Tag Archives: WLAF

WLAF

Orlando Thunder

July 16, 2011

COACH: Don Matthews (1991), Galen Hall (1992)
STADIUM: Citrus Stadium
RECORD: (1991) 5-5, (1992) 8-2

The Orlando Thunder had the most unique color scheme ever seen up to any point in professional football. It is rumored the fluorescent green was at the insistence of owner Raj Bhathal- who wanted something representative of popular colors used in swimsuits at the time.

BACKGROUND:

Orlando was the second team in the United States awarded a WLAF franchise during March of 1990. The Orlando Thunder’s majority owner was Raj Bhathal, a Newport Beach swimwear magnate. Originally unable to purchase the rights to the Surge or the Riders, Bhathal bought the majority stake in the Orlando franchise after visiting the city for just a single day. He preferred to let Dick Beam, a former Rams executive run the front office, while Lee Corso- of College Football Gameday fame, was the General Manager.

Corso lured away legendary coach Don Matthews from the CFL in 1991, to coach the team. The Orlando Thunder initially employed a no-huddle offense that primarily showed up in a Run ‘N Shoot variant that Don’s offensive coordinator, Galen Hall cooked up. Hall was also instrumental in bringing in QB Kerwin Bell- who he used to coach at Florida. Another notable coach was former Charger wide receiver Wes Chandler, who would get his pro break coaching with the team.

The Thunder name was selected out very quickly during the origination process- and there were 6 different designs that the team felt comfortable moving forward with. Wilson- the manufacturer of most football equipment jerseys at the time- did not have a fluorescent lime green in their fabric selection and had to make a concession in order to get it done.

1991:

Their first game would be against the San Antonio Riders in a stunning offensive contest on a Monday Night USA Network telecast. The Thunder won 35-34, led by quarterback Kerwin Bell wearing the state-of-the-art helmet camera. He’d throw 3 bombs to future league leading receiver Byron Williams. (Williams finished with 11 touchdowns receiving that season, leading the league.)

At runningback the team would rely on Myron Jones, -but Eric Mitchel (a Barry Sanders backup at Oklahoma) sparked the Thunder later on in the season. He’d finish second on the team in receptions and have a whopping 6.7 yards per carry. Carl Painter, another NFL vet, was the league leader in kick off returns with 597 yards and a 24.9 yard average. On defense Winfred Bryant (6 sacks) and Wayne Dickson (5 sacks) paced the team lead. In the secondary underrated Mike Nettles made 3 picks and 4 sacks. Safety Billy Owens also contributed 3 sacks and turned in an interception from the defensive backfield. Errol Tucker chipped in 2 interceptions, and led the WLAF in with an improbable 20.7 punt return average, taking one of them back for a touchdown.

In week 2, the Thunder tacked up 58 points on the Skyhawks giving them a two week total of 93 points- one of the highest combined two week totals for the opening of a football team’s season in sports history. -The problem is that the Thunder happened to give up as much yards and points as they scored.

After their first two victories, the Thunder dropped 5 straight, drubbed in 4 straight games, 35-12, 33-13, 31-6 and finally 42-6 to the New York New Jersey Knights. After a 17-14 loss to the Galaxy, the Thunder would rebound, winning their final 3 contests, to finish 5-5 for 1991. It was an uneven ending for the Thunder that season with extreme highs- and lows.

After the season, Beam cleaned house, from top to bottom. The team attempted to lure a variety of names to the open head coaching position including: David Shula, Tom Walsh, Mike Gottfried, and Dick Coury but were unable to land any of them. In the end, the Thunder promoted offensive coordinator Galen Hall to head coach for the 1992 season.

1992:

Hall continued to employ the spread offense but also incorporated a fullback and tight end more into the offense. Although Kerwin Bell was serviceable in 1991, the team seized at the opportunity to snag Scott Mitchell (allocated from the Dolphins) and started him over Bell at quarterback.

At runningback the team brought in Darryl Clack (former Dallas Cowboy), and former 1st round fullback, Texas A&M product, and New York Jet, Roger Vick. League leading Byron Williams was be traded in the middle of the night to the New York-New Jersey Knights partially over a contract dispute and him playing in the CFL. In his place the team would employ Joe Howard Johnson and Kansas City Chiefs receiver Willie Davis.

In the team’s 4-3 defense, the Thunder added on the defensive line Karl Dunbar (future defensive line coach mastermind), and future radio personality Dan Sileo. Tracy Rocker was drafted with the team’s first overall pick, but he’d be injured and cut during training camp. Linebacker saw the return of Wayne Dickson, while in the secondary most of the team would be replaced, with Rogers and Nettles returning from the 1991 squad.

Malcolm Floyd would make his debut with the Orlando Thunder, but made his mark later in the CFL.

The Thunder improved their defense, and cured their consistency woes of 1991. They came into San Antonio and beat the Riders handily in 1992, en route to an 8-2 record, tying for the league best with Sacramento. They’d cruise into the playoffs and play in World Bowl II versus the Sacramento Surge, narrowly losing to them 21-17.

Scott Mitchell finished as the second leading passer in the league, while Clack at runningback would finish 3rd in rushing with Vick at 5th. At wide receiver Johnson finished 3rd in receptions with 56 catches and received All- World League honors, along with tackle Rick Cunningham, Darryl Clack, cornerback Glenn Rogers, and kicker Tracy Bennett.

Galen Hall was named Coach of the Year after the season as well, but all would be for not, as the WLAF reorganized- and the Thunder- would not be heard of again.

Scott Mitchell throws a deep pass against the Riders defense.

NOTES:

The Thunder are probably most fondly remembered for those fluorescent green uniforms, and were recently voted #2 on the worst uniform list of all-time on ESPN.

Training camps and the league’s inaugural draft were held in Orlando.

Technically, the Thunder were the only franchise in the league to switch over head coaches between 1991 and 1992, going from Don Matthews, who fled back to the CFL, to Galen Hall.

The Thunder played in cavernous Citrus Stadium but were unable average over 20,000 fans in either season. Despite the team’s 8-2 record, the Thunder had the smallest season ticket holder base in 1992 with less than 5,000 people. This also had put financial duress on Raj Bhathal, and it had been rumored that he was attempting to sell the franchise- or the league had been attempting to force his hand to do so.

Walkup tickets were affordable to boot running between the 30 yard line at $19.50, 25 yard line to goal line at $15.50, and general admission- endzones at just $8.50.

Many years later the Thunder name would be reappropriated by the NFLE to be used as the name for the Berlin Thunder. Thankfully they wouldn’t utilize the same color scheme or logo.

LEGACY:

Orlando has had four professional franchises since the departure of the Thunder. The Arena Football Predators were the most successful of the teams to take on the Orlando market. Traded publicly at one point, the franchise played in the city from 1991 to 2016- before folding due to disagreements with the league.

The Orlando Rage, coached by Galen Hall (XFL) lasted just one season in 2001. The team was heavy favorites to win the championship but was upset in the playoffs by the San Fransisco Demons. – The XFL folded after the season.

Orlando then had to wait until 2009 to receive a new football franchise, when the UFL awarded the Florida Tuskers to the city. Despite the best intents of the league however, Orlando was unable to support the Tuskers either, and after the 2010 season the team was shuttered to Virginia.

Again it appeared that Orlando was on the upswing in 2018. They’d be named as the founding franchise of the Alliance of American Football with Steve Spurrier as their head coach (Apollos). The team zoomed out to a 7-1 record before that league- was shuddered as well.

HC- Don Matthews, Galen Hall
Front Office: Lee Corso
QB- Kerwin Bell, Scott Mitchell
RB- Darryl Clack, Eric Mitchel, Myron Jones, Grantis Bell, Roger Vick, Carl Painter
WR- Byron Williams, Bruce Lasane, Stacey Simmons, Willie Davis
TE- Michael Titley
OL- Rodney Lossow
K- Charlie Baumann
DL- Karl Dunbar, Tracy Rocker
LB- Dean Witkowski, Wayne Davis, Wayne Dickson
DB- Erroll Tucker, Rob Sterling, Todd Krumm, Glenn Rogers, Malcolm Frank

At this time I am still missing autographs on these cards from:

ProSet 1991 WLAF:
John Guerrero
Billy Owens
Mike Withycombe

Wild Card WLAF 1992:
Joe Howard-Johnson
Rocen Keeton

Ultimate WLAF 1992:
Billy Owens
Chris Roscoe (DEC ?)
Tommy Stowers

CUSTOM:
Dan Sileo

WLAF

San Antonio Riders

September 9, 2010

Coach: Mike Riley
Stadium: Alamo Stadium (1991), Bobcat Stadium (1992)
Record: 4-6 (1991), 7-3 (1992)

The Riders had a very unique color scheme of Brown, Metallic Gold, Burnt Orange, White, Scarlet, Blue, and Vegas Gold.

BACKGROUND:

The San Antonio Riders were one of the founding franchises of the WLAF in 1991. In April of that year, Larry Benson (brother of New Orleans Saints owner Tom Benson) won the bidding war over Gavin Maloof for the right to the San Antonio market. Benson became the majority owner over a small syndicate of owners, that chose the name ‘Riders’ – over such contenders such as: ‘The Alamo’, ‘Lone Stars’ and ‘Trail Riders’.

The Riders were managed by Dallas Cowboys coaching great Tom Landry. In 1991, the Riders played in dilapidated Alamo Stadium in San Antonio. The turf was aging and so bad that the broadcast crew would talk about it during the game. An argument over beer sales ensued with the school district after the season, and soon thereafter the district jacked up the rent, so the team opted to move its games up the road to tiny San Marcos/ Bobcat Stadium. With the relocation for 1992 completed this placed the Riders roughly halfway between Austin and San Antonio on the I-35 corridor. The team hoped that once the Alamodome was completed in San Antonio, the Riders would be able to relocate back there as early as 1993.

San Antonio’s ‘state of the art’ stadium, the Alamodome, shown from concept models on the Riders’ team page inside Gametime Magazine. The league reorganized before the Alamodome was completed.

The San Antonio Riders were coached by Mike Riley, a Bear Bryant disciple and former defensive back at Alabama. Riley had been successful at the college level and also at the CFL. Hungry to make a puddle jump to the NFL, Mike made the transition to the WLAF and assembled his team.

Riley’s offenses were typical of ball control offenses of the time, however it most resembled the Washington Redskins system, sporting 3 wide receivers and a single back, utilizing play-action, traps, and bootlegs. For the most part the team relied on a strong ground game supported by a tough defense.

1991:

The Riders were led intially by quarterback Jason Garrett, but injuries yielded him to Lee Saltz. The Riders scoured Team Dallas and located his backup, Mike Johnson. Johnson then replaced Saltz after he too got injured. Mike ended up starting the majority of the wins for the Riders that season. On the offensive line, the team featured future CFL All Star Mike Kiselak, and future wrestler John Layfield. James Harper was considered the best all around blocking prospect. John Garrett, Billy Hess, Dwight Pickens, and Lee Morris would head up an all around underrated wide receiver corps. The offensive engine of the team was Ricky Blake, a bruising powerback who was assisted by Broderick Graves and Undra Johnson. As the team got more comfortable with its identity, Ronnie Williams became a key cog at TE. A hybrid blocker with great size, hands, and speed. The Riders liked to line him up wide to expose mismatches.

The defense was led by All-World linebacker Tim Walton, and second team All-World players Mark Ledbetter and Donnie Gardner. San Antonio’s defense was considered quite stubborn. They gave up very few yards receiving and played havoc with QBs completion percentage.

San Antonio’s first game was a fireworks show against the spread offense Orlando Thunder, full of big plays and high scoring. There was no defense really by either team, and the 35-34 game would be the league’s highest scoring output of the season. Orlando quarterback Kerwin Bell threw 3 touchdown passes to Byron Williams to pace the Thunder towards their victory, but when Teddy Garcia missed an extra point for San Antonio, this would provide to be the difference in the game. The helmet camera was used by Kerwin Bell for the contest, and it was carried on USA Network.

The Riders were in the hunt for the playoffs in 1991 up until the final week, needing a little help. SA had a 3 game losing streak in the middle of their schedule, which really killed them. They rebounded late to knock of Montreal in convincing fashion in Week 9, but needed help to win, as the Fire held the head to head tie breaker over the Riders. It ended up not mattering as the Riders dropped their season finale to the Knights anyway.

1992:

San Antonio Riders v Ohio Glory Preseason matchup. This was handed out to all fans who entered the stadium to familiarize them with the players.

The Riders during the 1992 season preserved some of their original roster, while tweaking it out with some NFL veteran presence. They were allowed to pick the rosters of the San Diego Chargers, Denver Broncos, Dallas Cowboys, and the New Orleans Saints for loaners.

The biggest void the team had to fill was almost its complete running back stable. To solve this problem the team grabbed Ivory Lee Brown (Arizona Cardinal allocation) and Tony Boles, (-a Dallas Cowboys castoff who was trying to resurrect his career after drug and law problems) for a change of pace. Stump Mitchell was also brought in as part of the NFL Minority Coaches Fellowship to help coach the running backs. Boles and Brown both got off to fast starts, but by week 3 Boles was AWOL, so Brown had to share the load with mainly George Searcy. Cisco Richard was added late in the season and added an impressive wrinkle in the offense. This did not stop the Riders from crushing people on the ground as Brown would finish first in rushing in 1992.

Mike Johnson at quarterback got no respect despite commandeering wins for the team. The Eagles loaned fan favorite Brad Goebel from Baylor to the Riders and he gave Johnson stiff competition.

Underrated Ronnie Williams at tight end would lead all players from that position with 35 receptions. The Riders sported a variety of All-World players in 1992. Center John Vitale would be named to the 1st team, as well as Ivory Lee Brown at runningback.

Jim Gallery turned in a great 1992 season while Teddy Garcia went on to kick for the Dragons.

Bobby Humphery, provided a mainstay veteran presence in the secondary after playing for the Jets and Rams in the NFL. On defense Chris Theinemen and Dick Chapura were both be named on the line to the All-World Team. Consistent Tim Walton also made it again as well at linebacker. The team finished with 32 sacks and 10 picks (2 tds) and were especially stout against the run.

There were quite a few memorable games for the Riders during the 1992 season. Three come to mind immediately.

First was the San Antonio versus Ohio matchup in Week 6 or 7. The Riders kept the heat on Pat O’Hara all game, but the best part was when a freak hailstorm/ monsoon rolled up right before halftime and interrupted play. We then got a free, impromptu halftime show from a very excited fan who ran across the field. The delay didn’t stop the Riders from drubbing the Glory 17-0, as San Antonio’s smothering defense was on full display. Gary Richard had his finest moment as a pro intercepting a pass and returning it for a TD.

In Week 4 of the season the Riders played one of the most exciting and competitive games in WLAF history for a second time, but this time came out on top, defeating the Sacramento Surge in OT 23-20. QB Mike Johnson set team records as he threw for 250 yards on 25/40 passes, without being intercepted, while completing at one point a stretch of 8 passes in a row. The Riders were down 13-0 before the half and 20-10 with 9:44 left in the 4th quarter. They were able to get the ball back with less than a minute, drove down the field and kicked a field goal to tie the game 20-20. Jim Gallery kicked his 3rd field goal of the night, and the Surge responded by driving down the field. Surge receiver Eddie Brown caught a pass but as he made a football move with the ball he was stripped by CB Bobby Humphery who sealed the win for the Riders.

The last game in the history of the franchise was the rematch do or die contest as the Riders against the Surge. It was disappointing to see SA lose 24-20 at home, but the largest crowd of the season showed up with a near 20,000 in attendance. Despite the Riders 7-3 record, they finished 3rd in their division and out of the playoff hunt.

What was even more frustrating that the NFL got impatient with the WLAF and suspended operations after the 1992 season never to play in North America again. The Riders pegged their total losses for 2 years at roughly $750,000 which wasn’t much, although the franchise was highly subsidized by the NFL.

Mike Johnson’s protection holds up under pressure from the Thunder. Bobcat Stadium, 1992.

NOTES:

The Riders established two rivals during that initial season- the Sacramento Surge and the Birmingham Fire. Sacramento as mentioned previously had a storied and exciting rivalry with the Riders and couldn’t be any more dissimilar. Birmingham and San Antonio however were very close philosophically and both teams were built on scrappy defenses and solid run games. This made them natural rivalries. The Riders played a 12-16 yawner of a loss to the Fire where the team was unable to punch the ball into the endzone in 1991. In 1992, the Riders lost to the Fire early on 17-10 then beat them 17-14 later in that season. Birmingham also sitting at 7-2-1 made the playoffs as a Wild Card in 1992 while the Riders sat at home.

My father and I attended all the Riders home games in 1992 (and the preseason game against the Glory before the season). For that first preseason game the team installed bleachers in the endzones for additional fans. Fans were extremely hostile towards Babe Laufenberg of the Glory, since he had just played in the previous season for the Cowboys. The Riders kept constant pressure in his face all day during the scrimmage and he was miserable. The game would serve as a tie breaker if the two teams were to finish with the same record after the season. -Unfortunately neither team would need it.

Bobcat Stadium had no box seating, so Larry Benson and Tom Landry were easily accessible by fans as they sat in the shade underneath the bleachers. In general, security was minimal and you could walk down on the field during warmups and on the field during halftime to ask for autographs. I’d talk to Mike Riley after the game about what they were trying to do and take photos with the players and team. (It obviously was a different time back then.)

LEGACY:

In 1993, San Antonio would not be without a team for long as Benson immediately signed up for the CFL unveiling the team as the San Antonio Texans in front of the still half finished Alamodome. (The colors were inspired by the Texas flag and had a silver helmet, which in the end felt like the illegitimate step-son of the Cowboys and Oilers.) Mike Riley was also named head coach. The Texans though never took the field as a CFL team- folding before the season even begun under financial strain.

Going without a team for another season, the Sacramento Goldminers, (formerly the Surge) moved to San Antonio taking the field with virtually the same staff and owner re-dubbed as the San Antonio Texans in 1995. Despite having now a field that could accommodate the CFL game in the Alamodome and decent attendance, the Texans, Riders, and Surge finally died after that season- as the CFL decided to fold the remaining USA franchises.

Although many minor leagues and the Arena Football league have tried to get football off the ground in San Antonio, it wasn’t until 2019 when the Alliance of American Football hit the field that SA had another team to call their own as the Commanders led the league in attendance. In the greatest stroke of irony, Mike Riley took the stage as head coach, and brought Riders alum Bill Bradley, and Ken Watson along with him. The Commanders finished 5-3, as the league unfortunately folded under financial duress- again leaving SA as the eternal lady in waiting for a professional football franchise.