Way back, in 1982 an upstart football league was formed. The league’s inaugural season was 1983. The league made a splash, stealing the reigning Heisman Trophy Winner away from the NFL. Donald Trump’s New Jersey Generals took Georgia RB Herschel Walker. The next season those same Generals grabbed Boston College’s QB Doug Flutie…who was that year’s Heisman Trophy Winner. In 1984, for the third consecutive season, this upstart league took yet another Heisman Trophy Winner. The Pittsburgh Maulers selected RB Mike Rozier.
Of course, I am referring to the USFL. It had a short yet incredibly interesting history. The league had a quick rise, which produced some incredibly exciting football, with amazing talent. But then, an equally quick demise. The league only lasted five seasons, disbanding in 1986, in many ways from sheer hubris.
Some say that Trump himself caused the league’s ultimate failure. He desperately wanted an NFL team but was often rebuffed. Snagging a team in the USFL was his attempt to do an end-round. His hope; was that the league would grow in popularity the way the AFL did two decades earlier, ultimately merging with the NFL. His gambit ended with a switch from the Spring to the Fall. As a stand-alone football league in the Spring, it was perfect…but competing head-to-head with the NFL in the Fall, was foolhardy.
Regardless of all the reasons and nuances, the fact is, that when the league was good, they were very good. Aside from Walker, Flutie, and Rozier, the league also boasted some of the game’s all-time greats, including Hall of Famers Reggie White, Jim Kelly, Steve Young, and Sam Mills.
Fast forward to 2025…History needs to repeat itself. There is currently a Spring Football League, called the United Football League, (UFL). It is in its second season, currently entering wk.4 of a 10-week schedule, culminating with the Championship Game on June 14th in St.Louis. The league is trying to build something real, for the long haul. There is real money backing this league, with real TV contracts, and The Rock as one of the principles of the league.
What this league needs is real talent on the field. What the league needs is Deion Sanders, his son Shadeur Sanders, and reigning Heisman Trophy Winner, Travis Hunter. This week, Hunter has announced he won’t play for a team that drafts him unless they are willing to play him on both sides of the ball. Sanders is dropping in just about everybody’s draft board.
The NFL rookie contract structure is fairly rigid. It is a four-deal with money based on your draft position. Last year, with the no.1 pick, Caleb Williams signed a 4yr/$38.5M deal. Neither Sanders nor Hunter will be drafted no.1. This could be a win/win for the league, and the two Colorado teammates. They would bring instant credibility and stability to a new fledgling league. Between endorsements and contracts, they will be ok financially. And, if the league goes by way of the Doo Doo Bird, or USFL four decades earlier, the NFL will still be there for them down the line…just as it was for all of those disbanded USFL players.
It is unlikely that they would be able to jump on board in the middle of this season, but they would be the centerpieces of the 2026 season…and adding Deion to the sideline as head coach would be pure gold.
With this age of streaming services and 100 cable channels, the world is searching for new content. If the world of golf can survive another league, (LIV), to the PGA tour, with some of the game’s greats joining…(Jon Rahm, Brooks Koepka, Cam Smith, Phil Michelson, and Bryson DeChambeau), then the biggest sport in the world can survive two viable football leagues. If DeChambeau and Koepka can league the PGA Tour for LIV Golf, Hunter and Sanders can spurn the NFL and join the UFL.