The Daily Oklahoman from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma • 222

Section THE STJNDAY OKLAHOMAN January 12, 1986 Purses to Shrink on State-Bred Horses Oklahomans Could Sweep Titles at IFR money will be available for the state breeding program. Experts credited the higher handle in 1984 and early 1985 to the novelty of pari-mutuel racing in Oklahoma. Now that the novelty has worn off, gambling proceeds are at more realistic levels, they say. "If breakage is up, there is nothing that says they (the commission) can't raise the awards again," Miller said. "The commission felt the large carry-over amount from 1984 needed to go back to the horsemen because that's what the programs for.

And they accomplished The Oklahoma-bred program generated $435,675 last year, while expenditures in the form of purses and breeders awards totaled $593,684. The Oklahoma Breeding And Development Fund was established to provide a means and incentive to improve the quality of horses bred and raised in the state by offering larger purses to state-bred, restricted races. purse then offered in open races. The 1985 program began with a balance of $208,150 carried over from the 1984 program. The 1986 program will have only $79,990 carried over from 1985 on which to develop the coming season program.

The carry-over is supplemented each season by money generated from unclaimed tickets and breakage. The breakage odd cents not paid back to the bettor is generated daily into the fund. However, the unclaimed ticket proceeds don become available to the fund until 60 days after the close of each race meet. Because 1986 will be one continuous meeting March 6 through Nov. 30, unclaimed ticket proceeds will not be available until 1987.

Industry experts say the handle, or total money wagered, dropped and leveled off during the 1985 fall meeting and is not expected to make a measurable increase in 1986. A lower handle produces lower breakage, so less By Aleta Walther With an anticipated decrease in wagers, a smaller carry-over and proceeds from unclaimed tickets being withheld until 1987, horsemen participating in Oklahoma-bred horse races will experience purse cuts in 1986. Funds available to supplement the state race program for 1986 have fallen behind the 1985 figure. "The commission will have to be more conservative with the program this year," said Christy Miller, who oversees the program for the commission. "We need to keep this program alive and working for the horsemen." Miller said tie purse supplements will have to be lowered and the gambling trends of racing periodically reviewed.

Horsemen participating in Oklahoma-bred races at Sallisaw's Blue Ribbon Downs in 1985 received purse supplements of $1J50 a 70 percent larger TULSA There is a good possibility of an Oklahoma sweep in the 16th annual International Finals Rodeo Jan. 16-19 at the Tulsa Convention Center. Oklahomans hold the top spot in five of the seven events going into the rodeo, and the top 11 competitors in steer wrestling are all Suds Commercials Over For Born-Again Bubba Former Football Star Corks Lite Beer Career State Athletes Set to Receive Special Rewards Nineteen Oklahoma athletes and sports teams have been selected to receive Honoree Awards at the 18th annual Sports Headliner of the Year Awards dinner scheduled for Feb. 17. The Honoree Award winners are headed by four state athletes unanimously selected by a 13-memb-er committee made up of state sportscasters and sports writers, committee coordinator John Brooks' said.

The four are University of Oklahoma football A1L-Americans Tony Casillas and Brian Bosworth, forr, mer Oklahoma State University pole vaulter Joe Dial and OU gymnast Kelly Garrison. Casillas and Dial were also nominated for Sports-Headliner of the Year, an award that went to OSU golfer Scott Verplank. University of Oklahoma football coach Barry Switzer was selected to receive the Headliner Special Award, the top award for a coach. iy To be eligible for an Honoree Award, an athlete or team must have made an accomplishment an -a national or international level. Casillas, winner of the Lombardi Award, and Bosworth, winner of the Dick Butkus Award, were named Honorees for the first time.

Dial won both the NCAA outdoor and indoor vaulting titles and also set an American record in the vault by clearing 19 feet, 214 inches. It was the third time Dial, a former high school standout at Marlow, was chosen as an Honoree Award ai Garrison was chosen as an Honoree for the second straight year. The OU freshman from Altus; ranked second in the country among women gymnasts, was the gold-medal winner in the all-around competition at the National Sports Festival and also competed in the World Gymnastics Championships as a member of the U.S. team. Three other Honoree winners were also nominated for Headliner of the Year.

They are Randy Bass of Lawton, the home run, batting and runs batted in-champion of Japan's major baseball, league; OU All-America baseketball player Way-man Tisdale and former OSU baseball player Pete Incaviglia, who broke several NCAA batting records. The other Honoree winners are: Steve Buchele of the Oklahoma City 89ers, the most valuable player in the American Association; the NAIA champion Central State University tling team; Dan Chaid of OU, the 190-pound NCAA wrestling champion; Melvin Douglas of OU, the 117-; pound NCAA wrestling champion; Kelli Litsch.of Southwestern State University, four-time AU-Ameiy, ica basketball player and the MVP of the NAIA women's tournament. Also, Christine McMiken of OSU, the NCAA -indoor champion in the run and the world record-holder in the indoor three-mile run; Mark Moore, OSU All-America football player; Kevin Murphy, OU All-America football player; the Uni-. versity of Oklahoma football team, which won the; national collegiate championship; Leslie O'Neal, OSU All-America football player. And the Southwestern State University women's basketball team, winner of the NAIA championship, and Thurman Thomas, OSU All-America football player and the Big Eight Conference offensive player of the year.

The winner or winners of the Special Recognition Award, which goes to an individual for contributions to state sports over a period of years, will be announced later. Proceeds from the banquet, to be held at The, Centre, 5901 May go to the Central Oklahoma Chapter of the March of Dimes. Tickets are priced at $45 for an individual or $330 for an eight-seat table. Tickets may be ordered by calling the March of Dimes office at (405) 848-4631. Bubba Smith.

up TV bucks. pool hall or pizza parlor hangs above the dining room table in Smith's modest Culver City, home. No, he doesn't plan to take it down. "That was a part of my life," he says. Only part of it there is life after Lite Beer.

You can catch Smith on the big screen in the just-released movie, "Black Moon Rising," and in the soon-to-be-released "Police Academy Smith plays a tough-talking, no-holds-barred FBI agent in the chase scene-packed adventure "Black Moon Rising." Does he worry that, due to his incredible-hulkish size, he will be typecast by Hollywood as a threatening character? "If so, I'll just be the best character there is," he.says. "The more you try to fight it, the less chance you have of breaking out of it. "I understand how (typecasting) happens, but I always try to take it to another level. I say, 'why couldn't I do a love You're talking about athletics, you're talking about women around all the time. Who better to do love scenes than a football player?" Miller Lite-made buddies Smith and Butkus may be together again, if TV tactics allow.

Still-fuzzy plans are under way for the duo to star in a weekly sitcom. They already have appeared side-by-side in two television series, "Blue Thunder" and "Half Nelson" both of which rather briskly vanished into thin airwaves. "I got hired for 13 episodes of 'Blue Then I got 'Police Academy (I)' and thought, 'that'll be my training Smith says. "And it ends up that 'Police Academy' is the monster and 'Blue Thunder' gets cancelled. I figured 'Blue Thunder' could not miss; you had a helicopter and lots of action, and kids like that kind of thing." In conversation, Smith frequently relates acting and life in general to his days as a Baltimore Colts star lineman.

Picking up pointers from Tommy Lee Jones, star of "Black Moon Rising," was "just like watching a football game." "I'd just sit there and watch him cook, even if I had nothing to do with the scene," Smith says. "I love it. When you play football, you develop a respect for talent." Football, obviously, still holds an important place in Smith's heart. After all, it's impossible to forget those triumphant moments when Colts fans cheered him across the field shouting, By Sasan Christian Stop the presses. Bubba Smith has resigned his post as a Lite Beer man.

So don't look for him Super Bowl Sunday, nudged between a touchdown and a kickoff, joshing around with fellow former football phenomenon Dick Butkus about Lite-ening up. After nine years and 21 commercials, Smith has decided that promoting beer is not his style. Part of his decision stems from born-again Christianity, though his rearranged religious priorities are nothing new. Smith says he found God in 1978 only two years after Miller Lite Beer found him. "A lot of people would ask me, how can you do a beer commercial and be a Christian?" he recalls.

"And, you know, I never blended the two. I knew I didn't drink, and I never directly told anybody to drink Lite Beer. (The ads) were almost like a joke. "But it got to a point where I couldn't justify it anymore." Another part of his decision stems from the powerful campaign against driving while intoxicated. "You've got this thing, Mothers Against Drunk Driving," Smith says.

"I don't want to promote" something that's going to hurt somebody." When Miller-ites contacted Smith to renew his contract for 1986, he replied with a firm "no thank you." "They called with a humongous offer, and I said I djm't want to do it," Smith said. "They said, 'We can't believe you won't take this' because, you know, everything they do is predicated on money. "Well, I'd rather be able to sleep at night. And if I'm doing something I don't believe in, I can't sleep I don't care how much moneys involved. I've been a Lite Beer man for nine years, and I couldn't carry on that lie anymore." Smith won't even collect residuals from the 60-second comedy routines.

Each ad ran for one year only, so 1985 closed down the Bubba-beer era. How does Butkus feel about all this? "He's not doing them anymore, either," Smith answers. "He was tired of going through the little games you have to deal with, and we both said, let's give it up. But even if he hadn I still would have. It was the right time to get out." A large Tiffany light heralding Miller beer like one you'd see in a Dan Dailey of Tulsa is favored to win his record eighth International Pro Rodeo Associa-tion Ail-Around championship.

The veteran cowhand is currently ranked third in saddle bronc riding and fourth in bareback bronc and steer wrestling. He has 142 all-around points to 111 for his closest competitor, Kenny Phillips of Cow-lesvllle, N.Y. The closest competition should be in calf roping, where Tom Walker of Wynnewood leads Terry Postrach of Nowata by just one point, 60-59. The steer wrestling competition could also be tight, as former champions Jack Wiseman of Hartshorne, Clarence LeBlanc of Okmulgee and Dailey are all within 10 points of leader Britches Sims of Ft. Cobb.

Sims will be making his first IFR appearance. Red Doffin of Ada is another former world champ in the field. In saddle bronc, Justin Rowe of Tulsa leads Butch LeMay of Col-linsville by 13 points, 78-65, with Dailey, a 13-time champ, at 58. LeMay trailed Rowe going into last year's D7R, but put on a strong showing to take the title. Jerry LaValley of Catoosa, 1984 Rookie of the Year, has a 69-59 lead over three-time world champion Bobby Gillis of Benton, in bull riding.

Terry Don West of Tulsa and IFR 14 winner Ronnie Allen of Jacksonille, will also provide tough competition. Phillips has a 69-56 advantage over Bobby Cooper of Houston in bareback bronc riding. David Anderson of Wa-conia, is third, 17 points hack, but he can't be counted out. He came from the bottom of the field to win the world championship last year. In cowgirls barrel racing, Rookie of the Year Charla Hartness of Pawhuska has a 63-47 lead over 13-year-old Sherry Hearn Blair of Gore.

Third-ranked Toni Guirino of Dayton, Ohio, and defending champ Kelli Amos of Tulsa will provide competition. Casey Cox of Carrol-Iton, is the leader in team roping, although Walt Walden of Stockbridge, and Joel Maker of Heavener are close behind. The current leaders will be crowned national champions Tuesday, but other than that, it means very little. With 40 points awarded to the winner of each go-round and 60 average points awarded to the top point-getter in the five go-rounds, a lead will not hold up very long. Things start Wednesday (Jan.

15) with buck-Ing stock sales at 10 a.m. and 7 p.m. Competition will begin at 8 Thursday and Frl-ay, at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday and at 2 p.m.

Sunday. Tickets are $5 Wednesday, J7 Thursday and $12, $10 and $9 for all other have to learn lines for a movie. And you get that same shot of adrenaline from acting that you get from football." The Beaumont, Texas, native made a name for himself at Michigan State University. Back in his homestate, University of Texas coach Daryl Royal had wanted Smith to join the Long-horns, but the team was not yet integrated in 1963. "Before 1 went to Michigan State, I'd never talked to a white person before," Smith says.

"It was something that just didn't happen in Texas. I was totally afraid of white people." At the time, Smith's size 6-foot-8 and 300 pounds was an anomaly even in football. Today, however, mighty men are becoming commonplace. "Once, Wilt Chamberlain and Ka-reem (Abdul-Jabbar) were freaks. Now everybody's 7 feet," Smith laughs.

"They look like clones. I stood out because I was different I was big and I could outrun most backs. That freaked a lot of coaches out." Smith attributes the extra-hefty trend now to hormones in food. "Why are your chickens bigger? Why are your cows bigger?" he asks. "They're being fed steroids, and then we're eating them." "Kill, Bubba, kill." A knee injury ended Smith's seven years of professional football in 1974, while he was playing for the Oakland Raiders and the transition from hero to spectator was not an easy one.

"When I initially left football, I stayed in my apartment for a year," be says. "I was OK up until July, when all my friends left to go to training camp. I went into a depression that you wouldn't believe." Smith's first post-football job, selling insurance, didn't do much to alleviate his nostalgia for the bygone. "I left that right away," he says. "I was looking for the same kind of adrenaline flow you get from football." Along came Miller Lite Beer commercials to bail him out of his boredom.

Then came small TV role after small TV role. "I made the gambit 'Wonder 'Police 'Charlies' 'Odd all that stuff. I did eight or nine episodes of 'Good and they never let me talk." Smith considers acting and football in the same league though "football is the ultimate stage." "They're a lot alike," he says. "In football, you have to have mental discipline. You have to learn 1,500 to 1,600 plays in the play book, like you What's Your Profit Motive? Big Cash.

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Game car, be fronltooded ihrogghopenlnoionellrieriida The large gome bog li mace Irom Ughtalght, totally waterproof, vmantGouta nyion, Game bog hen a flvwnap leleate that allawi to some of my rodeo essays, Taylor Is one of those guys who so loved rodeo that he has stayed with it In various ways through the decades. He has worked the timed-event chutes at Cheyenne the largest regular-way rodeo In the world for 24 years. He has also worked In the same capacity at Houston, San Antonio, Fort Worth and Denver, His expertise has been available, again as chute boss, at many Independent steer ropings throughout the country, including 22 years at San Angelo and 11 years at the NFSR, the last two of which were held at the Lazy Arena at Guthrie, OK. Dan Taylor is all rodeo cowboy. Ever since he started roping at 5-years old, his life has been entwined in the sport.

In 1952 he married Berva Dawn Sorensen, daughter of the famous stock contractor, J.C. (Doc) Sorensen, of Camas, Idaho, Though Taylor won't discuss what his plans are for the resolution of the controversial closed tour competition, he feels that it will all work out, "I can't talk about It," he says, "because that Is something for board meetings. "But I can tell you this much. To every problem there is a workable solution. I might not get all I want, and you might not get all you want but we can work something out every time." Thinking like that should go far toward tranquil-izlng the recent discontent ofthe majority of PRCA members, even though It may have little effect on the continuation of star support.

Mclntott) Svncflcitt By Willard H. Porter There's one thing that can be said for rodeo cowboys: They are loyal to themselves. Since there are about 6,000 of them in the ranks of the PRCA, this trait can, in times of controversy, generate a lot of emotion. Like many groups In the sports-entertainment business, the PRCA has for a number of years been experimenting. Special rodeos, featuring the skills of a few top-hand contestants, have been salt-and-peppered across the land on a tryout basis.

Because of this experimentation (the NFR Itself was once an experiment), the PRCA enters 1986 in disarray. These special rodeos, claim the membership masses, are only for a few privileged members. An incumbent president, Shawn Davis, has stepped down and a new president, Dan Taylor, has been elected on a platform that embraces what all the members live for: equality. Historically, each time an entrenched adminis-tratlon strays too far from a level of membership acceptance, the membership "votes the rascals out." This is, of course, if anybody has failed to grasp It, the purest form of democracy. Indeed, It has been observed more than a few times that the workings of the PRCA, though Increasingly bureaucratic, are democratic to the very roots.

The big trouble last year was not the idea but the structure. The experimental rodeos were set up not Two large tfonl cargo pocked for 6,000 cowboys but only about 200. In other words the architects of what is called the Winston Pro Tour, in attempting to create stars on the level of other sports, worked only with exciting talent, those who were statistically the best. That's where the whole shootin' match went astray, according to the rank-and-file membership. The Pro Tour rodeos were closed, splintering off a huge block of seasonally important points and dollars from "open" competition.

Through the years, the cries of anguish from rodeo cowboys who, for one reason or another, feel they have been done in, have not been thoroughly articulated. But they have been loud. In consequence, they've been heard and answered. Each time a new professional cowboy administration enters the scene, It claims the cries of the masses with a simple thought: We will listen" to grievances, adjust outrages and work for you all of you. And so It is with the new administration of Dan Taylor, a 63-year-old Doole, Texas, farmer and rancher, who says his twin priorities will be "working for the betterment of rodeo as a whole and for the betterment of the entire membership." I've known Taylor for 30 years, since the days when he was a great calf roper and R.C.A.

calf roping director, I call him friend and, In reciprocity, he has been known to respond not unkindly to RETAIL VALUE 7ian OUR DISCOUNT PRICE 54.85 WITH THIS AD $49.37 THIS AD WORTH 10 DISCOUNT I ALL BROWNING CLOTHES IN STOCK. 1-1B-BB 1 I04O LINWOOD HBBk SKI 235'4476M.