Notes

There would appear to be but one logical solution for this collection of cold-weather schools—the Big Chill?—and that is to keep the league to 10 members. Any guesses as to who might be asked to leave?

BAD BET
New Florida coach Steve Spurrier, asked what he said when introduced to Gator quarterback Kyle Morris, who was suspended last year for gambling, replied, "I told him, 'How in the world could you bet on Clemson against Duke?' " Spurrier, of course, coached the Blue Devils, 16-point underdogs, to a 21-17 upset of Clemson.

NO VACANCIES

The heat that surrounds the Notre Dame- Miami rivalry was turned up another notch last month when Notre Dame began negotiating with Florida State for games in 1993 and '94. Notre Dame, you'll recall, declined to renew its series with Miami after this season's Oct. 20 game in South Bend, even though the Irish-Hurricane rivalry has developed into the game's best and has generated enormous national interest.

'it [Notre Dame's deciding to schedule Florida State] is extremely unfortunate because Notre Dame has always said that if they had an opening, they would contact us," said Miami athletic director Sam Jankovich.

Notre Dame's schedules are indeed full through 2004, but the potential openings developed when Penn State, looking forward to its move to the Big Ten, approached the Irish about getting out of its 1993 and '94 games in order to schedule a Big Ten team. Asked why Notre Dame didn't contact Miami first, assistant athletic director Roger Valdiserri said, "Do they [the Hurricanes] have openings in those years?"

The answer, at the moment, is no. although Miami could conceivably buy out contracts with lesser opponents—of which it has more than its share—to get Notre Dame back on the schedule. As for Florida State, the Seminoles have only 10 games firmed up for '93 and hope to create an opening in '94 by dumping an opponent already on the schedule.

Valdiserri does not think Miami has any reason to complain. "A football series is not like a marriage contract," he said. "In 1995 and '96, for example, we're interrupting our series with Michigan to play Ohio State. Because of the national scope of our alumni, we try to play all over the place."

PLAIN TALK
The preseason Truth Hurts Award goes to LSU coach Mike Archer, who said this when asked about the pressure to win: "They can talk about education, but fans aren't paying $22 to see the guys throw their books out on the field. You can talk about your graduation rates, but they don't want to hear about it. That's a shame. But that's a fact of life."

DOUBLE PLAYER