Football Coach

Ben Eaton Jr. gripped both sides of the lectern as if he had an opposing quarterback in his grasp. "He taught me to be a real man, husband and great father," he said. Eaton Jr., the former Gilman linebacker and The Sun's 2006 Defensive Player of the Year now playing at Mercersburg (Pa.) Academy, was among those who spoke at Ben Eaton Sr.'s funeral yesterday at the Carl H. Murphy Fine Arts Center at Morgan State. "I had him for 18 years, and I will take care of my mom, " said Eaton Jr., looking at his mother, Sandra.

Eddie Robinson, the record-setting football coach who turned Grambling State into a nationally recognized power, ushered 210 players into the NFL and largely realized his vision of transforming the Louisiana school into the Notre Dame of historically black colleges, has died at 88. Robinson died Tuesday night at Northern Louisiana Medical Center in Ruston, the university announced. The cause of death was not specified, but he had been suffering from Alzheimer's disease. Starting in 1941 at age 22, Robinson coached at Grambling for 57 years and had a mark of 408-165-15 when he was forced to retire in 1997.

CollegesGannon: Named William Elias Jr. football coach.FootballRams: Announced resignation of Ed White, offensive line coach, to assume same job at University of California.HockeyDevils: Assigned C John Madden to AHL Albany.Islanders: Signed G Roberto Luongo to multi-year contract.Pub Date: 1/10/99

Active athletes, coaches and officials who have died in aircraft crashes:Oct. 18, 1925: Marvin Goodwin, Cincinnati Reds pitcher, in Houston.March 31, 1931: Knute Rockne, Notre Dame football coach, in Kansas.May 4, 1949: 22 members of Torino, the Italian soccer champion, in Turin, Italy.Oct. 27, 1949: Marcel Cerdan, former world middleweight champion, en route to fight Jake LaMotta in Spain.July 1, 1954: John McBride, Alabama halfback, in ROTC training flight in Texas.Oct. 30, 1954: Wilbur Shaw, president of Indianapolis Motor Speedway, in Decatur, Ind.Sept.

BaseballAL: Named Indians OF Manny Ramirez Player of the Week.NL: Named Mets C Mike Piazza Player of the Week.Athletics: Activated C Mike Macfarlane. Optioned C A. J. Hinch to Triple-A Vancouver.Yankees: OF Shane Spencer was cleared to begin rehab program a week after doctors diagnosed an irregular heartbeat.BasketballMagic: Signed F Corey Maggette, first-round draft pick, to $3.71 million, three-year contract.WNBA: Named Utah F Natalie Williams Player of Week.Charlotte (WNBA): Named Dan Hughes interim head coach and Bob Bass GM.CollegeNCAA Championships/Competition Cabinet: net: Named Mountain West commissioner Craig Thompson chairman of Division I men's basketball committee, effective Sept.

BaseballBrewers: Named Larry Aaron and Justin McCray scouts. Named Tom Allison, Bobby Heck and Ric Wilson scouting crosscheckers.Indians: Signed P Brian Barber to minor-league contract and invited him to spring training.Mariners: Announced that team has reached two-year friendship agreement with Fortitudo Bologna Baseball Club of Italian Professional League.Red Sox: Named Billy Gardner Jr. manager of Double-A Trenton.Reds: Named Gary Hughes director of professional scouting and special assistant to general manager.

BaseballAthletics: Added 3B Adam Piatt, P Chris Enochs, IF Josue Espada, P Kevin Gregg, P Leoner Vasquez and P Eric DuBose to 40-man roster.Blue Jays: Purchased contracts of P Clayton Andrews, P Pasqual Coco, P John Sneed, C Josh Phelps, OF Andy Thompson and SS Mike Young. Released C Mike Matheny.Cardinals: Purchased contracts of 1B Chris Richard from Triple-A Memphis and P John Ambrose, P Justin Brunette and P Gene Stechschulte from Double-A Arkansas.Cubs: Purchased contracts of P Chad Ricketts, P Chris Gissell, P Mike Meyers, P Ruben Quevedo and P Scott Downs from Triple-A Iowa.

Ron Vanderlinden received a Christmas gift yesterday when his contract as football coach at Maryland was extended two years, giving him four more years to produce a winning program.Vanderlinden, whose base salary is $134,175 a year, had two years remaining on his original five-year contract.Maryland athletic director Debbie Yow said yesterday: "Coach Vanderlinden and I have agreed that it is important to make improvements in both our ACC and overall win-loss record in the 2000 season. Both of these goals are within our reach.

Brad Best, who turned a small Catholic school known for lacrosse into a county football power, and Mike Codd are switching football positions at St. Mary's High in Annapolis.With increasing duties as the Saints' athletic director, Best resigned yesterday as head football coach after 10 seasons and elevated his longtime assistant Codd to head coach, a position Codd held once before.Best compiled a 59-41 record (.590) with the Saints and won Maryland Interscholastic Association A Conference tri-championships in 1995 and 1996 and a C Conference tri-championship in 1990.

BaseballCubs: Agreed to terms with P Matt Karchner.BasketballKnicks: Waived G Lawrence Moten.CollegesNicholls State: Announced resignation of Darren Barbier, football coach, to become assistant coach at Tulane.Wittenberg: Announced resignation of Carl Schraibman, athletic director, effective Aug. 31.HockeyChesapeake Icebreakers (ECHL): Transferred RW Denny Felsner from 10-day to 14-day injured list. Placed D Arturs Kupacs on 10-day injured list.Pub Date: 1/25/99

Before Parkville's football team kicks off its first home game, the Knights will rename their field in honor of Joseph Anthony Yates Sr., Baltimore County's first African-American football coach. The dedication of Yates Field will take place Sept. 12 at 12:30 p.m. before Parkville's game against Lansdowne. Yates, who died in 2006 at the age of 83, coached the Knights from 1971 to 1981. Yates' legacy is not about coaching but character, said Ron Belinko, coordinator of athletics for Baltimore County, who coached football at Overlea at the time.

Towson named Connecticut offensive coordinator Rob Ambrose, a former Tigers player and assistant coach, as its head football coach yesterday. Ambrose, a 1993 Towson graduate and a native of Middletown, has been on UConn's staff for seven years. He replaces Gordy Combs, who was fired Dec. 2 after consecutive seasons of 3-8 and 3-9. "Being named as the fourth head coach in Towson football history is a tremendous honor for me," Ambrose said in a statement. "All three of my predecessors are legends and men that I admire.

A sampling of columns from around the country this week: Eli best choice for MVP Eli Manning shouldn't need these last four regular-season games to be a front-runner for the NFL Most Valuable Player award. But if the 11-1 Giants run the table, engrave the trophy. Just give it to Eli already. All that talk about how Manning is merely a caretaker of the Giants' offense is about to evaporate again. Now that Plaxico Burress is gone from the Super Bowl champs, joining Michael Strahan, Osi Umenyiora and Jeremy Shockey, anyone still questioning which Giant is the real rock of the NFL's best team shouldn't need to see how Manning does the rest of the way. He already gave an answer Sunday against the Redskins.

Ken Niumatalolo was a redshirt freshman quarterback at the University of Hawaii in 1983 when he crossed paths with June Jones, then in his first year coaching quarterbacks after his five-year NFL career had ended. The relationship was brief, as Jones left after that season on a well-traveled road that led to head coaching stints in the NFL and a return to Hawaii as its head coach in 1999. But the impression Jones made on Niumatalolo was lasting. "I don't remember much from my freshman year back in '83, but I do remember he's a very smart man," Niumatalolo said of Jones.

John Harbaugh can't say when he first realized his dad, Jack, was a football coach. The old man never sat him down and explained what he did. Harbaugh just assumed all kids got stuffed into lockers by college stars or baby-sat for sideline legends. "It was our life," the Ravens coach said. "How our team did, being around the players, seeing how much our dad cared about them, even after they graduated. We thought everybody's dad was a football coach." To Baltimore fans, Harbaugh, 45 - who will make his regular-season head coaching debut tomorrow - might seem new. But in no way does that word describe his relationship with the game he loves.

Last week I got an offer from Georgia. It's the second Southeastern Conference offer I've received so far, with the other one coming from South Carolina. Right now, all the schools are kind of the same to me since I haven't gotten the chance to really visit any of them yet. What makes the Bulldogs' offer a little different is that they're recruiting me as a slot receiver. Most of the other schools that have recruited me want me to play running back, but I wouldn't mind playing receiver.

Reginald Corwin "Reggie" Johnson, a longtime Baltimore County and Carroll County football coach who helped lead Randallstown High School to the 1984 state championship, died Wednesday of heart failure related to diabetes at Northwest Hospital Center. He was 84. Born in Waynesboro, Pa., Mr. Johnson played on his high school football team and followed his coach, Rip Engle, to Penn State. He left after his freshman year to enlist in the Navy during World War II, serving in the Pacific, said his son, Kenith "Speedy" Johnson.

On the first day of spring football practice, new Navy football coach Ken Niumatalolo was still answering the same questions that greeted him the day he was hired to replace Paul Johnson. That's what happens when you take over a program that turned much deeper shades of Navy Blue and Gold under your predecessor. So, I guess this is as good a time as any to throw out the obligatory quip about Ken's hard-to-pronounce surname, which I'm pretty sure means "has a tough act to follow" in his ancestral Polynesian tongue.

Thomas Joseph "Terry" Tereshinski Sr., a former junior high and high school teacher and football coach, died of respiratory failure Thursday at Anne Arundel Medical Center. The Galesville resident was 86. Born in Glen Lyon, Pa., Mr. Tereshinski attended Newport Township High School and Dickinson Seminary in Pennsylvania. His football coach called him Terry, a shortened version of his last name, and it became a nickname that stuck, said his wife of 58 years, the former Mary Ruth Woodfield.

John Harbaugh was hired by the Ravens yesterday in a bold move that gives the longtime assistant coach his first head-coaching opportunity. The Ravens will introduce the 45-year-old Philadelphia Eagles secondary coach, who comes from a football family, during a news conference at noon today. Harbaugh, who has never been in charge of an offense or a defense in the National Football League, made a name for himself as a special-teams coach. "It's not a well-traveled path, but we'll prove special-teams coordinators can coach," Harbaugh told Philadelphia radio station WIP a half-hour after being hired.