{"id":6857,"date":"2025-06-27T08:42:20","date_gmt":"2025-06-27T12:42:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.2guysgaming.net\/usfldr\/?p=6857"},"modified":"2025-06-27T08:42:20","modified_gmt":"2025-06-27T12:42:20","slug":"1985-las-vegas-ace-roster-stats-and-recap","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/2025\/06\/27\/1985-las-vegas-ace-roster-stats-and-recap\/","title":{"rendered":"1985 Las Vegas Ace Roster, Stats, and Recap"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

1985 Las Vegas Aces: A Tough Inaugural Season<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The 1985 Las Vegas Aces<\/strong> entered the USFL with high hopes but faced immediate struggles in their debut season. Finishing with a 2-15-1 record<\/strong>, the Aces endured a brutal start, losing their first nine games before finally securing their first victory in Week 10 against the New Orleans Brass (21-14)<\/strong>. A late-season win over the Boston Breakers (21-20)<\/strong> provided another bright spot in an otherwise difficult year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Offensive Struggles<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Led by quarterback Jerry Golsteyn<\/strong>, the Aces\u2019 passing attack was inconsistent, throwing 38 interceptions<\/strong> against just 29 touchdowns<\/strong>. The ground game fared no better, averaging a mere 3.0 yards per carry<\/strong>, with Ricky Claitt<\/strong> and Curtis Ragsdale<\/strong> splitting backfield duties. The receiving corps, featuring Ray Taylor (885 yards, 9 TDs)<\/strong> and Ted Holler (774 yards, 5 TDs)<\/strong>, provided some highlights but couldn\u2019t overcome the team\u2019s overall inefficiency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

Despite the losing record, the defense had its moments. Safety Tim Lewis<\/strong> was a tackling machine (162 stops<\/strong>) and led the team with 6 interceptions<\/strong>. The pass rush, led by Randy Cole (13 sacks)<\/strong> and Joe Rehmann (8 sacks)<\/strong>, showed flashes, while linebacker Mike Monger (153 tackles, 4 INTs)<\/strong> was a relentless force. However, the unit often wore down, allowing 30+ points in 10 games<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Special Teams & Miscues<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The kicking game was a major weakness\u2014Larry Roach<\/strong> converted just 8 of 23 field goals (34.8%)<\/strong>, costing the Aces in close games. Punter Greg Cater<\/strong> was busy, booting 133 punts<\/strong> as the offense frequently stalled. Return man Marcus Bonner<\/strong> provided a spark with a 54-yard kick return<\/strong> as his longest of the year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Season to Forget, But a Foundation to Build On<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

The Aces\u2019 inaugural season was one of the worst in USFL history, but it set the stage for future growth. Though the franchise folded after the USFL\u2019s 1985 contraction, the \u201985 Aces remain a fascinating footnote in Las Vegas football lore\u2014a team that battled through adversity but ultimately couldn\u2019t find enough wins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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

Quarterbacks (QB):<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • Jerry Golsteyn<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • Randall Cunningham<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    Running Backs (RB):<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    • Byron Brown<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Ragsdale<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Marcus Bonner<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    • Rickey Claitt<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

      Wide Receivers (WR):<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

        \n
      • James Carver<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Ray Taylor<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Jeff Smith<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Ted Hollern<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Tom Wheeler<\/li>\n\n\n\n
      • Mitchell Brookins<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

        Tight Ends (TE):<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

          \n
        • Joe Rose<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • James McDonald<\/li>\n\n\n\n
        • Chris Dressel<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

          Offensive Line (OL):<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

            \n
          • Anthony Thomas (G)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Jerry Doerger (G\/T)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Miller (T)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Jeff Toews (C\/G)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Blake Moore (C\/G)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Randy Rasmussen (C\/G)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Joe Shearin (G)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Sid Abramowitz (T)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
          • Bill Contz (T)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
            \n\n\n\n

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

            Defensive Line (DL):<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

              \n
            • Greg Rehmann (DE)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
            • Greg Fields (DE)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
            • Edgar Pickett (DE)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
            • Hughes (DL)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
            • Todd Maragas (DL)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
            • Dave Puzzouli (DT)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
            • Emmanuel Cole (DT)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

              Linebackers (LB):<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

                \n
              • Matt Monger (OLB)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
              • Kelvin Atkins (LB)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
              • Pete Cronan (LB)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
              • Lamonte Hunley (LB)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
              • Tony Caldwell (LB)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
              • Gregg Carr (LB)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

                Defensive Backs (DB):<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

                  \n
                • Paul Pallante (CB)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                • Tim Lewis (CB)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                • Lee Wilson (CB)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                • Dennis Thurman (S)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                • Herb Welch (DB)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                • Liffort Hobley (DB)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                • Chris Rockins (S)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                • Larry Flowers (DB)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                • Daryll Jones (S)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                • Rick Dukovich (S)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n
                  \n\n\n\n

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

                  Kickers:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

                    \n
                  • Larry Roach (K)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                  • Greg Cater (P)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

                    Return Specialists (KR\/PR):<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

                      \n
                    • Byron Brown (KR)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                    • Marcus Bonner (KR\/RET)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                    • Tim Lewis (KR)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                    • Ted Hollern (RET)<\/li>\n\n\n\n
                    • Mitchell Brookins (KR)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

                      1985 Las Vegas Aces: A Tough Inaugural Season The 1985 Las Vegas Aces entered the USFL with high hopes but faced immediate struggles in their debut season. Finishing with a 2-15-1 record, the Aces endured a brutal start, losing their first nine games before finally securing their first victory in Week 10 against the New Orleans Brass (21-14). A […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4168,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[41,42],"class_list":["post-6857","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-season-in-review","tag-41","tag-las-vegas-ace"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6857","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=6857"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6857\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4168"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6857"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6857"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.distantreplaysports.com\/usfldr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6857"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}