Wednesday, July 20 1977 THEM ICH I GAN DAILY Page Eleven Wednsday Jul 20,1977THE ICHIAN DILY age leve . C{S{:{?1. 4 ? FJ'f?{;pf:;!Ci":j,:: :: : :: : :: :: ::: ::: :::. :.:..".";'!??itjtfi:r; "'"YS^:"}:: }}:"tin:. h\i": r ^ ... ..:... nti. .1..... r .. .. .. .. LC }J}:a 4}:: +ii+{{:O:v: \v.u.{Gf.: ..{. n . :: i. i?:: i:' . -. . v}.L". :: \i' :.} Con fident QB Lions open; Landry ready MANNY FERNANDEZ, defensive lineman for theMi- mi Dolphins, grimaces as he fights off a block during pre-season drills at Biscayne College. Knee problems have kept Fernandez on the sidelines for the better part of the past two seasons. Gimpy Fernandez attempts comebac By The Associated Press MIAMI - Bruised and battered Manny Fernandez says he never liked football training camp. And this year is no different as the nine-year veteran pells off his bandages, forgets his five knee operations and knocks heads in workouts with other Miami Dolphins for the first time inthree seasons. ,s "I feel like I'm 80 going on 90," Fernandez said Monday after practice at Biscayne College. I've never enjoyed training camp, per se," said Fer- nsdez, 31. "But getting out there is better than just watch- ing." Ilis NFL career peaked when he made 17 tackles againstf Washington in Super Bowl VII. Then' came the series of operations. He played little in 1975, none in 1976. But Coach Don Shula is desperate for defensive line- men, and he's still hoping Fernandez' knee will make it through the season. "At this stage I'm still wondering whether the knee en can take the pounding," Fernandez said. "And if so, f whether the rest of my body can. "I don't know if I can still move. And that's a toughr place to be if you can't move." , Fernandez, signed as a free agent out of Utah, made a name for himself during the Super Bowl years be-r cause of his quickness and cunning. He was a bulwark in the famed No-Name Defense during three consecutive Super ri Bowl campaigns. "Since the Oakland playoff loss (28-26, to end the 1974. season), it's been straight downhill," Fernandez said of his physical condition. '"It's a long road back." .......... ... ''"ii:r- $ e:%r:: oo 'm mi :i ::{::..,. Join the Daily Sports Staff By The Associated Press ROCHESTER, Mich. - Quarterback Greg Lan- dry was on hand Monday to welcome Detroit Lion rookies to training camp. Thirty-six players, including 11 draft choice and 16 free agents, were on hand for the work- out at Oakland University. All the rookies have signed contracts. OTHER INVITED veterans included Joe Reed and Gary Danielson, Leonard Thompson, Russ Bolinger, Garth Ten Napel, Horace King, Mark Markovich and Lawrence Gaines. J. D. Hill was scheduled to show up today. The other Lions veterans will report Thurs- day to prepare for two-a-day drills beginning Saturday. The Lions open their exhibition season Aug. 6 at home against Kansas City, Landry seemed relaxed and happy, confident as he begins a new season healthy for the first time in years. "I'M EXCITED about this year," he said. "We didn't play well last year, but I felt that I got through it healthy. And, at the end of the sea- PILOT LEMON LOOKS AHEA son, by retaining Tom Hudspeth, (the team's coach), we're going to basically keep the same offensive and defensive plays. "People are aware of what to expect from him and he knows what to expect from us. The first months won't be spent learning about one another." The Lions finished last season with a 6-8 re- cord. "It used to kill me to hear people say we're ready to jump into the Super Bowl," Landry said Monday. " The last couple of years, after mediocre seasons and a lot of injuries, it was unrealistic." BUT LANDRY THINKS the 1977 Lions have a better shot at it. "There will be real good competition in our division," he admitted. "As for a Super Bowl or something like that, I don't know. ". . . If we can get a little tougher offensively and eliminate the mental mistakes, I think we can compete for the divisional championship," he said. Landry played all 14 games last season for the first time in four years. Chisox eye 'Royal" race By The Associated Press CHICAGO - Abandoning the "one game at a time" theory, the Chicago White Sox are set- ting their sights on beating out the Kansas City Royals for the American League West title and Manager Bob Lemon says "Why not?" L e m o n, low-keyed and re- freshingly realistic, said "What difference does it make?" in direct contrast to the usual managerial concept of "playing them one game at a time." "Maybe looking ahead is a good thing," said Lemon. "I don't know and I really don't care. Let the players think what they want as long as they do the job on the field and they are doing it, make no mistake about that. They're doing it day by day and that's what counts." They are doing it so well that the White Sox reached the All- Star break with a 54-36 record, best in the American League, and a 2 game lead over the Kansas City Royals, whom they consider the team to beat. "We're going to have to do it ourselves," said Steve Stone whose 10 victories are tops on the White Sox staff. "We have seven more against them (K.C.) and I know we can beat them. Maybe we can take five or six of the seven. "It will be up to our pitch- ing," said Stone. "We know our guys can hit their pitch- ing." The White Sox and Royals have met eight times this sea- son and the Sox have a 5-3 edge. The two teams meet in a four-game series in Chicago the final weekend of July and then meet again for three games in Kansas City the first weekend of August. If it turns out to be a two- team race in the American League West, it will be decided elsewhere since the two con- tenders do not meet each other again following their series in Kansas City. WEDNESDAY for Billiards and Bowling 1 1 A.M. to 6 P.M. The Union A Public Service of this newspaper& The Advertising Council here's lots of livng and loving ahead Today is the first day of the rest of your life. Ie O , so it can be the first day of somebody else's, too. %AY cut it short American cancer Sdcity Red Cross. The Good Neighbor.