A Bit More Gratitude, a Lot Less Attitude

Sportswriters generally begin their careers covering high school sports and work their way up to the professional leagues. John Millea of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, after years of covering pro sports, has chosen to return to the high school beat.

In a Newsweek “My Turn” column headlined “My Happy Adieu to Professional Sports,” Millea says covering the preps is the best job in the business.

“Many of the athletes and coaches I deal with,” Millea wrote, “say something that would shock my colleagues on the pro beats: ‘Thank you.’ ”

Trivia time: USC has sent 357 athletes to the Olympics. Who was USC’s first Olympian?

Driven: Fortunately for Dumsira Nwibiabu, punctuality and love of the game aren’t part of the NFL’s football skills competition for kids.

The 9-year-old Utah boy won his age group Saturday at the NFL’s Punt, Pass and Kick competition at Pittsburgh’s Heinz Field, even though he doesn’t particularly like the sport, and he and his father, Vincent, missed the bus to the stadium.

They showed up minutes before the competition started, allowing Dumsira just a couple of warmup throws and kicks.

Then the fourth-grader, a refugee from Nigeria who moved to Utah in 2001, defeated three other finalists in his age division.

“He was excited, but maybe not as excited as some other kids would be,” Dumsira’s coach, Matt Child, told The Salt Lake Tribune. “It’s still football, and he doesn’t care for it too much.”

Reunited: Marv Albert will get to see two of his former announcing partners, Mike Fratello and Jeff Van Gundy, today when he and Steve Kerr call the first game of a TNT doubleheader, Houston at Memphis.

Van Gundy coaches the Rockets, Fratello the Grizzlies.

Albert is fond of both, but enjoys giving them the needle.

Asked what he learned from them, Albert said, “I learned how annoying people can be.”

Heaven can’t wait: Mike Downey of the Chicago Tribune, in making predictions for 2005, wrote: “Vladimir Guerrero will be the World Series MVP for the newly named Los Angeles Southern California Mighty Angels of Anaheim.”

Looking back: On this day in 1995, the Rams announced they were leaving Southern California after 49 years and moving to St. Louis.

Trivia answer: Emil Breitkreutz, who also was USC’s first basketball coach. Breitkreutz won a bronze medal in the 800 meters at the 1904 Olympics with a time of 1:56.4.

Breitkreutz also was a co-founder of the Southern California Collegiate Volleyball Assn. in 1950, and Dick Van Kirk, a former long jumper for the Southern California Striders, remembers him working as a track and field official as late as 1961.

And finally: Matt Leinart passed up NFL riches to play with his friends at USC for the love of the game, and why not? With the monthly stipend check he gets, Leinart says he has everything he needs.

“Come on, $950 a month,” Leinart said when announcing his decision. “We’ve got a training table, we’ve got food.”

Larry Stewart can be reached at larry.stewart@latimes.com.