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Jacksonville Bulls

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Jacksonville Bulls
Established 1983
Folded 1986
Played in Gator Bowl
in Jacksonville, Florida
League/conference affiliations
United States Football League (1984–1985)
  • Eastern Conference (1984–1985)
    • Southern Division (1984)
Current uniform
Team colorsGarnet, Orange, Silver, Black, White
         
Personnel
Owner(s)1984–1985 Fred Bullard
Head coach1984–1985 Lindy Infante (15-21)
Team history
  • Jacksonville Bulls (1984–1985)
Championships
League championships (0)
Conference championships (0)
Division championships (0)
Home stadium(s)

The Jacksonville Bulls were a professional American football team based in Jacksonville, Florida. They were members of the United States Football League (USFL) during its final two seasons, 1984 and 1985. They played their home games in the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville.

Former Miami Dolphins stars Larry Csonka and Jim Kiick were involved in an advertising campaign for the team, and they apparently had a minor ownership interest as well. Larry Munson was hired as radio play-by-play announcer. His distinctive voice was already well known in the Jacksonville area due to his long association with both the University of Georgia Bulldogs and the National Football League's Atlanta Falcons.

Team name and colors

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The Bulls' name was taken from team owner Fred "Bubba" Bullard, a Jacksonville land developer. Bullard had initially sought to buy a stake in the Boston Breakers and move them to Jacksonville when it became apparent the Breakers could not find a suitable venue in Boston. However, Breakers owner George Matthews broke off talks when Bullard insisted that coach Dick Coury be fired in favor of Florida State Seminoles coach Bobby Bowden.[1]

The team held a 'name the team' promotion with a write-in campaign for publicity purposes. The Bulls moniker was credited as a submission from the winning entry. The team colors of garnet, orange and silver were taken from the three college football teams most popular in the area; garnet from the Seminoles, orange from the Florida Gators, and silver from the pants worn by the Georgia Bulldogs.

The helmet design was unique for a professional football team. Each side had the team's logo of a streaking bull (one side the mirror image of the other); the two logos were bridged by a series of parallel lines, and the team name was incorporated into the bridge as a silhouette against the parallel lines.[2]

1984 season

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The Bulls made an immediate splash in their first game, in which they blew out the Washington Federals 53–14. Although they finished 6-12 — last in the tough Southern Division — they were far more competitive than their record indicated. Six of their losses were by a touchdown or less, including two losses by a last-second field goal. They remained in contention for most of the season, but a six-game losing streak toward the end of the season kept them out of the playoffs.

The Bulls were an undisputed success at the gate, running away with the league's attendance title. They notched the only two crowds of 70,000 or greater in league history, including a throng of 73,227 against the powerful New Jersey Generals on March 4. In the last game, against the Pittsburgh Maulers, a huge crowd patiently waited through a late-June downpour which postponed the game for more than an hour. When play finally started the Bulls won 26–2.

1984 schedule and results

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Week Day Date Time Opponent Game site Attendance Television Result Record
Preseason
1 Saturday January 28 Pittsburgh Maulers Gator Bowl Stadium 10,000 T 0–0 0–0–1
2 Bye
3 Saturday February 11 Houston Gamblers Gator Bowl Stadium 24,680 L 22–34 0–1–1
4 Saturday February 18 2:00 pm vs. Pittsburgh Maulers Melbourne, Florida 4,500 L 10–13 0–2–1
Regular Season
1 Sunday February 26 2:30 pm Washington Federals Gator Bowl Stadium 49,392 W 53–14 1–0
2 Sunday March 4 2:30 pm New Jersey Generals Gator Bowl Stadium 73,227 ABC L 26–28 1–1
3 Saturday March 10 9:00 pm at Tampa Bay Bandits Tampa Stadium 51,274 ESPN L 25–28 1–2
4 Monday March 19 8:00 pm New Orleans Breakers Gator Bowl Stadium 48,303 ESPN L 9–28 1–3
5 Sunday March 25 4:00 pm at Los Angeles Express Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum 8,000 W 13–7 2–3
6 Saturday March 31 7:00 pm at Memphis Showboats Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium 17,180 ESPN L 24–27 2–4
7 Saturday April 7 8:00 pm Birmingham Stallions Gator Bowl Stadium 43,654 ESPN L 17–24 2–5
8 Saturday April 14 8:00 pm San Antonio Gunslingers Gator Bowl Stadium 35,084 L 0–20 2–6
9 Friday April 20 8:00 pm Memphis Showboats Gator Bowl Stadium 36,256 W 12–10 3–6
10 Friday April 27 9:00 pm at Oklahoma Outlaws Skelly Stadium 29,234 W 34–6 4–6
11 Saturday May 5 8:00 pm Tampa Bay Bandits Gator Bowl Stadium 71,174 ESPN L 13–31 4–7
12 Friday May 11 7:30 pm at Birmingham Stallions Legion Field 29,500 L 10–42 4–8
13 Saturday May 19 8:00 pm at Philadelphia Stars Veterans Stadium 33,194 ESPN L 12–45 4–9
14 Friday May 25 8:00 pm Houston Gamblers Gator Bowl Stadium 31,638 L 7–54 4–10
15 Saturday June 2 8:30 pm at Oakland Invaders Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum 29,687 L 12–17 4–11
16 Friday June 8 9:00 pm at Arizona Wranglers Sun Devil Stadium 15,513 L 14–45 4–12
17 Friday June 15 7:00 pm at New Orleans Breakers Louisiana Superdome 21,333 W 20–17 5–12
18 Friday June 22 8:00 pm Pittsburgh Maulers Gator Bowl Stadium 31,843 W 26–2 6–12

Sources[3][4][5]

1984 roster

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1. Danny Miller (K)

2. Rich Hendley (P)

3. Brian Franco (K/P)

5. Jeff Brockhaus (K)

8. Jeff Pierce (P)

9. Ken Hobart (QB)

14. Ben Bennett (QB)

14. Ron Rice (P)

15. Robbie Mahfouz (QB)

16. Buck Belue (QB)

17. Matt Robinson (QB)

20. Billy Cesare (SS)

21. Willie McClendon (RB)

22. Kevin Gray (CB)

23. Kerry Baird (CB)

23. Donald Dykes (CB)

24. Marvin Lewis (FB)

25. Charlie Dean (CB)

26. Chester Gee (CB)

27. Michael Whiting (RB)

28. Matt Courtney (CB)

32. Larry Mason (RB)

33. Vaughan Johnson (LB)

35. John Lott (FS)

44. Larry Key (RB)

44. Bobby Hosea (FS)

45. Mike Goedeker (LB)

46. Don Bessillieu (FS)

47. Sammy Brown (SS)

50. John McLean (LB)

51. Dave Otey (C)

52. Tom Dinkel (LB)

53. Fernando Jackson (LB)

55. Carl Qualls (LB)

55. Dann Lute (LB)

56. Rufus Norman (LB)

56. Doug West (LB)

57. Greg Zappala (LB)

58. Andy Hendel (LB)

59. Russ Washington (LB)

60. Gary Anderson (G/C)

63. Nat Hudson (T)

64. Kenny Howell (G)

65. Wally Pesuit (C)

66. George Collins (G)

67. Warren Gray (G)

69. Rush Brown (DE)

70. Val Brown (DE)

72. Don Latimer (NT)

73. Ed Gantner (DT)

75. Bob Gruber (T)

77. Chris Wampler (NT)

78. Brian Douglas (NT)

80. Gary Clark (WR)

82. Wyatt Henderson (WR)

83. Aubrey Matthews (WR)

84. Paul Bergmann (TE)

85. Perry Kemp (WR)

87. Chuck McCurley (WR)

88. Robert Young (TE)

89. Alton Alexis (WR)

91. Phil Dokes (DE)

92. George Atiyeh (NT)

92. Marvin Dyett (DE)

95. Mike Raines (DE)

97. Charles Philyaw (DE)

98. Bob Clasby (DE)

99. Joe Costello (DE)

--. Amos Lawrence (RB)

--. Dan Gooch (LB)

Charles R. Hunsicker Jr. – Team Chaplain

Offseason

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The offseason saw the addition of former NFL MVP QB Brian Sipe to take over as triggerman of Coach Lindy Infante's high octane passing scheme as well as former Heisman Trophy winning HB Mike Rozier.

1985 season

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While Sipe only threw 89 passes before suffering a career-ending injury, an improved defense and the addition of Rozier resulted in a 9–9 record. The Bulls finished one win short of a playoff spot and led the league in attendance again.

1985 schedule and results

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Week Day Date Opponent Game site Attendance Television Result Record
Preseason
1 Bye
2 Saturday February 9 Orlando Renegades Gator Bowl Stadium L 10–20 0–1
3 Saturday February 16 Memphis Showboats Gator Bowl Stadium L 10–13 0–2
Regular Season
1 Sunday February 24 Baltimore Stars Gator Bowl Stadium 51,045 W 22–14 1–0
2 Monday March 4 Memphis Showboats Gator Bowl Stadium 40,112 ESPN L 14–24 1–1
3 Monday March 11 at Arizona Outlaws Sun Devil Stadium 13,025 ESPN L 21–41 1–2
4 Sunday March 17 at Oakland Invaders Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum 16,678 L 36–42 1–3
5 Thursday March 21 Orlando Renegades Gator Bowl Stadium 31,883 ESPN W 34–31 (OT) 2–3
6 Saturday March 30 at Birmingham Stallions Legion Field 41,200 L 18–25 2–4
7 Saturday April 6 at Tampa Bay Bandits Tampa Stadium 51,286 ESPN L 17–31 2–5
8 Friday April 12 San Antonio Gunslingers Gator Bowl Stadium 32,097 ESPN W 28–17 3–5
9 Saturday April 20 at Orlando Renegades Florida Citrus Bowl 34,338 W 31–10 4–5
10 Sunday April 28 Birmingham Stallions Gator Bowl Stadium 41,298 ABC W 27–17 5–5
11 Sunday May 5 New Jersey Generals Gator Bowl Stadium 60,100 ABC W 30–20 6–5
12 Sunday May 12 Tampa Bay Bandits Gator Bowl Stadium 58,928 L 10–21 6–6
13 Monday May 20 at Houston Gamblers Houston Astrodome 17,127 ESPN W 20–17 7–6
14 Saturday May 25 Los Angeles Express Gator Bowl Stadium 51,033 ESPN W 21–7 8–6
15 Sunday June 2 at Baltimore Stars Byrd Stadium 9,663 ABC L 12–17 8–7
16 Monday June 10 at New Jersey Generals Giants Stadium 36,465 ESPN L 24–31 8–8
17 Saturday June 15 at Memphis Showboats Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium 31,634 L 0–31 8–9
18 Sunday June 23 Denver Gold Gator Bowl Stadium 32,428 W 42–6 9–9

Sources[6][7][8]

Demise

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The Bulls were one of the seven teams assured of playing the 1986 USFL season, which would have been played in the autumn. The Bulls had bought the football assets of the Denver Gold during the offseason and were to take on much of that team's staff, including head coach Mouse Davis. It also attempted to negotiate a merger with the Tampa Bay Bandits, mainly to bring the Bandits' ownership group into the organization, but the eventual deaths of the two leading investors in the Bandits (and their steadfast refusal to go along with the league's plan to move to the autumn in 1986) and the unwillingness of the Orlando Renegades to join in (which would have created a single franchise representing all of Florida) led to those plans being abandoned.[9]

The USFL itself was pursuing a large antitrust lawsuit against the NFL at the time; when they failed to secure a sizable judgment against the older league, the USFL suspended operations and eventually folded.

Legacy

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Despite never posting a winning record, the Bulls were considered to be a serious attempt at a viable professional football organization — indeed, one of the few USFL teams with the potential to be viable had the league been better run. Owner Fred Bullard was determined from the beginning to put together a strong organization on and off the field. Many experts believe that had it not been for the Bulls' success, the NFL would not have considered awarding the Jacksonville Jaguars to the city in 1993. In 1987 the Houston Oilers nearly moved to Jacksonville, in part due to the overwhelming support for the Bulls. The nearby Matthews Bridge was painted in the garnet main color as a backdrop for the games.

Season-by-season results

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Season records
Season W L T Finish Playoff results
1984 6 12 0 5th EC Southern --
1985 9 9 0 6th EC --
Totals 15 21 0

References

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  1. ^ Reeths, Paul (2017). The United States Football League, 1982-1986. McFarland & Company. ISBN 1476667446.
  2. ^ USFL.info: Jacksonville Bulls team colors
  3. ^ "1984 Jacksonville Bulls football Game-by-Game Results on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com. Retrieved 2022-07-07.
  4. ^ "1984 USFL Season - USFL (United States Football League)". www.usflsite.com. Retrieved 2022-07-07.
  5. ^ "1984 Jacksonville Bulls (USFL) - Pro Football Archives". www.profootballarchives.com. Retrieved 2022-07-07.
  6. ^ "1985 Jacksonville Bulls football Game-by-Game Results on StatsCrew.com". www.statscrew.com. Retrieved 2022-07-07.
  7. ^ "1985 USFL Season - USFL (United States Football League)". www.usflsite.com. Retrieved 2022-07-07.
  8. ^ "1985 Jacksonville Bulls (USFL) - Pro Football Archives". www.profootballarchives.com. Retrieved 2022-07-07.
  9. ^ "A merger of USFL teams in Jacksonville, Orlando and..." UPI. Retrieved 2022-07-07.
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