Robinson Leaves AD Job at UNLV

John Robinson stepped down as athletic director at Nevada Las Vegas because of health concerns but will remain the school’s football coach.

In a news conference Tuesday, Robinson cited his health and his wife’s fight with breast cancer, calling it “a tough period for us.”

“I’m doing fine,” he said of his recovery after heart surgery. He said he needed to spend more time with his wife Linda.

Robinson, 67, a former coach at USC and with the L.A. Rams, was treated in March for a blocked coronary artery.

University President Carol Harter appointed Fred Albrecht, vice president for university and community relations, as interim athletic director. Harter said she expects a national search for an athletic director to take a few months.

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Three-year starter Zach Williams is leaving the Ohio State men’s basketball team after a season marred by a sideline argument with coaches at the Big Ten championship game.

Williams, a 6-foot-7, 230-pound forward, told the school about his decision Monday but did not say where he would transfer.

He was suspended after yelling at coaches during the game March 16.

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Cincinnati freshman basketball player Eric Hicks has been charged with assault for throwing a beer bottle that injured a woman.

Hicks, who was suspended indefinitely from the basketball program Monday for conduct detrimental to the team, pleaded not guilty at an arraignment Tuesday and was released on $10,000 bond.

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The family of Texas A&M; football player Brandon Fails filed a lawsuit against the university, claiming his death could have been prevented if he had received proper treatment after knee surgery.

Fails, 18, died Nov. 25 after collapsing in his dorm room. An autopsy showed the freshman defensive lineman died of a blood clot that formed as a result of a leg injury and eventually traveled to his lungs.

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Veteran Pacific 10 Conference trainer Dale Rudd will make a second tour of duty at UCLA. Rudd, the Bruin trainer from 1990 to 1997, will replace Kim Sword, whose contract was not renewed.

Pro Football

Offensive specialist Chris Jackson and receiver-linebacker Greg Hopkins of the Avengers were selected to the All-Arena team, the first time the four-year-old franchise put two players on the first team.

Jackson caught 117 passes for 1,737 yards and 46 touchdowns. Hopkins had 87 receptions for 1,192 yards and 26 touchdowns. He also made 30 tackles, deflected six passes and had two interceptions.

The Arena League had an average attendance of 11,397 this season, an increase of 15% over last year’s 9,957.

It is the league’s highest average since 1998, when it attracted 11,400 a game.

Miscellany

Bill Elliott will race in Sunday night’s Coca-Cola 600 with a broken left foot.

Elliott broke the foot Saturday in a six-car accident during NASCAR’s All-Star race at Concord, N.C.

Erick Aguiar of Torrance won the Pro Compact class for the first time in the NOPI Race Wars sport compact drag racing event Sunday at Bradenton, Fla.

Former NHL goalie Dominik Hasek sent a player to a hospital after a bruising check during an inline hockey game Sunday at Pardubice, Czech Republic, sparking a police investigation.

In a statement carried by the news agency CTK late Monday, Hasek said he was attacked first by Martin Sila without reason.

Hasek, 38, retired after winning the Stanley Cup in 2002 with the Detroit Red Wings.

Passings

Alexander Miroshnichenko, the bronze-medal winner in super-heavyweight boxing at the 1988 Seoul Olympics, died after apparently falling nine floors at his apartment building Monday in Kazakhstan. He was 38.

Police said the death appeared to be accidental but an investigation was ongoing.