Columnist Steve Guiremand: Warrick has no one but himself to blame

Steve Guiremand

Friday, Oct. 8, 1999 | 9:29 a.m.

Steve Guiremand's college football column appears Friday. Reach him at 259-2324 or steve@vegas.com

What was Peter Warrick thinking?

The silky smooth Florida State wide receiver went from Heisman Trophy favorite to a felony suspect on Thursday and may end up costing his team a national championship in the process.

All to get a few shirts and a hat at a Tallahassee department store.

What was Peter Warrick thinking?

He and teammate Laveranues Coles, a sweetheart of a guy who was arrested last year for belting his stepmother, thought they could pull a fast one by paying just $21.40 for $412.38 in clothes.

So they get nabbed and what does Warrick have to say?

I'm sorry? I blew it? I got greedy?

Nope, he says, "It's not like I killed the President."

Lots of remorse, huh? And Warrick lets it slip out that it wasn't the first time he pulled the same stunt.

What was Peter Warrick thinking?

If he had bypassed his senior season as most people thought he would last spring, he would have been no worse than a top 10 pick in the NFL draft. He would have had enough money to probably buy a Dillards. He would have been set for life financially.

But Warrick decided he would put off the big paychecks of pro sports so he could make a run at a Heisman Trophy and a national title. With 36 catches for 508 yards and four touchdowns already for the No. 1 ranked Seminoles, he looked like he was well on his way to realizing both dreams.

Then came his ill-fated shopping/stealing spree last week.

What was Peter Warrick thinking?

The answer, of course, is he wasn't. And that's a shame. Because no matter what he does the rest of what figures to be a brilliant football career, he'll always have the shadow of this crime following him around.

But there's only one person to blame for that.

Peter Warrick.

Steele learns lesson

While on the subject of brain freeze, Baylor coach Kevin Steele, guilty of perhaps the biggest boner in college football history, apparently learned from his miscue at the end of UNLV's stunning 27-24 victory over the Bears last month in Waco.

Steele had quarterback Jermaine Alfred kneel on each of the last two plays of Baylor's 23-10 win over North Texas last week. For that, the crowd of over 28,000 at Floyd Casey Stadium actually gave Steele a standing ovation.

It was Steele's decision to try and pile up some more points in the final seconds of the UNLV game which resulted in Bears' tailback Darrell Bush fumbling near the goal line to Rebel corner Kevin Thomas who ran the ball back 100 yards as time ran out for the most improbable UNLV win in history.

Once around the MWC

* AIR FORCE: It's war! The Commander in Chief's Trophy, given annually to the best service academy team, was reportedly stolen from the trophy case in Colorado Springs. Navy, which hosts the Falcons Saturday at Jack Kent Cooke Stadium, is suspected to be behind the theft.

* BYU: Cal coach Tom Holmoe, a three-time all-WAC defensive back for LaVell Edwards before going on to star for the San Francisco 49ers, leads his Bears into Cougar Stadium on Saturday. Holmoe has long been rumored to be the front-runner to replace Edwards if/when he retires.

* COLORADO STATE: The Rams, who led the nation in turnover margin two years ago, are back up to 16th nationally again this year with a plus-1.

* UNLV: Here's another streak for John Robinson and company to snap. Rebels (2-3) have suffered 18 consecutive conference road defeats dating to Oct. 1, 1994 win at New Mexico State.

* NEW MEXICO: JC transfer Sean Stein, who followed BYU quarterback Kevin Feterik and preceded UNLV freshman Ryan Hansen at quarterback at Los Alamitos (Calif.) High School, will make his first Division I start Saturday at San Diego State.

* SAN DIEGO STATE: Fifth-year senior center Mike Malano will start his 41st straight game Saturday against New Mexico.

* UTAH: Utes' coach Ron McBride has been getting a lot of heat by Salt Lake media and sports talk shows for his team's 26-20 loss at Boise State. Some fans are calling for his firing. "They have that right," McBride said. "I accept full responsibility for the loss."

* WYOMING: Dana Dimel's 19-9 (.679) start is third best in school history for 28 games. Only Paul Roach (21-7, .750) and Bob Devaney (18-7-3, .696) did better.

Once around the nation

* ACC: Clemson (2-2, 2-0 ACC), which travels to North Carolina State (3-2, 0-2) in the battle for the Textile Bowl Trophy, has the nation's toughest schedule according to analyst Jeff Sagarin.

* BIG EAST: Miami (2-2) will get back four of five players who were suspended for the team's first four games due to academics. Linebackers Sheven Marshall and Chris Campbell and cornerbacks Delvin Brown and Darrel Arline will suit up for Saturday's game at No. 1 Florida State with Campbell, a 6-2, 225-pound sophomore, expected to start.

* BIG TEN: If Michigan State can upset visiting No. 3 Michigan on Saturday, it will mark the first time the Spartans have begun a season 6-0 since 1965 and 1966. Both of those teams went undefeated in the regular season and won national championships.

* BIG 12: Texas has dominated its Red River rivalry with Oklahoma in the 90's, holding a 6-2-1 edge going into Saturday's game at the Cotton Bowl.

* BIG WEST: Nevada-Reno's Trevor Insley, the nation's leading receiver in receptions and yardage, has 67 of the Wolf Pack's 116 receptions (57 percent) this season.

* CONFERENCE USA: Tulane (2-2), which travels to Ole Miss on Saturday, has not defeated an SEC team since 1989 when the Green Wave knocked off Vanderbilt. Tulane could be without as many as five defensive linemen for the game.

* INDEPENDENTS: Arizona State (2-2) will make its first-ever visit to Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday. Irish (2-3) are 50-8-1 against teams making their first appearance in South Bend.

* MAC: Representatives of the Motor City Bowl, Mobile Alabama Bowl and Micron PC Bowl watched Marshall's 32-14 thrashing of Miami of Ohio last week. Herd's No. 15 ranking is highest for a MAC team since Miami was No. 15 in 1955.

* PAC-10: Arizona's Desert Swarm defense is just a memory these days. Wildcats (3-2, 1-1), who host USC (3-1, 1-1) in what could be called a Rose Bowl elimination game, rank dead last in Pac-10 in run defense (196.2 yards per game) and ninth in scoring defense (33 ppg).

* SEC: South Carolina (0-5), which carries a 15-game losing streak into Saturday's game with Kentucky, will start an all-true freshman backfield of quarterback Mikal Goodman, fullback Andrew Pinnock and tailback Derek Watson.

* WAC: After allowing 89 points in first two games of the season, Hawaii (4-1), which hosts Rice on Saturday night, hasn't given up a touchdown in two games and 10 consecutive quarters.