The Michigan Daily - Thursday, September 5, 1996 - 13A .Those who are covered will be 4hampions Do n't laugh. I'm not kidding. ack your bags for Pasadena, uy your plane tickets and reserve your hotel rooms. New Year's Day, there will be a maize-and-blue party explosion in Southern California. Michigan is going to win its first national title since 1948. The Wolverines. National champions. Guaranteed. Right here. What did I see in Michigan's 20- 8 victory over Illinois on t Saturday that makes me so sure? Well, it cer- tainly wasn't iot Dreisbachs NICHOLAS J. kicking game. COTSONIKA It was some- The Greek thing you can't Speaks see on the field, something you can't completely under- stand, something so brilliant it makes me sick. It's the Wolverines' secret weapon - a thing of such cunning, such genius, such sexiness, such humil- ity, it could only be one thing. 10 Me - for whatever reason. Don't laugh. I'm not kidding. Now, I know what you're thinking. I'm a hot, new recruit. I'm ranked No. I in SuperPrep, BlueChip and all the other magazines. Sports Illustrated thinks I'm the next Joe Montana. NBC thinks I'm the next Ron Powlus. You think I don't need to go to class. You think I've got a new car, leased by a close relative, of course. You think ie got herds of hair-sprayed, slightly light-headed women chasing me as doggedly as sports agents. You think wrong. First, you must stereotype athletes to think such things. Second, only the part about the women is correct. As it turns out, I don't even care if the Wolverines win or lose. I'm a sportswriter. I'm objective. But even in my constant search for { th, balanced sports reporting and the Xinerican manly ideal, I'm Michigan's biggest and best good luck charm. Two years, two national titles. I can't explain it. My freshman year in 1994-95, which was obviously my first at the Daily, I covered swimming. The team won it all. Everything. In fact, that wasn't enough, as Tom Dolan, Gustavo Borges and Tom 'Wlchow won Olympic medals for their respective countries this summer. Oh yeah, a ton of Wolverines made the U.S. swimming team, too. Why? I covered the trials. Wait, it gets better. Last year, I cov- ered hockey, and that team won it all. Everything. All of those years of over- time losses, all of that frustration, all of that futility, and then I show up. I mean, there were times when the tkey team would go into the locker- Wm after winning games, and as soon as I'd show up at the door, they'd start singing: "HAIL! HAIL!" I was really moved. But someone should tell them my name isn't Victor. Wait, it gets better. This summer, I covered four golf tournaments, four auto races, a sailing race, a volleyball tournament, and several football, base- ball and basketball games. every time I showed up, somebody a. I can't explain it. For example: the U.S. Open. Steve Jones was so overjoyed to win, when I walked up to him with my notebook, he was speechless. I mean, he wouldn't even talk to me. Neither would Illinois coach Lou Tepper on Saturday. He knows I don't root for Michigan. He knows the out- come is of no consequence to me. But ,also knows the facts. o matter what I may do, it just hap- pens. That's why I don't do politics: I wouldn't want to screw up the country. Auburn receiver may sit out season due to academic reasons The Associated Press Auburn wide receiver Willie Gosha's future has been thrown into question after the NCAA ruled that he is not making sufficient progress toward his degree. The Tigers' leading receiver in 1995 almost certainly will not play in Saturday's game against Fresno State, said Scott Stricklin of Auburn's sports information department. The senior received a 'D' in a class he took during the summer quarter. That dropped him below the grade- point average that NCAA rules state he needs to maintain in classes he takes in his Health Promotion major. Coach Terry Bowden announced yes- terday that Auburn will appeal the rul- ing made by the NCAA earlier this week because of "mitigating circum- stances" surrounding the class. A fami- ly illness kept Gosha from attending several of the classes, Bowden said. Bowden said he didn't know how long it would take for the NCAA to rule on the appeal, but he was hoping it would decide before Auburn's Southeastern Conference opener, Sept. 14 against Mississippi. He said the issue likely wouldn't have surfaced were it not for Auburn's non- traditional quarter system and the early start to this year's football season. Classes are split into four 10-week quarters at Auburn. The summer quar- ter ended the Thursday before last week's opener. It meant final grades and an analysis of each players' status had not filtered through the NCAA clearinghouse until early this week. Had the class been taken during spring quarter, or had football season started later, the problem could have been resolved without Gosha missing any games, Bowden said. But the timing kept Gosha out of Auburn's opener and this week's ruling will keep him out of the Fresno State game barring an unusually quick response from the NCAA on the appeal. Gosha had 58 catches for 668 yards last season, but failed to catch a touch- down as Auburn many times went to a run-oriented offense when it got near the goal line. Gosha still has his redshirt year remaining and could be forced to take it if a decision from the NCAA doesn't come soon. Meanwhile, Gosha is practicing with the team, Stricklin said. Auburn is still evaluating the acade- mic status of redshirt freshman fullback Brandon Morrow, who also was held out of last week's game. Defensive end Michael Mallaid, another redshirt freshman whose status was in question, has been cleared to play against Fresno State. Former California coach faces accusations of sexual harassment Wolverines handbook gushes football history The Associated Press BERKELEY, Calif. - As the NCAA looked into allega- tions of recruiting violations in the California basketball pro- gram, former coach Todd Bozeman prepared to head back to court to face accusations of harassment. Bozeman was scheduled to appear in Alameda County Superior Court this morning in a case in which a former Cal student has accused the coach of threatening her and making repeated phone calls to her with "highly sexual connotations." A temporary restraining order was imposed late last month against Bozeman, requiring him to stay away from former student Suzanne Wilson. Today, Judge Dawn Girard will consider whether to make that order permanent. Bozeman, forced to resign as Cal coach last week after leading the Bears to a 63-35 record in 3 1/2 years, has denied Wilson's accusations and claimed she was the one who sought a sexual relationship with him. Meanwhile, two reports said the NCAA is investigating a charge that a member of former Cal player Jelani Gardner's family was paid to help persuade the talented point guard to play for Bozeman at Cal. The San Francisco Chronicle reported yesterday that Gardner's relatives were given about $30,000. Sports Illustrated reported the payment was about $15,000. Athletic director John Kasser acknowledged last week, when he sought and accepted Bozeman's resignation, that Cal's basketball program was the subject of an NCAA inves- tigation and acknowledged "there could be a few things out there" that could attract the interest of investigators. Kasser refused to be specific about those problems. Bozeman, who repeatedly has denied recruiting violations, told the Chronicle he could not comment on the newspaper's allegations. The NCAA will send a letter of inquiry later this month and may subject the team to sanctions, the newspaper report- ed. The Chronicle and Sports Illustrated both quoted Tom Gardner, Jelani's father, as saying an agreement for payment was reached during Jelani's recruitment that included Bozeman, former Milwaukee Bucks assistant coach Butch Carter and former agent James Casey. Jelani Gardner, a 6-foot-6 guard who played for the Bears the past two seasons, transferred to Pepperdine in April. He may be hoping that if Cal is placed on probation, the NCAA would waive his one-year waiting period before he is allowed to play for Pepperdine. Tom Gardner said he brought the issue to the NCAA two years after the alleged payment in an effort to get Bozeman fired. The elder Gardner reportedly was unhappy with his son's playing time. By Ryan White Daily Sports Writer As an off week for the Michigan foot- ball team approaches, do you find your- self looking for something to do Saturday other than just drink beer all day? Maybe not, but if you are, one sug- gestion would be to brush up on your Michigan football history. And the best way to do that, aside from pillaging through the Bentley Historical Library and Sports Information archives, is by reading "The Wolverines Handbook: Stories, Stats and Stuff About Michigan Football" (Midwest Sports Publications). Written by the editor and the assistant editor of The Wolverine - John Borton and Paul Dodd, respectively - the book covers the entire 117-year history of Michigan football in just 158 pages. Despite an avalanche of facts, the book is an easy read. The Wolverine Handbook comes off as a quick reference to everything the Michigan football team has ever accom- plished, making it much more useful than your physics book. The $9.95 price tag also makes the book more economical than said physics text. For example, did you know the archi- tect of both the Michigan Union and the Michigan League, Irving Pond, scored the first touchdown ever for Michigan? He did, May 30, 1879, which is where the book begins. It ends Dec. 28, 1995 at the Alamo Bowl in San Antonio, Texas. Another of many interesting stories is of how on one early trip, Michigan stopped by a little town in Indiana called South Bend and taught the folks at Notre Dame how to play football. Amidst the book's season-by-season approach are quite a few photos, as well as sidebars about Michigan's greatest coaches and players. The book finishes up with a records section and alphabetical index of every Michigan football letterwinner. There is one group of fan, however, this book is not recommended for - those who dislike Michigan football. Pure and simple, it is a book for the Michigan fan. The Sporting Views: Atlanta chops again By Jacob Wheeler For the Daily Want to know which teams will win their respective pennants this year? Look no further than Major League Baseball's best pitchers. Atlanta's John Smoltz and the Yankee's Andy Pettite will lead their teams into mid-October this fall, leaving Cleveland and all the rest in the dust. Sorry, Albert Belle. The Indians have lost too many veteran faces to see the Fall Classic again soon. Gone are Carlos Baerga, Eddie Murray and Dennis Martinez. The Yankees are the only team capa- ble of beating Cleveland, and without Seattle to stomp on pinstripe dreams, Pettite will take New York to its first World Series since 1981. The Mariners upset the Yankees in a tight five-game, first-round playoff series last year, but without its "Big Unit" (Randy Johnson), Seattle is doomed. That leaves Texas running away with the American League West. The White Sox will win the wild card race over the Orioles by a slim margin in the American League, but it won't matter. The only race in the junior circuit that matters will be settled in the Bronx. The reason New York will beat Cleveland in the American League play- off's first round this fall is simnle. Tommy Lasorda. The weight of the franchise is on the shoulders of catcher Mike Piazza. And that's always a scary risk. San Diego is finally giving its fans more than just 81 warm days in the sun. Revitalized by their genius skipper, the Cardinals have been chasing the NL Central title all summer. Escaping from a sunken Oakland ship, Tony Larussa and pitching coach Dave Duncan have breathed life into the Cardinals. Though it isn't as deep as Houston, St. Louis will find a way to win the division. Montreal will grab the wild card and probably meet the Braves in the National League Championship Series. But the Expos' season will end there. A lack of commitment to winning on the part of Expos' brain trust, and its stingy pockets, have kept Montreal out of the World Series. These tales of success are heartwarming for the Padres, Astros and Cardinals, but stories alone are not potent enough to beat the Braves. The Braves have shown their ability to adapt to just about anything, in over- coming injuries to key players like David Justice and Jeff Blauser. Terry Pendleton, a familiar face from pen- nants past, and another host of rookies have stepped up in their absence. Through all the iniuries, Atlanta still 4 4? a - mon.-thurs.: 9:00a-10:00p i fri. & sat.: 9:00a-11:00p <., Zn I cm Am vv4 for &AyMe )w,4V SEC I KIORDERS \Re Navya t u Izy1 "qwill sesi e wed~ Y05weH MlIIt I flecil order MICH IGA N " M M phone: 663.5800 1140 south university (above goodtime chadeys), AA N0o9 y The only reason I keep covering Michigan is because I live here. I know, it's not fair. But since I'm not your vision of a hot recruit, I have no lease car, and I can't get anywhere else. The Wolverines are just lucky. Lloyd Carr and Steve Fisher must Je gotten the word. Caring so much ut the University, and obviously wanting each other's program to suc- ceeo reports said they argued over which team I would cover. "YOU TAKE HIM!" Carr said. "NO, GEE WHIZ, YOU TAKE HIM!" Fisher renortedly renlied. I: t t II oter uff on sale now - 'AI W, I I , iffA 71 lbt EI-A m