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USC vs. Marathon The Oil in men's basket- team ball. 1998 Walvieball debuts held in an exhibition Gam game. Joyce Sports Challenge. 32nd Top workers, take night off on NITRO MICHAEL STRICKLAND World War 3, the November payper-view event, is still several weeks away. Therefore, WCW could and did use NITRO this week as a "night off" for many of its top workers. "Hollywood" Hogan, The Warrior, Kevin Nash, DDP, Eric Bischoff and Sting among others all were absent from the Monday program. With that in mind, this was a good week to skip your wrestling intake. If you did, here's a recap of the action from NITRO. After yet another pointless first hour, the second opened with footage from Halloween Havoc 1994, featuring Ric Flair versus Hulk Hogan in a steel cage. This was an executive order from Eric Bischoff, attempting to further humiliate the "Nature Boy." Flair and the Horsemen responded, focusing on the fact that Eric Bischoff has no idea what its like to be a wrestler. Arn Anderson said, "Come out of your tree house. You're [Bischoff] playing kid games, and this is a man's game." The Horsemen announced they want to settle the score with nWo Hollywood, no matter what it takes. It looks more and more likely that Bischoff will face Flair in the ring at Starrcade. Sketchy stipulations for that match i i l n* i tii i are, snouia mscnon win, riair musi retire. If Flair wins, he obtains the power to book his own matches, possibly taking Roddy Piper's spot as die commish. Television Champion Chris Jericho provided the night's best moment with yet another of his hilarious interviews in which he further mocked Goldberg. Jericho later defended his title against Cruiserweight Champion Billy Kidman. The match was very entertaining, but since WCW is giving a " push to both wrestlers, there could be no loser. WCW weaseled out by enforcing the time limit, forcing a draw. All in all, though, it was a quality match. Scott Steiner and Buff Bagwell continued their rampage in WCW, again attacking J.J. Dillon. Dillon would later fine Bagwell and Steiner for their out-of-control behavior. This fine sent the two over the top, and Kenny Kaos was on the short end of a beating at the hands of the two nWo members. It's hard to tell where this angle is headed. NITRO's final two matches were sleepers. Booker T. made his television return from injury by beating Scott Hall. Booker T. took the win via disqualification after Hall pulled referee Billy Silverman in front of a Booker T. missile drop kick. The main event began as Michael Buffer got us ready to rumble for an odd matchup. Completely away from any current angle, Lex Luger faced Giant. The lackluster match ended with an attack on Luger by Bret Hart. Hart was very busy Monday, as he continued his recent loose cannon type gimmick. He bragged about his beatings of Sting and DDP, while he also got a few shots in on Chris Benoit. Goldberg did run in to help Luger, spearing Giant. As he went to spear Hart, "The Hitman" moved out of the way, causing Goldberg to take down Luger. One can only wonder why the Wolfpac was not around to help out their fellow member. Npitb and Nntpsr WDW rnmmitfpH a major goof concerning Halloween Havoc, failing to notify many cable companies that the show would run over the normal three hours. Thus, many homes were cut off before the main event. That allowed WCW to run the Goldberg/DDP replay on NITRO, in the process becoming the most watched cable wrestling match ever, drawing a 7.2 rating with over 8 million viewers ... The NBC special on wrestling Sunday night was pre-empted locally by WIS' coverage of the gubernatorial debate. WIS will show the "expose" 8 p.m Nov. 21.... Jim "The Anvil" Neidhart was let go by WCW last week, while Bam Bam Bigelow was added to the roster... Steve "Mongo" McMichael was an unexplained no-show last NITRO ... Sting will be taking a few months off from WCW for "personal reasons" ... Keep an eye on Giant's success in the next two months. If he's on the way out to the WWF in Jan aary, look for the big man to start doing the J.O.B. USC Cross Country f i finished seventh at the SEC Championships in Maryville, Tenn. The lecocks were led by i Peebles, who finished 1 i with a time of 18:37. Collins a ASSOCIATED PRESS NEW ORLEANS?A contrite Kerry Collins apologized Tuesday for driving drunk in North Carolina and said it won't happen again. "I take fiill responsibility. This is a serious offense, and it should not be taken lightly," the newest New Orleans Saints quarterback said at a news conference. He was reading from a prepared statement. "This is my first offense," Collins said. "It will be my only offense ... I realize I'm at a critical junction in my career. Therefore, Fm going to rededicate myself to football." Collins' arrest early Monday was just the latest distraction for the Saints, a team suffering both on and off the field. On the field, they have gone from 3-0 to 44, their offense is ranked 23rd in the NFL, and the likes of the Vikings, 49ers, Dolphins, Cowboys and Falcons lie ahead. Off the field, distractions have included a training ^1 <1 M fl 1^1 ^ ^Pyl k Senior goalkeeper Emily Crain of the USC \ boards the bus Tuesday afternoon at the team is headed to Tuscaloosa, Ala., Tournament. This is the first time the La made the postseason in the program's UQTLc CI nmr J UJVj Oj ASSOCIATED PRESS On Sunday morning, "The Voice of the Gamecocks" doesn't have much to say. Only hours before, Charlie McAlexander had called every painful, vivid detail of South Carolina's latest defeat. Still, Charlie Mac, as he's widely known, got up at dawn Sunday and headed to the 7:30 a.m. taping of Gamecocks' coach Brad Scott's weekly television show. "That's a tough time," Charlie Mac said. "You understand that he's hurting and everyone else is hurting. When you get very close to players, and to coaches, it hurts us, too." From the broadcast booth and concession stands, to the tutors who drill athletes in geometry and English literature, the poor seasons at South Carolina and Clemson have left more than players and coaches defeated. Week after week, McAlexander and radio partners Tommy Suggs and Todd Ellis ? both former star quarterbacks at South Carolina ? are left > )POR' ooloeizes L O camp hazing incident and various players' brushes with the law. "We've had a lot of off-field problems, and in our situation ? not one of the elite teams ? we cannot afford to have those problems interfere with our football," said Saints cornerback Tyronne Drakeford. "It's a big distraction for us, but somehow we've got to find a way to get around it and focus on what's going on on the field." Collins was arrested and charged with drunken driving early Monday, hours after the Panthers, his former team, beat the Saints. Collins never got to play in the game, watching from the sideline while the Carolina fans booed and jeered him. Collins was given permission to stay in his old hometown when the Saints left. "The last thing I told him was, It's a very hostile environment down there. Can you handle that?'" a weary Mike Ditka said Monday. "And he said, 'I'm not going to get into any trouble.'" 1^,1 v |T|T??,V |M| ; -I . | iBlfcy ' k m. 1^* ^w^x I' ^jj|||^ ^Hp jJH /omen's soccer team Carolina, seeded as tl Indoor Facility. The and No. 3 in the nati for the 1998 SEC Gators defeated USC 4 dy Gamecocks have this season. A strong four-year history, could land them a spo !)n's losing se; explaining a missed field goal or a costly penalty during the Gamecocks' eight-game losing streak. It's just as bleak for Clemson's 2-7 season, the Tigers' first losing year since 1994. An elevator operator at Williams-Brice Stadium said he was glad Saturday's 49-14 loss to Tennessee ended the Gamecocks' home season because "it's hard to take dealing with losing and the upset people after games." Charlie Mac says he's most often asked these days how he's holding up. "I just tell them we're professionals with a job to do and responsibility to call the game the way it is," he said. At the Williams-Brice turnstiles, gate attendant Michael Kaufmann had a smile and funny line for almost everyone. "I just come to collect tickets, and I get out of here," he said. "It's not worth worrying about them this year." Harold White, head of South Carolina's athletic tutoring'program, said his workers are told before the season begins to keep it all business. Wednesday Women's Basl Australia (exhi | i Friday, 7 p Volleyball vs.' Sunday, 2j 1 L y Men's Soccer' TYIY7T iui i/ni Collins has gotten into plenty of trouble sin< the Panthers made him their first pick in 199 He was called a boozer, a racist and finally a qui ter after he reportedly told Carolina coach Doi Capers his heart was not in the game. The Panthers cut Collins after that, and tl Saints claimed him off waivers. Collins' arrest is another in a string of en barrassing incidents Ditka has had to deal wil since last season. The Saints are being sued because of a ha ing incident at training camp that injure three players, fourth-round draft pick Julia Pittman is in jail in Florida for parole violation wide receiver Keith Poole is charged with a saulting a man with a golf club, players Joe Joh] son, Eric Guliford and Keno Hills have had serai with the law, and former player Andre Royal wj arrested while celebrating a contract with tt Saints. I 1 * IIK matr \ ; |p ^^mmmmsmm^^^ jja^.' ^?| ?1 11 IPWjj^gfm^ ^ ? jjjgN^ l!!!^ I 1 ?. '> ' ' ?'> iy- y ilk .' ^JB SEAN RAYFORD Sports Photo Editor ie No. 2 wildcard, will face No. 1-seeded Ion Florida Thursday at noon. The Lady -2 on Oct 25 hi the team's only meeting showing by the 11-5-1 Lady Gamecocks t in the NCAA Tournament isons spread The idea is to have a comfort zone where pla; ers can forget football and concentrate on stu( ies, White said. "We wouldn't tell them they're the greates thing since ice cream for scoring two touchdowr or kick them in the butt for fumbling the ball," 1: said. Still, it's hard for tutors not to feel th team's disappointment, White said. "It doesn't take much to know everybody's fru trated," he said. "The same way we hope the tea] doesn't throw in the towel, our staff has got \ be very consistent." It's hard for those surrounding a team to sta neutral, said Greg Dale, a Winthrop Universil sports psychologist. "They feel through their work that son part of them is tied up with the team," he sail "It's not quite clinical depression, but there's frustration, an embarrassment; you don't feel go( about yourself." When Cle mson boosters get a little annoy* with losing, George Bennett, executive direct* 7p.m. Nate says Tennessee cetball vs. QB Tee Martin was bition) named USA Today m Online's National Tennessee Player of the Week km. for his performance vs. UNC against Carolina. incident :e "Our goal is to get better players and be a bet 5. ter team," Ditka said. "Sometimes better players t- aren't better people." m Saints general manager Bill Kuharich called Collins' behavior disappointing and unacceptie able, but said the Saints support Collins and will not rush to judgment. Kuharich said he did not know if Collins' arrest was symptomatic of a drinking problem. "I'm not a doctor and that's the next step: to zj have our team physician get him an evaluation to answer that question," Kuharich said. s With journeyman Billy Joe Tolliver as the s' starter, Danny Wuerffel as the other backup, and a_ Heath Shuler and Billy Joe Hobert limping from )S serious injuries, Ditka admitted he is not about is to pull the plug on Collins immediately. ie "He's such a talent I'll probably go a little further with him than I normally would," Ditka said. . OSU, Vols hold top spots in latest BCS standings staff writer CHRIS PeGUIDO Strike up "Rocky Top" one more time. Tennessee fans have another reason to cheer after the second edition of the Bowl Championship Series standings came out Monday. While the Volunteer faithful are celebrating, the joy in Westwood, Calif., is no more after UCLA (No. 4 ESPN/USA Today, No. 3 AP) fell from first to third place following a lackluster 2824 win over a 1-7 Stanford team. The Vols (7-0) moved to second in the BCS standings with the Bruins' fall. The Volunteers' BCS ranking was 5.70. UT (No. 3 ESPN/USA To day, JNo. z Arj aeieatea boutn Carolina 4y-i4 last week. No. 1 Ohio State (8-0), which handled Indiana easily 38-7 on Saturday, moved to first in the BCS rankings with a 3.71 total. So if the season ended today, the Buckeyes and Vols would meet for the national championship in Tempe, Ariz. UCLA (7-0), ranked second in both polls a week ago, held a 3.04 ranking in the initial BCS standings, a standard that rates the lowest number as the best. UCLA received a 6.62 ranking on Monday as its numbers fell in three of the four BCS categories ? polls, computer rankings and strength of schedule. Unbeaten Kansas State (No. 2 ESPN/USA Today, No. 4 AP) is rated fourth by the BCS. Nebraska (No. 15 ESPN/USA Today, No. 14 AP) was another notable mover in the rankings. The Cornhuskers (7-2) were dropped from sixth last week to 12th by the BCS. Also interesting was the activity of Florida and Florida State. The Gators moved ahead of the Seminoles to take over the fifth pgsition. The Gators reduced their BCS rating a total of 4.06 points following their win over Georgia. Florida State improved its rating by 1.12 points. Arizona moved from 14th to 10th and Notre Dame went from 16th to 13th. Texas was a newcomer, making its debut at No. 14, while Oregon found itself off the list debuting at 11th last week. rne standings, wftich rely on a iormuia made up of polls, computer ratings, strength-of-schedule and win-loss records, will be used to select the teams to play in the Fiesta Bowl national championship on Jan. 4. The BCS will list 20 teams in its standings each week or a compilation that includes the lowest-rated conference leader, which this week is Syracuse. The BCS assigns a point total based on the averages of each of the four categories, and the team with the lowest point totals is rated highest. The final BCS standings will be released on Dec. 6. The Associated Press contributed to this story beyond fields L7. r?f thp TPTAY rlnH fnalme thpm down J?nH rominHs i- them how players are feeling. "We're just really hurt," he said. Bennett's South Carolina counterpart, Herb ls Sharpe, said his Gamecock Club members have 16 mostly been patient and understanding. L At Knickerbockers on College Avenue in downtown Clemson, about a quarter mile from Death s- Valley, the lively orange souvenirs and tiger-paw tn shirts aren't selling like they used to when the to Tigers won every year. David Spearman, whose family owns the shop, said he likes what coach Tommy West has done :y with the team in the five seasons West has been here. Still, business has fallen about 10 to 15 per' cent this season, Spearman said. The losing keeps )(j fans from coming in on Thursday and staying through Sunday, id "Instead they wan^te "get out of here as soon sr as they can," he said.