EX-UCLA RECEIVER IN MIX AT ARIZONA.

Byline: SCOTT WOLF 

There's a Southern California figure who might be the next Arizona coach, and he's not named Norm Chow.

According to sources, former UCLA defensive back Johnnie Lynn, currently the New York Giants defensive coordinator, recently interviewed with Arizona athletic director Jim Livengood and is considered a top candidate for the position.

Lynn has been coaching with the Giants for the past seven years but is a natural choice for Arizona, where he was an assistant from 1987 to 1993. He'd also be able to recruit in Southern California with no problems, having grown up in Los Angeles and played for the Bruins from 1975-78. He was an All-Pacific-10 Conference selection his senior year.

Lynn also fits the profile the Wildcats seek - someone who can relate to players while bringing the necessary energy to the position - after the disastrous reign of John Mackovic.

Lynn's biggest problem is that he's not as well-known as two other candidates: USC offensive coordinator Chow and Oklahoma assistant coach Mike Stoops, the brother of Sooners coach Bob Stoops.

However, he is respected by Livengood. He also is a more serious candidate than former Arizona linebacker Ricky Hunley, who is popular with Wildcats boosters but not preferred by the school's administrators. Hunley is an assistant with the Cincinnati Bengals.

Speaking of coaches, former Cal State Northridge coach Jeff Kearin is a candidate at the University of San Diego. He currently coaches high school football in Phoenix.

--Whoa, boys: Notre Dame's postgame celebration after beating Navy must have made Irish alumni cringe. It might have been acceptable if this game were played in 1946, but today it merely demonstrated how much damage Bob Davie did to the program.

--Who's higher? Tailback Adrian Peterson of Palestine, Texas, rated the No. 1 prospect in the country by Rivals.com, reportedly is saying he will go to the school that wins the national championship. That must mean Miami's chance just nose-dived.

--Whom would they beat? Does anyone think Texas Christian (9-0) could beat any legitimate conference contender? Like Florida, which has three losses? Or Nebraska?

It's a travesty that Anderson and Hester, who provide a computer poll for the BCS, list the Horned Frogs as the No. 2 team in the nation.

--Another reason to loathe the Internet: Kentucky coach Rich Brooks wasn't surprised his daughter, Kerri, stood up for him, but he was surprised she chose an Internet message board to shoot down rumors the ex-Oregon Ducks coach wanted out after one season.

Kerri Brooks signed onto Wildcatfaithful.com, a Kentucky fan Web site, under the moniker BrooksDaughter, and blasted those responsible for starting a rumor that the Wildcats had talked to Washington Redskins coach Steve Spurrier about the Kentucky job and that Brooks willingly would step down.

``The idea that he is going to step aside IS A CROCK,'' she wrote. ``... Some ignorant person has started a very stupid rumor about his not being happy. He is stressed out because he wants to win, BUT IS NOT UNHAPPY ABOUT BEING at KENTUCKY. He wants to win, and losing is just not acceptable. My mother and my father LOVE LEXINGTON, and the people they have befriended.''

Rich Brooks confirmed it was his daughter who wrote it.

``I told her to never go into one of those things again,'' Brooks said. ``I didn't know she was going to do that. I appreciate her standing up for her father. ... Every year I was the coach at Oregon, there was a rumor that either I was going to get fired or that I was taking another job.''

Kerri Brooks, who works as a camerawoman for CBS Sports, once punched an Oregon fan who criticized her dad.

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(2) FOOTNOTES

By Scott Wolf

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- Scott Wolf