The Wiz of Odds

Visit by Texas Is Making Laramie a Scalper's Paradise

When it comes to elevation, Jonah Field at War Memorial Stadium in Laramie can't be beat. It sits at 7,220 feet, the highest Division I-A stadium in the nation.

Now, thanks to a Sept. 12 visit by the Texas Longhorns, the Wyoming Cowboys have ticket prices to match the elevation.

A ticket to the Cowboys' game against the Longhorns is already commanding up to $349 on Stubhub. Take into consideration that Wyoming, with a string of several mediocre seasons in a row, has not been a box office draw of late and that the game game is still more than six months away. But this is all about the Longhorns.

Reporters Notebooks

Thayer Evans and Pete Thamel, New York Times: The NCAA is in Wichita to investigate the controversial trainer and recruiting adviser Brian Butler, who is representing hotshot running back prospect Bryce Brown.

Bob Lutz, Wichita Eagle: In recruiting, there is the traditional way and there is the Bryce Brown way.

Dave Hooker, Knoxville News-Sentinel: Quarterback prospect Nick Montana says he wants the recruiting process finished by the end of summer. The son of Joe Montana reportedly has offers from Georgia, Louisiana State, South Carolina, Alabama, Stanford, Maryland, Arizona, Nebraska and Ohio State. He's waiting on Tennessee, USC and UCLA. (The Wiz watched Nick Montana throw three interceptions in a playoff game last fall.)

Mike Miller, Badger Beat: Former Wisconsin player Leonard Taylor, who was charged with stalking and telephone harassment late last year after allegedly threatening to kill Badger athletic director Barry Alvarez and others, was ruled mentally competent to stand trial.

Doug Segrest, Birmingham News: Attorneys for disassociated Alabama booster Ray Keller filed a motion for a new trial. Keller was awarded $5 million in 2007 after winning a defamation and invasion of privacy lawsuit against the NCAA. But the verdict was eventually overturned. Attorneys for Keller appealed the ruling to the Alabama Supreme Court, but withdrew the appeal earlier this week, opting to request another trial instead.

Tom FitzGerald, San Francisco Chronicle: Twenty-one staff positions are being eliminated in the Stanford athletic department, which faces an expected $5.4 million shortfall in revenue over the next three years. The staff cuts, which athletic director Bob Bowlsby called "excruciating," represent 13% of the department's 163 administrative and service positions. No coaching positions were affected.

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Scripps Throws In the Towel in Denver

The Rocky Mountain News was two months short of its 150th birthday Thursday when Scripps CEO Rich Boehne announced to the newsroom that Friday's edition of the newspaper would be the last.

Several other newspapers are expected to fold in the coming months, including the Tucson Citizen and the San Francisco Chronicle. Many others are fighting for their lives.

A Big Step Back for the Big Ten

The Big Ten is tweaking its tiebreaking procedure for determining the league's automatic representative to the Bowl Championship Series, according to Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez, who told the university's athletic board about the changes late last week.

The first tiebreaker will remain head-to-head competition. The next tiebreaker has been eliminated. That called for the team that played more games against Division I-AA teams to be eliminated.

Also gone is the tiebreaker that the most recent team earning the BCS berth will be eliminated. That policy dated to when the conference sent only one team to a bowl, that being the Rose.

In its place will be a tiebreaker that got the Big 12 in trouble last season: the highest-ranked team in the BCS standings will get the automatic berth.

Reporters Notebooks

Steven Greenhouse, New York Times: Michigan became the latest university to end a licensing deal with apparel maker Russell Corporation. The move comes after the company decided to close a factory in Honduras, where 750 of the 1,800 employed recently voted to join a union. Michigan said Russell's move violated the university's code of conduct calling on licensees to guarantee the basic rights of workers. Duke, Georgetown, Penn State, Purdue, Rutgers and Washington are among several other universities that have curtailed agreements with Russell.

Matt Woolsey, Forbes Magazine: Ann Arbor, Mich., has been named the magazine's top college sports city, based on competitive success of university teams, the NACDA Director's Cup standings, real estate value and quality of life. The rest of the top 10: Palo Alto, Calif., Madison, Wis., State College, Pa., Lexington, Ky., Fayetteville, Ark., Chapel Hill, N.C., Columbia, Mo., Charlottesville, Va., Bloomington, Ind.

Michelle Smith, San Francisco Chronicle: Stanford, which opened spring drills on Tuesday, is looking to find stability at quarterback and replace a handful of starters on defense. Plus, a look at spring dates for all Division I-A teams from College Football News.

Alan Jones, Daily Evergreen: Details have emerged about the arrest of Washington State quarterback Marshall Lobbestael over the weekend. He was found passed out in a Dodge pickup parked in front of the Pullman police department. "He was slumped over with a grocery bag of vomit between his feet," police commander Chris Tennant said.

Sal Interdonato, Times Herald-Record: Army officials explain why the alternative service option, which allowed cadets with special talents to pursue professional sports, was suspended. Another service academy protested, saying the policy gave Army an unfair advantage.