October 4, 2004 Table Of Contents
SCORECARD
The ill will between two post-Athens tours signals a rift between USA Gymnastics and some of its biggest stars
By E.M. Swift
A hockey goaltender's secret life as a bandit turned him into a folk hero in postcommunist Hungary
By Bill Syken
A Prince Only Machiavelli Could Love
Hal Chase was the best first baseman of his age, but maybe the worst person ever to play big league ball
Once seemingly unbeatable, Roy Jones lost a second consecutive bout, casting an ominous cloud over his future
By Franz Lidz
In the first week of the lockout, NHL players were taking games wherever they could find them
By David Sabino
CATCHING UP WITH
OCTOBER 26, 1981
LETTERS
AIR AND SPACE
By Steve Rushin
SI Players
Panthers Quarterback
As told to Peter King
Edited by Kostya Kennedy
Based on a survey of 354 players
Edited by Kostya Kennedy
NFL players know the importance of sleep--they just differ on how to get it. All the snooze that's fit to print
By Peter King
CHIEFS vs. RAVENS
...WITH DANNY WUERFFEL
By Adam Duerson
Hurricanes, injuries and Ricky's retirement--it's hardly the Perfect Season, but the sun's gonna shine again
Baseball
The Pride of St. Louis
The Cardinals have baseball's best record and most powerful lineup, but are they adequately armed for October?
Basball
The Cardinals aren't the only playoff team with pressing issues as baseball goes through a change of seasons
By Tom Verducci
HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL
A new movie based on his controversial 1990 best seller about high school football in West Texas took the author on a long-dreaded journey to revisit his main characters
By H.G. BISSINGER
PRO FOOTBALL
With a blue-collar defense built around Pro Bowl lineman Marcus Stroud, the surprising Jaguars stuffed the rival Titans and stayed atop the AFC South
By Josh Elliott
College Football
In a year when the conference's traditional powers look vulnerable, Kyle Orton and explosive Purdue are leading a realignment of the pecking order
The one-two rushing punch of Marion Barber and Laurence Maroney has Minnesota dreaming of Roses
By Kelley King
Inside
Inside College Football
Inspired by his deaf parents and brother, quarterback Stefan LeFors is lifting Louisville to new heights
By Mark Beech
FIFTEEN STRAIGHT WINS
By Mark Beech
By Phil Taylor
Inside Tennis
For his dominance of the men's field and for the virtuosity of his game, Roger Federer is SI's player of the year
Inside The NFL
No-nonsense coach Dennis Green says he will succeed in Arizona if the Cardinals buy into his system
By Peter King
EAGLES' JEVON KEARSE
DOLPHINS' RUN GAME
By Peter King
By Peter King
By Peter King
Inside Baseball
Despite a badly banged-up rotation, L.A. won a critical showdown with the Giants to maintain its NL West lead
WILD AL WEST
By Albert Chen
By Tom Verducci
LIFE OF REILLY
By Rick Reilly
Departments
He's taken flak for not being flashy or rattling the rafters with the ball. But Ichiro Suzuki is a baseball miniaturist fashioning a season like no man has had before
The Expos' final homestand in Canada filled les habitants with little but ennui
A new test for an old form of cheating catches an Olympic gold medalist
Edited by Mark Bechtel and Stephen Cannella
Edited by Mark Bechtel and Stephen Cannella
The U.S. men can salvage a Slam-less season by winning the Davis Cup
By Bill Scheft
The Grammy-winning musician plays the alcoholic father of a high school football player in Friday Night Lights
By Tim McGraw
What to watch and watch for
By Julia Morrill
By Mark Bechtel
Peter King's Five Things I Think I Think
By Peter King
Edited by Mark Bechtel
Edited by Mark Bechtel