Notes on a Scorecard - Nov. 5, 1989

This is the year when USC may clinch a Rose Bowl berth even before the Lakers make the NBA playoffs . . .

Catch of the Day: Trojan quarterback Todd Marinovich’s grab of a pass from tailback Ricky Ervins for a 33-yard gain in the first quarter against Oregon State . . .

As a passer, not a receiver, Marinovich reminds one of Kenny Stabler. Cool, tough, accurate, confident, best at medium range, and a southpaw . . .

Now that UCLA is a basketball school again, the Pacific 10 could be represented by as few as three football teams in the postseason . . .

Biggest benefactors of the postgame Beach Boys concert Saturday were the Coliseum concessionaires. Not everyone left at halftime . . .

Thumbs up to USC Coach Larry Smith for uncharacteristically starting to clear his bench early in the third quarter after the Trojans built a 41-0 lead. Last week, Arizona Coach Dick Tomey left star safety Jeff Hammerschmidt in against Pacific while the Wildcats were leading, 38-14. Hammerschmidt suffered a serious knee injury and his services were missed against California Saturday . . .

No horseback rider is a better judge of pace than supersub Chris McCarron, who rode Sunday Silence to victory in the Breeders’ Cup Classic. Sunday Silence’s third win over Easy Goer in four races certainly should solidify his No. 2 spot in horse of the year balloting with Eastern voters . . .

The problem with the Breeders’ Cup telecast--and among the reasons for poor ratings--is that the races took a total of 12 minutes and 30 seconds and the rest of the program 4 hours 17 minutes 30 seconds . . .

NBC was guilty of the kind of technical foul up that would shame even a small-town operation. More than once, you could hear the director feeding instructions into the announcers’ head sets . . .

What a remarkable year for Clover Stables, masterminded by syndicated handicapper Jeff Siegel. First, Martial Law wins the richest handicap race in the country, the Santa Anita Handicap, at 50-1 odds. Then Prized upsets Sunday Silence at Hollywood Park. And now Prized wins the Breeders’ Cup Turf in his first race on the lawn . . .

CBS color commentator Pat Haden on trying to tackle Colorado quarterback Darian Hagan: “It’s like eating Jell-O with chopsticks.” . . .

If option quarterbacks are your bag, stay tuned for Hagan vs. Notre Dame’s Tony Rice in the Orange Bowl with the national championship on the line . . .

News items: Cleveland Indians hire John McNamara and Cincinnati Reds hire Lou Piniella. Reaction: What imagination! . . .

Unless the offense is introduced before the game, patient Raider fans most likely will wait until Jay Schroeder throws his first incomplete pass against the Bengals before booing him today at the Coliseum . . .

Jerry Glanville may need someone to leave him tickets at will call next season. The buzz in Texas is that the University of Houston’s Jack Pardee will replace him as Oiler coach . . .

Coach Archie (the Gunslinger) Cooley, who sent Jerry Rice to the 49ers from Mississippi Valley State, has another potential NFL star at Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Ivory Lee Brown is a 6-2, 230-pound sophomore who runs the 40 in 4.4 and, at last report, led the NAIA in rushing . . .

Look-alikes: Curtis Strange and Bobby Knight . . .

Superior physical fitness was largely responsible for the Clippers’ second-half comeback against Houston on opening night at the Sports Arena. Coach Don Casey credits strength coaches Todd Person and John Hinds. Unlike many teams that quit the weights once the season starts, the Clippers are still lifting once every other day . . .

For the first time since the 1963-64 season, the Lakers are without at least one former UCLA Bruin on their roster . . .

Golf’s all-time leading money earner, Tom Kite, has never won a major tournament . . .

Former heavyweight contender Jerry Quarry can still punch. Demonstrating how a right hand should be thrown the other day at the Ten Goose Gym, Jerry accidentally broke the rib of Times reporter Rich Tosches . . .

Eugene Klein, who will put his stable of 122 thoroughbreds up for sale Monday at Keeneland, says, “I started out selling used cars and I’m ending up selling used horses.”