Once, the Patriots Had All the Chips

It figures to be a close game Sunday between the New York Jets and the New England Patriots, but it hasn’t always been so.

Center Joe Fields of the Jets can remember years when the Patriots were not only beating the Jets but were doing so by big numbers.

He told George Usher of Newsday: “Frito-Lay offered to put up $100 for the Boys Club of Boston for every point scored against us. For a lot of years, the Boys Club people were driving Mercedes.”

Add Usher: Recalling when ex-Jet assistant coach Clive Rush became head coach of the Patriots in 1970, he wrote: “The team played at Boston College then, and in a game against the Jets, Rush stood on the bench and faced the stands about 15 feet away. He explained later that spectators had been climbing the fence to steal helmets and footballs, and he wanted to catch them red-handed. He might have been worried about his own safety, too, for fans once set his bench on fire.”

Trivia Time: Name a running back who has blocked for three different Heisman Trophy winners. (Answer below.)

For What It’s Worth: Today, Terry Donahue will try to do something not even Red Sanders could do--beat USC four years in a row.

In 1956, Jess Hill’s Trojans ended a three-year Bruin reign with a 10-7 win. The big score came on a trick play, a 14-yard pass from fullback C.R. Roberts to receiver Hillard Hill.

For the Record: A trivia item on Hall of Fame running backs Red Grange, Hugh McElhenny and Ollie Matson failing to gain 1,000 yards in a season should have specified “in the NFL.” McElhenny and Matson did it in college, and Grange would have, except that Illinois was playing eight-game seasons. In Illinois’ 39-14 win over Michigan in 1924, Grange scored five touchdowns and passed for a sixth. In all-purpose yardage, he totaled 402 yards on 21 carries.

Add Forgettable Quotes: In Sports Illustrated’s 1985 football preview edition, Paul Zimmerman said of Chicago’s drafting of William Perry: “Picking Perry was an arrogant move by the Bears. They were saying we’re so good we can go for a gamble, a project. A fleet cornerback would have made more sense, or maybe a wideout to give their talented young quarterback Jim McMahon an extra target.”

Well, how did he know Perry would become a wideout--the widest out, in fact.

Add Bears: If you’re wondering how they’ve managed to overtake the Dallas Cowboys, here are the first-round draft choices of the two clubs, starting in 1979:

Cowboys: Robert Shaw, Howard Richards, Rod Hill, Jim Jeffcoat, Billy Cannon Jr., Kevin Brooks.

Bears: Al Harris, Dan Hampton, Keith Van Horne, Jim McMahon, Willie Gault, Jimbo Covert, Wilber Marshall, William Perry.

Trivia Answer: Kenny King of the Raiders. He has blocked for Billy Sims (Oklahoma), Earl Campbell (Houston Oilers) and Marcus Allen (Raiders).

Note: He has also blocked for and caught passes from Jim Plunkett, the Heisman quarterback from Stanford. In Super Bowl XV, the big play was an 80-yard pass play from Plunkett to King as the Raiders beat the Philadelphia Eagles, 27-10.

Quotebook

Pat Cassidy of Chicago, co-chairman of the William (Refrigerator) Perry Fan Club, on plans for a postseason banquet: “We’ll make a real effort to serve only fattening foods.”