Moore Headed to Oregon State

Former UCLA quarterback Matt Moore has signed a letter of intent to play for Oregon State, the team announced Thursday.

Moore started for the Bruins five times, and appeared in 13 games in 2002 and 2003. He opened the 2003 season as a starter but was sidelined by a hand injury.

For his career at UCLA, the 6-foot-4 quar- terback completed 85 of 165 passes for 967 yards and four touchdowns.

Moore, who played at Newhall Hart High, went to College of the Canyons in Santa Clarita this year but did not play football. He will have two years of eligibility at Oregon State.

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Former Nebraska coach Frank Solich was introduced as Ohio’s new coach, returning to the state where he grew up and promising to rebuild a program that has gone 11-35 over the last four seasons.

Solich has been out of football since being fired at Nebraska a year ago after going 58-19 over six seasons.

Solich signed a multiyear deal with a base salary of $240,000.

Solich had replaced Tom Osborne, who retired from Nebraska in 1997 after winning three national championships in four seasons. Osborne, now a U.S. congressman, was 49-2 in those final four seasons.

Solich, an assistant under Osborne from 1979 to 1997, led the Cornhuskers to the national championship game in the 2002 Rose Bowl, where they lost, 37-14, to Miami.

Nebraska was 7-7 the next season, the school’s first non-winning season since 1961. Solich was dismissed the next season despite going 9-3.

Solich takes over a team that went 4-7 under Coach Brian Knorr, who was fired Nov. 18.

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Sylvester Croom is under contract with Mississippi State through 2008.

Croom, the first black head football coach in Southeastern Conference history, agreed to a one-year extension, the school announced.

Croom signed a four-year deal when he was hired last December.

The Bulldogs finished 3-8 this season, 2-6 in the SEC. An upset of then-nationally ranked Florida was the high point of Croom’s first season.

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Former Miami Dolphin and Chicago Bear coach Dave Wannstedt decided not to seek the coaching job at Pittsburgh, the school where he played and once was an assistant coach. Wannstedt was believed to be the front-runner to succeed Walt Harris, who was hired at Stanford.... The San Francisco Police Department decided to drop weapons charges against California receiver David Gray, who was arrested last week after a fight outside a nightclub. Gray has rejoined the team and will play in the Holiday Bowl on Dec. 30.