National Digest
Bates decides OMAHA (AP) — Former Omaha North and Iowa State quarterback Phillip Bates will enroll at Ohio University and play for ex-Nebraska coach Frank Solich. Bates will transfer in January and participate in spring practice with the Bobcats. Bates will have to sit out next season but will have two seasons of eligibility remaining. Colts win JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Peyton Manning completed his first 17 passes, picked apart Jacksonville’s secondary and led the Colts to their eighth consecutive win and seventh straight playoff berth. Manning finished 29-for-34 and threw for 364 yards and three touchdowns, and the Colts secured the No. 5 seed in the AFC playoffs with a 31-24 victory over the Jaguars on Thursday night. Huskers fall OMAHA (AP) — Nebraska’s bid to unseat defending national champion Penn State fell short in the fifth set Thursday night at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Neb., as the Cornhuskers fell 25-17, 25-18, 15-25, 22-25, 15-11 in the NCAA volleyball semifinals. Penn State seemed in control of the match, winning the first two sets. The Nittany Lions hadn’t lost a set all season — 111 straight. But then Nebraska won the next two sets, and Penn State seemed on the verge of imploding. In the fifth set, Nebraska led 10-8 when Penn State called timeout. On the next point Nicole Fawcett pounded a kill that started a 6-0 Penn State run. Penn State, 37-0, ended the match two points later. An NCAA tournament-record crowd of 17,400 — all but a few dressed in red — came out in an ice storm to root for the Huskers, who were playing 50 miles from their Lincoln campus. It was the 63rd straight win for the Nittany Lions. And it was the first time Nebraska, 31-3, had lost in the state of Nebraska in the last 96 times it had played in its home state. Drug testing CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — NASCAR will test drivers for performance-enhancing drugs next month under a strengthened policy that also bans using illegal drugs and abusing prescription medications. NASCAR likely will test drivers the third week of January and crew members must submit results from an approved lab by Jan. 16, according to documents obtained Thursday by The Associated Press. A NASCAR memo sent to teams lists specific banned substances for which crew members must be screened. No similar guidelines were issued for drivers, as NASCAR reserves the right to test competitors for anything. The guidelines were toughened in part because of former Truck Series driver Aaron Fike’s admission that he had used heroin — even on days he raced.
By The Associated Press Roger Clemens' former personal trainer cooperated with investigators looking into steroids in baseball under threat of prosecution, an assistant U.S. attorney said in a court filing that could turn into a key factor in the lawsuit filed by the star pitcher. In a declaration filed in federal court in Houston as part of Clemens' defamation lawsuit against Brian McNamee, assistant U.S. attorney Matthew Parrella said he told McNamee he was not a target of the investigation but could become one if he failed to cooperate. If McNamee made any false statements to federal investigators or to the law firm hired by baseball to investigate drugs in the sport, Parrella said he could face prosecution. McNamee told former Sen. George Mitchell's investigators that Clemens had used steroids and human growth hormone before baseball players and owners agreed to ban them. BOSTON (AP) — The Boston Red Sox have been outbid for free agent first baseman Mark Teixeira and "are not going to be a factor" in acquiring him, owner John Henry said in an e-mail. Henry, general manager Theo Epstein and president Larry Lucchino went to the Dallas area to meet with Teixeira and his agent Scott Boras. Henry's reference to the "other offers" leaves open the possibility that he is calling a bluff. Boras represented former Red Sox center fielder Johnny Damon, who signed with the New York Yankees in 2005 after the Boston brass apparently refused to believe that the offer from their archrivals was real. PASADENA, California (AP) — Federal appeals judges voiced skepticism that prosecutors had the right to seize urine samples of more than 100 major league players not originally involved in the BALCO drug investigation. In a case dealing with the government's search-and-seizure power in the digital age, an 11-member panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals must decide whether prosecutors legally seized the names and urine samples of 104 players during a raid in April 2004. The federal agents who took the material from the Long Beach-based Comprehensive Drug Testing Inc. had a search warrant for the test results of just 10 players, but discovered on a computer spreadsheet the test results of additional players. The players' association went to court, and lower-court judges ruled the additional names were seized illegally. A three-judge panel of the 9th Circuit reversed those decisions twice in 2-1 votes, but the entire 9th Circuit set the reversal aside and decided to hear the case en banc. CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (AP) — NASCAR has settled a $225 million lawsuit filed by a former official who said she was subjected to racial discrimination and sexual harassment during her two-plus years working for the stock-car organization, The Associated Press has learned. The suit was settled during a Dec. 3 mediation held in New York between Mauricia Grant and NASCAR. Settlement terms were confidential. Grant, who is black, worked as a technical inspector responsible for certifying cars in NASCAR's second-tier Nationwide Series from January 2005 until her October 2007 termination. In the lawsuit filed in June in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, Grant alleged 23 specific incidents of alleged sexual harassment and 34 specific incidents of alleged racial and gender discrimination during her employment. TUSCALOOSA, Alabama (AP) — Alabama left tackle Andre Smith has submitted paperwork to receive an evaluation of his NFL draft status. Beyond that, the Crimson Tide's All-American offensive lineman is keeping up his season-long refrain that he's more worried about the next game than the NFL. The Tide will face Utah in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 2. Smith, who won the Outland Trophy as the outstanding collegiate interior lineman, has been projected as a potential No. 1 overall draft pick if he chooses to skip his senior season. He submitted a request for feedback from the NFL draft advisory board on Tuesday. CINCINNATI (AP) — Police arrested Mississippi basketball coach Andy Kennedy after a cab driver said the coach punched him while calling him "bin Laden" and other racial insults. A pretrial hearing has been set for Jan. 16. Kennedy was charged with a first-degree misdemeanor count of assault, which would carry a maximum sentence of six months in jail. Kennedy denied the allegations and his attorney, Mike Allen, entered a written plea of not guilty in Hamilton County Municipal Court. Kennedy, a former assistant and interim head coach at Cincinnati, later coached the Rebels in a 77-68 loss to No. 9 Louisville in the SEC/Big East Invitational. PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Philadelphia 76ers forward Elton Brand will be sidelined for a month because of a dislocated shoulder. Team officials said Brand has a fracture and tear in his right shoulder, but will not need surgery. Brand was hurt Wednesday night in a win over Milwaukee. Brand is averaging 15.9 points and 9.8 rebounds this season. He signed a five-year, $80 million free agent contract with the 76ers in July. A playoff team last season, the 76ers struggled to a 9-14 start before firing coach Maurice Cheeks last week. They are 2-0 under interim coach Tony DiLeo.
