Spurrier Turns Down Buccaneers

Florida Coach Steve Spurrier rejected a lucrative offer Tuesday to take over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, saying college football--not the NFL--is where he belongs.

The Buccaneers reportedly offered the 50-year-old coach about $2 million a season, plus part ownership in the team.

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Bob Field, a member of the UCLA football staff for 17 seasons, has been named assistant head coach by Coach Bob Toledo. Field, defensive coordinator the last 14 years, will continue to work with the Bruin defense. Toledo dropped receiver coach Norm Anderson and offensive line coach Don Riley, holdovers from Terry Donahue’s staff.

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Marshall named former Florida defensive coordinator Bob Pruett head coach. He replaces Jim Donnan, who left to coach at Georgia.

Baseball

The St. Louis Cardinals acquired right-hander Todd Stottlemyre from the Oakland Athletics in a five-player deal that reunited Stottlemyre with Manager Tony La Russa, who also came from Oakland. The Cardinals sent reserve outfielder Allen Battle and minor league pitchers Bret Wagner, Jay Witasick and Carl Dale to Oakland. The Cardinals agreed to a $300,000, one-year deal with former Oakland second baseman Mike Gallego.

Rickey Henderson, baseball’s career stolen base leader, is being investigated by the Internal Revenue Service for possible unreported income from autograph shows, the Associated Press reported.

Dodger pitcher Darren Dreifort, who underwent reconstructive elbow surgery last March, was given clearance to continue pitching off the mound after reporting no ill-effects. Dreifort, a reliever in college, began the 1994 season in the Dodger bullpen but will be converted into a starter. . . . Roger Freed of Chino, mostly a reserve first baseman during eight seasons in the major leagues, died early Tuesday of heart problems. Freed, 49, had been hospitalized since Dec. 18 for a ruptured appendix. . . . The Cincinnati Reds acquired outfielder Mike Kelly from the Atlanta Braves for minor league pitcher Chad Fox and a player to be named. . . . Left-handed pitcher Dave Leiper of the Philadelphia Phillies and infielder Mike Pagliarulo of the Texas Rangers agreed to minor league contracts that will pay them $250,000 if they make the big league team.

Boxing

The scheduled June 7 fight between Julio Cesar Chavez and Oscar De La Hoya in Las Vegas will be televised on closed circuit to arenas and theaters across the country instead of on pay-per-view television. . . . Nigel Benn will make the 10th defense of his World Boxing Council super-middleweight title against South African Thulane Malinga at Newcastle, England, on March 2. Also on the bill will be a world title fight between World Boxing Assn. super-middleweight champion Frank Liles and Tim Littles.

Miscellany

Seven-time Winston Cup champion Dale Earnhardt agreed to a contract extension with car owner Richard Childress that commits him to driving on the NASCAR circuit through 2000. It ended speculation that Earnhardt was planning to retire. . . . Scott Goodyear, whose penalty in the closing laps of last year’s Indianapolis 500 cost him a chance for victory, will not race at the Speedway in 1996. The Canadian driver will run the full Indy car series with Walker Racing, including the U.S. 500 in Michigan on the same day as the Indy 500 on May 26. . . . Roger Stanislaus of the English third division club Leyton Orient faces a long suspension after becoming the first soccer player in Britain to test positive for cocaine.