Submitted by admin on Wed, 2005-10-26 08:00. ::
"I liked him from day one," said Pioneers coach Rich Ingold, who was Loebig's offensive coordinator at Duquesne. "He can make all the throws. He's the kind of guy that knows how to win."
At Duquesne, Loebig, who played at South Fayette, passed for 10,254 yards and 103 touchdowns in four seasons. He held 13 of the school's 15 passing records by the time he graduated.
Homestead-Miami Speedway sustained some damage from the strong winds of Hurricane Wilma, but next month's season-ending NASCAR race will go on as scheduled, the track president said Tuesday.
High winds blew parts of pit row's garage suites across the track and into the grandstand, damaging the seating area, debris fences and some of the track's new $8.5 million lighting system for night racing.
There was no structural damage to the racing surface, site of the Nextel Cup series' Ford 400 on Nov. 20. Speedway president Curtis Gray said he was still waiting for a damage estimate.
The garage suites, canvas coverings that sit atop the garages, were both a victim and a culprit of the damage. Gray rode out the storm and witnessed the entire quarter-mile long row of suites get picked up and blown away by the wind.
"I was here when it hit, so about 6 in the morning, I hear something almost like an explosion," Gray said. "I looked out and I saw the canvas and it was just mind-boggling, how part of that could be on the back part of the grandstand."
Twelve new light poles lining pit row were taken out by the storm, and debris also damaged one of the tracks new light towers. Some of the grandstand will have to be replaced, Gray said.
Also damaged were the debris fences lining the grandstand area, but the storm spared the track's new tower in turn one, which is still under construction. All of the track's stationary buildings withstood the winds.
Operation teams from Daytona International Speedway, which escaped damage from Wilma, and Talladega Superspeedway were expected to arrive late yesterday to help with repairs, Gray said.
Russ Granik will step down as the NBA's deputy commissioner at the end of the new season which starts next Tuesday. Granik, who will also resign as the NBA's chief operating officer, has spent 30 years in the league's front office, the last 22 as second-in-command. He was the league's chief negotiator for the last four labour agreements and was involved in every other major business transaction, said commissioner David Stern.
= The Charlotte Bobcats released former West Virginia center D'or Fischer. Fischer joined the Bobcats as an undrafted free agent. He played in four exhibition games and averaged four points and two rebounds. Fischer was a senior on the 2004-2005 team that lost to Louisville in the NCAA regional finals.
Minnesota Timberwolves forward Kevin Garnett didn't sustain structural damage to his sprained left ankle, X-rays showed yesterday. Garnett sprained his ankle in practice Monday when he landed on Mark Madsen's foot. Garnett sat out the team's intrasquad scrimmage on Monday night and did not attend practice yesterday.
Denver Nuggets coach George Karl had his league suspension reduced to two games from three, allowing him to return for the team's game against Portland on Nov. 4.
Michelle Kwan has withdrawn from the Cup of China, her last chance to skate in the Grand Prix series leading to the 2006 Olympics. Kwan, who dropped out of Skate America earlier this month, has been sidelined for two weeks with a strained ligament in her right hip. She has resumed training, but will not be fully recovered for another month. So the five-time world and nine-time U.S. champion withdrew Tuesday from the Chinese tournament Nov. 3-6 in Beijing.
The Cleveland Browns placed cornerback Gary Baxter on injured reserve yesterday, ending his season, and promoted rookie wide receiver Brandon Rideau from the practice squad.
Cornerback Willie Middlebrooks re-signed with the San Francisco 49ers, and center Norm Katnik was sent back to the practice squad. The 49ers acquired Middlebrooks from the Denver Broncos during the preseason in a trade for defensive end John Engelberger. He was among the 49ers' final cuts, but was re-signed on Sept. 28.
The Detroit Lions waived long snapper Joe Maese and signed Jody Littleton to replace him. The team also waived running back Larry Croom from their practice squad and signed tight end Sean McHugh and defensive tackle Kevin Carberry to the practice squad.
With Pro Bowler David Akers still recovering from a hamstring injury, the Philadelphia Eagles claimed a castoff kicker from division rival Dallas. The Eagles claimed Jose Cortez off waivers and released Todd France, who the team added after Akers aggravated an earlier injury in a Week 3 victory over Oakland.
Dolphins coach Nick Saban said he will stick with quarterback Gus Frerotte as the starter for now and took the rest of the offense to task for inconsistency in execution.
Columbus Blue Jackets goaltender Marc Denis has a bruised collarbone and will sit out at least tonight's game against Nashville. Denis was injured in a 6-2 loss to Detroit on Monday and was listed as day-to-day. He is expected to play Friday against Minnesota, the Blue Jackets said in a statement. To fill in for Denis against the Predators, Columbus recalled goalie Andrew Penner from Syracuse of the AHL. Penner has won his only game for Syracuse this season, making 41 saves in a 6-3 victory over Rochester on Saturday. The Blue Jackets (2-7-0) have been beset by injuries this season. Left wing Rick Nash, who tied for the NHL lead in goals in 2003-04, is out with a sprained ankle; center Gilbert Brule has a fractured sternum; center Dan Fritsche is out with a sprained foot; and defenseman Rostislav Klesla has a stress fracture in his right leg.
Saturday's game between the Florida Panthers and Washington Capitals has been rescheduled because of damage caused to the BankAtlantic Center in Sunrise by Hurricane Wilma, the NHL said in a statement yesterday. No new date was announced. It is the second NHL game to be rescheduled because of Wilma. Last Saturday's contest between the Panthers and Ottawa Senators was rescheduled for December 5.
To run or not to run. That is the question trainer Bill Mott may have to answer for Shakespeare before Saturday's $2 million Breeders' Cup Turf. With rain falling yesterday, Mott was concerned about the turf course coming up "soft" for Saturday's race, a condition historically unsuitable for offspring of Theatrical. The 4-year-old Shakespeare has won all five career starts, including the Joe Hirsch Turf Classic. He has never run on anything other than "firm" turf.
The impasse over doping rules at the Turin Winter Games, the possible inclusion of women's boxing and other new events in 2012 and a final ruling in Jerome Young's six-year-old drug case are being considered by Olympic leaders this week. The International Olympic Committee executive board convenes today for its first full meeting since the July session in Singapore when London was awarded the 2012 Games and baseball and softball were voted off the program.
Germany coach Juergen Klinsmann won't be moving out of California despite criticism from Bundesliga coaches. Klinsmann and the league coaches held a lively discussion yesterday, with Klinsmann making no concession on his California residence less than eight months before the World Cup. Klinsmann's choice to continue to live in California was one of the main points of contention. But Klinsmann said he would continue his continental commute, spending time in Germany when necessary.
Kansas City Wizards teammates Jimmy Conrad and Chris Klein won MLS season awards yesterday. Conrad was selected as the MLS Defender of the Year and Klein was chosen Comeback Player of the Year. Real Salt Lake midfielder Brian Kamler was recognized as the U.S. Soccer Foundation Humanitarian of the Year and veteran referee Brian Hall was voted the Referee of the Year.
Top-seeded Andy Roddick beat wild card Thierry Ascione of France, 7-5, 6-3, yesterday in the first round of the Lyon Grand Prix. In other matches, Olivier Rochus of Belgium beat second-seeded Mariano Puerta of Argentina, 4-6, 7-5, 6-3, and French qualifier Marc Gicquel routed sixth-seeded David Ferrer of Spain, 6-4, 6-0. Fifth-seeded Tommy Robredo of Spain beat Nicolas Lapentti of Ecuador, 2-6, 7-5, 6-4, and France's Sebastien Grosjean defeated Romania's Victor Hanescu, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4.
Marc Rosset retired yesterday, saying the Swiss Indoors would be his final pro tennis tournament. The 35-year-old Swiss player, whose biggest success was winning the Olympic gold medal in Barcelona, turned pro in 1988. His highest ranking in 17 years on the ATP Tour was ninth in 1995, but he has since dropped to 674th. "My career already ended six months back," said Rosset, who last played singles on tour in October 2004 in St. Petersburg, Russia. "But my friends told me I should do one last lap, do this officially."
Eighth-seeded Ana Ivanovic advanced to the second round of the Generali Ladies Open with a 7-6 (4), 6-2 victory yesterday over Shinobu Asagoe. The two exchanged breaks in the first set, but the Serb wasted two set points at 6-5 before prevailing in the tiebreaker. Ivanovic reduced her unforced errors and improved her serve percentage in the second set, breaking the Japanese player three times to claim the match.
Third-seeded Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain eased through the opening round of the Swiss Indoors in 69 minutes, beating Filippo Volandri of Italy, 6-2, 6-4. The 2003 French Open champion, is looking for his first title this season after reaching the final at Barcelona and Vienna. Last week, he lost in the first round of the Madrid Masters to Max Mirnyi of Belarus.
Defense lawyers for two former La Salle University basketball players charged with simultaneously raping a woman said she may have regretted the sex act, but they insisted she was not raped. Gary Neal, of Baltimore, and Michael Cleaves, of Paterson, N.J., went on trial yesterday on charges of raping a visiting University of New Haven player as she vomited in a sink after drinking eight shots of high-proof alcohol. The woman, then 19, was finishing up a one-week stint as a La Salle basketball camp counselor when she went to the players' campus town house in June 2004.
A leading advocate for victims' rights said that major colleges are more concerned with protecting the reputations of their athletic programs than in investigating cases of alleged rape and other violent acts by players. "We are growing weary of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's reluctance to establish any sort of policy against athlete violence," said Kathy Redmond, founder of the National Coalition Against Violent Athletes. She urged Congress to investigate the NCAA's finances and called on the governing body to establish a national policy on violence by athletes. She added that her Littleton, Colo., group has created a lobbying wing to pressure lawmakers into following its recommendations.
Tonya Harding tussled in her home with a man she described as her boyfriend, prompting an emergency call by the figure skater-turned-boxer and an arrest of the man. Christopher Nolan was charged with assault and pleaded not guilty Monday. He told deputies Harding threw him down and bit his finger when he said she had too much to drink on Sunday. The 27-year-old Nolan was ordered to stay away from Harding and to avoid alcohol.
Minnesota Vikings defense tackle Kevin Williams was placed on a year's probation and fined $1,000 after pleading guilty to disorderly conduct in a domestic dispute.
Richard Head, father of Tennessee women's basketball coach Pat Summitt, died at 83. Head died Sunday at his home in Henrietta, the Boyd Funeral Home said. Friends of the family said he had been ill for about a year. Summitt missed practice in Knoxville on Monday to be with her family.
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