Even the Cos Is Backing the USC Cause

When USC Coach George Raveling checked his answering machine Thursday morning, there were 44 calls from friends who wanted to congratulate him on the Trojans’ upset of No. 2 UCLA.

When Raveling arrived at his office, there were 67 messages and 14 faxes, including one from Bill Cosby that read in part:

“Bravo, Bravo, Bravo. Congratulations on your exciting win. See you in the NCAA tournament.”

Trivia time: Who’s the only UCLA basketball coach with a losing record?

Divine intervention: The prayers of golfer P.H. Horgan III were answered when he shot a 70 at the Pebble Beach National Pro-Am Friday for a share of the lead.

Immediately after making his first bogey of the tournament on the 10th hole at Spyglass Hill, Horgan grumbled to his amateur partner:

“Now I really need a birdie or two--right now.”

“Perhaps I’ll have a word with the Man Upstairs,” responded the amateur, William Swing, the Episcopal archbishop of San Francisco.

Horgan birdied the next hole and went on to tie for the 36-hole lead with Bob Lohr at 136, eight under par.

Loyal fans: The Atlanta Braves aren’t having any trouble selling season tickets after winning the National League pennant last season.

But some of the Braves’ new ticket-holders will have a long way to travel to games.

The Braves have sold 40 season tickets to fans in Curacao, the largest island of the Netherlands Antilles, north of Venezuela, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

The island, with a population of 165,000, has two natives in Atlanta’s minor league system.

Use caution: Steeplechaser Mark Rowland says his event is the most dangerous in track and field.

“If you make one mistake it can result in a vasectomy,” Rowland told Track & Field News.

A growing boy: Shawn Bradley, the 7-foot 6-inch Brigham Young center, isn’t so skinny any more.

After struggling to maintain a mere 210 pounds on his frame while leading BYU into the NCAA playoffs last year, Bradley has gained 30 pounds during the first-year of a two-year Mormon mission in Australia.

“I was surprised, with his metabolism,” said Bradley’s father, Reiner. “He put it on quick. The first part of his mission he was in a (Sydney) ward with a lot of Polynesians, and they fed him well.”

BYU Coach Roger Reid was elated.

“Thirty pounds? That’s great,” he said. “Anything he can get is going to help. But what he needs is 60, 70 or even 80 pounds.”

Trivia answer: Wilbur Johns, who compiled a 92-120 record from 1939-48.

Quotebook: Golfer Lee Trevino: “One of the nice things about the senior tour is that we can take a cart and a cooler. If your game is not going well, you can always have a picnic.”