Robinson’s Resignation From Rams Tops County’s Top 20 List

And onto the list to end all lists for 1991, the Orange County 20--the 20 people, places and things that made the past athletic year all that it was, and wasn’t:

1. John Robinson: His resignation was the story of the year--from Georgia Frontiere’s post-playoff hugs and gushes (“You’re the greatest coach in the world!”) to that somber farewell press conference, all within the span of 23 months. He never made it to a Super Bowl, but for the first seven of his nine years in Anaheim, he kept the Rams entrenched among the NFL’s elite, and for that, you hated to see him go out as the butt of so many cruel jokes (“Now we know what those ‘John 3:16’ signs mean. It’s Robinson’s record.”) Remember the good times--Eric Dickerson without an attitude, Jim Everett with an ounce of confidence, the trips to the 1985 and 1989 NFC finals--and imagine what might have been had Robinson worked for a front office that cared.

2. Wally Joyner: By the end, he wasn’t particularly popular among his teammates; over the years, Wally’s World had grown increasingly insular. But put him on the field, put a bat or a glove in his hand and you quickly understood his popularity among the fans. Gene and Jackie Autry never could and let personal animosity intrude where cool business sense was required. The Autrys’ loss of vision will prove to be the Kansas City Royals’ gain. Anybody for “Von’s World”?

3. Mike Powell: He broke Bob Beamon’s unbreakable long jump record and broke it by a full two inches. During the 1980s, he attended UC Irvine. It’s been such a dreary sports year, can we at least claim this one?

4. Bill Mulligan: His last three seasons at UC Irvine were 12-17, 5-23 and 11-19. His once irascible self had sagged similarly. Both coach and program needed a change and in February, Mulligan finally chucked it all for . . . well, a post-basketball life of far too much inactivity. By November, Mulligan was killing time by pushing pizzas for friend Joe Rubino, and truly seemed to be happy. Next time you see Bill, ask him for a medium pepperoni.

5. Doug Rader: In effect, he was fired just as soon as Montreal fired Buck Rodgers, an old favorite of Gene Autry from the Angels’ expansion days. Just like in the movies, Gene got his man, which meant someone had to take the fall, which meant Rader. Rader’s biggest accomplishment in Anaheim: dredging the franchise up from post-Cookie Rojas malaise and winning 91 games on a shoestring in 1989. His biggest mistake: Buying into the myth of Dave Parker and the utter fantasy that, yes, the Angels could win the West in 1991.

6. Mike Port: History is already grading him on a kinder scale, now that he’s gone and Von Hayes and Hubie Brooks are here. Port’s personality is what got him fired--like most humans, Richard Brown often found it impenetrable--but some of his last maneuvers as Angel GM (Dave Winfield, Luis Polonia) were among his best. Funny, too, about that long-standing Port-Joyner feud. As soon as Port leaves, Joyner can hardly wait to do the same.

7. Jim Everett: If Robinson ever needed a helping hand, 1991 was it. Sorry, Everett’s hands were too busy fumbling center snaps, throwing a career-high 20 interceptions and failing to throw a touchdown pass until mid-October. Allegedly, Everett was miffed at Robinson for being pulled from the Rams’ listless season finale in Seattle, but, really, who bailed on whom this year?

8. Cherokee Parks: He swung and missed at a championship when he and Marina High lost to Santa Barbara in the 5-A final, but his dunk-and-cover virtuoso in the semifinals against Mater Dei was absolute proof: Parks was the best big man to ever play in Orange County. And as for that championship, he might get a chance at Duke.

9. Billy Blanton: He passed for 3,485 yards, he threw for 36 touchdowns, he led underdog Mater Dei High to the Division I football championship. He played the most effective quarterback in Orange County all year.

10. Ex-Angels On Parade: Devon White leaves, has his best season and wins the AL East. Chili Davis leaves, has his best season and wins the World Series. Do you suppose Wally Joyner, Dave Winfield and Kirk McCaskill noticed?

11. Whitey Herzog: He has the track record; the least we can have is patience. But Von Hayes (no home runs in ‘91), Hubie Brooks (.238) and Chuck Crim? Plus the never-ending stream of Angel veterans out the door? Credit Whitey, at any rate, for the quote of the year, uttered after McCaskill signed with the White Sox: “Nobody wants to be an Angel.” And, can you blame them?

12. Brother, Can You Spare a Football Program? Or a baseball program: Cal State Fullerton football Coach Gene Murphy and UC Irvine baseball Coach Mike Gerakos were very nearly men without countries, so to speak, when budgetary cuts threatened to rub their respective programs into oblivion. Fund-raisers and community rallies rode to the rescue and both sports were saved, at least for the interim. Fullerton has a new on-campus football stadium ready for ribbon-cutting in 1992, and to the Titans’ way of thinking, it sure would be nice to have a football team to play in it.

13. Dave Parker--The Man Who Sunk Doug Rader: Sure, sure, he could still bat cleanup for a pennant contender at age 40. Rader believed it and kept Parker there until it was too late--Parker at .232, the Angels in seventh place and Rader out of work.

14. Gaston Green: It’s an unpredictable world: After rushing for 451 yards in three Ram seasons, Green nets 1,037 yards in one Denver Bronco season. It’s an unkind world: On the day Robinson announces his resignation, Green is named to the Pro Bowl.

15. Bill Shumard: Hired in mid-summer, the new Cal State Fullerton athletic director came aboard with a sorely needed parcel of common sense. Shumard immediately began scheduling more home games for the football team, more winnable games for the football team and can actually look at a potential shift to Division I-AA football without flinching.

16. Genia Miller: The highlight of Cal State Fullerton’s year. She made first-team All-American, she led the Titans to the second round of the NCAA women’s basketball playoffs, she set a standard of grace and comportment that everyone else under scholarship at Fullerton would do well to emulate.

17. Dana Pagett: Back-to-back state basketball championships at Rancho Santiago College. His teams warrant more interest than the customary huddled dozens who turn out for JC basketball games.

18. Rod Baker: It made for good column fodder: Mulligan resigns and Irvine Athletic Director Tom Ford, seeking a “big-name” replacement, places a call to Seton Hall Coach P.J. Carlessimo. After a reality check, Ford wound up with Carlessimo’s assistant, Baker, who promptly installed a Big East defense-first work ethic at the Bren Center, if not many victories. Eagerly awaiting the recruiting class of ’92.

19. Pigskin Classic: This year, they hand-picked BYU (Ty Detmer, big Mormon following in Orange County) and Florida State (Bobby Bowden, unanimous No. 1 in the preseason polls) and the game still doesn’t draw. Is it the time (late August)? Is it the site (sterile Anaheim Stadium)? Or is it the Rams? “ Good football? Come again?”

20. Freedom Bowl: And the moral of this story: Requited love is always preferable to the alternative. In 1990, the Freedom Bowl brought in no-name Colorado State, Colorado State loved it and made a semi-name for itself. Ditto Tulsa in 1991. From now on, director Don Andersen says, the Freedom Bowl is dedicated to enlisting teams that truly want to play here. Unlike, say, the Rams.