College Athletics

- Within minutes of announcing that she was bringing back football coach Ralph Friedgen for a 10th season at the University of Maryland, Debbie Yow's BlackBerry began to fill up with messages. The first two, she said, were enough to take the pulse of a constituency that had become increasingly frustrated with Friedgen - as well as with Yow - toward the end of a disastrous 2009 season. "The first e-mail said, 'This proves you're the best AD Maryland has ever had,' " Yow recalled of that early December day. "The second e-mail read, 'I will have you fired by 5 o'clock tomorrow afternoon and I'm going right to President Mote.

Justin Mabus was one of two Towson freshmen named to the Colonial Athletic Association's All-Rookie team, joining defenseman Jojo Ostrander when the announcement was made May 4. What's remarkable about that accomplishment is that Mabus earned it despite being hobbled by a groin injury. The midfielder said he injured his groin during the week of preparation leading to the season opener at Jacksonville on Feb. 11. Mabus, who has consulted multiple doctors and plans to undergo a magnetic resonance imaging exam this week, said he thought the pain would eventually face, but it did not. “There were times when I'd come in and I needed to sit out a practice,” he said Tuesday morning.

The basis of college humor is poor taste. It has probably been that way since Harvard College opened its doors in 1636. That should have been taken into account last week when the student newspaper at the University of Nebraska ran a cartoon taking a shot at the off-the-field escapades of some of the football players.Don't darken my practice field again, squeaky clean coach Tom Osborne decreed: "Attending our practices is a privilege, not a right."Wait just a moment, Tommy, what's this "my" and "our" business?

In his recent column ("Student-athletes need a degree, not a paycheck," May 6),Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.makes a persuasive case for the bargain available to students who are talented enough to win an athletic scholarship to a college or university. They, as Mr. Ehrlich was, are in college primarily to prepare for a career in something other than professional sports. However, for the student-athletes with professional prospects, I believe that we can design a better system. Although some might find this approach a radical change, I believe that it is practical in they way it effectively utilizes the existing infrastructure and would actually make the jobs of coaches and athletes clearer and simpler.

ERIC RAMSEY, a former Auburn University football player, is spinning tapes in public that could shake the foundation of college football.Ramsey has apparently taped more than 100 hours of conversations with Auburn coaches, alumni and even the head coach, Pat Dye. They catalog more violations concerning his own wages and working conditions than the National Collegiate Athletic Association can shake a stick at. (But, rest assured, the NCAA will find a...

It used to be, when the crimes of intercollegiate sports flashed into public view, that defenders blamed what they said were a few rotten apples. The vast majority of programs, they insisted, were crisp and clean.It was assumed the clean programs would stay that way -- free of under-the-table cash payments to athletes, free of grade-tampering to preserve eligibility and thus free of the consequent low graduation rates.Today the assumption is different. By now, sports fans fear that almost every program is or will become dirty.

The Glenelg High School Guidance Department and PTSA will sponsor a College Planning Symposium from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Oct. 15 at the school. Martha Gagnon will discuss "The ABCs of College Planning." Sessions will include discussions of selective or private schools, Maryland universities, community college and technology options, military academies and ROTC programs and college athletics - how to contact coaches and seek scholarships. Refreshments will be served. Information: 410-313-5535.

Maryland has nearly completed its investigation into gambling by members of its football team, but it will be several more weeks before the university passes its findings along to the NCAA."

Drug charges should be dealt with severely I am tired of hearing about so-called sports stars getting off on drug charges. What kind of message does this send to our young people? If the Ravens' Jamal Lewis is guilty, I hope they throw the book him! It is about time star athletes are treated as all other drug criminals. It's also time for the powers that be in pro sports (owners) to send a message to all participants that any kind of drug involvement will not be tolerated and will be punishable by throwing them off the team.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Dick Schultz began the 1991 NCAA convention with a look ahead to 1992.The executive director's state of the association addres included the news that he will meet this spring with coaches from all sports to begin reducing and simplifying recruiting rules. He also talked about streamlining the enforcement process and leaving flexibility for valid exceptions, but not until after he discussed additional penalties for rules violators."We are in the process of establishing a meeting in Kansas Cit next spring," Schultz said.

Many of you know I was fortunate to play high school football at Gilman and college football at Princeton. What most of you do not know is that I worked as a graduate assistant on the Wake Forest football staff to pay for my room and board during law school. These experiences instilled in me a strong sense of the appropriate role of academics and athletics in our secondary schools and colleges. So it should come as no surprise that I have a strong opinion as to the increasingly aggressive calls to pay college athletes in revenue-producing sports.

The first months of a college athletic director's tenure are typically spent getting a feel for the landscape. For Maryland athletic director Kevin Anderson, his first seven months included leading a major overhaul that included the messy divorce with a popular football coach who also happens to be an alum and the sudden retirement of one of the country's most respected men's basketball coaches. Add to that the decision to eliminate as many as eight teams. A little more than a year after Anderson replaced Debbie Yow, and you get a feeling of - if not quite have some sympathy for - what he has faced since coming here from Army in October of 2010.

Hartford stunned many observers last season by upending Stony Brook in the America East Tournament final and qualifying for the NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history. The unanimous preseason favorite to repeat as league champions, the No. 19 Hawks - who open the season Saturday at No. 10 Maryland - are expected by many to repeat that path in 2012. Contrary to conventional wisdom, coach Peter Lawrence said the team accepts that expectation. “I think we should [repeat]

Baseball Name High school College Brandan Casas Gilman Maryland Austin Clark Archbishop Spalding La Salle Jamal Clarke Archbishop Spalding St. John's Chad Diehl Westminster Mount St. Mary's Michael Gillespie Boys' Latin Delaware Tyler Henderson Glenelg Country Limestone College ...

Irony and hypocrisy Chris Defense Los Angeles Times What should Paul Dee have known and when should he have known it? The irony is not lost on USC fans. Dee was chair of the NCAA infractions committee that sent the Trojans to Probation Island. The crux of the NCAA's argument was that USC should have known about violations involving Reggie Bush. Well, well. Dee was AD at Miami from 1993 to 2008. Dee wasn't at Miami while he was sitting in judgment of USC, but Yahoo Sports revelations are another blow to the NCAA's credibility.

Pat Byrnes wishes he could tell you what he's doing this summer. But giving details about work isn't an option for the Loyola rising senior lacrosse player, who has an internship with the Secret Service. "I can't really tell you what I do on a day-to-day basis," said Byrnes, whose father, Gerry, was in the Secret Service for more than 20 years. "My supervisor didn't allow me. " Byrnes, who works mostly in the Inner Harbor, loosely described his duties as "whatever they want me to do. " He would not elaborate further.

WASHINGTON -- A report on college sports released yesterday shows that coaches are stubbornly resisting reforms that most Americans and almost all of the academic community believe are desperately needed."

Logical decision Chris Dufresne Los Angeles Times You could argue the Fiesta Bowl, based on financial skullduggery and malfeasance, deserved to be dropped from the BCS rotation. Everything considered, letting it remain was the logical move. Revoking the Fiesta's lamp shade license would have had severe economic impact on the Phoenix area that had nothing to do with the actions of a few. The Fiesta impressed the BCS panel with other acts of contrition.

Last week, longtime University of Maryland basketball coach Gary Williams announced his retirement, and very quickly Maryland announced that Texas A&M Coach Mark Turgeon will replace him. No one doubts that during contract negotiations, Turgeon had lawyers advising and representing him. Coincidentally, just days before Mr. Williams made his announcement, Jordan Williams, Maryland's star sophomore basketball player, lost his eligibility to play...