The Univ. of South Carolina on Friday gave AD ERIC HYMAN "a $75,000 raise." A source said that Hyman "was contacted by his alma mater, North Carolina, about his interest in its athletics director position." He also was "linked to the top job" at the Univ. of Tennessee (Columbia STATE, 8/6). Hyman will earn "just under $500,000 next year" (AP, 8/5).
READY OR NOT ... In California, Scott Bair profiled Chargers Exec VP & Assistant GM ED MCGUIRE, who had "less than a week to execute" the team's plan for when the NFL lockout ended. It was a "whirlwind period that McGuire calls a unique challenge." McGuire said, "I may have been a jerk to my family in the days leading up to it because I knew it was going to be 15-16-hour days and we were going to have to go all-in, but once everything started you had to just go. It was more of a mental grind than a physical one, but we all got through it" (NORTH COUNTY TIMES, 8/7).
IRON MEN: Steelers QB BEN ROETHLISBERGER, S TROY POLAMALU and WR HINES WARD were among the players scheduled on Saturday "to take the field at Heinz Field as part of a shoot" for the forthcoming Batman movie, "THE DARK KNIGHT RISES." CBS NFL analyst BILL COWHER and Pittsburgh Mayor LUKE RAVENSTAHL also were scheduled for the shoot. Legendary Pictures Chair & CEO THOMAS TULL, whose company is helping to make the movie, is a minority owner of the Steelers (Pittsburgh TRIBUNE-REVIEW, 8/6).
NAMES: In California, Doug Krikorian profiled Clippers President ANDY ROESER, who "has long been a passionate booster" of Long Beach. When not in L.A., Roeser "can be found visiting various locales" in the California city (Long Beach PRESS-TELEGRAM, 8/7)....Florida State Univ. football coach JIMBO FISHER and his wife, CANDI, have announced the creation "of a new national fund to fuel the quest for a cure for Fanconi anemia, a rare life-threatening disorder that afflicts their 6-year-old son, ETHAN." Money raised via OnaKwest for a Cure will "support research into this disease" at the Univ. of Minnesota (PALMBEACHPOST.com, 8/5)....Nike BOD member PHYLLIS WISE was named Chancellor at the Univ. of Illinois' main campus (BIZJOURNALS.com, 8/5)....Mexican telecommunications billionaire CARLOS SLIM attended last night's Yankees-Red Sox game as a guest of Red Sox 1B ADRIAN GONZALEZ' father, DAVID (BOSTON GLOBE, 8/8).
IN MEMORY: Longtime New Haven Register sports writer DAVE SOLOMON "was killed Saturday night when his car went out of control on I-91 and struck a tree." Solomon, 59, "was headed home after covering" UConn's first football practice of the season (HARTFORD COURANT, 8/8). In Connecticut, Sean Barker writes, "We've lost the most influential sports figure in Greater New Haven. We've lost a great writer, and an even greater friend" (NEW HAVEN REGISTER, 8/8).
