WideRight

On 9/22/2024 at 1:41 AM, heavybass said:

Concerned which natural disaster forced a relocation.

Not to give it away, but I will say that it was a real event, but one that IRL did not cause a lot of damage, but I am embellishing by having it strike with more ferocity and have more impact. 

Just like my playing with issues like player career lengths, illnesses, drug or crime issues of players, and, for example, delaying illness for John Bassett and Jim Johnson, I am using a real, but minor, natural event, modified to create a greater effect in this alternative universe. 

Who knows, maybe I will imprison Robert Kraft for his massage parlor issues and then when he is forced to sell the Patsies a USFL team could come back to New England.  Or not.  After all, this is a a league where Tom Brady won two titles for the Generals and then went to play for the Cowboys (winning them 3 titles), so it is just not tied to reality in every single way. 

The same will also almost certainly be the case when we get to 2020 and COVID. I am not going to remove such a huge event from history, but I may treat it differently than real leagues did in the spring/summer of 2020.  In part this is due to the limitations of the Draft Day 2021 Pro Football software I use for simulation, and in part for narrative purposes.  We will see.  I have not fully decided what to do about 2020 yet. 

On 9/15/2024 at 10:43 PM, CincyReds said:

How bad did the vipers win the vote?

It was a blowout, something like 30 to 5 to 4.  No question what the fan favorite was.  

Still a bit away from revealing the Adidas updates for 2016, since the 2015 season is not kicking off for about a week, but here are some things on the way:

1.  A relocation forced upon a team by a natural disaster (Stadium irreparable)

2. A pick-the-logo contest for a team revamp where you get to pick the new design.

3. Discussion of expansion is not far off.  Will the USFL go to 30 or 32 teams?

4. A new contract with a new uniform provider just might bring about the "Age of Alternates"

     (OK, not to worry on this one. I hate the Nike-ification of sports with teams having 27 alternates. It won't be that crazy.)

5. What is the ripple effect when an NFL club moves shop to Las Vegas, and who will do it?  LA Raiders, San Diego Chargers, St. Louis Rams?  The presence of the USFL could alter history or it could confirm it. 

2015 could be a very interesting year indeed. 

Pretty sure the only dolphin in the waters off the Bronx is "Joey the Dolphin" a minor player in the Gambino Crime Family who, shall we say, had himself a little accident. 

I would honestly try to reduce the amount of Black in the CFL.  There are only 9 teams and 4 of them use Black as their primary or secondary color (Ottawa, BC, Calgary, Hamilton).  That is too much.   I would recommend:

Make BC's primary color orange and use black as the secondary. 

Minimize the use of black for Calgary, there is no need for it. 

Keep Hamilton the same, and have Ottawa be black and red balanced. 

And just because I have not done this in a while, here is the breakdown of where the team logos for each club come from:

BALTIMORE:    Primary-Original,  Secondary--Orlando Rage XFL 1.0

NEW JERSEY: Primary--USFL 2.0    Secondary--USFL 2.0

PHILADELPHIA:  Primary--Modified USFL 2.0,  Secondary--modified Philly Bell WFL

PITTSBURGH: Primary--modified USFL 2.0    Secondary--original

WASHINGTON: Primary--modified USFL,   Secondary--Dept. of Homeland Security crest

ATLANTA:  Primary--original (based on Birmingham Fire WLAF)    Secondary--Arizona Hotshots AAF

CHARLOTTE: Primary--Atlanta Legends AAF    Secondary--modified Hudson Valley Fort FXFL

JACKSONVILLE: {Primary--Original (modified USFL)     Secondary--original

ORLANDO:  Primary--Original (heavily modified USFL)

TAMPA BAY: Primary--USFL 2.0    Secondary--Dallas Renegades  XFL 2.0

BIRMINGHAM:  Primary--Denver Broncos unused      Secondary--USFL 2.0

HOUSTON: Primary--USFL    Secondary-- Modified element of original USFL

MEMPHIS: Primary--USFL      Secondary--USFL 2.0

NEW ORLEANS:  Primary--Original, based on USFL     Secondary--USFL 2.0

CHICAGO:  Primary--Original      Secondary-- Houston Roughnecks XFL 3.0

MICHIGAN:  Primary--U. of Houston     Secondary--USFL 2.0

OHIO:  Primary--Modified WLAF      Secondary--Original

ST. LOUIS:  Primary--Mix of WLAF Skyhawks and Atlanta Hawks.      Secondary-- Battlehawks XFL 2.0

ARIZONA:  Primary--Original, modified USFL    Secondary--Original, modified USFL

DALLAS:  Primary--Roughnecks XFL 2.0     Secondary--Arlington Renegades XFL 3.0

DENVER:  Primary--Concept by Fraser Davidson    Secondary--Denver Nuggets

LAS VEGAS:  TBD

TEXAS: Primary-- modified San Antonio Texans CFL USA   Secondary--Ottawa Renegades CFL

LOS ANGELES: Primary-Original, modified USFL     Secondary-- LA Xtreme XFL 1.0

OAKLAND: Primary-Modified USFL    Secondary-- Modified DC Defenders XFL 2.0

PORTLAND: Primary--Edmonton Elks CFL     Secondary--modifed Edmonton Elks CFL

SAN DIEGO: Primary--Berlin Thunder  WLAF     Secondary--Original, modified Orlando Thunder WLAF

SEATTLE: Primary-- Seattle Dragons  XFL 3.0     Secondary--Modified Seattle Kraken NHL

Hi all,

We are only days away from the reveal of Las Vegas's new identity, but in the meantime, here are the 4 teams that will have their designs updated by Adidas during the 2015 (with the uniforms debuting in 2016):

Seattle Dragons

Charlotte Monarchs

Denver Gold

Ohio Glory

But remember, we are not done with franchise changes.  We have a few issues coming up between 2015-2018 that will lead to significant changes, and I am fully planning an expansion to 30 teams (the final total in this alt history) by 2020.  

More to come, and pretty soon. 

Early voting is in and Vipers is clearly in the lead.  As of a few minutes ago, the vote was:

Vipers  14

Posse     5

Locos     2

You can vote at the Alt History, USFL LIVES website: https://apsbertsche.wixsite.com/mysite/vegaspoll

Or, if you want to go directly to the poll (which hurts my feelings just a touch), you can vote here: 

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/TFG6SJ9

Voting is open until August 21 (Week 12 of the USFL's 2014 Season)

Early voting seems to be leaning heavily towards the Vipers:

Vipers    7

Posse     3

Locos     2

Voting stays open through Week 11 of the USFL schedule, which means through through August 21st.  

https://apsbertsche.wixsite.com/mysite/vegaspoll

The final design, the Las Vegas Vipers.  Voting opens tomorrow at: https://apsbertsche.wixsite.com/mysite

And the second of the three, the Las Vegas Locos.

As we build up to the official voting opening on the 12th, i will post the full design sheets for each team.  We start with the Posse, which has gotten the least love so far from the comments.  

Ok, everyone.  The official voting, and my reveal of the full uniform sets for all three designs, will be coming on August 12 (Week 9 of the USFL 2014 season) on the Alt History website, but I thought I would give the folks on these boards an early peak by revealing the three LV identity options and their logos.  All three share the same color scheme of Deseret Blue (powder blue), Silverado (metallic silver) and black.   Three identities inspired by three "real world" teams in three different leagues:  The CFL-USA Posse, the UFL Locos, and the XFL 3.0 Vipers. The color scheme comes from the inaugural season of the UFL, when all 4 teams shared the same 4 colors (sky blue, lime green, silver, black), with each team using 3 of the 4, and Las Vegas being silver-dominant with blue and black.   The colors will also play a factor in which NFL team will join the USFL in the new dome in Las Vegas, possibly the black and silver Raiders moving from LA, or possibly the San Diego Chargers and their own powder blue identity.  

So, here are the three identities.  Voting will start on the Alt History site on August 12 and extend for 4 USFL weeks (about 15 days IRL).   We have not revealed which USFL team is relocating to Las Vegas, but we will soon know the new look and name they will take on. 

OPTION 1-- LAS VEGAS LOCOMOTIVES (LOCOS)

I stuck to the main logo for the UFL Locos, which i thought worked better with blue than when they switched to red.  I will not be using the helmet stripe logo from the UFL, but will try to incorporate some "railroad track" motifs along with the cow-catcher motif where I can.  

OPTION 2--LAS VEGAS POSSE

Definitely not the same color scheme of the brown & gold CFL club, and I am really not using any CFL logos here.  The riders logo is a new one, based on the "riding off into the sunset" cliché of western films.  The helmet logo comes from a modifcation of an Arena League 2 team called the Laredo Law, mixed with the CFL Posse's use of a star logo.  The tertiary is based on the XFL's Las Vegas Outlaws, a name I could not use since the Texas Outlaws are already based on a combo of the USFL Oklahoma Outlaws and the CFL San Antonio Texans.  

OPTION 3--LAS VEGAS VIPERS

Lots of inspiration here from the XFL Vipers from both Orlando and Las Vegas, but I put more emphasis on the snake head logo than the monogram V logo.  Both will be used, but I like the snake head better as a helmet logo.  I created a tertiary just to have all three teams with the same number of logos.  Not sure how I will use it. 

So, more to come on August 12. 

Hi all, Sorry but the stories about Las Vegas's relocation and the relocation to Las Vegas will still be a while in coming (at least the design parts). In the meantime, here are a few tidbits for you:

Between 2015 and 2020 in the Alt History USFL, you should expect to see the following:

• 3  Team relocations (including Las Vegas leaving, a team coming to Las Vegas and a new city "stealing" a team.
• Expansion in either 2019 or 2020 to bring the league to 30 teams.  Will they replace lost franchises or explore new cities?
• COVID-20 producing chaos for 2 years (sorry, unavoidable. Can't pretend it did not happen). 
• Adidas losing the USFL contract and the new uniform provider updating all 28/30 teams over a 5 year span.

And, just to throw some images your way, here are the next 3 Summer Bowl Logos.

2014 ATLANTA

2015 LOS ANGELES

2016 NEW JERSEY

Love the idea, and not just because if anyone on Earth is actually Ferengi, it's FIFA. 

I am rooting for the Vulcans, but I think the Borg Mannschaft has it this year. 

We will know which federation planet is getting ousted first if they wear red jerseys. 

This is tough.  I don’t want to give too much away and have to remember that where I am in producing stories and results is about 20-30 days ahead of the website.  For example, I am working on Week 3 of the 2014 season, which will publish on July 25, right now but have to remember that the published stories are at the 2013 Summer Bowl. 

So, I can say that the Las Vegas situation will play out in the offseason and 1st half of the 2014 season.  That Vegas is moving, but will be replaced and that the USFL will lose 1 current identity to add a new Las Vegas identity which is based (loosely, depending on who wins the name the team vote) on a real football team that has played in Las Vegas.  

Just as a hint, all 3 Las Vegas options will be based on teams that played in Las Vegas IRL.  That limits it quite a bit.  

Get ready folks, there will be a fan poll to pick the next identity for a Las Vegas USFL team after the Thunder make their move official.  The city, and its new domed stadium, will get a new tenant and that tenant will get a new identity.  

Here is the premise:  I have 3 different identities selected, all from real teams from a variety of leagues.  You will get the chance to vote as to which one the club will use.  So, what are the options, and which would you want to lobby for? 

Coming very soon. 

18 hours ago, oldschoolvikings said:

The Washington Whizzers!!!

Hi All,

I realize that I have not posted much lately.  Life has been busy and just keeping the Alt History USFL going has been a lot.  But, I wanted to catch you up, so here are the new looks for 4 USFL teams in 2014.  No relocation or new teams for 2014, but that may well change by 2015 with the Las Vegas Thunder being league owned and desperate for a new owner.   But for 2014, here are the new looks:

ATLANTA

LOS ANGELES

OAKLAND

ST. LOUIS (With the helmet vote winner)

And as a bonus, the 2014 Summer Bowl Logo

 Other Media

18 hours ago, Dozap17 said:

I see on the main site there's going to be a new St. Louis Skyhawks helmet, will there be a vote on that?

Yes there is and the vote is now open.  XFL/UFL fans will recognize some of the options. 

Here are the 4 choices.  Hit the website to vote:  https://apsbertsche.wixsite.com/mysite

Just realized that 3 of the 4 images say OPTION 3.  Oops.  On the vote there actually 4 different numbers.  I will fix this tonight when I get home. 

I never feel more like an old man than when I see a uniform I absolutely detest for being "kewl" and 
"xtreme" and see a bunch of comments about how it is "".  Pretty much if any one says a new look is fire, I know I am going to hate it.  

Guess I will just go back to watching old USFL games on YouTube and yelling at those punk kids to get off my lawn, because watching most NFL games is going to just be painful.  At least Bills-Jets games will look good this year, as long as they don't break out those horrible black alternates. 

My takes so far:

NY JETS

LOVE: The callback to the Jets of my youth with the green & white sets.  

LIKE: The addition of green pants.

NOT SO MUCH: The entire black set, unneeded, ugly, and just gratuitous.  A throwback Namath era would have been a better option.

DETROIT LIONS

LOVE: Use of consistent striping from helmet to sleeve to pants (silver only)

LIKE: Traditional block font is fine with me.  No more all grey or all white looks. 

NOT SO MUCH: Stripeless pants and another gratuitous BFBS alternate.

DENVER BRONCOS

LOVE: The jerseys, overall really strong.  Pant stripes. The throwback alts. 

LIKE: The use of 3 jerseys to have both orange and black alts. 

NOT SO MUCH: a bit too much with the triangles. The helmet stripe is godawful.  No striping on socks. 

Overall a pretty decent year for Nike so far, no truly horrible looks, just a few items that need to be adjusted (Detroit pants all need stripes, Denver helmet stripe, Jets need a throwback).  

10 hours ago, MJWalker45 said:

I think any updates would probably be closer to the 2020 version, but I would think this is just the next evolution of the derrick. 

This.  

Looks a bit like the Kansas City Recorders.  Would the new fight song be "Hot Cross Buns"?  

No, seriously, the spear is very thin and I am not sure what the stripes on it represent.  I would also say that the tip looks less like a spearhead (see FSU) than a directional arrow from wingdings.  Sorry, but it does not read as a spear.  

Well, my Switchbacks made the cut, but not so sure about that new logo.  I will wait and see.