In Phoenix, Harris & Wagner in a front-page piece report former Fiesta Bowl COO NATALIE WISNESKI was "indicted on nine counts of making campaign contributions in the name of another, causing false statements to be made to the Federal Election Commission, and filing false tax returns and conspiracy." Seven of the charges are felonies. Wisneski will be arraigned Nov. 30 in U.S. District Court in Phoenix. She is the "first person charged in a wide criminal probe of the bowl" (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 11/17). An ARIZONA REPUBLIC editorial states, "Other more influential fish are still swimming just beyond the net, and Wisneski's indictment suggests a day of reckoning is coming for them, as well." The editorial continues, "College-football scandals today have a 'plague of locusts' quality to them" (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 11/17).
 |
Mobley's retirement saved Knicks about
$19M as insurance pays bulk of contract |
FORCED INTO EARLY RETIREMENT? In N.Y., Frank Isola notes former NBAer CUTTINO MOBLEY yesterday filed a complaint against MSG in U.S. District Court in N.Y., stating the Knicks "ended his career by having him declared medically ineligible to play because of a pre-existing heart condition" (N.Y. DAILY NEWS, 11/17). Also in N.Y., Marc Berman notes Mobley's retirement saved Knicks Owner JAMES DOLAN "an estimated $19 million because insurance pays a bulk of the contract and it no longer counted against the salary cap" (N.Y. POST, 11/17).
NAMES: The AP's Beth Rucker reports the Univ. of Tennessee has "rejected claims by three employees of its women's athletics department who say they were discriminated against because their salaries were lower than those of employees in the men's athletics department with comparable duties." Associate AD/Women's Sports Medicine JENNY MOSHAK, Assistant AD/Women's Strength & Conditioning HEATHER MASON and Associate Dir for Women's Strength & Conditioning COLLIN SCHLOSSER "filed the complaint to the UT Office of Equity and Diversity in 2010" (AP, 11/17)....Univ. of Oklahoma AD JOE CASTIGLIONE is replacing former Big 12 Commissioner DAN BEEBE for the "remainder of Beebe's term on the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Committee," which lasts through the '12-13 season (THE OKLAHOMAN, 11/17)....In St. Petersburg, Tom Jones lists the NHL's "Six Most Powerful People" as NHL VP/Player Safety & Hockey Operations BRENDAN SHANAHAN, Penguins C SIDNEY CROSBY, Commissioner GARY BETTMAN, NHLPA Exec Dir DONALD FEHR, player agent DON MEEHAN and Penguins co-Owner MARIO LEMIEUX (ST. PETERSBURG TIMES, 11/17)....The Hartford County Board of Education "rejected a $20,000 donation from" Vikings LBs E.J. and ERIN HENDERSON to help Aberdeen High School purchase a new electronic scoreboard. The brothers offered the donation "on the condition that the school's stadium be named 'Henderson Field' and that the family's name is on the scoreboard." The board members "cited their concerns about the ambiguity of the school system's policy of naming facilities after people or corporations" (Baltimore SUN, 11/17)....The Oklahoma Sports HOF will present ESPN’s JOHN ANDERSON with the Bill Teegins Award, given annually to a sportscaster with Oklahoma ties. Anderson was a sports photographer at Tulsa’s KTUL-ABC from ‘88-90 and weekend sports anchor at KOTV-CBS from ’90-96 (THE OKLAHOMAN, 11/17)….Cubs President of Baseball Operations THEO EPSTEIN is scheduled to be at the Hot Stove Cool Music fundraiser in Boston on Jan. 14 at the Paradise Rock Club (BOSTON GLOBE, 11/17).
