Donahue Becomes the Most Popular Man in Football

Terry Donahue, the former UCLA football coach and now a CBS broadcaster, has a new title: most-rumored-job-filler in the country.

Along with the report that he’s in line to become the director of player operations with the San Francisco 49ers, he’s also mentioned as the possible next coach of the Kansas City Chiefs, replacing Marty Schottenheimer, who resigned recently.

In the 1980s, Donahue came close to becoming the Atlanta Falcons’ coach, reportedly turning the position down after much deliberation.

Under the headline in the Kansas City Star, “Is Donahue the man?” Joe Posnanski writes that because Donahue is a close friend of Kansas City General Manager Carl Peterson--they were assistant coaches together at UCLA--this is “Donahue’s job to lose.”

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Trivia time: Who holds the NFL playoff record for the longest run from scrimmage?

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Tell them anything: Syndicated columnist Norman Chad on the force of Jet Coach Bill Parcells’ personality: “If he told his players the earth were flat, none of them would cross the street.”

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Beantown put-down: Eddie Rodriguez, bartender at Michael Jordan’s restaurant, on the impact Jordan’s retirement would have on the Chicago civic psyche: “You’re up for so long, feeling like champions, and then you’re Boston.”

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Come fly with me: Hall of Famer Connie Hawkins once said of the evolution of flight in basketball: “There was me, then Doc [Julius Erving] and now Michael. I can’t wait to see the next guy.”

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Dial 9: Ira Miller in the San Francisco Chronicle, on Minnesota Viking rookie Randy Moss: “He doesn’t run pass routes, he runs sprints.

“He runs mostly what the Vikings call a ‘9,’ which means go downfield as far and as fast as you can, and let Randall Cunningham throw the ball as far as he can.

“It worked for 10 touchdown passes of at least 40 yards during the regular season, tying a 47-year-old NFL record.”

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Media army: Jim Armstrong in the Denver Post: “Mark McGwire hit 70 home runs [last] year. That’s the same number of homers the New York Jets have in their media corps, give or take a press-box buffet freeloader or two.”

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Looking back: On this day in 1988, the Denver Broncos won the AFC championship by defeating Cleveland, 38-33, at Denver.

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Trivia answer: Roger Craig of the San Francisco 49ers, 80 yards for a touchdown against Minnesota in 1989.

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And finally: Tom Keegan of the New York Post believes that Jordan’s retirement is short-lived:

“I don’t believe Jordan has retired, nor do I particularly care. The league was a blast to watch before he played. It will be fine if he never again plays.

“But don’t get weepy. He’ll be back.

” . . . Jordan was a ball-hog early in his career, before the championships. He’s an attention-hog now, which will make staying retired all the more difficult.”