Blue Devils Just Looked Like the Devil

When the Central Connecticut State Blue Devils lost to St. John’s last Saturday, they looked horrible.

They looked so bad, in fact, that Coach Mike Brown said the team plans to file a civil lawsuit for breach of promise against Russell Corp., the Alabama-based sportswear company. He said Russell made an oral commitment last summer to deliver Central Connecticut State’s game uniforms before the 1990 season began.

They didn’t arrive, and the team wore practice uniforms in its first two games, including a 135-92 loss to St. John’s on regional television.

Said Brown: “It is just not right. We are trying to build a credible program, and I am ripped that we come to New York and play on TV and we look like a bunch of ragamuffins.”

Add ragamuffins: The Blue Devils don’t know how much longer their thrift-shop look will last, because when Russell called to say the outfits would be late, the company set no new delivery date.

Said Brown: “The kids came to me and asked what kind of recourse they had against the company. Dennis Murphy, our captain, had the idea for the lawsuit and the kids are serious about it. This is not just a lark, this is for real.”

Trivia time: Which two teams played the only doubleheader in NFL history?

A little too gamy: Steve Hellyer, the University of Oregon’s sports information director, was in Anaheim last week to prepare for his football team’s visit to the Freedom Bowl, where it plays Colorado State Dec. 29.

While dining at the restaurant where the Oregon team dinner will be held, Hellyer made one request: “Would you please remove ‘Grilled Duck’ from the menu?”

Dialing for Dawgs: Former USC linebacker Marcus Cotton, recently waived by the Atlanta Falcons and picked up by the Cleveland Browns, told Ed Meyer of the Akron Beacon-Journal why he has two phones in his Mercedes 750 SL.

Said Cotton: “I’m a businessman as well as a football player. One’s a business phone. One’s a pleasure phone.”

Noting Cotton was fined 11 times in Atlanta, Meyer wrote: “The Browns were able to acquire Cotton . . . because, according to the word from Falcon Coach Jerry Glanville, the bill on the pleasure phone was too high.”

Aptly named: From Phil Jackman of the Baltimore Evening Sun: “Maryland vs. Louisiana Tech in the Poulan-Weed Eater Independence Bowl Dec. 15, come on! It extends the season a month, falls during exams when the school is making large noises about academic upgrading and further reduces the players to simple chattels to be used for the purpose of making a few bucks.”

Add Jackman: “Meanwhile, a team like Temple goes from a 1-10 season to 7-4, seemingly is deserving of a reward (no one plays the game for the game itself these days) and is blanked. Obviously, there are not enough bowls with ‘just’ 19.”

Bite, ball, bite!: South African golfer Butch Kruger had a good round going in the central Orange Free State trials, until a mongoose-like animal grabbed his ball with its mouth and dropped down its hole.

Kruger wrote on his card: “Meerkat.”

Ben de Wet, assistant curator of the Bloemfontein Zoo, erased all doubt when he told Reuters: “A meerkat could pick up a golf ball with its teeth.”

Trivia answer: The Green Bay Packers and the Pittsburgh Pirates played two exhibition games on Aug. 25, 1939. The first game ended in a 7-7 tie, and the Packers won the nightcap, 17-0.

Quotebook: Wisconsin Coach Barry Alvarez, after two players collided with him on the sideline, injuring his knee: “A lesser athlete would still be down.”