Tag Archives: ultimate wlaf 1992

NFL, WLAF

Banes, Joey

ultwlaf92 banesCards: Ultimate WLAF 1992
Acquired: TTM 2013, C/o Work
Sent: 7/11  Received: 7/18  (7 days)

Every once in a while I pull out the stack of WLAF cards and go through them to find players to see if I can register a hit through Google. Joey Banes was one of these lucky finds. I later emailed him where he agreed to sign this card for me. A few days later I got the card back signed, plus a really nice letter, thanking me for updating him with many of the players and reaching out as a fan of the league.

Joey Banes was an 11th round choice of the Houston Oilers in 1990 out of the University of Houston. I would assume that because Jack Pardee was Joey’s college coach there at UH and they ran the Run ‘N Shoot, it was his call to draft Joey. 1990 was a banner year for the University of Houston as Lamar Lathon, Alton Montgomery, Andre Ware, Alfred Oglesby, Craig Veasey, Chris Ellison, and Joey all heard their name on draft day. The thought was Banes could be slipped in as a project player on the practice squad for the team. The injury ridden Colts though signed Joey in November and he was elevated to the regular roster where he played in 3 games for the Colts. After the season, he’d resign as a free agent with the Houston Oilers in 1991.  The Oilers were very deep on the offensive line, and despite Joey getting a little seasoning, he could not crack the roster.

Joey was drafted in the 1st round of the 1992 WLAF draft. He’d be immediately reunited with fellow Oilers 3rd string quarterback Reggie Slack on the New York/ New Jersey Knights. He’d be a perfect fit for the Run N Shoot Knights, as he’d block up front for a ground game that boasted not only Slack, but Eric Wilkerson, and Chris Clairmore. The team saw dividends as the Knights’ sacks allowed were cut almost in half from the previous season (68 to 35), and the total team yards increased from 3728 to 4133.

After the season, the league folded, and Banes hung up his cleats. He currently lives in Houston and works for a communications company where he raises 3 sons, who are all young, aspiring football players as well.

 

Arena, CFL, NFL, WLAF

Parker, Carl


Cards:  ProSet WLAF 1991, Wild Card WLAF 1992, Ultimate WLAF 1992.
Acquired: TTM 2012, C/o home.
Sent: 6/11   Received: 6/26   (15 days)
Failure: TTM 2010, C/o Home RTS

Carl Parker was a standout receiver for Vanderbilt. The problem is Vandy is a doormat for many of the major football programs. Still over his three years with the Commodores, Parker totaled 118 catches and 1712 yards, including 42 passes for a 19.2 YPC and 12 touchdowns as a Senior. Carl signed with the Bengals in 1988 and was with them through 1989, before briefly catching on with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the CFL in 1990. The Sacramento Surge of the WLAF drafted him in the 4th round of the 1991 positional draft in the 6th slot.

Quarterback Mike Elkins bonded with Carl quickly, and of the 13 touchdowns Elkins threw, Carl caught eight of them- good for second in the league. In fact, Carl caught touchdown passes in the last 7 contests, highlighted by his 2TD performance in the team’s upset of Frankfurt during the season finale. Parker received All-WLAF Second team honors, as the league’s 3rd leading receiver in both catches (52) and in yards receiving (801).  He also had 3 100+ yard receiving games, including 136 in a loss to London, and caught at least 1 ball in every game of the season.  Parker also did double duty on punt returns, ranking 4th in the league with an 8.5 yard average on 15 returns.

Carl returned for the 1992 season to Sacramento. It was a new team and a new attitude on offense, infused by journeyman David Archer at quarterback and future CFL All Stars, Eddie Brown and Mike Pringle on offense.  Carl had another good season with numbers worthy of being a number one on many teams, finishing 1992 with 42 receptions, for 657 yards, and 6 touchdowns. While the numbers weren’t as good as ’91, Parker helped the Surge raise the World Bowl trophy over their heads at the end of the season with their victory over the Orlando Thunder. The league though sought to restructure after the season, and the CFL admitted in the rival Surge and Riders. The Surge were rechristened the Gold Miners and Carl picked up a final season with them in the CFL. Carl played last for the first incarnation of the Albany Firebirds of the Arena Football League before finally hanging up his cleats.

WLAF Rec 94    Yds 1458   Avg  15.5   Td 14   Lg 48
Pr  15    Yds 127   Avg 8.5   Td 0   Lg 15

Arena, NFL, WLAF

Perez, Michael “Mike”

Cards: ProSet 1991, ProSet WLAF 1991, Ultimate WLAF 1992, Wild Card WLAF 1992
Acquired: TTM 2012, C/o Work
Sent: 5/29    Received: 6/12  (13 days)

Mike Perez played quarterback for the San Jose Spartans, where he led them to an upset victory over the California Golden Bears, and Stanford Cardinals in 1987. At the time his 309.1 yards of offense a game was an NCAA record. Drafted by the New York Giants in the 7th round of the 1988 draft, Mike did not make the roster as the team only carried quarterbacks Phil Simms and Jeff Hostetler. A stomach injury further sidelined him for the remainder of the year. In 1990, Mike was a camp arm for the Houston Oilers, but found his first initial glory in the pros, as the third overall quarterback taken, playing for the Frankfurt Galaxy of the WLAF in 1991.

Leading the team to a 7-3 record, Mike threw 11 touchdowns to 17 picks, on 357 attempts.  His best contest came against the Orlando Thunder throwing for 346 yards in the team’s win. He also was the second least sacked quarterback in the WLAF behind Stan Gelbaugh. The team though failed to qualify for the playoffs after losing 2 contests to the Surge, and behind both the eventual World Bowl I participants London and Barcelona.  Perez returned stateside to the Giants, and then the Chiefs after the season.

Mike played in the WLAF during the 1992 season for the Galaxy, but met with less success as the team stumbled to a 3-7 record. He’d split time with Alex Espinoza and finished 4th among rated quarterbacks with 6 touchdowns and a 78.2 quarterback rating.

Again he’d spend time stateside as a camp arm- this time for the Denver Broncos in 1993. He’d then embark on a series of adventures in the Arena Football League, playing for the Albany Firebirds from 1994-1996, the New York CityHawks from 1997-1998, finishing out his career with the New England SeaWolves in 1999.ult92 perez His best season came in 1996 for the Firebirds, throwing for 4153 yards and 84 touchdowns. Mike’s career totals for the Arena Football League are 1384 of 2378, for 18875 yards, and 341 touchdowns to 84 interceptions.

Perez returned to his hometown of Denver, and currently works there for the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. He graciously signed 5 cards for me and even enclosed a nice note telling me that the memories he holds for the World League are some of the most cherished of his life.

WLAF statistics:
Att 504    Comp 257   Yds 3257    Pct 50.9      Td 19     Int  22