The Philadelphia Inquirer from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania • Page 27

Section Horse Racing D8 Sixers D2 Sports in Brief D3 A freshman center leads Louisville to an 88-86 upset of Kentucky. D3. Monday, January 2, 1995 iskers climb over the humn Sports Rally to top Miami, lay claim to No. 1 Familiar fate for Perm St. jj.

ji-V. ill 'rv Bowl Games on TV Today 1 By Mike Bruton INQUIRER STAFF WRITER MIAMI It took a long while for Tom Osborne to make it to the post-game ceremony where he was unofficially presented Nebraska 24 with the award Miami 17 that is given to the coach of the team that wins the national championship. In 21 seasons as head coach of the Big Red, the national title had eluded Osborne. And after his top-ranked Cornhuskers engineered a stirring comeback to beat third-ranked Miami, 24-17, in the Orange Bowl last night, he acted like a man who didn't know his way to the podium. "I didn't even know this existed," he joked upon his arrival.

Humor came easy for the lanky coach, and it should have, for this jewel of a victory took a load off his shoulders. At the same time, it left Joe Paterno, coach of second-ranked Penn State, with virtually no chance to capture the crown when the Nittany Lions take on Oregon in the Rose Bowl today. The Cornhuskers came back from a 17-7 second-half deficit, with fullback Cory Schlesinger scoring on runs of IS and 14 yards in the last eight minutes. Tommie Frazier, who started but was pulled at the beginning of the second quarter in favor of Brook Berringer, was put back in the game with 12 minutes, 7 seconds to go, after Berringer had thrown a crucial 1 1.7 TTJ W1. 'WW, ft I It Again, the Nittany Lions could go unbeaten and untied and not be voted national champs.

By Ray Parrillo INQUIRER STAFF WRITER PASADENA, Calif. After watching and suffering through last night's Orange Bowl, Penn State's flashy, high-scoring, precise, second-ranked Nittany Lions will go into today's 81st Rose Bowl (Channel 6, 4:50 p.m.) against streaking Oregon knowing they can take a peculiar place in college football history. They can become the fourth team from Happy Valley to have a perfect season, win a major bowl game, and still not finish No. 1. No other university can say the same.

No other would want to. The possibility put Ki-Jana Carter, the Nittany Lions' superb tailback, in a state of near-denial. "If both us and Nebraska go undefeated, it -would be a shame if we didn't get at least a share of the national championship," he said. Defensive tackle Vin Stewart was a little more bold and forceful when he pondered that scenario. "Who really cares what other people think?" he said.

Last night, Nebraska delivered nice-guy coach Tom Osborne from more than two decades of frustration by defeating Miami in the Orange Bowl to virtually nail down the No. 1 spot it held in the Associated Press media poll and the USA TodayCNN coaches' poll. By defeating the Hurricanes, the Cornhuskers reduced the Rose Bowl to a match between a team striving for perfection and another hoping to pull off one of the greatest upsets in the wacky history of bowl games. No matter how impressive the Nittany Lions look against the heavy underdog Ducks, it's not likely they'll sway voters who dropped them from No. 1 to No.

2 after they whipped Ohio State, 63-14, in late October. To a man, the Nittany Lions had said all along that they'd prefer to settle this issue of No. 1 on the field. But that was impossible. The Big Ten champ is locked into the Rose Bowl against the Pac-10 champ, and the bowl game that calls See PENN STATE on D4 Diane Pucin's column and Rose Bowl rosters, D4.

People in Pasadena itself aren't exactly caught up in all the Rose Bowl hoopla, D5. For Osborne, at last, a smile and a title if -i 7L Associated Press HANS DERYK MIAMI They came strutting down the gauntlet of smoke machines, making their usual peacock entrance, and in their spindly sprinter's legs last night they carried Penn State's hopes for a national championship. And how's that for rich, rich irony? Miami, sassy and brassy and always doing something that makes you grimace, forever embroiled in some sort of controversy, carrying the banner of Penn State, which is, as we all know, as unsoiled as a snowbank in Happy Valley in January. So here were the Canes, mouthy as ever and also swift as ever, lining up against those Nebraska diesels, and on the sideline Tom Osborne, implacable as a grain elevator, stoically ground on his gum and waited to see if his public torture would continue Hall of Fame Bowl Wisconsin vs. Duke, 1 1 a.m (ESPN) Citrus Bowl Alabama vs.

Ohio 1 p.m. (Ch. 6) Cotton Bowl Southern Cal vs. Texas Tech, 1 p.m. (Ch.

3) Carquest Bowl West Virginia vs. South Carolina, 1:30 p.m (Ch. 10) Fiesta Bowl Colorado vs. Notre Dame, 4:30 (Ch. 3) Rose Bowl Penn St.

vs. Oregon, 4:50 p.m. (Ch. 6) Sugar Bowl Florida vs. Florida 8:30 p.m.

(Ch. 6) interception. Frazier, who was named the game's MVP, hit tight end Eric Alford for a two-point conversion to tie the score at 17-17 with 7:38 left. "It's a great way to end it playing Miami in Miami," Osborne said. See ORANGE BOWL on D6 for yet another year.

It wouldn't. Justice at last. Tom Osborne finally got what was coming to him. After all those years of agony and torment, of field goals wobbling tan-talizingly wide and of zebras making maddeningly incorrect decisions, he was allowed to complete a perfect season. And the absolute worst he will do this year is share No.

1 with Penn State. See OSBORNE on 06 time on a scramble to fire a 5-yard touchdown pass to Mark Carrier. Testaverde generaled two big scoring drives late in the game to help the Browns forge a crucial 10-point lead. At one point, he completed 11 straight passes. Better yet, he did not.

throw an interception all day. "I just wanted to go out and have fun today," Testaverde said. "I didn't want to make any mistakes to hurt our team today. I play better when I don't put any pressure on myself, because when you do that, you tend to make those costly mistakes." Reporters swamped him on the field after the game and wanted to know about some of his good throws. Many ot the 77,452 attendance at the Dawg Pound stayed to happily woof at Testaverde as he ran off the field, a game ball crooked in his arm.

Afterward, he was asked if he felt vengeful or vindictive toward all the billions of football fans who had questioned his ability. Testaverde smiled wearily, paused, and shook his head. "No," he said softly. "I'm happy to be in the position I'm in. I'm happy for the team.

I've been through some tough times. I've learned from it. I've grown from it. I know there have been some negative things said about me, but I've got more important thines to worry about than what See BROWNS on D2 Lyon 'S Abdul Muhammad leaps into the arms of Nebraska teammate Cory Schlesinger, who had just scored the first of his two fourth-quarter touchdowns. That TD, plus a two-point conversion, tied the score at 17-17.

Testaverde steers Browns past Patriots Bears oust Vikings by forcing turnovers Minnesota's Warren Moon was ineffective. Chicago had lost six straight games to the Vikings. The quarterback threw and scrambled effectively. New England made Cleveland work hard for the win. By Dave Caldwell INQUIRER STAFF WRITER CLEVELAND This really must be a new year.

Vinny Testaverde actually looked like a real quarter-- back yesterday. Browns 20 Testaverde Patriots 13 threw more passes into his receivers' hands than into the squishy, spray-painted glop that served as the field at Cleveland Stadium. He scrambled nimbly and effectively. He played with poise and confidence. He looked like he was enjoying himself, sort of.

After leading the Cleveland Browns to a slightly hairy, 20-13 AFC wild-card victory over the New England Patriots, testaverde pointed to his wretched performance in a game played exactly eight years ago today. He said he was determined never to work himself into a dither over a big game again. That game, of course, was the 1987 Fiesta Bowl, in which Testaverde flung five interceptions in a 14-10 loss to Penn State that cost his University of Miami team the national championship. Testaverde was nowhere near the same quarterback yesterday against the Patriots, even though this was the first playoff game in his undistinguished professional career. He finished with 20 completions in 30 attempt for 268 yards.

He bought They were revived yesterday by skunk odor, emanating from the Vikings. Minnesota's chronic inability to convert miles of statistics into points brought its season to a sorry conclusion. Quarterback Warren Moon, a sprained left knee still bothering him, threw the ball 52 times for 29 completions, two touchdowns and 292 yards. He also threw two interceptions and missed open receivers regularly. Sean Salisbury replaced him when the game was clearly over, and lie uucuipieu iiiiic poaaca, luiug- ing the Vikings' total to 61.

The Bears had 81 fewer yards total offense and nine minutes' less time of possession. Yet they won because of the two interceptions, because of two fumble recoveries, one of which was returned for the final touchdown, and because they led the Vikes in rushing yardage, 9449. The No. 1 defense against the run allowed 67 yards on 13 carries to Chicago rookie Raymont Harris. In the regular season, the Vikes allowed 63 yards rushing per game.

Harris' 29-yard touchdown run in the third quarter was the longest rush surrendered by the Vikings all year. I See BEARS on D2 By Gwen Knapp INQUIRER STAFF WRITER MINNEAPOLIS The NFC's intramural scrimmages ended yesterday in the Metrodome, where the Minne-. sota vikings' de- Bear 35 fense played like Vikings 18 recent alumni of the Arthur Murray School of Tackling and officials obstructed passing lanes. When the afternoon of playoff ineptitude ended, the Chicago Bears had emerged from the Central Division morass wnh a 35-18 wiiu-card victory. They get to play with the varsity now, moving on to San Francisco for a second-round game on Saturday.

The Bears (10-7) had lost their last six games against Minnesota, and they had dropped three of their last four regular-season games, clinching one of the Central's four postseason spots only because the Eastern Division contenders crumbled. "We didn't have anything to lose, because nobody thought we could do anything," said cornerback Jeremy Lincoln, whose third-quarter interception stopped Minnesota at the Chicago 35. "At least, that's the vibe we got all week." I 7i? i iiniiimiwimMiiiiini)rniitiiioiiriiirtirff-ir-i-'--rj 1 mmm. 3- Allsport STEPHEN DUNN Eric Turner celebrating after Cleveland stopped New England's last drivs. Earlier, he had intercepted a pass to sefiip a field goal..