4B
Wednesday, February 12, 1997
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Parcells surprised by heavy price Jets paid
New York owner had sights set on Patriots' coach
The Associated Press
HEMPSTEAD, N.Y — Back in 1927, 12-year-old Leon Hess used to dig for clams on the beach near his home in Asbury Park, N.J.
"Little did I know," he said, "that 70 years later, eight miles away in Sea Girl,里得"一a Buna."
The saga that has fueled the Boston-New York sports rivalry for two weeks ended yesterday when Bill Parcells, the coach known as "Tuna," was officially hired as the coach to guide Hess' New York Jets from the bottom of the NFL.
Parcels is one of professional football's marque coaches, one of just two in NFL history to take two different teams to the Super Bowl. He is taking over one of football's least successful franchises. A two month courtship ended with commissioner Paul Tagliabue finally approving the uplifts.
And here was Hess, the oil billionaire and absentee owner, basking in the arrival of Parcells, who led the Giants to two Super Bowl victories and left New England after losing to the Packers 35-21 in this year's Super Bowl.
Hess almost stole the show from Parcells, his fellow New Jersey resident who grew up in the New York suburbs. Parcells now owes a house on the shore at Sea Girt.
Hess first took all of the blame for the Jets' 4-28 record during the last two seasons.
"It was not the coach," he said. "It was all my fault."
Then he noted that working out the dispute with the Patriots was not the hardest he has had — he once negotiated an oil deal with Moammar Qadhaf in Libya.
"I had a meeting many years ago in Libya and a revolver was put on the table." Hess said.
He paused, then added: "I'm here."
It also was Hess who set his sights on Parcells, and only Parcells, to replace Rich Kotite, who stepped down after two seasons with just four total wins. Hess never even conducted an interview in the seven weeks until Parcells' season ended Jan. 26.
"We were contacted by 24 high-quality qualified coaches," said Steve Gutman, the team's president. "Leon's sights were set on the superstar we ended up with."
That, of course, could raise questions with the league, although New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, who earlier had cried tampering, declared that matter closed after Tagliabue arbitrated the dispute.
Two weeks ago, Tagliabue read Parcells' contract and ruled that he could coach for no team next year other than New England. So Parcells signed on with the jets as a consultant, with the intention of taking over the coaching duties in a year with right-hand man Bill Belichick as a stand-in.
It went back to Tagliabue, and on
Monday he arbitrated a deal — four draft picks to New England for Parcells. The picks are a third and fourth this year, a second next year, and a first in 1999.
When asked yesterday if he would take himself for those picks, Parcells quickly replied no.
"Not for those picks," he said. "It's a heavy price."
That was the drift of the day — wry humor mixed with joviality at the headquarters of a team that has won no title of any kind, not even the AFC East, since 1970. By contrast, since 1986, Parcells has won four division titles, two Super Bowls and an AFC championship with the Giants and Patriots.
Parcells had no great revelations about the future of the Jets, declining to answer questions about whether he'd prefer to take quarterback Peyton Manning or left tackle Orlando Pace with the first pick of the draft.
He noted that Manning still hasn't decided whether to leave Tennessee and suggested that Jumbo Elliott, who played for Parcells with the Giants and is now with the Jets, remains a competent left tackle.
"I know who the left tackle is." Parcells said. "I coached him for a few years. He'll be all right."
He also — directly or indirectly — praised a variety of other Jets players, including wide receiver Keysahwu Johnson, running back Adrian Murrell and quarterback Nell O'Donnell, whom Parcells first met as a high school quarterback when the Giants trained in O'Donnell's hometown of Madison, N.J.
Colorado coach talks with Memphis
BOULDER, Colo. — Colorado coach Ricardo Patton, considered a top candidate to replace Memphis coach Larry Finch, could have a contract proposal ready for Colorado officials by today, his agent said.
"We're still on schedule with it—it
will be Wednesday or Thursday," agent Eric Miller said Monday.
Miller would not say what the contract proposal included but called it comprehensive.
Patton, who has the No. 15 Bucks on track for their first NCAA Tournament appearance in 28 years, will earn a package worth $205,000 this
The Associated Press
Miller said that Patton was seeking financial security from Colorado.
year.
Colorado athletic director Dick Tharp has given Memphis permission to speak to Patton — a Nashville, Tenn., native — about replacing Finch, whose resignation will be effective after the season.
Ceremony planned to mark Jackie Robinson's debut
NEW YORK — Jackie Robinson's daughter hopes President Clinton will attend the ceremony marking the 50th anniversary of her father's major league debut, but a White House representative indicated that it was unlikely.
The Associated Press
"Of course, it's important." Sharon Robinson said yesterday. "I'm sure there's no doubt in his mind that he wants to be there and will be there."
Baseball officials have invited Clinton to the ceremony on April 15 at Shea Stadium, where the Los Angeles Dodgers play the New York Mets. Clinton has not responded yet, said Rich Levin, the representative for acting commissioner Bud Selig.
White House representative Mike McCurry said yesterday that Clinton had videotaped a message to be played at the ceremony,
which usually is an indication Clinton won't be there in person.
Baseball officials said they intended to announce their plans this month. Among them are patches that will be worn on players' uniforms this season to mark the breaking of the sport's color barrier by Robinson.
In conjunction with the announcement, Wheaties gave $5,000 to both The Jackie Robinson Foundation and to the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Mo.
Wheaties announced its own celebration yesterday, releasing limited edition cereal boxes.
The Wheaties box has a photograph of Robinson sliding into home plate. Honey Frosted Wheaties has Robinson throwing, while Crispy Wheaties n' Raisins shows Robinson fielding.
Clyde King, a former teammate of Robinson, attended the news conference along with Sharon
Robinson; Branch Rickey III, the grandson of the Dodgers general manager who signed Robinson; and filmmaker Spike Lee, who hopes to film a movie about Robinson's life but has not yet been able to raise the money.
Robinson died in 1972. Sharon Robinson remembered going to Ebbets Field once to see her father play.
She isn't offended when current minority ballplayers don't know the history of her father's struggle.
"I knew him not so much on the diamond, but at home as a father," she said.
"I think it's very sad for them," she said. "If you don't know where you come from, you don't have any direction going forward. I think we've seen that with some players. ... I find it sad for anyone who either doesn't know or doesn't want to know. It's their loss."
Stock car racer's state is critical
Chris Trickle shot on freeway overpass
The Associate Press
LAS VEGAS — A promising stock car racer remained in critical condition yesterday as police appealed again for help in finding the gunman who shot him on a freeway overpass.
Chris Trickle, nephew of NASCAR Winston Cup regular Dick Trickle, was in critical condition at University Medical Center after surgery to remove a bullet from his head.
across town to play tennis at a health club when the shooting occurred.
Police officials said that they had some theories but little evidence in the shooting, which happened Sunday night as Trickle drove on a dark overpass above Interstate 15, just south of the Las Vegas strip.
"We're looking at it as a possible traffic alteration that resulted in a shooting," said Las Vegas Metro Police Lt. Wayne Petersen. "But any guess we have about how it may have happened is purely speculation."
He said that police were trying to find the couple to talk to them about what they might have seen.
Petersen said a doctor and his wife, who came upon Trickle in his car after the shooting, administered first aid and flagged down a city bus driver to get additional help.
"We have very little to go on." Petersen said. "We're hoping that maybe some member of the public might have seen something."
24-hour vigil at the hospital, where Trickle has been on life support systems.
Dozens of family, friends and crew members, meanwhile, kept a
"Ireally have not been brought up-to-date on what's happening," Dick Tricklek said at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fla., where he is preparing to run Sunday in the Daytona 500. "All I can do is offer my condolences to my brother and sister-in-law."
The 24-year-old Trickle was a rising star on NASCAR circles, with one victory and five top-five finishes in the SouthWest Tour Division this season. He was on the verge of breaking into the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series ranks and was known as a hard charger on the track and a nice guy off it.
"he never got in hassles with anybody," said Brian Kizer, a longtime friend and a crew member for Trickle.
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