Week 5 - 1984：Philadelphia Stars vs Pittsburgh Maulers

Description

1984 Week 5 - Saturday, March 24, 1984

Attendance: 24,341

TV: ESPN

Scott Fitzkee caught three touchdown passes from Chuck Fusina to give the Philadelphia Stars a 25-10 victory over the Pittsburgh Maulers before 23,341 fans.

Fitzkee finished with eight catches for 177yards. He just missed scoring a fourth touchdown, beating corner back Bill Yancy early in the second quarter for a 45-yard gain to the 5.

Philadephia (4-1) was forced to settle for three points with Dave Trout hitting the second of his two field goals, a 21-yarder to give the Stars a 6-0 lead.

Against the top-ranked defense in the USFL, the Maulers (1-4) gained just 233 yards and converted four of 11 third-down plays.

Philadelphia's Kelvin Bryant rushed for 79 yards on 16 carries before leaving the game in the third quarter with a hamstring pull. Heisman Trophy winner Mike Rozier had 54 yards on 16 carries for Pittsburgh.

Pittsburgh's only touchdown, a 5 yard pass from Glenn Carano to newly-acquired wide reciever Jackie Flowers, came after an apparent fourth down sack of Carano by Don Fiedler was nullified by a defensive holding penalty.

Trout's second field goal made it 6-0 before the Maulers scored on Tony Lee's 37-yarder to make it 6-3 at halftime.

The Stars took over in the third quarter, with Fitzkee catching touchdown passes of 16 and 23 yards. Both Trout kicks failed, leaving Philadelphia with an 18-3 lead.

Fusina, a teammate of Fitzkee's at Penn State,completed 16 of 21 passes for 249 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions.

Philadelphia/Baltimore Stars:

Years of existence: 1983-1985

Owner: Myles Tanenbaum

Stadium: Veterans Stadium (72,204) 1983-84, Byrd Stadium (45,000) 1985

Overall Regular Season Record: 41-12-1 (.769)

Overall Playoff Record: 7-1

Yearly Standings and Average Attendances

1983: 15-3 (18,650) Philadelphia

1984: 16-2 (28,668) Philadelphia

1985: 10-7-1 (14, 275) Baltimore

The fans in Philadelphia were very wary of the Stars in their inaugural season. The Stars averaged under 20,000 fans per game in their inaugural year, but after making it to the championship game, attendance increased by more than 10,000 per contest the following season. The Stars were even more successful on the field, going 16-2 and dispatching the Arizona Wranglers in the championship, 23-3. Several thousand Philadelphia fans gathered for a parade in the team's honor once they got back to the City of Brotherly Love.

The announced move to the fall, however, immediately destroyed what it had taken two years to build, and Tanenbaum was forced to relocate his team to Baltimore. With Memorial Stadium unavailable until 1986, he had to settle for Byrd Stadium on the campus of the University of Maryland. The team spent the 1985 season practicing in Philadelphia, and playing in (or near) Baltimore. Some of the smallest crowds in the team's three-year history saw the team rebound from a slow start to beat the rebuilt Oakland Invaders, 28-24, in the USFL's last game. The Stars dreams of playing in Memorial Stadium were dashed after the league called off the 1986 season.

Pittsburgh Maulers:

Years of existence: 1984

Owner: Edward J. DeBartolo

Stadium: Three Rivers Stadium (60,043)

Overall Regular Season Record: 3-15

Overall Playoff Record: 0-0

Yearly Standings and Average Home Attendances

1984: 3-15 (22,858)

The Maulers and coach Joe Pendry struggled through their only year in the league with a 3-15 record. Actually, Pendry didn't even make it through the whole year as Ellis Rainsberger took over the helm midway through the season. Not even the presence of Heisman Trophy winning running back Mike Rozier could right the Maulers' ship. Pittsburgh only managed victories over the Oakland Invaders and the Washington Federals (twice).

Many of their problems could be blamed on a defense that gave up a league-leading 492 points. Corner back Jerry Holmes and defensive end Sam Clancy (16 sacks) were two bright spots in a sea of mediocrity. On the offensive end, former Cowboy backup Glen Carano struggled at QB, throwing 19 interceptions to just 13 touchdowns. Wide receiver Greg Anderson caught 63 passes for 994 yards and six TD's.

Despite their pathetic performance, the Maulers managed a respectable showing at the gate and even sold out their first home game against the Birmingham Stallions. Many of the fans came to boo and throw things at Stallions and former Steeler QB Cliff Stoudt, but a sell out is a sell out. Edward Debartolo, father of the owner of the 49ers, was forced to pull the plug, though, when the league announced its move to the fall.

Source: http://www.oursportscentral.com/usfl/index.php

Join us at our USFL Forever Facebook Page below.

https://www.facebook.com/TheUSFLForever