1985 was the third and final season for the United States Football League. There were numerous changes prior to the 1985 season. The Pittsburgh Maulers folded. The Chicago Blitz folded. The Michigan Panthers merged with the Oakland Invaders. The Arizona Wranglers and the Oklahoma Outlaws merged and became the Arizona Outlaws. The Philadelphia Stars moved to Baltimore to become the Baltimore Stars.  And finally, the Washington Federals were sold and relocated to Orlando, Florida to become the Orlando Renegades. Harry Usher became the new commissioner of the USFL in January, 1985. The four divisions were condensed into two conferences: the Eastern and Western
Conferences. On the field, the league was very competitive, with 8 teams winning at least 10 games. In the Eastern Conference, Birmingham led the way with a 13-5 record, followed close behind by New Jersey (11-7), Memphis (11-7), Baltimore (10-7-1), and Tampa Bay (10-8). In the Western Conference, Oakland would lead the way at 13-4-1, followed by Denver (11-7), and Houston (10-8). In the first round of the playoffs, it was the Birmingham Stallions over the Houston Gamblers 22-20, the Memphis Showboats over the Denver Gold 48-7, the Oakland
Invaders over the Tampa Bay Bandits 30-27, and the Baltimore Stars over the New Jersey Generals 20-17. In the second round, it was the Stars over the Stallions 28-14, and the Invaders over the Showboats 28-19, setting up the the third and final USFL Championship game between the Baltimore Stars and the Oakland Invaders, at East Rutherford, New Jersey on Friday, July 14, 1985. With all the doom and despair surrounding the season, the 1985 Championship Game was an exciting contest that was up for grabs until the very end. A good crowd of 49,263 attended the final USFL contest that started with rain pounding the Meadowlands artificial surface. The rain was a
blessing for Baltimore and its ball control offense featuring the running of Kelvin Bryant, while the weather hampered the big play Hebert to Carter passing attack. Hebert and Stars quarterback Chuck Fusina said that the new footballs used for the big game got slick and were difficult to throw. That could be part of the reason why Invader strong safety David Greenwood scored on a 44 yard interception return in the first half. The Stars contained Anthony Carter in the opening half, allowing Carter only a four yard grab. Carter, though, began to provide spark to Oakland's offense in the second half. He put the Invaders in front 24-21 with a seven yard touchdown catch from Hebert just before the start of the 4th quarter. Baltimore regained the lead with a 49 yard drive capped by a 7 yard touchdown run by Kelvin Bryant with 8 minutes and 15 seconds left to go. Oakland started its final drive, down by four points, from its own five yard line.  Oakland made its way to the Baltimore five yard line. Facing third down and two, Oakland Running Back Tom Newton was penalized 15 yards for a personal foul against Stars' cornerback Jonathan Sutton. Oakland Coach Charlie Sumner was upset that such a great game would come down to a scuffle. The penalty forced Oakland back to the Baltimore 20 with only enough time for Hebert to attempt two passes into the end zone, both of which fell incomplete to Gordon Banks. The Stars had the ball and their second consecutive USFL Championship.