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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 13, 2017)
Page 2B SPORTS East Oregonian Wednesday, December 13, 2017 Pro Football NFL Network suspends analysts over sexual misconduct suit Associated Press NEW YORK — Hall of Fame player Marshall Faulk and two other NFL Network analysts were suspended after a woman who worked as a wardrobe stylist at the network accused them of sexual misconduct in a lawsuit. The NFL on Tuesday identified the three as Faulk, Ike Taylor and Heath Evans. They have been “suspended from their duties at NFL Network pending an investi- gation into these allegations,” league spokesman Brian McCarthy said. Jami Cantor described several sexually inappro- priate encounters with the three retired players and others who have worked for NFL Network, according to court documents first reported by Bloomberg . The lawsuit and suspen- sions are the latest in a wave of sexual misconduct allega- tions against prominent men in politics, entertainment and media. Former NFL Network executive Eric Weinberger, former NFL Network analysts Donovan McNabb, Eric Davis, and Hall of Famer Warren Sapp, and former NFL Network employee Marc Watts also are named in the lawsuit. Weinberger is president of the Bill Simmons Media Group and was placed on leave, according to a state- ment given to the New York Times . McNabb and Davis now work as ESPN radio contributors. “We are investigating, and AP Photo/File Hall of Fame player Marshall Faulk, left, and two other NFL Network analysts Ike Taylor, center, and Heath Ev- ans, right, have been suspended after a former employ- ee alleged sexual misconduct in a lawsuit. McNabb and Davis will not appear on our networks as that investigation proceeds,” ESPN spokesman Josh Krulewitz said Tuesday. None of the men named immediately responded to messages seeking comment from The Associated Press. Cantor worked at NFL Network for a decade until she was fired in October 2016. In the suit against NFL Enterprises, she alleges age and sex discrimination, sexual harassment that created a hostile work envi- ronment, wrongful termina- tion and defamation. Cantor’s lawyer, Laura Horton, filed an amended complaint Monday to the original suit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court in October. The amended version includes the names of those accused and details about the sexual misconduct allegations. Horton said she has not heard back from the NFL Network since the original filing in October. “It’s been silent. It just went nowhere,” Horton said Tuesday. “They haven’t reached out to me. I don’t know what their next move will be.” Cantor said in the suit that Faulk fondled and groped her and asked “deeply personal and invasive questions” about her sex life. Cantor said she received inappropriate and sexually explicit texts from Weinberger, McNabb, Taylor and Evans. “It was a severe, perva- sive, sexually charged work environment,” Horton said. “There was a lot of stuff going on. The texts and the video and the photographs, I’ve got them. It’s not like a he-said, she-said sort of thing. I’ve got documentary evidence.” Faulk starred for the Indi- anapolis Colts and St. Louis Rams. The running back was the NFL’s MVP in 2000 and won a Super Bowl with the Rams in the 2000 game. He retired in 2005. Taylor spent 12 seasons as a cornerback with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Evans, a fullback, was in the league for 10 seasons, mostly with Seattle, New England and New Orleans. Prep Sports OSAA’s 2018-2022 classification plan on hold due to appeals Football-specific changes could be on horizon, too By JERRY ULMER The Oregonian/OregonLive In a perfect world, the OSAA would have sealed the deal in October when it adopted a new classification and districting plan for the four-year time block that begins in 2018-19. More than two months later, though, the OSAA still needs to tie up some loose ends. It could be another month or so before a hearings officer rules on an appeal by the Salem-Keizer School District, which contends that the OSAA violated its own tenets and an Oregon statute when it placed five Salem-Keizer schools in the same league with three Bend schools. And an ad-hoc football committee, which the OSAA formed to address issues that have arisen mostly from declining participation, is evaluating potential changes that it could present to the executive board in February. So schools are in a holding pattern until it all gets sorted out. “We’ve asked schools to hold off on scheduling foot- ball for a little while to allow the committee to work and see if they can come up with something to put in place for next year,” OSAA executive director Peter Weber said. “Hopefully the committee can make something happen, but it may not be for next year. It may have to be beyond that.” The most pressing issue is the appeal from Salem- Keizer, which has the poten- tial to alter the districting in Class 6A. Salem-Keizer says the OSAA went against its own rules by forcing hardship on the district in the form of increased travel costs (estimated to climb $700,000 per school year) and substan- tial loss of instructional time. It claims the OSAA violated an Oregon statute (ORS 329.025) that regards instructional time, transpor- tation safety and a district’s control of its funds. It also charges that the OSAA did not allow the district enough time to respond to the plan before it was adopted by the executive board. “We believe we followed the process with all our policies,” Weber said. “We feel it best met our criteria that we’re following. Placing the Bend schools with the southern Oregon schools would be further travel for both groups. Same with placing them with, for example, the East County schools.” Cascade also is appealing its move from Class 4A to 5A next year. The school contends that the OSAA should use its enrollment number from Oct. 1 instead of the figure from 2016-17. OSAA bylaws dictate using of the number from the previous school year. W. Michael Gillette, a former Oregon Court of Appeals and Oregon Supreme Court judge, will hear the cases. No date has been scheduled for the hearings. What if Gillette rules in favor of Salem-Keizer? “If we’re told we need to do something different, then we’ll do something different at that point,” Weber said. Changes also could be coming from the findings of the ad-hoc football committee, a 13-member panel that includes princi- pals, athletic directors and football coaches. The classification and districting committee recommended formation of the ad-hoc committee to the executive board after encountering issues specific to football. The continued decline in participation has created more issues with competitive balance and led to 15 teams playing indepen- dent schedules this season. “They are trying to put together a plan that they think will help reverse the trend of declining participation and the loss of programs,” Weber said. One idea the ad-hoc committee is exploring is establishing criteria to allow schools to play down one classification. In its latest update, the committee proposed that BEAVERS: Play Saint Louis in Portland on Saturday Continued from 1B Oregon State led 70-67 but committed turnovers on consecutive possessions with less than two minutes left. Jacksonville State trailed 70-69 after two Jamall Gregory free throws, but Gregory missed a layup the next time down the floor. Jacksonville State made a defensive stop against the Beavers, though, and had a chance for the win. The Gamecocks came into the contest averaging 52.2 percent on field goals, which ranked sixth in the NCAA. But the Beavers held them to 42 percent shooting and shot 52 percent themselves. BIG PICTURE Oregon State: With a win against Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Saturday, Oregon State surpassed its win total for last season, when leading player Tinkle missed most of the year due to injury. . The Beavers last won four in a row during the 2014-15 season. The last time Oregon State won six in a row was in 2004-05. BREAKOUT GAME Kendal Manuel scored a season-high 10 points for the Beavers on Tuesday. He averaged 7.8 points as a freshman but had slumped as a sophomore, and was averaging 2.7 points entering the game. He hadn’t scored in five of the previous six contests. UP NEXT Oregon State hosts Saint Louis in Portland for the Dam City Classic on Saturday. SCOREBOARD Local slate PREP BOYS BASKETBALL Wednesday Hermiston at Walla Walla (WA), 7 p.m. Friday Condon/Wheeler vs. Mac-Hi (at Pilot Rock), 4:30 p.m. Ione vs. Riverside (at Stanfield), 4:30 p.m. Umatilla vs. Gervais (at Amity), 4:45 p.m. Putnam at Pendleton, 7 p.m. Wallowa at Nixyaawii, 7 p.m. Echo at Helix, 7 p.m. Heppner at Imbler, 7:30 p.m. Weston-McEwen at Grant Union, 7:30 p.m. Enterprise at Pilot Rock, 7:30 p.m. Elgin at Stanfield, 7:30 p.m. Irrigon at Union, 7:30 p.m. Saturday Mac-Hi vs. Enterprise (at Pilot Rock), 2:30 p.m. Hermiston at Lewiston (ID), 3 p.m. Echo at Pine Eagle, 3 p.m. Helix at Wallowa, 5 p.m. Weston-McEwen at Imbler, 5:30 p.m. Grant Union at Heppner, 5:30 p.m. Condon/Wheeler at Pilot Rock, 5:30 p.m. Cove at Nixyaawii, 5:30 p.m. Stanfield vs. TBD (at Stanfield), TBD Ione vs. TBD (at Stanfield), TBD Riverside vs. TBD (at Stanfield), TBD Umatilla vs. TBD (at Amity), TBD PREP GIRLS BASKETBALL Thursday Wilsonville at Pendleton, 7 p.m. Friday Condon/Wheeler vs. Mac-Hi (at Pilot Rock), 3 p.m. Umatilla vs. Gervais (at Amity), 3 p.m. Ione vs. Riverside (at Stanfield), 3 p.m. Heppner at Imbler, 3 p.m. Wallowa at Nixyaawii, 5 p.m. Irrigon at Union, 6 p.m. Weston-McEwen at Grant Union, 6 p.m. Enterprise at Pilot Rock, 6 p.m. Elgin at Stanfield, 6 p.m. Echo at Helix, 6 p.m. Saturday Mac-Hi vs. Enterprise (at Pilot Rock), 1 p.m. Echo at Pine Eagle, 4 p.m. Cove at Nixyaawii, 4 p.m. Weston-McEwen at Imbler, 4 p.m. Grant Union at Heppner, 4 p.m. Condon/Wheeler at Pilot Rock, 4 p.m. Helix at Wallowa, 5 p.m. La Grande vs. Irrigon (at Hermiston), 7 p.m. Ione vs. TBD (at Stanfield), TBD Umatilla vs. TBD (at Amity), TBD Stanfield vs. TBD (at Stanfield), TBD Riverside vs. TBD (at Stanfield), TBD PREP WRESTLING Friday Hermiston at Tri-State (ID) Pendleton at Banks Echo at Twin Falls (ID) Irrigon vs. Riverside Saturday Hermiston at Tri-State (ID) Pendleton at Liberty Tournament (Hillsboro) Mac-Hi, Riverside, Irrigon, Heppner, Echo at Mac-Hi Christmas Tournament PREP SWIMMING Saturday Pendleton, Hermiston at La Grande Basketball NBA EASTERN CONFERENCE Atlantic Division W L Pct GB Boston 23 6 .793 — Toronto 17 8 .680 4 New York 14 13 .519 8 Philadelphia 14 13 .519 8 Brooklyn 11 15 .423 10½ Southeast Division W L Pct GB Washington 14 13 .519 — Miami 13 13 .500 ½ Orlando 11 17 .393 3½ Charlotte 10 16 .385 3½ Atlanta 6 21 .222 8 Central Division W L Pct GB Cleveland 20 8 .714 — Milwaukee 15 10 .600 3½ Indiana 16 11 .593 3½ Detroit 14 13 .519 5½ Chicago 6 20 .231 13 WESTERN CONFERENCE Southwest Division W L Pct GB Houston 21 4 .840 — San Antonio 19 9 .679 3½ New Orleans 14 14 .500 8½ Memphis 8 19 .296 14 Dallas 8 20 .286 14½ Northwest Division W L Pct GB Minnesota 16 12 .571 — Denver 15 12 .556 ½ Portland 13 13 .500 2 Utah 13 14 .481 2½ Oklahoma City 12 14 .462 3 Pacific Division W L Pct GB Golden State 22 6 .786 — L.A. Clippers 10 15 .400 10½ L.A. Lakers 10 16 .385 11 Sacramento 9 18 .333 12½ Phoenix 9 20 .310 13½ ——— Tuesday’s Games Cleveland 123, Atlanta 114 Denver 103, Detroit 84 New York 113, L.A. Lakers 109, OT Brooklyn 103, Washington 98 Dallas 95, San Antonio 89 Philadelphia 118, Minnesota 112, OT Sacramento 99, Phoenix 92 Wednesday’s Games L.A. Clippers at Orlando, 4 p.m. Memphis at Washington, 4 p.m. Oklahoma City at Indiana, 4 p.m. Denver at Boston, 4:30 p.m. Portland at Miami, 4:30 p.m. Milwaukee at New Orleans, 5 p.m. Utah at Chicago, 5 p.m. Toronto at Phoenix, 7 p.m. Charlotte at Houston, 7:30 p.m. NCAA Men’s College Basketball Top 25 Tuesday’s Games No. 25 Cincinnati 65, Mississippi State 50 No. 15 Seton Hall 84, Saint Peter’s 61 Wednesday’s Games No. 1 Villanova at Temple, 4 p.m. (ESPN2) Savannah State at No. 9 Texas A&M, 5 p.m. Kennesaw State at No. 24 Texas Tech, 6 p.m. Pac-12 Tuesday’s Games Oregon State 70, Jacksonville St. 69 San Diego 69, Colorado 59 Wednesday’s Games Portland State at Oregon, 7 p.m. (PAC12) Women’s College Basketball Top 25 Tuesday’s Games No. 23 Michigan 79, North Florida 34 No. 3 Louisville 95, Tennessee St. 56 Wednesday’s Games Savannah State at No. 17 Oregon State, 11 a.m. No. 9 Oregon at No. 5 Mississippi St., 4 p.m. McNeese St. at No. 6 Baylor, 10 a.m. Northwestern St. at No. 8 Texas, 5 p.m. Pac-12 Tuesday’s Games No games scheduled. Wednesday’s Games Savannah State at No. 17 Oregon State, 11 a.m. No. 9 Oregon at No. 5 Mississippi St., 4 p.m. Hockey NHL EASTERN CONFERENCE Atlantic Division GP W L OT Tampa Bay 30 22 6 2 Toronto 32 20 11 1 Boston 27 14 9 4 Montreal 31 13 14 4 Florida 31 12 14 5 Detroit 30 11 13 6 Ottawa 29 9 13 7 Buffalo 31 8 17 6 Metropolitan Division GP W L OT Columbus 31 19 11 1 Washington 32 19 12 1 New Jersey 30 17 9 4 N.Y. Islanders 30 17 10 3 N.Y. Rangers 30 16 11 3 Pittsburgh 32 16 13 3 Carolina 30 12 11 7 Philadelphia 30 12 11 7 WESTERN CONFERENCE Central Division GP W L OT St. Louis 32 21 9 2 Winnipeg 31 18 8 5 Nashville 29 18 7 4 Minnesota 30 16 11 3 Dallas 31 17 13 1 Chicago 31 15 11 5 Colorado 30 14 14 2 Pacific Division GP W L OT Los Angeles 32 20 9 3 Pts 46 41 32 30 29 28 25 22 GF GA 113 74 108 92 78 75 85 99 92 108 81 99 79 101 67 104 Pts 39 39 38 37 35 35 31 31 GF GA 88 80 100 93 94 92 108 100 99 89 94 104 83 93 87 88 Pts 44 41 40 35 35 35 30 GF GA 104 81 107 87 95 84 89 88 91 90 93 84 94 100 Pts GF GA 43 98 73 Vegas 30 19 9 2 40 105 94 San Jose 29 16 10 3 35 79 69 Calgary 31 16 12 3 35 89 96 Anaheim 31 13 11 7 33 83 91 Vancouver 31 14 13 4 32 82 90 Edmonton 31 13 16 2 28 93 101 Arizona 33 7 21 5 19 75 114 NOTE: Two points for a win, one point for overtime loss. ——— Tuesday’s Games Edmonton 7, Columbus 2 Buffalo 3, Ottawa 2 Philadelphia 4, Toronto 2 Washington 5, Colorado 2 New Jersey 5, Los Angeles 1 Minnesota 2, Calgary 1, SO Tampa Bay 3, St. Louis 0 Chicago 3, Florida 2, OT Carolina 3, Vegas 2, SO Wednesday’s Games Dallas at N.Y. Islanders, 4 p.m. N.Y. Rangers at Ottawa, 4 p.m. Boston at Detroit, 5 p.m. Nashville at Vancouver, 7 p.m. Football NFL Week 15 Schedule Thursday, Dec. 14 Denver at Indianapolis, 5:25 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 16 Chicago at Detroit, 1:30 p.m. L.A. Chargers at Kansas City, 5:25 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 17 Philadelphia at N.Y. Giants, 10 a.m. Cincinnati at Minnesota, 10 a.m. Houston at Jacksonville, 10 a.m. Arizona at Washington, 10 a.m. N.Y. Jets at New Orleans, 10 a.m. Miami at Buffalo, 10 a.m. Green Bay at Carolina, 10 a.m. Baltimore at Cleveland, 10 a.m. L.A. Rams at Seattle, 1:05 p.m. New England at Pittsburgh, 1:25 p.m. Tennessee at San Francisco, 1:25 p.m. Dallas at Oakland, 5:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 18 Atlanta at Tampa Bay, 5:30 p.m. NCAA Bowl Schedule Saturday’s Games Celebration Bowl At Atlanta NC A&T (11-0) vs. Grambling State (11-1), 9 a.m. (ABC) New Orleans Bowl North Texas (9-4) vs. Troy (10-2), 10 a.m. (ESPN) Cure Bowl Orlando, Fla. Georgia State (6-5) vs. Western Kentucky (6-6), 11:30 a.m. (CBSSN) Las Vegas Bowl Boise State (10-3) vs. Oregon (7-5), 12:30 p.m. (ABC) New Mexico Bowl Albuquerque Colorado State (7-5) vs. Marshall (7-5), 1:30 p.m. (ESPN) Camellia Bowl Montgomery, Ala. Arkansas State (7-3) vs. Middle Tennessee (6-6), 5 p.m. (ESPN) “any school with an in-class winning percentage over the last four years that is 22 percent or lower (two wins per year), and any school with 12 or fewer in-classifi- cation games (three games per year) over the last four years are under consideration to be moved down in football only.” Under that criteria, Class 6A schools eligible to move to Class 5A for football would be Aloha, Benson, Cleveland, David Douglas, McKay and South Eugene. In Eastern Oregon, River- side/Ione, McLoughlin/ Griswold and Pilot Rock/ Nixyaawii would also be eligible to move down under those criteria. The committee also has discussed the possibility of dividing the big-school clas- sification into two divisions for the playoffs, in light of the lopsided results from the Class 6A first round in recent years. “Does it make sense to potentially take a division like that and say, ‘Hey, we’re going to take the top 16 teams and put them in an open division, and then the next 16 are going to play’?” Weber said. “You don’t have No. 1 vs. No. 32, you have No. 17 vs. No. 32. Would that make more sense? What are the benefits of doing that?” Small-school issues – such as possibly playing 6-man football for the smallest schools and creating an enrollment zone between Class 1A and 2A to allow the option of playing 11-man or 8-man – also are on the table. The imbalance in the number of sub-varsity programs within leagues is a concern. The committee is looking at creating pools of schools with similar sub-var- sity programs for scheduling purposes. “Not to be beholden to the long-held belief that if my varsity is playing you on Friday, then my JV and freshmen need to play you, as well,” Weber said. “We’ve got some issues in football, and we’re working to try to address them. Hopefully, whatever the group comes up with and recommends, and the board ultimately approves, works. But if it doesn’t, then we’ll have to try something different. It’s a process.” BRIEFLY Seattle GK Miller goes first in MLS expansion draft LOS ANGELES (AP) — Seattle goalkeeper Tyler Miller was the Los Angeles Football Club’s first pick in the Major League Soccer expansion draft on Tuesday. LAFC also chose Sporting Kansas City forward Latif Blessing, San Jose forward Marco Urena, Columbus left back Jukka Raitala and Toronto defender Raheem Edwards. The club then traded Raitala and Edwards to Montreal for Laurent Ciman, the Impact’s former All-Star defender. Coach Bob Bradley’s club finally has some assets to begin shaping a roster around the three prominent players it had previously acquired: Mexican forward Carlos Vela, Egyptian defender Omar Gaber and American defender Walker Zimmerman, who joined last weekend in a trade with FC Dallas. With the arrival of Ciman, LAFC already has the basis for a stout defense on a team that intends to play up-tempo, attacking football. The 32-year-old Ciman was MLS’ Defender of the Year in 2015, and he will team with Zimmerman in a formidable pairing. LAFC general manager John Thorrington began the draft uncertain of how many of his five choices would be with the club when it begins play as MLS’ 23rd franchise in March, and he quickly shipped out 40 percent of his haul. That’s normal in recent years: Only four of the 10 combined players chosen in last year’s expansion draft actually stayed with their clubs. ATHLETE OF THE WEEK Jacee Currin Heppner High School • Junior - Girls Basketball Currin scored a team-high 29 points to lead her Heppner Mustangs to a pair of wins over Mac-Hi and Imbler over the weekend at the Heppner Invitational. Proudly Sponsored By: “If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader”. - John Quincy Adams Congratulations to the Athlete of the Week! - State Representative Greg Smith, District 57