USFL Owners Meet Today to Decide Fate

With four franchises in serious financial trouble and its owners drastically split on their future course, the United States Football League holds what may be its most fateful meeting ever today in Teaneck, N.J.

The biggest problem is what to do with the Express and its roster of high-priced players that have barely been able to draw 10,000 fans per game to the Coliseum.

The league also must decide whether to continue to play in the spring or to reaffirm the decision made last August to switch to the fall next season.

The fall-spring issue could lead to a breakup of the three-year-old league. John Bassett, owner of the Tampa Bay Bandits and the leader of the spring forces, has been threatening to secede and form a breakaway league if he fails to get the 10 votes necessary to keep the USFL on a spring schedule.

The league also must deal with the financial problems of the San Antonio, Birmingham and Houston franchises.

San Antonio, which has had a lien put on and taken off by the Internal Revenue Service, has had trouble meeting its payroll all season; Birmingham needed a $1 million transfusion from the city last week to keep going, and Houston has needed league loans to remain afloat.

Darrel McHargue, who has been close with several mounts in the Kentucky Derby, will ride in the race for the seventh time Saturday, having been given the mount on I Am the Game by Maryland trainer King Leatherbury.

McHargue becomes the sixth Hollywood Park-based jockey to obtain a Derby mount. The others are Laffit Pincay (Stephan’s Odyssey), Eddie Delahoussaye (Skywalker), Chris McCarron (Fast Account), Gary Stevens (Tank’s Prospect) and Sandy Hawley (Floating Reserve). Joe Manzi, Floating Reserve’s trainer, still hasn’t said that Floating Reserve is a definite starter, but he’s leaning toward starting the colt who finished second to Chief’s Crown in last week’s Blue Grass Stakes at Keeneland.

Out of six previous Derby rides, McHargue’s best finish was a second aboard Run Dusty Run in 1977. He was third with Jaklin Klugman in 1980 and was fourth with both Master Derby in 1975 and J.R.’s Pet in 1974. McHargue’s last Derby horse, Cassaleria, finished 13th in 1982. He rode Master Derby to an upset win in the Preakness Stakes in 1975.

Under Chris Antley in his last two starts, I Am the Game finished second to Spend a Buck in stakes at Garden State Park, losing by a combined total of 20 lengths. I Am the Game’s career record is four wins in eight starts with earnings of $212,183.

Greg Page will defend his World Boxing Assn. heavyweight title for the first time tonight against unbeaten Terry Tubbs in Buffalo, N.Y.

“I feel I’m in great condition,” said Page (24-3). “I hate to say this, but you’ll probably have to carry him home.”

Page won the title last Dec. 1 with an eighth-round knockout of Gerrie Coetzee in South Africa.

Tubbs, who is 21-0 with 15 knockouts, earned his chance at Page with a 10-round decision over James (Bonecrusher) Smith March 15 in Las Vegas.

Don West of Fresno was reported in critical condition Sunday from injuries sustained when his car slammed into a wall at Mesa Marin Raceway in Bakersfield during a Super Modified Race Assn. event Saturday night.