Welcome to Late Night Retro Television Reviews, a feature where we review some of our favorite and least favorite shows of the past! On Wednesdays, I will be reviewing 1st and Ten, which aired in syndication from 1984 to 1991. The entire series is streaming on Tubi.

This week, OJ Simpson makes things awkward.

Episode 3.2 “A Second Chance Once Removed”

(Dir by Stan Lathan, originally aired on August 12th, 1987)

With Coach Denardo no longer around, Diana has kept her promise and promoted Fred Grier to head coach.  However, Diana’s boyfriend and the new co-owner of the Bulls, Teddy, wants to hire T.D.’s old college coach, Red Macklin (John Robinson).  Though T.D. isn’t comfortable with the idea of betraying Fred or doing anything behind Diana’s back, he does agree that Macklin would be a better coach.  After an argument with his wife, T.D. flies out to his old college.

T.D. doesn’t do a very good job of selling the team to Macklin.  Macklin finally says, “You don’t want to be the head coach of the Bulls, do you?”  T.D. says that he does but the position has already been given to Fred and T.D. doesn’t believe in doing things without being upfront with everyone because …. well, I’ll let T.D. explain it….

This episode is a good example of what happens when one of a show’s main characters is played by someone who is now best-known for somehow getting acquitted of stabbing his ex-wife and a waiter to death.  Even the most innocuous of lines seem to take on an entirely different meaning.  I have to admit that I cringed every time T.D.’s wife called and said that he was working too hard and spending too much time with the team.  No, I wanted to yell, don’t make him mad….

As for the rest of the episode, it largely dealt with training camp.  Veteran defensive player John Manzak (John Matuszak) fears that he won’t make the team.  There’s a young rookie who seems to have more energy and strength than him.  However, Manzak has a secret weapon …. steroids!  I cannot imagine that this is going to end well.

Meanwhile, the government wants to deport the Bulgarian kicker, Zagreb (John Kassir).  Zagreb applies for political asylum but it turns out that his father is some sort of official in the Bulgarian government and, as such, Zagreb would not be in any danger if he was sent back home.  (I don’t really follow that logic, to be honest.  Communist dictators, like Zagreb’s father, are notoriously unsentimental when it comes to their children.  Fidel Castro had children all over the world and he didn’t leave Cuba to a single one of them.  Instead, Justin had to settle for Canada.)  Diana has a solution, though.  They have to find Zagreb a wife.  Again, I cannot imagine that this is going to end well.

Meanwhile, Yinessa is still holding out for money, Bubba is still arguing with his wife, and I’m still not sure what Jethro does on the team.

This episode of 1st & Ten …. actually, it wasn’t that bad.  I could actually follow the story for once and it didn’t feel like it had been cut to ribbons for syndication.  John Matuszak actually gave a very touching performance as a player who might be past his prime.  Hopefully, things will work out for him.  We’ll find out next week!