Small Potatoes: Who Killed the USFL?

Director: Mike Tollin (Radio, Coach Carter, Varsity Blues)

First things first: I love me some Varsity Blues, and I don't care who knows it.

There's nothing better than Dawson Leary telling his daddy, "I don't want yer life" in a bad accent before eventually winning the game on the old hook-and-ladder play with Billy Bob.

Additionally, Jon Voigt calling Billy Bob "William Robert" is classic too. I'm probably going out to buy Varsity Blues tomorrow.

You're welcome for my small contribution to your royalties, Mr. Tollin.

The USFL is one of those things I had heard about in bits and pieces as I started to become a football fan, but I didn't really know much about the league prior to watching this film.

I knew future NFL stars like Herschel Walker, Reggie White, Jim Kelly, and Steve Young all got their start in the short-lived league, but beyond that, I was clueless.

Having watched Small Potatoes twice now — once prior to starting this project, and again last night prior to writing this piece —  I see a lot of parallels between the USFL and the upstart organizations that have come and gone in mixed martial arts over the last few years.

For those that didn't know, I'm a freelance MMA journalist in my professional life, so there is a good chance that there will be some MMA references throughout this series.



I look at the USFL as Affliction, an organization that grew from originally being a clothing line to try and compete with the UFC. Ironically, Donald Trump was involved with both, though he had far less to do with the failure of Affliction than he did the USFL.

As much as I'm a massive supporter of the UFC — and not just because I like being credentialed to their events — I think there is room for competition within the sport.

In fact, I think there absolutely needs to be other organizations where fighters can go and earn a living, and I think there is enough interest in the sport for numerous organizations to find success.

But there can only be one UFC, just like there can only be one NFL.

There is room for the Bellators of the world who are content to operate in second position, just like there is ample room for the CFL when it comes to professional football.

There just isn't any way to win a battle against organizations that are entrenched at the top

At a certain point, you have to decide what's better: having your small piece of the pie or no pie at all.


A bunch of USFL owners wanted more pie, and ended up with no pie at all, a fate similar to some that have tried to challenge the UFC for mixed martial arts supremacy.


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The name for this film — Small Potatoes — is what Trump called the USFL as he was walking out of his interview with Tollin for this film. You get the clip of him saying it twice — once at the beginning of the film, and again at the end when you know the whole story.

Seeing it at the beginning, you think it's just Trump being the same pompous windbag he's been for years. Once you know the back story, you still think Trump is being a pompous windbag, but you also see a guy who refuses to admit his mistakes or take his lumps.

The titular question of the film is "Who Killed the USFL?" and the answer — if  you're looking for one particular person to single out — is Donald Trump.

He spearheaded the efforts to change the spring/summer league into a direct competitor with the NFL, and brought about the anti-trust lawsuit against the NFL following the 1985 season, all in an effort to force a merger between the two leagues, in hopes of becoming an NFL owner.

None of it worked.

The courts agreed with the USFL's lawsuit asserting the NFL had a monopoly, but also noted that the league was more damaged by their own mismanagement than anything else. They were awarded $1 in damages, a far cry from the $567 million they were seeking.

Here's the thing: I dig Trump's ambition and his "I want to be the best" mentality, but you can't always just bully your way to the top. Sometimes you have to take the baby steps, play the game, and wait your turn, even if you're not sure it's going to come.

It's not like he came on board and was surprised to find out the USFL played in the spring and summer, and wanted to stay that way; he knew it from Jump Street and still pushed to change things.

This might sound strange, but I actually am taking lessons from this film and applying them to my career as a journalist.

While I have better hair and far less money than Trump, I have that same "this is the way I want it done" mentality, and it gets me in trouble.

Not bring an entire football organization to ruins kind of trouble, but hanging out at home with time to embark on a new project kind of trouble.

Trump's idea was great — why wouldn't you want to merge with the NFL? That's where everyone could make their money — but he went about it the wrong way.

I do that a lot too.

Sometimes knowing you're right or a better way of doing things doesn't mean anything, especially when there is no way for you to change the situation.

Like Trump, I'd have been better off biding my time, making some money, and waiting to see how things played out in the future. Instead, I too pushed for change, rolled the dice, and crapped out.


Unlike Trump, I can recognize where I made my mistakes, and don't play it off like it's no big deal.