Oregon Fans Yell Foul, Stanford Band Banned

Wednesday morning, word came down from Alan Cummings, Stanford’s acting athletic director, that the Incomparable Leland Stanford Junior University Marching Band is banned from the football field until it presents an “agreeable show format.”

Its format last Saturday disagreed with fans at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Ore., where the band was booed off the field after it performed a skit that featured a lumberjack and a spotted owl.

During the show, the band’s announcer said it “has decided to shift its attention from the Oregon State Lottery to an atrocity worse than the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh. Trees and spotted owls are disappearing like crazy and everybody wants to know why.

“Mr. Spotted Owl! Mr. Spotted Owl! Your environment has been destroyed, your home is now a roll of Brawny, and your family has flown the coop. What are you going to do?

“ ‘Me, I’m going to Disneyland!’ ”

Add Stanford Band: In another number, as the band formed “POT” on the field, the announcer continued: “Does marijuana cure glaucoma? Some doctors think so. Some people don’t care. Some may front certain causes in order to protect their back yard cash crop. This puts a little twist on Ben Franklin’s saying: ‘Just remember, kids, an owl a day keeps the DEA away.’ ”

Last add Stanford Band: Said Steve Paul, University of Oregon director of bands: “Frankly, it angers me, and I find it insulting that this is news. The Stanford band is known for this kind of shtick. I guess they must try to be obnoxious. This game, they ridiculed the logging industry and the environmental movement, and lots of fans were offended.”

Trivia time: Name the longest continuous intersectional rivalry in college football.

Blue moon report: For critics of parity in pro football, this has to be a dream season.

For only the second time in the 71-year history of the NFL, six teams have won at least six of their first seven games. The last time it happened was in 1975.

And on Sunday, the San Francisco 49ers and the New York Giants could become the first two teams in 56 years to open the season with eight consecutive victories. The last time that happened was in 1934, when the Chicago Bears and the Detroit Lions each were en route to winning their first 10 games.

As expected: Notre Dame Coach Lou Holtz was right on schedule Wednesday. Despite the fact that Navy, his team’s next opponent, lost to Division I-AA opponent James Madison, 16-7, last Saturday, Holtz gave reporters his familiar appraisal of the obstacles facing the Fighting Irish.

Said Holtz: “I told our team that this game is for a bowl game, and hopefully we can win on Saturday. You look at the film, and you’re impressed with the Naval Academy defense. Their defense can be the kind that disrupts your offense.”

The Naval Academy defense ranks 65th in the nation with an average of 25 points allowed per game.

Add Holtz: As if compelled to top himself, he continued: “(The Midshipmen) throw the ball and they know what they’re doing. The improvement they’ve made has been more than remarkable. You have to be impressed with (back-up quarterback) Gary McIntosh, who has come on strong as of late. . . .

“They’re going to be a much-improved team compared to the beginning of the year. If you want to read a book on trick plays, Navy wrote it this year. You have to be ready for everything.”

Trivia answer: Notre Dame vs. Navy. On Saturday, they play for the 64th consecutive year.

Quotebook: New York Met pitcher Dwight Gooden, when asked how teammate Darryl Strawberry would do if he played for the Dodgers: “I don’t know how he would do overall, but I know what he would do when I’m pitching--four walks.”