The late Dick Schapp conducted Flutie's first ever pro football interview by making a comparison with the legend Joe Namath of the old AFL. Donald Trump is even quoted in this piece saying he thinks Doug Flutie of the USFL is the Joe Namath of the AFL.
In 1985 Trump went after one of the most sought after college football players that year. Doug Flutie was supposed to be the successor to then NJ Generals starting QB Brian Sipe but Sipe was traded a week before the Generals preseason game against Orlando thus Flutie was thrown into the fire without the benefit of having a mentor to guide him.
Some say it was Donald himself who ordered head coach Walt Michaels to trade Sipe and put Flutie as a starter in a marketing scheme to help sell tickets. Whether true or not despite a slow start and a broken collarbone, Flutie threw for 2,109 yards with 13 TDs and 14 picks and scrambled for 465 yards and six touchdowns, a decent first season considering the pressure he was under.
