Star Tribune from Minneapolis, Minnesota • Page 67

rioj ispos-ts Ss Want ads 11-14D Minneapolis Star and Tribune Thursday August 23 18SS 1D schools set to tackle anottuieir season Phenix heads heavy cast of dream linemen By Tony Moton Staff Writer Rob Phenix, a growing boy 17 years old, 6-foot-8 and 260 pounds feels his stomach rumbling. He tackles the kitchen In search of the perfect appetite satisfier. How about a bowl of hot soup? No. A hamburger? No. Some leftover tuna salad? No.

A mountain of Hostess pudding pies and a gallon of milk? Yes. Phenix, the Rosemount High School senior considered one of the nation's top college football prospects, cant resist pudding pies. "I've had 13 pudding pies at one sitting before," he said. "This was a couple of days ago after practice. I got home and I was so tired I thought I wanted to go to bed, but then I thought, 'I want some pudding "I guess I got about a little more than $10 together and I went out and bought 12 or 13 pudding pies, scarfed them down and had a gallon of milk.

Oh, I felt good." Phenix's yearning for the treats Is surpassed only by his hunger for rival quarterbacks and running backs. A defensive end and linebacker, he was the only Mlnnesotan named by Chicago-based talent scout Tom Lemming to his preseason list of the top 100 seniors nationwide. "He has a great shot at being an All-America," Lemming said. Said University of Minnesota recruiter Vlnce Okruh: "He had a good Phenix continued on page 7D Lake division dominates football ratings By Tony Moton Staff Writer Bloomlngton Jefferson football coach Bruno Waldner has labeled It "barbarianlsm." Burnsville coach Dick Hanson considers It "awe-i some." Welcome to the Lake Confer-; ence's new Red Division, where six of its eight teams are ranked in the metro area's preseason Top 20 by the Star and Tribune's 10-member coaches panel. "It's going to be tough," said; Waldner.

"You lose one or two kids to Injury and you're going to be hurting. They're all good football schools and good coaching staffs." The revised Lake Conference, divided into the Red and Blue divisions, is made up of the old Lake North and South conferences and teams from; the Mlssota (second-ranked Apple -Valley and No. 11 Rosemount) and Suburban West (Eden Prairie) conferences. Along with Apple Valley, the 1985 Class AA runner-up, and Rosemount In the Lake Red, there's top-ranked and defending Class AA champ Burnsville, No. 5 Osseo, No.

6 Jefferson and No. 9 Park Center. In addition, Robblnsdale Armstrong missed the Top 20 by a point. The Lake Blue boasts two ranked teams No. 14 Wayzata and No.

18 Richfield. "Surviving that conference (the Lake Red) Is going to be the goal of everybody in the league," Hanson said. "I don't know what its like around the country, but I can't imagine another league with that level of Top 21 continued on page 6D 'Sff-A JaH m' Staff Photo by Steve Schluter It could be tough sledding for opponents who go up against Rosemount's Rob Phenix. Heaton benefits from Twins' 'Weal-Aid' show team is capable of doing, but they just weren't doing it for me. The guys picked me up.

They got some hits and made some good defensive plays and stuff. "My last five or six starts with Cleveland, I was losing like 2-1, 3-2 all the time. You guys are sick of hearing about that but the same thing was going on here and I started to believe that I was Jlnxed. Now, I'm going to reel off seven or eight wins in a row and finish one game over .500." Yesterday, though, Heaton came close4to not breaking a streak of three consecutive losses. The Twins led by six runs going Into the seventh, but the Brewers' Rick Cerone led off with his third home run of the season all against the Twins and Paul Molitor, who went 4-for-5, doubled to right.

Robin Yount walked and manager Ray Miller decided that Cecil Cooper would, regardless of outcome, be Heaton's final test Twins continued on page 5D By Howard Sinker Staff Writer Milwaukee, Wis. Enough was enough. Since Neal Hea-ton joined the Twins about nine weeks ago, his new teammates had not treated him well. Twice, he lost 1-0 complete games to Baltimore and he recently left a scoreless tie after eight Innings only to have Seattle win 1-0 in the ninth. Against Milwaukee on Wednesday, the Twins held a benefit for their left-hander of wayward fate.

Call it drove In the final two with a single in the fourth. "I think he was in shock that we got that many for him and he didn't know what to do." "It doesn't make sense, does it?" asked Heaton (5-12, 3.88). "This game doesn't make sense," offered Tom Brunansky, whose own recent struggles have made runs batted in an endangered species; he has just three in his last 21 games and none In his last nine. Heaton continued: "This is what the for Heaton in the first four Innings. Almost all of them were necessary as the Twins were required to hold on to a quickly-shrinking margin to win 7-5.

Milwaukee contributed pitcher Juan Nleves to Heaton's benefit The rookie left-hander allowed all of the runs, giving him 22 earned runs in 19 innings this month. "Heaton said he wanted five runs, but I'm glad that we ended up with seven," said Mickey Hatcher, who Nolan Ryan stops Cubs for 250th victory. Page 4D. Back problems persist for Ray Fontenot. Page 5D.

Neal-Aid. Kirby Puckett pledged four hits and three RBI, making him the honorary chairman. He also broke a l-for-21 slump and raised his batting average to .341, one percentage point shy of Boston's Wade Boggs, the American League leader. The rest of the team raised 10 more hits and seven runs Alabama Rookie linemen are 2 Vikings' projects in unfinished state upends Buckeyes Associated Press East Rutherford, NJ. Alabama coach Ray Perkins said he was just hoping his team could stay close to Ohio State in the third quarter of the fourth annual Klckoff Classic Wednesday night The fifth-ranked Crimson Tide did, setting up a 16-10 victory over the No.

9 Buckeyes before a crowd of 68,296 at Giants Stadium In the Meadowlands. "I knew the third quarter was big," said the fourth-year coach of the Crimson Tide. "I knew it would be big if we came out of the third quarter close to them. In the fourth quarter we got momentum." Mike Shula, stymied for most of the game by Ohio State's defense, flipped a three-yard touchdown pass to Albert Bell with 9:33 remaining for the winning score. Ohio State had two chances to win the game after time expired, thanks to consecutive pass Interference penalties against Alabama linebacker Derrick Thomas.

But two Alabama defenders double-teamed Ohio State ace receiver Cris Carter In the end tone and a last-gasp 17-yard pass from JiiwKarsatos was Incomplete. Ohio State coach Earle Bruce said, "The momentum changed in the fourth quarter. That was good for them, but bad for us." The Buckeyes led 10-6 heading Into the final 15 minutes, but squandered a scoring chance when freshman Pat O'Morrow missed a 44-yard field-goal attempt, his second miss of the game. Alabama then set out on a 12-play, 73-yard drive that ended In Shula's touchdown pass to Albert Bell. Alabamaxontinued 6n page 2D 1 By Dennis Brackln Staff Writer Mankato, Minn.

After four weeks of training camp, first-round draft pick Gerald Robinson is classified as a project by Vikings coaches. Joe Phillips, the other remaining rookie defensive lineman, Is also considered a project But he's a fourth-round draft choice, which alters the definition of project Robinson has time, Phillips a sense of urgency. That became clear Tuesday night when Phillips got a visit from defensive line coach Paul Wiggtn. The message relayed was that Phillips was considered the No. 7 defensive lineman In camp.

Seven defensive linemen remain, and the team has not decided whether it will keep six or seven. "It's a lot of pressure," said Phillips, 6-4, 280-pound tackle who played last year at SMU. "You're trying to learn, but at the same time you have to show what you can do. I feel If I'm going to make the club, I have to show them I can do something someone else can't do." Phillips said that thinking about next week's final cut is nerve-wracking. "But this week (the cut from 60 to 50) was nerve-wracking, too," he said.

Robinson, on the other hand, appears more calm about his future. Being the No. 1 draft choice helps, he said. "It probably makes It easier on you, but I dont fry to take advantage of it" the former Auburn star said. "I look at myself as just being one of the guys trying to make the team." Had he been just one of the guys, though, Robinson easily could have gotten lost in the shuffle.

The 6-3, A I look at myself as just being one of the guys trying to make the team. Gerald Robinson kt United Press International Mats Wllander strained to return a shot against unseeded Todd Nelson. 255-pound defensive end sprained a big toe near the end of the first week of training camp, forcing him to the sidelines for 10 days. Since his return, he has not been the type of defensive force one might expect of a No. 1 selection.

Viking coaches said the lost practice time hurt They also point to the adjustment Robinson has had to make from a standup college line- Vlklngs continued on page 2D Favorites win in U.S. Open Records fall In world cycling Page 2D Straight from horse's mouth Page 9D Page 3D 4.