ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, April 14, 1996 TAG: 9604150106
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
COLUMN: Jack Bogaczyk
SOURCE: JACK BOGACZYK
The Sunday buffet:
AUBURN EYES: Virginia Tech didn't like potential dates for a two-game, home-and-home football series with Auburn, so the Hokies politely refused. Virginia didn't.
The Cavaliers plan to play Auburn, home-and-home, in 1997 and '98. Gerry Capone, UVa's football administrator who handles scheduling, said the series is ``definite,'' although which game will be played where hasn't been decided. He also confirmed the Cavaliers' proposed series with Arizona has fallen through, and UVa will play Richmond in '97 and '98.
Capone said that while playing a I-AA team that won't count in bowl consideration ``isn't desirable,'' the Cavaliers agreed to do it because UR is a state team, and games with Auburn and the Hokies give UVa two non-conference dates attractive to TV.
Virginia is scheduled to play a 12th game in 1999, at Hawaii, and begins a two-game series with Boston College that season. UVa has Penn State penciled in for 2002 and 2003.
A FIRST: Today's Frederick-Salem game is the first afternoon baseball game in Memorial Stadium's short history. The Avalanche will play 3 p.m. Sunday home games through May, then move, as the club did in recent years at Municipal Field, to 7 p.m. Sunday games the final three months of the season. Daytime games haven't been big at the gate.
``We'd like to play more Sunday afternoon games,'' said Avalanche vice president Sam Lazzaro, ``but we're going to have to see how we draw, whether it's different in the new park.''
There is one huge difference for a day game at Memorial Stadium. Unlike at the old park, there is no grandstand roof to shield the sun.
KNIGHTS OUT: It's been a very cold season for the Charlotte Knights, who opened their home baseball season Friday evening with temperatures in the 80s. The Class AAA club was only 1-0 when it returned home after an eight-day trip that included three postponements out of four dates in Rochester and a four-game series snowed out at Pawtucket.
ON ICE: The Roanoke Express hasn't even begun its corporate marketing and ticket-sales campaign, and the ECHL club already has sold 1,425 season tickets for the 1996-97 season. That's 16 percent of the Roanoke Civic Center's 8,640 hockey capacity. The Express peddled a record 1,884 season seats this season.
Express general manager Pierre Paiement has said coach Frank Anzalone will be back next season. Anzalone has worked with two-year contract commitments in the franchise's three seasons, and negotiations are expected soon on adding 1997-98 to the deal.
STATE OF MIND: The pressure, be it overt or not, is on North Carolina State athletic director Todd Turner to hire a black men's basketball coach. Tulane's Perry Clark has been named as one of the leading candidates.
The ACC is the only prominent Division I conference without a black coach. The only black coach in league history, Bob Wade, left Maryland in turmoil in 1989.
TWO 'SKINS: Now that Washington has traded its top draft pick to St.Louis for defensive line help in Sean Gilbert, the No.1 question at Redskin Park again is whether Heath Shuler or Gus Frerotte will be the starting quarterback.
Head coach Norv Turner doesn't know. He said last week that Frerotte won't be traded and that through training camp, the two third-year signal callers will divide the work at No.1. Then, Turner will decide who's No.1. Right now, ``both guys are equal,'' Turner said. He's right, unless you're talking paychecks.
Meanwhile, the club still is trying to sign running back Terry Allen, whose 1,309 ground yards last season rank second in club history to John Riggins' 1,347 in 1993. ``We're going to get it done,'' Turner said.
BYE-BYE: NASCAR team and Charlotte Checkers owner Felix Sabates is part of a group of Charlotte businessmen that has offered Hornets owner George Shinn around $90 million for the NBA franchise. Sabates said the group would keep the team at the Charlotte Coliseum and fire coach Allan Bristow.
It may not take new ownership to get Bristow canned. The former Virginia Tech star surely will be fired by Shinn if the Hornets don't make the playoffs, and is said to be likely to have the final year of his contract bought out even if Charlotte advances to meet Chicago in the first round.
HOW GOOD: Someone at the Final Four asked Kentucky coach Rick Pitino if the NCAA champions had the most talent he has ever coached. ``No,'' Pitino answered. ``I think the Knicks were a little better.''
LENGTH: Medium: 82 linesby CNB