Event Date: November 7th, 1984
Event Description: San Antonio Secures Franchise
Source: UPI
United States Football League commissioner Chet Simmons Tuesday announced the awarding of a franchise to San Antonio, keeping the total number of USFL teams for next year at 16.
San Antonio will replace the Chicago franchise which will “go dark” for the 1985 season, but return in 1986 under new ownership.
“We are delighted to bring a USFL franchise to the city of San Antonio,” Simmons told a news conference which was held at the leagues’ headquarters in New York.
Clinton Manges, a millionaire oil man and native of Texas, is the owner of the franchise, which still has no name. He told the crowd it was “perhaps the most exciting moment of my life.”
San Antonio becomes the second city in Texas to have a USFL franchise, and the owner of the other franchise, the Houston Gamblers, Jerry Argovitz, immediately proposed a Houston-San Antonio opener in 1985.
“We're going to make San Antonio a winner," Manges said.
Manges has been silent so far on who his coach will be, although local newspapers have speculated about several names, ranging from former Blitz coach Mark Levy to former NFL coach and television commentator Hank Stram.
The new San Antonio owners have said they will accept entries in a contest to name the team until midnight Wednesday, with the name selected being announced next week. The person suggesting the winning name will win two season's passes for the 1985 season.
Last month, Manges cleared the first hurdle in landing the franchise when he signed a lease for the rental of Alamo Stadium. He also has paid the league an undisclosed contingency fee, guaranteeing the players' salaries through one season.
San Antonio featured an entry in the defunct World Football League, the Wings, in the mid-1970s. That team was led by Breakers’ quarterback Johnny Walton, but folded after just one season.
Story-(UPI Modified)
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