Notes on a Scorecard - Aug. 29, 1995

UCLA is ranked 15th in the nation in the Associated Press football poll and fifth in the Pacific 10 Conference by Sports Illustrated. . . .

More will be known about these puzzling Bruins after the first three games against Miami at the Rose Bowl on Saturday, Brigham Young at Provo, Utah, on Sept. 9, and Oregon at the Rose Bowl on Sept. 16. . . .

This is the 11th time during Terry Donahue’s 20 years as coach that the Bruins will be opening against a nationally ranked team. They split the previous 10. . . .

Miami is ranked No. 12 in the AP poll, several notches below the Hurricanes’ customary spot. . . .

“The talent level isn’t what it has been,” said Hank Goldberg, a veteran Miami radio talk show host and ESPN commentator. . . .

“I think [new coach] Butch Davis was taken aback a little when he saw what he had in spring practice,” Goldberg said. “There was more there when he left for the [Dallas] Cowboys with Jimmy Johnson.” . . .

Among Miami’s strengths are team speed and wide receiver. . . .

“The question is whether the starting quarterback, Ryan Collins, can get the ball to those receivers,” Goldberg said. . . .

The Hurricanes don’t appear to be as skilled or deep as usual in either the offensive or defensive line. . . .

Keith Jackson was in midseason form during the Ohio State-Boston College telecast Sunday. . . .

Jackson is to college football what Vin Scully is to baseball and Chick Hearn to pro basketball. . . .

During an ESPN feature on college fight songs the other day, Beano Cook neglected to mention the most underrated--Penn State’s. . . .

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The St. Louis Rams’ release of veteran defensive back Anthony Newman, who starred for new coach Rich Brooks at Oregon, showed they are as salary conscious as the Los Angeles Rams were. . . .

Don’t be surprised if another Ram who played for Brooks at Oregon, Chris Miller, loses his quarterback job to Mark Rypien sometime this season and not because of injury. . . .

Average ticket price for a Raider home game the last season they played in Oakland, 1981, was $11.97. . . .

Based on opponents’ winning percentage in 1994, the San Diego Chargers have the toughest schedule in the NFL this season and the Jacksonville Jaguars the easiest. . . .

Houston Oiler Coach Jeff Fisher is a former USC defensive back who lists South Bend, Ind., of all places, as his favorite college town. Maybe it’s because the Trojans defeated the Irish, 42-23, in 1979 during Fisher’s only appearance at Notre Dame Stadium. . . .

Not so irrelevant: The players who were picked last in the three most recent drafts are active members of NFL teams--Mike Reed, Carolina defensive back from Boston College, class of 1995; Marty Moore, New England linebacker from Kentucky, class of ‘94; and Matt Elliott, Carolina guard from Michigan, class of ’93. . . .

The Dodgers are 48-34 with Mike Piazza in the starting lineup and 12-20 without him. . . .

Those numbers--and his .367 batting average and 26 home runs--smack of National League most-valuable-player credentials. . . .

Thumbs up to the Angels for recognizing the need for the presence of at least one member of the original 1961 team on “Turn Back the Clock Night” Saturday and adding Ken Hunt to the guest list. . . .

San Diego Padre pitcher Fernando Valenzuela, who is 4-3 with a 5.08 earned-run average, no longer relies on a screwball. He throws a fastball and changeup more often. . . .

A Monica Seles-Steffi Graf women’s final in the U.S. Open would attract even more interest than an Andre Agassi-Pete Sampras men’s final. . . .

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Pernell Whitaker’s first fight under his new, lucrative deal with HBO will be against Hector Camacho or Yory Boy Campas on Nov. 18. . . .

Ambitious Oscar De La Hoya has three bouts lined up--Genaro Hernandez on Sept. 9 at Caesars Palace, Tracy Patterson on Dec. 15 at Madison Square Garden, and Julio Cesar Chavez next May in Las Vegas. All De La Hoya has to do is keep winning. . . .

Other possible matchups now that Bob Arum and Don King are so chummy: George Foreman--Mike Tyson, Danny Romero-Michael Carbajal and Virgil Hill-James Toney. . . .

An early happy birthday to one of my favorites, Pete Newell, who turns 80 on Thursday. Newell, who still operates his big man’s camp, retired from coaching in 1960 at 44 after his California Golden Bears had finished first and second in consecutive NCAA basketball tournaments.