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November 12, 1996

HISTORY AWAITS IN OKLAHOMA

On Sunday, Houston will be playing Oklahoma in a pivotal Divisional matchup against the much improved 8-2 Outlaws. The Outlaws sit 2 games behind Houston and this is the 1st of 2 matchups in the next 4 weeks. If the Outlaws can pull the upset, they open the door to winning the division as Houston's schedule down the stretch gets much harder as they face 5 teams with winning records.

This game will be a hugh measuring stick for Oklahoma as they have lost 15 straight to Houston with their last win coming in week 4 of the 1988 season where they won 16-13 at home. It's not just that Houston has won 15 straight but it's been how they won. The average score of those 15 straight wins is 44-6.

Then we get to Tony Dean, who enters Sundays game 211 passing yards away from becoming the ALLTIME passing yards leader in USFL history! Joe Richardson, the man Dean is chasing will be at the game as the longtime Washington Federal wants to be on hand to witness history. Considering Tony Dean has averaged 382.3 yards passing over the last 15 games versus the Outlaws, barring the unforseen, Dean should break the record sometime in the 2nd half unless he has a big 1st half. Tony Dean has had quite the career versus the Outlaws going 23-1 ALLTIME and throwing for 8,719 yards in those 24 games which represents 13.6% of his total career yards. Dean had a career day versus Oklahoma in 1984 when he threw for 712 yards (9th Alltime) and 9 TDs (6th Alltime).

For the record, Tony Dean has thrown for under 200 yards 15 times in his 197 career starts so there is a chance he doesn't break the record Sunday.

No pressure lol

November 19, 1996

TONY DEAN BECOMES GREATEST PASSER IN USFL HISTORY

Record set during big win!!!



With 11:47 remaining in a pivotal Divisional game, Tony Dean hit RB Donald Turner for a 14 yard strike with Houston trailing 10-7 to set them up for a go ahead touchdown 2 plays later. It also just happened to set the Alltime USFL passing yards record where Tony Dean passed Joe Richardson.

The game didn't stop, their was no fanfare or announcement made and Tony Dean didn't react to the record breaking pass....He was busy playing a game versus the upstart Oklahoma Outlaws and fighting to win the game.

The Houston Gamblers and Tony Dean struggled for 3 quarters to produce points but 2 4th quarter touchdowns including 1 set up by the defense when they intercepted QB Robert Hill to set up the Gamblers on the 1 yard line.

The win puts the Gamblers 3 games ahead of the Outlaws with 5 games remaining and they now must turn their sights on San Jose who like Houston remain undefeated with a matchup looming in 2 weeks at the Astrodome!

Tony Dean now holds the Alltime records for passing yards and passing touchdowns, he has won multiple MVPs and Titles, so what's left for him to accomplish?

He is 2nd alltime in completion percentage, 3rd in yards per attempt and 1st in QBR. He also holds the postseason record for passing yards and passing TDs. The truly amazing part of Dean becoming the Alltime passing yards leader is that he did it with 1,439 less pass attempts and 226 less completions than QB Joe Richardson, the man he passed. He ranks 9th Alltime in pass attempts but is 4th Alltime in completions.

Whatever Tony Dean and the Houston Gamblers do going forward this season and if Tony Dean retires or returns for another season remain to be seen but we can now say with authority what we believed for years, Tony Dean is the best quarterback in USFL history...He is the GOAT!!!

November 26, 1996

JETT BLACK REACHES MILESTONE OF 100 TD RECEPTIONS

Lost in the Tony Dean chase of the Alltime passing yards record, Jett Black reached a milestone of his own when he reached 100 TD receptions. He is only the 6th receiver to reach that plateau.

130 Thomas Whitley
111 Gabriel Ahrens
109 John Warkentin
100 Mark Hsu
100 Cory Robinzine
100 Jett Black

Only 8 players in USFL history have ever reached 100 TDs in total. It's a significant number as one of the biggest playmakers in USFL history.

Black accomplished the feat in his 8th season and reached double digits in 7 of his 8 seasons with a high of 17 TD receptions in 1992. Jett seems to still be playing at a high level and is signed through next season but 30 TDs seems a long way away.

December 31, 1996


The Playoffs...another run at the title?

The Houston Gamblers have made the playoffs 15 straight seasons including 13 straight with Tony Dean at quarterback. The team is 28-8 Alltime in the playoffs and Tony Dean is 24-7 at the helm. At home the francise is 12-1 Alltime including Tony Dean's 9-1 but they must travel this week and play on the road. It's nothing new for Houston who is 10-7 Alltime on the road in the playoffs with Dean 10-6 overall.

If they can get past San Jose on the road, they would make their 10th Conference Championship game where they are 6-3 Alltime including Tony Dean's record of 6-2. Of course once they make the World bowl, they are undefeated at 6-0 with Tony Dean a perfect 5-0.

Houston is trying to become the 1st team to win 3 straight World Bowls and are the 5th team making the attempt.

Detroit Wheels 76-77
In 1978, they were a Wildcard and lost to Memphis on the road 15-12 in overtime in the Wildcard round

Memphis Showboats 79-80
In 1981, they finish 9-7 and missed the playoffs.

Houston Gamblers 84-85
In 1986, they finished 14-2 but had to settle for a Wildcard as Memphis completed a perfect 19-0 season. Houston lost at Michigan 34-29 in the Wildcard round.

Memphis Showbiats 86-87
In 1988, Memphis made the playoffs as a Wildcard and advanced to the Divisional Round where they lost an epic 3-0 defensive battle at Michigan.

Houston Gamblers 94-95
In 1996, Houston won their division and won their home game versus the Portland Storm before traveling to San Jose in the Divisional Round and....???

Honorable mention to the New Jersey Generals who went to 4 straight World Bowls where they won in 1981 & 1983 but lost in 1982 & 1984.

Another Honorable mention to the Portland Storm who won 3 Titles in a 5 year period where they won in 1989, 1991 & 1993.

WORLD BOWL RECORDS

Houston Gamblers 6-0
Memphis Showboats 5-0
Portland Storm 3-0
New Jersey Generals 2-4
Detroit Wheels 2-1
Florida Blazers 1-0
Oakland Invaders 1-0
Los Angeles Express 1-0
Denver Gold 1-1
Washington Federals 0-5
New Orleans Voodoo 0-3
Baltimore Stars 0-3
Tampa Bay Bandits 0-2
Chicago Blitz 0-1
Pittsburgh 0-1
Birmingham Stallions 0-1

An amazing fact is that the Southwest Division of the American Conference is 11-0 Alltime in the World Bowl while the rest of the league is 11-22!!

The American Conference has dominated the World Bowl going 19-3 Alltime and has won 12 straight!!

January 7th, 1997


ON TO DENVER AND THE CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP!!!

Houston atoned for the week 13 overtime lose to San Jose in the division round as all 3 sides of the ball contributed to the win. The offense put up over 400 yards of offense led by QB Tony Dean who threw for 333 yards and 4 TD passes, WR Jett Black who had 3 receptions for 106 yards and 2 TD receptions and RB Donald Turner who had 97 combined yards. The defense held San Jose to 229 yards of total offense while forcing 5 turnovers and getting 6 sacks. On special teams, K Earl Castro was perfect on 10 kicks, going 6/6 on fieldgoal attempts and added 4/4 on extra points.

This is Houston's 10th trip to the Conference Championship in the last 15 seasons where they go in with a 6-3 Alltime record. They travel to familiar territory in Denver where they have played 3 previous Conference Championship games going 1-2 against the Gold in Mile High Stadium. Tony Dean is 1-1 at Denver in the Conference Championship game losing in 1992, 30-24 in overtime and won 26-7 in 1994.

HOUSTON CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP GAMES
1982 16-13 (OT) win versus Michigan
1983 17-13 lose at Denver
1984 36-17 win at Detroit
1985 29-17 win versus Memphis
1987 47-22 lose at Memphis
1988 48-18 win at Michigan
1992 30-24 (OT) lose at Denver
1994 26-7 win at Denver
1995 18-10 win versus Poland

Historically, QB Tony Dean is just 7 yards shy of 10,000 yards passing Alltime in the postseason where he is 1st Alltime in league history. RB Donald Turner has 1,051 yards rushing (4th Alltime) and is 47 yards behind RB Enrique Pacheco for 3rd Alltime plus his 1,940 total yards (6th Alltime) is only 86 yards behind WR Aaron Paul for 5th Alltime. WR Jett Black has 1,109 yards receiving (6th Alltime) and is 61 yards behind RB Mark Lambert for 5th while his 16 TD receptions is the most in postseason history. In Fact, Black's 16 TDs is only 1 behind both RB Mark Lambert and RB Rudi Johnson for most total TDs Alltime. K Earl Castro scored 22 points in the Divisional Round game versus San Jose which is the most ever scored in a postseason game for a kicker.

Former Generals RB Rudi Johnson is still the post season stat king next to Mr. Dean. Johnson is #1 in rushing yards and total yards, and like CJ said, tied for the TD lead.

Interesting fact about tonight's conference championship games.

Houston beat Denver in their first 1995 playoff game
New Jersey beat Florida in their first 1995 playoff game

The last regular season meeting between Houston and Denver was 1995 Week 13, with Houston winning

The last regular season meeting between New Jersey and Florida was 1995 Week 13, with New Jersey winning

I doubt that means anything but I found the parallels strange

January 14, 1997

3RD STRAIGHT WORLD BOWL FOR HOUSTON

76,234 fans packed Mile High Stadium on Sunday to witness a walk off win courtesy of K Earl Catro's right leg as he hits a 56 yard fieldgoal as time expires to send the Houston Gamblers to their 3rd straight World Bowl!!!

The Gamblers took a 17-10 lead into halftime and extended their lead to 20-10 after 3 quarters only to watch the Gold storm back in the 4th quarter and tie the game with 1:19 left in the game. With the soldout crowd going crazy, Houston led by Tony Dean got the ball back, 1st and 10 from their own 25 with all 3 timeouts remaining. Dean would go 4/5 passing on that final drive hitting WR Hugh Chance for 8 yards, RB Donald Turner for 2 yards, TE Ozzie Newsome for 16 yards and RB Lloyd Ellis for 10 yards. They called timeout with 0:03 left in the game and sent out K Earl Castro to nail a 56 yard game winner.



Earl Castro was drafted in the 3rd round of the 1992 draft by Houston out of Vanderbilt College. They used a 3rd rounder to take this short pudgy kicker in the draft because legendary K Daniel McCormack retired after the 1991 season. McCormack retired the Alltime leader in fieldgoals, 50+ yard fieldgoals, extra points and points in League history. Castro had the unenviable task of replacing a 15 year Houston legend who should be a future Hall of Famer. He started half the games his rookie season, going just 9/12 but showed he had a big leg hitting 2/2 from 50+ including a 55 yarder. Starting in 1993, he became the undisputed starting kicker for Houston going 40/45 in his first full season including 4/6 from 50+ yards. Now he is in his 5th season with Houston and was named the ALLPRO kicker in 1995, making a name for himself. During this 3 year streak of Houston making the World Bowl including back to back titles, Castro has been incredible going 25/26 on fieldgoals, 28/28 on extra points and 2/2 on 50+ yarders. During this postseason run, Castro has been perfect, making all 19 of his kicks (10 FG/9 XP) including this 56 yard game winner!

February 1, 1997

☆3PEAT - LUCKY NUMBER 7☆

The Houston Gamblers win their 3rd straight Championship and 7th World Bowl in francise history!!!!



From 1974-1981, the Gamblers never made the playoffs, went a combined 44-84 and finally had a winning record of 9-7 in 1981. Those were the dark days of the francise but things changed starting in 1982 when the team went on an incredible 15-1 season capped by the 1st Championship in team history!

From 1982-1996, the Gamblers have gone a combined 202-37-1, made the playoffs 15 straight seasons, gone to the Conference Championship game 10 times and won 7 League Championships.

The francise turned around in 1982, but it was April 8th, 1983 when a 22 year old quarterback out of Georgia was selected with the 32nd pick of the 1st round when a foundation was set for the next 13 seasons of dominance. Starting in 1984, Tony Dean became the starting quarterback and began a run of 13 straight playoff appearances, 8 Conference Championship game appearances and 6 World Bowl wins!

The Houston Gamblers became the 1st team to win 3 straight Titles and during this current dynasty, plenty of players have rewrote the postseason record book. Below we look at some of the current players who have set some historic marks.


CBThomas Huston
50 knockdowms (1st Alltime)
9 interceptions (4th Alltime)
95 tackles (11th Alltime)

WR Jett Black
18 TD receptions (1st Alltime)
18 total TDs (1st Alltime)
1,208 yards receiving (5th Alltime)

RB Donald Turner
1,216 yards rushing (3rd Alltime)
2,172 total yards (4th Alltime)

QB Tony Dean
32 Starts (1st Alltime)
2272 plays (1st Alltime)
10,484 yards passing (1st Alltime)
85 TD passes (1st Alltime)

P A.J. Winehouse
37 punts inside 20 (10th Alltime)

K Earl Castro
28 FGs (7th Alltime)
35 XPs (10th Alltime)
82 KOs (7th Alltime)

January 16, 1998

The end of an era!! The beginning of a new?

From 1974-1979 the Houston Gamblers were owned by Richard "****" Booger who ran the francise into the ground, never posting a winning season or making the playoffs.

In 1980, Booger sold controlling interest to Dan "Spreadsheet" Setherick who owned the team from just 1980-1982 but in his 3 years as owner posted seasons of 8-8, 9-7 and finally 15-1. Setherick led the francise to its first 2 playoff appearances including its first title in 1982. Setherick has owned 4 different teams, the Orlando Renegades (76-77), the Houston Gamblers (80-82), the Portland Storm (85-96) and finally the Oakland Invaders (97-now). Setherick has led the first three he has owned to the playoffs and the last two teams to league Titles and will look to make it a 4th to reach the playoffs and 3rd to win a a Title with the Oakland Invaders.

In 1983, Jimmy "Offensive" Taco took over temporarily as owner of the Houston Gamblers while a full-time owner was found to buy the team. The team went 13-3 in 1983, winning the division before losing to the Denver Gold in the Conference Championship game as they failed in their attempt to repeat as Champions. The most significant contribution that Taco made during his 1 year ownership was to draft Tony "MVP" Dean with the 32nd pick of the 1st round. Dean wouldn't play much in 1983, only getting into 5 games in mop up time as he sat and learned.

In 1984, Christopher "CJ" Frederickson would buy the team outright. In his introductory press conference, CJ promised the team would build on the winning tradition established by Setherick and guaranteed Houston he would bring the Title back home in the years to come. His first move was to name Dean his starting quarterback and the rest is history. CJ has owned the team for 15 seasons as we enter the 1998 season and every season Dean has been the starting QB. Under CJ's ownership, the team has made 14 straight playoff appearances, won 8 division titles and won 6 American Conference Championships plus 6 World bowls including back to back (84-85) and 3 straight (94-96).

In 1998, after contemplating retired, Tony Dean has signed a 2 year deal to return as the teams starting quarterback but he will do so as the team transitions from the aging team that won 3 straight titles 2 seasons ago to a very young and raw roster filled with a bunch of rookies.

CJ Frederickson and Head coach Dorian Peters who CJ hired in 1989, has made a series of trades with several clubs to accumulate 20 draft picks in this year's draft. Tony Dean is entering his 16th season and of the 87 players currently under contract (including the 20 rookies), 31 players are entering at least season 10 of their career. Obviously by training camp, just 5 days from now, the francise will have to cut 27 players from their roster then cut 7 more before the start of the season.

It's been made pretty public that the team plans on getting much younger and most if not all of the aging players may be cut before the season begins.

That brings us back to the draft and the player they drafted in the 1st round, QB Frederick Van Slyke, the German phenomenon would led Notre Dame to a National Championship in college football. Would the team actually consider cutting Tony Dean in favor of the rookie wunderkin???? Or will he, like Dean all those years ago, sit his first season and backup the future Hall of Famer?

Stay tuned Houston...a new era of Gamblers football is coming as we usher out an era full of success for the uncertain future of 20 rookies and a new QB!