QB Osweiler leaving ASU for NFL
Football: Already committed to play basketball at Gonzaga, Brock Osweiler made the difficult decision to instead play football at Arizona State.
Three years later, Osweiler found himself with another choice to make – and again decided to leave.
Osweiler declared for the NFL on Friday and will forgo his senior season at Arizona State, leaving after one of the best seasons by a quarterback in the program’s history.
“While I bleed and sweat Maroon and Gold I have now made the second-most difficult decision in my life,” Osweiler said in a statement. “… Having spoken to my family and close friends it became clear to me that this is the next path I must take to advance my personal and professional career.”
In his first full season as a starter, Osweiler became the first Arizona State quarterback to throw for 4,000 yards, finishing with 4,036 while setting school records for completions (326), attempts (516) and completion percentage (63.2). He also threw for 26 touchdowns, fourth most in school history, and had seven 300-yard passing games, including a career-high 487 against rival Arizona.
Osweiler threw for 5,082 yards and 33 touchdowns in his three seasons in the desert and has been projected as a midround NFL draft pick.
A star basketball player in Kalispell the 6-foot-8 Osweiler was all set to play for Gonzaga when he had a change of heart.
• Also declaring for the draft: Clemson tight end Dwayne Allen, Virginia Tech running back David Wilson, Boston College linebacker Luke Kuechly and Michigan State running back Edwin Baker.
League delays realignment
Hockey: The NHL said that it won’t go forward with its realignment plan and modified playoff format next season after the players’ association refused to agree to the changes.
The changes were approved in December by the NHL’s board of governors, with the league planning to switch from two three-division conferences to six divisions.
The league said it will maintain its current alignment and playoff format next season.
• Big crowd watches minor-league outdoor game: An American Hockey League-record crowd of 46,653 watched the Adirondack Phantoms beat the Hershey Bears 4-3 in overtime at Philadelphia’s Citizens Bank Park, four days after the NHL’s Winter Classic at the baseball stadium.
• Rangers continue surge: Brandon Dubinsky had a goal and an assist, Henrik Lundqvist made 37 saves and the surging New York Rangers beat host Pittsburgh 3-1 for their fourth straight win.
• In other NHL games: Ilya Kovalchuk had two third-period goals to lead host New Jersey over Florida 5-2. … Eric Staal had a goal and two assists to lead host Carolina past Buffalo 4-2. … Semyon Varlamov made 27 saves to earn his second shutout to lead the Colorado Avalanche past the Blackhawks in Chicago 4-0 for their fourth straight win. … Ryan Getzlaf scored the go-ahead goal late in the third period and host Anaheim beat the New York Islanders 4-2 to end a three-game skid.
Western Kentucky fires coach
College basketball: Western Kentucky fired men’s coach Ken McDonald after a 5-11 start capped by a chaotic ending to a loss the night before. Assistant Ray Harper was appointed interim head coach.
McDonald finishes with a 67-49 record following a 72-70 overtime defeat to Louisiana-Lafayette when the Ragin’ Cajuns scored with six players on the court for the final possession. The Sun Belt Conference confirmed the error Friday, but said the score would stand.
Bulls beat Magic for sixth straight victory
NBA: Derrick Rose and Luol Deng each scored 21 points and the Chicago Bulls held off a fourth-quarter surge by Orlando to beat the host Magic 97-83 for their sixth straight victory.
The Bulls (7-1) are off to their best start since winning 12 of 13 to open the 1996-97 season. The latest victory began a brutal stretch for Chicago that includes seven games in nine nights.
• In other highlights: Atlanta went to overtime for a second straight night but won this time, pulling out a victory over host Charlotte 102-96 behind 23 points and 13 rebounds from Josh Smith. The Hawks lost in triple-overtime to the Miami Heat the night before. … Carmelo Anthony made a go-ahead 3-pointer with 15.9 seconds to play and scored 37 points as New York rallied to win 99-96 and keep host Washington winless. … Deron Williams had 24 points and nine assists, Anthony Morrow also scored 24 and New Jersey snapped a six-game losing streak by beating host Toronto 97-85. … Indiana won its first game in Boston since 2007 with an 87-74 victory. … Kobe Bryant scored 26 of his 39 points in the second half and the Lakers gritted out a 97-90 victory over Golden State. The Lakers were playing their NBA-high ninth game in 13 days. … Steve Nash made all seven of his shots and handed out nine assists, then sat out the fourth quarter to watch his Phoenix Suns complete a 102-77 rout of visiting Portland.
Byrd leads PGA season opener
Golf: A new PGA Tour season began with a familiar name atop the leaderboard at Kapalua, Hawaii.
Defending champion Jonathan Byrd ran off six straight birdies early in his round and opened with a 6-under 67 to give him a one-shot lead in the Tournament of Champions. The winners-only field has only 27 players.
WBA VP: Khan deserves rematch
Miscellany: The vice president of the World Boxing Association called for a rematch of the light-welterweight title fight between Amir Khan and Lamont Peterson after Khan raised questions about the legitimacy of the American’s victory.
The WBA is studying images of an unidentified man who Khan has accused of interfering with the judges and leaning over WBA supervisor Michael Welsh during the fight Dec. 10 in Washington. Khan lost his IBF and WBA belts on a split decision after being docked two points for pushing.
• Noyola, Wenger win Hermann Trophy: Stanford senior midfielder Teresa Noyola and Duke junior forward Andrew Wenger are the winners of the Hermann Trophy as the top NCAA Division I soccer players.
The awards were decided in voting by NCAA Division I coaches whose programs are members of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America.