UCLA great McAlister dies
James McAlister, a former UCLA All-American tailback and standout long jumper, has died, the school announced. He was 66.
McAlister earned All-American honors in 1973, when he ran for 714 yards and eight touchdowns while helping the Bruins to a 9-2 record and secondplace finish in the Pacific 8 Conference. He and former Pasadena Blair High teammate Kermit Johnson helped UCLA compile the top four single-game rushing totals in school history. The Bruins ran up a school-record 621 rushing yards against Stanford in 1973 during a season in which the Bruins averaged a school-record 400.3 rushing yards per game.
McAlister was also a track and field standout, his long jump of 27 feet ½ inch standing as the top mark in the world in 1973. It remains the school record. — Ben Bolch
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