Notes on a Scorecard - Dec. 30, 1993

USC did not spend the season pointing toward a second consecutive Freedom Bowl appearance. . . .

But those closest to the Trojans believe they are much better prepared to play Utah tonight at Anaheim Stadium than they were last December against Fresno State. . . .

They are aware that they can’t simply go through the motions against a Western Athletic Conference also-ran, something that has made John Robinson’s psych job easier than Larry Smith’s. . . .

It also helps that Utah isn’t as good as Fresno State was--and half the San Joaquin Valley won’t be in the stands. . . .

This will be the start of Rob Johnson’s 1994 Heisman Trophy campaign. . . .

USC has lost six of its last seven bowl games after winning seven of its previous eight. . . .

A perk for Trojan seniors was getting to bunk in two-room suites at the team hotel in Orange County. . . .

Utah has 41 players from California and 14 from Utah. . . .

Look-alikes: Utah Coach Ron McBride and President Clinton. . . .

Talks about moving next year’s USC-Oregon State game from Corvallis to Tokyo have stalled. . . .

UCLA Chancellor Charles Young is chairman of an NCAA research group gathering information about the feasibility of a Division I-A championship. . . .

Attention, J.J. Stokes: The last wide receiver to be chosen Rose Bowl player of the game was John K. McKay, who shared the honor with USC teammate Pat Haden in 1975. . . .

Quarterback John Elway is a Granada Hills High graduate, but not all his Southland memories are pleasant. . . .

Elway’s Stanford and Denver teams are 3-9-1 at the Coliseum, 0-2 at the Rose Bowl and 0-1 at Anaheim Stadium. . . .

On Sunday, the Raiders will be seeking their sixth consecutive home victory over the Broncos. . . .

The New England Patriots (4-11) would stand a good chance to beat half the teams that will make the playoffs. . . .

No quarterback who plays against the Rams, such as Vinny Testaverde last Sunday, should be selected player of the week. . . .

Double reverse: The New Orleans Saints and Miami Dolphins. . . .

Three of the four Pro Bowl starting safeties are from USC--Tim McDonald and Mark Carrier of the NFC and Dennis Smith of the AFC. . . .

The Detroit Pistons will retire Vinnie Johnson’s No. 15 in ceremonies on Feb. 5. Vinnie Johnson?. . . .

Thumbs up to Prime Ticket for bringing back the “Sportswriters on TV” program from Chicago, which used to be shown on the old SportsChannel. . . .

Riddick Bowe might have a tough time getting Evander Holyfield, Lennox Lewis or Michael Moorer into the ring next year. . . .

Oscar De La Hoya, who used to fight once a month, will have gone more than four months without a bout when he challenges Jimmy Bredahl, the World Boxing Organization junior lightweight champion, at the Olympic Auditorium on March 5. . . .

The Kings have won three of their last four games, but that shouldn’t lull management into complacency. They still need to make a trade. Fast . . .

Wayne Gretzky, who batted a flying puck into the Vancouver Canucks’ net Tuesday at the Forum, might have been a heckuva of a line-drive hitter. . . .

The Philadelphia Flyers have missed the playoffs four consecutive years, the longest drought of any NHL team. . . .

Mighty Duck Coach Ron Wilson’s conservative style, which fits his talent, reminds me of Bob Pulford’s approach with the Kings in the 1970s. . . .

Actor John Forsythe, whose Mamselle Bebette was an upset winner in the $100,000 La Brea Stakes Tuesday at Santa Anita, owns the Big Train Farm. It was named after Walter (Big Train) Johnson, the Hall of Fame pitcher from Fullerton whom Forsythe met as a child. . . .

Chris Antley, Fernando Valenzuela and Aaron (the Rider) Gryder have made the Southland jockey colony, already the best in the nation, even deeper. . . .

Learning experiences: New USC Coach Cheryl Miller lost track of the number of fouls on Lisa Leslie during the opening game at Northern Illinois, and Leslie fouled out early. New UCLA Coach Kathy Olivier used a player who wasn’t listed on the roster submitted before the North Carolina State game Tuesday, the Bruins were assessed a technical foul in the first half, and the two free throws were the margin of the Wolfpack’s victory. . . .

Among the best free-agent acquisitions was that of Julio Franco by the Chicago White Sox, who plan to use him as a designated hitter. Remember how poorly White Sox designated hitters fared against Toronto in the playoffs?. . . .

Only seven more weeks until spring training.