Earthworms Among Mascot Options

The Swarthmore College Swarming Earthworms?

Yes, Swarming Earthworm ranks right down there with five other finalists in the Pennsylvania school's contest to name a three-dimensional mascot.

Dissatisfied with the school's present nickname - the color Garnet - a student and faculty committee has whittled more than 100 suggestions to: Garnet Foxes, Griffins, Wild Kangaroos, Mighty Oaks, Little Quakers and, yes, The Swarming Earthworms.

"What could be more intimidating than a swarm of worms?" asks the November issue of the college's alumni magazine, adding that "earthworms, essential elements in the health of the campus landscape, is also an anagram for, well, you figure it out."

Rearrange the letters in "earthworms" and you get "Swarthmore."

Mike Jensen of the Philadelphia Inquirer took a look into his crystal ball and saw this athletic matchup somewhere down the garden path: Swarthmore Swarming Earthworms vs. UC-Santa Cruz Banana Slugs.

Heavy-metal workout

How do you get in shape for football season? Pushups are a common exercise. Purdue fullback Mike Alstott is an extremist. He pushed a Jeep Wrangler.

"It was a crazy idea," said Alstott, who pushed the Jeep along with teammate Jayme Washel. "We would put it in neutral in the lot behind the football stadium. Then we would take turns pushing it 100 yards and steering, and do eight to 10 reps."

The unconventional conditioning drill paid dividends for Alstott, a 6-foot-2, 240-pounder. His school-record 1,436 rushing yards this season gave him the Purdue career record, breaking Otis Armstrong's mark of 3,315.

They said it

-- Don Cherry, outspoken Canadian television commentator, while explaining that fighting in the NHL is simply part of the game: "You have to realize what made this sport popular in the first place. It's a hard-hitting, rough, tough game. It's not a ballet on ice."

-- Billy Packer, CBS college-basketball analyst, on the men's championship chase: "This year, most people agree that there are 300 teams chasing Kentucky."

-- Bernie Lincicome, Chicago Tribune: "Wake Forest, Georgetown, Kansas and Iowa will be the Final Four."

-- Sports economist Paul Muchm on Northwestern's newfound football success: "Winning is the best form of entertainment available. That's how you turn fans into customers, and that's where Northwestern is now. They're back on the map."

-- Ray Rhodes, coach, Philadelphia Eagles, after being told "Monday Night Football" announcers praised him during the Eagles' loss to the Dallas Cowboys: "I don't want any pats on the back. I want you guys to be dogging me."

-- Steve Young, San Francisco 49er quarterback, after appearing in an episode of "Beverly Hills 90210": "I wouldn't focus on it too much. I unfortunately play myself."

-- Sam Mitchell, Minnesota Timberwolves, after being told that 19-year-old teammate Kevin Garnett had said that he is too smart to get into any trouble: "The kid is not old enough to get in any place where he can get into trouble."

-- Warren Moon, Minnesota Viking quarterback, on being 39: "My age is convenient. It motivates me and mesmerizes people. If I have a bad game, someone will say, `Only 340 days until he's 40.' "

They wrote it

-- Mercury Morris, former Miami Dolphin running back, reading aloud from a letter he wrote last week to Dolphin Coach Don Shula: "Revisit what made you a great coach, and what's missing - discipline. . . . Don, take back your team. They'll thank you later."

-- Bernie Lincicome, Chicago Tribune: "Those underachieving, self-centered, finger-pointing, overpaid Dolphins wouldn't get away with that nonsense if Don Shula were still the coach."

-- Bill Conlin, Philadelphia Daily News, on the 76ers trading away 7-foot-6 Shawn Bradley to the New Jersey Nets: "I called for the Sixers to draft him . . . (and) to trash the Shawnster after just two-plus seasons is front-running at its worst . . . (but) this alabaster wimp had to go."

Compiled by Chuck Ashmun, Seattle Times