News and Notes from East Carolina, Conference USA and Beyond

PREVIOUS NUGGETS

06.29.06: BCS to tweak timing of weekly poll ... Louisville to push two players for Heisman ... Redick fares well in draft despite impediments

06.28.06: Postgraduate scholarship goes to ECU's Davenport ... UCF center foregoes final year of eligibility ... Sinclair named women's athlete of the year

06.27.06: Beavers beat Heels to win College World Series ... Irish baseball coach to interview for LSU job ... Cal quarterback suspended after assault charge

06.26.06: Mustangs lead
C-USA teams in Director's Cup ... Tulane AD receives prestigious service award ... Calipari racking up some broadcast work

06.25.06: Coal industry to sponsor Marshall-WVU series ... Mountaineers extend Rodriguez deal to 2012 ... Vols add non-league challenges

06.24.06: Del Conte takes reins as AD at Rice ... Contact at combine means fine for Emory ... UNCW aligns with adidas for shoes, uniforms

06.23.06: Witter starts professional ball with a flourish ... Big Ben's little sister commits to Sooners ... Wake Forest football recruit faces felony charges

06.22.06: Big Ten scores momentous television deals ... Former ECU diver Derr to coach at JMU ... Grizzlies turn to Tinkle on hardwood

06.21.06: Troth returns to the fold as ECU assistant ... College of Charleston, Herrion settle on buyout ... Another national award for Houston's Lincoln

06.20.06: ECU announces long-term pact with Nike ... Pirates release women's soccer schedule ... Three C-USA linemen on Outland Trophy list

06.19.06: USM-Memphis game shifts to Sunday for ESPN ... Tar Heels AD Baddour gets contract extension ... U.S. Women's open to have distinct Duke flavor

06.18.06: Rice rallies in its College World Series opener ... Houston's Lincoln gets 2006 Howser Trophy ... C-USA's top scorer backs away from NBA draft

06.17.06: ECU grad Millican wins N.C. women's amateur ... College World Series: Tigers win in comeback ... LSU's Carter sweeps national track honors

06.16.06: Ex-ECU assistant named Campbell grid coach ... Pirate softball ace Keli Harrell named All-State .. Report: Back woes nix Redick draft workouts

06.15.06: Camels expected to name football coach ... Rice leads C-USA contingent on A-A team ... K-State, UCLA announce football dates

06.14.06: ECU's Smith among 7 C-USA All-Americans ... Duke star Redick charged with drunk driving ... UAB selects Shoop to guide baseball program

06.13.06: Owls carrying C-USA banner to Omaha ... ECU's Ray shares Coastal Plain League honor ... Terms of Huggins' K-State contract reported

06.12.06: ECU ticket office temporarily relocates ... Irish safety's ring debut: Bell rung quickly ... Miners seventh in NCAA men's track

06.11.06: Miami loses Berry- recruited QB to baseball ... Clemens award finalists have C-USA flavor ... Buckeyes announce series with Toledo

06.10.06: ECU network announces blowtorch flagships ... "The Buzz" remains in Pirate broadcast lineup ... Former LSU athlete turned pro wrestler dies

06.09.06: ECU's "Voice" revving up for benefit "Ride" ... Pirates bow out at NCAA track & field meet ... ODU makes plans to add I-AA football

06.08.06: MLB Draft: Smith selected by A's, Mathews by Giants ... ECU's Hunt, Krug take Scholar Athlete honors ... NCAA nixes course credits from 'diploma mills'

06.07.06: ECU's track elite at NCAA meet in Sacramento ... Super region pairings pit Rice against Sooners ... Cleared USC quarterback says he's rejoined team

06.06.06: NCAA change on grad transfers gets reaction ... Duke reinstates men's lacrosse with conditions ... Cardieri resigns as baseball coach at USF

06.05.06: Owls carry C-USA banner against Bears ... Laval steps down as LSU baseball coach ... Date of "Civil War" changed for TV

06.04.06: C-USA players reap All-America honors ... "Flesh- eating" germ claims Tulsa gridder ... Blazers baseball coach hangs up cleats

06.03.06: ECU's Jake Smith named 2nd-team All-America ... Pirates get first signee in McPhaul golfing era ... Duke men's lacrosse program to be reinstated

06.02.06: Bucs' new pitching coach has LeClair pedigree ... Three gridders depart WVU program ... ECU announces blue chip tennis signees

06.01.06: Pirates announce kickoff times, TV games ... ECU excels among C-USA's academic elite ... Rice's Degerman makes Academic All-America

The National Collegiate Athletic Association has awarded a bowl game to the City of Houston that will be played following the 2006 college football season, according to an announcement on the Conference USA website.

Representatives from Lone Star Sports and Entertainment (LSSE) and the Harris County-Houston Sports Authority, along with the commissioners of the Big 12 Conference and Conference USA and the athletic directors from the University of Houston and Rice University, presented a plan for the game Tuesday at the NCAA Division I championships/competition cabinet meeting in San Diego.

The bowl game will be played at Reliant Stadium, home of the NFL's Houston Texans.

Participating teams will be chosen from the Big 12, Conference USA, Big East, and Mountain West conferences. It is expected that the Big 12 and/or Conference USA will provide at least one team to compete in the game on an annual basis. This year's game will be played on Thursday, December 28. Specific information regarding conference selection order will be released at a later date.

A local organizing committee will be created to oversee the planning for the bowl. LSSE will serve as the local producer of the bowl and will coordinate marketing, broadcasting, sponsorship, public relations, and other key activities for the event.

A name and identity package is now being developed for the bowl, and it will be announced at a later date. LSSE is also finalizing the details of the bowl's television package and game entitlement, and will announce those details soon.

The announcement gives C-USA agreements with seven different bowl games and guarantees the league at least five berths in each of the next three seasons.

After a 2005-06 season full of milestones, the Memphis basketball program made more history in the NBA draft as Rodney Carney and Shawne Williams were consecutive first round selections at No. 16 and No. 17.

Carney, an Indianapolis native, was selected by the Chicago Bulls and then traded to the Philadelphia 76ers. Williams, from Memphis, was picked by the Indiana Pacers.

Carney was selected the Conference USA Player of the Year and was named to the C-USA All-Tournament and All-Conference first teams. The 6-7 forward was a finalist for three national Player of the Year honors. He led the Tigers in scoring (17.2 ppg) and three-point field goal percentage (39.1) last season.

A consensus national freshman All-America pick, Williams was named the C-USA Freshman of the Year and was an All-Conference third team selection. The 6-9 forward, who earned the C-USA Tournament MVP award, was the team's third-leading scorer (13.2 ppg) and second-leading rebounder (6.2 rpg) and shot a team-high 78.6 percent from the free throw line. Williams posted five double-doubles in 2005-06.

Paul Mainieri, who directed Notre Dame to 533 wins and nine NCAA Tournament appearances in 12 seasons, has been introduced as LSU’s 25th head baseball coach by athletics director Skip Bertman.

The hiring of Mainieri, a 1976 LSU baseball letterman who also played two seasons at the University of New Orleans, is subject to approval by the university's board of supervisors.

Gregg Marshall stunned the college basketball world by announcing he will be staying at Winthrop after all, according to the university's athletic website.

Marshall, who has guided the Eagles to six Big South Conference championships and a like number of appearances in the NCAA tournament, is the winningest coach in Winthrop history with 165 wins against 78 losses. His record against Big South opponents is even more impressive at 110-27.

Appearing Thursday afternoon at a hastily called news conference at the Winthrop Coliseum with Winthrop president Anthony DiGiorgio, his coaching staff and players by his side, Marshall said the prior 24 hours had been professionally and emotionally “excruciating.”

On his way back from a high-profile Wednesday night introduction to Low Country media as the College of Charleston’s next basketball coach, Marshall said he and his wife realized they weren’t feeling the way they expected to feel.

“Lynn and I talked it through yet again… more deeply this time… asking ourselves bigger and more profound questions about what our life goals are at this point in our lives,” Marshall said.

News Nuggets are compiled periodically based on material supplied by staff members; data published by ECU, Conference USA and its member schools; and reports from other sources. Copyright 2006 Bonesville.net and other publishers. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.