College Park

NFL union leader DeMaurice Smith apparently didn't read about the Mount Royal Tavern "Cuss Bucket," in your recent article ("Time for a little gosh-darned civility," May 17) since he told University of Maryland graduates, "For anyone who believes passion is cheap and futile I have two words for you: You suck" ("Sports takes the stage at College Park graduation," May 20). What a cheap, futile and ugly way to express an opinion. I recommend Mr. Smith consider dropping a couple of dollars into the University's cuss bucket or any of the sports programs that could use some funds.

There's not been a lot to cheer about for Maryland basketball fans the past couple of years -- most notably two seasons without a postseason invitation and Terrell Stoglin's misguided decision-making off the court that recently ended the college career of last season's top scorer in the ACC. Things are going to get better in College Park , but for those Terps fans trying to get their fix of hoops and happiness, Steve Blake is providing a...

Some historical background can illuminate your editorial about the proposed merger of the College Park and Baltimore campuses of the University of Maryland ("Higher education politics," Oct. 23). In the 1960s, the College Park campus planned a new school of social work to be located in College Park. Instead, it was placed in Baltimore at the insistence of the chairman of the board of regents. A few years later the College Park campus planned a new architecture school there.

The Legg Mason Tennis Classic, a staple of the late-summer sporting scene in the Washington area for more than four decades, is getting a dramatic makeover that will include a new title sponsor, stadium upgrades and shared billing with an existing tournament for rising women's players. The key development driving the changes is a new title sponsor in Citigroup, which will replace Baltimore-based Legg Mason after an 18-year association with the hard-court classic. To be known as the Citi Open, the tournament will remain at Washington's William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center in Rock Creek Park.

The Washington area's new women's tennis tournament, held at the Tennis Center in College Park on July 23-31, is expected to announce today that it has secured title sponsorship from Citigroup Inc. That bodes well for the future of the event, which will lead into Washington's longstanding summer tournament for men, the Legg Mason Tennis Classic, July 30-Aug. 7. The new women's event, called the Citi Open, is a WTA International tournament, which is below WTA Premier tournaments in terms of prestige and prize money.

Perhaps the editors of The Sun can explain why a story about a stressed-out student at the University of Maryland includes not only where his parents live but also what they paid for their house and its current assessed value ("UM student charged in threat was 'stressed out,'" March 13). The front page story about 19-year-old Alexander G. Song, who is alleged to have threatened a shooting rampage on campus, first seems to steer off course by reporting that the accused does not have an adult criminal record but notes that he did receive a traffic ticket for failure to stop at a sign and received a $90 fine.

With a final fist pump and cry of "Beat Duke!" retired Maryland basketball coach Gary Williams said goodbye to graduating seniors Thursday, just before their degrees were conferred at commencement. A tearful Williams said his players had told him this year's graduating class was great. "So I decided to go out with you," he said. College Park students took Williams' rising fist as a cue to flip the tassels on their graduation caps. The state's flagship university graduated 7,475 students Thursday, handing out 5,545 bachelor's degrees and 1,930 graduate degrees.

The Junior Tennis Champions Center at College Park aims to offer the young athletes it trains a chance to become just that - champions. While by definition it's a regional training center, Patrick McEnroe, general manager of player development for the United States Tennis Association, calls it "national in its own scope" and says it's "one of the biggest and one of the best. " The Tennis Center at College Park is the site of the Citi Open, a WTA international women's professional tennis tournament that begins Saturday and runs through July 31. But for much of the year the facility's main focus is on buiding future professionals.

The University of Maryland, College Park must retain more of the state's top students, recruit more aggressively in other countries and turn more of its research into business if it is to maintain its upward trajectory, President Wallace D. Loh said Thursday at his inauguration ceremony. Loh has been on the job six months and used his formal inauguration to unveil his chief priorities, developed through listening sessions with students, faculty members and community leaders. "If there is one promise I want to make to you today," he said, "it is this: We will stay the course in our rise to excellence.

COLLEGE PARK — Police arrested a Kensington man early Wednesday in the stabbing of four men near the Thirsty Turtle bar, in what police are describing as a worsening trend of alcohol-fueled incidents in College Park. Prince George's County police charged Leonardo Alonso Ramos, 21, with three counts of attempted second-degree murder and four counts each of first-degree assault and intent to injure with a dangerous weapon. One of the stabbing victims is Leonardo Ramos' older brother, Jose Ramos, 23, police said Wednesday.

Let's make this perfectly clear about Maryland's incoming class of basketball recruits: they are not the Fab Five and probably not anything close collectively to what Kentucky, the Terps' opening-game opponent for the 2012-13 season, will put on the court at the new Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., come Nov. 9. But from what I saw Saturday night in the Capital Classic at T.C. Williams High in Northern Virginia, help is clearly -- or...

COLLEGE PARK - Mike Locksley is 42 years old, a father of four and a $500,000-a-year offensive coordinator. Mike Locksley is also well versed in the art of freestyle rap. Just not well enough, apparently. "My kids will tell you I'm awful at it," Locksley said Tuesday, chuckling heartily before repeating once more for emphasis: "Awful at it. " He knows enough to know what he likes, though, and what he doesn't. So when he strolled through the Maryland locker room after one practice this spring, his first back in College Park in a decade, and heard defensive back Jeremiah Johnson's lyrical barbs aimed at his offense, he turned to the sophomore.

WEATHER Today's forecast calls for highs in the upper 60s and a chance for morning showers. Lows are expected to be around 50 degrees tonight. TRAFFIC Check our traffic map for this morning's issues as you plan your commute. FROM LAST NIGHT... Actor Kevin Bacon judges charity competition at College Park : The movie star brought his star power to a charity event Wednesday at the University of Maryland. But the cheers the actor received were not as loud as the hoots and hollers directed toward the six student groups competing for $5,000 toward their favorite causes.

In a small town best known for its world-famous summer baseball tournament , Tierney Pfirman stands out. Ever since Pfirman joined the South Williamsport (Pa.) High varsity basketball team as a freshman, her development has been closely chronicled in the local newspaper. Notoriety in a small town means getting recognized, for example, at the grocery store. "All the old men read the newspaper," said Pfirman, a Maryland-bound forward. "I'll walk by and they'll say, 'Hey, are you that Pfirman girl from South Williamsport?

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.

Actor Kevin Bacon brought his star power to a charity event Wednesday at the University of Maryland, College Park. But the cheers the actor received were not as loud as the hoots and hollers directed toward the six student groups competing for $5,000 toward their favorite causes. The competition — called the "Do Good" Challenge — is part of an effort by the school to make philanthropy more of a focus in academics and student life. The winner was The Food Recovery Network, which developed a system of collecting food from campus dining halls that would otherwise go to waste and distributing it to homeless shelters.

Maryland could boast one of the top 10 research universities in the country, simply by establishing a formal bond between programs that already exist. That's the message Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller is pushing after he proposed Monday that the state university system study a merger between its Baltimore and College Park campuses. "If you're in favor of the state of Maryland, it's a win-win," said Miller. "It could give great stature to both universities and to the state.

The Troy Park Tennis and Sports Center, a multi-use athletic park in Elkridge, was supposed to be developed enough to host a $220,000 WTA International-level event next month, but because funding did not come through as expected in December, the tournament is being moved. The Tennis Center at College Park will be the site for this year's Citi Open, formerly known as the Mid-Atlantic Women's Tennis Championship, from July 23 to 31. Meanwhile, Troy Park's developers wait for an independent economic impact study, approved by the Maryland Stadium Authority last week, before pursuing other sources of financing.

Prosecutors on Tuesday filed seven additional charges against the teen who police say threatened to go on a shooting rampage at the University of Maryland, College Park last month. In addition to disturbing the administration of activities and classes at the college, Alexander G. Song 2nd, 19, has been accused of charges including making false statements, misusing university facilities and equipment, sending harassing email and disturbing the peace, according to a statement from campus police.

Johns Hopkins led the nation's universities in research and development spending for the 32nd consecutive year in rankings released this week by the National Science Foundation. Hopkins has dominated the rankings since the foundation began crediting the university with research funds generated by the Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel. The lab accounted for a little more than half of the university's $2 billion in medical, engineering and science spending in fiscal 2010. Hopkins' total nearly doubled the $1.18 billion generated by second-place University of Michigan.