The Los Angeles Times from Los Angeles, California • 27

Free Gets 32, Then Makes Another Point Ooe Angeles $ime SAN DIEGO COUNTY BUSINESS -J- CC PART IK WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 24, 1979 II Ml I J.I II II LUIII. L. I II. :W.fpVf-f i i i -i i ymmii Allium Team Must Learn to Play-Without Walton, He Says BY MIRE CRANBERRY TlmM Staff Writ SAN DIEGO-Lloyd Free scored 32 points Tuesday night The Clippers defeated the Denver Nuggets, 132-127, before a small crowd of 6,660 at the Sports Arena. Sound familier? It What wasn't familiar were new events concerning the status of Bill Walton, whose left foot Is still sore and remains the object of much concern by Clippers management The Clippers are trying desperately to find out when and where Walton finally will make his 1979-80 debut The 6-11 center travels to Los An- today to meet with orthopedist 'ony Daly, pediatricianagent Ernie Vandeweghe and two new doctors brought in by Clipper flfficials to attempt to solve the mystery of Walton's aching appendage.

Hours before maintaining his league-leading scoring average with another fine performance, Free was quoted by the Salt Lake City Tribune as saying the following about team- mateWaltom "Some guys have the attitude of waiting until Bill comes back. But I'm the captain, and I told them we've got to be together whether Bill comes back or not We could be 0 and 99 waiting for BilL Tm not knocking the man, but I feel if you can walk, you've got to get out there and play. "I've played with broken ribs and a collapsed lung. A lot of other guys have played hurt If it's not that bad you should be out there playing." Asked about those comments Tuesday night, Free said, "I said those things. What I'm driving at there's too much emphasis on BilL We have to be working with what we have.

When Bill comes back, he'll be a great addition, I'm sure. But we can't lose just because he's not here." The Clippers lost by one point at Utah Monday night, thus giving the Jazz its first victory of the season. It was after that loss that Free chatted with a Salt Lake City reporter. Walton was at home Tuesday night listening to the Clipper game on radio, hoping the foot gets better and thinking about Free: "I think Lloyd's a great player," he said when asked about the Salt Lake City article. "Lloyd and I have no problems, you know.

I have no com-Please Tun to Page 6, Col. 1 Old Forum Story: Dantley Gets 27 and Lakers Win BY SCOTT OSTLER TlMMitaHWrnw Things went about as expected atl the Forum Tuesday night The Lakers blew the Utah Jazz off the floor, 102-87. And Jazz forward Adrian Dantley gave the losers a touch of re spectability and a ton of offense. The Jazz didn't figure to win. The team had won the night before, after losing its first four games, and isn't due for another week or two.

Dantley, the former Laker, scored 27 points, mostly in flurries. Ke carried the team's offensive load, as Pete Maravich scored just 10. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Mike Cooper led the Lakers with 17 points each and Don Ford, coming off the bench, had his season high, 15 points. Only 8,567 fans showed up. The Jazz isn't the greatest gate attraction, and the fans may be saving their money for Friday night when Laker rookie Magic Johnson returns to the lineup after missing two games with I sprained knee.

Magic worked out Tuesday afternoon and pronounced the knee almost ready. Dantley was scoreless In the first quarter but scored 15 in the second quarter and 11 more in the third when the Jazz was still in the game, He scored seven straight points in the second quarter and seven of hit team's first nine in the third. Please Tura to Pi( 10, Cot, 1 STAND CLEAR San Diego's Freeman Williams goes high above one-hand a rebound during Tuesday night's The Oippers tearrmate and Denver's David Thompson (33) to scored 40 points in first period to defeat the Nuggets, 132-127. APWIrtphoto A Patient Man Calls the Shots for Chargers Tic Job of Assistant Coach Joe Gibbs Is to Find Openings for San Diego's Offense Coryell said, "is that we wanted to win. If we were able to run on the Rams, we wouldn't have passed for 300 yards.

We do what we re able to do best I don't care how we get yards and touchdowns. We want to win no matter how. We just have to find some way to win." Gibbs is the man who sits in the press box and looks for the ways. He has been flying Air Coryell off and on since 1961, when he was one of the first players recruited by Coryell to San Diego State. He coached under Coryell at San Diego State and later joined him when he moved to the professional ranks at St.

Louis. "His passing ideas have evolved through the years," Gibbs said. "It's been a learning process. You go into a more sophisticated attack with the Please Turn to Page 6, Col. 3 deep.

He beat his man and the result was the 65-yard scoring play that sent the Chargers ahead to stay. It was an example of the adaptability of the Charger passing offense, which now ranks No. 1 in the National Football League. They seem capable of doing so many things within the passing game that it has not mattered greatly that the running attack has been sporadic, at best "I think we'd rather run," Gibbs said, "because there's less chance for error. But the passing game is set up so we have some control.

We can move the ball passing. It's not feast or famine." Fouts, in fact has put together three successive 300-yard passing games, only the seventh National Football League quarterback to do so. "The only reason for it coach Don I BY DAVBTDISTEL TlmnttiHWrHtr SAN DIEGO It has been said so many imes in the aftermath of Chargeigames. Don Coryell has said it Dan louts has said it. John Jefferson has aid it.

"We ok what they gave us." It souds so easy, but Joe Gibbs is the guy who-has to figure it out He sits and watches from the press box and calhthe plays according to what he percives the Chargers will be given in certain situation. But it i like a chess match with all of the piees moving at one time. And Jo Gibbs is a patient man. Take, br example, a sequence of events wich transpired in Sunday's 40-16 wir over the rams. Gibbs was determine! to get John Jefferson one-on-oR with a defensive Jefferson normally has more compa--ny than the President.

The Chargers lined Jefferson and Charlie Joiner up on one side of the field against the Rams' five-deep passing-down defense. A wide receiver on the other side would get double coverage and so, presumably, would Jefferson. Joiner would be one-on-one. So Fouts went to Joiner. Again and again.

He had 99 yards on his first four receptions. And Gibbs was waiting. Waiting for the Rams to throw a change-up. Waiting for the Rams to double Joiner and leave Jefferson one-on-one. one of the Ram safeties bluffed as if to follow Jefferson and cut back to double Joiner.

Jefferson was left one-on-ohe with the corner-back. And this time he was going A 3-0 CONFERENCE RECORD; Utah Is Even With BYU Yet Coach Fit to Be Tied BY STEVE DOLAN TMntt Stiff Wrltf SO-CALLED 'AMERICA'S TEAM' Dionne Scores 4 Add the Cowboys to Mom, Apple Pie iif Kings' 7-4 Win The Cowboys since have chosen to SALT LAKE CITY-While observing Wayne Howard, one would think the 1979 football season has been a disaster for the University of Utah. The normally easy-going head coach has been acting unusually uptight lately. Howard is still upset by last Saturday's 43-41 loss to Nevada Las Vegas, the latest frustration in what he calls a "very disappointing" season. But the year hasn't really been as bad as the former Long Beach State coach has made it out to With all due apologies, Utah will take a 3-0 Western Athletic Conference record into Saturday's home game with San Diego State.

And how does the head coach feel about the situation? "I feel terrible," Howard said. "We should've had a good football team this year." The biggest distinction about this Utah team is that it knows the right time to win. Although only 4-4 overall, the Utes are tied for first place in the WAC with defending champion Brigham Young. People here already are building the Nov. 17 Utah at BYU game as the showdown for the WAC championship, with the winner to qualify for the Dec.

21 Holiday Bowl in San Diego Stadium. It will be a revenge game for undefeated BYU since its only WAC loss last year was to Utah, 23-22. "If we can beat San Diego, chances are we'll play BYU for the championship," Howard told the "Bleacher Utes" booster club. at a Monday luncheon. "The way BYU Is passing the ball, they could beat us 200-0.

But the thing you want to do is get in po-sition to win the championship. Then, anything can happen." Almost everything hat happened to the Utes this year. They have lost nine starters for the season because of injuries-six on defense and three on offense. The injury situation is such that some are referring to the Utes as the Los Angeles Rams of the Salt Lake "I was in Los Angeles recruiting two weeks ago, and our situation Is very similar, Howard said. "It's all very unfortunate.

When you lose top Please Turn to Page BY tANDY HARVEY MctOtSM'TiinM DALLAS-Humble as they may be, the Dallas Cowboys nevertheless were too amnable to object when the president ofNFL Films decided last spring they re professional football's most belovetteam from sea to shining sea. He ieisted that the Cowboys' 1978 highlit film be entitled "America's 'earn." The Cowboys blushed and tammered and fidgeted before finallyigreeing to accept such a lofty disunion. They then adopted the name, stamped it on 00,000 souvenir calendars, advertise it in the Dallas Cowboys Weekly and waited for it to catch on, whic it has, at least in San Francisco. Wen the Cowboys arrived in the Ba Area for a game last -month, they yete greeted with a headline in on of the newspapers that said, "4Srs Face America's Team." i "It has a rinito it," one Cowboys official said. 1 As you might 'expect the ring: sounded more like chalk scraping across a blackboard to some ears.

It might play in Pecos or even Peoria, but not Pittsburgh, Defensive tackle Joe Greene witnessed the phenomenon when the Steelers were in Dallas to play a preseason game and smirked, "Do you get to wear a Super Bowl ring for that too?" Neither has Jim Finks, general manager of the Chicago Bears attempted to veil his skepticism. "Having gone to school in Oklahoma (Tulsa University), I can relate to Tex-ans," he said. "Everything is bigger, better and longer-lasting in Texas than anywhere else. Whatever Dallas says is OK with me." So much for foes. But even friends poked fun at "America's Team." Retired Cowboys all-pro guard Blaine Nye visited his former teammates recently and asked, "How are the U.S.

BY TERRY SHEPARD TtaMt Staff Writtr DENVER It's not as though Marcel Dionne hadn't been doing anything. After all, he was tied for the National Hockey League lead in scoring with 14 points. It's just that those points had some on two goals and 12 assists. Dionne was doing the passing and the other members of his Goal Mine Line, Dave Taylor and Charlie Simmer, were doing the shooting. But Dionne took care of that little detail Tuesday night scoring four goals for the second time in his career to lead the Kings to a 7-4 win over ithe Colorado Rockies.

Dionne's performance was his 16th hat trick, 12th as a King. And when he added a third-period score to his three previous goals, he equalled his career high of last Jan. 13 against Detroit Please Turn to Page 10, CoL 1 reconsider their role in the hoopla. They decided after the preseason to discontinue introducing their players', during pregame ceremonies at Texas Stadium as 'America's Team." Now they don't bring it up, although they aren't offended if someone else does. "The name isn't something we originated," Cowboys president and general manager Tex Schramm said.

T'We're not the ones who are saying it But if somebody else wants to say it 4 The facts the team's public relations department recites say it alls According to network ratings, the Cowboys have been involved in three of the four games that have attracted more viewers than any other sporting events in television history and hold 1 ratings records for division conference championships, Super Bowls, Hall of Fame Games, Saturday afternoon, Sunday afternoon, Sunday night Monday Night Football, Mon- Please Turn to Page 11, Col. 4 USCS PASS DEFENSE SET OUT TO BAN THE BOMB And Coach John Robinson, for One, Is Satisfied That the Mission Has Been Accomplished i 1 Lindsey was well into his Tuesday when reached on the phone. "I'm just looking at some film," he said. "And eating some yo- furt After Stanford and Notre Dame, it's all can eat My stomach's still in a knot" USC's defense, meanwhile, was being scheduled for some basic tackling drills, the kind where players collide with more violence than is normally associated with' midweek practices. Likely the defense will be just as hungry as Lindsey by game time Saturday.

Going by recent statistics, USC has shown little appetite for the ball. The Trojans gave up more than 400 yards against Stanford in a 21-21 tie and the 535 in a 42-23 defeat of Notre Dame. The pass defense has been particularly suspect the last two weeks. Stanford and Notre Dame each threw for 280 yards or more. Is head coach -John Robinson worried? Not really.

"Remember tills, he said, "The secondary has given up no long bombs. Some short bombs but no long bombs. If has kept the people in front of them. This is what we set out to do at the beginning of the year, recognizing our inexperience in the defensive backfield. We might be playing a little too conservative.

But we haven't allowed theeasyscore." Lindsey also suggests the statistics are misleading. "We came into this season determined not to give up the easy one," he said. "We decided we'd let them work their way down field and then we'd try to hold them. "We learned from last year, when the defense was more aggressive. We played a daring game.

But we gave up a long one to UCLA, two to Notre Dame and others to Oregon State and Cal." Because of the failure to defuse the bomb last year, Robinson and Lindsey developed a more conservative and cautious approach to pass defense. Instead of sending their backs out one on one, running and diving for interceptions, they decided to deploy the defense more as containment "Consider the Notre Dame game," Lindsey said. "Notre Dame had 128 yards passing going into the fourth quarter. Just 128 yards! At that point, we naturally become conservative. If we give up two quick bombs, we're in trouble.

It doesn't mean we lay off a million yards but it does mean we give the receivers a little more room." Given a little more room, Notre Dame ran up some passing yardage in that fourth Please Turn to Page 7, Col, 1 B1 RICHARD HOFFER Timn Stiff Wrttar USC's deinse gave up 535 yards to Notre Dame Satutay. Now, 535 yards' is no distance at alllt's from here to the next taco stand. But in tens of college football, 535 yards is a considetble distance-more than five times up andlown the field. For a USC defensive coorlnator, 535 yards could very well be thedistance between University Park and Slipery Rock. Don Lindsr, USC's defensive coordinator, need hally fear for his job, the 535 yards notwithtanding.

He remains a valued member of ttocoaching staff. For that matter, the defeie remains a valued unit at USC. Still, boi Lindsey and the USC defense are in ir some grim workouts this week as the Tijans prepare for California. I We came into this sea-son determined not to give up the easv one. We decided we'd let them work their way down field and then we'd try to hold them HMNUNDSIV.