Columnist Dean Juipe: GM’s sudden departure has its merits

Dean Juipe

Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2004 | 9:53 a.m.

Dean Juipe's column appears Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. His boxing notebook appears Thursday. Reach him at juipe@lasvegassun.com or (702) 259-4084.

Notes today, leading off with a simple question: Would you quit a job as general manager of a professional football team to buy into and work for a company that distributes pharmaceuticals?

Well, when Mary Ellen Garling did just that last week, more than one observer arched an eyebrow in speculation. Was the fact she was abandoning the Las Vegas Gladiators of the Arena Football League a telltale sign that the team and league she professed to love so dearly weren't living up to her expectations?

"Absolutely not," responded one of her colleagues, marketing whiz -- and former Caesars Palace sports boss -- Richard Rose, when asked about the move Tuesday. "I think it was more a matter of timing and I understand the dilemma she was in. When you have a chance to acquire equity in anything significant, it's hard to turn it down."

OK, we'll go along with that, even if we remain a little skeptical.

Rose, by the way, continues to serve as an adviser to the Gladiators and the AFL, and is working on two projects for the league. "I'm available as needed," he said, cheerful and professional as always, from his Las Vegas office. ... Speaking of "minor" leagues, I see where Reno is going to have a team in the American Basketball Association next season -- if there is one. Hey, they can have the Las Vegas team and no one here would even notice that the Rattlers are gone. For instance, not only do the Rattlers not have a single home game in February, former NBA player Joe Bryant recently quit as the team's head coach without it even receiving a mention in Las Vegas. The Rattlers are the worst run team in this city's long history of failed franchises.

Name to add to UNLV's list of potential successors to Charlie Spoonhour: Mike Jarvis, formerly of St. John's, who has some interesting qualifications. ... Spoonhour, incidentally, is headed for Jupiter, Fla., and spring training with the St. Louis Cardinals. I'm predicting a first for the turtleneck-crazed ex-coach: He's going to be forced to wear a shirt. ... No one ever seems to ask the fans how they like these things, but I'm getting a little tired of 9 p.m. basketball games. The Mountain West's TV deal with ESPN gives the league some nice Monday night/Tuesday morning exposure, but that late starting time takes a toll. ... Unlike some in the media, I think the NCAA task force that is looking into recruiting practices (that include drinking, parties and sex at schools such as Colorado) will actually do some good. Decreasing the number of official visits a recruit can make would be a step in the right direction.

"Hot" boxing tip: Mike Tyson vs. journeyman Kevin McBride for that bullring fight in Mexico City. ... Toughman, which badly needs governmental regulation (and is currently not licensed in Nevada), is still going strong despite the many tragedies it has fostered in its archaic guys-off-the-street approach to fisticuffs and entertainment. It even has a card scheduled for next month in the otherwise serene St. George, Utah. ... The Las Vegas 51s would love to have hotshot Dodgers pitching prospect Edwin Jackson this season, but the 20-year-old flamethrower may go straight from Class AA to Los Angeles. If he does, it would not only add to the 51s miseries but deprive them of a marketable player they badly need.