The Toronto Tornados were a professional basketball team in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA) that played in Toronto from 1983 to December 1985.
85-774: The team was owned by Ted Stepien who had threatened to move his Cleveland Cavaliers team of the National Basketball Association to Toronto in 1983 (where they would have been renamed the Towers, with a logo similar to the one used by the Tornados), but instead sold the team to new owners in Cleveland. He then bought a franchise in the CBA in May 1983. Stepien hired former Cavaliers assistant coach Gerald Oliver as
170-514: A 13-yard loss, Matuszak was benched—the Texans had been served with a restraining order that barred Matuszak from playing another down for the Texans until his Oilers contract expired at the end of the 1977 NFL season. Afterwards, Matuszak waved the document to show the stunned home crowd why he was sitting on the bench, while the Oilers, who were angered at this debacle, subsequently traded Matuszak to
255-535: A college draft. The first six rounds were held on January 22, 1974, with the remaining 30 rounds held on February 5. David Jaynes , quarterback from Kansas, was the first player selected in the draft by the original Memphis franchise that became the Houston Texans by the time the season started. As was common with many upstart leagues, the WFL's intended lineup of teams changed several times before they even played
340-506: A contract as head coach and general manager of the team, but Unitas declined as he was already under contract with the San Diego Chargers; he retired at the end of the 1973 season. Wheeler then made the same offer to Redskins linebacker Jack Pardee , who quickly signed with the new league. In the meantime, Wheeler had engaged in a war for territory with Pardee's old boss, Redskins owner Edward Bennett Williams . Wheeler wanted
425-595: A different plan. Instead of drafting a certain player, a WFL team would draft an entire NFL or CFL team. This gave that team the rights to negotiate with players under contract for that team. For example, only the Charlotte Hornets had the right to offer contracts to players from the Buffalo Bills, Baltimore Colts, and Detroit Lions, and only the Chicago Winds could offer contracts to players from
510-675: A down. Most notably, Bassett's Toronto Northmen were forced to find a new home after the Canadian government threatened to ban any American football team from competing with the CFL. Though the Canadian Football Act never passed, the mere threat of it prompted Bassett to move the team to Memphis, where it became the Memphis Southmen . It was generally referred to by fans, local media, and even some official team materials as
595-533: A first-round selection in each of the subsequent four NBA drafts to recover the ones traded away by Stepien. The Gunds elected to keep the team in Cleveland (12 years later, Toronto would get an NBA team via expansion when the Raptors began play). During his tenure as Cavaliers owner, the Cavaliers went 66–180, had five different coaches, and had losses of $ 15 million (about $ 45 million in 2023). After selling
680-571: A group of men he called the "founding fathers". These men were Robert Schmertz , who owned the WHA's New England Whalers and NBA's Boston Celtics ; a former hockey prospect named Howard Baldwin (future owner of the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins ), who ran the Boston Bulls charter; Ben Hatskin, who owned the WHA's Winnipeg Jets ; and R. Steve Arnold, another WHA associate. Perhaps one of the biggest of
765-666: A laundry bill from the time the team was located in New York and were not paid regularly after the third week in October. The Birmingham Americans were not paid for the last two months of the season, the Florida Blazers went three months without pay (and reportedly survived on McDonald's meal vouchers), and the Sharks were not paid for what turned out to be their last six games. The other teams' finances were not much better, as
850-599: A loophole in that said first round pick can be any team's pick and not their team's own pick. This came to light in the now infamously lopsided Boston Celtics trade with the Brooklyn Nets that sent Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce to Brooklyn. The Nets traded their first round picks in the 2014, 2016, and 2018 drafts in that deal, but also included a pick swap involving the Nets pick for the 2017 draft that ended up being for
935-592: A promotional event for the league in Cleveland in which he dropped softballs from the 52nd floor of Terminal Tower to be caught by outfielders from his Cleveland Competitors team. The balls were estimated to be traveling at 144 mph by the time they reached the street, damaging cars and injuring several spectators. One was caught. In 1981, the APSPL merged with NASL to create the United Professional Softball League (UPSL), but only
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#17327930189211020-541: A result, most of the league's teams were badly undercapitalized. By most accounts, the only reasonably well-financed teams were Memphis, Philadelphia, the Hawaiians and Southern California. In many cases, WFL teams were unable to meet the most basic team expenses. For instance, the Portland Storm 's players were reportedly being fed by sympathetic local fans. The Hornets had their uniforms impounded for not paying
1105-417: A series of private dining rooms called "Competitors Clubs" in Cleveland. His professional softball teams were named Competitors to promote the restaurants. Stepien died of a heart attack in 2007. World Football League The World Football League ( WFL ) was an American football league that played one full season in 1974 and most of its second in 1975 . Although the league's proclaimed ambition
1190-439: A test run in preseason games, this idea was scrapped. The league changed the scheduling format from 20 games without exhibitions to 18 games (played in 20 weeks due to the odd number of teams) with exhibitions. Gone were weeknight games; the new schedule had games on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. But there were still problems, as although the original plan called for a July 5 preseason opener and August 2 regular season openers,
1275-470: Is like running any other business and those kind of factors have to be considered." He described his Cavaliers at that time — consisting of six whites and five blacks — as "a balanced team racially, and that's a good reflection on our society because it's balanced too." He described himself as "really big on desegregation" and "for a totally integrated society." By 1981, Stepien's popularity in Cleveland
1360-893: The Birmingham Americans , and Daryle Lamonica penned a contract to play for the Southern California Sun starting in 1975. John Wilbur left the Over-the-Hill Gang as a Washington Redskin to invest, coach special teams, and play for the Hawaiians . The Dallas Cowboys also took roster hits when WFL teams in Hawaii and Houston signed running back Calvin Hill and quarterback Craig Morton respectively. The Hawaiians also signed Minnesota Vikings Pro Bowl WR John Gilliam and San Francisco 49ers All-Pro TE Ted Kwalick ; however, Gilliam ended up with
1445-691: The Chicago Winds and Kwalick signed with the Philadelphia Bell prior to the 1975 season. By early June 1974, the WFL claimed they had some 60 NFL players under contract. Many of these defections came in the form of futures contracts. The players would play out their existing deals with the NFL, then jump to the WFL when those deals expired. Thus, Stabler planned to stay with the Raiders through 1975, then would have joined Birmingham in 1976 had
1530-693: The Cleveland Jaybirds franchise for the 1978 APSPL season, changing the name to the Cleveland Stepien's Competitors in 1979. In 1980, two teams, Milwaukee and Cleveland broke away to form the North American Softball League (NASL) under the leadership of Stepien, who owned six of the eight teams in the new league (only Ft. Wayne and Milwaukee had local ownership), while the APSPL continued with just six teams. The NASL lasted one season. In 1980, Stepien held
1615-696: The Continental Basketball Association and the Global Basketball Association . Later in life he founded the United Pro Basketball League, along other business ventures in the Cleveland area. He died in 2007. Stepien began Nationwide Advertising Service in 1947 with just $ 500. By 1980, it was generating over $ 80 million a year. During the late 1970s and early 1980s, several men's professional softball leagues were formed in
1700-670: The Florida Blazers made overtures of bringing the first place club to Atlanta . In September, two franchises relocated in mid-season. The Houston Texans moved to Shreveport, Louisiana , as the Shreveport Steamer , and they were followed a week later by the New York Stars , who relocated to Charlotte and became the Charlotte Hornets (also not to be confused with the present-day NBA franchise of
1785-593: The Winds . The World Bowl runner-up Florida Blazers folded, and their franchise rights were relocated to San Antonio, Texas , as the San Antonio Wings . Akron, Ohio was briefly mentioned as a location for the twelfth WFL team (the replacement for the Wheels), but this never materialized, and only 11 teams played in the 1975 season. Only two teams, Memphis and Philadelphia, returned with the same ownership from
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#17327930189211870-745: The World Bowl on Friday, November 29 (the night after Thanksgiving) at the Gator Bowl Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida . League officials also boldly discussed plans for expansion teams in Europe and Asia. In the first few weeks, the WFL looked to be a resounding success. Attendance outpaced the first week of the American Football League in 1960, averaging just under 43,000 a game. The box office numbers proved to be
1955-613: The "founding fathers" was a Canadian movie producer, John F. Bassett . A former tennis prodigy and owner of the WHA's Toronto Toros , Bassett came from a wealthy Canadian family. The family owned (among other entities) the Toronto Argonauts of the Canadian Football League , two Toronto newspapers and interests in television stations. The younger Bassett had been mulling over starting his own professional football league when he happened to meet Davidson and he
2040-751: The Ambassadors to play at RFK Stadium , but Williams refused to allow it, and the Ambassadors were on the move. Without ever stepping on the field, the team went through their third relocation, starting off as the Baltimore-Washington Ambassadors, then becoming the Washington Ambassadors, and finally the Virginia Ambassadors. The fledgling WFL did succeed in raising stagnant salaries in the NFL. Average salaries in professional football were among
2125-812: The Cavs, Stepien became founding owner of the Toronto Tornados in the Continental Basketball Association . He also owned a team in the Global Basketball Association , which operated during the early 1990s. In 1987, he was fined $ 50,000 by the CBA after allegedly failing to cooperate with the league office's investigation of salary cap violations. Early in 2003, Stepien founded the United Pro Basketball League (UPBL), which featured just four teams, including three in Kentucky ( Lexington , Louisville , and Frankfort ) and one in Mansfield, Ohio . Stepien also opened
2210-451: The Cavs, who went 9–32 with him at the helm; and Musselman, who returned to the bench after serving as the team's director of player personnel since being fired the previous season. At one point, the Cavs had traded away five consecutive first-round picks, covering 1982 until 1985. The NBA thereafter instituted the "Stepien Rule", which states that a team (usually) cannot trade its first-round pick in consecutive years. However, that rule has
2295-651: The Florida Blazers. Not even the World Bowl could go off without a hitch. For a time, it appeared that the game would not take place because the Americans owed $ 237,000 in back federal taxes. However, the Internal Revenue Service agreed to let the game go ahead in return for a portion of the gate. Both teams were owed several weeks' back pay; the Americans only agreed to play when their owner promised them championship rings if they won. Aside from
2380-550: The Grizzlies, which they officially renamed themselves to the following season (not to be confused with the current NBA team of the same name ). The WFL suffered an even more serious blow when the CFL and NFL reached agreements with their striking players that ensured that the upstart league would be forced to compete with both of their established rivals. The original schedule called for a four-team playoff, with semifinal games held on Wednesday–Thursday November 20–November 21, and
2465-612: The Hornets' matchup against the Blazers, league officials forced the Hornets to withdraw from the playoffs. The Hornets' cut of the gate would have only been enough for their players to get $ 100 for the game, nowhere near enough for the financially strapped team to justify the trip to Orlando. League officials arranged for the Bell to advance in their place, as they were slightly more robustly funded and could cover their travel costs. Despite
2550-712: The Kansas City Chiefs. The league seemingly bottomed out in October when it shut down the Wheels and the Sharks after 14 games. The collapse of the Sharks meant that the Gator Bowl did not host World Bowl I; coincidentally, Jacksonville was also slated to be the host of the 1986 USFL Championship Game, but the USFL folded before that season began. It was not until February 2005 that the city hosted its first championship pro football game, Super Bowl XXXIX . Davidson
2635-598: The Milwaukee franchise came from the NASL to the new league as the other NASL teams folded. The merged league competed for two years and Stepien fielded the Cleveland Competitors again in the 1982 UPSL season. The UPSL disbanded after the 1982 season, ending the pro era of men's softball. Stepien initially bought 200,000 shares for $ 2 million to give him a 38% interest in the Cavaliers in mid-1980. Over
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2720-525: The NBA froze Cleveland's trading rights to prevent him from giving up the team's picks for the rest of the 1980s and 1990s. The freeze was only in place for one season, being officially ended after the 1981–82 season, but all trades required the approval of the league's director of operations, Joe Axelson . Musselman explained that Stepien "wanted a playoff team right away, and that's what he kept talking about." Stepien admitted that "We made mistakes, and I take
2805-550: The NBA: You've got a situation here where blacks represent little more than 5 percent of the market, yet most teams are at least 75 percent black and the New York Knicks are 100 percent black. Teams with that kind of makeup can't possibly draw from a suitable cross section of fans." He also said that "blacks don't buy many tickets and they don't buy many of the products advertised on TV. Let's face it, running an NBA team
2890-621: The NFL but were refused. In 1979, the Memphis club owners filed an anti-trust suit against the NFL. Their case was ultimately dismissed on May 30, 1984, by which time the owners had already established the Tampa Bay Bandits in the next professional league, the United States Football League (then in the midst of its second season; that league incidentally filed their own, more famous antitrust suit against
2975-417: The NFL in 1986). Although the NFL expanded by two teams in 1976, that expansion had been planned before the WFL's first season, and neither city (Tampa and Seattle) had hosted a WFL franchise. One of the issues facing the WFL going into 1975 was how to hold a draft. The owners of the WFL teams collectively agreed they did not have the money to seek out the top college prospects. Instead, the league came up with
3060-621: The NFL, with Adams landing with the Kansas City Chiefs , White with the Dallas Cowboys , and Jenkins with the Atlanta Falcons ; Florida head coach Jack Pardee also got star Blazers' tight end Greg Latta to jump ship with him to the NFL's Bears. Though many predicted the WFL was dead, the league returned for the 1975 season. During the offseason, Hemmeter developed a plan to restore a measure of financial sanity to
3145-922: The New York Stars/Charlotte Hornets had over $ 2 million of debt against just $ 94,000 in assets, and the Jacksonville Sharks and Detroit Wheels were liquidated owing nearly $ 4 million: Detroit had 122 creditors looking to recoup losses. Many NFL stars who had been attracted to the league quickly sought to get out of their contracts. Quarterback Ken Stabler (Raiders), defensive end L. C. Greenwood (Steelers), and quarterback Craig Morton (Giants) all were able to get courts to nullify their contracts with WFL teams, while former NFL veterans like George Sauer Jr. , Charley Harraway , Leroy Kelly , and Don Maynard all retired. Home-grown talent, like quarterbacks Tony Adams , Danny White , and wideout Alfred Jenkins quickly bolted for
3230-544: The Southmen, Bell and Hawaiians were the only teams who met payroll for every week of the season. The most dire situation, however, was that of the Detroit Wheels. The team's original 33 owners appeared to pay for team expenses out of pocket as they arose, resulting in what amounted to a club football team playing at the professional level. On several occasions, the team was left without uniforms when they did not pay
3315-585: The Toronto Towers. He signed a deal to sell his majority interest in the Cavaliers to George and Gordon Gund for $ 20 million on April 7, 1983. His Nationwide Advertising Service Inc. and new cable television station Sports Exchange were also part of the sale. The transaction was approved by the NBA Board of Governors one month later on May 9. The league also arranged for the Gunds to pay a cash sum for
3400-503: The United States to build on the growth and talent in the booming men's amateur game during this period. The American Professional Slo-Pitch League (APSPL) was the first such league, launching in an era of experimentation in professional sports leagues. The APSPL was formed in 1977 by former World Football League front-office staffer Bill Byrne, with former New York Yankees star Whitey Ford as commissioner and owners such as Mike Ilitch with his Detroit Caesars club. Stepien bought
3485-435: The Winds, who were shut down five weeks into the season. It also resulted in the loss of the WFL's national television deal (see below), rendering the league all but invisible. Despite Hemmeter's efforts, several teams soon ran into financial difficulties, in part due to alarmingly low attendance figures. (The WFL averaged 21,423 fans per game in 1974, but only 13,931 per contest in '75.) The Winds were shut down five games into
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3570-423: The beginning of the WFL's undoing when two teams admitted to inflating their gates on a scale virtually unprecedented in major league sports. The Jacksonville Sharks admitted that out of the 105,892 fans who attended their first two games, 30,000 had gotten in for free. The Philadelphia Bell 's first two home games totaled 120,253 fans. However, when they paid city taxes on those gates, they admitted that 100,198 of
3655-429: The cleaning bill, forcing them to cancel practices. After several hotels and airlines went unpaid, the Wheels were also unable to fly to games or get a place for the players to stay without paying in advance. One player was forced to pay a hospital bill for his son out of pocket after being informed the team's insurance policy had been cancelled for non-payment of premiums. The owners refused to provide filming equipment for
3740-406: The coaches. The Wheels seemingly bottomed out when they arrived in Philadelphia to face the Bell. The players discovered that there were no medical supplies or tape available, and initially refused to take the field. When it looked like the Wheels would have to forfeit, a salesman at the game donated enough tape to allow them to play. The league was forced to take over the team after complaints from
3825-471: The fact that Stepien was staying behind to run the team. Over the course of the 1981–82 season alone, Stepien fired three head coaches and hired four: Don Delaney , who had taken over for Musselman with 11 games remaining in the 1980–81 season; assistant coach Bob Kloppenburg , who filled in for a game after Stepien relieved Delaney of his duties; Chuck Daly , who left the Philadelphia 76ers where he had been an assistant to take over as head coach of
3910-491: The first coach and general manager of the Tornados. Team publicist Malcolm Kelly briefly took over the GM role in December 1984 but quit within weeks in frustration with Stepien. He was succeeded by Keith Fowler, who was also assistant coach and would replace Oliver as head coach later that season. The team played its home games at Varsity Arena . In its first season (1983–84), it averaged average 1,224 fans at 22 home games. That fell to 850 in second season and had fallen again in
3995-435: The first overall pick of the draft (which was later traded down by the Celtics to the third overall pick and was used to select Jayson Tatum ) with the Nets picking 27th instead, eventually leading to the Celtics winning the 2024 NBA Finals in large parts due to some of those selections. After Stepien dealt away several 1st round draft picks to the Dallas Mavericks , who were a newly formed expansion team, in November 1980,
4080-412: The fourth quarter. After the game, the Americans' jerseys were seized to satisfy team debts. ( Sports Illustrated referred to the game, prophetically, as "The first, and possibly only World Bowl".) As if losing a championship game in a squeaker was not bad enough, things got much worse. Florida head coach Jack Pardee bolted back to the NFL to take over the Chicago Bears , and the Blazers' franchise
4165-415: The league by paying players and coaches based on a percentage of revenues, while imposing strict capitalization requirements on the teams. Several markets from 1974 returned under new team names and new ownership. The deceased Sharks of Jacksonville came back as the 'Express.' The Portland Storm became the Portland Thunder, the Birmingham Americans were replaced by the Vulcans , and the Chicago Fire became
4250-434: The league came under pressure to accelerate its timetable, largely on account of strained labor relations affecting both established professional leagues. In the spring of 1974, players were threatening to go on strike in both the NFL and CFL, which could have delayed the start of their seasons and/or caused the quality of their product to deteriorate if owners attempted to bring in replacement players. The possibility of being
4335-473: The league was to have players wear different colors of pants based on their position. Offensive linemen were to wear purple pants, running backs green pants, receivers blue pants, linebackers red, and defensive backs yellow. Quarterbacks and kickers were to wear white pants. In addition to the colors, the pants were also adorned with items such as pinstripes (for the offensive linemen) or large stars (for quarterbacks) for those not watching on color television. After
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#17327930189214420-446: The league would have needed to spend as much as $ 40 million over two years to be successful, a bill that the league's directors, seven of whom sat on the boards of banks, did not feel could be justified. The Birmingham Vulcans , by virtue of their league-best record of 9–3 at the time of the shutdown, were proclaimed league champions. With the relative financial stability of the Birmingham and Memphis clubs, both attempted to join
4505-435: The lowest in the four major North American sports, and the National Football League Players Association and the Canadian Football League Players Association had both gone on strike prior to their leagues' respective 1974 seasons in an effort to lift many of the rules suppressing free agency and player salaries. In addition, the NFL did not have a free agency system in place then (and one was not established until 1993). With
4590-416: The middle of the field. The MVP award was a three-way split, and the players involved split the cash. The playoff format itself was also chaotic: numerous playoff formats were tossed around, including brackets ranging from three to eight teams, with one owner proposing the World Bowl be canceled and the championship handed to the regular-season champion Memphis Southmen. Eventually, six teams were chosen for
4675-412: The money woes the league was having, the players did not hold back in complaining about the officiating during the game. Blazers running back Tommy Reamon scored what he thought was a touchdown, but the officials on the field ruled that he fumbled the ball out of the end zone before he hit the ground, resulting in a touchback that gave the ball to Birmingham. Replays clearly showed that the ball had broken
4760-404: The more established National Basketball Association and National Hockey League , respectively. Unlike his two previous efforts, the World Football League did not bring any surviving teams into the National Football League . To get the league off the ground, Davidson knew that he needed investors. At a press conference held in Chicago on October 2, 1973, Davidson announced his core of investors,
4845-504: The next few months, Stepien continued until he eventually acquired 82% control of the team. On the court, Stepien installed Bill Musselman as the team's head coach. Musselman, who coached the University of Minnesota to the 1972 Big Ten championship, the school's first in 53 years, compiled a 25–46 record with the Cavs before Stepien fired him. In an interview in December 1980, Stepien said, "No team should be all white and no team should be all black, either. That's what bothers me about
4930-471: The only major professional football league in operation (or, at least, the possibility that the quality of WFL football might be compared favorably with that of established league rosters filled with " scab " players) appeared to be too good an opportunity to pass up – combined with rumors of another upstart league, it persuaded Davidson to advance the new league's planned debut to 1974. One team went through several identities. The team slated to play in Maryland
5015-415: The plane of the end zone before slipping out of Reamon's hands. While the phantom turnover did not account for any Birmingham points, it did serve to break the spirits of the Blazers. Birmingham led 15–0, with Birmingham quarterback Matthew Reed scoring an action point. Birmingham led 22–0, and thought they had the game wrapped up. However, Florida managed a small comeback, trailing 22–21 as the gun went off in
5100-451: The players. Perhaps one of the most bizarre incidents for the WFL in 1974 involved defensive end John Matuszak , who had jumped from the NFL's Houston Oilers to play for the WFL's Houston Texans . While Matuszak worked out on the field prior to a game against the New York Stars , attorneys for the Oilers and federal marshals arrived at the stadium: five minutes into the first quarter, shortly after sacking Stars quarterback Tom Sherman for
5185-400: The postseason. The two teams with the best regular-season records, Memphis and Birmingham, were awarded first-round byes. The other two division winners would play in first-round games against the runners-up in their division. Originally, Florida was to host Charlotte, while Southern California was to host the Hawaiians. However, after being informed only 1,000 advance tickets had been sold for
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#17327930189215270-406: The prior season. Sports Illustrated , in its postmortem, noted that the change between 1974 and 1975 was so drastic that for all intents and purposes, the WFL of 1975 was a nearly completely different entity than its predecessor. The WFL of 1974 was described as a bombastic credit risk, while the WFL of 1975 was a safer but much quieter entity that failed because it was ignored. An idea produced by
5355-533: The regular season had to open a week earlier, with a single game on Saturday, July 26, due to a stadium conflict. This meant that a single regular season game was played in the midst of the last weekend of preseason play (with some preseason games being played the next night). Several more NFL free agents, including Calvin Hill and Ted Kwalick , signed on with the struggling WFL. Memphis had secured three top-line, but fading Dolphins stars in Larry Csonka, Jim Kiick, and Paul Warfield. The Southern California Sun secured
5440-432: The responsibility." During his ownership, attendance at Cavaliers games began to sharply fall due to the team's poor play and Stepien's questionable moves. Stepien thought about renaming the team the "Ohio Cavaliers" and playing portions of its home schedule in nearby non-NBA cities such as Pittsburgh , Cincinnati , and Toronto to increase the fan base. He had also threatened to move the team to Toronto and rename them
5525-505: The same name ; they played one road game after the official move still under the "Stars" name). On top of this, the Wheels moved one game to London, Ontario due to poor ticket sales, this time without any complaints from Canadian officials. It was discovered that in the rush to commence play in 1974, several WFL teams had paid less than the original $ 120,000 franchise fee in order to meet Davidson's target of 12 teams. Additionally, league officials had conducted little to no due diligence . As
5610-405: The schedule was poorly drafted: although most teams played on Wednesday nights with a national TV game slated for Thursday nights, the Hawaiians played their home games on Sunday afternoons, meaning when the Hawaiians had a home game, they played an opponent who flew to Honolulu after having played just four days earlier. In addition, back-to-back meetings between two teams were common. The WFL held
5695-430: The season after dropping below league capitalization requirements, leaving the league with ten teams (which itself was a convenience, because it eliminated the mandatory bye week). It was not enough to stem the tide; by late October rumors abounded that four of the remaining teams were on the verge of folding. On Wednesday, October 22, a few days before the start of week 13, the WFL ceased operations. Hemmeter said that
5780-466: The services of former AFL and NFL quarterback Daryle Lamonica. The Chicago Winds made an offer to aging Super Bowl III MVP Joe Namath , who seriously considered the offer, before refusing and re-signing with the New York Jets . The Winds invested considerable money and time in the effort to sign Namath (the team even designed its uniform to emulate the Jets'), and all but promised he was coming to Chicago. The embarrassing rejection by Namath crippled
5865-500: The team and league survived that long. Playing a 20-game regular season schedule in 1974 – six games longer than the NFL's then 14-game slate – the WFL staged no exhibition games (although their teams did participate in preseason scrimmages). The season was scheduled to begin on Wednesday, July 10 and end on Wednesday, November 13. This was a 20-game season in 19 weeks – a schedule accomplished by having double games (primarily Monday and Friday) on Labor Day weekend. Some complained that
5950-436: The team had a record of 16-28 and finished last in its division. The Tornados improved to 26-22 in their second season—including a 15-2 run at the end of the season—good enough for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Division. Stepien fired coach Oliver just before the first playoff game and replaced him with Fowler after Walter Jordan declined a player-coach role. In the first round of the playoffs (Eastern Division semi-final),
6035-445: The team was eliminated three games to two by defending champions Albany Patroons , coached by Phil Jackson . It was the Tornados' only playoff appearance. The team started the 1985-86 season with a 2-7 record and then moved to Pensacola. After finishing the season there, the franchise moved to Jacksonville, Florida and became the Jacksonville Jets. Ted Stepien Theodore John Stepien (June 9, 1925 – September 10, 2007)
6120-534: The team, and his management decisions ultimately led the NBA to create what is known as the "Ted Stepien rule" to restrict how teams can trade draft picks . A December 6, 1982 article in The New York Times described the Cavaliers during Stepien's ownership as "the worst club and most poorly run franchise in professional basketball." After selling his interest in the Cavaliers in 1983, he continued to be involved in professional basketball, owning teams in
6205-649: The third season when Stepien decided in mid-season to move the team to Pensacola, Florida where it became the Pensacola Tornados . Stepien estimated the team lost US$ 700,000 over its first two seasons. First season players for the Tornados included Carl Nicks , Peter Thibeaux, Bobby Cattage , Dudley Bradley , Larry McNeill , Robert Smith , Tracy Jackson , Ron Crevier , Walter Jordan , Wayne Abrams, Greg Hines, and Calvin Roberts. In its first season,
6290-410: The tickets had been given away for free or sold at significantly reduced prices. Presumably, the giveaways were intended in part to pique the public's curiosity and interest, but they ended up seriously eroding the credibility of both the teams and the league. Six games into the first season, a number of WFL franchises were in serious trouble. The Detroit Wheels were looking to move to Charlotte , and
6375-470: The uncertain labor situation, the WFL had the opportunity to provide players with a better deal than the established leagues would give them, along with the promise of employment. Davidson's league garnered major publicity when the Toronto Northmen , led by John F. Bassett, signed three Miami Dolphins players, fullback Larry Csonka , halfback Jim Kiick , and wide receiver Paul Warfield to what
6460-530: The various disasters, many thought the WFL performed fairly well, though below NFL standards. Many games were tight, decided by seven points or less, and the Action Point, the one-point conversion run or pass attempt after a touchdown, was favored among WFL coaches and critics. The league championship—the World Bowl , or "World Bowl I"—was staged in Birmingham between the hometown Birmingham Americans and
6545-540: Was an American businessman who owned the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1980 to 1983. Born in Pittsburgh in 1925, he became wealthy as the founder of Nationwide Advertising Service and purchased an interest in the Cavaliers on April 12, 1980. His tenure as owner of the Cavs was highly controversial, resulting in multiple coaching changes and poor performances by
6630-417: Was at an all-time low. The team was referred to locally and derisively at this time as the "Cleveland Cadavers". For the final home game of the 1981 season, the largest Cavaliers crowd in two years showed up to honor fired play by play announcer Joe Tait and heap abuse on the Cavs' now-despised owner. The angry crowd used the occasion to not only show support for Tait, but also to voice their discontent over
6715-405: Was forced to resign in October 1974, and Hawaiians owner Christopher Hemmeter was named the new commissioner a month later. Late in the year, the league announced that it would award its Most Valuable Player a prize of $ 10,000 at the World Bowl. Rather than endure the embarrassment of media sneers about whether a WFL check would clear, the league neatly stacked $ 10,000 in cash high upon a table in
6800-551: Was given a franchise for Toronto. Bassett went on to own a team in another alternative football league, the USFL 's Tampa Bay Bandits in the mid-1980s. Along with the original founding fathers, the rest of the owners soon fell into place, including a man whose own dreams of playing football were ended by a heart ailment, Thomas Origer, who later ran the Chicago Fire . Several prospective owners were forced to drop out. Davidson
6885-479: Was sold off at a court-ordered auction after it was discovered that Blazers part-owner Rommie Loudd had financed the team through selling cocaine and a tax evasion scheme, for which he was arrested shortly after the season (and later convicted). The champions did not fare much better; only days after the World Bowl, the Americans' office furniture was repossessed by sheriff's deputies. The financial losses were tremendous: The Hawaiians had lost $ 3.2 million, while
6970-405: Was then the richest three-player deal in sports, an astounding US$ 3.5 million to start in 1975. The pact was a guaranteed, personal-services contract, so the trio would be paid even if the WFL did not survive its first season. The NFL took notice, as did their players when they were approached to jump leagues. The Oakland Raiders nearly lost both their quarterbacks. Ken Stabler signed with
7055-601: Was to be called the Washington Capitals, but the expansion NHL team had already trademarked the rights to the nickname. A contest held to name the team came up with the name Ambassadors. The team then became the Baltimore-Washington Ambassadors, and then the Baltimore name was dropped, and the team simply became known as the Washington Ambassadors. In order to boost ticket sales, Washington owner Joe Wheeler offered former Baltimore Colts quarterback Johnny Unitas
7140-631: Was to bring American football onto a worldwide stage, only one team – the Hawaiians in Honolulu, Hawaii - was headquartered outside of continental North America. The league folded in 1975 midway through its second season. Gary Davidson , a California lawyer and businessman, was the driving force behind the World Football League. He had helped start the moderately successful American Basketball Association and World Hockey Association , some of whose teams survived long enough to enter
7225-572: Was willing to sell his Philadelphia team to investor Harry Jay Katz, before learning that Katz didn't have the strong resources that he claimed, and was in fact the target of several lawsuits, and rescinded his offer to sell the rights to Philadelphia. He nearly sold the Detroit franchise to Bud Huchul, but it was later discovered Huchul had been arrested 30 times and faced 27 lawsuits related to his previous business dealings. Davidson had initially planned for his league to commence play in 1975. However,
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