The Week

With his "We have improved" statement following a 32-15 loss to Pittsburgh, Coach Ed Chlebek of Boston College established himself as a top-seeded optimist. Unfortunately for the rookie head coach, his winless Eagles' improvement was, at best, modest. One thing Chlebek had hoped for was that his players, who had fumbled 23 times in three games, would hang on to the ball. They didn't. On the first play from scrimmage, the Eagles fumbled the ball away. Before the game ended, they bobbled the ball five more times. They were also intercepted four times. And they gained 14 yards rushing. Meanwhile, the Panthers had converted a fumble recovery into a 21-yard field goal by Mark Schubert and a stolen pass into a TD to lead 10-0. What had brightened Chlebek's outlook was his Dennis Scala-to-Paul McCarty passing combination, which clicked eight times for 157 yards and two touchdowns.

After Quarterback Tom Roland's 28th carry of the night in an Ivy League game against Columbia, he had tied Reds Bagnell's (1950) and Adolph Bellizeare's (1972) Pennsylvania single-game rushing record with 214 yards. Then, on his next try, Roland was dumped for a one-yard loss—and from the record book. That, however, was one of the few disappointments for the Quakers, 31-19 winners over the Lions, who for the first time in 27 years had begun a season with two straight victories. Brown, which had scored only three points while losing its first two outings, zapped Princeton 44-16. That was the highest point production ever by the Bruins in this series, which dates back to 1898.

Other Ivy teams split four nonleague games. Cornell blanked Bucknell 24-0 and Harvard downed Colgate 24-21. A 20-17 decision over Dartmouth brought Boston U's record to 4-0, its finest start since 1954. All three Terrier touchdowns were scored by Mai Najarian. And Rutgers staved off Yale 28-27 when the Elis missed on a two-point pass play after scoring in the final minute.

With Quarterback Bill Hurley playing for the first time since cracking three ribs in the season opener, Syracuse won 31-15 at West Virginia. Hurley rushed for 143 yards as the Orangemen ended a four-game losing streak.

Villanova defeated Richmond 17-14 on a last-second 33-yard field goal by freshman Chuck Bushbeck. Lehigh topped Delaware 27-17. And Ithaca (Division III) shut out Clarion State (Division II) 17-0 in a battle of undefeated small colleges.

1. PENN STATE (6-0)
2. PITTSBURGH (4-0)
3. NAVY (4-0)

SOUTHWEST

Texans like to do things big, but Ron Vandiver would be happier if his beloved Texas A&M would start winning by smaller margins. Vandiver's local dry-cleaning establishment offers weekly discount percentages, the percentage equaling the points by which the Aggies triumph. After the Aggies had trounced Boston College 37-2 and Memphis State 58-0 earlier this season, Vandiver said, "They're killing us." Last week's 38-9 pummeling of Texas Tech was not quite as lethal, but Vandiver admitted that the way the Aggies have been cleaning up, he is in danger of being cleaned out.

Vandiver was fortunate he had not promised discounts matching the Aggies' total yardage. Texas A&M, which entered the game with the best defense in the country (117 yards a game) and the third-best offense (474 yards a game), outgained Tech 520 yards to 290. After running almost exclusively from the wishbone in the first half, the Aggies went to the I in the third period, and within 10 minutes of play Curtis Dickey gained 127 of his 161 yards rushing.

In another Southwest Conference skirmish, Arkansas gave up 234 yards through the air but intercepted three passes and just once let Texas Christian within 30 yards of the goal line. The Razorbacks won 42-3 as Michael Forrest scored on runs of 17 and two yards, and Jerry Eckwood on two short bursts.