OBERLIN HAS MADE A FINE (LIBERAL) ART OF LOSING.

Byline: Ken Berger Associated Press 

Slick with mud and sweat, their chests heaving, the Oberlin Yeomen smash into each other while coaches bark orders that echo off the John W. Heisman building in the distance.

Whistles blow and players drop to the slippery field for push-ups. Once in a while, a player limps to the trainer with sore ribs or a chin strap that was knocked for a loop.

This is a team that works hard. This is also a team with a 36-game losing streak.

``I guess we don't think about it too much, to be honest with you,'' said Pete Peterson, in his third season as coach. ``We're getting better every week. I don't think there's any question in anybody's mind who's seen us play that the losing streak will come to an end sooner rather than later.''

Oberlin, one of the nation's finest liberal arts colleges, was coached by the legendary John Heisman in 1892 and 1894. The school, which plays in Division III, has not won since the next to last game of the 1992 season. The Yeomen are 2-62 in the '90s.

``I really feel for the upperclassmen,'' freshman Jabari Spruill said. ``They've had to deal with it the longest. I really want to win for those guys.''

Macalester in Minnesota holds the Division III record with 50 consecutive losses from 1974-79. Prairie View A&M in Texas is still going with an NCAA-record 65 in a row.

The Yeomen (0-6) get another chance to end their streak at home Saturday against Case Western Reserve (2-4).

Oberlin's story is not much different from the tale at many small colleges. No one is on scholarship. Players end up at positions they've never played. The athletic budget is not funded by Nike swooshes or TV revenue.

``When I arrived 1994, we had 20 football players,'' Peterson said. ``One-third of them had never played football before. I think we did a pretty good job not to forfeit any games.''

Oberlin's tradition dates to the days under Heisman, for whom a campus recreation center is dedicated. In a solemn room filled with memorabilia, there is a battered game ball from Oberlin's 6-0 victory over Case in 1910, and a plaque donated by the wife of one of the captains of the 1919 team, which went 7-1. The room is lighted by a large painting of Heisman striking the pose that now appears on the trophy named for him.

``We had a pretty good football tradition,'' Peterson said. ``From about 1989 to when I took over in 1994, the bottom just fell out.''

From 1990-95, the Yeomen were 1-9, 0-9, 1-9, 0-10, 0-9 and 0-10. In 1994, Oberlin managed only one touchdown - a defensive score.

``We were in a situation where we had about four years of going backwards,'' said Jim Donovan, in his 10th year as an assistant at Oberlin. ``We're still trying to recover from that.''

There are signs of progress this season. The Yeomen have been outscored 264-65 - much better than the margin of 358-10 in 1994. But the growing pains are obvious. James Parker has passed for 994 yards and eight touchdowns, but both his backups are wide receivers. The fullback, Michael Brown, is a converted defensive end.

Two weeks ago, the Yeomen got an extra point from Scott Krasnow, who rushed to make it for the second half after playing for Oberlin in a soccer game.

Oberlin is counting on athletes like Spruill to help turn it around. Spruill, who ran a kickoff 90 yards for a touchdown last week, won a state championship during high school in Charleston, S.C., in 1993. He chose Oberlin because of its academics. He wants to go to medical school.

``I didn't want to be just an athlete at any other big school,'' Spruill said. ``It's like they own you.''

Life is different in Division III.

``There's more to it than winning and losing,'' Donovan said. ``That's why this program has lasted as long as it has, in spite of its record.''

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Photo

Photo: Oberlin head coach Pete Peterson holds up the team's playbook, but it hasn't mattered recently. The team is on a 36-game skid.

Associated Press