Fast Break
College football
Locals help Carroll win title
Local players scored all the points for Carroll College in its 17-9 win over Souix Falls (S.D.) in the NAIA championship game on Saturday in Savannah, Tenn.
Coeur d’Alene High School grad Gabe Le ran for 116 yards and two touchdowns and Gonzaga Prep’s Marcus Miller kicked a 25-yard field goal and two extra points.
In was the Montana school’s fifth NAIA title in the past six years.
College basketball
Olson still paid despite absence
Arizona basketball coach Lute Olson isn’t expected to coach a single game this season while on personal leave, but he’ll still be paid a $738,000 base salary.
He earns one of the top salaries in the state university system, but it remains unclear how officials decided to continue his pay when he’s expected to be sidelined for months because of a recently announced divorce.
University of Arizona officials said his leave complies with policies, although they declined to say how.
More than one month ago, Olson said he was temporarily stepping aside to deal with a personal matter. On Dec. 6, the 73-year-old Olson filed for divorce from his second wife, 50-year-old Christine Olson, the same day he announced he had extended his leave.
Arizona athletics director Jim Livengood said Olson’s salary comes from the athletic budget and uses no state funding or taxpayer dollars.
NFL
Vick’s house not so fetching
Maybe it was the inescapable mind’s-eye visions of the brutality inflicted on dogs in the rugged wooded area behind the fence. Or maybe it was the glare of the media spotlight.
Something kept Michael Vick’s former dogfighting headquarters from selling at auction Saturday, disappointing real estate developer Wilbur Ray Todd Jr. He rejected the only serious bid – $747,000.
Vick is serving a 23-month sentence for a dogfighting conspiracy. The suspended Atlanta Falcons quarterback and three co-defendants raised pit bulls and trained them for fighting in the area behind a 4,600-square-foot house.
Facing financial ruin, Vick sold the property to Todd for the bargain price of $450,000.
Todd spent about $50,000 sprucing up the place and hoped to draw more than $1 million.
A container for donations to the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was placed at the front of the driveway. About 70 people came, but only six registered as possible bidders.
If he can’t do better in a conventional sale, Todd said, he has other ideas.
“We’ve talked about a bed-and-breakfast,” he said. “All the bedrooms have their own bathroom, and we could incorporate the kennels in the back: Bring your pet.”