Schembechler honored at Michigan Stadium
A football was nowhere to be found Tuesday, though that didn’t stop about 15,000 people from sitting in Michigan Stadium to honor Bo Schembechler in Ann Arbor, Mich.
Michigan football greats from Desmond Howard to Dan Dierdorf passed through the tunnel and onto the field and many former players jumped to slap the “GO BLUE” banner as they did when they played.
Several speakers recounted stories about the fiery coach, who also had a sense of humor, from a stage that was set up along the sideline that Schembechler roamed from 1969-89.
Baseball
Uribe cleared
Dominican prosecutors say they’ve seen no proof that Chicago White Sox shortstop Juan Uribe had anything to do with the shooting of two men, and they will not pursue charges if no evidence is presented within 10 days.
Uribe, his brother and a friend were questioned and released following the Oct. 13 shooting that wounded a Dominican farmer and a captain in the Italian Navy in the coastal city of Juan Baron, about 40 miles southwest of Santo Domingo.
•Frank Catalanotto, the utility player who started at five positions for Texas from 2000-02, returned to the Rangers as a left fielder and potential leadoff hitter when he finalized a $13 million, three-year contract.
Tennis
Davis Cup rosters set
Nikolay Davydenko and Marat Safin will lead Russia against Argentina in the Davis Cup final next month.
They will be joined by Mikhail Youzhny and Dmitry Tursunov, the International Tennis Federation announced. The Dec. 1-3 final will be played on carpet at the Olympic Indoor Stadium in Moscow.
Argentina’s team includes David Nalbandian, Jose Acasuso, Agustin Calleri and Juan Ignacio Chela.
•The WTA Tour wants to shorten its season, reduce the number of mandatory tournaments and give the top women more of a break after Grand Slam events. The tour said it hopes to implement the changes for the 2009 season.
Miscellany
Furyk takes lead
Jim Furyk shot a 5-under-par 67 for a one-stroke lead over U.S. Open champion Geoff Ogilvy after the opening round of the PGA Grand Slam of Golf in Poipu Beach, Hawaii.
Defending champion Tiger Woods, who has won the exclusive four-man event a record six straight times, struggled off the tee and scrambled to a 70.
•The United States lost to Italy at the men’s volleyball world championships in Fukuoka, Japan.
The U.S. team, which dropped to 1-3, needs to beat Iran in its final Group C match today to have a chance to advance.
•Scott Harrison, jailed last month in Spain for an alleged assault, was cleared to defend his WBO featherweight title Dec. 9 against Nicky Cook.
•The Beirut International Marathon was postponed because of the assassination of Pierre Gemayel, an anti-Syrian politician. He was killed in a suburb of Beirut.