COLLEGE FOOTBALL / GENE WOJCIECHOWSKI : ‘Air McNair’ Hype Flying High

From Lorman, Miss., comes the Heisman Trophy gospel of Alcorn State Coach Cardell Jones, who can repeat chapter and verse the reasons why the stiff-arming statuette rightfully belongs to his quarterback, Steve McNair.

The Heisman hype, according to Jones:

Verse No. 1--McNair, he said, “is the best player in the country, bar none.”

Verse No. 2--If McNair were a Division I-A quarterback, not a Division I-AA player, we wouldn’t be having this discussion.

Verse No. 3--Notre Dame quarterback Ron Powlus and McNair don’t belong in the same Heisman sentence--at least not yet. Powlus hasn’t done enough.

Verse No. 4--If voters are suspicious about the quality of play in Alcorn State’s Southwestern Athletic Conference, don’t be. Jones said his Braves could play in the ultra-difficult Southeastern Conference, home of four top 25-ranked teams, and finish .500.

“And I’ll tell you one thing, you can take almost any team in the Southeastern Conference and if they had to play week in, week out in our conference, it would be pretty tough for them to hold up,” Jones said.

Verse No. 5--If the Southwestern Athletic Conference is good enough for Walter Payton, Jerry Rice and Grambling Coach Eddie Robinson, the winningest coach in college football history, it should be good enough for someone with a Heisman ballot.

Verse No. 6--Jones, who doubles as Alcorn’s athletic director, said he tried to schedule Division I-A opponents such as Southern Mississippi, Mississippi State, Mississippi and Rice, but with no success.

The official reason for the no-thank-yous: Too late to alter the schedules.

The unofficial reason: Would you want to risk being embarrassed by McNair?

Verse No. 7--Have you seen McNair’s statistics? They’re almost mythical in stature.

Verse No. 8--”He’s a combination of Randall Cunningham, Warren Moon and Joe Montana,” Jones said.

Verse No. 9--According to at least one NFL scout, McNair could be the first selection in the 1995 draft. If nothing else, he has zoomed to the top or near the top of the NFL’s quarterback prospect rankings.

Verse No. 10--So good is McNair that he will probably finish as the No. 2 rusher in the conference. “He’s probably as elusive as any of your better tailbacks in the country,” Jones said.

McNAIR MANIA--PART TWO

If ever there were a year for a little-known Division I-AA quarterback to have an actual chance at a Heisman, this is it.

Consider the circumstances:

Preseason favorite Tyrone Wheatley of Michigan has sat out the first two games, though he is expected to play in a back-up role Saturday. . . . UCLA’s J.J. Stokes hasn’t played since the Bruins’ opener. . . . USC’s Rob Johnson has only one touchdown pass. . . . Stanford’s Steve Stenstrom has four touchdown passes, one against Northwestern, three against San Jose State. . . . Notre Dame’s Lee Becton is sidelined three to four weeks because of an injury. . . . Powlus was shaky against Michigan State.

Meanwhile, McNair keeps putting up numbers that require an abacus to comprehend.

He has completed 72 of 127 passes (57%) for 1,369 yards and 15 touchdowns. He accounted for 633 total yards against Grambling and a Division I-AA-record 647 yards against Tennessee Chattanooga, the same team that held Alabama to 476 total yards in the season opener. In fact, McNair almost outgained Alabama and Tennessee Chattanooga, 655-647. And against Alabama State last Saturday, McNair had an off night--only 452 total yards.

Better yet, the media are noticing. ABC is scheduled to do regional coverage of Saturday’s game against Sam Houston State. It isn’t much--only viewers in Mississippi, Louisiana and the Houston area will see the broadcast--but it helps. ESPN also is considering Alcorn State’s game against Jackson State on Nov. 19.

McNAIR MANIA--THE END

So heavy is McNair’s bandwagon that it’s almost a cliche to ask if he is a legitimate Heisman candidate. In essence, the pure number of stories on his underdog status has turned him into a legitimate candidate.

Still, there are problems. A single regional ABC broadcast isn’t going to cut it. The same goes for a few clips on the weekly highlight shows. Voters need to see McNair play a game. A whole game.

Then there is this matter of the competition. Nebraska’s Tommie Frazier, Michigan’s Todd Collins, Washington’s Napoleon Kaufman and Florida’s Terry Dean, who has only two fewer touchdown passes than McNair in 50 fewer passing attempts, are bona fide stars. Plus, they have high-powered programs, national TV appearances and Division I-A pedigree.

To which Jones said: “I think that’s a lot of hogwash. I’m serious about that now. The award is supposed to go, quote, unquote, to the best athlete, the best football player in the country, regardless of what division, what level, whatever. I realize we can’t promote him on a national basis. But he’s a deserving individual, I guarantee that.”

Prediction: McNair will get votes, but not the trophy.

Remember 1990? Houston quarterback David Klingler led all of Division I-A with 5,221 yards, 55 touchdowns and 474.6 yards per game--McNair-like numbers. He had one game in which he passed for 716 yards, one for 572 and one for 563. Two seasons later he became the sixth player chosen in the NFL draft.

A lot of good it did. Klingler finished fifth in the 1990 Heisman balloting.

NO HARD FEELINGS

After leading Colorado to a 35-point victory over Northeast Louisiana and a 38-point victory over Wisconsin, quarterback Kordell Stewart would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to . . . Terry Donahue?

Without the help of the UCLA coach, none of this would have been possible. Stewart’s completions, touchdowns and efficiency ratings are up, his interceptions down. And all because Donahue passed over then-Bruin wide receiver coach Rick Neuheisel for the offensive coordinator job.

“He is a legitimate, 100% great quarterback and receivers coach,” Stewart gushed. “It’s just unbelievable the way he’s teaching me and the way he’s made my confidence level go up so high.”

Neuheisel, 33, a former Bruin Rose Bowl MVP, desperately wanted to become offensive coordinator when Homer Smith returned to Alabama. But Donahue chose Texas A&M;’s Bob Toledo.

A disappointed (some say peeved) Neuheisel left soon thereafter for Colorado.

“(Donahue) thought I was too young and inexperienced, and he was probably right,” Neuheisel said. “I didn’t want to believe it, but he’s probably correct.”

If Neuheisel holds a grudge, he doesn’t show it. Asked if Donahue erred by choosing someone else as coordinator, Neuheisel said, “I don’t think they made a mistake. I think Bob Toledo is a good coordinator. I think he was certainly the safe bet. I think that they have a good staff. Coach Donahue hasn’t been coaching for 20 years without being really good at it. I certainly have the utmost respect for him and I think it’s worked out for all parties.”

Especially for Stewart, who can’t believe his luck.

“If (Neuheisel) would have been offensive coordinator, that would have been awesome,” he said. “But he’s my coach.”

THE REST

If the NFL and the Professional Football Referees Assn. can’t avoid an Oct. 9-10 strike date, conferences such as the Pacific 10 and the Big Ten are prepared to allow their contracted officials to work pro games. “They are free to do whatever they wish to do outside the Pac-10, but they must work their Pac-10 assignments,” Commissioner Tom Hansen said. . . . Big week for the soon-to-be Big 12 Conference. League administrators and member programs (the existing Big Eight teams, plus Southwest Conference defectors Texas, Texas A&M;, Texas Tech and Baylor) have begun debate on whether to split into two divisions and have a championship game. And if so, where? In Dallas? Kansas City? San Antonio? . . . One of the byproducts of the new bowl alliance agreement, which begins next season, is the scramble by major conferences to guarantee spots for their second-place teams. Under the present agreement, the Pac-10’s No. 2 team was guaranteed a place in the Orange, Fiesta, Sugar, Cotton, Gator or Hancock bowls. The new deal makes no such provisions, which is why Hansen has his 1995 bowl wish list in place. According to Hansen, the Pac-10 wants its No. 2 finisher to play the Big 12’s No. 2 in the Cotton Bowl or, as a second choice, the Alamo Bowl. One problem: the Big Ten might be interested in a similar arrangement. The Big Ten is also considering a deal to send its No. 2 team to face the SEC’s No. 2 in the Citrus Bowl.

Nebraska Coach Tom Osborne on the early-season glut of powerhouse teams: “It looks to me right now seven, eight teams that you probably can throw a hat over them and it wouldn’t make much of difference who you pulled out.” . . . His offensive line a mess, Pittsburgh Coach Johnny Majors is thinking of teaching new and inventive blocking techniques. “Maybe we’ll start biting them,” he said. “I don’t know if that’s legal, though.” . . . Despite beating Maryland, 52-20, and Wake Forest, 56-14, Florida State’s Bobby Bowden said his staff was outcoached by both teams. . . . Let the Pac-10 bashing begin. The league is 2-5 against the Western Athletic Conference and 10-9-1 overall in nonconference games. Winless California has two of the embarrassing defeats, one to San Diego State and one to Hawaii. The latest loss came at home. “They were so cocky,” Hawaii’s Matthew Harding said after the game. “I mean, it makes you want to win by 50. They were taunting us, saying, ‘This is Pac-10 ball. You don’t belong here. You need to go back to the Aloha State.’ ” They did--with a victory. . . . Alabama Birmingham, a Division I-AA program making the jump to I-A in 1996, plays Kansas on Saturday. This is some coaching staff the Blazers have. The head coach is Dr. Jim Hilyer, whose wife, Dr. Lynn Artz, is the special teams coach. For what it’s worth, she attended Penn State and Tennessee. Former Ram quarterback Dieter Brock is the offensive coordinator. Other assistant coaches include a highway patrolman and a bookstore owner.

The Top 10

As selected by staff writer Gene Wojciechowski

No. Team Record 1. Nebraska 3-0 2. Florida 3-0 3. Penn State 3-0 4. Michigan 2-0 5. Florida State 3-0 6. Colorado 2-0 7. Auburn 3-0 8. Miami 2-0 9. Arizona 2-0 10. Notre Dame 2-1

Waiting list: Virginia Tech (3-0), Alabama (3-0), Texas A&M; (2-0), Colorado State (3-0), North Carolina (2-0).