What’s Next, Billy Sims for President?

The state of Oklahoma is apparently fertile ground for former football players who want to become politicians.

Victorious Republican Congressional candidates Tuesday included former Sooner quarterback J.C. Watts and former Tulsa wide receiver Steve Largent. And the current lieutenant governor is former Sooner quarterback Jack Mildren.

Trivia time: Who were the five original members of the Baseball Hall of Fame?

Say what?In his report on the New York City Marathon, John Jeansonne of Newsday called German Silva’s victory after surviving a wrong turn into Central Park “a little like Houdini locking himself in a trunk and being thrown into a lake, only to wiggle his way free before drowning.”

Two and two make . . .: TV announcer and former quarterback Joe Theismann, during last Sunday’s Raider-Chief game: “It’s third and three for the Raiders. Illegal motion. They’re penalized five yards. Now it’s third and nine.”

Viewer Ed Gilbert wonders if Theismann took math at Notre Dame.

Secret weapon: Oregon’s Kevin Parker sniffed a rose and otherwise mugged for television cameras after the Ducks’ 34-10 victory over Arizona State at Eugene last Saturday.

“It smells nice, baby. We’re two games away, baby,” said the freshman tailback, who had not played a down that afternoon.

Mistaken identity: Tired of being mistaken for Swedish professional golfer Liselotte Neumann, fellow pro Dottie Mochrie changed her look, going from blonde to redhead.

Tit for tat: Washington State Coach Mike Price, when told that defensive tackle Chad Eaton had criticized the Cougars’ man-to-man coverage of 6-foot-4 USC receiver Keyshawn Johnson with shorter cornerbacks in their 23-10 loss to the Trojans, replied: “I guess we could have put Chad Eaton back there covering him.”

Mother’s pride: When Trent Dilfer, a former star at Aptos High, came home as Tampa Bay’s multimillion-dollar rookie quarterback to play the 49ers in Candlestick Park, his family, friends, former teammates and coaches were there.

Dilfer’s play was disappointing and he was benched in the fourth quarter, but his mother, Marcie Lynch, was proud of her son when, as Santa Cruz Sentinel writer Brent Ainsworth reported, she watched a small girl ask Dilfer for his autograph.

“This kind of thing is what pleases me the most,” she said.

One man’s view: Mark Messier, the great New York Ranger center who has played on six Stanley Cup winners--five with Edmonton and last year with the Rangers--is philosophical about the hockey lockout.

“If things don’t work out, I can say I won the Stanley Cup on my way out,” he said. “There are worse ways to end a career.”

Looking back: On this day in 1911, Jim Thorpe kicked four field goals to lead the Carlisle Indian School to an 18-15 upset of nationally ranked Harvard.

Trivia answer: Babe Ruth, Honus Wagner, Christy Mathewson, Ty Cobb and Walter Johnson.

Quotebook: Center Robert Parish, on playing in Charlotte after years with the Boston Celtics: “The people are nicer. I haven’t been given the finger here, which happened on a daily basis in Boston.”