The WFL ("World Football League") was an upstart league designed as an alternative to the NFL in the mid 1970s. Debuting with its first season in 1974 the league played much like the old American Basketball Association; fast and loose with colorful characters and incredible stories. To generate interest in the new league team owners offered rich contracts to existing NFL stars (who in 1974 were the lowest-paid athletes in the four professional sports). Several noted players jumped to the new league including quarterbacks Daryle Lamonica Ken Stabler and Craig Morton running backs Calvin Hill and Larry Csonka and end L.C. Greenwood. The league began with 12 teams some experiencing financial difficulties before they even began play and several without a location in which to play. It seemed as if the league"s 20-game season was in jeopardy from Day One.The WFL"s rules were structured to make it a faster-moving more exciting game. Extra points were eliminated in favor of an "action point" attempt making a touchdown plus action point worth 8 total points. Missed field goals attempted from outside the red zone would be returned to the line of scrimmage and kickoffs would take place from the 30 to encourage more runbacks. No fair catches were permitted on punts and running backs were permitted to go in forward motion prior to the snap. The 1974 season was marked with colorful stories as players were sued by their NFL counterparts teams short on cash were forced to pay hotel and airfare bills in advance and the location of the league championship game needed to be moved because the host team folded after 14 weeks. After a restructuring of the league and its leadership a more refined WFL saw its debut in 1975 - to weak interest among fans and the media. After one team folded after five weeks and others were on the verge of bankruptcy the league shut down just 12 weeks into its second season.The Memphis Southmen were one of the league"s few bright spots. Initially intended to be based in Toronto (and called the "Northmen ") the Canadian government rejected the idea of an American sports team thus necessitating the move to Memphis prior to the inaugural season. Informally called the "Memph