- 1983
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Showboats Team Formation
Memphis food manufacturer Logan Young was awarded an expansion franchise for Memphis on July 17, 1983. However, soon after hiring Memphis native and former college coach Pepper Rodgers as head coach and signing a lease to play in the Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium, he discovered that most of his assets were tied up in a trust fund that he couldn’t ...
The Memphis Showboats were a franchise in the United States Football League. They entered the league in its expansion in 1984 and made the 1985 playoffs, losing in the semifinal round to the Oakland Invaders.
Established
1984
City
Memphis
League History
1984 – 1986 / United States Football League
Team History
1984 – 1986 / Memphis Showboats
Nickname
Showboats – A river steamboat on which theatrical performances are given. A showboat, or show boat, was a form of theater that traveled along the waterways of the United States, especially along the Mississippi and Ohio rivers.
Original USFL Team
No
Final USFL Team
Yes
Team’s Final Outlook
The Showboats ceased to exist, along with all other USFL franchises, when the league failed to collect significant damages in its 1986 anti-trust suit against the NFL.
Championship
USFL Championship 0
Stadium
1984 – 1985 / Liberty Bowl
Owner
1984 – 1985 / William Dunavant and Logan Young
Coaches
1984 – 1985 / Pepper Rodgers (19 wins – 19 losses)
Accomplishments
1985 / Conference Championship Game (vs Oakland Invaders 19 – 28)
1985 / Division Champions (vs Denver Gold 48 – 7)
Averaged 27,599 in 1984 and 30,948 in 1985 (50,160 seat stadium)
*Blue is this team’s history