The Orlando Sentinel from Orlando, Florida • Page 19

The Orlando Sentinel Kevin McHale scores 56 points as Boston Celtics win, C-8 Monday, March 4, 1985 .1 Gamblers gun down Bandits, 50-28 By Joan Ryan OF THE SENTINEL STAFF Larry Guest THE SPORTS COLUMN yards "We weren't the smartest team in the world," Spurrier said. The coaches didn't have the best day in the world. We Just got beat every way, coming and going." Spurrier said, in retrospect, he took Reaves out too early. After Reaves threw his second interception at 6:42 in the third quarter, Spurrier put in Jordan, a third-year pro from Florida State. Jordan completed 15 of 31 attempts for 184 yards and one touchdown.

Reaves completed 18 of 31 attempts for 225 yards and two touchdowns. "It was my fault for taking John Reaves out so early," Spurrier said. "We had more scoring opportunities than I expected. We had our chances to score. With us down 45-21, 1 figured I might as well see what Jimmy Jordan could do.

He passed okay, he just didn't pass to our guys all the time." Houston trailed for only 6 seconds Sunday. Tampa opened the scoring with Anderson's 5-yard touch" Please see BANDITS, C-4 In the season-opener last week against Los Angeles, Kelly threw for 574 yards and five touchdowns. The Bandits may take some consolation in holding Kelly to 261 yards, but it's unlikely. He also managed to squeeze four touchdowns from that 261 yards the exact number of yards Kelly gained in the fourth quarter against Los Angeles. Lucky for Tampa Bay, Kelly sat out the fourth quarter of Sunday's 3V-hour contest.

The 50 points are the most scored against the Bandits. It was not Kelly alone who flattened the Bandits. The Bandits helped. The special teams collapsed, allowing 183 yards and one touchdown on kickoff returns and 82 yards and a touchdown on punt returns. Starting quarterback John Reaves was intercepted twice and second-stringer Jimmy Jordan four times.

Between them, they gave up 120 yards. And running back Gary Anderson, who last week gained 143 yards and scored four touchdowns in Tampa Bay's 35-7 victory over Orlando last week, rushed for just 37 yards on 13 carries and scored one touchdown. Greg Boone led the Bandits with 43 Mum is word with Kosar as he kicks off 'Cane drills TAMPA The Houston Gamblers call their offense "run-and-shoot," a play on the team's Western nickname and quarterback Jim Kelly's six-gun arm. After their 50-28 blowout of the Tampa Bay Bandits before 42,219 spectators Sunday, they should consider revising it to "hit-and-run." Before the Bandits (1-1) knew what barreled over them, Houston had rolled up a 28-7 lead and showed no signs of slowing down. Even Coach Steve Spurrier's trickiest Banditball plays, such as a quick switch of the punt team and the offense on fourth down and a game-opening onside kick, didn't faze Houston.

The Gamblers (2-0) were too fast for the Bandits, and Kelly, in his second pro season, was just too good. "I didn't set any records," Kelly said, "but as long as we win that's all that counts with me." IAMI Friday afternoon, University of Miami Coach Jimmy Johnson and gifted jun ior quarterback Bernie Kosar huddled pri Strange benefits atDoral Jacobsen's hints leave him runner-up By Bob Fowler vately for a half-hour in Johnson's office without answering the pressing question of whether Kosar will be performing next fall on behalf of the Hurricanes or his wallet. The brainy Kosar is in the unique football position of graduating ahead of schedule this summer and thus has the option of skipping his final two years of college eligibility to expedite his pro career in the NFL, USFL, CFL or any other league that may sprout between now and next September. The smart money is betting Kosar will declare himself available for the NFL's April 30 draft, although Johnson and other UM types are clinging to hope that Bernie will decide to apply his Heisman-potential handiwork to one more Hurricane season. "It's really up in the air," Johnson said Sunday when asked to summarize his Friday session with Kosar.

That Kosar has let his self-imposed deadline of Sunday slide by without an announcement is cause for hope at Miami. "I told him it would not be fair to him or to Miami to force a decision right now. He agreed and wants to go ahead and start spring practice tomorrow Monday." So Kosar, who has avoided all interviews while making the Big Decision, apparently will pull on the gear today and fling at least a few more passes for UM. He need not inform the NFL until about April 16, a few days after UM spring practice is over. The decision basically is being made by Bernie and his father, and Johnson is trying not to unduly pressure them except to let Bernie know he will be more than welcome to stay.

"The thing he has to weigh is whether he's ready to play pro ball and give up the intangibles that go with staying here, like the possibility of the Heisman Trophy," Johnson said. "The dollars will be spent. But the Heisman Trophy would be something that would mean so much to him for the rest of his life. Who can say what it would be worth?" The dollars, of course, are no question mark. One NFL team, Minnesota, already has declared it would pick Kosar on the third selection of the draft, if he has not been taken bv Cleveland, which is trvine to OF THE 8ENTINEL STAFF IN J.

Ml JUDY BAYERLSENTINEL trade for Houston's No. 2 pick. The oilers already Twins' Kent Hrbek likes the look of a well-placed hit during Sunday's practice at Tinker Field. have a seven-figure quarterback, Warren Moon. CORAL SPRINGS Leo Duro-cher said, "Nice guys finish last." Well in the Honda Classic, a nice guy finished second and his friendly way probably cost him $36,000.

Peter Jacobsen, who gave Curtis Strange a lesson before the tournament started and more instruction after Thursday's opening round, bogeyed the first extra hole Sunday to lose a playoff. The winner was his student, Strange. Jacobsen had a 4-under-par 68 on the final round at the Tournament Players Club-Eagle Trace to tie for the lead at 13-under 275 for 72 holes. Strange had a 2-over 74, making an 8-foot par-saving putt on the 18th hole to create the playoff. They returned to the tee on the 540-yard 15th hole.

On their third shots, Jacobsen pulled his ball into the fringe while Strange left his 35 feet short of the cup. Jacobsen putted 5 feet past the hole, later saying, "It got away dpm me." Strange missed his bird-l attempt by 2 feet. Then Jacobsen's par-saving attempt rolled left of the cup and he tapped in for a bogey 6. Strange sank his for a 5, saying, "It was the longest 2-footer I've ever seen." He won for capturing the sixth title of his career. Jacob-sen earned $54,000 and Strange's thanks.

Willie Wood finished third, Yet another opportunity for Twins pitcher By Larry McCarthy OF THE SENTINEL STAFF a fourth and fifth starter in his pitching rotation to go with Frank Viola, Mike Smithson and John Butcher. Yett is going to get a good look this spring after a 12-9 record at Class AAA Toledo with 129 strikeouts in 174 innings. Yett was almost an afterthought in 1980 when he was drafted out of high school in Chino, Calif. He wasn't taken until the 26th round. He made stops in Class A at Eliza-bethton, Wisconsin Rapids and Please see TWINS, C-3 But recent shoulder trouble has slowed his progress.

"This is the first time I have ever had trouble with my shoulder," he said Sunday as he sat in the clubhouse at Tinker Field with an ice pack strapped to his right shoulder after throwing batting practice. "With therapy, the soreness should be going away. I feel good, but the arm problem has kind of put a damper on it." Manager Billy Gardner is looking for Right-hander Rich Yett has made a steady progression up the professional baseball ladder since signing with the Minnesota Twins in 1980, and his next logical step is the major leagues. When spring training began at Tinker Field on Feb. 20, Yett was a prime candidate to win a spot in the Twins' starting rotation.

Retton dominates in American Cup ASSOCIATED PRESS Both Minnesota and Cleveland are attractive to Kosar. Going to the Vikings would reunite him with bright young QB coach Marc Trestman, his UM mentor. And the Browns were Kosar's "team" while growing up in nearby Boardman, Ohio. Kosar's fate may have been sealed when the Buffalo Bills committed the No. 1 pick to Virginia Tech lineman Bruce Smith.

Going to Buffalo was at the bottom of Kosar's druthers. I told you he was brainy. The assurance of being among the top three picks carries with it the reasonable assumption that a quarterback of Kosar's appeal and credentials could expect a multimillion-dollar contract. Under consideration is injury insurance much like the $1 million policy Iowa's Chuck Long bought for $7,000 when he chose to stay at Iowa as a fifth-year senior next fall rather than come out for the NFL draft this spring. "That will happen if Bernie stays here, but it will be for an amount well in excess of that," Johnson says.

Not a factor in the decision process is Kosar's USFL alternative. The Orlando Renegades hold the territorial rights to Miami players, and before the possibility of Bernie coming out this year surfaced, principal owner Don Dizney said he intended to make a serious offer to Kosar when he left UM. Dizney affirmed Sunday there has been no Renegades contact with the Kosars as yet. "If he stays at Miami, we will certainly make a serious attempt to sign him next year, after we've had a year to get our feet on the ground," Dizney said. Johnson, after a relaxing afternoon of boating and snorkeling, gave little appearance Sunday evening of a guy on the verge of losing a Heisman candidate quarterback who threw for nearly 6,000 yards in just two college seasons.

Most college coaches in this predicament would be excused for having cyanide pills handy, or at least a copy of directions to the nearest 40th-floor window ledge. But despite the problems of following local deity Howard Schnellenberger, of public back-biting by some of Howard's holdover staff, of disheartening last-second losses in an 8-5 season, of seven recent UM squad arrests and of possibly losing Kosar, few would believe how little second thought the personable Johnson has given to his sudden decision last June to bolt Oklahoma State and take over at Miami. "Sure, this has been an eventful nine months," Johnson said. "I don't know that I've ever had as many highs and lows in one season. But I absolutely love it down here.

I don't think people realize how much Linda Kay Mrs. Johnson and I enjoy it here the city, the weather and all the things to do. And to be at a school where you can attract some of the top players in the country is just such a bonus." A calming effect is the presence of talented reserve quarterback Vinnie Testaverde, a 6-foot-5, 214-pound junior with all the same potential, albeit little experience, who was beaten out by Kosar two years ago on a virtual coin flip. Kosar spent his Sunday evening on behalf of charity, participating in a "money grab" during a UM baseball game. Performing for a local family that lost five members in a recent fire, Bernie scooped up dollar bills from the infield.

Perhaps a tuneup for later this spring when he'll have a chance to dive into some NFL counting house. v. three shots behind the playoff participants. Fred Couples, who started the last round sharing the lead with Strange, shot a 78 and tied for fourth with Ray Floyd. Gary Koch, who begins defense of his Hertz Bay Hill Classic championship this week, tied Tom Kite for sixth place.

Kite, the 1982 Bay Hill champ, won't be competing in Arnold Palmer's Invitational, returning instead to Austin, Texas, to move into a new family home. Bob Byman, who won the first Bay Hill title in 1979, also won't be returning to the site of his only PGA Tour triumph. Trying to regain his confidence and form in South Africa, he didn't enter either. Strange and Jacobsen will be at Bay Hill, perhaps continuing their practice-tee discussion of the game's finer points. After tying for 31st in the Doral-Eastern Open, Strange arrived at Eagle Trace with some problems.

He asked for help Wednesday from Jacobsen, who had entered his first tournament in a month. Jacobsen had slipped and pulled muscles in his left side in the Los Angeles Open. He took a month off to recover. Since he had missed the cut in his only other 1985 start, Jacobsen had total earnings this season of $0.00. Strange was 17th on the i 4 ll53t-r -tl INDIANAPOLIS History and Mary Lou Retton remain an item.

Retton, who last summer became the first American woman gymnast to win the Olympic all-around gold, capped her return to international competition with a runaway victory Sunday in the American Cup meet. And in beating a field of young international challengers, Retton, 17, became the first three-time winner of the women's competition. It was the American Cup that launched Retton's career in the winter of 1983. An alternate that year, Retton got her break when teammate Dianne Durham was injured. Retton scored an upset victory and rarely has lost since.

"I think the American Cup has been my breakthrough," Retton said. "I got in it at the last moment it was my first victory. "Tnree years in a row I'm excited." The United States scored a sweep of the American Cup when Olympian Tim Daggett edged China's Yang Yueshan for the men's all-around title in a battle that went down to the final event. Retton picked up right where she left off seven months ago in Los Angeles. With the partisan crowd of 12,000 fans in Market Square Arena echoing cheers of "We love you Mary Lou" and a nationwide audience looking on, Retton finished first in all four women's events.

Wearirfg her Olympic red, white and blue leotards and flashing the form and smile that carried her to the all-around gold medal in Los Angeles, Retton opened with a 9.85 score in the vault and followed it with a crowd-stirring 9.825 score in the uneven bars. Please see RETTON, C-8 UNITED PRESS INTERNATIONAL End of an era Georgetown's 7-foot center, Patrick Ewing, gets an affectionate hug from his coach, John Thompson, on Sunday before Ewing's last home game with the Hoyas. Ewing, a two-time Ail-American, received a standing ovation from the partisan crowd at Landover, and showed his appreciation by scoring 15 points and excelling defensively as the Hoyas defeated Big East rival Syracuse, 90-63. Story, C-5. PGA Tour money list with $47,344.

Yet Strange asked for the help, and Jacobsen gave it. In the first round, Strange posted a 67 and Jacobsen a 66. Please see HONDA, C-7.