DuBose Is Still Driven by Ford

Alabama Coach Mike DuBose was looking forward to meeting up again with the man who came the closest to driving him out of football--Arkansas Coach Danny Ford.

In 1971, DuBose was a freshman at Alabama and Ford was a graduate assistant under Bear Bryant. At the first freshmen meeting of the summer, Ford and Bryant agreed they would try to teach DuBose, a linebacker, a new position.

“They tried to make a center out of me starting right there in the meeting room,” said DuBose, in his first year as coach of the Crimson Tide. “I’ve never been worked as hard in my life as in that particular year. If I would have had a car, I would have gone home a bunch of times.”

DuBose found no comfort at home on Saturday. Ford’s Razorbacks beat Alabama, 17-16, as Arkansas became the first team to beat the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa, Ala., two times in a row since Texas Christian in 1955-56.

NAME-DROPPERS

Some promises--and epitaphs--might be etched in stone. But not stadium names.

Not at Northwestern, anyway.

On Oct. 26, 1926, Northwestern’s board of trustees resolved to honor William Dyche, a longtime supporter of the school who led the drive to raise money for a new football stadium.

The field would be called Dyche Stadium, the board agreed. And it would keep the name forever.

“Be it resolved that the stadium now being erected for Northwestern University and any additions thereto and any other stadium which may be erected at any time or place to succeed it shall be named Dyche Stadium,” the minutes from the meeting said.

But after extensive renovations this year, the field was renamed in honor of Patrick Ryan, head of one of Chicago’s largest insurance firms who gave the school about $10 million for the work.

Dyche’s family is upset.

“Here’s a man who dedicated his life to the university, whose efforts were recognized and something was named in his honor,” said David Dyche, William’s grandson. “Now somebody appears with money, and money buys names on buildings these days rather than service or real effort.”

Northwestern could have used some extra effort Saturday against Rice. The Wildcats lost, 40-34, at Ryan Field.

FROST-BITTEN

Nebraska was an underdog for the first time in four years, but someone obviously forgot to tell Cornhusker quarterback Scott Frost, who knows something about beating Washington in Seattle.

As a backup at Stanford in 1994, Frost led the Cardinal to a 46-28 victory over the Huskies before transferring to Nebraska.

On Saturday, he accounted for 185 yards and scored on touchdown runs of 34 and 30 yards in Nebraska’s 27-14 victory.

Not bad for a quarterback who was being booed last week in Lincoln, Neb., by fans who wanted to see backup Frankie London elevated to starter.

Said Washington linebacker Jason Chorak: “I don’t see why there’s any quarterback controversy in Nebraska.”

There isn’t, anymore.

TEAM EFFORT

After Michigan State embarrassed Notre Dame at Notre Dame Stadium, Fighting Irish Coach Bob Davie identified his team’s problem areas.

“We’re not real good in special teams, we’re not real good on offense, we’re not real good on defense,” he said. “We’re in the middle of a hurricane right now.”

And it looks like it’s heading toward another possible disaster in Ann Arbor, Mich., next week.

GETTING HIS KICKS

Dartmouth’s Dave Regula kicked it into high gear and the Big Green kicker wound up scoring 17 points in his team’s 23-15 victory over Penn.

Regula converted two extra-point attempts and had field goals of 38, 33 and 23 yards. On the kickoff after the 23-yarder, Penn’s Brandon Carson fumbled right into Regula’s hands and the kicker ran untouched for a 32-yard touchdown.

ROLL THE DICE

Hawaii, a 25-15 loser to Nevada Las Vegas on Saturday night, hasn’t experienced the sweet taste of victory in a Western Athletic Conference road game since 1992 when the Rainbows won at Texas El Paso.

“Any road game for the University of Hawaii is a jawbreaker,” Rainbow Coach Fred vonAppen said before the UNLV game. “We haven’t won on the road since Millard Fillmore.”

The Rainbows have lost 17 consecutive WAC road games.

Hawaii had beaten UNLV seven times in a row, including 38-28 last year in Honolulu. But the Rainbows have lost eight consecutive road games overall. In fact, their last road victory was at UNLV in 1995, before the Rebels joined the WAC.

UTEP could also use a change of fortune. The Miners lost to Utah, 56-3, and have lost 18 consecutive WAC road games.

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Running Wild

Astron Whatley of Kent rushed for 373 yards--the fifth-highest total in NCAA Division I-A history--in his team’s 41-38 victory over Eastern Michigan. The top 10:

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Yds Player Team Year 396 Tony Sands Kansas 1991 386 Marshall Faulk San Diego St. 1991 378 Troy Davis Iowa St. 1996 377 Anthony Thompson Indiana 1989 373 Astron Whatley Kent 1997 357 Mike Pringle CS Fullerton 1989 357 Rueben Mayes Wash. St. 1984 356 Brian Pruitt Central Mich. 1994 356 Eddie Lee Ivery Georgia Tech 1978 351 Scott Harley E. Carolina 1996

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How Bad Was It?

Texas hit these low points in a 66-3 loss at home to UCLA last Saturday:

* The loss was the largest losing margin by a team ranked in the Associated Press poll, which began in 1936. The Longhorns were ranked No. 11 before the game. The previous record was No. 6 Penn State’s 61-0 loss to No. 1 Army on Nov. 17, 1945.

* The 66 points allowed were the third-most given up by a ranked team. No. 24 Fresno State lost to Northern Illinois, 73-18, on Oct. 6, 1990, and No. 19 Brigham Young lost to No. 25 UCLA, 68-14, on Oct. 9, 1993.

* Since the Associated Press went to a Top 25 format in 1989, Texas became the highest-ranked team to fall out of the poll in one week.