The United Football League’s Michigan Panthers are currently doing what the NFL’s Detroit Lions seem to be unable to do; make a championship game. However, if history is any indication, winning could be the thing that ironically kills the Panthers franchise.
After a 6-4 regular season led by quarterback Bryce Perkins, the Panthers knocked off the Birmingham Stallions in the USFL Conference finals to advance to the UFL championship, a game they haven’t played in since 1983 when the team was in the formerly known USFL and played in the Pontiac Silverdome.
After two successful seasons and winning the 1983 USFL Championship, the Michigan Panthers disappeared by 1984.
The 1984 Panthers finished with a 10-8 record, which was just enough to make the playoffs. In their first-round matchup, which would end up being the last game the Panthers would play in that iteration of a franchise, they faced off against the Los Angeles Express at the famous Los Angeles Coliseum, failing to fill more than one-tenth of the stadium.
After the Panthers went up 21-13 in the third quarter, former BYU quarterback and current NFL Hall-of-Famer Steve Young threw the game-tying touchdown pass with 53 seconds left in the game to send it to the first overtime.
After two full overtime periods, during which Panthers Kicker Novo Bojovic missed 37-yard and 36-yard field goal attempts, the Express won in the third overtime on a thirty-yard touchdown run, completing the longest professional football game in history at 93 minutes of total playtime.
Following the completion of the 1984 season, the UFL faced pressure from franchise owners such as President Donald J. Trump, who owned the New Jersey Generals, to play games in the fall season rather than playing in the spring, which would overlap with the NFL. A. Alfred Taubman, the owner of the Panthers, had no desire to make this switch, but realized he was outgunned.
With the possibility of having to compete with the Detroit Lions fanbase, Taubman decided to reach out to Oakland Invaders owner Tad Taube about a potential merger. Once Taube agreed, the Invaders and Panthers merged and Taubman became the majority owner of the Oakland Invaders franchise.
The USFL only lasted until 1986, and remained non-existent until 2022, when the Panthers found a new home at Ford Field. Now in their fourth season, the Panthers find themselves seeking their first UFL championship and hoping to knock off the D.C Defenders this Saturday.
Alex Deimel is a contributing writer for Michigan Enjoyer.
