Life of Riley Isn’t All It Seems It Should Be

Dan LeBatard in the Miami Herald: “He has been shoved off the stage, less relevant than he has ever been in his coaching life, and this is an odd, unprecedented place for Pat Riley.

“Miami is just another NBA team now, and not a terribly interesting one at that....

“This isn’t how it was supposed to be. Riley won championships in Los Angeles.

“He got within one good quarter of one in New York.

“But he hasn’t come close to the throne in Miami, and he has never looked further away from it than he does now.”

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Trivia time: What do Bobby Bonds, Hugh McElhenny and Lynn Swann have in common?

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Speed-up tip: Scott Ostler in the San Francisco Chronicle: “Please, Santa, for Christmas bring us a 24-second pitch clock for baseball, and a no-step-out rule for hitters.

“Here’s a time saver: Station a groundskeeper at the mound, and after each pitch he does any raking and shovel work, so the pitcher doesn’t have to waste time in heavy grading projects.”

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Staying put: Gene Frenette in the Florida Times-Union: “The latest Steve Spurrier-to-the-NFL rumor involves him going to the Washington Redskins, where his good buddy Pepper Rodgers serves as an administrator.

“A good rule of thumb to follow on whether Spurrier goes pro is this:

“If the NFL team in question isn’t in Florida, he’s not leaving.”

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Who’ll believe him? Pat Williams, commenting to Bob Ryan of the Boston Globe on his research for his book on Michael Jordan: “How To Be Like Mike: Life Lessons About Basketball’s Best”:

“I started hearing from people in Chicago who told me they’d been playing pickup ball at lunchtime or on Saturdays and in the gym would walk Michael Jordan.

“Can you imagine a guy who’s just played ball against Michael Jordan showering and then returning to his office, saying, ‘Guess who I just played against?”’

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Ouch: Injured Denver Bronco Terrell Davis, about the punishment he and other running backs endure:

“About midway through the season, and especially the playoffs, our bodies feel a whole lot like corpses.

“We’re like dead men playing. We’re brittle, sore, beat up. It’s tough to even walk. And the longer the season lasts, the worse it gets, believe me.”

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Mandatory: Bud Geracie in the San Jose Mercury News:

“From now on, race-car drivers will be required to wear the Head and Redneck Support device.”

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Looking back: On this day in 1944, USC defeated Washington, 38-7. It was the first night game played at the Coliseum by the Trojans.

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Trivia answer: They were all state long jump champions in California.

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And finally: Millard Hampton, 45, former UCLA sprinter, commenting to John Crumpacker of the San Francisco Chronicle, on how his speed was an asset when he was younger as a member of the San Jose Police Dept.:

“I could chase a criminal and pass him up and tell him to hurry up. I enjoyed the surprise on their faces seeing me keeping up with them, a police officer with all that gear on his belt.”