The Town Talk from Alexandria, Louisiana • Page 11

Section Page One Thursday, December 21, 1972 ALEXANDRIA PINEVILLE, LA Pros Rafe Rodgers a Gamble Carter' Bert No A for No. I r'i "iV-! I pa tyJ 1 Column i (Vt I i A 4: JOHN HANNAH university iiumxu, which ii can take, but the other black players on the team were threatened with bodily harm if they didn't refuse to play in the game. They played, and won. That was a fine bunch rushing to the aid of McAshan. With the threats against the other black players and their families, they proved that their objective was something other than the welfare of Eddie McAshan.

This has to make coaches a bit reluctant to sign black players. A coach has enough problems without having to contend with a bunch of protesters and boycotters. If the rabble-rousers would just leave the young black athletes alone, they wouldn't have any difficulties. But, no, they have to give some of these athletes By Hubert Mlell AKsucluti-d Prm Spirit Writer Pro football's beef merchants, preparing marketing lists for next month's college draft, put a passing strongboy from LSU and a 2M)-pound defensive monster from Purdue on top. Ileisman Trophy winner Johnny Rodgers isn't so highly regarded.

One personnel director said "to take him is a gamble, something only a wellstocked team can afford." Bert Jones of Louisiana State, 6-foot-3 son of former Cleveland Browns passcat-cher Dub Jones, is a near cinch to be the first quarterback plucked by the National Football League. "You've got to look to the big boys early, too," said a Minnesota Vikings spokesman. "A tough, agile 270-pounder won't be available for long." Among undergraduate giants, scouts look heaviest upon Boilermaker bouncer Dave Butz. He stacks that 280 pounds on a 6-foot-7 frame with an extra blessing of quickness. Glover, at 234 pounds, is felt to be toosmall for where he's excelled in college as middle man in the defensive line.

A shift to linebacker is probable and resulting doubts cut Glover's chances of going high in the first round. Van Pelt, a dazzling safety at 6 feet 5 and 230, is sidestepped among top first-roua-ders only because he is so athletically blessed that a rich baseball contract may also be ahead. Greg Marx is in the same category with Butz as a super-defensive line prospect. The 6-foot-6, 240-pound Notre Darner is touted as a better pass rusher than Walt Pa tulski, an Irish end who went to the Buffalo Bills as the NFL's No. 1 choice of last January.

Popular cornerbacks with the pros, although not pected to go instantly in the first round, are Florida State's James Thomas, Texas Southern's Mike Holmes and Burgess Owens of Miami, Fla. At linebacker, Steve Brown of Oregon State and virtually unknown Jim Youngblood of Tennessee Tech are hot One possibility of early se Charlie Young of No. 1-rank-ed Southern California. "If we needed a tight end," said an NFL club spokesman, "I'd snatch Young because he just might start from the day his rookie season begins." Big offensive linemen are precious items with pro teams and the current crop has more than its share. Several names popped up at every turn of the talent survey.

BERT JON ES An Associated Press survey of National Football League talent procurers, coaches and front office oper-, a i showed varying thoughts on the elusive, but small Rodgers. "He's an off-sizer at 171 pounds," said one. "Rodgers has sonic great abilities, but I look for the wave of big guys and a few other offensive backs to go before him." But, another personnel chief called the Cornhusker sensation, "a man whose talent overrides his lack of size. I'd probably take him if he was available when our turn comes." The general opinion was Dae's Tigers Are for Real Dale Brown (pictured) may have done a better selling job to LSU basketball fans in the loss to Georgia than he did in the upset win over Memphis State. The success against heavily-favored Memphis State could have been accepted as a fluke.

Memphis State no doubt was caught with its guard down. But the Tigers' new coach and "new look" team surely proved in the four-point loss to a good, seasoned Georgia team that it is for real; that it will be capable of several games and is likely to seriously compete in most of them. I like the way Dale describes the 'difference in a one-man team, as LSU had the Pete Maravich era, and a machine. I "You can just get their attention with finger," says the coach. "But you 'wrap those five fingers into a fist, then you do some damage." Brown has convinced a bunch of talentless kids that by uniting they can have a lot fun aggravating favored opponents, "and maybe even slip up on a few.

And the manner in which these no-name players have responded to Brown's system certainly is getting to the fans. The Georgia game drew 9,600. That crowd liked what it saw. The Tigers went scoreless the first five minutes and fell behind 16-0. But they actually went ahead by three points in the second half.

Dale Brown promised that his gang would not give up, or be awed by the opposition. WHY PENALIZE COACHES? There is a constant demand for more black athletes at colleges and universities in the south, but some of the people doing the demanding are making it difficult for the coaches to go along. For instance, a coach has to assume that in signing a black player he may be taking on the entire NAACP and similar organizations. If the black players complains, a boycott will follow. Should Georgia Tech Bill Fulcher have been put through his ordeal before and during the Liberty Bowl game with Iowa State? He suspended a black player, quarterback Eddie McAshan, for missing practice.

He would have done the same if it had been a white player. Not only was Fulcher and the entire JOHNNY RODGERS that the 1972 crop of seniors is excellent overall, especially in big blue-chip linemen. There are good bets at quarterback, but a shallowness in runners and wide receivers. Gary Ruff of Florida State is a strong No. 2 choice behind Jones among quarterback prospects.

You hear the names of Virginia Tech's Don Strock, Arkansas' Joe Ferguson and Utah State's Tony Adams from some. Otis Armstrong of Purdue appears destined to be the first running back selected in the NFL first round Jan. 31. Few scouts seem high on Greg Pruitt, a 176-pound yardage gobbler from Oklahoma who was second to Rodgers in Heisman balloting. Lanky Chuck Foreman, 6 feet 3 and 215 from Miami, is among the most treasured running backs but many teams are interested in him more as a wide receiver.

There's always a little-known small college ace picked early in round one. The best bet this time is 6-foot-5, 255-pound Wally Chambers, a defensive end from Eastern Kentucky. Also keep an eye on 6-foot-7, 276-pound John Ma-tuszak of Tampa. When it comes to tight ends, the scouts turn almost unanimously to 6-foot-4, 230-pound There's Paul Seymour, 250-pound Michigan offensive tackle and brother of Chicago Bears receiver Jim Seymour. A converted tight end, he has been a fortress in the Wolverine line.

Jerry Sisemore of Texas, 6 feet 4 and 255, was called "a beast, a tough s.o.b." by one personnel man and "certain to go in the top six" by another. Alabama's John Hannah, 6 feet 3 and 275, was called "the best offensive lineman I've had" by Coach Paul Bryant and the Bear gets no arguments from the pros. Somewhat surprisingly, many NFL experts not only hesitated on Heisman man Rodgers' future, but also tread softly on Maxwell Trophy winner Brad Van Pelt of Michn State and Outland Trophy recipient Rich Glover of Nebraska. Tigers and Vols Break for Xmas BATON ROUGE, (Special) LSU and Tennessee, a pair of perennial Southeastern Conference powerhouses, will take a Christmas break before getting down to final work for their Astro-Bluebonnet Bowl clash in Houston, Tex. Dec.

30. a crutch, when they don't need any alibis. If they want equal rights, they must agree to equal treatment, and I just don't know any coaches who "pick on" athletes because they are black. On the other hand, coaches can't give preferential treatment, just because they are black. The black athlete must take his "chewing-out" just like the whites.

They can, of course, if the so-called "leaders" will leave them alone. ABOUT THE PADRES The story that commissioner Bowie Kuhn is behind the move to shift the Padres' franchise from San Diego to Washington sounds logical. Baseball got in trouble when it took the Senators out of Washington and placed them in Texas. Since then, they have been trying to make amends. I don't see how the Padres could expect to profit much by moving to Washington.

The Capitol City has not provided any more support than has been noticed in San Diego. Frankly, I would think that Buzzie Bavasi, the Padres president, would prefer to hang on until the domed stadium in New Orleans is completed. New Orleans has never been a real good baseball town, unless it had.a winner, but the chances there, with a unique stadium, would be greater than they are in Washington. Of course, Buzzie could be playing one end against the other, hopeful of improving conditions in San Diego. But if he moves to Washington, the Padres would be nothing but a sacrificial lamb.

lection is rangy, 6-foot-4 Southern Mississippi linebacker-kicker Ray Guy. The 194-pounder led the nation's punters with 46 yards a kick with boots that average hanging in the sky over 4.5 seconds. He also knocked through a 61-yard field goal and excels as a safetyman. Other receivers getting strong looks for the No. round are wideout Steve Holden, a 200-pound blazer from Arizona State, and tight end Billy Joe DuPrel of Mich; igan State.

concluded his third year at the Tennessee helm with a 30-5-0 mark for an .857 percentage. The Bayou Bengals will be pitting their 9-1-1 1972 record The Fighting Tigers will be making their 18th post-season appearance and second in the south Texas event while the Volunteers are marking up their 19th bowl game as well as their second trip to the Houston fray. Coach Charles McClendon's 11 year record at LSU includes 88 victories, 28 losses and five ties for a .748 winning percentage, among the best among the nation's active coaches. Bill Battle, the Vols youthful mentor, 1 S2 MacArthur Village Shop 10 a.m. 'til 8:30 p.m.

Thru Dec. 23 InamuI 1 After Nixon's Blackout Request Denied Congress to Re-Examine Pro Grid's Entire Anti-Trust Exemption Statutes Wednesday the request of the President, often called the nation's No. 1 sports fan, to lift the television blackout in the playoff cities. Atty. Gen.

Richard G. Kleindienst, who negotiated with the NFL Tuesday and Wednesday on behalf of Nixon, said in a statement: "I have advised Mr. Rozelle that as a result of the league's decision, the Nixon administration would strongly urge the new Congress to re-examine the entire antitrust exemption statute and seek legislation that is more in keeping with the public interest." Ronald L. Ziegler, White House press secretary, said President Nixon agrees By Tom Seppy WASHINGTON (AP) -Despite the urgings of President Nixon, the National Football League playoff games during the next two eekends will not be shown on local television in the cities where they are played. Pro football Commissioner Pete Rozelle rejected Comfort and easy care in a Quality 100 Polyester Double Knit Slack by HAGGAR if y(! "lt il it vV? I GiveThat GreatVQTaste.

Seagram's VR The First Canadian. against the Vols' 9-2-0. The game will be televised over 135 stations on the Hughes Sports Network with Ray Scott handling the play-by-play and John Sauer the color. Larry Munson will be mikeside for the radio account of the game. LSU concluded its Baton Rouge work schedule Tuesday withthe team slated to regroup in Houston on Tuesday, Dec.

26. The Tigers will be quartered at the Marriott Motor Hotel while Tennessee will stay at the Astroworld Hotel. Both teams will hold their pre-game drills in the Astrodome. It will be the 16th time the two southern rivals have clashed on the gridiron with the Vols holding an unusually one-sided edge, 1-12-2. In fact, of all Tiger opponents met 10 or more times in history, Alabama, Georgia Tech and Texas, other than Tennessee, are the only ones to lead LSU in their respective series.

The Tigers will feature their walking offense, utilizing two quarterbacks, All-America Bert Jones, the Sporting News' Player of the Year, and Paul Lyons. Tailbacks Chris Dantin, Brad Davis and Steve Rogers will handle the bulk of the running chores, but fullbacks Jim Benglis and Ken Addy will prevent too much keying on the tailbacks, plus offering pass protection. Splitbacks Gerald Keigley, Al Coffee and Ben Jones; split ends Jimmy LeDoux and Joe Fakier; and tight ends Chuck Williamson and Brad Boyd will be the primary pass receiving targets. LSU's 4-3 defense will be bulwarked by defensive tackle John Wood and All-America middle linebacker Warren Capone, Comparatively speaking, LSU scored 235 points and allowed their opponents 121 while the Vols chalked up 273 points and allowed only 83 points against them. LSU chipped in with 358.4 yards total offense per game while permitting 259.4.

Tennessee had 313.1 yards per game and gave up 230.8 yards One of the most interesting facets of the game should come from the two pass defenses, since LSU had only three touchdowns scored against it through the air, Tennessee, four. Nationally, Tennessee was eighth in total defense and third in defense against scoring while the Tigers were 1 Ith In the former category and ninth in the latter However, LSU's defensive squad came strong at the close of the regular season wholeheartedly with Kleindienst's statement. Pro football received an antitrust exemption in 1961 when Congress specifically permitted any joint agreement by organized professional team sports for the sale of television rights which permitted pro football to offer its games to a TV network as a package instead of individual stations. In 19(ifi, legislation again was passed to permit the merger of the American and National Football Leagues into the current NFL and the television exemption was extended to the combined leagues. The debate over the blackout has been the subject of congressional scrutiny for the past few years and came to the forefront last fall before the Senate communications subcommittee chaired by Sen.

John O. Pastore. Would rush Bill The Rhode Island Democrat told Rozelle that unless something was worked out for lilting the TV ban on regular season games, in addition to the playoffs, he would push ahead with a bill similar to that requested by Nixon. The Justice Department statement, supported by Nixon, could add new strength to his commitment. Rozelle said he didn't want to see pro fool ball, as had pro boxing, become what he called a "studio show." He said In a statement that six of the last 10 conference championship games have not been sold out and that since 19117, when playoff games were begun, only II of 17 were played to capacity.

Rozelle saiil last fall before Congress that the Super Bowl VII, pitting the winners of the American and National Football Conferences, would be televised locally in Los Angeles Jan. 14 If ull tickets ure sold 10 days In advance of the game In easy core polyester that shods, wrinkles. Choose from blue, brown burgundy, willow or block in sizes 30 to 42 waist in assorted insnam lengths Fancy Pattern Haggar Slacks 15 00 to 23.00 BankAmuicard Shop the easy way Use your Green Charge Plate CANADIAN WWSKM 811 NO 01 ilLlGltD WHI5KIU. 6 VIAKS OLD. 0 5 PROOF.

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