Stallworth Loses NCAA Eligibility

The NCAA denied Tennessee receiver Donte Stallworth’s request to have his eligibility reinstated after he changed his mind about entering the NFL draft.

NCAA officials called the university Thursday and said the Student-Athlete Reinstatement staff denied the request.

Stallworth, a junior from Sacramento, could appeal the decision to an NCAA committee, but university officials said he was waiting to talk to his family before deciding whether he wanted to appeal.

If Stallworth decides to appeal and is denied again, it could give him less time to prepare for the NFL combine, which starts Feb. 28. The draft will be held in April.

The NCAA did not give a reason why the request was denied, and spokeswoman Jane Jankowski said that information could only be released by the school.

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Kentucky was hit hard by the NCAA when it was put on three years’ probation for football recruiting violations in “one of the more serious cases heard by the committee in recent years.”

The Wildcats, cited by the NCAA for more than three dozen recruiting violations, were banned from a bowl game next season and must forfeit a total of 19 scholarships over the next three years.

“This is an embarrassment to the university, it’s an embarrassment to our fans and it’s an embarrassment to the athletic department,” Kentucky Athletic Director Larry Ivy said. “It’s something we wish hadn’t happened and something we hope never happens again.”

The NCAA will announce its sanctions against the Alabama football program today after a nearly two-year probe that included allegations of payments to prep stars.

Jurisprudence

Sports agent William “Tank” Black was convicted of federal fraud charges in Gainesville, Fla., for swindling up to $14 million from the professional football players he represented, including Fred Taylor and Ike Hilliard.

A federal jury convicted Black of defrauding the federal government, conspiracy to commit mail fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and obstruction of justice.

Black faces up to 25 years in prison when he is sentenced May 6.

Pro Football

Joe Bugel, best known for forging the dominant offensive line known as the “Hogs” with the Washington Redskins in the 1980s, retired after coaching for 26 years in the NFL.

Bugel, 62, spent the last four seasons as offensive line coach with the San Diego Chargers and was head coach of the Arizona Cardinals and Oakland Raiders during the 1990s.

Former San Diego Charger coach Mike Riley will join the Saints as assistant head coach and secondary coach. Longtime Saint assistant Rick Venturi will move into the defensive coordinator position vacated by Ron Zook, who left for the University of Florida.

Jacksonville Jaguars special teams coordinator Frank Gansz retired after 24 years of NFL coaching. Jaguar Coach Tom Coughlin will fill Gansz’s spot with John Bonamego.

Cincinnati Bengal running back Corey Dillon replaced Pittsburgh’s Jerome Bettis on the Pro Bowl roster after the Steeler decided to skip the Feb. 9 game in Honolulu.

Jacksonville wide receiver Jimmy Smith and Denver defensive tackle Trevor Pryce also dropped out of the game. Smith has a sprained ankle and Pryce is attending to personal family matters. Pittsburgh’s Hines Ward replaced Smith and Tennessee’s Gary Walker replaced Pryce.

Atlanta Falcon linebacker Keith Brooking was added as the NFC’s “need” player.

Tennis

Italy’s Davide Sanguinetti stunned top-seeded Juan Carlos Ferrero, 6-2, 6-4, in a second-round match of the $381,000 Milan Indoors ATP tournament in Italy.

Russia’s Anna Kournikova needed two tiebreakers to upset compatriot Elena Dementieva, 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5) and advance to the quarterfinals of the Toray Pan Pacific tournament at Tokyo.

Kournikova will next play Luxembourg’s Anne Kremer, a 7-5, 6-2 winner against Jelena Dokic of Yugoslavia.

The sixth-seeded team of Rick Leach and Ellis Ferreira defeated Wimbledon champions Donald Johnson and Jared Palmer, 6-4, 7-6 (3) to advance to the semifinals of the World Doubles Challenge Cup at Bangalore, India.

Miscellany

The WNBA begins its sixth season over Memorial Day weekend with the defending champion Sparks featured prominently. The Sparks open at home on May 25 against the New York Liberty before playing at Houston on May 27 in nationally televised games.

Marco Antonio Barrera, scheduled to fight Erik Morales on March 2 for the World Boxing Council featherweight championship, suffered bruised ribs in a sparring session Wednesday, but the injury is not expected to delay the fight at Las Vegas’ Mandalay Bay Events Center. X-rays of Barrera’s ribs showed no fracture.

Adam Mair, who scored one goal in eight games with the Kings, was reassigned to the club’s American Hockey League team at Manchester, N.H.

The rookie center left the bench to join a brawl in a Dec. 20 game at Ottawa, drawing an automatic 10-game suspension.

Passings

Marge Callahan, coach of Cal State Los Angeles’ 1979 national championship archery team and the 1982 national archery coach of the year, has died, the school announced.