NCAA to Allow Replay Challenge

The NCAA will allow a football coach to challenge one ruling a game by officials and have it reviewed by replay, provided his team has an available timeout.

Under a proposal approved Tuesday by the NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel, if a coach’s challenge is successful, no timeout will be charged.

“This revised proposal achieves the intended result of the rules committee to incorporate a challenge into the video replay system,” panel chairman John Cochrane said.

The NCAA allowed the use of video replays at all schools and conferences last season, and nine of the 11 Division I-A conferences used some form of replay. The revision to include the challenge by coaches was proposed by the Football Rules Committee.

Before adjusting the rule, only the replay official could request to review plays, often leading to coaches calling a timeout in an attempt to get a play reviewed.

Plays involving a sideline, goal line, end zone or end line are reviewable. So are those involving whether a fumble occurred, a pass was completed or the ball broke the plane of the goal line.

Judgment calls such as holding and pass interference are not reviewable.

“I’ve never been a proponent of the whole instant replay thing,” USC Coach Pete Carroll said. “This is just another try at getting it right. We’ll make the best of it.”

The panel also approved a revision of the rule on the length of halftime in football. The recommended time is 20 minutes, but it may be lengthened or shortened with the consent of both schools.

Among basketball proposals, approval was given to a rule that would bar a player from calling a timeout while falling out of bounds or into the backcourt.

Navy has reached an agreement with the Meineke Car Care Bowl that could put the Midshipmen into the bowl when they’re eligible, bowl officials announced in Charlotte, N.C.

The deal assures Navy or the No. 3 selection from the Big East Conference will play an Atlantic Coast Conference team.

PRO FOOTBALL

Anaheim Council to Take Bids on Site

No longer is the city of Anaheim reserving a prime piece of real estate for the NFL.

The City Council agreed to solicit other offers for a 53-acre site in the parking lot of Angel Stadium, Mayor Curt Pringle said. The city had agreed to hold the spot for the NFL until today and will continue to talk to the league about the site, but the vote clears the way for discussions with developers who might be willing to pay more than the $50 million to which the NFL has tentatively agreed.

Councilman Harry Sidhu, who has opposed the NFL deal on grounds the proposed sale price does not reflect fair market value, said the competitive bidding might “at least show what other opportunity we’re missing.”

The city could make the most money from the site if a developer could build residences there, brokers say. That use is forbidden under the Angels’ lease.

Pringle, a staunch supporter of the city’s NFL bid, said the city would take “proactive steps” to market the land but said he would evaluate the NFL and any other interested bidders on the economic benefits of proposed developments.

-- Bill Shaikin

The Minnesota Vikings hired Rick Spielman as vice president for player personnel, replacing Fran Foley, who was fired after three months on the job following a controversy about inaccuracies on his resume.

SOCCER

Czech Republic Beats Costa Rica, 1-0

The Czech Republic, the opening opponent for the United States in the World Cup on June 12, held off Costa Rica, 1-0, in a warmup match at Jablonec Nad Nisou, Czech Republic.

In other matches, Steven Gerrard, John Terry and Peter Crouch each scored to lead England over Hungary, 3-1, and Argentina defeated Angola, 2-0.

Tunisia beat Belarus, 3-0, Ivory Coast was held to a 1-1 tie by Chile and Poland lost to Colombia, 2-1. Host Germany settled for a 2-2 tie with Japan. Defending champion Brazil routed the Swiss club FC Lucerne, 8-0

MISCELLANY

Woods Plans to Playin the U.S. Open

Tiger Woods said he would play in the U.S. Open, his first appearance on the PGA Tour since the Masters tournament in April and the death of his father on May 3.

Woods hasn’t missed a major tournament since turning professional in 1997. His decision to skip this week’s Memorial Tournament in Ohio had raised questions about whether he would keep that streak going at the Open, which starts June 15 at Winged Foot Golf Club in Mamaroneck, New York.

“Am I definitely going to play? Yeah,” Woods said in an interview after a private clinic in Little Rock, Ark.

Tony Stewart is expected to drive this weekend in Dover, Del., despite a broken shoulder blade that knocked him out of Sunday’s NASCAR Nextel Cup event at Lowe’s Motor Speedway. Ricky Rudd, who has yet to race this season, will practice and qualify the car and be on standby to relieve Stewart if he needs to get out of the car.

North Carolina State center Cedric Simmons will forfeit his final two years of college eligibility to enter the NBA draft.

World champion Bershawn Jackson won the 400-meter hurdles at the IAAF Super Grand Prix Golden Spike meet at Ostrava, Czech Republic. Jackson finished in 48.76 seconds, well behind his world-best time this year of 47.60 on May 6 in Japan.