The Tampa Tribune from Tampa, Florida • 39

1 7 1 ft i i i I flit i Cubs cling to 1st Chicago rallies to edge St. Louis in 10 innings, keep NL East lead Pago4D THE TAMPA TRIBUNE Sunday, September 10, 1989 Section TTSTT 1 iv mn.y Tom McEwen The Morning After Clsinnisoini fesnridls FSU a 34-23 6romitrooskne9 I f' IS 17 minutes to send the Seminoles plunging to depths of days gone by. FSU's plight doesn't get any easier as it travels to Baton Rouge, next week to meet Louisiana State. The Seminoles have reached unprecedented heights under Coach Bobby Bowden, but now face the grim prospect of an 0-3 start for the first time since 1976, Bowden's initial season. The thump you might hear this week is FSU falling from the Top 20 after 31 consecutive weeks.

"It was a good whipping. They are better than I thought possibly better than last year but I could be wrong," Bowden said. "I was amazed we couldn't stop them. "Evidently, we've got some kids not many who are playing out of position. We are missing something and we have to find out in a By JIM HENRY Tribune Sports Writer TALLAHASSEE Florida State fans started heading to their cars midway into the fourth quarter.

It was a quiet exodus and there was good reason for puzzled expressions. The Seminoles are 0-2 for the first time since the Bicentennial, 13 years ago. Tenth-ranked Clemson avenged last season's "puntrooskie" with a 34-23 win over No. 16 Florida State Saturday night. This year's application easily could be called "rou-trooskie." A sellout crowd of 61,897, fourth largest in Doak Campbell Stadium history, and a national television audience on ESPN saw the Tigers score 21 points in the game's first hurry what it is." Bowden could easily start with his defense, which allowed 389 yards of total offense one week after Southern Mississippi registered 450 in its 30-26 upset win.

FSU's offense has turned one-dimensional as Peter Tom Willis passed for 242 of the Seminoles' 378 yards. The closest FSU came to keeping fans in their seats was 28-16 on Paul Moore's 1-yard run with 6:14 left in the third quarter. The exit signs blinked on during the Seminoles' next possession when Moore lost a fumble at the Clemson 17 after a 20-yard gain. The Tigers used field goals of 29 and 26 yards from Chris Gardocki to push their advantage to 34-16. The stadium was nearly void of See SEMINOLES, Page 14D irgj Tribune photograph by COLIN HACKLEY Clemson tailback Terry Allen leaps for a first-quarter touchdown against FSU.

4 Mnss-ff iirel Relbels trip Gators State scores Clemson 34, FSU 23 1D Mississippi 24. Florida 19 1D Morgan St. 12. B-CC 6 14D UCF 35. Valdosta St.

14 14D Miami 51, Wisconsin 3150 APTop25 1 Notre Dame did not play. 2. Michigan did not play. 3. Miami beat Wisconsin 51-315D 4.

Nebraska beat Northern Illinois 48-17 20D 5. Auburn beat Pacific 55-0 21 (ft A VI 4 A 6. UCLA vs. Tennessee, late 7. Arkansas did not play.

8. Okla. beat Baylor 33-7 21D 9. Colo, beat Colo. St.

45-20 20D Florida, Morris stumble along in 24-19 loss By NICK PUGLIESE Tribune Sports Writer GAINESVILLE Florida quarterback Kyle Morris walked from the shower to his cubicle in the losing locker room late Saturday afternoon. As he sat down on a stool, he said to no one in particular, "Is this the electric chair?" While Morris waited to be grilled by the media, he and his teammates already had been executed by Southeastern Conference foe Mississippi 24-19 before 70,014 witnesses at Florida Field, who were wilted by the heat and the home team's willingness to give the game away. "I wouldn't say the better team won," tailback Emmltt Smith said after rushing for 117 yards and accounting for both of Florida's touchdowns. "They won the game, but they know they were in a dogfight I feel like they didn't stop our offense at all. We stopped ourselves." A glance at the statistics from the nationally televised contest certainly supported Smith.

Florida out-gained Ole Miss 379 to 128 yards, had 17 more first downs and controlled the clock for 12 more minutes. Mississippi's yardage was the lowest allowed by UF since Louisiana State University totaled 135 yards in a 20-0 loss in 1985, and the Gator defenders sacked quarterback John Darnell five times and limited him to a 6-for-14, 48-yard effort. But as well as the defense and See REBELS, Page 17D State teams pick up where they left off The Florida Gators and Miami Hurricanes picked up precisely where each left off last season and the Florida State Semi-stumbled again for a totally unexpected 0-2 start. Last year the Gators self-destructed repeatedly, most often because of quarter-backing mistakes. Nothing appeared to have changed at Gainesville on Saturday when the Gators buried themselves beneath errors to invite a very damaging 24-19 loss to underdog Mississippi.

Miami, meanwhile, a team that since Howard Schnellenberger was head coach has never lost to a distinct underdog, slammed Wisconsin around in Madison, 51-3. It mattered not that the Hurricanes were introducing a new quarterback, Craig Erickson, and a new coach, Dennis Erick-son, and plenty of new players. The Hurricanes, after a slow start, simply overwhelmed Wisconsin with talent Miami believed it could handle Wisconsin, and Miami did that, suggesting that the Hurricanes once more are a genuine national contender. Quarterback Erickson played with the poise of a senior veteran, unfazed by a 1-for-7 pass completion start. He looked like a winning quarterback, and he was.

Furthermore, he almost was a Florida Gator. The Gators could have used Craig Erickson, just as they could have used him last year when he was a backup to now departed Steve Walsh. Future may be now at UF Interceptions and fumbles often were fatal to the Gators last year, almost always in the final statistic. Then, Kyle Morris was the starting and finishing first-string quarterback with Herbert Perry in and out It was clear, all agreed, including Florida coaches, that the quarterbacking had to improve for 1989. As spring training and preseason came and went and as one offensive coordinator, Lynn Amedee, went and a new offensive coordinator, Whitey Jordan, came, Kyle Morris was judged and rejudged the best available, largely because he had a year of experience.

Fact is, much of that experience was bad. But coaches said, his threat Lex Smith, didn't threaten enough, and a new player, freshman Donald Douglas, was just that a freshman without any experience. Most agree Douglas is a gifted young man and probably the quarterback of the Gator future. That future may be now, after Saturday. Coach Galen Hall can't afford to lose games he should win, unless he can Improve enough to win games he is expected to lose.

Florida quarterback Kyle Morris did some things right Saturday, but after he had done a whole lot of things wrong. Then there appeared to be confusion at the game's end when a chance for a miracle remained but time was not effectively used. Florida threatened a mighty recovery, but went out weakly Instead with a pass to nobody. Coach Hall repeatedly has said that his quarterback had learned not to make the costly mistake, to use his head more, not to throw the ball in harm's way, as he did so often last year. Each time the coach said it there was squirming in the audience and a prove-it look.

The Gators went against Mississippi expecting, absolutely counting on, an Improved offense with Morris vastly improved, with a corps of fine running backs, led by Emmltt Smith, a thin new offensive line, and decent people on defense who would Improve. Three missing starters on defense they were lost to suspensionsmeant the new offense might have to carry the day. Defense deserved a victory The fact was, Saturday, the defense almost carried the day. The defense deserved a win. Most of those on offense deserved a win.

I mean, Florida's offense ran 88 plays to 51 for Mississippi, had the football 36 minutes to 24, totaled 379 gained yards to 128 for Mississippi. But the cold hard fact of life Saturday at Gainesville was that two Morris Interceptions led directly to 14 points, and a bad pitch by him gave Mississippi the football and led to a third touchdown. Three turnovers, 21 points. The field goal by Mississippi came after a play that will haunt young Florida punt returner Tony Lomack the rest of his life. He could not field a punt, watched It bounce toward him, backpedaled, watched it bounce toward him, then for a reason only he knows, tried to fall on It and only touched it making it Mississippi's ball when a Rebel recovered It inside the Florida 20.

Four Florida turnovers, three by the quarteback and one by a receiver as a punt returner, meant 24 points and the kind See TURNOVERS, Page 17D 1 0. Clemson beat FSU 34-231 1 1 Illinois did not play. 'n 12. Penn St. lost to Virginia 14-6 20D 13.

Southern Cal did not play. 14. Syracuse beat Temple 43-3 1 5. Texas ASM lost to Washington 19-6 20D 16. FSU lost to Clemson 34-23 1 17.

West Virginia beat Maryland 14-10210 18. Southern Miss lost to Mississippi State 26-23 20D 4 19. Alabama did not play. 20. Arizona lost to Texas Tech 24-1 4 20D 21.

LSU did not play. 22. Houston did not play. 23. Pittsburgh beat Boston College 29-10 20D 24.

BYU lost to Washington State 46-41 on Thursday. 25. N.C. State beat Georgia Tech 38-28 20D i- oca 7 a 4 J. ff Tribune photograph by KYLE DANACEAU Mississippi defenders Kelvin Pritchett (92) rough day for Gators quarterback Kyle Mor-and Dan Wigley (99) were only part of a ris (1).

Graf closes strong to hold off Martina us OPEN i i 1 A No question: Bucs must win opener By TOM FORD Tribune Sports Writer GREEN BAY, Wis. The question annoyed Coach Ray Perkins so much that be rose from the chair and walked toward the door, in effect ending his news conference Wednesday at One Buc-" caneer Place In Tarn- mmmmmmmmmm Pa. ON TV "I'm not even go- ch. 13, 1 p.m. Ing to address It," Perkins said.

ON RADIO The question: If WRBQ(1380), the Bucs lose their 1 P--regular-season opener today to the Green Bay Packers a team they have beaten three straight times will they start the year with five defeats? San Francisco, New Orleans, Minnesota and Chicago are up next. Four heavies, ail in a row. The coach had nothing to say. His quarterback had an answer. "I don't plan on losing the first game," Vinny Testaverde said.

So It will be the 1-0 Bucs in next Sunday's home opener at Tampa Stadium See PACKERS, Page 11D By JOEY JOHNSTON Tribune Sports Writer NEW YORK Martina Navrati-lova keeps getting closer. But, especially on the important points, Steffi Graf keeps getting better. So despite some of the best tennis Navratilova has displayed in the last two years, Graf emerged a 3-6, 7-5, 6-1 winner Saturday in the U.S. Open women's final at the National Tennis Center. "It's disappointing because I had so many chances to win," said Navratilova, 32, who could have become the oldest female player to win the U.S.

Open. "By the third set, Steffi was a runaway train." Navratilova had a 4-2 second-set lead and appeared headed for her first Grand Slam tournament singles title since she beat Graf In the 1987 U.S. Open final. Then momentum shifted radically. Graf won 11 of the last 13 games to close it out.

"Every time I saw a chance, I tried to go for It," said Graf, 20, who also defeated Navratilova in the last two Wimbledon finals. "I knew it wasn't going to be easy, especially when I saw how well she was playing in the first set. But I was feeling very confident out there." The match might have been de- SATURDAY'S RESULTS Tribune photograph by BRUCE JOHNSON Ray Perkins and his No. 1 draft picks, Broderick Thomas (51), Vinny Testaverde (14) and Paul Gruber, open the season in Green Bay today. Women' Pinal Staffi Graf dsf.

Martini Navratilovi. 3 8, Mcn't 8mlttnl Ivan Landl def Andre Agassi, 7-6 (7-4). 8-1, 3-6, 6-1. Born Becker def. Aaron Krickatem, 6-4.

6-3. 6-4. TOOAV'S MATCHES Inside: NFL kickoff 'CO Jimmy Johnson era begins in Dallas 90 Bucs-Packers rosters, stats 12D Previews of today's games 12D Dolphins, Smith break off talks 13D Were Lions interested in Holmes? 13D Men's Final Ivan Lendl Born Becker Women' Double Final Navratitova-Mandlikov v. Snrtver-FemarKJe? TV: Channel 13, 4 p.m. r-J See NAVRATILOVA, Page 22D ffi -i jVrt, ea gr i-1ft to i at fr.

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