A Lighter Look at Glasnost Bowl

“Pardon me for asking,” writes Tony Kornheiser of the Washington Post, “but the Glasnost Bowl? USC and Illinois playing in Moscow in the friendly confines of Dynamo Stadium. This must be a new trend in college football, a permanent cold-weather site.

“Why USC and Illinois? They’re a traditional Tatar rivalry? At least Nebraska is a big red machine, and Soviet Georgians might prefer a team with a bit more dawg in it. It could be a great recruiting tool, though:

“Sign with us, kid, you can see Red Square.”

“Is that anywhere near Pullman?”

“We’re playing in Russia.”’

“On turf or grass?”

“Is that all you care about?”

“No. What kind of courtesy cars?”

Add Recruiting: Cliff Robinson, 6-11 University of Connecticut center who was named to the preseason All-East team, told the Hartford Courant about a visit he made to the University of Oklahoma.

“I got picked up at the airport in a limo and they took us directly to dinner,” he said. “We had these steaks--crazy, thick steaks. They had these alumni set up like adopted parents out there. And the cheerleader who showed me around, she was nice.

“It definitely had my head spinning. It was tempting. But I decided whoever’s letter of intent came in the mail first--that was where I was going. UConn’s came first.”

Add Robinson: He said he used to be spoiled and shoot too much but that he’s learned to adapt to the system.

“I’m still spoiled,” he said. “I just have better ways of hiding it. I know when to be spoiled and when not to. Now I’m just spoiled when it comes to things like Christmas or my birthday.”

Trivia Time: Coaches Larry Smith of USC and Don Nehlen of West Virginia, whose teams are unbeaten this year, have what in common? (Answer below.)

Add Smith: He says UCLA is faster than USC and would beat the Trojans in a track meet, but how about a relay team of tailbacks Scott Lockwood, Ricky Ervins and Calvin Holmes and wide receiver Gary Wellman? All were league sprint champions in high school.

In the 1987 California state championships, Holmes was second in the 100 meters and Ervins eighth. In 1986, Wellman was fifth after leading at 50 meters. Lockwood was the 1986 Junior Olympics 60-yard champion.

From Wallace Matthews of Newsday: “Funny how you never realize how much you could miss a guy like Trevor Berbick. The day of the Leonard-Lalonde fight, a Canadian reporter asked Berbick how he thought Lalonde’s size advantage would affect Leonard, citing probable weights of 162 and 168. ‘Hmm, 162 . . . 168 . . . that’s 10 pounds, isn’t it?’ asked Berbick.

“Aah, Trevor. It’s good to have you back.”

Trivia Answer: Both went to Bowling Green.

Quotebook

Craig Fertig, former USC quarterback and assistant coach who is the new associate athletic director at UC Irvine: “There’s a rumor we’re going to start playing football. The first call I get is from Terry Donahue. He wants to schedule us.”