RAM NOTES : Dolphins Having Trouble Filling Stadium

Does this sound familiar? The Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel ran a story in Sunday’s editions about dwindling attendance and concerns over general fan apathy in an area with a huge, growing population but too many competing leisure-time options.

With the Hurricane Andrew cleanup and a staggering economy serving as a backdrop, Sunday’s Dolphin home opener--it was to have been Sept. 6 against New England but was postponed because of the hurricane--drew only 55,945. Season-ticket sales have declined from 61,000 in 1987, the first year of operations at Joe Robbie Stadium, to 43,896 this year. Only two of 40 regular-season games in the 73,000-seat stadium have drawn more than 70,000 fans. All but seven have been blacked out locally.

Mixed fortunes on the field and high ticket prices--most go for $28 or $30--were cited as the main reasons. But interest appears to be waning outside the stadium, too; membership in the booster club has dropped from 1,500 dues-paying families in the 1970s to only 185 today. A club dinner last fall had to be canceled because of lack of interest.

“I think it’s very embarrassing,” said Millie Petrillo, the club’s secretary-treasurer. “I get more calls from other parts of the country and the world than locally. To me there are more loyal Dolphin (fans) who live outside South Florida than in it. It’s amazing.”

Said Sun-Sentinel writer Michael Mayo, who covers the Dolphins, in a column Sunday: “Most of you are lazy, front-running happenstance witnesses who don’t deserve to wear the label of fans.”

Footnote: The No. 1-ranked Miami Hurricanes drew 74,292 to the Orange Bowl, the Dolphins’ former home, for a game Saturday against Division I-AA Florida A&M.;

Uh, by the way: In his invocation before the game, Father Don Walk of Venice, Fla., offered an impassioned prayer for help with the recovery from Hurricane Andrew. “You know what we’ve been through,” he said. But the Father didn’t forget where he was. He finished by asking for “a good year for our coaches, and our team.”

Add hurricane: Some writers from Southern California drove south to the area most affected by the storm and described the devastation as incredible.

Joe Robbie Stadium, which is about 50 miles north of the parts of Dade County most profoundly affected, suffered very little damage, mostly around the high-profile scoreboard signs. The Dolphins got permission from the Rams and the NFL to increase their normal free ticket allotment from 1,000 to 2,000 to give away to military personnel here to help with security and cleanup.

Dolphin quarterback Dan Marino said he wasn’t sure how much of a healing effect the home opener had on the area. “I don’t know if a football game can do that much given the circumstances of the last month,” he said. “If it helped the people take their minds off some of their problems for a little while, then that’s great. But some people down here have been through some unbelievable things.”

Trickery: Both teams tried trick plays in the first half, with mixed success. On third and 17 from the Ram 29, the Dolphins snapped the ball directly to running back Bobby Humphrey from the shotgun formation. Humphrey managed to gain 10 yards, setting up Pete Stoyanovich’s 36-yard field goal.

Later, on first and 10 from the Miami 49, Ram quarterback Jim Everett handed off to running back Cleveland Gary, who then flipped the ball back to Everett. But the flea-flicker went awry because of solid deep coverage by the Dolphins, and Everett had to throw the ball over tight end Pat Carter’s head and out of bounds.

The long run: Gary’s 40-yard gain on the final play of the first quarter was the longest by the Rams since Gary ran for 48 against Dallas on Nov. 18, 1990. The team’s best run last year was 36 yards by Robert Delpino. The play Sunday was wasted when Everett threw a pass that was intercepted by Miami’s J.B. Brown to open the second quarter.

Some extra help: The Rams had a 12th man for one play as they attempted to defense Marino and Co. on second and 10 with about nine minutes left in the third quarter. Marino dropped back to pass, fired across the middle--and hit umpire Bob Wagner right in the head, knocking off his hat. The crowd had a good time with the several replays shown.

Bright lights, big losers: With the Rams, Raiders and New York Jets all being defeated Sunday, teams from the United States’ two-biggest cities are a combined 1-10 this season. It could get even worse tonight when the Chicago Bears play host to the New York Giants.

Tipper Boutte?: Marc Boutte, a rookie defensive tackle from Louisiana State, tipped or knocked down two Marino passes, giving him an unofficial total of six pass deflections this season.

Marino wasn’t all that impressed.

“Apparently, their linemen are told if they’re not getting a very strong pass rush, to put up their hands and just jump up and down,” he said. “So these things happen.”

The obvious implication, of course, was that Marino was under no pass rush at all.

Odd note of the day: Taken from a Dolphin press release: “Star Trek: The Next Generation” star Brent Spiner (a.k.a. Data) beamed into the Dolphins’ third-level broadcast booth during halftime of today’s game. He would have arrived earlier, but the Dolphin PR department gave him the wrong coordinates. Miami is now 1-0 in games in which an android is in attendance. Live long and prosper.

We couldn’t possibly make this stuff up.

Anthony Newman, starting at free safety for the second consecutive week, got an interception Sunday for the third consecutive week, setting a career high.

Two of his three interceptions, including the one Sunday, have set up Ram touchdowns. One play after he picked off a Dan Marino pass in the third quarter, Ram quarterback Jim Everett connected with Flipper Anderson for a 23-yard touchdown pass.

“I was back there, and Marino, sometimes even when he sees you there and the receiver’s there too, he’s got such a strong arm he just tries to wing it by you,” Newman said.

“I just reached up and got it.”

Bits and pieces: With his eighth completion, Marino passed Johnny Unitas and moved into fourth on the NFL’s all-time list. Marino has 2,844 for his career. Unitas completed 2,830 passes. . . . Former El Toro and UCLA standout Scott Miller had a nice, 19-yard punt return early in the game. . . . Don Shula is 11-5, including playoffs, when coaching against Chuck Knox. . . . Miami is 20-3 in home openers under Shula. . . . Stoyanovich’s four field goals tied his career best. . . . Miami is 5-1 in its series with the Rams.

Times staff writer Tim Kawakami contributed to this story.