LSU’s Mathieu off team for violating rules
LSU’s Mathieu off team for violating rules
BATON ROUGE, La. — Heisman Trophy finalist Tyrann Mathieu was kicked off LSU’s football team Friday for breaking an athletic department rule, a blow to the Tigers’ national championship hopes three weeks before their season opener.
The junior defensive back — nicknamed Honey Badger for his tenacious style, small stature (5-foot-9, 175 pounds) and blond streak of hair — rose from obscurity to become one of college football’s biggest stars last season.
He was a sleeper Heisman candidate as the Tigers won the Southeastern Conference championship and reached the BCS title game. But almost as quickly as Mathieu rose to fame and became the face of LSU football, the Honey Badger phenomenon ended in Death Valley.
LSU coach Les Miles would not specify the reason Mathieu was dismissed. Athletic Director Joe Alleva said Mathieu, who was suspended for a game in 2011 after failing a drug test, violated an athletic department rule and had his scholarship revoked.
Several Chargers
will have chance
to replace Mathews
SAN DIEGO — The San Diego Chargers will give several running backs a chance to replace last season’s leading rusher, Ryan Mathews, who had surgery Friday on his broken collarbone and is expected to miss four to six weeks.
Mathews was injured on his first carry of the preseason in the first quarter of the Chargers’ game against the Green Bay Packers on Thursday night and did not return. Mathews led the Chargers with 1,091 yards rushing and a 4.9-yard average last season, earning him a trip to the Pro Bowl.
Judge does not rule in Saints LB Vilma lawsuit
NEW ORLEANS — A federal judge questioned the fairness of the NFL’s bounty investigation of the Saints, then held off on making any rulings while urging all sides to settle the matter on their own.
U.S. District Judge Ginger Berrigan also said the season-long suspension of Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma was excessive and that she would be inclined to rule in his favor if she were certain she had jurisdiction to do so.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has justified his suspension of Vilma by describing him as one of the ringleaders of a program that offered Saints defenders improper cash bonuses for injuring opponents.
Judge questions USADA, Armstrong lawyers
AUSTIN, Texas — A federal judge had tough questions for U.S. anti-doping officials about the fairness of their effort to prove seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong cheated, grilling them at length in a hearing Friday.
But U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks also asked attorneys for the cyclist why the federal court should step into an arbitration process already set up to handle doping cases in sports.
In a 2 1/2-hour session, Sparks criticized USADA about the vagueness of its charges and wondered whether Armstrong would get a legitimate chance to defend himself against allegations that he used performance-enhancing drugs throughout his career.
Sparks also questioned USADA officials about why they don’t turn their evidence over to the International Cycling Union, which has tried to wrest control of the Armstrong case from USADA in recent days.
Dolphins QB Garrard to undergo knee surgery
MIAMI — Miami Dolphins quarterback David Garrard will undergo arthroscopic knee surgery and is expected to be sidelined two to four weeks, his agent said Friday.
The recovery timetable likely takes Garrard out of the competition to win the starting job for the season opener in four weeks.
Garrard’s knee had been bothering him for a few days, and following an examination he decided to undergo surgery rather than deal with the issue throughout the season, said his agent, Al Irby.
Red Sox sign Podsednik after trading him
CLEVELAND — The Boston Red Sox have signed veteran outfielder Scott Podsednik just over a week after trading him to Arizona.
Podsednik batted .387 with one home run and seven RBIs in 19 games for the Red Sox before being dealt to the Diamondbacks on July 31. He was released by Arizona after declining an assignment to Triple-A Reno.
Podsednik, who was batting ninth and playing left field Friday night at Cleveland, and right-hander Matt Albers were traded to Arizona for left-hander Craig Breslow, who is pitching in Boston’s bullpen.
49ers, Santa Clara Co. agree on $30M deal
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The 49ers appear to have reached a deal over $30 million in tax funding for their new stadium in Santa Clara that was unexpectedly yanked by county officials in June.
The Santa Clara County officials said they wanted to spend the money on schools and were empowered to swap the funding under changes in state law after Gov. Jerry Brown disbanded development agencies.
Under a deal reached Thursday, the Santa Clara Unified School District and other agencies will get about half of the money they wanted, The San Jose Mercury News reported. The school district will then be able to balance its budget to avoid teacher layoffs, according to the newspaper.
Maria Sharapova drops out of Cincinnati
CINCINNATI — Maria Sharapova has dropped out of the Western & Southern Open because of a stomach virus.
It’s the second straight tournament Sharapova has missed because of the illness. She also dropped out of the Rogers Cup in Montreal this week. She announced the decision on her website.
Canada’s Wozniak leads McHale in Montreal
MONTREAL — Canadian Aleksandra Wozniak led American Christina McHale 7-6 (5), 5-2 on Friday when rain interrupted their third-round match in the Rogers Cup.
Play was suspended for more than six hours before the match was postponed until today.
Djokovic advances
in rainy Toronto
TORONTO — Top-seeded Novak Djokovic advanced to the Rogers Cup semifinals, winning two matches Friday in the rain delayed tournament.
Djokovic beat Sam Querrey 6-4, 6-4 in the afternoon in a third-round match that was originally scheduled for Thursday, then delayed by rain for 2 1/2 hours in the second set. The second-ranked Serb returned to the court at night to beat Tommy Haas 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 in a quarterfinal match that ended just before midnight.
Djokovic will face fellow Serb Janko Tipsarevic today.
By wire sources