You Hate to See Paper at War With Itself

The New York Times initially spiked two columns that dissented from its editorial stand that Tiger Woods should boycott the Masters.

Don Graham, the chairman of the Washington Post Co., which owns the Washington Post, was quoted by the Washingtonian magazine as telling sports editor George Solomon: “I have to remember to tell [Post sports columnist] Mike Wilbon not to disagree with our editorial policy on Iraq.”

In good hands: Arizona tight end Justin Levasseur allegedly had 87 pounds of marijuana in his truck. Wrote Tom Fitzgerald of the San Francisco Chronicle: “This gives a whole new meaning to the term ‘possession receiver.’ ”

Reader Doug Kelly of Sacramento suggested to the Chronicle that perhaps Levasseur was going to use the money to buy out the contract of much-maligned Arizona Coach John Mackovic.

Trivia time: Three Iowa Hawkeyes have finished second in Heisman Trophy voting. Who were they?

Shotgun start: “Smith & Wesson announced plans to produce golf clubs,” the Seattle Times’ Dwight Perry writes, “giving a whole new meaning to the question, ‘What did you shoot?’ ”

Comedian Alan Ray told the Chronicle: “The company is confident it can compete in this market. Its products usually complete 18 holes in just seconds.”

No sugar, please: “Quarterbacks are like tea bags,” Missouri Coach Gary Pinkel told the Kansas City Star. “You don’t know what you’ve got until you put them in hot water.”

Image problem: Jay Leno, on Tonya Harding’s proposed appearance on the undercard of the Mike Tyson-Clifford Etienne fight Feb. 22: “I hate to see the image of boxing hurt by the sleaze of women’s figure skating.”

Generosity helps: New York Giant rookie tight end Jeremy Shockey is getting all kinds of endorsement deals. Are his teammates jealous?

“Every time they give me stuff, I give it to all my teammates,” Shockey told the Bergen Record. “So they don’t really complain to me.”

Keen observation: ABC sideline reporter Lynn Swann said Miami “wants to force Virginia Tech into a lot of third-and-longs.”

Wrote Phil Mushnick of the New York Post: “Fascinating. That’s ... been every team’s defensive strategy since 1912.”

Trivia answer: Alex Karras (1957), Randy Duncan (1958) and Chuck Long (1985).

Big shoes to fill: Aisha Tyler, the comedian who played Shaquille O’Neal’s girlfriend on an episode of HBO’s “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” said she picked up one of his shoes to see just how big it is.

“It reached from my kneecap to my hipbone,” she said.

And finally: HBO sent out a list of memorable quotes culled from its sports shows this year. Here’s what O’Neal, appearing on “On the Record,” told Bob Costas in April about his relationship with Phil Jackson:

“He’s President Bush and I’m Dick Cheney. We may have some heated arguments, but he’s the boss and I’m the vice president.”

And Kobe Bryant?

“He’s next in line,” O’Neal said.

-- Larry Stewart