{"id":6826,"date":"2025-06-26T07:30:37","date_gmt":"2025-06-26T11:30:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.2guysgaming.net\/usfldr\/?p=6826"},"modified":"2025-06-26T07:30:38","modified_gmt":"2025-06-26T11:30:38","slug":"1985-houston-gamblers-stats-roster-and-recap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/2025\/06\/26\/1985-houston-gamblers-stats-roster-and-recap\/","title":{"rendered":"1985 Houston Gamblers Stats, Roster, and Recap"},"content":{"rendered":"
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The 1985 Houston Gamblers<\/strong> were an unstoppable force in the USFL<\/strong>, dominating the regular season with a 15-3 record<\/strong> and rewriting the league\u2019s offensive record books. Yet, despite their historic campaign, their quest for a second championship ended in stunning fashion with a 35-32 playoff loss to the Denver Gold<\/strong>, leaving the franchise and its fans wondering what might have been.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Offensive Firepower: The Jim Kelly Show<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Led by MVP candidate Jim Kelly<\/strong>, the Gamblers\u2019 “Run & Shoot”<\/strong> attack was even more lethal than their 1984 title-winning<\/strong> squad. Kelly shattered expectations, throwing for 6,031 yards and 51 touchdowns<\/strong>, spreading the ball among a trio of elite playmakers:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • WR Richard Johnson<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013\u00a01,881 yards, 18 TDs<\/strong>\u00a0(leading the USFL in receiving)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • WR Ricky Sanders<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013\u00a01,722 yards, 16 TDs<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • RB Todd Fowler<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013\u00a01,247 rushing yards, 17 TDs<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    Houston\u2019s offense averaged 35.3 points per game<\/strong>, scoring 50+ points four times<\/strong>, including a 58-24 demolition of the Boston Breakers<\/strong> in Week 5.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Rolling Through the Regular Season<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

    The Gamblers opened the year on a 7-0 tear<\/strong>, including a 48-21 thrashing of the Chicago Blitz<\/strong> and a 58-24 blowout in Boston<\/strong>. Their only early stumble came in Week 8<\/strong>, when the Memphis Showboats stunned them 31-13<\/strong>, but Houston quickly rebounded, winning 7 of their next 8<\/strong> to secure the league\u2019s best record.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Key Victories:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    • Week 11: 28-7 over New Jersey (Generals\u2019 lowest output of the year)<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Week 12: 30-27 thriller vs. Michigan (late FG sealed it)<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Week 16: 43-38 shootout win at Arizona (Kelly\u2019s 4 TDs)<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      Defensive Standouts<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

      While the offense grabbed headlines, Houston\u2019s defense had its moments:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        \n
      • LB Kiki DeAyala (140 tackles, 2 sacks)<\/strong>\u00a0anchored the unit.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • DL Jeff Gaylord (Fitzpatric) (12 sacks, 22 hurries)<\/strong>\u00a0terrorized QBs.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • CB Lewis Washington (12 INTs, 2 TDs)<\/strong>\u00a0was a ballhawking nightmare.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

        Yet, inconsistency plagued the defense, particularly in shootouts like the 56-35 win over Oklahoma<\/strong> and the 44-38 escape at Memphis<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Playoff Disaster: Denver\u2019s Stunning Upset<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

        After a first-round bye<\/strong>, Houston faced the Denver Gold<\/strong> in the divisional round. Despite being heavy favorites, the Gamblers\u2019 defense collapsed late, allowing 35 points<\/strong> in a back-and-forth thriller. A late Kelly drive fell short, and Denver escaped with a 35-32 win<\/strong>, ending Houston\u2019s season in shocking fashion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        What\u2019s Next?<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

        With Jim Kelly, Richard Johnson, and Todd Fowler<\/strong> all returning in 1986<\/strong>, the Gamblers remain the USFL\u2019s most dangerous offense. But after back-to-back playoff letdowns, the pressure is on new coach Marv Levy<\/strong> to fix the defense\u2014or risk wasting a dynasty in the making.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Final Thought:<\/strong> “We were the best team all year,” Kelly said postgame. “But \u2018best\u2019 doesn\u2019t matter if you don\u2019t finish.”<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

        1985 Houston Gamblers Roster<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

        Offense<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

        QB<\/strong> \u2013 Jim Kelly, Mike Dillon
        RB<\/strong> \u2013 Todd Fowler, Sam Harrell, Darrell Clark, Ronny Lazarus (KR)
        WR<\/strong> \u2013 Richard Johnson (KR), Ricky Sanders (PR), Clarence Verdin (KR), Gerald McNeil (PR), Gary Lowell, Gary Rolle, Ron Fazio, Mike Barousse, Reggie Poole
        OL<\/strong> \u2013 T:<\/strong> Rickey Giddens, Ralph Rosado, Buddy Rodgers
        G:<\/strong> Mark Kiewel, Dave Boucher, Scott Kidd, Mike Kehr
        C:<\/strong> Mike Kalli, Mike Allen<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Defense<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

        DL<\/strong> \u2013 Tony Degrate (DT), Tim Newton (DT), Jeff Gaylord (Fitzpatric), Pete Catan (DE), Greg Lewis (DE), Elvis Franks (DE), Mike Crosby (DE), Joe Jackson (DE)
        LB<\/strong> \u2013 Kiki DeAyala, Aaron Hawkins, Ron Anderson, Andy Hawkins, Gary Davis, Garland Hawkins, Lucius Davis, Anthony Tuggle
        DB<\/strong> \u2013 Lewis Washington (CB), Luther Davis (CB), Davlin Mullen (CB), Victor Mitchell (CB), Mike Vonner (CB), Mark Hall (S), Mike Heath (CB\/KR), Kevin Myers (S), Tim Eason (S\/KR)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

        Special Teams<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

        K<\/strong> \u2013 Toni Miller
        P<\/strong> \u2013 Rick Wlaters
        KR\/PR<\/strong> \u2013 Clarence Verdin, Gerald McNeil, Richard Johnson, Ricky Sanders, Ronny Lazarus, Tim Eason<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

        The 1985 Houston Gamblers were an unstoppable force in the USFL, dominating the regular season with a 15-3 record and rewriting the league\u2019s offensive record books. Yet, despite their historic campaign, their quest for a second championship ended in stunning fashion with a 35-32 playoff loss to the Denver Gold, leaving the franchise and its fans wondering what might have been. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1563,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[41,31],"class_list":["post-6826","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-season-in-review","tag-41","tag-houston-gamblers"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6826","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6826"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6826\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1563"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6826"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6826"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6826"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}