Mark Gross, the first-year coordinating producer of ESPN’s ‘College Gameday,’ receives high marks this week for experimentation.

For the first time ever, the 90-minute show airing from 10:30 a.m. to noon on Saturdays will visit a Division I-AA site. In Philadelphia, hosts Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit and Lee Corso will lead up to a meeting of Harvard and Penn, both 5-0 in Ivy League action.

‘We always want to try something different or new,’ said Gross, who took over ‘Gameday’ for Steve Vecchione, a 1979 Syracuse graduate now producing SportsCenter. ‘At a certain point in the season, you want to get creative.’

ESPN committed to Penn-Harvard last Tuesday and will construct its set on the turf at Franklin Field, which will open its doors at 10 Saturday morning. The novelty and proximity of show time and game time should lure a considerable ‘Gameday’ audience. Record attendance for the show is 15,808 at last season’s Notre Dame-Nebraska meeting in Lincoln, Neb. But in-person attendance does not concern Gross as much as the potential turnoff for TV viewers.

‘We’re always concerned with ratings and with putting out the best show we can,’ he said. ‘But we will still talk about the day in college football. You will still get your fill from the major conferences. Even last week in Knoxville, obviously not everything was about Miami-Tennessee.’

Still, Harvard and Penn will enjoy an unprecedented spotlight. One of the show’s segments will feature Penn senior quarterback Mike Mitchell, a Wharton School of Business student who left the Quakers last season to focus on academics and reclaimed the starting job this year. Harvard receiver Carl Morris (a Div. I-AA-best 145.8 receiving yards per game) is a likely NFL Draft pick this spring and will be the Harvard player profiled.

Other features include: pro wrestler Chris Harvard, Colorado running back Chris Brown, Texas Tech quarterback Kliff Kingsbury and Ohio State’s fourth-and-1 play from last week. Miami coach Larry Coker will be an on-set analyst, and Washington State quarterback Jason Gesser may appear for a live shot.

‘The impact for the Ivy League and us remains to be seen,’ Harvard coach Tim Murphy said. ‘But the excitement level among our alumni and students and recruits is really outstanding.

‘ESPN is just one of those things in our culture. If you polled Americans about what station they could not do without, that would probably be the first one. Even though the game is not televised, this has made it a real event.’

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Blessed art thou

LSU quarterback Marcus Randall, who if not for an injury to starter Matt Mauck on Oct. 12 would be on the bench, beat Kentucky, 33-30, Saturday with a 75-yard Hail Mary pass. Two Wildcat defenders kept the ball alive for Tiger receiver Devery Henderson, who reeled in the deflection and scored with no time remaining.

Difficult to determine who felt the worst as LSU erupted into celebration. The rundown:

1. Doubly embarrassed Kentucky coach Guy Morriss, who was not only drenched due to a premature Gatorade bath but who had to shake LSU coach Nick Saban’s hand in defeat while soaked.

2. Kentucky quarterback Jared Lorenzen, who dumped the Gatorade on his coach.

3. The Kentucky defensive backs who batted the pigskin around like a beach ball.

4. The Kentucky fans charging the field in clueless celebration and those aboard the goalposts who sheepishly climbed — rather than tore them — down.

5. The stadium worker who authorized the shooting off of fireworks as Randall rolled out to pass with time expiring.

The spectacular conclusion also brings consideration of the best finishes to a college game. LSU is consensus Top 4. The others follow in no particular order.

In 1994, Colorado quarterback Kordell Stewart connected with receiver Michael Westbrook for a deflected, 64-yard touchdown in Michigan Stadium. Current New England Patroits cornerback Ty Law was among the Michigan defensive backs who tried in vain to defend the heave.

Perhaps the best-known Hail Mary is Doug Flutie to Gerard Phelan in 1984 to beat Miami in the Orange Bowl.

Last, but most classic, is California’s five-lateral runback to overcome John Elway, Stanford and the Stanford marching band in 1982.

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Officially blown

Would Joe Paterno have a field day with this one.

Leading UAB, 17-13, with 2:45 to play Saturday, Southern Mississippi quarterback Micky D’Angelo faked a handoff to running back James Walley on third down at the 2-yard line. D’Angelo instead rolled to his left and headed for the end zone. A confused official, Morrie Scherrens, signaled a touchdown as Walley crossed the plane.

‘I was thinking, ‘Wait a minute, I’ve got the ball,’ ‘ D’Angelo told The Clarion-Ledger of Mississippi.

D’Angelo estimated himself to be at the 4-yard line when he noticed the referee with his arms raised to signal the score. The whistle had blown when Walley hit the end zone, negating the play, but D’Angelo, unable to slow down with would-be tacklers in pursuit, ran into the signaling official.

Southern Miss could not convert on third down, settled for a field goal and held on, 20-13. Scherrens, after receiving medical attention, reportedly apologized to Southern Miss coach Jeff Bower.

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This and that

Bowling Green’s (8-1, 5-1 MAC) quest for an undefeated season ended Saturday in a 26-17 loss at Northern Illinois. Receiver Robert Redd suggested that the Falcons’ first national ranking (No. 20) since 1985 was a distraction. ‘So much stuff was going on, and we weren’t focused,’ Redd told the Associated Press. BGSU dropped from the Top 25. … Texas A&M, despites its 66-10-1 record at home since 1990, had never beaten a No. 1 before upending Oklahoma, 30-26, Saturday in College Station, Texas. … Lou Holtz announced Monday that he will return for a 31st season. Holtz, 65, has three years remaining on his contract with South Carolina, but some speculated that as the team slipped from 5-2 to 5-5, Holtz might consider calling it quits. … LSU running back LaBrandon Toefield returned to practice Monday, five weeks and a day since surgery to repair a broken left forearm. Saban is uncertain whether Toefield will play this weekend. The team initially expected the SEC’s second-leading rusher in 2001 to miss six weeks. … By escaping Ravens Stadium in Baltimore with a come-from-behind, 30-23 win, Notre Dame (9-1) extended its dominance of the Naval Academy (1-8) to 39 years. Hall of Famer Roger Staubach quarterbacked the Midshipmen the last time they beat the Irish. Navy, meanwhile, has won two of its last 28 games. … Army’s lucky it plays Navy every year. The Cadets (0-9, 0-6 Conference USA) are the only Div. I team among 117 without a win. Army and Navy play Dec. 7 at Giants Stadium. … Two weeks after Michigan State announced that junior QB Jeff Smoker would be suspended indefinitely, interim head coach Morris Watts said that indefinite means at least the remainder of this season. ‘He will not play the rest of the year,’ Watts, MSU’s promoted offensive coordinator, said Tuesday. ‘That’s official.’ Watts reportedly met with Smoker Tuesday morning and said the quarterback plans to issue a statement to the media. ‘I do know he is looking forward to his future,’ Watts said. ‘He looks forward to dealing with the media.’ … Hard to figure how CBS Sportsline ranks the Orangemen (4-6) No. 93 of 117. Explain 2-8 Vanderbilt at No. 87.

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Heisman watch

QB Brad Banks, Iowa

Never heard of him? Michigan, Wisconsin and Northwestern could fill you in. Banks beat each team in the last three weeks, combining for nine touchdowns and no interceptions. He is conservative (22 attempts per game) but accurate (61 percent completion rate, 23 TDs to four INTs). With Ohio State poised for a spot in the Fiesta Bowl, No. 5 Iowa (10-1, 7-0 Big 10) could come a step closer to a Rose Bowl slot with a season-ending win Saturday at Minnesota.

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Line of the week

‘When the play was over, I saw their fans run on the field. I saw the fireworks shooting. Then we all just ran down there and jumped on Devery.’

— To the Louisville Courier-Journal, LSU QB Randall, whose 75-yard Hail Mary beat Kentucky as oblivious Wildcat fans began to storm Commonwealth Stadium.

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V.I.P. M.I.A.

WR Terrence Edwards, Georgia: The Bulldog’s top receiver, Edwards sprained his right knee on the first play of the fourth quarter Saturday and is expected to miss three to six weeks. Edwards (47 catches, 804 yards) joins Georgia’s No. 2 receiver, Damien Gary (season-ending left-leg surgery) on the sidelines as Georgia visits Auburn on Saturday with an opportunity to clinch a spot in the SEC title game. ‘I don’t know what we’re going to do,’ coach Mark Richt told the AP. ‘We’ve got a real problem at receiver.’

Published on November 13, 2002 at 12:00 pm