Scalpers Better Map a New Plan

While her loyal sons are marching onward to victory, Notre Dame is doing her best to weed out a bunch of entrepreneurs trying to get in on a good thing.

Before Saturday’s game with Michigan at South Bend, Ind., eight off-duty police officers, dressed in jeans and sweat shirts and carrying signs that read “Need Tickets,” rounded up 24 scalpers and escorted them off campus, issuing each a written warning that he would be prosecuted for trespassing if caught a second time. (Scalping is legal in Indiana, but is against Notre Dame policy.)

No award was given, but Saturday’s most creative Notre Dame-Michigan scalper had to be the man who offered two free tickets with the purchase of a campus map. Just $200.

Trivia time: Before last Saturday and Sunday, when was the last time USC, UCLA, the Rams and the Raiders all won during the same two-day weekend?

Seams like yesterday: Sunday wasn’t the first time the Seattle Kingdome’s artificial surface snagged a Los Angeles player. Defensive end Howie Long, who broke his foot in the Raiders’ victory over the Seahawks, could swap stories with former Ram quarterback Pat Haden.

Shortly before halftime of a game between the Rams and Seahawks in 1979, Haden was on a roll, having completed 17 of 21 attempts, including a club-record 13 in a row, with two touchdowns. But he went down, caught the little finger of his passing hand in a seam of the artificial turf, broke the finger and was lost for the rest of the season.

Add artificial turf: The late Ray Malavasi, Ram Coach at the time, replaced Haden with Jeff Rutledge. The Rams won, 24-0.

The Ram defense that day set an NFL record for fewest yards allowed, minus seven, and tied another by allowing no first downs rushing.

Last add artificial turf: Raider fans will note that 1979 was the year the Rams went 9-7 and reached the Super Bowl.

Man of the people: More than $1 million has been contributed to a fund for Yale University graduate student fellowships, established in honor of A. Bartlett Giamatti, the late baseball commissioner and Yale president.

Among the contributors are Commissioner Fay Vincent, Calvin Hill, former Yale and NFL running back and a vice president of the Baltimore Orioles; Yogi Berra, the Sporting News and several major league teams.

That’s a gimme: Ten-year-old Courtney Bishop had a good view of the four-foot putt Ken Green missed on the par-three, 15th hole during Saturday’s third round of the Canadian Open at Glen Abbey in Oakville, Ontario.

Now she has his putter.

Said Courtney, who was standing beside the green with her parents: “He came over, knelt down and said, ‘Here, little girl, I hope this putter treats you better than it did me, honey,’ and then laid it in my arms. . . .

“I just mouthed the words, ‘Thank you.’ ”

Green, who finished the round with a 79, seven over par, called Glen Abbey from Pittsburgh Sunday morning to say he missed his 8:58 a.m. tee time.

Trivia answer: On Saturday, Oct. 25, 1986, USC defeated Stanford, 10-0, and UCLA defeated Washington State, 54-16. On Sunday, Oct. 26, the Rams defeated Atlanta, 14-7, and the Raiders defeated Houston, 28-17.

Quotebook: Detroit Lion assistant coach Mouse Davis, on why he does 55 sit-ups every morning: “Anybody can do 50.”