Ron Kantowski on a Rebel who was particularly bummed about the cancellation of Las Vegas All-American Classic

Thursday, Jan. 11, 2007 | 7:05 a.m.

It might have been the worst case of adding insult to injury since Don Rickles did 90 minutes of stand-up with a sprained knee.

I speak of UNLV safety Jay Staggs, who endured consecutive seasons of 2-9, 2-9 and 2-10 as a Rebel, then learned the Las Vegas All-American Classic, the only postseason college football game he had been selected for, the last chance to show NFL scouts that he was much better than his team, had been canceled.

Staggs is one of those guys, as football coaches like to say, whose motor never stops running. But when he got the news Friday night, his idle needed serious adjusting.

"Definitely," he said. "Not getting an opportunity to play in the postseason, to have one last time to show the NFL scouts how I prepare for a game, how my motor runs

"I feel like I'm staring at another locked door. Now I've got to find another way in."

In would be anywhere they pay you to play football, or anywhere the pro scouts use a stopwatch and/or a gut feeling to determine if you will ever get that chance. Staggs is an alternate for the Senior Bowl and the East West Shrine game, but he knows these aren't beauty pageants where the chosen few fritter away opportunity due to indiscretion.

Football players might pat each on the rear in the context of the game. But they usually don't get banned for making out with their teammates the night before the game.

Not, as they say in "Seinfeld," that there's anything wrong with that.

But there is something wrong when a guy's hopes and dreams are dashed on short notice and without warning.

Staggs said he was working out with Rebel teammate Howie Fuimaono, who also was selected for the All-American Classic, when they learned Wally World was closed.

Staggs said Fuimaono got called first.

"I guess they did it alphabetically," he said, trying to disguise his bitterness but failing miserably.

Darry Alton, the game's founder, blamed the cancellation on lack of funds. Alton, who did not return phone calls, said in a statement that a TV deal with the NFL Network precluded him from hitting up the local casino industry for a handout - er, sponsorship.

The NFL, if you haven't been following Mayor Oscar Goodman's ambitious attempts to bring pro football to town, considers point spreads evil, even though point spreads and over-unders and free T-shirts for every $10 parlay wagered helped make the NFL more popular than the Ford Explorer.

"When we signed our television contract we lost ability to work with the convention and tourism side of Las Vegas and any of the casinos. That left sponsorship holes that we could not fill," Alton said in a statement.He went on to say that he was "embarrassed" for having to cancel the game on short notice.

He should be. But he should be more embarrassed by the following statement: "We do anticipate the All-American Classic being played in 2008, but under new ownership. The new owners are extraordinary men with a love for football and the financial backing to make the game successful."

Yeah, and the Charlestown Chiefs are going to be sold to new owners in Florida, who say the snowbirds down there miss minor league hockey.

Sorry, Darry, you're not talking to Dickie Dunn, the gullible Charlestown sports writer. I've got to have names before I get too worked up about this new owner stuff.

Because I know PR types and stat crew guys and have heard about vendors who are still waiting to be paid for services rendered at past All-American Classics, the NFL's problem with point spreads may not be totally to blame for Alton's cash-flow problem.

But he does make a point, or at least raise one. If the NFL has a problem with the casinos comping rooms and meals to guys like Staggs and his pals, what chance does Goodman have of attracting the San Diego Chargers to town? Still, you got to admire his "it doesn't hurt to ask" mind-set.

The NFL isn't budging on its stance against legalized sports betting. And Alton knew what he was getting into.

"He knew full well the parameters of the agreement, and willingly signed the contract," said Seth Polansky, a spokesman for the NFL Network, the league's new cable TV channel.

It's impossible to imagine an NFL - or any other major league franchise - making it here without lots and lots and lots of casino industry dollars.

So if you're a local pro football fan thinking of liquidating a 401(k) for NFL season tickets, don't get your hopes too high.

You'll only wind up pumping iron with Jay Staggs.