand of football in the spring. I maybe watched a few games on the tube, but living in No. Dakota at that time, I was more interested in getting the hell outdoors after a crappy winter than watching more football when mid-March rolled around. But this league really did have some avid fans around the country to go with their credibility, especially when compared to that crap XFL league Vince McMahon tried unsuccessfully to shove down America's throats earlier this decade.
Tollin's film brought it all back, including showing how the league really did thrive in a bunch of markets (including Philly, Tampa & NYC). But then the owners got greedy and awarded 6 more teams the 2nd season, pocketing their expansion cash but also overextending themselves in markets where the demand for the product just wasn't there. I especially liked Rick Neuheisel's story about the San Antonio Gunslingers' owner bouncing paychecks and having their players race to a bank to cash make-up checks.
When "The Donald" bought the Big Apple team and pushed for fall football, including filing an anti-trust lawsuit against the NFL that really didn't work (it netted $3.00 total in damages), the end of the league came quicker than it really should have. I think people hated seeing his mug all over the sports news then and kind of soured on the USFL (and things really haven't changed much in that regard---do you know anybody that actually watches "Celebrity Apprentice"?). Being an all-around asshole to Tollin in a present day interview makes Trump look even more pompous, it that's possible.
P.S.-it was also worth the viewing just to see (future Minn. Viking) Anthony Carter catch a curl route, turn upfield, and blow by two defenders to pay dirt. That guy could really motor back in the day, and I'm still mad the '87 Vikes didn't make it to the Super Bowl after A.C. went off for 227 receiving yards in a playoff win against the 49ers.