"It began at lunch -- when Peggy arrived with her Father. While Abigail was house hunting for their move to California, Harvey, he told us, had been attending Diablo Mountain Wolves home games. 'Because I was taking notes, I think Coach Larry thought I was a sports writer,' Harvey explained. 'Or maybe it was because of the false beard and the shirt I was wearing that said: Sports Illustrated.'

"The NCAA, I warned AKA Harvey, is considering a rule forbidding signal stealing and in-person scouting.

"His attention was on eating my steak. This did not take very long. Soon, he responded that as a parent it was important to observe the work of enemy players. Furthermore, he did not need to steal signals if, as a concerned parent he could sit in the stands and observe the Wolves in action. That shirt, he said, was legitimately acquired when he was interviewed for a Sports Illustrated cover issue. It was not, he assured me, the cover that celebrated Franco Harris' legendary triumph over the Raiders.

"There was silence at the Faculty Club table. Politely I ignored Harvey's treacherous mention of Franco Harris. The onion rings and my steak arrived. Harvey moved the onion rings to his place. I passed him the second pitcher of beer.