"Lazzari's Sports Roundup" - - - - 10/26/13

During the recent ALCS, Fox play-by-play man Joe Buck pointed out that Red Sox pitcher/Yale graduate Craig Breslow majored in molecular biophysics and biochemistry while at the Ivy League school. Color man Tim McCarver followed that up by saying that he couldn't even PRONOUNCE what Breslow studied in college..........TRIVIA QUESTION: The 1991-'92 Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins had three players on the squad who tallied more than 40 goals apiece. Can you name this trio? Answer to follow..........Here we go: Former women's football star Linda Jefferson marries Hall of Fame QB Bart Starr--divorces--then marries former NFL running back Marcel Shipp. Fans of legendary rock bands would surely enjoy her full married name of Linda Jefferson Starr Shipp..........Did you know that the 1940 Philadelphia Eagles rushed for only 298 yards AS A TEAM? Fullback Dick Riffle led the squad with a modest total of 238. The next lowest rushing total for an entire team that season? The Pittsburgh Steelers with over 1,100 yards--almost FOUR TIMES the total of Philadelphia..........*ATTENTION CT media members who cover high school football: If anyone out there comes across a HS roster that is both accurate AND complete, let me know; it's worthy of being noted in some type of "Believe It Or Not" publication..........My take on some of these modern renditions of the National Anthem performed at sporting events? The singers should focus more on the SONG and less on THEMSELVES..........People ask me why I no longer listen to/call into WFAN Radio in NY after having done so for over 20 years. The answer is very simple: MIKE FRANCESA. His "schtick" finally just became a bit too difficult for me to stomach: his rudeness and belligerent nature toward callers, the "know it all" approach, the narcissistic mentality, etc. In fact, it got to a point where it was literally sickening; in his column last weekend, Phil Mushnick of the New York Post called Francesa "bully boy." Yes, folks, I know "shock journalism" sells these days and it's all about entertainment. But when someone stoops as low as Francesa does--belittling the same people who allow him to earn an exorbitant salary--it's time to look elsewhere for some "brusque-free" sports talk radio. Sorry, no room for ANY type of nastiness in the life of THIS particular columnist.........Christie Brinkley and I played a round of early morning golf the other day, had a pleasant lunch date at a downtown NYC eatery, played some tennis in the afternoon, then topped off the day with a romantic dinner on Long Island. Yeah, then yours truly WOKE UP from one heck of a dream..........Answer to trivia question: KEVIN STEVENS (54), MARIO LEMIEUX (44), and JOE MULLEN (42)..........A Warner Wolf moment: If you had Briar Cliff and 66 points last weekend, YOU LOST! College football final score from the Midwest: Morningside 67, Briar Cliff 0..........Finally, the basketball community lost two of its esteemed members recently--Wes Bialosuknia and Bill Sharman. Bialosuknia--who died at the age of 68--played at UCONN in the 1960's and averaged 23.6 ppg over his three seasons. His average of 28.0 during the '66-'67 season remains a UCONN record; no UCONN player had more 30-point games in a career than Wes (17). Sharman--a Hall of Famer--passed away at the age of 87. He was part of three Boston Celtics championship teams in the late '50's/early 60's and led the league in free-throw shooting SEVEN times. In fact, over his 11-year CAREER, Sharman shot a staggering 88% from the charity stripe. Condolences go out to the families of these two former players, and may they both rest in peace.