Federer seeded No. 7 at U.S. Open
Tennis: Roger Federer is seeded No. 7 for the U.S. Open, his first slot outside the top three at any Grand Slam tournament since he was 13th at Flushing Meadows in 2002.
Federer’s ranking dropped two slots to seventh on Monday, and the U.S. Tennis Association’s seedings followed the ATP standings.
Federer’s record 17 Grand Slam titles include five at the U.S. Open. He’s among five former champions in the men’s field, including No. 1-seeded Novak Djokovic, No. 2 Rafael Nadal, and No. 3 Andy Murray.
• Murray, Djokovic set to play: Andy Murray and Novak Djokovic are bringing their burgeoning rivalry to Madison Square Garden.
The men who faced each other in three of the past four Grand Slam finals will play a best-of-three-sets exhibition match on March 3 at the arena used by the NBA’s Knicks and NHL’s Rangers.
• Isner, Berdych pull out: Two-time defending champion John Isner and top seed Tomas Berdych have pulled out of the Winston-Salem Open.
NCAA rules former Marine now eligibile
College football: The NCAA has ruled that a Middle Tennessee football player who spent five years in the Marines will be allowed to compete this fall and that he will have four years of eligibility remaining.
It’s a reversal from the NCAA’s earlier decision to rule Steven Rhodes was ineligible because he played in a recreational league during his military service.
• Camellia Bowl announced: The Sun Belt and Mid-American Conference will meet in a new bowl game in Alabama’s state capitol.
ESPN’s latest postseason game, the Camellia Bowl, will be played in December 2014.
• Ford to miss opener: Auburn defensive end Dee Ford is expected to miss the season opener against Washington State because of a knee injury.
Ford led the Tigers with six sacks last season.
Emirates leads at Louis Vuitton Cup
Miscellany:
Emirates Team New Zealand sailed away with another win because of a mechanical failure to Italy’s Luna Rossa, taking a 2-1 lead in the Louis Vuitton Cup finals in San Francisco.
The winner of the best-of-13 finals will face defending champion Oracle Team USA in the 34th America’s Cup starting Sept. 7.
• Sagan wins opening stage: Peter Sagan of Slovakia surged to the front just after the final corner and sprinted to a two-bike length win and took the race lead in Stage 1 of the USA Pro Challenge at Aspen, Colo.
Greg Van Avermaet (BMC) of Belgium finished second.
• Penn State settlements expected: A lawyer brought in to help Penn State resolve civil claims with the victims of former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky says he expects 25 of 31 to be settled by the end of the week.