The USFL

[The Ghostbuster]

Has anyone watched any United States Football League games? I just finished watching the Pittsburgh Maulers vs. Philadelphia Stars game. The lead went back and forth, there was a pick-6 by Pittsburgh, and even a three-point conversion by Philadelphia on their last touchdown drive (like a two-point conversion, but from the 10-yard line). The final score was Philadelphia 30-Pittsburgh 23. Although all games are played in Birmingham, Alabama, there are 8 teams, the season is 10 weeks long, and there were hardly any fans in the stands. However, I found the game as enjoyable as a college or NFL football game. I look forward to watching more games, and I hope the USFL is not a one season-and-done league (the original USFL lasted from 1982 to 1986 and featured some players that went on to star in the NFL).

[KeithE4Phx]

The players aren't the problem.  They'll be busting their asses in this league, hopefully to find a spot in an NFL training camp come July.  Few will make it, but it's not out of the question.

The problem with this league is that, other than the players, it has no need to exist.  All teams are Birmingham, no matter what their jerseys say.  Unless they can do it right, and locate teams in the cities that are on their jerseys, this league is toast after this season.

[SP Cook]

This is a made for TV deal.  Fox owns 50% of the stock in it.  Fox is willing to pay $150M to $200M over 3 years.  That might seem like a lot.  Until you look at what Fox, and the others, are paying other leagues and conferences.  It is very cheap programming.   NBC took a little less than half the games off Fox's hands for an "undisclosed"  amount.

Players are making a flat $45K, plus $850/win and a $10K bonus for the league champions.  They are staying in motels (at their own expense) for $75/night.    They have a sponsorship with a, umm, controversial for profit college and any player can go there free after the season.

Tickets are only $15.  The live gate has been very poor, and it should be noted that during the season NASCAR, Indy Car, the senior PGA tour, are there; and something called the World Games, which is the Olympics for sports so obscure they cannot even make the Olympics is also in Birmingham just after the USFL season, which is why the championship is in Canton, OH.  The city is letting them have the stadiums free, in return for some "Birmingham is great"  type ads during the games.

Ratings for Week 2 were 0.68 and 0.49 on OTA TV and 0.21 and 0.24 on "cable" .  That is on a par or better than regular season games in the NBA, NHL, college football and basketball, or even MLB, all of which are paid hundreds of millions if not billions of $$ by the networks. 

If they can keep the ratings at about that level, it makes sense for Fox and NBC.  But they do need to get some butts in seats, even if they have to pay homeless people to show up. 

The important ratings will be those from about a month from now.

[NWI_Irish96]

This version of the USFL is not a bad start, but they can do better by fixing these flaws, most of which I've noted before:

1) The league needs to begin within 2 weeks of the Super Bowl, when people are still high on football. This rules out playing games in northern cities without enclosed stadiums, but we get these cities into the mix as I'll note later

2) Even in a league that is admittedly a minor league whose players aren't good enough to play in the NFL, identify charismatic players who can be "stars" and market them. Get them on the late night shows, morning shows, etc.

3) Get your games on TV when they conflict least with other sports. Avoid going up against golf & NASCAR by playing mostly on Friday/Saturday/Sunday evenings.

4) Get NFL buy-in and "affiliate" each of the 8 teams with 4 NFL teams. The "Generals" (don't even include a city in their name) are "affiliated" with the Giants, Falcons, Ravens and Chargers. The "Stallions" are affiliated with the Colts, Broncos, Bears and Panthers, etc. If you want to go even farther, the affiliated teams get first right to sign high performing players to their teams.

5) Get some kind of live promo. During a random time in a game, the "word of the game" will be announced. Everybody who submits that word via whatever method (Twitter/Facebook/email) within 5 minutes gets entered for a random drawing to win an all expense paid trip to the championship game, plus 4 premium tickets to one game of the NFL team of their choice.

[WillWeaverRVA]

The on-field product is awful. The USFL is probably the worst attempt at a NFL competitor in recent memory, as the AAF and new XFL (the latter now partnered with the NFL) had much better talent. The Birmingham Bubble doesn't help, either, most of the games I've seen were played in front of almost totally empty stands. The USFL is dead after this season, if it makes it there.

[triplemultiplex]

Players are making a flat $45K, plus $850/win and a $10K bonus for the league champions.  They are staying in motels (at their own expense) for $75/night.

Yeesh, don't quit your day jobs.  They better have an extremely good health plan since it would take them a decade to pay for the costs of a single major injury.  I get that it's not going to be a top tier league, but that's not a lot of compensation to play a sport where injury is inevitable.  I can't imagine wanting to play in that league unless one sees it as an NFL spring board after one season.

Which means if they can last into next year, the USFL is going to have a LOT of turnover on the field.

[The Ghostbuster]

Well, the inaugural USFL season has concluded. The Birmingham Stallions have defeated the Philadelphia Stars 33-30 to capture the first USFL title. I have throughly enjoyed watching the eight franchises play one another during the ten-week regular season, as well as the two playoff games. I have not watched the title game since I am spending the holiday weekend at my mother's house, and we had dinner tonight at my stepsister's house. I did record the game, and will watch it sometime this week. I hope the USFL returns next year as well.

[NWI_Irish96]

Well, the inaugural USFL season has concluded. The Birmingham Stallions have defeated the Philadelphia Stars 33-30 to capture the first USFL title. I have throughly enjoyed watching the eight franchises play one another during the ten-week regular season, as well as the two playoff games. I have not watched the title game since I am spending the holiday weekend at my mother's house, and we had dinner tonight at my stepsister's house. I did record the game, and will watch it sometime this week. I hope the USFL returns next year as well.

So Birmingham coach Skip Holtz was the Notre Dame offensive coordinator when I was a student manager. I really enjoyed working with him so congrats to him.

[Big John]

hope the USFL returns next year as well.

Fox said it will return next year.

[jeffandnicole]

hope the USFL returns next year as well.

Fox said it will return next year.

These type leagues in the past have folded midweek after the announcers say "See you next week".  I wouldn't trust them for something 8 months away.

[Alps]

hope the USFL returns next year as well.

Fox said it will return next year.

These type leagues in the past have folded midweek after the announcers say "See you next week".  I wouldn't trust them for something 8 months away.

They budgeted for this to go at least two years, so I bet it will.

[The Ghostbuster]

The second USFL season premiers this Saturday. Will anyone be watching? From the previous replies in the thread, I have a feeling that I will be the only one of all of us forum posters who will be watching the games.

[1995hoo]

The second USFL season premiers this Saturday. Will anyone be watching? From the previous replies in the thread, I have a feeling that I will be the only one of all of us forum posters who will be watching the games.

I might have considered tuning in except I won't be near a TV on Saturday (but also if I were, I'd probably watch DC United instead). I'd be mildly interested in comparing the level of play to the XFL.

[triplemultiplex]

Saturday was way too nice around here to sit inside and watch sports during the day.  And that reveals the fundamental flaw with spring football leagues.  The weather is much more amenable to not watching screens the deeper you go into the season, so people are going to be much less interested in watching games.  This stands in contrast to the NFL's schedule where the weather steadily gets worse as the season progresses, so one might as well watch football.  The fewer people watching on TV, the lower the ad revenue and that's what sports lives on.

If the USFL wants to hold people's attention this time of year, they've gotta do weeknight games like the NBA and NHL playoffs do.  Or baseball.  It's easy enough to watch a few innings on a random weekday night or have a game on the radio while one fires up the grill or works on some shit in the yard.  But if you're trying to get buy-in to a new pro football league, the weather is just another headwind against you.

From where I sit, if I'm gonna sit around with sports on the TV on a weekend in spring/early summer, my attention will be on the baseball team I like or NBA playoffs.  I will not be caring about some chicken-shit football operation with teams from no where near me.  I don't wish these new leagues ill, but I am saying they are extremely likely to fail because of these factors.

[epzik8]

I'm all in with the Birmingham Stallions

[jeffandnicole]

Saturday was way too nice around here to sit inside and watch sports during the day.  And that reveals the fundamental flaw with spring football leagues.  The weather is much more amenable to not watching screens the deeper you go into the season, so people are going to be much less interested in watching games.  This stands in contrast to the NFL's schedule where the weather steadily gets worse as the season progresses, so one might as well watch football.  The fewer people watching on TV, the lower the ad revenue and that's what sports lives on.

If the USFL wants to hold people's attention this time of year, they've gotta do weeknight games like the NBA and NHL playoffs do.  Or baseball.  It's easy enough to watch a few innings on a random weekday night or have a game on the radio while one fires up the grill or works on some shit in the yard.  But if you're trying to get buy-in to a new pro football league, the weather is just another headwind against you.

From where I sit, if I'm gonna sit around with sports on the TV on a weekend in spring/early summer, my attention will be on the baseball team I like or NBA playoffs.  I will not be caring about some chicken-shit football operation with teams from no where near me.  I don't wish these new leagues ill, but I am saying they are extremely likely to fail because of these factors.

Then why are most baseball games on Sunday day games? And a lot of Saturday games during the day also?

Yes, I caught what you said at the end...it's a "new league". But your first part of your statement didn't allude to that..that people won't want to be stuck watching any games when the weather is nice.

[triplemultiplex]

Well baseball plays on the weekend because it always has since long before there were TVs or even radios. Baseball is rooted in people showing up to the ballpark to watch.  It is established.
The little bit about the USFL being new is extremely important.

[kphoger]

Players are making a flat $45K, plus $850/win and a $10K bonus for the league champions.  They are staying in motels (at their own expense) for $75/night.

Yeesh, don't quit your day jobs.  They better have an extremely good health plan since it would take them a decade to pay for the costs of a single major injury.  I get that it's not going to be a top tier league, but that's not a lot of compensation to play a sport where injury is inevitable.  I can't imagine wanting to play in that league unless one sees it as an NFL spring board after one season.

Isn't that substantially better than what minor league baseball players make?

[NWI_Irish96]

Players are making a flat $45K, plus $850/win and a $10K bonus for the league champions.  They are staying in motels (at their own expense) for $75/night.

Yeesh, don't quit your day jobs.  They better have an extremely good health plan since it would take them a decade to pay for the costs of a single major injury.  I get that it's not going to be a top tier league, but that's not a lot of compensation to play a sport where injury is inevitable.  I can't imagine wanting to play in that league unless one sees it as an NFL spring board after one season.

Isn't that substantially better than what minor league baseball players make?

Slightly more than what AAA makes, a lot more than what the lower minors make.

[SP Cook]

The difference between minor league baseball and this is that minor league baseball is a developmental league.  It is an internship.    The goal is to make the major leagues and become fantastically inter-generationally wealthy.  The NFL's developmental league is called college football.  These players have already failed to make the big league in their sport. 

[triplemultiplex]

Who's more likely to blow out an ACL?  A minor league baseballer or someone in the USFL?  Part of the compensation for playing football is the fact that it is inherently dangerous smacking into other dudes all the time.  And why people like me balk at the NCAA's resistance to compensate athletes for the dangerous work the students are doing promoting their corporation.

So like I said, if these USFL players are only making a middle class income, they better have good insurance thru their employer or else a bad injury will bankrupt them, like it does countless middle-income people across this country every year.  It'll cost more than 45K to repair an ACL tear, for example.

[SP Cook]

, they better have good insurance thru their employer or else a bad injury will bankrupt them,

A professional athlete injured while playing a sport is covered under Worker's Comp, just like any other employee injured at work in the western world.  Any surgery, therapy, medication, or other treatment would be fully paid for by Worker's Comp.

[kphoger]

, they better have good insurance thru their employer or else a bad injury will bankrupt them,

A professional athlete injured while playing a sport is covered under Worker's Comp, just like any other employee injured at work in the western world.  Any surgery, therapy, medication, or other treatment would be fully paid for by Worker's Comp.

Some quick googling leads me to understand that this is actually a surprisingly recent state of affairs.

[The Ghostbuster]

Well, the second USFL season has come to an end. The Birmingham Stallions have won the USFL Championship for the second straight year, defeating the Pittsburgh Maulers 28-12. Maybe next year the USFL will crown a new champion.

[NWI_Irish96]

Well, the second USFL season has come to an end. The Birmingham Stallions have won the USFL Championship for the second straight year, defeating the Pittsburgh Maulers 28-12. Maybe next year the USFL will crown a new champion.

Very happy for Coach Skip. He was the OC at Notre Dame while I was there. Fantastic guy.