Notes on a Scorecard - Jan. 3, 1994

Happy Raider assistant coach on the way down the press box elevator late Sunday afternoon at the Coliseum: “See you guys here next week.” . . .

Not-so-happy Denver assistant: “Yeah.” . . .

The Coliseum continues to be the Broncos’ house of horrors, the place where they have lost six consecutive games and must open the playoffs after their come-from-ahead, overtime defeat Sunday. . . .

Another capacity crowd will give the Raiders a legitimate home-field advantage, something they do not always enjoy. . . .

“The fans made a difference,” Raider linebacker Joe Kelly said. “We fed off them in the second half. I wish we could have this kind of support every week.” . . .

The way the fans were celebrating on the way out of the stadium, you would have thought Wisconsin had just won the Rose Bowl. . . .

Jeff Hostetler out-John Elwayed John Elway in perhaps the most exciting Raider game at the Coliseum. . . .

“We wouldn’t be here without Jeff,” Howie Long said. . . .

He could have meant Hostetler or Jaeger. Take your pick. . . .

The Broncos didn’t punt until 1:36 was left in the third quarter, but didn’t score during the last 32 minutes 41 seconds. . . .

“We got more aggressive,” Long said. . . .

Thumbs up to the much-maligned Art Shell and his staff for some superb second-half play calling. . . .

This time, it was the Broncos who went into a shell, running the ball three consecutive times and wasting Elway’s abilities on what turned out to be their last possession of the second half. . . .

Off their performances in bowl games, the Rams might want to draft quarterback Trent Dilfer of Fresno State instead of Heath Shuler of Tennessee if they have a choice. . . .

*

Ever imagine that you would feel sorry for Notre Dame? . . .

The Irish were robbed in the polls. . . .

The true national championship was decided on the field Nov. 13 when Notre Dame beat Florida State, 31-24. . . .

Both the Irish and Seminoles lost one game. The first tiebreaker in nearly every league or conference is head-to-head competition. . . .

Granted, Florida State was 12-1 and Notre Dame 11-1. But I suspect the Irish would have been able to handle the team, Kansas, that the Seminoles played in their extra game, the Kickoff Classic. . . .

Actually, the Orange Bowl officiating crew might have decided the mythical national title. Without a controversial call or two that worked against Nebraska, the Cornhuskers would have won and finished as the country’s only unbeaten team. . . .

Bobby Bowden nearly became the first losing coach ever to get a victory shower on the sidelines. . . .

*

The difference in the Rose Bowl was that Wisconsin wanted to win more than UCLA. . . .

Wayne Cook was not at full strength after a bout with flu, but the Badgers’ ferocious hitting also had something do with UCLA’s six turnovers. . . .

Trash talking has no place in the game, something I believe Terry Donahue will emphasize to his players during his next preseason speech. . . .

Wisconsin, under Barry Alvarez, was the best-coached Big Ten team Pasadena has seen in many a year. . . .

Associated Press writer John Nadel surveyed the sea of red-and-white and said, “Apparently, a lot of UCLA fans sold their tickets and are watching the game on TV sets they bought with the proceeds.” . . .

Don’t look now, but the Big Ten has a modest two-game Rose Bowl winning streak. . . .

Actually, the Big Eleven is 1-0 in the Rose Bowl. . . .

Next time, Miami should turn down a Fiesta Bowl invitation. . . .

Best New Year’s Day announcing team: Dick Enberg and Bob Trumpy of NBC at the Orange Bowl. . . .

Worst: Mark Jones and Tim Brant of ABC at the Citrus Bowl. . . .

Best performance: Nebraska linebacker Trev Alberts’ three sacks of Heisman Trophy winner Charlie Ward. . . .

Biggest loser: Boastful West Virginia Coach Don Nehlen, whose Mountaineers’ bid for an unbeaten season and national title fell 34 points shy. . . .

The attractive Sept. 3 openers are UCLA vs. Tennessee at the Rose Bowl and USC vs. Washington at the Coliseum.