Bassett Is Pursuing More NFL Draftees

Tampa Bay Bandits owner John Bassett, who earlier this week said he had signed several of the National Football League’s draft choices, is close to signing 10 to 15 more for a new spring league in 1986, John Rauch, the team’s director of football operations, said Thursday.

Meanwhile, the NFL disputed Bassett’s claim that he has already signed several players. And one of the players named by Bassett--Alabama linebacker Emanuel King, a first-round pick of the Cincinnati Bengals--also denied having signed with Bassett, who has split with the USFL over the league’s planned shift next year from spring to fall.

But the agent of Steve Calabria said the Colgate quarterback will pass up the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who drafted him in the ninth round, and sign a $2.6 million, four-year contract with the Bandits.

Before the 3-year-old colts run in Saturday’s Kentucky Derby, the 3-year-old fillies are in the spotlight today at Churchill Downs, nine of them entered in the $150,000 Kentucky Oaks.

The Oaks’ field includes five California horses--Folk Art, Fran’s Valentine, Savannah Slew, Wising Up and Rascal Lass. Also running are Koluctoo’s Jill, Lucy Manette, Foxy Deen and Naxos.

Folk Art, who will be ridden by Laffit Pincay, will be favored, mainly because of a four-length victory April 20 in an allowance race at Keeneland.

Pacific 10 basketball coaches want their players to meet with an FBI agent or “other qualified person” before the start of practice next fall to discuss the implications of drugs and gambling and the links between the two, according to Tom Hansen, the conference’s commissioner.

The coaches have asked the conference administrative committee to make it mandatory for each team to schedule such a meeting. It was reported that the conference office is compiling a list of qualified individuals, including FBI agents.

Tulane University withdrew from the Metro Conference, bowing to the wishes of a league that didn’t want a member without a basketball program.

Tulane President Eamon Kelly canceled Tulane’s basketball program in the wake of allegations of point-shaving and NCAA violations.

Bill Elliott, breaking his own all-time stock car qualifying record with a lap of 209.398 m.p.h. at Alabama International Motor Speedway, earned the pole position for Sunday’s 500-mile Grand National stock car race. He set the record of 205.114 m.p.h. in February at Daytona.

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Former World Boxing Council featherweight champion Bobby Chacon pleaded guilty to reckless driving and was fined $350 in a plea-bargain arrangement with prosecutors at Roseville, Calif. Three other charges--driving while intoxicated, possession of an open container of alcohol and possession of less than an ounce of marijuana--were dismissed.

Former two-time boxing champion Roberto Duran said he was reconsidering his current retirement and may return to the ring despite being 40 pounds overweight. He said that next week he will go to Miami to begin training.

Attilio Betteg, 32, one of Italy’s leading auto-rally drivers, was killed when his Lancia crashed on the opening day of the Tour of Corsica.