Fame

The last man to take a horse to Belmont with a chance to snag the elusive final gem in the Triple Crown has some advice for Doug O'Neill. Stay true to the horse. "I think trainers going around asking other people what they should do, looking for how to handle it, that's stupid," Rick Dutrow, trainer of Big Brown in 2008, said in a phone interview Sunday. "It's got to be about your horse. Whatever anybody else did doesn't matter. You know your horse. " O'Neill, trainer of Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner I'll Have Another, has already disregarded common wisdom over the past three weeks.

Congrats to Mike Klingaman and staff at The Sun for the job they did in compiling the top 175 greatest athletes in Maryland history. I noticed several glaring omissions, however. Y.A. Tittleplayed two years for the All-American Football Conference Baltimore Colts, and one year for the NFL Colts, at the beginning of a career which would eventually earn him induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The stats and honors he compiled completely dwarf those of Bert Jones, who the Sun charitably ranked at number 34. Yet somehow Mr. Tittle was forgotten.

It's too early to tell Dan Pompei Chicago Tribune Now is not the time and place to determine if Tom Coughlin is a Hall of Fame coach. He still is coaching and could add, or even subtract, from his legacy. What's more, there is a five-year waiting period before a retired candidate can be considered. That period helps put accomplishments in perspective. You can make an interesting case for Coughlin. His career compares well to Marv Levy, who is enshrined in Canton.

Four players or coaches with ties to the Maryland Terrapins are among the eight person class to be inducted into the National Lacrosse Hall of Fame in October, US Lacrosse announced Wednesday. Navy coach Cindy Timchal, who has more wins than any other college lacrosse coach, guided the Terps to eight of their NCAA titles. Jen Adams and Kelly Amonte Hiller were national players of the year and three-time first-team All-Americans on some of Timchal's national title teams. Brian Dougherty was a two-time All-American for the Terps and twice named the nation's best goalie.

Saturday, six men were elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame: defensive linemen Chris Doleman and Cortez Kennedy, offensive tackle Willie Roaf, center Dermontti Dawson, running back Curtis Martin, and cornerback Jack Butler. Meanwhile, former coach Bill Parcells, running back Jerome Bettis, wide receiver Cris Carter, and defensive end Charles Haley were among the finalists who learned that their busts won't be bronzed this year. For those who were left out in 2012, the road to Canton won't get any smoother in 2013 . A bunch of strong Hall of Fame candidates will be eligible next year, including former Ravens left tackle and franchise cornerstone Jonathan Ogden.

Time will tell if Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs, the 2011 NFL Defensive Player of the Year, will make into to the Pro Football Hall of Fame whenever his playing career ends. But if Suggs does get inducted, his gear will be waiting for him when he arrives. The uniform worn by Suggs in his standout 2011 season arrived Thursday at the Hall of Fame , so if you make the trip up to Canton, Ohio you can check out the helmet, purple jersey, pants, socks and cleats he wore while chasing after enemy quarterbacks in 2011.

Amy Nestor , of Columbia, will be inducted into the Coker Athletics Hall of Fame in October as a member of the 1998 softball team. Nestor received Second Team All-Conference honors. The Cobras started the season with a 38-game winning streak, and their record of 54-3 still stands as the best record in Coker history. They also set a record for best winning percentage in NCAA softball at the time.

I recently submitted a proposal to the Baltimore Development Corp. in reference to The Sun's front page article, "Reinvigorating Baltimore's waterfront," published in early May. No response, not even a thank you for the suggestion, was received. Jean Marbella , in the Sunday Sun, was somewhat critical of many of the grandiose and expensive recommendations proposed by the BDC. My idea would come with minimal start-up costs and would instill pride in our city and state and enrich the minds of Marylanders and visitors alike.

The Baltimore Blast will induct former standout defender Doug Neely into the team's Hall of Fame on Saturday, Dec. Nov. 11. The ceremony will take place during halftime of the Blast's game against the Missouri Comet at 1st Mariner Arena. Game time is set for 7:35 p.m. Neely was a member of the Blast team in the 1991-92 season; played for the Baltimore Spirit from 1992-94 and for 1996-97; and returned to Baltimore from 1998-2002. He finished with 183 regular-season points during his career in Baltimore and appeared in three All-Star Games during his playing days here.

The African American Golfers Hall of Fame inducted UMES. "The university has been accorded this honor because it is the only historically black college [or] university — among a total of only 20 other institutions worldwide — certified by the Professional Golfers Association of America to offer the PGA Golf Management Degree Program," said Malachi Knowles, founder of the African American Golfers Hall of Fame. The university launched its PGA program in 2008. UMES president Thelma B. Thompson accepted the honors during a ceremony in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. "We are honored to be associated with the PGA and to be forever linked with legendary golfers from this country and abroad," she said.

Et cetera Hopkins' Stromberg, Milne to join MAC Hall Bill Stromberg , a standout member of the Johns Hopkins football team from 1978 to 1981, and fello alumnus Bill Milne , one of the top swimmers in the nation from 1971 to 1974, have been selected to the 36-member charter class of the Middle Atlantic Conference Hall of Fame. Stromberg, the only Johns Hopkins player elected to the College Football Hall of Fame (2004), was a two-time first-team All-American and two-time MAC Most Valuable Player (1980 and 1981)

Former Ravens offensive lineman Jonathan Ogden is considered a strong candidate to be part of the 2013 Pro Football Hall of Fame class. But before that, Ogden learned that he'll be enshrined into another Hall of Fame. The former UCLA star was one of 14 players to be selected for the College Hall of Fame. He'll be inducted in September. Ogden was a four-year starter at left tackle for the Bruins. In his final season at UCLA, Ogden was awarded the Outland Trophy, given to college football's top lineman, and named a unanimous first-team All-American.  He was then drafted by the Ravens with the fourth overall pick in the 1996 draft.

The Anne Arundel Community Action Agency studied a long list of nominees as it prepared to induct the first members into its Hall of Fame. In its nearly 50-year history battling poverty, many staff members and volunteers have kept the agency going, and a few made sure it survived. The final decision fell to the History Committee, which nominated five for the initial honor. "Oh, we have great stories and many great nominees who made significant contributions," said Kinaya Sokoya, chief executive officer of the Annapolis-based agency.

BEREA, Ohio — For Trent Richardson, the pressure of following in Emmitt Smith's footsteps was inescapable. Richardson tried to carve his own path while playing running back at Escambia High School in Pensacola, Fla., which produced all-time NFL rushing leader Smith. But every time people heard that Richardson was from Pensacola, he said, their response was, "Oh, you got Emmitt Smith from there. " "You're playing at Emmitt Smith's high school, there's tremendous incentive to do the same thing, if not better," said Escambia track coach Derrick Boyd, Richardson's mentor.

Who knew there could be so much glory in nearly being spit on? When a Chicago TV news crew, trying to do a report from a city street corner instead captured the phlegmiest woman alive, the resulting video went viral. And the reporter, standing alongside as the woman spat and spat and then spat some more, went on Jimmy Kimmel last night. Turns out the traumatized reporter has a Maryland connection -- he's Christopher DeRose, a 2007 graduate of McDaniel College. He was a theater major.

Baltimore Catholic League commissioner Jack Degele said he's seen the five former players - Leon Dickerson (Cardinal Gibbons), Darryle Edwards (Calvert Hall), Darnell Harris (St. Frances Academy), Phil Lane (St. Maria Goretti) and Robbie O'Conor (Loyola Blakefield) - that will be inducted into the BCL Hall of Fame on Thursday evening at the Rolling Road Golf Country Club in Catonsville actually play for their respective teams. Degele also watched former Calvert Hall coach Mark Amatucci lead the Cardinals to the 1982 mythical national championship, knew former Cardinals Gibbons Athletic Director Larry Callahan and saw Barry Scroggins (Mount St. Joseph)

The state Board of Public Works has unanimously approved a long-term lease allowing the construction of the National Sailing Hall of Fame on Annapolis' waterfront. The decision Wednesday came after Annapolis Mayor Josh Cohen and Richard L. Franyo, president of the National Sailing Hall of Fame, came to an agreement on the nonprofit museum's compliance with local laws. Because it will be built largely on state-owned land and therefore be exempt from Annapolis laws, residents and some lawmakers raised concerns about the museum's compliance with building rules in the city's historic district and with parking and alcohol regulations.

When Beach House, the Baltimore dream-pop duo of Victoria Legrand and Alex Scally, released 2010's "Teen Dream," the band was immediately thrust into the forefront of the indie-music world. Pitchfork named it the fifth best album of the year; Rolling Stone placed it at No. 17 . Indie-rock chart-toppers Vampire Weekend invited the band on an impressive North American tour that included stops at New York City's Radio City Music Hall and Merriweather Post Pavilion . Following the steps of Animal Collective, the duo seemed positioned to become the new "it" band in taste-making circles.