Raider Kicker Janikowski Acquitted on Drug Charges

Kicker Sebastian Janikowski of the Oakland Raiders was found not guilty Wednesday in Tallahassee, Fla., on charges of possessing the designer drug GHB.

The jury of three men and three women deliberated for only 80 minutes before clearing Janikowski on the charges of drug possession and evidence tampering.

At first, the court clerk said “guilty.”

“My heart dropped,” Janikowski said, but the clerk quickly corrected herself, and a look of relief crossed his face. “I want to thank the jury. They looked at what happened in the case. They took everything into consideration.”

Janikowski faced up to five years in prison and possible deportation to his native Poland. He is a resident alien and has a green card that permits him to work in the United States. Janikowski testified Wednesday he did not know GHB was present when police arrested him last June 21, and that he wasn’t even sure what GHB was.

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Former NFL quarterback Art Schlichter, already sentenced to five years in federal prison for credit-card fraud and money laundering, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of illegal gambling.

College Basketball

As expected, 6-foot-8 forward Andre Patterson of Washington High has signed a letter of intent to attend UCLA on a basketball scholarship. . . . Sophomore point guard Jason Gardner will make himself available for the NBA draft, the third player from Arizona’s NCAA tournament runner-up team to leave school early. He joins forwards Michael Wright and Richard Jefferson. . . . Zach Randolph is leaving Michigan State after his freshman season, joining Spartan teammate Jason Richardson in making himself available for the NBA draft. . . . Texas Tech Coach Bob Knight hired his son, Pat, former Siena coach Bob Beyer and Les Fertig as assistants. Meanwhile, an NCAA subcommittee denied Texas Tech’s appeal of a rule that limits Knight to recruiting five scholarship players this year. The school was trying to regain two scholarships. . . . Michael Southall, a prep basketball star who lost a scholarship offer from Kentucky because of a drug conviction, was let go by Georgia Tech after his second arrest in less than a year, this one Sunday on charges of resisting arrest and underage drinking in La Crosse, Wis.

Miscellany

Brian Griese, who emerged last season as one of the NFL’s best young quarterbacks, agreed to a six-year contract with the Denver Broncos worth $39 million to $40 million. . . . Raider running back Napoleon Kaufman, 27, retired to devote his energies to his ministry. . . . Avenger Coach Stan Brock said that Todd Marinovich probably would start the team’s Arena Football League opener against San Jose on Saturday. Marinovich missed most of the off-season workouts and the first few days of training camps while working out his legal problems after being charged with felony possession of heroin.

The gold medal that hung from the neck of sprinter Tommie Smith when he raised his fist in a black-power salute at the 1968 Olympics is on the auction block, with a starting bid of $500,000.

Silvia Farina Elia upset second-seeded Conchita Martinez, 6-4, 6-1, in tennis’ Bausch & Lomb Championships at Amelia Island, Fla. Top-seeded Martina Hingis, playing a rare match without her mother watching, defeated Virginia Ruano Pascual, 6-2, 6-1. . . . Second-seeded Tim Henman lost to qualifier Felix Mantilla, 7-5, 6-1, in the second round of the Estoril Open at Oeiras, Portugal. . . . The United States will play India in a Davis Cup qualifier Sept. 21-23 in the United States.

Kelly Askew and Corey Spring scored two goals each, helping the Ice Dogs defeat the Fresno Falcons, 8-4, in Game 1 of the first-round West Coast Hockey League Taylor Cup series at Fresno. Game 2 of the best-of-five series is Friday.

The NCAA management council voted Tuesday to allow student-athletes to receive money for private lessons and to obtain a one-time $20,000 bank loan based on future earnings.

Australia’s soccer team set a world record for scoring, and forward Archie Thompson had the most goals for one player in one game. What’s unclear, though, is what those record totals are. The score at Coffs Harbour, Australia, was either 31-0 or 32-0, and Thompson scored 13 or 14 goals against American Samoa in a World Cup qualifying match.

Former USC men’s swimming coach Peter Daland, who in 35 seasons guided the Trojans to nine NCAA championships and a 318-31-1 dual meet record, celebrates his 80th birthday today.