They’re Starting to Toss Boulders at Neuheisel

Colorado is struggling with a 5-4 record and once-popular Coach Rick Neuheisel is being roasted by some in the media.

After Colorado was upset by Missouri on Nov. 1, 41-31, Mark Kiszla of the Denver Post was particularly critical.

“In his third season, Neuheisel’s act has gone stale with the players,” he wrote.

“There’s nothing wrong with a coach who strums a guitar and takes linebackers skiing.

“But there’s something fundamentally wrong with a team that makes the errors committed by Colorado in its third conference loss.

“If this team is a true reflection of its coach, Neuheisel won’t be long for Colorado.”

Perhaps Neuheisel yearns for the relatively anonymous days as a UCLA assistant.

Trivia time: When did Washington State first play in the Rose Bowl game?

Trashing Mike: Ed Bouchette of the Pittsburgh-Post Gazette writes that Mike Ditka should retire permanently from coaching:

“The Saints hired Ditka this year for one reason--to sell tickets. He did that, but he hasn’t been able to win games.

“He spent too much time away from the team in the off-season, playing golf and making speeches around the country, when he should have been in New Orleans working on the Saints.”

Paul Bunyan clone: The SportsLetter of the Amateur Athletic Foundation has discovered a future star in track and field. He’s British shotputter-discus thrower Carl Myerscough, who stands 6 feet 10.

“This past summer the strapping lad put the regulation 16-pound shot 61 feet 8 1/2 inches and threw the discus a nifty 188 feet,” reports the SportsLetter. “He only turned 18 years old on October 21, 1997.”

The Chuckster: From Jay Leno: “On Friday night [Oct. 31], the NBA season officially began. As is tradition, Charles Barkley threw out the first fan.”

Colorblind? Detroit Piston star Grant Hill on the new women officials: “A striped shirt is a striped shirt. They’re all the enemy.”

Yo, Grant, NBA officials don’t wear striped shirts. They wear gray ones, and have for many years.

Looking back: On this date in 1958, the Sid Gillman-coached Rams routed the San Francisco 49ers at the Coliseum, 56-7.

Looking back again: On this date in 1971, the Lakers defeated the Chicago Bulls, 122-109. It was win No. 4 in their NBA-record 33-game streak.

Trivia answer: Washington State first played in the 1916 Rose Bowl game, defeating Brown, 14-0.

And finally: Earlier this year, Greg Turner, a European PGA tour player, refused to resume play in the Volvo Masters in Spain, which could have qualified him for the U.S. Open, because there was lightning in the area.

“What good is a posthumous entry to the U.S. Open?” he asked.