- 1984
- 1985
-
Outlaws Team Formation
The Outlaws were originally slated to play in San Diego. However, under pressure from baseball’s Padres, the NFL’s Chargers, and the NASL’s Sockers, the city refused to grant Tatham a lease for Jack Murphy Stadium. Scrambling for a home, Tatham seriously considered playing in Honolulu for its inaugural 1984 season. However, he settled on Tulsa, Oklahoma—even though the city had ... -
Time to Leave Oklahoma
The Tathams were not exaggerating about Skelly Stadium’s inadequacy as a professional venue. There was virtually no parking around the stadium, which would have held down attendance even without the weather problems. With no other facility in the Tulsa area suitable even for temporary use, they started searching for a new home. They initially planned to move to the University ...
The Oklahoma Outlaws were a professional American football team that played in the United States Football League in the mid-1980s.
Established
1983
City
Tempe – Oklahoma City – Tempe
League History
1983 – 1986 / United States Football League
Team History
1985 / Arizona Outlaws
1983 – 1984 / Arizona Wranglers
1984 / Oklahoma Outlaws
Nickname
Outlaws – The Outlaws name comes from the gunslingers known to be in the Oklahoma region.
Original USFL Team
Yes
Final USFL Team
No
Team’s Final Outlook
Despite advancing to the championship game, Dietrhich wanted out after losing millions for the second year in a row. He sold the Wranglers’ assets to Tatham, and Tatham relocated the Outlaws to Arizona for the 1985 season as the Arizona Outlaws, and took the Wranglers’ place at Arizona State University’s Sun Devil Stadium. Since Tatham inherited all of the Wranglers’ player contracts, this deal was reported by some outlets as a merger.
Championship
USFL Championship 0
Stadium
1983 – 1985 / Sun Devil Stadium
*Oklahoma*
1984 / Skelly Stadium
Owner
1984 – 1986 / William R. Tatham Sr., William R. Tatham Jr.
1984 / Dr. Ted Diethrich
1983 / Jim Joseph
Coaches
1985 / Frank Kush (8 wins – 10 losses)
1984 / Woody Widenhofer (6 wins – 12 losses)
1984 / George Allen (12 wins – 9 losses)
1983 / Doug Shivley (4 wins – 14 losses)
Accomplishments
Averaged 21,038 fans (40,000 seat stadium)
*Blue is this team’s history