NFL was no place for pay

Sunday marked the 50th anniversary of "The Greatest Game Ever Played" -- the Baltimore Colts' overtime victory over the New York Giants in the 1958 NFL Championship Game.

How long ago is 50 years?

To put it into perspective, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette ran a list of offseason jobs held by players and coaches who participated in that game. In order to supplement NFL salaries that were far short of sufficient, Colts defensive tackle Art Donovan worked as a liquor salesman in the spring and summer. Teammate Gene "Big Daddy" Lipscomb was a greeter at a brewery and a professional wrestler. Colts running back Lenny Moore worked in community relations with the National Brewing Co., and was a Saturday disc jockey for WSID radio in Baltimore.

Two assistant coaches with the Giants, eventually bound for the Hall of Fame as head coaches, had to make ends meet in 1958. So Giants defensive coordinator Tom Landry worked as an insurance salesman, and an offensive coordinator named Vince Lombardi worked in public relations for a bank.

• BUT CAN WE WATCH 'PRISON BREAK'? -- Guys used to get a good bounce from being the Long Beach State men's basketball coach.

Jerry Tarkanian (1968-73) went to UNLV and won a national title. Lute Olson (1973-74) did the same at Arizona. Tex Winter (1978-83) taught the triangle offense to Phil Jackson.

Then there is Wayne Morgan (1996-2002), who is making sure inmates can watch "Days of Our Lives." Morgan, fired as Iowa State's coach in 2006, now owns Mid-Iowa Satellite and has been hired by Iowa State ... the Iowa state pen, that is.

Morgan's business won the contract to switch television sets from analog to digital at two state prisons. That might seem less thrilling than beating Minnesota in the NCAA Tournament, but both accomplishments seem to make Morgan tingle.

"We're happy and overjoyed to win a game in this great tournament," Morgan said after beating the Gophers in 2005. And today? "We are happy to do this, and we are excited about it," Morgan told the Des Moines Register about the prison deal.

• THESE BOOTS WERE MADE FOR WALKING -- American Todd Carmichael recently walked solo 700 miles across Antarctica from Hercules Inlet to the South Pole in 39 days, 7 hours and 49 minutes, averaging about 18 miles a day. His time broke the existing record by nearly two hours.

After such a feat, what could possibly be Carmichael's next challenge?

"He's had a lot of time out there by himself to think," his wife, Lauren Hart, told the Philadelphia Inquirer. "Too much time to think. He'll come up with something."

• AFTER-CHRISTMAS SALE? -- For those major league teams in the market for a power- hitting outfielder but looking for a cheaper alternative than Manny Ramirez, there's always ... Sammy Sosa?

Sosa, who turned 40 on Nov. 12, didn't play last season but told The Associated Press he doesn't consider himself retired and would like to play for the Dominican Republic this March in the World Baseball Classic.

"I still don't have an offer, and I shouldn't be looking for offers out there," said Sosa, who has 609 homers.

LAS VEGAS REVIEW-JOURNAL WIRE SERVICES