Cosby Helps To Pay Off Temple Coach

PHILADELPHIA - Temple University president Peter Liacouras has disclosed that comedian Bill Cosby, the school's most famous alumnus and trustee, helped pay the cost of buying out the contracts of football coach Jerry Berndt and his nine-member staff.

Liacouras said yesterday that Cosby also helped pay the cost of hiring Berndt and his predecessor, Bruce Arians, who was fired in 1989.

Berndt recently was fired with one season remaining on his five-year contract. His salary was about $180,000 a year. His assistants, most or all of whom are not going to be retained by the new coach, Ron Dickerson, have contracts through June that also will be paid off. The total needed for the buyout probably will total $500,000.

"It troubles us so much to pay someone for not working that we went outside and got external funding from Mr. Cosby for that," Liacouras said. "We asked him for a certain amount, which he gave us. Any additional amount will come from the friends of Temple football."

Though the NCAA forbids boosters' playing any role in the recruiting of athletes, it does not prohibit them from recruiting coaches.

Dickerson, 44, is the only black head coach in NCAA Division I-A football.

Notes

-- Tickets for the Dec. 29 Copper Bowl game between Washington State and Utah will go on sale in Pullman next Monday. The tickets, priced at $29, will be sold at the Cougar Depot in Pullman or may be ordered by phone (1-800-GO-COUGS).

-- Colorado State officials last night released a list of allegations aimed at supporting their firing of football coach Earle Bruce. University counsel Brian Snow said a university investigation revealed that Bruce violated NCAA rules related to days off for players and off-season coaching of players, and discouraged players from taking courses in their field of study that might conflict with football practice.

Snow also said he had evidence of allegations of players receiving injections of painkillers before games, a practice that might have caused serious injury. Snow said Bruce allegedly punched several players "with a closed fist in unprotected areas of their bodies" out of anger. They also charged Bruce with being verbally abusive toward certain university employees and of intimidating campus police and other disciplinary officers.

Bruce did not return calls to his home from The Associated Press.

-- Paul Hackett, winner of just four post-September games in the past three seasons, apparently will become the third consecutive Pitt coach to have his contract bought out, according to media reports. University sources wouldn't confirm or deny reports that Hackett would be fired before the Dec. 5 season finale at Hawaii.