Letters

Instead of not booing or cheering on Opening Day—whenever that might be—how about not going?
JEREMY EPSTEIN, BALTIMORE

Baseball Strike
Nice Point After by Steve Wulf on striking back at the blockhead owners and players who have ruined our national pastime (Sept. 26), but we can go even further. Let's boycott not only the licensed major league merchandise but also the products—the shoes, cars, beer, etc.—of companies that either advertise during games or use superstars to shill for them. That just might put the fear of God back into these unscrupulous greed merchants.
DONALD S. HUBBARD, Fanwood, N.J.

Although I can see the stupidity and arrogance of the owners, I cannot sympathize with the players' so-called struggle. The players are not coal miners or steelworkers fighting for their existence; rather, they are coddled millionaires hiding like cowards behind the shield of organized labor. Have them tell their sob story to an out-of-work stadium vendor who lost an income he or she needed just to get by.
JASON MCDONALD, Pittsburgh

The baseball owners and players should be forced to watch Ken Burns's documentary Baseball. Maybe they would learn something about the game.
JON BERGER, Encino, Calif.

Steve McNair
If there was any doubt that Alcorn State's Steve McNair is the best quarterback in the country, it should disappear after S.L. Price's story (Air McNair, Sept. 26). However, despite all the big passing numbers McNair will produce, the voters will find a reason to give the Heisman Trophy to someone else. The question surrounding the Heisman race is not, Will McNair win? but Who will be this year's George Rogers or Gino Torretta?
CHRIS BRIDGES, Madison, Ga.

You have to be kidding. Steve McNair on the cover of your magazine? My grandmother could throw for 647 yards and eight touchdowns against Tennessee-Chattanooga. Give the Heisman to someone who puts up real numbers against real teams. If Air McNair throws for 600 yards against Nebraska, Michigan or Florida, then I'll reconsider. Make him a Division I-AA All-America but, please, don't give him the Heisman.
BRAD LANGE, Jacksonville

Hand McNair the Heisman? No way. The person most worthy of the award is Eric Zeier of Georgia. Without him, Georgia could very easily have been 0 for 4 years.
STEPHANIE AYERS, Greenville, S.C.

After reading your endorsement of Steve McNair for the Heisman Trophy, I wondered about the last player from small school you endorsed. So what the heck ever happened to Joe Dudek (What the Heck, Why Not Dudek?, Dec. 2, 1985)?
LYNDON REMIAS, Richmond

•Dudek, a running back from Division III Plymouth (N.H.) State, went undrafted and signed with the Denver Broncos as a free agent. After having been cut in his second preseason, Dudek returned to the Broncos for two games as a replacement player during the 1987 NFL players strike. He was waived a month alter the strike ended. Dudek is now a sales supervisor for a beer distributor in Concord, N.H.—ED.

Buck O'Neil
As a longtime baseball fan, I was saddened by the early end of the season. Then I read Steve Wulf's wonderful story on Buck O'Neil (The Guiding Light, Sept. 19) and remembered that baseball more often heals than it hurts. I was at Kansas City's Kauffman Stadium on Aug. 3 to see the Royals' tribute to the Kansas City Monarchs. That's one memory of the '94 season I will always treasure.
TED HAMANN, Philadelphia

Memories of Goose
Having competed against Rich Gossage at Bonny Park in Colorado Springs for many summers as a kid, I have closely followed his career (Making Hay, Sept. 12). Knowing that he may not come back next season makes me realize how special those years were, not only for myself but for anyone who was fortunate enough to play with or against him.
BRIAN MCLAUGHLIN, Sunrise, Flu.

As a lifelong Yankee fan, I grew up idolizing Goose Gossage. His fierce competitive spirit and love for the game personify what a ballplayer's attitude should be. With few exceptions, that breed of player appears to be extinct.
RAYMOND KIM, Cohoes, N.Y.

PHOTO

MANNY MILLAN

Dudek finished ninth in the '85 Heisman vote.

Letters to SPORTS ILLUSTRATED should include the name, address and home telephone number of the writer and should be addressed lo The Editor, SPORTS ILLUSTRATED, Time & Life Building, Rockefeller Center, New York, N.Y. 10020-1393.