Tag Archives: Gridiron Football

CFL, NFL, WLAF

Wilson, Walter

Cards: Action Packed Rookies 1990, Score Supplemental 1990
Acquired: In Person 1992, San Antonio Riders v. Ohio Glory
See Also: Walter Wilson (2)

The San Diego Chargers selected Walter Wilson with their 3rd round choice of the 1990 draft. Limited to 14 games that year as a back up he posted 10 catches for 87 yards. In 1992 The Ohio Glory selected Walter in their supplemental draft and he did not disappoint. Walter would lead the league in receptions and be ranked 3rd in yards.

By 1994, Walter would go on to play for the CFL and established himself as one of the better receivers playing for the Baltimore Colts, earning the nickname “franchise” by teammates by his prediction that he’d be the ‘franchise player on the team within 3 years’. He helped lead the team to the Grey Cup that year with his outstanding play (50 receptions for 900 yards and 4TD), but in early 1995 he injured his shoulder in the final preseason game and was released by the Colts.

He would be claimed by the Memphis Mad Dogs and filed a grievance with the CFL players union claiming that one of the teams violated the league’s collective bargaining agreement. He’d play for the Mad Dogs for an additional season before the league would fold its North American Expansion plans.

Games 10   Rec 65     Yds 776      Avg  11.9     Lg 52   Td 2

Arena, CFL

Jurasin, Bobby

Cards: All World 1991.
Acquired: TTM 1993, (CFL Blitz) C/o CFL headquarters.

I got a box of All-World CFL cards in 1991 from a local card dealer and decided to send out a bunch of them after the league confirmed it’s North American expansion plans when the WLAF folded in North America. Not finding the team offices, I blitzed the headquarters, who then sent it around to a variety of teams for me and included many of their own. They included many future hall of famers and Doug Flutie.

Bobby Jurasin went undrafted in the 1986 NFL draft after attending Northern Michigan University and joined the Saskatchewan Roughriders as a free agent that year.  Despite only starting 8 games his rookie year, he was an immediate force on the field for the Roughriders garnering the team’s rookie of the year award nomination at linebacker and defensive end. (He also played spot tight end duty.) Jurasin over the next 12 seasons would wreck havoc on opposing teams, and would be a West All Star in 1989 and 1994, CFL All Star in 1987, 1988, 1992, and 1997, winning a Grey Cup in 1989. He’d play for the Argonauts in 1998, and then the Iowa Barnstormers of the Arena league where he retired due to a neck injury. At retirement he was number 3 on the CFL all time list in sacks.

Of note, Jurasin was a trend setter, wearing a rising sun bandana underneath his helmet that fans picked up on and wear to this day. Bobby was inducted into the CFL HoF in 2006 and currently is coaching at the college level.

Games  197       Tac  411        Sac  142         FF   22
Int  2         Yds  38          Avg  19.0         Td  0

AAF, CFL, NFL, usfl, WLAF, XFL

Riley, Mike

Cards: ProSet 1991 Helmet Card, Proset World League 1991, ProSet 1991.
Acquired: In Person, San Antonio Riders,  San Antonio v. Ohio Glory (preseason)

My father and I started going to WLAF games in the summer of 1992 down in San Marcos, Texas at Bobcat Stadium on the campus of what was SWT at the time. The team had played its games the previous season in San Antonio at the dilapidated Alamo stadium (home of the Gunslingers of the USFL), but in 1992 planned to move into the Alamodome. The Alamodome was running behind schedule and that and a combination of a disagreement on sales of alcohol prompted the team to move to a reasonable distance from Austin. The WLAF had a one game scrimmage/ preseason for each team, and the Riders drew the Ohio Glory who they beat soundly that day.

Coach Riley preferred sound defense and a strong running game. A former Alabama CB and Bear Bryant apostle, Mike Riley and I talked for a few minutes after the game about coaching. He was very nice and stopped to take a photo or two with me. Riley isn’t exactly a journeyman coach, but it’s easy to see him as such since he rarely has spent more than 3 years at any college. Winning two CFL World Cups for the Blue Bombers, Riley made the jump to the WLAF in 1991 where he coached the Riders to a  4-6 record and a 7-3 record in 1992. (The team was denied the playoffs by tiebreakers.) After the team folded he was hired by Larry Benson (owner of the Riders and signer on the helmet card with Riley) to coach the expansion San Antonio Texans of the CFL, but that team did not get off the ground and folded quickly.  Riley then went on to coach at USC under John Robinson as quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator, before he was hired by the Oregon State Beavers in 1997, whom he laid the foundations of success for. In 1999, though Riley was hired to coach the San Diego Chargers where he had a rocky tenure and was released after two seasons.  Riley proved though you could indeed return ‘home’ as he was rehired by Oregon State in 2003 where he has remained since posting 5 bowl wins and a .576 winning percentage in 9 seasons.

WLAF      Seasons  2      Wins 11      Losses 9      Pct .555