In their second season of existence in 1984, the Tampa Bay Bandits of the United States Football League got off to a running start. After barely missing the playoffs in 1983, the Bandits opened the next campaign with a pair of victories against the Houston Gamblers and Arizona Wranglers.
The Jacksonville Bulls -- owners of a 1-1 mark -- came to Tampa Stadium on March 10, 1984, for a Saturday night contest broadcast nationwide on ESPN. With a Country & Western Night theme featuring a Dolly Parton lookalike contest, the game billed as "The Battle for Florida" featured the two best offensive attacks in the league. The Bulls, behind the arm of former University of Georgia quarterback Matt Robinson, led the USFL's Eastern Conference in passing. The Bandits, led by former Robinson High School and University of Florida standout John Reaves, were second only to the Bulls in that department.
As an expansion team in 1984, the Bulls quickly became the talk of the league. Jacksonville shocked everyone in Week 1 against the Washington Federals, scoring a USFL-record 53 points in a rout. The following week against the New Jersey Generals, the Bulls broke a USFL attendance record at the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville with a crowd of more than 73,000. If not for a controversial finish in which a Jacksonville field goal was ruled no good despite video evidence to the contrary, the Bulls could have easily carried a 2-0 mark into the showdown with Tampa Bay.
"I think there was a false sense that expansion teams were going to be a year behind us," said then-Tampa Bay head coach Steve Spurrier. "There's a competitive group of owners in this league and they realize that if their teams don't play well, people aren't going to come out to the games."
The Bulls were certainly playing well, and the Bandits had their work cut out for them against the first-year upstarts. In front of a team-record crowd of 51,274, Jacksonville put Tampa Bay in a hole early, capitalizing on two interceptions by Reaves in the game's first six minutes. Linebacker Fernando Jackson picked off an underthrown pass by Reaves at Tampa Bay's own 31 yard line. This play set up the the Bulls first score, a four-yard touchdown reception by Michael Whitting. Kicker Dan Miller missed the extra point wide right, resulting in a 6-0 lead for Jacksonville.
Andy Hendel's interception on Tampa Bay's ensuing possession set up the Bulls at the Bandits' 8-yard line. Running back Larry Mason ran the ball in from the five for the score, and following a failed two-point conversion, Jacksonville held a lead 12-0 lead over Tampa Bay.
The Bandits answered by making the most of their best offensive weapon, running back Gary Anderson. The former University of Arkansas star led the Bandits on the ground and through the air on a 16-play, 85-yard drive to answer the Bulls. Anderson capped the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run -- his fifth of the young season -- to cut the defecit to 12-7.
Jacksonville's lead slipped to three points when Alonzo Johnson blocked Rich Hendley's punt out of the end zone for the first registered safety in Bandits history. Following the free kick, the Bandits were on the move when Reaves threw his third interception of the half to thwart a promising drive.
The Bulls capitalized on the mistake with a 13-play, 80-yard scoring drive. Quarterback Matt Robinson provided the points -- but was lost for the rest of the game to injury -- on his one-yard touchdown plunge that gave his team an 18-9 lead.
With just 54 seconds left in the first half, the Bandits drove the length of the field to set up a field goal attempt for kicker Zenon Andrusyshyn. His kick from 28 yards out was good and the Bandits, despite three turnovers, went into the locker room trailing by only six points, 18-12.
The Bandits tied the game with 6:15 left in the third quarter when Reaves tossed his first touchdown pass of the season, a 33-yard strike to wide receiver Eric Truvillion. Andrusyshyn shanked the extra point attempt, leaving the game tied at 18.
On Jacksonville's next possession, the Tampa Bay defense forced Robinson's replacement at quarterback, Robbie Mahfouz, into a costly interception deep in their own territory. Fullback Greg Boone capped the short Tampa Bay drive with a 9-yard TD run to give Tampa Bay their first lead of the game.
Leading 25-18 with a chance to pull away from the Bulls, Reaves threw his fourth interception of the game. Jacksonville's Willie McClendon then carried the ball five times on a six-play, 61-yard drive that concluded with his six-yard touchdown run on the first play of the fourth quarter to notch the score at 25.
Once a hero, McClendon became the goat for Jacksonville when he fumbled at the Tampa Bay 40 with 5:21 left. After exchanging punts in a field position battle, Tampa Bay capitalized with time winding down in the game. Reaves, whose four picks nearly cost Tampa Bay the game, led the Bandits down to the Jacksonville 13-yard-line with just six seconds remaining. Despite a poor snap from center, Willie Gillespie made a great hold and Andrusyshyn's 30-yard field goal was true, giving the Bandits a hard-fought and harrowing 28-25 triumph.
The win propelled the Bandits to a 3-0 mark, the same record it held after three weeks in 1983. The previous edition of the Bandits ended up finishing 11-7 and out of the playoffs. Still, players on the team believed there was plenty of improvement ahead for Tampa Bay.
"We can be a whole lot better," Reaves said.
Added Greg Boone, "I don't think anybody is better than us on offense, and I don't see anybody physically better than us."
Undefeated and atop the Southern Division, the Bandits certainly had reason to feel 1984 would make the disappointments of 1983 a distant memory.
Monday, March 9, 2009
Monday, March 2, 2009
Roy Emerson Defies Australia, 3/1/64
When tennis star Roy Emerson arrived in Tampa 45 years ago this week to compete in the Dixie International Tennis Tournament, officials in his native country of Australia were not pleased. The world’s top-ranked man, Emerson came to Tampa in defiance of the Lawn Tennis Association of Australia.
The LTAA, upset about Australia’s loss to the United States in Davis Cup competition, ordered players such as Emerson, Fred Stolle, Ken Fletcher, and Bob Hewitt cease their international travels and return home. Officially, the LTAA claimed these players must return to Australia and compete in local tournaments only until March 31, 1964.
The players had to cease playing in any overseas tournaments by Feb. 28. Furthermore, the players were forbidden to accept expense money for playing international tournaments until that after that date. By appearing at the Dixie International in Tampa, Emerson risked a one-year ban from representing Australia in international competitions like the Davis Cup.
While Stolle and Hewitt ultimately decided to skip the tournament, Emerson and Fletcher defied the order by the LTAA. Emerson appealed to the organization by claiming he was traveling at his own expense and thus not violating any rules. Tournament officials rewarded him with a top seed, ahead of two-time defending Dixie International champion Manuel Santana, who beat Stolle in the finals of the 1963 Dixie tournament.
While Fletcher made an early exit in the second round of the Dixie, falling to unseeded Ecuadorian Eduardo Zuleta in three sets, Emerson rolled over the competition on his way to the semifinals. Prior to his match against Jose Arilla of Spain, Emerson found out the LTAA had denied his request to continue playing in America. Fortunately for Emerson, an amateur, he received a $50,000 offer a few days earlier from the International Professional Tennis Players Association to turn pro.
“If (Fletcher and I) are suspended, this makes the offer more tempting,” Emerson said. “I would certainly hate to sit out a year.”
Emerson took down Arilla in four hard-fought sets to earn a berth in the finals against the defending champion Santana. Officials in Australia were not impressed.
The LTAA announced Emerson and Fletcher would be banned from Davis Cup competitions for a year. The announcement mentioned nothing, however, of suspensions from other tournaments. Fletcher, predictably, reacted to the news with disbelief.
“Most players play tennis so you can represent your country in the Davis Cup,” he said. “When you don’t have that, well, it just becomes a way of living, doesn’t it? You sort of lose interest.”
Fletcher’s ban became official when he paired with Emerson in a Dixie doubles semifinal match, a victory over Yugoslavians Nicola Pilic and Boro Jovanovic. Emerson earned his ban by playing against Arilla in the Dixie singles semifinal.
As if to prove the LTAA made a mistake in barring him from representing Australia, Emerson made the most of his showdown in the Dixie finals against Santana on March 1. In front of a capacity crowd of 1,000 at the Davis Islands Tennis Center, Emerson put on an impressive display of power and precision.
Using a punishing serve-and-volley attack, Emerson kept the defending champion off-balance. The two played a thrilling first set, as each took turns matching each other volley for volley, return for return and winner for winner. Emerson ultimately prevailed, 9-7, to capture the 50-minute set and the momentum for the rest of the match.
Emerson raced to a 5-1 lead in the second set by dictating play from the net. Santana went out meekly without a point in the final game of the set, which ended 6-2 in favor of Emerson. The Aussie then cruised to a 5-0 advantage in the third, but had to withstand a furious comeback by the proud Spaniard, who won four straight games to make things interesting. On serve with a chance to even up the set, Santana could produce just one more hold and thus relinquished his title to Emerson.
It would by no means be Emerson’s final title of the year. He went on to have one of the finest years of his career, winning three Grand Slams – including his first Wimbledon title – and at one point won 55 consecutive matches while losing only six times in 115 tries.
And in spite of all the hubbub, the LTAA relented and Emerson competed for Australia in the Davis Cup. It paid off for the Aussies, as Emerson won the deciding match of the Cup finals over Chuck McKinley of the United States.
The LTAA, upset about Australia’s loss to the United States in Davis Cup competition, ordered players such as Emerson, Fred Stolle, Ken Fletcher, and Bob Hewitt cease their international travels and return home. Officially, the LTAA claimed these players must return to Australia and compete in local tournaments only until March 31, 1964.
The players had to cease playing in any overseas tournaments by Feb. 28. Furthermore, the players were forbidden to accept expense money for playing international tournaments until that after that date. By appearing at the Dixie International in Tampa, Emerson risked a one-year ban from representing Australia in international competitions like the Davis Cup.
While Stolle and Hewitt ultimately decided to skip the tournament, Emerson and Fletcher defied the order by the LTAA. Emerson appealed to the organization by claiming he was traveling at his own expense and thus not violating any rules. Tournament officials rewarded him with a top seed, ahead of two-time defending Dixie International champion Manuel Santana, who beat Stolle in the finals of the 1963 Dixie tournament.
While Fletcher made an early exit in the second round of the Dixie, falling to unseeded Ecuadorian Eduardo Zuleta in three sets, Emerson rolled over the competition on his way to the semifinals. Prior to his match against Jose Arilla of Spain, Emerson found out the LTAA had denied his request to continue playing in America. Fortunately for Emerson, an amateur, he received a $50,000 offer a few days earlier from the International Professional Tennis Players Association to turn pro.
“If (Fletcher and I) are suspended, this makes the offer more tempting,” Emerson said. “I would certainly hate to sit out a year.”
Emerson took down Arilla in four hard-fought sets to earn a berth in the finals against the defending champion Santana. Officials in Australia were not impressed.
The LTAA announced Emerson and Fletcher would be banned from Davis Cup competitions for a year. The announcement mentioned nothing, however, of suspensions from other tournaments. Fletcher, predictably, reacted to the news with disbelief.
“Most players play tennis so you can represent your country in the Davis Cup,” he said. “When you don’t have that, well, it just becomes a way of living, doesn’t it? You sort of lose interest.”
Fletcher’s ban became official when he paired with Emerson in a Dixie doubles semifinal match, a victory over Yugoslavians Nicola Pilic and Boro Jovanovic. Emerson earned his ban by playing against Arilla in the Dixie singles semifinal.
As if to prove the LTAA made a mistake in barring him from representing Australia, Emerson made the most of his showdown in the Dixie finals against Santana on March 1. In front of a capacity crowd of 1,000 at the Davis Islands Tennis Center, Emerson put on an impressive display of power and precision.
Using a punishing serve-and-volley attack, Emerson kept the defending champion off-balance. The two played a thrilling first set, as each took turns matching each other volley for volley, return for return and winner for winner. Emerson ultimately prevailed, 9-7, to capture the 50-minute set and the momentum for the rest of the match.
Emerson raced to a 5-1 lead in the second set by dictating play from the net. Santana went out meekly without a point in the final game of the set, which ended 6-2 in favor of Emerson. The Aussie then cruised to a 5-0 advantage in the third, but had to withstand a furious comeback by the proud Spaniard, who won four straight games to make things interesting. On serve with a chance to even up the set, Santana could produce just one more hold and thus relinquished his title to Emerson.
It would by no means be Emerson’s final title of the year. He went on to have one of the finest years of his career, winning three Grand Slams – including his first Wimbledon title – and at one point won 55 consecutive matches while losing only six times in 115 tries.
And in spite of all the hubbub, the LTAA relented and Emerson competed for Australia in the Davis Cup. It paid off for the Aussies, as Emerson won the deciding match of the Cup finals over Chuck McKinley of the United States.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Palmer vs Nicklaus at Palma Ceia, 2/21/64
On February 21, 1964, two of the biggest stars in all of sports, Arnold Palmer and Jack Nicklaus, came to Tampa to play 18 holes of golf in a charity exhibition. The match, which took place at Palma Ceia Golf & Country Club, would be the first round of golf in Tampa for both players.
Nicklaus, 24, arrived in Tampa coming off a 1963 season in which he won the Masters and the PGA Championship. Palmer, 34, won eight tournaments in 1963, but no majors. He could hang his hat, however, on the then-record $128,000 ($850,000 in today’s dollars) in winnings he earned that season. Local pros Skip Alexander of St. Petersburg and Henry Castillo, Palma Ceia’s resident pro, were paired with Nicklaus and Palmer for the competition.
Prior to the match, Nicklaus and Palmer put on a clinic on the finer points of driving. The two also took turns making jokes to entertain the crowd over the public address system.
Nicklaus joked that the two almost missed the event because of an accident.
“Arnie had a terrible accident,” Nicklaus said. “He fell off his wallet.”
Palmer, in turn, ribbed Nicklaus about his appearance.
“Look at him - white shoes in the winter time. He’s the worst-dressed man in the high-priced field.”
A crowd of 5,000 spectators jammed the pristine course to witness two of the world’s best in action. One of those in attendance, Cincinnati Reds pitcher Joey Jay, recalls getting to meet Palmer after the round.
“I remember it well,” Jay says. “At that time, I was only a small golf fan and had gone with a friend of mine who was a member of the club. Afterwards, I got to meet Palmer over some refreshments and, looking back now, realize it was something special to see these guys at that point in their careers.”
So many fans showed up for the match that people often stood five-deep to watch the action on the course. Children climbed trees to get a better look. One of the kids in attendance that day, Buddy Alexander, enjoyed watching from the gallery while his father played a round with two legends.
Now the head golf coach at the University of Florida, Alexander was only 11 years old at the time and remembers the significance the day held for him, if not for his father.
“Well, my dad played on the tour and was on a few Ryder Cup teams in the 1950s,” Alexander recently said. “So this exhibition probably wasn’t the highlight of his career. Still, it was a pretty big deal to play with those guys at a club just across the Bay from where he lived.
Now for me, it was a huge day. I’d already started playing junior tournaments and competitive golf, so to see Nicklaus and Palmer in person was quite a thrill.”
Everyone in attendance who came to see world-class golf in person did not leave disappointed. If anything, they saw two of the best in the world look quite mortal against a very challenging par-70 Palma Ceia course. Nicklaus hit a ball out of bounds on the 2nd hole, and both golfers hit the ball out of bounds on the 18th hole, where Palmer suffered a double-bogey 7.
“Everybody said this was an easy course,” Nicklaus said after the round. “It’s not. You have to be very careful. It’s tight, but it’s not unfair. It has some wonderful par-3s. I think it plays well to a par-70.”
Palmer appeared poised to tame the course with a 68 when he reached the 18th hole, a 482-yard par-5. On his approach shot to the green, however, Palmer nearly hit the clubhouse. Four strokes later, Palmer was done for the day and finished at even-par 70.
Nicklaus finished just behind Palmer, shooting a 1-over 71 for the day. Alexander and Castillo held their own right along with them, shooting 72 and 74, respectively.
The scores would get better as 1964 progressed for both Nicklaus and Palmer. Nicklaus would win four tournaments that year and finish as runner-up at The Masters, six shots behind Palmer. For Palmer, it would be his fourth overall Masters victory and the final major tournament victory of his career.
Nicklaus, 24, arrived in Tampa coming off a 1963 season in which he won the Masters and the PGA Championship. Palmer, 34, won eight tournaments in 1963, but no majors. He could hang his hat, however, on the then-record $128,000 ($850,000 in today’s dollars) in winnings he earned that season. Local pros Skip Alexander of St. Petersburg and Henry Castillo, Palma Ceia’s resident pro, were paired with Nicklaus and Palmer for the competition.
Prior to the match, Nicklaus and Palmer put on a clinic on the finer points of driving. The two also took turns making jokes to entertain the crowd over the public address system.
Nicklaus joked that the two almost missed the event because of an accident.
“Arnie had a terrible accident,” Nicklaus said. “He fell off his wallet.”
Palmer, in turn, ribbed Nicklaus about his appearance.
“Look at him - white shoes in the winter time. He’s the worst-dressed man in the high-priced field.”
A crowd of 5,000 spectators jammed the pristine course to witness two of the world’s best in action. One of those in attendance, Cincinnati Reds pitcher Joey Jay, recalls getting to meet Palmer after the round.
“I remember it well,” Jay says. “At that time, I was only a small golf fan and had gone with a friend of mine who was a member of the club. Afterwards, I got to meet Palmer over some refreshments and, looking back now, realize it was something special to see these guys at that point in their careers.”
So many fans showed up for the match that people often stood five-deep to watch the action on the course. Children climbed trees to get a better look. One of the kids in attendance that day, Buddy Alexander, enjoyed watching from the gallery while his father played a round with two legends.
Now the head golf coach at the University of Florida, Alexander was only 11 years old at the time and remembers the significance the day held for him, if not for his father.
“Well, my dad played on the tour and was on a few Ryder Cup teams in the 1950s,” Alexander recently said. “So this exhibition probably wasn’t the highlight of his career. Still, it was a pretty big deal to play with those guys at a club just across the Bay from where he lived.
Now for me, it was a huge day. I’d already started playing junior tournaments and competitive golf, so to see Nicklaus and Palmer in person was quite a thrill.”
Everyone in attendance who came to see world-class golf in person did not leave disappointed. If anything, they saw two of the best in the world look quite mortal against a very challenging par-70 Palma Ceia course. Nicklaus hit a ball out of bounds on the 2nd hole, and both golfers hit the ball out of bounds on the 18th hole, where Palmer suffered a double-bogey 7.
“Everybody said this was an easy course,” Nicklaus said after the round. “It’s not. You have to be very careful. It’s tight, but it’s not unfair. It has some wonderful par-3s. I think it plays well to a par-70.”
Palmer appeared poised to tame the course with a 68 when he reached the 18th hole, a 482-yard par-5. On his approach shot to the green, however, Palmer nearly hit the clubhouse. Four strokes later, Palmer was done for the day and finished at even-par 70.
Nicklaus finished just behind Palmer, shooting a 1-over 71 for the day. Alexander and Castillo held their own right along with them, shooting 72 and 74, respectively.
The scores would get better as 1964 progressed for both Nicklaus and Palmer. Nicklaus would win four tournaments that year and finish as runner-up at The Masters, six shots behind Palmer. For Palmer, it would be his fourth overall Masters victory and the final major tournament victory of his career.
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