When Donald Trump signed Doug Flutie to a six-year, $8.3 million contract in 1985, it was the richest contract ever signed by a rookie. The USFL just swept its third-consecutive Hesiman Trophy winner in Flutie; Trump’s Generals had two of them (Walker the other).

Flutie was on the cover of the Feb. 25, 1985 Sports Illustrated’s issue -- the headline read: “CAN THIS MAN SAVE THE USFL?” The USFL was facing a fork in the road by the time Flutie put on a New Jersey General uniform. The decision was made by the USFL owners – really Donald Trump -- that the league would go head-to-head with the NFL in the fall of ’86.

Most of the teams were losing money, but Trump’s Generals were averaging close to 37,000 a game in '83 and '84. Flutie’s signing raised the Generals home attendance close to 42,000 in 1985.

Flutie’s appeal help bolster attendance on the road as well. While many USFL teams were tightning their belts, Trump was on a spending spree. "We were the New York Yankees of the USFL," says Charlie Steiner, the play-by-play voice of the Generals.

Despite the star appeal of their owner, running back and quarterback, the Generals won only 11 games in 1985 as they earned a home-playoff game against Jim Mora’s Stars. For a second-consecutive year, the Stars stood in the Generals way of continuing through the playoffs.

Flutie was injured in a Week 15 game against the Memphis Showboats, missing the last three games of the season and the playoffs. Head coach Walt Michaels was toying with idea of playing Flutie against the Stars, but the veteran coach didn’t want to jeopardize Flutie’s future as a quarterback. The Generals lost to the Stars 20-17 in the quarterfinals at the Meadowlands, as replacement QB Ron Reeves and company couldn't pullout the win.

Flutie’s numbers in his only season as a General were unimpressive: 15 games, 13 TD’s, 14 INTs, and a 47.7 completion-percentage. Despite the modest numbers, Flutie’s teammates believed something magical could happen when he had the ball.

Dave Lapham, who joined the Generals in the 1984 along with LB Jim LeClaire from the Cincinnati Bengals, says, "He’s an undersized guy who achieved at such a high level. He was the ultimate underdog that proved everybody wrong. He had the highest football IQ of anybody on the field. He could will a team to win. He had 'IT.'"

Flutie never got another chance to play in a New Jersey General uniform again, as the league folded after losing its anti-trust against the NFL in the summer of 1986.

Flutie was selected by the Rams in the 11th round of the 1985 draft, but Los Angeles traded his rights to the Bears after the season.

Flutie joined the Super Bowl Champion Chicago Bears midway through the '86 season. The Bears were a wild bunch of players that were loyal to QB Jim McMahon. In the final four regular season games of the 1986 season, all Chicago wins, Flutie's playing-time increased, throwing 3 TD passes in 46 passing-attempts.

Chicago finished 14-2, adding up to a remarkable two-year record of 29-3. Chicago clinched home-field throughout the playoffs for the second year in a row, but their leader – McMahon – was injured.

The Bears entered the playoff game as heavy favorites against Joe Gibbs’ Washington Redskins, despite McMahon’s absence. During the bye week before the game, the football fans wondered who Mike Ditka would choose to start at QB. Would he go with the unimpressive Mike Tomczak, or the veteran Steve Fuller, or the newcomer Flutie? In a move that divided the team, Ditka chose Flutie.

Washington stunned the World Champion Bears 27-13 in Chicago, as Flutie started for the injured McMahon. Flutie was 11 of 31, with one TD and two interceptions in the losing effort.

Unfortunately for Flutie, he was called the “Midget of the Midway,” as opposed to the term “Monsters of the Midway” -- referring to the tough history of Chicago Bear teams of the past.

Dan Jiggetts, a former Bear who missed the glory years of the team after suffering through the losing seasons of the mid-‘70s and early ‘80s, felt Flutie never had a fair chance in Chicago. “It was a shame that some of the guys decided they didn’t like Doug, because they thought he was the ‘teacher’s pet,’” he says. “It’s tough when you walk in during the middle of the season. Those guys probably regret viewing Flutie like they did – he’s still playing after all these years.”

Tom Thayer, who joined the Bears via the USFL in ’85, agrees that Flutie was put in a “no win” situation. “It was unfortunate, we were a tight-knit group and we probably didn’t embraced Doug like we should’ve,” says Thayer. “Coach Ditka was feeding him to us, rather than allowing us to accept him. He was put in games before he was mentally ready to play.”

While the Bears have been in search of a steady quarterback for 20 years since their Super Bowl win in New Orleans, Flutie won MVP’s and championships in the CFL, and helped the Bills to the post-season in ’98 and ’99.

Despite what the NFL thought, Flutie has a winning record as a starter in the league. “Whenever he got his opportunity to play, he never disappointed,” says Lapham, who is a color-analyst for the Bengals. “The guy is a phenom; his face would go into a zone and he’d have a look on his face that something special would happen. He could create opportunities with his feet, always looking for the defense to break down once he was out of the pocket. That’s when he could really cause trouble.”

Flutie's next stop was back home in New England with the Patriots. Flutie soon wore out his welcome in the NFL after three years in New England and headed to the Canadian Football League -- where he became a legend. Flutie won three Grey Cups, was named the game’s MVP each time in his three appearances. He was the League’s MVP on six different occasions, throwing 270 career touchdown passes in his eight years in the CFL.

Flutie returned to the NFL with the Buffalo Bills in 1998 where a quarterback-controversy began with Rob Johnson. Flutie led the Bills to the playoffs with a 10-6 record after becoming the starter in Week 6. Despite Flutie completing 21 of 36 for 360 yards, Buffalo lost 24-17 to the Dolphins in Miami. The Following year, Flutie threw 19 TD’s in 15 starts for Buffalo, but head coach Wade Phillips started Johnson against the Titans in the wild card. The Bills lost the game 22-16, in what became known as “The Music City Miracle.” Flutie spent one more year in Buffalo, starting only five games for the Bills as Buffalo won only eight wins. By then, everyone, including Flutie, had enough of the Flutie-Johnson controversy.

Flutie joined the Chargers in '01, and finally returned to New England as a backup to QB Tom Brady with the three-time Super Bowl Champion Patriots for the 2005 season. Although Flutie didn’t play much behind Brady, Doug made headlines across America when he converted the first drop kick in the NFL since 1941. Flutie ran to the sidelines and embraced a smiling Bill Belichick -- which is a rare site. “I just thanked him for the opportunity,” said Flutie, who threw only 10 passes in 2005.

Visit www.usflonline.com for more about the upstart league.

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