Notes on a Scorecard - Jan. 26, 1994

Count me among those who believe the Raiders would be preparing for the Super Bowl today if Jeff Hostetler had been allowed to call his own plays against the Buffalo Bills during their playoff game. . . .

If Jim Kelly can run his show, why not Hostetler? . . .

The Raider quarterback was a Rhodes Scholarship candidate at West Virginia and has the football sense to match. . . .

Remember, it was Hostetler and Todd Peat who persuaded Coach Art Shell during the two-minute warning of the first half to go for a touchdown instead of a field goal from the Buffalo one-yard line. . . .

That play worked, but few did in the second half when the Raiders went into their all-too-familiar shell. . . .

William Perry has been nominated to be secretary of the defense, but, if President Clinton had wanted a real kitchen cabinet, he would have nominated Nate Newton. . . .

Seven former UCLA Bruins will suit up Sunday in Atlanta--Troy Aikman, Ken Norton, James Washington, and Frank Cornish for the Cowboys and Marvcus Patton, Mike Lodish and Matt Darby for the Bills. . . .

Patton and Lodish have reached the Super Bowl every year of their NFL careers. . . .

USC, which has had a player in every Super Bowl except the New York Jets’ upset of the Baltimore Colts in No. III, will be represented by Scott Galbraith of the Cowboys. . . .

This could be quite a weekend for Jimmy Johnsons--the former 49er cornerback who might be voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame Saturday; and the Cowboy coach who is favored to win a second consecutive Super Bowl. . . .

There are many strong candidates this year, but Tom Mack deserves a spot in Canton, Ohio. . . .

A running back looking to make a comeback in 1994 is Christian Okoye. . . .

The new NFL salary cap will be such that the New York Giants might choose to release veteran center Brad Oates, even though he has made the Pro Bowl again. . . .

Two reasons Atlanta elevated June Jones from offensive coordinator to head coach--the Falcons, who aren’t loaded at quarterback, had the most touchdown passes in the NFL in 1992 and the second most in 1993. . . .

Wonder if Phil Jackson, the heavyweight who will challenge World Boxing Council champion Lennox Lewis in May, carries the wallop of the basketball coach. . . .

The Forum, which is hoping to break the California gate record of $602,000 set by the Don Chargin-promoted Tony Lopez-Jorge Paez fight in Sacramento in 1990, reports ticket sales of more than $350,000 for the Michael Carbajal-Humberto (Chiquita) Gonzalez, Freddie Pendleton-Rafael Ruelas doubleheader Feb. 19. . . .

The Florida Panthers are on pace to become the first modern expansion NHL team to have a winning record its opening season. When the league doubled in size to 12 teams for the 1967-68 season, the Philadelphia Flyers won the West Division title with a 31-32-11 record. . . .

Those camera shots from the Anaheim Arena rafters during Mighty Duck telecasts make me dizzy. . . .

The Valencia home of St. Louis Cardinal third baseman Todd Zeile and 1984 Olympic gold-medal gymnast Julianne McNamara was destroyed by the earthquake. . . .

Don Fehr, executive director of the players’ union, is rated the most powerful person in the sport by Baseball America. Beverly Hills agent Dennis Gilbert is 12th. . . .

I’m surprised that Tim Belcher, who could give somebody a lot of innings as a starting pitcher, remains unsigned. . . .

The Chicago Bulls, 28-11, were 27-12 at this stage last season. . . .

Kevin McHale’s Boston Celtic jersey will be the 19th to be retired when a ceremony is conducted at halftime of the nationally televised game between the Celtics and Phoenix Suns on Sunday. Next comes Robert Parish’s, but there may be a long dry spell after that. . . .

The high school basketball players Jim Harrick is recruiting weren’t even born the last time UCLA won a national championship in 1975. . . .

USC was ranked No. 1 in February of 1971. The Trojans went 24-2 that season, losing twice to UCLA and finishing fifth nationally, but didn’t make the 25-team NCAA tournament field. . . .

Thumbs up to USC for changing the start of its important women’s game against Stanford to 1 p.m. at the Lyon Center on Sunday, allowing fans to get home in time for the Super Bowl kickoff. . . .

Too many college basketball announcers still give you everything except the score. . . .

I dreamed that Leon Lett stole a ball from Don Beebe.