Breakers Play Host to Express Tonight : Pro Football Returns to Portland for the First Time Since 1975
They call themselves the Breakers and are the only United States Football League team able to boast of having homes from sea to shining sea.
In 1983, they were the Breakers of Boston.
In 1984, they were the New Orleans Breakers.
This year’s model landed in Portland, and isn’t it great that they didn’t even have to change their nickname?
Tonight, the Portland Breakers play host to the Los Angeles Express in a 6 o’clock game at Civic Stadium.
For the Breakers, there’s no place like home.
“I’ll tell you,” Breakers Coach/Road Manager Dick Coury said this week, “These moves sure don’t make my wife happy.”
Coury has been the coach on every stop of the Breakers’ Tour of America.
Tonight, Portland is coming home. And don’t think this city isn’t excited. They haven’t had this kind of pro football in town since the World Football League’s Storm folded in 1975.
Coury said 600 Portland fans met the team when it came home after Sunday’s 9-7 opening-day loss to Arizona. Which was a good thing, because most of Breakers needed directions.
“On the plane ride back I asked how many players had ever been to Portland,” Curry said. “Ninety percent of them said they had never been there.”
The Breakers held their training camp in Southern California.
This should give the Express a distinct edge entering tonight’s game. While L.A. was preparing its game plan this week, most Portland players were out pricing condominiums or unpacking china.
Not that it would matter anyway. Los Angeles, despite its 34-33 opening-day loss to the Houston Gamblers, should ruin the Breakers’ home debut.
“We should win it, no question about it,” Express Coach John Hadl said.
Though Coury is one of the USFL’s better coaches, his team can not match the Express’ talent.
And his chances of winning diminished even more early this week when the Breakers’ learned that running back Marcus Dupree would be lost for the season with a knee injury. Dupree had surgery Tuesday to repair ligament damage in his left knee. The injury occurred with 2:08 remaining in last Sunday’s loss to Arizona.
Express Notes
Radio station KROQ (106.7 fm), which boasts of being one of the first stations to give local air play to such new wave groups as Oingo Boingo and Talking Heads, will broadcast tonight’s game between the Express and the Breakers. The station signed a one-game contract with the Express, which did not have a radio station for last week’s home opener against the Houston Gamblers. Tom Kelly will call the play-by-play with Kermit Alexander offering color analysis. The pregame show begins at 5:35. . . . The game will also be shown live on ESPN. . . . Would you admit to being able to name the seven Express players that remain from the 1983 opening-day roster? They are defensive tackle Eddie Weaver, linebacker Dan Rich, running back Tony Boddie, offensive guard Mike Durrette, cornerback Wymon Henderson, tight end Mike Sherrod and quarterback Russ Jensen ... For the record: It was reported in The Times earlier this week that the Express had not signed any of its draft choices this season, when in fact it had signed six. Five players were released during training camp and the other (linebacker Neil Hope) was traded to Denver for a 1986 draft choice . . . Johnnie Walton, the Breakers’ quarterback for the past two seasons, has retired to become a Portland assistant coach. The Breakers’ new quarterback is Doug Woodward.
