On April 17, 1985, the St. Louis Cardinals suffered their first major defection to the rival United States Football League.

Left tackle Luis Sharpe signed a reported four-year, $2.3 million deal to join the Memphis Showboats.

The USFL was a spring/summer league that started in 1983. The league had successfully picked off NFL talent and paid top dollar for college stars, such as Herschel Walker, Jim Kelly, and Reggie White.

Sharpe was the Cardinals’ number one draft pick in 1982 out of UCLA and was named to the All-Rookie Team after his freshman season. In the three years preceding Sharpe’s arrival, the club had a composite record of 17-31. In his first three seasons in St. Louis, the team never had a losing campaign and posted an overall mark of 22-15-1.

Head coach Jim Hanifan often said he thought Sharpe was the best offensive tackle in the NFL