The Orlando Sentinel from Orlando, Florida • Page 14

The Orlando Sentinel i Sunday Special: In control of the Bucs, C-12 Sunday, September 11, 1988 F10RIDA way ZZ1 into record book By Melissa Isaacson OF THE SENTINEL STAFF Larry Guest THE SPORTS COLUMN 'J A 1 1 1 Graf thanked him politely, but those were not the words she wanted to hear. Taking off for the Olympic Games in two days, where she will attempt to cap off her Grand Slam with a gold medal, she seemed overwhelmed by the enormity of it all. "I feel at the moment very hot," Graf said as she peeled off her jacket under the intense television lights. "Otherwise, I'm feeling very happy to get the talk about the Grand Slam over with. It's a great relief.

Now I have done it, so there's nothing else you can tell me I have to do." The victory did not come easy. Sabatini pushed Graf in her 34th consecutive match victory, taking only the sixth set from her this year. After allowing three break points to slip by in the second game of the second set, Sabatini hung tough and eventually broke Grafs serve to take a 3-1 lead, as Grafs backhand temporarily deserted her. "It was very windy today, and I was trying to keep the ball in play," Graf said. "I was afraid to Please see OPEN.

C-15 NEW YORK The historical significance seemed lost on Steffi Graf. And for the moment so was the expected joy. What was left was utter, unburdening relief at having accomplished what only four other tennis players have done the Grand Slam. Graf, 19, of West Germany, defeated Gabriela Sabatini, 18, of Argentina, 6-3, 3-6, 6-1, under bright sunshine Saturday to win her first U.S. Open title and become the first player since Margaret Court in 1970 to capture all four major tournaments the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and U.S.

Open in a calendar year. In addition to Court, Graf joins the prestigious company of Don Budge, Maureen Connolly and Rod Laver. Budge was in attendance on the 50th anniversary of his Slam and whispered into Grafs ear as he handed her the championship trophy. "He 'said he knew it all the way," Graf said later. "He said, think you can do it a couple more a ASSOCIATED PRESS Andre Agassi agonizes over missing point.

Story, C-15. 5 Smut TODAY'S SCHEDULE Men's championship Ivan Lendl (1) vs. Mats Wilander (2), 4 p.m. ASSOCIATED PRESS Steffi Graf relieved after finally accomplishing the Grand Slam. VtM Florida passes road test Gators turn away threats by Rebels By Tim Povtak Knights carve up Braves Willis paces UCF to 33-14 triumph By Creig Ewing OF THE SENTINEL STAFF OF THE SENTINEL STAFF ft Kx ORLAINT 7 Gators stick to script to -notch 2nd victory ACKSON, Miss.

Florida's 27-15 victory over Ole Miss Saturday night in Memorial Stadium was a game largely to form. Gators Heisman hopeful Emmitt Smith agaifc cracked 100 yards. As expected. UF freshman quarterback Kyle Morris, back home performing in front of old friends and neighbors, overcame a ner-vou start before pushing all the right buttons. As expected.

The outmanned Rebels put up a spirited early fight. As expected. Florida advanced its early-season record to 2-0. As expected. Ole Miss stayed in the game because of some missed opportunities by Florida and occasional big plays against the Gators' secondary.

Even that was expected in a'game in which Florida's main objective was simply to avoid the unexpected while building experience and confidence frorrj a favorable early-season schedule. Chewing on his fingernails in his hotel room hours before kickoff, the new, svelte Galen Hall ventured that if Ole Mis found a route to upset, it might be through his inexperienced cornerbacks, Richard Fain and Tony Jones. Neither had been tested in their first star against Montana State, and Ole Miss has speed at wideout. Hall's fears came to life on occasion Saturday night, like when Ole Miss flank- er Willie Green beat Fain on a 50-yard touchdown reception. But all-Emergency Ward safety Louis Oliver came to the rescue "of Fain and Jones enough to keep down the damage.

Oliver kept spiking would-be bombs and sending Ole Miss receivers wobbling to the sideline to count the trainer's fingers. Morris, who prepped just minutes from Meffiorial Stadium at Clinton High School, was critical of his homecoming. "I made a lot of mistakes," he said. "It was a big thrill to come back here and play. I wish I could have played better." Lynn Amedee, new offensive coordinator for the Gators, suggested young Morris played better than his 7-for-15, 88 yards passing numbers might suggest.

"Heiame through it okay. He's now got to kfcep getting better each week. He's just a pup," said Amedee. Hall and Amedee had girded the young quarterback, telling him to play within himself, not to feel he had to win the game by himself and, above all, not to get caught up playing for the Mississippi fans Kyle visited briefly with his high school coach earlier Saturday but otherwise! avoided a large reunion with rela-tive and high school chums. Upon deplaning on Friday, he was the hot subject for local TV reporters but politely said all the right things.

"We sort of programmed him," Amedee admitted with a sheepish grin, "on what to say." The Gator staff would have been wise to program Florida freshman lineman Phil Johnson, another Clinton High star who' defected to Gainesville. During a journalistic study this week of why several top Mississippi players defected to Florida schools, Johnson was quoted as sayirjg: "Why drive a Volkswagen when you can drive a Cadillac?" Hopefully, this had nothing to do with the relative extras that go with football scholarships in the two states but rather was young Johnson's analogy of the disparity of the college programs in Florida and Needless to say, the quote became a rallying cry for the Ole Miss Volkswagens, who needed the extra psychological fuel and anything else they could muster against the larger, faster, deeper Gators. And for three periods the game had Golden Oldie fans recalling that "novelty tune where the driver of a Cadillac keeps going faster and faster trying to shake the Volkswagen bug beep-beeping in his rear-view mirror. Oil Saturday the Florida Cadillacs pulled out front early and stayed. But for three quarters the Ole Miss Beetles somehow stayed right on their bumpers.

Things got rather serious there in the fast lane when the Beetles drove 74 yards in 10" plays for their second touchdown of the third period. Into the fourth, it was Cadillacs 20, Volkswagens 15. Beep, beep. But unlike that pop novelty song, there would be no VW passing gear this time. The Gators sped off to a clinching touchdown when tailback Wayne Williams popped a fake reverse 39 yards and retreated with a 12-point victory.

As expected. From an orange-and-blue point of view, no news was good news on the second Saturday of 1988. University of Central Florida quarterback Shane Willis dissected West Georgia College's defense with surgeonlike skill then was afraid he would need a doctor himself after a 33-14 UCF victory Saturday. Willis completed 23-of-32 passes for 302 yards and two touchdowns and directed UCF (2-0) to a 21-0 halftime lead before 11,270 at the Florida Citrus Bowl-Orlando. But he left the game in the fourth quarter vomiting blood after being sacked.

Willis was X-rayed for a possible bruised or broken sternum but was found to have just a broken blood vessel, which is not considered serious. "It scared me," Willis said. "Rudy Jones had to go in and hold them off." It was ironic that Willis was injured after being blindsided because it was about the only pressure West Georgia (0-1) put on Willis all evening. "It's hard to do anything with a quarterback when he has 15 seconds every time he wants to throw," West Georgia Coach Frank Vohun said. Willis, a sophomore, sat back in the pocket or rolled out and completed clutch passes time and again.

He also threw touchdown passes of eight yards to Arnell Spencer and nine yards to Shantel Roundtree. Sophomore Sean Beckton from Seabreeze was Willis' favorite target. Beckton caught nine passes for 120 yards. "The protection was great," UCF Coach Gene McDowell said. "Obviously that was the key to the JACKSON, Miss.

The Florida Gators passed a test they failed repeatedly last season, backing up big words with big plays in a 27-15 victory over Ole Miss Saturday night to open Southeastern Conference play. Tim Paulk blocked a punt, Sta-cey Simmons scored on a kickoff return and Wayne Williams scampered 39 yards for another score, each rising to answer a serious challenge to a lead Florida never lost. "This was the first time in a long while we were really tested, had a chance to lose, then came back to win," Florida Coach Galen Hall said. "We are now able to win tough football games. That's something we couldn't say last year.

We've turned the corner. Hall, who rebuilt his coaching staff in the offseason because of letdowns in big games, was not happy with the overall play of his team, but he was beaming about the way the Gators responded to adversity. Florida (2-0) was paced by its special teams a sore spot last season when the Gators won just one game away from home and tailback Emmitt Smith, who rushed 20 times for 109 yards, his 10th 100-yard game in 12 starts. "Florida came after us each time we made a run," Ole Miss Coach Billy Brewer said. "We had a chance to win, but we couldn't follow through.

Give them credit." Freshman quarterback Kyle Morris, who is from nearby Clinton, played hot and cold, showing his inexperience but also an ability to make the big plays. Morris completed seven of 15 passes for Please see GATORS, C-10 JOE BURBANKSENTINEL Please see knights, C-9 Receiver Sean Beckton (4) breaks into open field in 1st half of UCF's 33-14 victory. Seminoles regroup, rout Southern Miss, 49-13 Kutgers 17 FSU, heavily favored, lacked explosiveness, cohesiveness. This essentially was the same caliber of Southern Miss team that FSU routed, 61-10, last year. "We're getting back on the right track," quarterback Chip Ferguson "We're improving every day." FSU played solidly, if unspectacularly, across the beard: offense, defense, special teams.

But Southern Miss' talent level play isn't remotely close to Miami's, Clemson's or any other top-ranked club. That fact was not lost on either the Seminoles or Bowden. To a man, they agreed the Seminoles have yet to prove themselves. "We have got to reach down into our" Please see FSU, C-10 Mississippi to win next week. Unless we play better than that, I don't think we'll win next week." If nothing else, the Seminoles' easy victory erased a bit of the humiliation that FSU experienced at the hands of Miami.

FSU, ranked No. 1 in the preseason poll, lost 31-0, and the effects of the defeat lingered late into the week. Even hours before kickoff against Southern Miss the Seminoles were somber. Their locker room, usually upbeat, was described as quiet, sober. FSU was intent on getting a job done, and they managed that in workmanlike fashion.

Still, Bowden was. not happy. "We won the ball game tonight," he said. "But we just don't look sharp." Michigan St 13 By Barry Cooper Page C-6 8 OF THE SENTINEL STAFF Southern Cal 24 mmhmhmmmwimm Stanford ..........20 TALLAHASSEE Outclassed a week ago 9 by Miami, Florida State rebounded Saturday Oklahoma 28 night, but the Seminoles' 49-13 victory over North Carolina 0 Southern Mississippi prompted only mild Page C-7 celebration at Doak Campbell Stadium. Ga Southern 42 The FSU fans' more smug with Pami iA each winning season, nonchalantly took in co ory.

311(1 Coach Bobby Bowden, dis-9 pleased by the performance, warned the Bethune-Cookman 13 Seminoles could be headed for another de-Morgan St 6 feat. Page C-9 Bowden, looking ahead to this week's game at third-ranked Clemson, said: "I don't think we looked crisp enough against Southern 4.