Auburn Got Into Florida Citrus Bowl on a Pass : Pat Sullivan Gave the Tigers an Alternative to Their Powerful Ground Game

ORLANDO, Fla. â€”  As a part-time starting quarterback last year, Auburn’s Jeff Burger wasn’t involved much in the offense.

“I basically just handed the ball off to Bo,� Burger said Sunday. “Other teams knew what we were going to do. If we had thrown more, I think Bo would have been even more effective.�

Bo is, of course, Bo Jackson, the 1985 Heisman Trophy winner who spurned pro football to sign a baseball contract with the Kansas City Royals.

Another Auburn Heisman Trophy winner, Pat Sullivan, who won the award in 1971, returned to the school the past season as the quarterback coach.

It isn’t coincidental that his presence has resulted in a more diversified offense, one that is less predictable.

Now Auburn can’t be confused with Stanford or BYU with their pro-styled passing offenses, but the Tigers don’t solely rely on the accomplishments of All-American tailback Brent Fullwood.

Burger has completed 126 of 222 passes for 1,671 yards and 9 touchdowns--the most passing yardage since Sullivan was the Auburn quarterback 15 years ago.

“We’re not as predictable and that’s when we are at our best,� said Burger, a junior from Cedartown, Ga. “We’ve had a good pass-run mixture. Looking at us last year you’d see a very physical offense, just pounding and pounding.�

Burger said that Sullivan has not only helped him technically but has also fortified his confidence.

“I hadn’t lost confidence in myself, but I felt the coaches in previous years had lost confidence in me,� Burger said. “I was the starting quarterback last year at the beginning of the season, and then I got pulled. Even when I was the starting quarterback, I never felt like I was.�

Auburn will play USC in the Florida Citrus Bowl New Year’s Day, and Burger said it would be a mistake if the Trojans are preoccupied in trying to stop Fullwood.

“We’re going to have the same game plan against them as we did against Alabama (a season-ending 21-17 victory),� Burger said. “We want to make USC realize that we can throw the football.�

Jackson had 111 more carries in his Heisman year than Fullwood the past season. But Fullwood, a stocky, spinning-type runner, is making the most of his opportunities. His 8.3-yard average per carry is the best in the nation.

Burger said that his relationship with Sullivan is a comfortable one.

“He approaches me on a player-to-player basis,� Burger said. “It’s like talking to a roommate.�

Iowa Coach Hayden Fry denied reports that said he has expressed an interest in the head football coaching job at USC.

The Los Angeles Herald Examiner reported that it was told by a source “well connected� to USC’s four-member search committee that USC Athletic Director Mike McGee had contacted Fry about the job, and that Fry was interested.

Approached by several reporters after Iowa’s final practice in preparation for Tuesday night’s Holiday Bowl game with San Diego State, Fry said he had talked to a Herald Examiner reporter but insisted: “I don’t even know about that story.�

Asked if that meant he would be back at Iowa next year, Fry said, “I didn’t say that.�

When asked why he would not say that, Fry said: “Why should I?�

Since Miami is playing Penn State for the mythical national championship Friday in the Fiesta Bowl, there has seemingly been more support from coaches for a legitimate major college playoff system.

One plan that is in favor is to select four bowl winners to determine a national champion.

Auburn Coach Pat Dye says that he would favor such a format.

“If we have a playoff system, I think that’s the most reasonable one to have right now,� he said. “I think you’ll see national exposure and attention on the Penn State-Miami game. I think it will be a measuring stick as to how much a national championship game will mean to college football.

“When you pick a mythical national champion (wire service polls), there is room for argument. We were in that situation in 1983 when we played the toughest schedule in the nation. We finished 11-1, and Miami didn’t play near as tough a schedule, but they beat the No. 1-ranked team in the country (Nebraska) in the Orange Bowl and, as a result, won the national championship.

“I’m not saying that was wrong, but we didn’t have a chance to compete for it. It was decided in the newspapers and on television.�

As for the criteria of selecting the four top teams, Dye believes that coaches should be involved, or even computer findings based on difficulty of schedules.

“There would still be an argument as to who should be the top four teams, but it would be less than if you have no playoff at all,� Dye said.

USC Coach Ted Tollner said he has always been in favor of a playoff system.

“A small group favored it at one time, but now I think it’s beginning to snowball. The impact coaches, so to speak, are now giving positive thoughts to it. I think the country wants it and I think the country deserves it.

“I don’t think it would be that detrimental to a player’s academic success. We should have enough intelligence to work out a way so that they’re not out of school all the time.

“If it’s a four-team playoff, fine, although I’m not not sure that’s the answer. But some kind of a system would be tremendous.�

Citrus Bowl Notes

Since USC is coming off losses to UCLA and Notre Dame, Coach Ted Tollner wants his team to get back to basics. So the Trojans have had two physically demanding practices in pads the past two days, and they have taken their toll. Fullback Todd Steele, who has had recurring knee injuries, is hurt again and is doubtful for Thursday’s game. Linebacker Marcus Cotton is still bothered by an ankle injury, but he’ll play even though his effectiveness will be limited, according to Tollner. Moreover, linebackers Rex Moore and Bill Stokes have the flu and haven’t been able to practice.