Story Isn’t Finished for Marinovich, Johnson

As a teammate of Bret Johnson’s at both El Toro High School and UCLA, I feel that a few facts Mike Penner failed to mention (Sept. 18) about the Bret Johnson-Todd Marinovich rivalry should be known.

1) In high school, Bret’s teams won three league titles and two CIF championships, while Marinovich (Capistrano Valley teams) failed to win one of either.

2) As a college freshman, Bret earned his starting position, while Marinovich started only because of an injury to Pat O’Hara.

3) In December, Bret will graduate from Michigan State with a grade-point average of 3.0, while Marinovich is more than two years away from a college diploma.

The difference in college football careers can be attributed to fortune. Marinovich was fortunate to be on an outstanding team his freshman year. Bret was forced to struggle along with the rest of us (the UCLA football team) during the 1989 season. Bret was not to blame for our record that year, nor is he to blame for Michigan State’s.

Bret Johnson has endured, and his football-playing days are far from over.

SCOTT SPALDING, Santa Monica