• Veteran TV Exec Don Ohlmeyer, A Former "MNF" Producer, Dies At 72
  
• Hard Rock Stadium Roof Intact After Irma Hits South Florida
• NFL May File Ezekiel Elliott Suspension Appeal As Soon As Today
  
• Atlanta United's Move To New Stadium Boosts MLS Attendance

Pioneering TV exec Don Ohlmeyer has died at the age of 72. He "began his television career at ABC and was one of the first producers" of "MNF," and he also worked on the net's Olympic coverage. He moved to NBC Sports in '77 and "executive produced NFL and MLB games." Ohlmeyer left NBC in '82 to start Ohlmeyer Communications, which "focused on made-for-television movies and sports specials like golf's Skins Game" (HOLLYWOODREPORTER.com, 9/10). His family "confirmed the death in a statement, saying the cause was cancer" (NYTIMES.com, 9/10).

Ohlmeyer was honored as one of SBJ's Champions in '12.

As Hurricane Irma continues to batter Florida, Hard Rock Stadium's one-year-old canopy "appeared to be intact" as of yesterday afternoon. Dolphins President & CEO Tom Garfinkel has been "tweeting short videos and still photos taken by surveillance cameras" around the stadium. While it is "not possible to glean what, if any, damage the facility suffered from Irma, what is visible in those images is encouraging." On the ground, there was "real damage to the trees that surround Joe Robbie Plaza on the stadium’s north side" (MIAMI HERALD, 9/11). The Heat's practice facility at AmericanAirlines Arena "sustained exterior membrane damage," but there was "no harm done to the actual roof" (South Florida SUN-SENTINEL, 9/11).

4:15pm @HardRockStadium pic.twitter.com/5p0q6K6kXz

— Tom Garfinkel (@TomGarfinkel) September 10, 2017

Meanwhile, the Braves said that they "distributed 18,562 tickets to Hurricane Irma evacuees over their four-game weekend series against the Marlins." People under mandatory evacuation orders were "eligible for complimentary tickets" (ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION, 9/11).

The Marlins' radio broadcast was "off the air" for yesterday's game against the Braves because Hurricane Irma caused "technical problems" at the team's flagship station. Play-by-play announcer Dave Van Horne said that WINZ-AM in Miami "had no feed for the game in Atlanta." The Marlins' radio network on MLB.com "used the Braves feed" to cover the contest, which the Braves won in 11 innings. Van Horne "watched from the visitors' press box booth" (AP, 9/10).

Meanwhile, both the CBS and Fox affiliates in Orlando "went with hurricane-overload by pre-empting" their Sunday NFL coverage in favor of a "continuous loop of hurricane coverage." Both affiliates "switched the games to sister stations," so then it "became a matter of finding them on that smorgasbord of cable options" (ORLANDO SENTINEL, 9/11).

The NFL will decide as soon as today "whether to pursue an appeal" of Cowboys RB Ezekiel Elliott's preliminary injunction to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. The goal would be to "overturn the ruling" from Judge Amos Mazzant III blocking Elliott's six-game suspension for domestic violence "as soon as possible." That would mean, if the appeal is filed and if it "succeeds quickly, Elliott’s suspension could be reinstated" this week ahead of Cowboys-Broncos on Sunday (PROFOOTBALLTALK.com, 9/10). 

Elliott last night ahead of the Cowboys season opener against the Giants "received a huge ovation, along with a loud chorus of 'Zeeeeke' the first time he touched the ball." He also "got a big cheer from the AT&T Stadium crowd when he was introduced along with the starting offense before the game" (FT. WORTH STAR-TELEGRAM, 9/11). 

Atlanta United yesterday defeated FC Dallas 3-0 "in front of an announced attendance of 45,314" in the team's first game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium (ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION, 9/11). With that figure and the 44,679 for yesterday's Galaxy-Sounders game at CenturyLink Field, MLS average attendance "climbed to 21,596" for '17. Atlanta United "still has seven home games" at its new venue, so MLS "should again break the league record of 21,692 fans set in 2016 if the remaining teams maintain their current average." That would mark the "fourth year in a row MLS broke its season attendance record" (SOCCERAMERICA.com, 9/10).

The Royals drew 35,003 for yesterday's win over the Twins, pushing the team's total attendance "over 2 million for the third straight season," the first such streak since the team drew more than 2 million in the '85-91 seasons. However, the team's attendance figures are "on pace to decrease for a second straight season following a single-season franchise record" in '15. With nine home games left, the Royals have drawn 2,001,729 fans. In '16, they drew 2,557,712 fans, with the record of 2,708,549 in '15 (K.C. STAR, 9/11).

Meanwhile, Saturday marked longtime Royals play-by-play announcer Ryan Lefebvre's "3,000th broadcast since coming" to K.C., and the team honored him with a "video tribute during the game" against the Twins (K.C. STAR, 9/10).

Tonight marks Ryan Lefebvre's 3,000th game in the broadcast booth as a member of the #Royals radio and TV team. Congrats, Ryan! #RaisedRoyal pic.twitter.com/G4aW5lFUCL

— Kansas City Royals (@Royals) September 9, 2017

MLB Network today will roll out a new promo for “MLB Tonight” that takes a humorous look at the studio show’s analysts and their passion for pennant chases. The spot, created in-house with the help of The Collective @ Lair, N.Y., is set to REO Speedwagon’s “Can’t Fight This Feeling” and uses slo-mo photos. MLB Net’s Mark DeRosa, Cliff Floyd, Al Leiter, Kevin Millar, Dan Plesac, Harold Reynolds and Bill Ripken are featured in the spot, which shares a name with the REO Speedwagon song.

Saturday's Clemson-Louisville game, originally set for 3:30pm ET, has been moved to 8:00pm on ABC to "fill the primetime slot that came open when the ACC rescheduled the Florida State-Miami matchup for Oct. 7" (COURIER-JOURNAL.com, 9/10).

Sonoma Raceway and Massachusetts-based United Site Services have agreed to a five-year sponsorship extension (Sonoma Raceway).

A crowd of 1,500 on Saturday attended the FC Barcelona Escola "academy opening ceremonies and an FC Barcelona watch party at Circuit of the Americas" (AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN, 9/11).

"Adults don’t get to spray champagne and do stupid stuff in public. This is the only place you can do it" -- Nationals 1B Ryan Zimmerman, on the club celebrating clinching the NL East over the weekend (WASHINGTON POST, 9/11). 

"Yes, a thousand percent yes. Every pitch is too important. I respect the umpires and the work they do, but it’s physically impossible to get all of the calls right" -- Rockies P Adam Ottavino, when asked if MLB could benefit from an automated strike zone in place of umpires (DENVERPOST.com, 9/10).

The GLOBE & MAIL looks at hockey's "Lost Boys, players who've disappeared into a weird form of NHL limbo." All "still get paid and all are still technically on active NHL rosters, but they are unable to compete because of their varied incapacitating medical issues." The names are "familiar to hockey fans when they drift into a 'Whatever Happened To … ?' mode."

The ARIZONA REPUBLIC writes under the header, "College Football Needs To Change Its Money-Grubbing Ways Before NFL Steps In." College football simply "has a greed problem," as there are "too many accountants and not enough accountability." 

Also:

• For Qatar-based beIN Sports, political feud "spills into stadiums." 
• Ezekiel Elliott situation awkward for Cowboys fans.
• A look at soccer's standing in the U.S.
• Poor Week 1 QB play highlights Colin Kaepernick's NFL absence. 
• Could Rafael Nadal surpass Roger Federer's tennis legacy?

With the Jacksonville airport still closed, the Texans now intend to stay in Houston today. Hopeful of being able to fly home Tues

— Jason La Canfora (@JasonLaCanfora) September 11, 2017

Bueller? A pretty empty stadium for the #Colts vs. #Rams game pic.twitter.com/Z2SA36IEHF

— Andy McDonnell (@Andy_McDonnell) September 10, 2017

Love Week One standings. The teams alone in 1st are Jaguars, Bills and Rams. Of course.

— Tim Cowlishaw (@TimCowlishaw) September 11, 2017

Sad to report that Mel Didier, beloved Toronto #BlueJays scout,has passed away at 90, according to his wife, Elana. What a beautiful life.

— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) September 11, 2017

If you see a tweet we will not want to miss, send it to us at editorial@sportsbusinessdaily.com

We will never forget. pic.twitter.com/b1ifS1A7GF

— MLB (@MLB) September 11, 2017

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Friday’s “Final Jeopardy!” category was “U.S. Cities.” 

“In 2015, it returned to the list of the 50 most populous U.S. cities 10 years after dropping off.”

Trail Blazers G Damian Lillard was a guest on Friday’s edition of CBS’ “The Late Late Show” and was featured in a skit before joining host James Corden in studio. Lillard sat down with Corden along with staff writer Ian Karmel to talk about his series-clinching shot over the Rockets in the '14 NBA Playoffs. When Corden asked Lillard about what was going through his head before the shot, Karmel stepped in and said, “All I could think was, ‘Oh man, traffic is going to be really bad on the way out of here. It's a packed house, one of the closest, most amazing games I've ever seen. Nobody left early. But then the unbelievable happened. Traffic wasn't that bad.” Later in the show, Lillard talked about his weekly “#4BarFriday” challenge, where anyone on Instagram can submit a 30-second video of themselves rapping. Corden then insisted Lillard “drop four bars,” which Lillard accepted. Lillard also spoke about his hip-hop career as Dame D.O.L.L.A., saying, “Everybody in my family has always been in love with music. ... As I got older, it continued to be a passion of mine, I made it to the NBA, used the platform and put my music out” (“The Late Late Show,” CBS, 9/9).

NBC’s Jimmy Fallon said on “The Tonight Show” Friday night, “Even though they were big favorites, the New England Patriots lost to the Kansas City Chiefs last night, and today the Patriots published a book about their loss called, ‘What Happened.'” Fallon added, “After the game Bill Belichick said the Patriots weren’t competitive enough, especially on offense and defense, so if they could just work on those two minor things they should all be set” (“The Tonight Show,” NBC, 9/8).

“What is New Orleans?”