Under Armour, which is marking its 20th year in business, yesterday held Armour Day at its HQ in Locust Point, Md. Among those in attendance were skier LINDSEY VONN, who "posted a video as she prepared for a karaoke competition" with Pro Football HOFer DEION SANDERS. Ripken Baseball tweeted that Baseball HOFer CAL was "with our friends at Under Armour." Maryland Gov. LARRY HOGAN "posed for a photo with Sanders" and ESPN NFL analyst RAY LEWIS. Also in attendance were CBS NFL analyst BOOMER ESIASON, former MLBer ROGER CLEMENS and Patriots QB TOM BRADY (BALTIMORESUN.com, 5/4).
DEVILS' ADVOCATES: After dropping the program in '08, Arizona State is reinstating men's tennis thanks in part to adidas donating $4M to the return of the program. The return was also helped by a $1M donation by VP/Athletics RAY ANDERSON and his wife BUFFIE. Men's tennis is the "fourth sport ASU has added since Anderson was hired" in January '14. adidas "pays ASU an additional $75,000 per year when a new sports is added and $50,000 per year to be used 'at the discretion of the athletic department'" (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 5/5). SPORTSBUSINESS JOURNAL this week also examined the moves ASU is making with regard to its multimedia rights.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT: Basketball HOFer MICHAEL JORDAN "is one of 13 owners in a 325-seat restaurant" on the Loxahatchee River in Florida expected to open by the end of '17. The 18,000-square-foot restaurant will "overlook the Jupiter Inlet Lighthouse," and a dock and boat slips "are planned." Investor IRA FENTON said that the restaurant "will be called 1000 North" (MYPALMBEACHPOST.com, 5/4)....Former Ohio State football players CHIMDI CHEKWA and BRYANT BROWNING "are collaborating on the Pit BBQ Grill," a restaurant in Columbus (COLUMBUS DISPATCH, 5/5).
CHARITY STRIPE: Vikings RB ADRIAN PETERSON is "donating $100,000 to aid those affected by the deadly floods in his hometown of Palestine, Texas over the weekend." Peterson "pledges to match any donations made to the Salvation Army" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 5/5)....Calgary Sports & Entertainment through the Calgary Flames Foundation has donated an initial $100,000 to the Canadian Red Cross relief efforts in Fort McMurray, Alberta (Flames)....Bengals QB ANDY DALTON and his wife, JORDAN, as part of the Andy & Jordan Foundation last week "hosted its second annual 'Date Night.'" The Daltons on Saturday will "be hosting the inaugural Andy & Jordan Dalton Foundation Golf Scramble at Twin Oaks Golf and Plantation Club," and in June will host his annual Celebrity Waiter Night (CINCINNATI ENQUIRER, 5/4).
NAMES: Nike co-Founder PHIL KNIGHT's son, TRAVIS, "is now in charge of a trust that controls more than 38 million shares of Nike stock," a stake worth $2.3B. The move "is likely the latest part of Phil Knight's estate plan" (BIZJOURNALS.com, 5/4)....MLB Commissioner ROB MANFRED yesterday was the featured speaker at the Eighth Circuit Judicial Conference in Rogers, Ark. U.S. Superme Court Chief Justice JOHN ROBERTS was in the audience of 400+ attendees (THE DAILY)....Actress CASSANDRA FREEMAN "hopes to score a slam-dunk with her portrayal" of WANDA PRATT -- the mother of Thunder F KEVIN DURANT and the "subject of the upcoming Lifetime movie 'THE REAL MVP: THE WANDA DURANT STORY.'" The film premieres Saturday at 8:00pm ET (NYPOST.com, 4/30)....NFL Jets C NICK MANGOLD yesterday made an appearance on "THE RACHAEL RAY SHOW" (NEWSDAY, 5/4).
IN MEMORY: Former Michigan Stadium PA announcer HOWARD KING died yesterday at 83. He was the voice of the Big House from '72-'05 (DETROIT FREE PRESS, 5/5).
