He Has His Share of Critics, but Also Gets Lott of Support

John Robinson, the new football coach at USC, is absorbing some serious shots on a certain (K) talk (M) radio (P) show (C) in town.

Ronnie Lott should hit so hard.

Question: If Robinson is so bad, why do players such as Lott swear by him?

In his autobiography, “Total Impact,” Lott, one the greatest defensive backs, calls Robinson “the most sincere man I’ve ever played for and one of the most honest I’ve known.”

Lott was a star safety for Robinson at USC in the late 1970s and early ‘80s.

Lott said he will never forget his last game at USC, Dec. 6, 1980, at the Coliseum, after the Trojans defeated Notre Dame, 20-3.

“Robinson introduced the outgoing seniors to the Coliseum crowd and cited each of the players’ contributions to Trojan football,” Lott writes. “It was his way of sending us off. When it came time to talk about me, he told the USC fans how much he was going to miss me, and I remember telling him later that evening that I was going to miss him, too.

“His passion for football. His deep feelings for his players. All the fun we had together.

“Because Robinson believed in me as a person, I was inspired to be more of a man. I loved him.”

Big Easy: Tony Kornheiser of the Washington Post wonders what has become of the Georgetown-Syracuse rivalry, once the jewel in the crown of the Big East basketball conference.

From 1984 to ‘91, he writes, Georgetown and Syracuse sold out the Capital Centre seven times, and the game that didn’t sell out drew more than 18,000.

Kornheiser says the waiting line for tickets was like the one for Frank Sinatra.

But last week, the game between the teams drew only 12,000 fans.

Kornheiser writes, “If it was Sinatra, it was Nancy.”

Add Kornheiser: He says of Big East basketball: “You can call it a lull, or, if you’re not charitable, you can say the earth opened up and swallowed the conference whole, but Georgetown-Syracuse isn’t a Real Big Deal anymore--and maybe neither is the Big East.”

Trivia time: Who was the losing pitcher for the Dodgers the day Don Larsen pitched his perfect game for the Yankees in the 1956 World Series?

Da writer: Michael Wilbon is one columnist who mourned the firing of Mike Ditka as coach of the Chicago Bears. The man made great copy.

“Mike Ditka probably has been the most exciting person in sports I’ve ever been around,” Wilbon writes. “He was volatile and unpredictable and captivating. Is he a complete lunatic? Absolutely.”

Some of Wilbon’s favorite quotes:

--Ditka on William (Refrigerator) Perry. “We called him the other day. Supposedly he weighs 325. Hey, who knows? He’s running twice a day--from the refrigerator to the bathroom.”

--Ditka on what’s wrong with Bears cornerback Donnell Woolford. “What’s wrong with him? He can’t cover anybody, that’s what’s wrong with him!”

--Ditka on the Metrodome in Minneapolis. “They could convert it into a National Armory and it would be more useful than what it is used for now. I know, they could grow grass on it and use it for livestock.”

Fly paper: The Sporting News’ resident gossip columnist is California bashing again:

“Fly sees where the Angels have unveiled their new baseball suits for ‘92, borrowing touches from the ’65 unis. Apropos, don’t you think, considering the Halos were 75-87 that year?”

Fly offered up this about Pacific 10 football. “Yo, Left Coasters, nice bowl season for the Pac-2-and-4.”

That stinks: Some 23,000 copies of Skiing magazine never made it to California one month last year because they were buried beneath fertilizer spilled from an overturned railroad car.

Tough crowd: The Sporting News writes that Phil Niekro didn’t deserve induction into the Hall of Fame with his lifetime record of 318-274.

However, the weekly tabloid states that Gaylord Perry, a 1991 inductee, was worthy of the Hall with his career record of 314-265.

“Perry was more dominating in his prime,” the News explains.

Oh.

Add Hall: Phil Niekro, take heart. The Yankee Clipper, Joe DiMaggio, was not elected to the Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility.

Trivia answer: Sal (The Barber) Maglie, who died Dec. 28 at age 75.

Quotebook: Minnesota Twins’ infielder Kent Hrbek, on being asked to tutor newcomer Dave Winfield at first base: “That’s going to be pretty exciting for me, being 32 and teaching a 41-year-old guy, a future Hall of Famer, how to play my position. That’s going to be very interesting.”