SI VIEW THE WEEK IN TV SPORTS

Saturday 11/8

COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Florida State at North Carolina

It's lucky for the Tar Heels that they have two "starting"
quarterbacks, Oscar Davenport and Chris Keldorf. The Seminoles
(7-0 and third in the polls as of last Friday) average 6.2 sacks
per game and have knocked five quarterbacks out of games this
fall. But the Tar Heels don't wear crybaby blue. Ranked No. 2
nationally in defense--FSU is No. 1--and led by linebacker and
Butkus Award fave Brian Simmons (41), Carolina (8-0 and fifth)
is off to its best start since 1914.
ESPN, 7:30 pm

BOXING
Evander Holyfield vs. Michael Moorer

How do we account for the anonymity--he is not the guy from
Roger & Me--of Moorer, the IBF heavyweight champion? Despite
having beaten Holyfield by decision when the two last fought, in
1994, Moorer, 29, is undone by his surly, burly nature. "I'll
tell someone to kiss my ass in a minute," says the 6'2",
224-pound Moorer (39-1), who has been known to wear a T-shirt
that reads U HAVE THE RIGHT TO REMAIN VIOLENT. "I think
Holyfield is fake." Moorer, whose only loss was a one-punch
knockout by George Foreman in '94 (in the bout at right), "is
not a bad individual," said his late trainer, Alex Sherer, "he's
just a frustrated NFL linebacker."
PPV, 9 pm

Sunday 11/9

DOCUDRAMA
Into Thin Air: Death on Everest

The mountain wins again. If you've read Jon Krakauer's harrowing
account in his article for Outside and his bestseller Into Thin
Air of last year's Everest ascent in which eight climbers
perished, you will be satisfied visually if not viscerally by
this dramatization. The film--shot at altitudes of 10,000 feet
and more in the Austrian Alps--reproduces Everest's hypobaric,
hypothermic aura, its fatal beauty. But it fails to capture the
sense of doom that Krakauer conveyed in print, as the
expedition, led by Scott Fischer (Peter Horton) and Rob Hall
(Nathaniel Parker), is felled by a combination of its own hubris
and a mammoth storm. After watching the movie, you may want to
scale the world's tallest peak. That was never Krakauer's
intention.
ABC, 9 PM

Tuesday 11/11

HOCKEY
Avalanche at Red Wings
The NHL's best one-two punch belongs to Pacific Division leader
Colorado, but is it the scoring combo of forwards Peter Forsberg
and Joe Sakic (a league-high 37 points in October) or the fists
of 6'6", 246-pound defenseman-goon Francois Leroux (two goals in
nine seasons)? "Fighting on our team is important because our
superstars get abused if no one backs them up," says Leroux. How
perfect: The game is in Joe Louis Arena.
ESPN, 7:30 PM

PRO BASKETBALL
Spurs at Timberwolves

San Antonio center David Robinson cemented his status as an
MVP-caliber player when he missed 76 games with injuries last
season and the Spurned suffered the NBA's most dramatic one-year
collapse (from 59 wins to 20). Robinson returns, joined by power
forward Tim Duncan, who, like the Admiral in 1987, was the top
pick in the draft and is Ned Flanders nice. Hoping to spoil the
twin towers' twin cities debut is Minnesota forward Kevin
Garnett. Like Duncan, Garnett is 21 and a threat to cop his own
MVP trophy someday.
TNT, 8 PM

COLOR PHOTO: AL TIELEMANS [University of North Carolina football players in game]

COLOR PHOTO: JOHN IACONO [George Foreman and Michael Moorer boxing]

COLOR PHOTO: CRAIG SJODIN/ABC [Two mountaineers climbing mountain]

THE ! ZAPPER

Hollywood Park isn't in Hollywood--it's in less fashionable
Inglewood. We mention that because the track is the site of the
Breeders' Cup (Saturday, NBC, 1:30 p.m.), whose marquee race,
the $4.4 million Classic, this year is also misnamed. Kentucky
Derby and Preakness victor Silver Charm is out with a blood
disorder; his archrival, Free House, isn't entered; and another
potential favorite, 5-year-old Gentlemen, has a fever. Since
there's no coaxing Cigar out of retirement, you may want to heed
the name of the tarnished race's early favorite and Skip Away
from the tube.

All times Eastern. Schedules are subject to change.