Anthony Munoz was a Hall of Fame tackle, and son Michael might be even better when he comes back from knee surgery. (Allsport)

"It was one of those things where the pain was kind of constant," said Munoz, who became a freshman All-American in 2000 after starting all 12 games at right tackle for the Vols. "You have to put up with it."

Munoz said he took nothing more than ibuprofen for the pain produced by bone rubbing against bone where cartilage had worn away in his knee. That was the result, he said, of a broken femur suffered in the eighth grade. Three times during his high school days, Munoz had surgery to repair cartilage on the same knee.

"The bone healed," he said, "but the cartilage never really healed."

During a May 17th procedure, Munoz received cartilage from a cadaver to replace his missing tissue.

"Michael didn't tell us the pain he was having," Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer told reporters. "He told me he wanted to establish himself his freshman year and prove he could play at this level. I think he played through considerable pain."

The performance of Munoz, 19, belied the pain. He became the first true freshman offensive lineman to start the season for Tennessee in 20 years. While there were ups and downs, the 6-foot-6, 310-pound Munoz showed the incredible potential promised when Tennessee won a national recruiting war for his services.

"I think I improved a lot," Munoz said. "Toward the end of the season I felt I was getting accustomed to college football.

"It was definitely an honor and privilege but you've got to keep everything in perspective. There's always someone out there bigger and faster. You can't really let it get to your head."

Michael couldn't have a better support system through his recovery. His sister Michelle, a power forward in basketball, arrived in Knoxville this week to begin her freshman year. His father had three knee surgeries in four years at Southern Cal.

Anthony's last knee injury came in the second series of his senior season (1979), knocking him out for the regular season. Instead of taking a redshirt year, Anthony rehabbed "like a madman" and got back in time for the 1980 Rose Bowl against Ohio State.

"I probably played the best game of my college career," Anthony said. He must have, since he was third player picked in the NFL Draft following his one-plus game senior season.

For Michael, though, "The true test will come once the season starts," his dad said. "I had some experience in sitting and watching the guys."

Michael admits that it will be hard standing on the sidelines this fall while his teammates compete. The surgery deals a blow to Tennessee's SEC hopes (prompting some personnel shuffling up front), which are dicey regardless considering there is a trip to Florida this season where the Vols haven't won since 1971.

There are questions, as with any knee surgery of such magnitude, whether Michael will be ready even in 2002. The so-called articular cartilage that was replaced is the cartilage that covers the bone in the knee. According to reports, the cartilage has "limited" ability to heal itself and could lead later to swelling and arthritis.

Tennessee and Munoz, however, are optimistic. The prognosis was for Michael to be on crutches six to 12 weeks followed by rehabilitation. If everything goes well, Munoz hopes to be ready for spring practice in 2002.

"The success rate of that surgery has been pretty good," Anthony said. "Any time you have surgery you're not 100-percent sure. But we feel good about the entire process. All you have to do is look at the way he's working."

"My friends, my girlfriend, coaches and teammates are making this a whole lot easier to get through," Michael said. "I knew where I could be. But I was getting frustrated because my knee wasn't responding to what I could do."

Now, the hope is that the classy offspring of a legend can come back better than ever.

Football mouth-to-mouth

For the first time in -- oh, about six decades -- it's all about football at Kansas.

The depressed football program is the main reason former athletic director Bob Frederick resigned under pressure a couple of months ago. His replacement, Fresno State's Al Bohl was named last week and knows his marching orders: Get people to care about Kansas football.

It will have to be more than lip service this time. Kansas could afford to be mediocre in the old Big Eight, where finishing fourth wasn't a disgrace.

In the hyper-competitive Big 12, Kansas has paid for ignoring football in the stands and on the field. An athletic budget crunch and the tenure of current coach Terry Allen haunted Frederick.

Kansas can't forget that football still supports the athletic budget. Kansas also can't afford to sink any lower than last year's 4-7 finish, which was depressing in scope. The Jayhawks went into Game 8 at home against Texas Tech at 4-3 and in contention for a bowl game. Only 26,000 souls (in 51,000-seat Memorial Stadium) tore themselves away from their Barcaloungers to watch the Jayhawks lose 45-39.

Speculation already has started on who will be Kansas' next coach. Allen recently made on appearance on top of SportsLine.com's "Hot Seat" list of coaches going into the 2001 season.

Two names already are being thrown around. Former Georgia coach Jim Donnan is available after being fired in December and knows the territory having coached at Kansas State, Oklahoma and Missouri in the past.

And can anyone completely rule out a return by Glen Mason? Bohl and Mason worked together at Ohio State. Mason reportedly helped Bohl get the job at Kansas. Although Mason has said he is done interviewing after being snubbed by Ohio State in the offseason, he knows he could win at Kansas.

He went 10-2 at Kansas in 1995 but the school never capitalized on the momentum. Mason departed for Georgia, then returned to Kansas within a week. A year later he went to Minnesota.

If Kansas doesn't mind hiring back Mason -- for the third time -- it might make sense.

Championship experience

The new coach at Peru (Neb.) State is only 26. But don't doubt Ryan Held's ability to lead the Bobcats to an NAIA national championship.

The former Nebraska walk-on played for the 1994 and 1995 national champions. From there, he became a graduate assistant for the Huskers in 1996 and 1997. In 1997, Nebraska won its third title in five years.

Good things happen to good people, apparently. A year later Held became a grad assistant at Tennessee where, you guessed it, the Vols won the 1998 title in the first Bowl Championship Series championship game. That made four championships in five years for Held.

Needless to say, Peru State, coming off an 8-2 season and finished ranked 20th, is optimistic about its new coach.

Quake quacks

It's the opposite of comedian Sam Kinnison's bit on starving nomads in the desert.

("Move to where the food is!" the late Kinnison used to screech.)

OK, it's a bit harsh but the line needs to be applied to the University of California. The school is paying $100 million to remodel its football stadium, which sits on top of an earthquake fault. Seismic experts say the underlying Hayward Fault is the most likely to produce the next major U.S. earthquake.

Note to Cal (delivered in a Kinnisonesque tone): Move away from the earthquake!

It might make more sense to take the $100 million and use it as seed money on a new stadium that won't crack down the middle someday.

Incidentally, the only other campus building directly on the fault, a dining hall, was torn down.

Don't know if the pocket schedules are out yet but Cal might want to rule out "Come see Cal football. You might just be swallowed into the middle of the earth by a yawning chasm!" as a marketing slogan.

Quick hits

• Insiders are wondering what effect Oregon's new playing surface will have on the Ducks. Autzen Stadium will be the first collegiate facility to install NexTurf, a surface similar to the Field Turf surfaces at Washington, Washington State and Nebraska. NexTurf is made up of short plastic blades of grass nestled in a base of ground-up auto tires. The surface is supposedly more durable and less slippery than old AstroTurf fields. Two forms of Oregon's sand-based Omniturf had been in place at Autzen since 1984. Some think the Ducks grew to have some kind of advantage (a 21-game winning streak) playing on the unique surface. Is NexTurf a more level playing field?
• Is anyone still talking football in Alabama? Angst-ridden fans and columnists can't stop speculating on when, where, why and how the anticipated NCAA probation will come down. Pay attention to football for a second. Don't be surprised if 'Bama wins the SEC West.
• Fun fact: Washington's projected starting quarterback, Cody Pickett, lives on Chicken Dinner Road in Caldwell, Idaho. Fill in your own punch line.