Bonecrusher? Oh Yeah, <i> That</i> James Smith!

James (Bonecrusher) Smith, the only heavyweight champion in history to graduate from college, is the Democratic candidate for a seat on the county commission of Hartnett County in North Carolina.

Smith has insisted that his nickname, Bonecrusher, be listed on the ballot.

“I don’t know if just James Smith could pull it off,” he said.

Good thinking.

Bob Knight, who may become the next basketball coach at New Mexico, had this to say in a campus interview at Indiana in 1979: “I’m at my best with players who want to come here.

“I wouldn’t be successful at a New Mexico. Our program and the basketball talent in the Indiana high schools are perfect for me. You have to understand what your limitations are.”

Have you seen Greg Luzinski in that beer commercial? Big.

San Diego Manager Larry Bowa, who played with him for the Philadelphia Phillies, said: “If you took those two legs and barbecued them, you’d have enough to feed a family for a month.”

Trivia Time: Who were the Steagles? (Answer below).

Coming-full-circle Dept.: In the May 2 issue of Sports Illustrated, Buffalo Bisons’ Manager Rocky Bridges, asked how cold it was on opening day, said: “Admiral Byrd threw out the first pitch.”

The Times liked the quote so much it used it as a Quotebook in Morning Briefing the next week.

Sports Illustrated saw that and liked it so much that it ran it in its May 16 issue--the same quote two weeks apart.

Stand by for Rocky V.

Notre Dame football Coach Lou Holtz will have a weekly call-in radio show, “The Lou Holtz Show,” this fall, the Mutual Broadcasting System announced.

Holtz had a similar show at the University of Arkansas. After a game the Razorbacks lost, he came on and said, “Welcome to ‘The Lou Holtz Show.’ Unfortunately, I’m Lou Holtz.”

Wait a Minute: The headline said, “In Poll of Experts, Carl Lewis Edges Jesse Owens as Best Ever.” The story said that Owens was rated ahead of Lewis in the 100, but that Lewis was rated ahead in the 200 and the long jump.

In 1935, Owens set three world records and tied another in a single afternoon. Included were records in the 200 and the long jump. His long jump record of 26 feet 8 inches stood for 25 years.

Lewis has yet to set a world record in any event.

Add Owens: The Des Moines Register, looking back on the Drake Relays, said of Owens’ winning jump of 26-1 3/4 in 1935:

“Quick-thinking judges, aware that Jesse had launched into orbit before reaching the board, quickly marked the exact spot he had launched from the cinders. It was eight inches behind the eight-inch wide board, or 16 inches behind the point of measurement. Owens had been in the air for 27-5 inches, and without the added spring to be gained from hitting the takeoff board perfectly.”

When Bob Beamon leaped 29-2 1/2 at Mexico City in 1968, the record he broke was 27-4 3/4.

Trivia Answer: In 1943, at the height of World War II, the Philadelphia Eagles and the Pittsburgh Steelers of the NFL merged franchises and called themselves the Phil-Pitt Steagles.

Quotebook

Catcher Mike LaValliere of Pittsburgh, crediting pitcher Bob Walk’s improvement to emotional maturity: “He’ll grunt, snort and swear, but under control. If you limit him to five dammits before the third inning, he’ll win.”