College Football Experts Predict a Two-Horse Race

Nebraska is favored in at least seven preseason football rankings to be the 2000 national champion. Among the polls:

Associated Press--1. Nebraska,

2. Florida State, 3. Alabama, 4. Wisconsin, 5. Miami.

Athlon Sports--1. Florida State,

2. Nebraska, 3. Alabama, 4. Michigan,

5. Wisconsin.

Blue Ribbon Yearbook--1. Nebraska,

2. Florida State, 3. Alabama, 4. Michigan, 5. Miami.

ESPN the Magazine--1. Florida State, 2. Nebraska, 3. Alabama, 4. Miami,

5. Georgia.

Football News--1. Nebraska, 2. Florida State, 3. Georgia, 4. Wisconsin, 5. Texas.

Lindy’s--1. Nebraska, 2. Florida State, 3. Wisconsin, 4. Alabama, 5. Miami.

Sporting News--1. Nebraska, 2. Florida State, 3. Alabama, 4. Wisconsin, 5. Kansas State.

Street & Smith--1. Nebraska, 2. Florida State, 3. Alabama, 4. Miami, 5. Wisconsin.

USA Today/ESPN--1. Nebraska,

2. Florida State, 3. Alabama, 4. Wisconsin, 5. Miami.

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Trivia time: Who holds the record for runs batted in in a game for a pitcher?

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Fair warning: From Bud Geracie of the San Jose Mercury News: “By the time the Clippers get done with Alvin Gentry, he’ll be Elmer Gantry.”

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More Geracie: “Saying the 49ers could contend for a playoff spot if they get good QB play is like saying you’ll be a millionaire just as soon as you win the lottery.”

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Can he pass? Quarterback Major Applewhite is quite taken with the Texas Longhorns’ tradition.

“It’s nothing to walk down the hallway and brush past Earl Campbell and shake hands with him, then turn around and run into Coach [Darrell] Royal,” Applewhite said. “It’s something you read about when you’re a little kid. I never had a chance to see Earl Campbell play or Coach Royal coach, but to be part of the University of Texas and deal with and meet people like that, it’s a very humbling experience.”

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Hunch bet: A contestant in the Bass Masters world fishing tournament in Chicago is named Mike Wurm.

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Frustrating: The other night, the Pittsburgh Pirates loaded the bases in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings and didn’t score. After the game, a reporter from Denver said to Pirate Manager Gene Lamont, “You don’t do that very often, do you?

To which Lamont replied, “Hell, yeah, we do. Too often.”

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Accommodating: Shortly after beating Carmen Basilio for the world middleweight title, Gene Fullmer was mistaken for Basilio. When a fan asked “Mr. Basilio” for his autograph, Fullmer took the pen and paper, then asked the person next to him, “How do you spell Basilio?”

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Trivia answer: Tony Cloninger of the Atlanta Braves, with nine on July 3, 1966, against San Francisco. He hit two grand slams.

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And finally: Notre Dame may be out of the top 25, but the Fighting Irish are far from out at the turnstiles. As usual, all six home games are sold out, extending the home sellout streak to 155 games.