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| Lewis Prepared To Surrender In Atlanta |
Ravens RB JAMAL LEWIS was indicted yesterday on federal drug charges in Atlanta, and in Baltimore, Jamison Hensley reports Lewis is "accused of trying to help a childhood friend buy cocaine in Atlanta during the summer of 2000." The Ravens "expressed optimism" that Lewis will be cleared of the charges. In a statement, GM OZZIE NEWSOME said, "We believe in due process, and Jamal will have his day in court. There are two sides to every story. From what we know of the charges, these seem out of character for the Jamal we know" (Baltimore SUN, 2/26).
RACING WITH AN ANCHOR: NBC anchor BRIAN WILLIAMS, a "die-hard NASCAR fan," asked in a SI Q&A if he is a NASCAR dad, responded, "As patronizing as it is when we label groups of people — my wife resented being called a soccer mom, for example — I guess I am. I go to races. We bring the kids. I buy stuff. But will seeing a candidate's name on the side of a car make me support him? I am happy to report that while I love MARK MARTIN, I have not ever purchased any Viagra" (SI, 3/1 issue).
HERE'S THE BEEF: As part of the "Today in Chicago" segment on NBC's "Today" this morning, the Bulls' male dance team, the MATADORS, performed. When NBC's KATIE COURIC asked about their training, one of them said, "We have to make sure we don't violate our weight clause and drop below whatever we need to be." After Couric sent the show back to MATT LAUER in the studio, Lauer said, "I'm going to go have a doughnut right after this segment" ("Today," NBC, 2/26).
THE TOUR IS OVER: FSN's Leeann Tweeden reported that MANDY MOORE, the girlfriend of ANDY RODDICK, asked him to quit "THE TOUR," a reality show which had "already begun filming." Tweeden: "Mandy was so concerned that she and Andy would become the next NICK [LACHEY] and JESSICA [SIMPSON] that she begged Andy to reconsider. So 'The Tour' starring Andy Roddick quickly became 'The Tour' starring JAMES BLAKE" ("BDSSP," FSN, 2/25).
NAMES: ESQUIRE Magazine listed Jets RB CURTIS MARTIN sixth and Yankees 3B ALEX RODRIGUEZ tenth among its "Best Dressed Men in America." The BRONCOS were named "Best Dressed Team," while Nuggets F CARMELO ANTHONY was named "Best Dressed Rookie." Included in the "Worst Dressed Men in America" list were "NFL on CBS" analyst DEION SANDERS, "NASCAR" and the Univ. of Oregon football team, whose uniforms are designed by Nike (ESQUIRE, 3/'04 issue). ...Real Madrid MF DAVID BECKHAM, who is currently learning Spanish, has become the focus of SOCCERLINGUA, a new European Union education project which aims to promote the learning of new languages (Mult., 2/25)....FRED NANCE, the attorney for Cavaliers G LEBRON JAMES, told a Summit County (OH) judge that James "needs another month" to respond to a $15M breach-of-contract lawsuit filed last year by JOSEPH MARSH, who claims that LeBron's mother, GLORIA, borrowed $100,000 from Marsh while LeBron was in high school "with the understanding that it would secure future business ventures between Marsh and LeBron James" (AKRON BEACON JOURNAL, 2/26)....Filmmaker BRAD ANDERSON has optioned "TED'S HEAD," a play about two Red Sox fans who kidnap TED WILLIAMS' head and "plant it in Fenway Park to try to reverse the curse" of the Bambino (BOSTON HERALD, 2/26).
