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Path: utzoo!dciem!jeff
From: jeff@dciem.UUCP (Jeff Richardson)
Newsgroups: net.sport.football
Subject: Re: Whither the USFL?
Message-ID: <1637@dciem.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 17-Jul-85 16:28:38 EDT
Article-I.D.: dciem.1637
Posted: Wed Jul 17 16:28:38 1985
Date-Received: Wed, 17-Jul-85 21:25:10 EDT
References: <8994@ucbvax.ARPA> <2338@ut-sally.UUCP> 
Reply-To: jeff@dciem.UUCP ( Richardson)
Distribution: net
Organization: D.C.I.E.M., Toronto, Canada
Lines: 26
Summary: 

Are even Arizona, Baltimore, Birmingham and Oakland strong enough franchises
that the NFL would be willing to take them in?  If I was a NFL owner, I'd
probably hold out for another season, figuring that the USFL would die after
that.

I've never understood the USFL's move to the fall anyway.  I always thought
that the league was created because, after observing the growing popularity
of the Canadian games on ESPN, somebody got the idea that Americans wanted
to see more football than just September to January.  (The Canadian regular
season starts on the first weekend in July.)  However, I heard for the first
time a few months ago that the original intent was to play in the spring
until they got their feet on the ground, and then move to the fall.  There
are two things about that attitude that don't make sense:  1) If the spring
is good for getting their feet on the ground, then it should be even better
for keeping their feet on the ground, and 2) They don't yet have their feet
on the ground anyway.  The league is still not that solid.

On a related subject, when the move to the fall was announced, Tampa Bay
Bandits owner John Bassett, realizing that playing in the fall would be
suicidal, said that he would pull his team out of the USFL and start a new
league in the spring.  Was he bluffing or is he even more insane than the
other USFL owners?  If the latter, then have any details been announced?
-- 
Jeff Richardson, DCIEM, Toronto  (416) 635-2073
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