Timeout

With stiff competition for limited money in the county's education budget, from classroom supplies to new buildings, it might seem like a mistake for the Carroll County Board of Education to ask for money to staff "timeout" discipline rooms in 10 schools.Suspend the troublemakers and let them and their parents deal with the consequences, rather than burdening the school budget, would be one hard-line response.That reasoning, however, misses the point that schools have always had to deal with problem pupils whose behavior does not justify the more drastic suspension-expulsion process.

ESPN analyst Paul Carcaterra participated in a Q&A Monday. The former Syracuse All-American midfielder, who can be followed on Twitter via @paulcarcaterra, also offered parting commentary on the three programs from Maryland that were in the NCAA tournament - sixth-seeded Maryland, Loyola and Towson. After Maryland's 16-8 loss to Cornell Sunday, senior long-stick midfielder Jesse Bernhardt and senior midfielder John Haus said the setback would not define a senior class that had advanced to back-to-back NCAA title games without winning the championship.

LANDOVER -- In the lore of pro football, there are memorable moments known as The Catch, The Drive and The Immaculate Reception.The Ravens and Redskins added to that yesterday with The Timeout.Yes, the first Ravens-Redskins game -- nobody's clamoring for a second one after watching this dreary game -- may have been decided by a timeout.At first glance, the Ravens beat the Redskins, 20-17, on Bam Morris' 176-yard rushing day.But it might have all been for naught except for The Timeout.The Ravens, who have made an art form of blowing fourth-quarter leads, appeared to be at it again when Vinny Testaverde fumbled for the third time and the Redskins recovered at the Ravens' 25 with 9: 25 left.

Baltimore Sun columnist Mike Preston answers a selection of reader questions on the Ravens' loss to the Denver Broncos. Paul in Cape Cod: I know common sense dictates franchising him next year, but what are the chances of the Ravens simply cutting Joe Flacco loose before the start of next year or even trying to trade him? Mike Preston: Paul, there is zero chance that the Ravens just let Joe Flacco walk away at the end of this season.   The Ravens have invested too much time in him.   Flacco will be franchised, unless his asking price comes way down on a contract.

NEW ORLEANS -- The Final Four being a college experience, at least in theory, it seems fitting that we sum up what we learned while watching North Carolina win a championship neither big nor easily in the Big Easy.We learned, first and foremost, how ridiculous it is to credit or blame coaches for what happens in the Final Four. It is perfectly fair to judge them on their team's performance over the course of a career or even a single season, but the Final Four is just a dice roll.Consider that Kentucky probably would have beaten Michigan had Jamal Mashburn not committed a foolish fifth foul in overtime of their semifinal.

Chris Webber was dribbling upcourt to the tune of 64,000 shouts, his Michigan team two points behind North Carolina, a national championship hanging in the balance, 17 seconds to go, 16 seconds to go, 15 seconds. . . ."No timeouts! No timeouts," Michigan's Jalen Rose shouted over and over as his gifted, immense childhood buddy from Detroit came closer and closer.Michigan coach Steve Fisher had warned his players about it at full volume during the previous timeout, which Fisher had called with 45 seconds left.

PARADISE TOWNSHIP, Pa. -- Just as the tour books promise, the hills in Lancaster County roll gently, and pastures glisten when the sun sets right.Come relax in this sublimely perfect land, visitors are told, and you can glimpse the Amish, the honest-living, God-fearing people who farm this land frozen in history, wearing simple smocks, shunning creature comforts such as cars and electricity and chugging alongside whizzing cars in their horse-drawn buggies.But...

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- Two steps. That's all the edge No. 2 Syracuse needed in overtime to upset top-ranked Virginia, 13-12, in college men's lacrosse yesterday before 4,643 at Klockner Stadium. The Cavaliers turned the ball over on their second possession of overtime when coach Dom Starsia called timeout just before defenseman Court Weisleder crossed into the offensive end of the field. Thirty-seven seconds later, Syracuse attackman Ryan Powell barely beat Ryan Curtis on a spin move on the right side of the crease, converting the game-winner with 2: 07 remaining.

Nobody has to tell the 13th-ranked Towson Generals about the importance of a well-placed timeout. Those who didn't already know found out near the end of the first half yesterday against No. 14 Hereford.With her team trailing 6-4 and looking sluggish, coach Wendy Kridel called a timeout 3: 41 before the break to regroup. The host Generals responded in a big way, scoring 11 of the game's final 13 goals in a 15-8 victory."That really helped us pull it together," said Towson junior attack Eva Claire Synkowski.

NEW ORLEANS -- People who know no basketball now will know Chris Webber.This was once his ambition. Today it is his curse.Richard Nixon could remind him how long it took America to forget his Last Press Conference; Jackie Smith, formerly of the Dallas Cowboys, still gets calls about a Super Bowl pass that he dropped in the end zone, 14 years ago.Chris Webber will make tens of millions of dollars playing this game. He will be able to buy anything he wants. Except immunity.He will always be the young man who called a timeout when Michigan had none, 11 seconds left in a train wreck of an NCAA championship game.

With under three minutes to play in the third quarter and his team managing a slim lead against No. 1 Mount St. Joseph, Archbishop Spalding boys basketball coach Derrick Lewis saw something he didn't like and promptly called timeout. In the huddle, he challenged his players with a simple question: "Are you guys scared to win this game?" he asked. The No. 8 Cavaliers' response was an impressive one. Along with diving for loose balls and grabbing tough rebounds — the little things Lewis wanted to see — Spalding got an inspiring second-half shooting performance from guard Jourdan Grant to pull off a stunning 81-71 home win Tuesday night in Severn.

Ravens coach John Harbaugh will not be fined for making contact with a game official during Sunday's 31-30 victory over the New England Patriots, confirmed a league spokesman. Harbaugh was flagged late in the fourth quarter for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. Following the game, Harbaugh admitted he bumped an official, but said that it was inadvertent while he was trying to make a timeout call. "Well, here's how I understand it. I guess I didn't understand how [the referee]

Major League Lacrosse announced Wednesday that it will implement instant replay on scoring plays for the 2013 season. Specifically, replay will be used to determine only whether the ball had completely crossed the plane of the goal; whether a goal scored should be counted as a one- or two-point goal; or whether the last player in possession of the ball prior to the shot on goal had stepped in the crease before the ball crossed the plane of the...

In the tussle over mega-development projects in Owings Mills, it's about time we had an adult in the room. Baltimore County Executive Kevin Kamenetz, who is ordinarily loath to interfere with the County Council's prerogatives when it comes to land use and zoning, is stepping into that role with his promise to veto a piece of legislation that amounted to a massive giveaway to two developers. The bill, passed by the council on Monday, represented legislative sausage making at its worst and could have swamped Owings Mills' already overtaxed infrastructure.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and City Council President Bernard C. “Jack” Young came to an important accomodation Friday in their standoff about tax sales over unpaid water bills. The mayor was probably right that the two-year moratorium on tax sales Mr. Young had proposed endangered the city's bond rating, but Mr. Young was right to stand firm on the principle that no one should risk losing a home based on an estimated water bill. Now the mayor has agreed to send to tax sale only properties for which the unpaid bills are based on acutal meter readings, and that is progress.

Covie Stanwick tried to carry Notre Dame Prep to a victory on Thursday afternoon, but Roland Park wouldn't let her do it. Stanwick finished with 10 points in the Interscholastic Athletic Association of Maryland A Conference game, but No. 12 Roland Park tightened its defense, became more effective on offense after early troubles and pulled out a 15-12 victory over No. 2 Notre Dame Prep. Stanwick finished with five goals and five assists, and had a hand in 10 of the team's 12 goals.

Here is an idea for the dog days of August: Let's not fight over vacation. Of course, every family has the right to squabble among itself on this topic. Some will lobby for the beach. Others will argue for the mountains. A few, usually those paying the bill, will advocate staying close to home. This is a matter that should be resolved " en famille . " We feel that way about the first family's vacations as well. We propose that when it comes to taking potshots at the president over where he and his family take their time off, Americans take a "time out. " What purpose was served by all those snarky remarks about the long vacations President George W. Bush and his family took at their ranch in Crawford, Texas?

Maryland shook off an early offensive malaise to rout visiting Elon, 76-50, in a nonconference game at Comcast Center last night. For the first seven minutes, the Terps (10-2) looked ripe for the type of upset that haunted them last December as Elon (4-5), of the Southern Conference, appeared confident in building a 10-6 lead. But after a three-pointer by the Phoenix's T.J. Douglas gave Elon that four-point cushion, which turned out to be its biggest lead of the night, Maryland coach Gary Williams, clearly unhappy, took a timeout to refocus his club, and the Terps responded by pulling away for a 36-23 halftime lead.