October 09, 2000 | Volume 93, Issue 14

Back In StrideThe Titans showed their championship form of last season, running roughshod over the Giants

Second-year wideout Terrence Wilkins is emerging as a solid complement to Colts All-Pro Marvin Harrison. After missing the first two games with a concussion, Wilkins had a career-high nine...

Greenbacks. Dennis Green had the last laugh on those who have questioned his personnel moves, such as starting quarterback Daunte Culpepper this year. Last week Vikings owner Red Mc-Combs gave...

The license plate of...

"You have to experience winning close games in order to win close games."—STEELERS LINEBACKER LEVON KIRKLAND

My Two Cents

I see three games heavy with playoff implications this week—Baltimore at Jacksonville, Tampa Bay at Minnesota and Buffalo at Miami—and a weirdly similar pattern runs through all three. Each...

Dinger Drop-offHomers began the year with a bang but ended with a (relative) whimper

One of the Dodgers' priorities this winter will be re-signing righthander Darren Dreifort, who can become a free agent. Dreifort, a bit of a disappointment during his first three seasons, drove...

Most players take a year or two of seasoning before fully blossoming—think of the stars who emerged this year, like Royals first baseman-designated hitter Mike Sweeney (.333 average, 144 RBIs),...

Out of the WoodsOregon's teams moved atop the Pac-10 with victories over Washington and USC

•Florida State (5-0) at Miami (3-1)Hurricanes coach Butch Davis is 0 for 5 against the Seminoles, with none of the losses by fewer than 10 points. Florida State coach Bobby Bowden is wondering...

North Carolina senior tight end Alge Crumpler caught his first touchdown pass in three years last Saturday—a 59-yarder from quarterback Ronald Curry—and had one other catch for 11 yards in the Tar...

At least one Maryland player could claim success against Florida State. Senior tailback LaMont Jordan raced 74 yards for a touchdown—the longest run against the Seminoles in four years—for the...

Arizona State's Todd Heap knows how to cause a stir—on and off the field

MAY 4, 1981

Do you own a riding mower even though your lawn is approximately the size of an Amish quilt? Do you wax your mower in front of the neighbors? Have you stopped hiding Penthouse under your socks in...

There was no need to put the SI cover jinx on Ryan Leaf. He'll screw up on his own.—DANIEL CLEETON, Knoxville, Tenn.

Letters to SPORTS ILLUSTRATED should include the name, address and home telephone number of the writer. They may be mailed to The Editor, Sports Illustrated, 135 West 50th Street, New York, N.Y....

In Sydney athletes, spectators and the media gleefully savaged everyone—including themselves

Highlights

Rock Fans devour VH1's Behind the Music. The starstruck are glued to E! True Hollywood Story. The cable granddaddy of 'em all, A&E's Biography, has its dedicated audience. Now, sports fans who...

A rookie online service lets you invest in rookie cards as you do stocks

ESPN's College Gameday travels to a different game each week, and analyst Lee Corso has picked the victor of that game 16 consecutive times, dating back to the beginning of last season. This...

Who soared and who stumbled at the Olympics

Mariana Canillas, Paraguay, 106'0", women's discus. Her toss fell a mere 118' 4¾" behind winner Ellina Zvereva's.

Olympic Edition

$43,664Winning bid for a stuffed Fatso the Fat-arsed Wombat, unofficial Games mascot, in Olympic Aid's online charity auction.

Now for a public service announcement: "If your kid goes out and blows somebody's head off because Allen Iverson has said he was going to blow somebody's head off on wax, then you're doing a bad...

Surprised to see lawyer Johnnie Cochran turn up at steroid-tainted shot-putter C.J. Hunter's side in Sydney? Don't be. History has shown that the man who made his name defending O.J. Simpson is...

Settled•A lawsuit brought by former middleweight champ Joey Giardello against makers of the The Hurricane. Giardello said the film wrongly portrayed him as an undeserving victor over Rubin...

Anna Watch

Baseball awards come and go, but cite a ballplayer for his bachelor lifestyle and it really goes to his head. Chicago magazine recently named White Sox first baseman Paul Konerko one of the city's...

Injury reports on Bills' radio broadcasts are sponsored by the law offices of Siegel, Kelleher & Kahn, "the personal injury attorneys."

BOBBY HIGGINSONTigers outfielder, on his candidacy for comeback player of the year: "I didn't really go anywhere. I just stunk."

Companies compete to get sports products cameo roles as props in movies

Lui Passaglia, the CFL's George Blanda, will hang up his tee after 25 seasons

Beer and Circusby Murray SperberHenry Holt & Company, $26

Before the Zoo There Was a Coop

Guidance for those lost in sports

Scott Masingill, PAYETTE, IDAHOGolfMasingill, 49, a sales representative, shot an eight-under 208 to win his eighth state amateur—more than any other player in Idaho history—at the Scotch Pines...

Sydney was the scene of brilliant fireworks in the air and at the venues, even as the shadow of drugs darkened these Games and the future of the Olympics

The best-laid plans of some of track's best performers blew up in Sydney, and the reasons weren't always easily explained

The scene looked so familiar: A small, birdlike man ran laps around the Olympic track. His chest was thrust forward beneath the green singlet of Ethiopia. His teeth were bared, his eyes wide and...

For complete NHL team rosters, schedules, stats and scores, go to cnnsi.com/hockey. Plus, send your questions to Kostya Kennedy's NHL mailbag.

By beating the unbeatable Karelin, U.S. farm boy Rulon Gardner reaped a stunning golden harvest

Against a tough field, U.S. ace Lisa Fernandez kept her cool and delivered when it counted most

Steven Lopez, from a family of taekwondo experts, earned the U.S.'s first gold medal in the sport

Britain's Steven Redgrave, the greatest oarsman ever, isn't the retiring type

Exhaust FumesOlympic decathletes take a seat or a knee or a full-blown flop after completing the 1,500 meters, the final event of their competition.

Teresa Edwards may not have next, but she does have a fourth Olympic title as testament to her unyielding will

Righty Ben Sheets, 22, breezed through Cuba's veteran lineup with the greatest of cheese and then was hailed in his future home, Milwaukee

The Netherlands' Leontien Zijlaard-van Moorsel fought her way back from anorexia to become the most decorated female cyclist at a single Games

The Rams' Kurt Warner is putting on the greatest air show in NFL history

As the season came to a rousing end, the fate of the young A's rested on the hot bat and cool influence of MVP hopeful Jason Giambi

With a playoff berth on the line, the Mariners needed a resolute Alex Rodriguez to snap out of a 3-for-29 swoon and lead them

A hundred-yard-plus rushing average is the least impressive credential on the résumé of Colorado freshman Marcus Houston

When experts convened to discuss the state of the NHL, the ideas ranged from a one-game Stanley Cup final to junking the red line to disarming the players

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