February 20, 1974
By Wire Services
In less time than it would have taken a matador to unfurl his red cape, the Boston Bulls of the World Football League have bid ole and au revoir to the Hub to seek the greener pastures of Staten Island.
The Bulls, owned by Howard Baldwin, will merge with the New York franchise, the property of Robert Schmertz, those two men being the president and chairman of the board of the New England Whalers in the World Hockey Association.
Both parties agreed, along with the governing body of the WFL, that two people competing in one sport while being partners in another is not in the best interest of the WFL.
Equally important, however, is the fact that the football team plagued by the lack of a suitable playing facility in the Boston area and the "worsening energy shortage completely eliminating the potential use of Schaefer Stadium in Foxboro."
The Bulls, or Gotham-ites, or whatever name the merged franchises will be known as have set their sights on playing in Yankees Stadium in two years when the multi-million-dollar remodeling project is completed there.
The entire Boston staff, headed by coach Babe Parilli, the four announced signees (George Sauer, Tom Beer, Mike Walker and Pete Rajecki) and the 35 unannounced players that have supposedly agreed to terms will make shift to New York.
Elsewhere in the WFL, the Honolulu franchise, expected to initiate play during the 1975-76 season, has announced the signing of New York Giants' strong safety Richmond Flowers, who will play out his option in the NFL during the upcoming season.
Gary Davidson, WFL president, also announced yesterday the league would hold a draft of NFL and Canadian Football League players March 18-19 "solely for negotiating rights."
The fledging league reportedly has a $1 million television contract with TVS Sports Network which will begin pumping its product into your living rooms each Thursday night from mid-July to mid-November.