It Was H.T., Not E.T., He Was Carrying

Rashaan Salaam, Colorado’s star running back, didn’t want to trust his Heisman Trophy to baggage handlers on the flight from New York to Boulder earlier this month.

To avoid attention, Salaam wrapped the two-foot high, 25-pound trophy in garbage bags. During the flight to Chicago, the trophy was put in the aisle. It tipped over at one point but was not damaged.

From Chicago to Denver, Salaam put the trophy in an empty seat next to him and covered it with a blanket. “Look at that, it looks just like E.T.,” he said during the trip.

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Trivia time: Who holds the NCAA record for scoring average by a freshman in men’s basketball?

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Shell-shocked: Jason Whitlock of the Kansas City Star on Raider Coach Art Shell: “Art Shell should be fired. Today. . . . His end-of-the-half decision to try one more play instead of kicking a field goal was the dumbest decision made in the United States since Michael Dukakis decided to furlough Willie Horton.”

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Parking pains: Shell was not the only one fuming after the Raiders’ loss to Kansas City last Saturday. Dozens of fans who parked at the public library near the Coliseum returned to find their cars towed. The fans were lured to the lot by an impostor attendant charging only $5. The man then ran off with the money, and 14 cars were impounded. Owners had to shell out $85.83 each to retrieve their vehicles.

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What’s in a name? Norm Clarke of the Rocky Mountain News has been compiling a list of unusual names for athletes for the last five years. Some of his favorites: Gene Mulligan, a Denver hole-in-one golfer; Billy Ball, Atlanta Brave groundskeeper; Justin Boots, National Western rodeo bull rider, and Alico Dunk, North Carolina prep basketball star.

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Year in review: William Gildea of the Washington Post, looking back at the last year: “Does anyone want to hear these names after 1994: Bud Selig, Richard Ravitch, Donald Fehr, Gary Bettman and Bob Goodenow? Or any more stories on Dennis Rodman’s hair color?”

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Strike logic: From Newsday’s Mike Lupica: “I just assumed ‘Dumb and Dumber’ had something to do with the baseball and hockey situations.”

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Trivia answer: Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf, then known as Chris Jackson, of Louisiana State, 30.2 points in 1989.

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Quotebook: Former Denver Bronco Coach Wade Phillips, who was fired Thursday: “They told me to hurry up to get to the meeting (where he learned he was being released). I said, ‘What are they going to do, fire me if I’m late?’ ”