Notes on a Scorecard - Sept. 12, 1994

The Raiders must think there is a football strike. . . .

They still haven’t shown up for work this season. . . .

Their 38-9 loss to the Seattle Seahawks at the Coliseum on Sunday was even more humiliating than their 44-14 loss to the San Francisco 49ers at Candlestick Park last Monday. . . .

Another defeat against Denver next Sunday at Mile High Stadium and the team that was ranked among the favorites to reach the Super Bowl can start saying goodby to its playoff chances in the middle of September. . . .

Right now, the only punching bag in the AFC West resides in L.A. . . .

Kansas City beat San Francisco. Enough said. Seattle and San Diego are improved and also unbeaten. Denver is 0-2 but has lost by a total of six points. . . .

The Raiders are winless and reeling because they have shown little energy, imagination or organization, slumping quarterback Jeff Hostetler has been outplayed by Steve Young and Rick Mirer, the running attack is nonexistent, and the defense isn’t making big plays. . . .

The defense didn’t make many small plays, either, after the ejections of Chester McGlockton and Aundray Bruce in the second quarter left Art Shell in need of volunteers for the line. . . .

McGlockton and Bruce were involved in a scuffle that also resulted in the ejection of Seattle offensive tackle Ray Roberts. . . .

They joined several fans who also were kicked out of the Coliseum for fighting. . . .

By the end of the third quarter, thousands of other fans left on their own and the remnants of what had been an enthusiastic crowd of 47,319 booed the home team. . . .

*

Andre Rison sure picks his spots when he guarantees a victory, doesn’t he?. . . .

The way USC performed against Penn State on Saturday, the Trojans must have been caught looking ahead to their next opponent--BYE. . . .

Actually, they seemed to be intimidated. . . .

Penn State, with a well-balanced offense and a tough defense, might be as good as anybody in the nation. . . .

Like last season, the USC defensive line appears unable to stop a quality rushing attack. . . .

Against a national power on the road, the Trojans desperately needed some senior leadership. Quarterback Rob Johnson didn’t provide it. . . .

Touted as a Heisman Trophy candidate, Johnson is off to a poor start. He misses Johnnie Morton, and his new receivers aren’t running the proper routes yet. . . .

But before you write off the Trojans, consider that their opening-day victim, Washington, beat Ohio State at Seattle. . . .

The Huskies’ victory was one of the few bright spots for the Pacific 10 Conference, which apparently was overrated. . . .

USC, Arizona State and Oregon were routed. California was upset by San Diego State, Stanford was tied by Northwestern in the SAT Bowl and UCLA needed a goal-line stand to hold off SMU. . . .

A week before playing Nebraska in Lincoln, the Bruins, who were without J.J. Stokes, wanted to pad their record against an inferior opponent and escape without any major injuries. . . .

They are 2-0 for only the second time in the last six years, but suffered a couple of injuries that will sideline their best defensive back, cornerback Carl Greenwood, and dependable right tackle Paul Kennedy. . . .

At least, UCLA was able to get some experience against a big, option-type quarterback, Ramon Flanigan, who is a poor man’s version of Cornhusker Tommie Frazier. . . .

Bruin tailback Sharmon Shah’s hard-running style reminds me of Charles White. . . .

*

Notre Dame’s Ron Powlus reminds NBC of Joe Montana and every other great quarterback in the history of football. . . . Powlus is a talented sophomore with a 1-1 career record. . . .

Funny, but it was Michigan quarterback Todd Collins who turned in the play of the game, completing a pass under duress that set up the winning field goal. Collins also had better numbers than Powlus--21 of 29 for 224 yards, compared to 15 of 27 for 187 yards. . . .

However, Powlus’ parents, sitting in the stands, got more up-close and personal attention on TV than Collins. . . .

There must be a middle ground between NBC’s approach and this observation from ABC analyst Bob Griese: “Notre Dame has one problem. They’ve got a young quarterback.”. . . .

Never underestimate the greed, arrogance and stubbornness of major league baseball owners and players.