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Pittsburgh Maulers (1984)
Established April 28, 1983 Folded October 26, 1984[1] Played inThree Rivers Stadium inPittsburgh, Pennsylvania
League/conference affiliations
United States Football League (1984) Eastern Conference (1984) Atlantic Division (1984)
Current uniform
Team colors	Purple, Renaissance Red, Gray, White
Personnel
Owner(s)	Edward J. DeBartolo, Sr.
General manager	George Heddleston
Head coach	Joe Pendry (2–8) Ellis Rainsberger (interim) (1–7) Hank Bullough (would be 1985 coach)
Team history
Pittsburgh Maulers (1984)
Championships
League championships (0)
Conference championships (0)
Division championships (0)
Home stadium(s)
Three Rivers Stadium (1984)

ThePittsburgh Maulers were a team that competed in the 1984 season of theUnited States Football League. Their most prominent player was first pick overall in the1984 USFL draft, running backMike Rozier of Nebraska, who won theHeisman Trophy,collegiate football's most prestigious individual award.

They were owned byshopping mall magnateEdward J. DeBartolo, Sr., the father ofEdward J. DeBartolo, Jr., then-owner of theSan Francisco 49ers of theNational Football League and thePittsburgh Penguins of theNational Hockey League. The Maulers played atThree Rivers Stadium.

No one was surprised when two groups filed for a Pittsburgh franchise in the winter of 1983. It did come as a considerable surprise that DeBartolo, Sr. was one of them, given his son's ownership of the 49ers. However, while the other group contented itself with holding a rally to demonstrate support for a potential franchise, DeBartolo stole a march by securing an all-important lease for Three Rivers Stadium. A few days later, DeBartolo's longtime right-hand man, former SteelerPaul Martha, informed the other owners and CommissionerChet Simmons that his boss was not only applying for a franchise, but already had a lease.

There was some debate over whether to approve DeBartolo's bid, with some fearing that they were effectively allowing an NFL owner into their circle. It was an open secret that Eddie, Sr. and Eddie, Jr. worked closely together.^[2] Ultimately, the owners realized that DeBartolo would lend the upstart league instant credibility and unanimously approved his bid, making him the first owner of a USFL expansion team. Unusually, DeBartolo applied for the franchise in his own name, rather than setting up a corporation or partnership. He also paid the full $6.25 million expansion fee up front. A name-the-team contest yielded the nickname "Maulers," after the sledgehammer-wielding workers in steel foundries.

The NFL itself threatened an investigation over a possibleCleveland Spiders-styleconflict of interest due to the father owning a USFL team and the son owning an NFL team, an accusation both father and son insisted was not the case.^[3] Ultimately, the NFL asked Eddie, Jr. to leave the room during any USFL discussions.^[2]

DeBartolo immediately made waves by beginning talks withDan Marino, a Pittsburgh native and the quarterback for the hometownPitt Panthers (he ultimately signed with the NFL'sMiami Dolphins).Joe Pendry, the offensive coordinator for the 1983 finalistPhiladelphia Stars, became head coach.

The Maulers opened their home season with a March 11, 1984^[4] sellout crowd atThree Rivers Stadium facing the Birmingham Stallions, a team led byCliff Stoudt, who had spent much of the previous season as the starter for thePittsburgh Steelers, and had beenTerry Bradshaw's backup for years before then. Fans bombarded Stoudt with snowballs and ice whenever the Stallions entered the red zone. The Maulers lost, 30-18, in what would be the team's only sellout.

The team finished 3–15, tying theWashington Federals for the worst record in the league. However, while undermanned, they were not nearly as bad as their record indicated. They were in part victims of a very tough schedule. They played nine games against playoff teams and caught a lot of the other teams when they were hot—Oklahoma andNew Orleans early andSan Antonio andJacksonville late. Seven of their losses were by fewer than 10 points.

The team was built around the idea thatDallas Cowboys longtime third-string QBGlenn Carano would be a strong starter in the USFL. To support Carano, the team had RBMike Rozier–the second straightHeisman Trophy winner to sign with a USFL team–and WRGreg Anderson, who caught 63 passes. Carano had his moments but he struggled overall, completing only 53.7% of his passes with 13 touchdowns and 19 interceptions. BackupTom Rozantz was expected to mostly carry a clipboard, but he ended up playing a lot and he struggled as well. However, either would have been a disappointment, as most fans expected the Maulers to pickSteve Young rather thanMike Rozier. Even bringing in formerArizona Wranglers star WRJackie Flowers did not turn around the offense. The defense, led by CBJerry Holmes and DESam Clancy finished a respectable eighth in points allowed. In spite of this, they were hobbled by a low-octane offense.

In the middle of a 17-7 loss to theMemphis Showboats, DeBartolo told general manager George Heddleston to tell Pendry to yank Carano in favor of backupTom Rozantz. Pendry refused to do so, even when Carano dislocated his right arm and could not throw without "tremendous pain" shooting through it. A fuming DeBartolo ordered Heddleston and Pendry to meet with him at his office inYoungstown, Ohio the next morning. Pendry refused to come, and quit rather than be fired. Offensive line coachEllis Rainsberger took over as interim coach for the rest of the season.^[5]

They closed the season against Jacksonville in a torrential rainstorm; one sideline of theGator Bowl was so badly flooded that both teams had to share the other sideline.^[5]

Despite losing millions of dollars and only winning three games, the Maulers were competitive in most games. They also attracted 22,858 per game, a respectable figure—at least by USFL standards—for an expansion team. DeBartolo was determined to stick it out, even going as far as hiringHank Bullough away from theGreen Bay Packers to become the new head coach.^[6] The fan support in such a strong sports town such as Pittsburgh can be attributed to a combination of factors. At the time the Maulers arrived, the Steelers were in the middle of an on-field decline following their 1970s dominance. The Penguins were all but invisible in the Pittsburgh market (though the team had just draftedMario Lemieux). ThePittsburgh Pirates were experiencing an on- and off-field collapse that would be topped off by the 1985Pittsburgh drug trials and the team nearly relocating toDenver.

However, just a few days after Bullough's hiring, the USFL voted to switch to a fall schedule in 1986. DeBartolo was a strong believer in the USFL's original spring football concept, and he knew the Maulers could not hope to go head-to-head against the Steelers. Sharing Three Rivers Stadium would have caused serious logistical problems early in the fall, with the Maulers, Pirates and Steelers fighting for dates. A move toCleveland, closer to DeBartolo's home in Youngstown, was quickly ruled out; even without the daunting task of going head-to-head with theCleveland Browns (then a solid playoff team) to consider, similar conflicts with theCleveland Indians sharingCleveland Stadium at the time rendered this potential move impractical as well.

As a result, just a week after the vote to move to the fall, DeBartolo decided to fold the team without so much as a press conference. He announced that he intended to merge the Maulers with another team. Initially, he struck a merger agreement with the Stars, who had been forced to move toBaltimore after concluding they could not compete with the NFL'sEagles. However, just months later, at the urging of his wife Marie, DeBartolo sold his stake in the Stars and got out of the league entirely.^[2] The league's abandonment of Pittsburgh was later cited as a factor in the USFL failing to secure a large judgment in its antitrust suit against the NFL; although it technically won, the jury only awarded it $3 in damages.

Amidst several USFL teams that were "one-season wonders" as a result of relocating, merging with other teams and/or changing team names (all off-season), the Pittsburgh Maulers have the distinction of being the only USFL team to play with no connections to any other cities or teams, neither before nor after their only season.

Sources^{[7][8][9][10]}

Duplicate numbers listed due to roster movement during the season
-- = roster number information unavailable

The following Maulers players have been named to All-USFL Teams:

• CBJerry Holmes^[11]

Note: The finish, wins, losses, and ties columns list regular season results and exclude any postseason play.

• Remember The USFL: Pittsburgh Maulers
• USFL.info - Pittsburgh Maulers
• Our Sports Central: Pittsburgh Maulers
• Steeler Chief: Pittsburgh Maulers

• Pittsburgh Maulers
• 1983 establishments in Pennsylvania
• 1984 disestablishments in Pennsylvania

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