In a wild and sometimes woefully inept affray, Oklahoma lost a 20-point lead and its flashy backs lost the ball four times, but it was Ohio State that lost the game on a last-gasp field goal

The playoffs have proved a marvelously efficient way to separate the best teams from the good ones. This year's bests: Philly and K.C.

What was supposed to be another Oakland-Pittsburgh bloodbath turned out to be a mild-mannered game that was thoroughly dominated by the triumphant Raiders, who made short work of the punchless and...

The first weekend of October in Watkins Glen, N.Y. is a vivid visual delight. Rolling hills are draped with a tight-woven mantle of turning leaves, freshly harvested fields form furrowed...

Ali calls him an acorn, but the slick-headed and heavy-hitting Earnie Shavers insists he is more of a mighty oak. Either way, each will try to chop the other down in their heavyweight title fight...

The wind is shifting north. It is sluicing down the 40-mile trough formed by New York's Seneca Lake and gnawing at the treetops on the hill where the race circuit sits. The leaves are aflame and...

When Rocky Balboa got his chance, he lost the fight. But when 31-year-old sandlot retread Vince Papale got his chance with the Philadelphia 'Yiggles,' he won the struggle

In prime-time television, eight years might as well be a millennium. Only five nighttime programs currently on the air have lasted that long, Wonderful World of Disney, Hawaii Five-O, All in the...

Weighing 270—or 280—Texas A&M's George Woodard looks more like a lineman than a back, but he has run the 100 in 9.9 and is helping the Aggies rush to the top

EAST

OFFENSE: California Fullback Paul Jones, a 225-pound sophomore, ran for 200 yards and a touchdown on 35 carries as Cal beat Missouri 28-21. In an 80-yard march to the winning TD. Jones rushed...

In an era when most shortstops are good field, no bat, Cardinal Garry Templeton, the youngest regular in the majors, is a rarity who can both pick it and stick it

AL EAST

BERT BLYLEVEN: Despite an eighth-inning aggravation of a groin pull that had shelved him for 15 days, the Ranger righty, who said he threw "about 60% curveballs," hurled a 6-0 no-hitter against...

William Wirtz' colt made short work of the Jug, taking two straight heats in record time, but for a while it didn't look as though he'd ever get to the starting gate

In a single day of bird shooting during his last season, the furious old man left with the author a lifetime legacy of respect for and knowledge of an often maligned sport

By winning the Ruffian in the slop at Belmont, Cum Laude Laurie emerged as one of the top fillies in the country

After years away from the game, the author tries out for his hometown soccer club and, in the course of a difficult morning, rediscovers the mysteries of foot and ball

9—drawing by SQW14, 15—Walter Iooss Jr., Rich Clarkson16—Tony Tomsic17—Rich Clarkson18—John Iacono19—Tony Triolo20—Tony Triolo (left), Manny Millan21—Tony Triolo (left), Manny Millan22—Walter...

JUDY STRONGHATFIELD, MASS.Judy, 17, a senior on the Smith Academy field hockey team, scored the 100th and 101st goals of her high school career. She has averaged 2.2 goals per game, twice scored...

BOATING—MARVIN BECKMANN of Houston won the Clifford D. Mallory Cup, emblematic of the U.S. men's sailing championship, off Atlantic Highlands, N.J.

FRESHMEN

•Fred Casoti, Colorado University's assistant athletic director, asked if the football team joins in pregame prayer: "No, we've got so many things to pray for we'd get penalized 15 yards for...

PRO FOOTBALL PREVIEWSir:From all indications, in your professional football scouting reports (Sept. 19) a team's schedule appears to be almost as important a factor as a team's talent in...