This Super Bowl Was Arrestingly Close

Poor Joel Quesada. His teams are having rotten luck these days.

First, Denver got creamed, 55-10, by San Francisco in Super Bowl XXIV. Then, on Saturday evening, the Magnum Force of the Metro Dade-Miami police departments held off the Los Angeles police Centurions, 24-21, in the Super Police Bowl at the Memorial Coliseum.

“They lucked out,” growled the 11-year-old youngster. “The 49ers stole the game from Denver, and now this. I still like LAPD. They got cool uniforms.”

Joel and his five buddies from Arlington Heights Elementary School in midtown Los Angeles were among the estimated 20,000 fans who saw the charity game at the Memorial Coliseum.

The game is part of an effort by several law enforcement agencies around the country to raise funds for anti-drug programs and other programs for youths.

Proceeds from Saturday’s game were earmarked for Los Angeles’ Drug Abuse Resistance Education (DARE) program, the cancer and burn wards at Childrens Hospital in Hollywood and the Blind Childrens in Los Angeles, the Partners for Youth program in Miami and the United Way of Miami.

The clash between the two police departments’ unbeaten teams--each had defeated the New York Police Department earlier in their only other contests this season--had the trappings of a police love-in. The crowd, many of them youngsters sporting black DARE T-shirts, cheered LAPD’s precision motorcycle team before the game began.

Police helicopters were waved at. Antique police cars were admired. And the combined demonstration at halftime by the Special Weapons and Tactics Team and an Air Support group elicited disbelieving gasps.

The only booing from the partisan crowd was reserved for the Magnum Force.

Up in Section 5, Row 73, Joel and friends were on the Miami team from the opening kickoff.

“You can’t play,” 13-year-old Saul Hernandez screamed at one Miami tight end. “Get off the field. My grandmother can play better than that.”

“Yeah, your grandmother is bad ,” agreed pal William Prado Jr., 12.

Behind quarterback Nathaniel Koonce, Miami built a 21-7 halftime lead and later parlayed a field goal in the fourth quarter to nip the Centurions, who rallied for two late touchdowns.

The six boys, however, were far from downcast in defeat. Well except, maybe, for Joel.

“Here, write this down,” Joel commanded a reporter. “I don’t take drugs because it’s stupid. I mean that. The Centurions are OK. They played Miami tough.

“Denver? I’ll never root for them again.”