This Prediction Handed Down Far Too Soon

Jackie MacMullan of the Boston Globe recently wrote: “If the Celtics win 30 games this season, I have promised to kiss the well-polished shoes of [Coach] M.L. Carr at center court in front of his team.”

The Celtics have a 3-4 record, which over an 82-game schedule projects to 35.14 victories.

Start practicing your genuflecting, Jackie.

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Trivia time: Can you name the USC football coaches who never lost to UCLA? Yo ho ho: Dave Kindred in the Sporting News on the relocations of NFL franchises: “By now, [Al] Davis has made an art form of the franchise move and its threats.

“He dumped Oakland for Los Angeles and he teased Sacramento and Irwindale, even demanding $10 million to look at Irwindale’s gravel pit. Now he’s back in Oakland, an aging pirate with plunder.”

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Welcome stranger: John McKay was a guest Nov. 12 at Pauley Pavilion, where some of the greatest moments in Los Angeles sports history were presented by the Los Angeles Sports Council.

Nothing startling about that except that the former USC football coach revealed it was the first time that he had ever stepped foot on the UCLA campus.

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Quick fix: Dan Rooney, Pittsburgh Steeler owner, on the impending moves of his team’s AFC Central Division opponents, the Cleveland Browns and the Houston Oilers:

“I was always pushing for realignment. I guess they gave it to me.”

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No tip, either: San Francisco writers delighted in taking pot shots at the Dallas Cowboys after the 49ers’ stunning 38-20 upset victory on Nov. 12. This from Bruce Jenkins of the Chronicle:

“Jerry Jones: Should be a tough week at the cocktail parties. Look, there’s [49er President] Carmen Policy at the head table. Looks like he needs a waiter. Better get over there, Jerry. Don’t keep the man waiting.”

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Kleenex caper: Dan Barreiro of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reminiscing about Dick Butkus, the former All-Pro linebacker of the Chicago Bears:

“Butkus is known for three things: blowing his nose on the ball before many unlucky centers had no choice but to snap it, biting ballcarriers in a pile and tackling with a ferocity untouched in the game’s history.”

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Trivia answer: Howard Jones with a 5-0-2 record and Sam Barry with a 7-7 tie in 1941, his only season as head coach.

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Quotebook: Neil O’Donnell, Pittsburgh Steeler quarterback, after his team ended a scoring drought this season: “It felt good to get that camel off my back.”