Tigers

In what may have been Towson State's last chance to showcase the best team in its 25-year history, the Tigers turned their most formidable weapon loose yesterday with devastating results at Morgan State.Senior running back Tony Vinson, putting the finishing touch on an incredible season, set an NCAA Division I-AA single-season rushing record by gaining 327 yards on 32 carries and scoring a school-record five touchdowns to carry Towson State to a 56-12 rout before 2,014 at Hughes Stadium.Towson State finished the regular season with an 8-2 record, its best since 1986, when the Tigers advanced to the NCAA quarterfinals in their last year as a Division II program.

It was the start of a new season for Morgan State, but the same old result last night in its frustrating series with Towson. The Bears outgained the Tigers by nearly 100 yards, matched their one turnover and commanded the ball for nearly 15 more minutes and still took a 21-16 defeat at Johnny Unitas Stadium, their fourth straight loss against Towson. Morgan was shut out in the second half and couldn't stop the Sean Schaefer air show when it counted, surrendering two third-quarter touchdowns, then failing to score on three downs from the Tigers' 1-yard line, sealing its fate.

The Big Ten has 11 teams. The Big Eight is about to go to 12. The Southwest Conference is about to die.But Grambling is still Grambling.Ohio State, Oklahoma, Southern Cal and most of college football's old, traditional powers are shells of what they used to be, their strength sapped by scholarship limits and time's inevitable undertow.But Grambling is still Grambling.The Heisman Trophy was all of 5 years old when Eddie Robinson became the head coach at the school in 1941 and immediately began winning, going undefeated in his second season.

Orioles left-hander Wei-Yin Chen goes for his 12th win of the season this afternoon against the Tigers here at Comerica Park. That would mark the most wins by an Orioles pitcher since Erik Bedard won 13 games back in 2007. If the Orioles can win today and take the series from the Tigers, they were finish the season series with Detroit with a 3-3 record. Of their completed series, the Orioles are 7-2-1, with series wins over Atlanta (2-1), Kansas City (5-4), Minnesota (5-2), Philadelphia (2-1)

At Oriole Park at Camden Yards Day Time TV Starters Tonight 7:35 HTS Tigers' Jeff Weaver (8-11, 4.81) vs. Orioles' John Parrish (2-2, 5.01) Tomorrow 7:35 HTS Tigers' Hideo Nomo (5-10, 4.95) vs. Orioles' Jose Mercedes (9-5, 4.57) Thursday 7:35 HTS Tigers' Brian Moehler (11-7, 4.12) vs. Orioles' Mike Mussina (8-13, 3.94) Radio: All games on WBAL (1090 AM) and WTOP (1500 AM) Tigers update The Tigers have overcome a terrible start to hover around .500 and make a belated run at the wild card.

DETROIT - Orioles first baseman Mark Reynolds offered no apologies after getting ejected from Friday night's 5-3 loss to the Tigers at Comerica Park, only a frustrated sermon on how he believed two controversial calls forced the O's to battle two difficult foes   - the Tigers and the umpires. Prince Fielder provided the offense for the Tigers, hitting a pair of two-run homers, but Reynolds had bigger issue with the performance of the umpiring crew. Reynolds and manager Buck Showalter were both ejected in the fifth inning after a close call at first base was overturned by home plate umpire Tim Timmons.

At Tiger Stadium, DetroitDay, Time, TV, StartersTonight, 7:05, 13, 50, Doug Drabek (1-0, 2.45) vs. Tim Worrell (0-1, 2.84)Tomorrow, 1:05, HTS, Mike Mussina (1-1, 3.00) vs. Justin Thompson (1-1, 5.23)Sunday, 1:05, 54, 50, Scott Erickson (2-0, 3.77) vs. Greg Keagle (0-1, 3.38)Radio: All games on WBAL (1090 AM) and WTOP (1500 AM)Tigers updateThe Tigers juggled their rotation after yesterday's rainout against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, giving the Orioles return looks against Thompson and Keagle.