Flutie Signs for a Return Engagement as a Patriot

Doug Flutie, who won a Heisman Trophy at Boston College and played for the New England Patriots during a long professional career, has signed a one-year deal to return to New England.

Flutie, 42, has played for eight teams in three leagues: 11 seasons in the NFL, eight in the Canadian league and one in the old U.S. Football League. Although Flutie showed his trademark mobility even as he aged, the 5-foot-10 quarterback was frequently pigeonholed as a backup to taller, more traditional quarterbacks. He is expected to fill that role for two-time Super Bowl most valuable player Tom Brady.

Flutie was with the San Diego Chargers the last four seasons.

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Donovan McNabb responded sternly to the stinging comments by teammate Terrell Owens about the quarterback’s performance in the Philadelphia Eagles’ 24-21 loss to New England in the Super Bowl.

“I don’t play games in the media,” McNabb said. “I’m not going to sit here and try to have a war of words. I’m a man at what I do. If there’s a problem with anyone, and they feel the need to lash out, they know how to get in touch with me and we can handle it like men.”

Some Eagles had said after the Super Bowl that McNabb was ill in the fourth quarter, and Owens, an All-Pro wide receiver who played that game with two screws and a plate in his injured right ankle took a verbal shot at McNabb in an interview earlier this month.

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Aaron Garcia became the first Arena Football League quarterback to reach 700 touchdown passes, throwing five in the New York Dragons’ 65-57 victory over the Dallas Desperados.... The Nashville Kats ran their unbeaten streak to five games with a 57-55 Arena league victory over the Western Division-leading SaberCats at San Jose.

Tennis

Top-seeded Carlos Moya beat Paul-Henri Mathieu, 6-4, 6-2, to advance to the semifinals of the clay-court Estoril Open at Oeiras, Portugal. Second-seeded Gaston Gaudio, preparing for the defense of his French Open title, defeated eighth-seeded Feliciano Lopez, 6-2, 6-2.

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Fourth-seeded Tommy Haas withstood 19 aces by Wayne Arthurs to win, 7-6 (6), 7-6 (5), and reach the semifinals of the BMW Open at Munich, Germany. Top-seeded David Nalbandian also advanced by beating Juan Monaco, 6-0, 6-4.

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Kim Clijsters and Justine Henin-Hardenne reached the semifinals of the J&S; Cup at Warsaw. The seventh-seeded Clijsters defeated Elena Bovina, 7-6 (4), 6-3. Henin-Hardenne beat fourth-seeded Patty Schnyder, 6-1, 6-2.

Golf

Arjun Atwal overcame gusting winds to shoot a four-under-par 68 and take a one-stroke lead over J.J. Henry after two rounds of the Zurich Classic at Avondale, La. Atwal had six birdies and two bogeys in gusts of up to 25 mph and is at 11-under 133. Henry shot a 67.

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Liselotte Neumann shot a five-under 67 to take a one-shot lead in the second round of the Franklin American Mortgage Championship at Franklin, Tenn.

She is at five-under 139. Heather Bowie, who shot 66, is tied for second with Stacy Prammanasudh (70).

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Curtis Strange, who hasn’t finished higher than 27th in his five Champions Tour events, shot a five-under 67 to take a one-stroke lead after the opening round of the FedEx Kinkos Classic at Lakeway, Texas.

Motor Racing

Sam Hornish Jr., in a Toyota-powered Dallara, won the pole position for today’s Indy Japan 300 at Motegi and will be joined in the front row by rookie Danica Patrick, the only female driver competing in the Indy Racing League.

Patrick, 23, had a fast lap of 204.504 mph in her Honda-powered Panoz on the 1.5-mile oval. Hornish beat her with a speed of 204.740 mph.

Surfing

Carissa Moore, a 12-year-old from Hawaii, outscored world champion Sofia Mulanovich and three other veterans to win her heat and advance to today’s quarterfinals of the SG Lowers Pro at Lower Trestles in San Clemente.

In the men’s Body Glove Surfbout at Lower Trestles, Rob Machado, Tim Curran, Pancho Sullivan, twins C.J. and Damien Hobgood, Chris Ward and Taylor Knox were among those advancing to the quarterfinals in nearly ideal four-to-six-foot surf.

Miscellany

Oklahoma baseball Coach Larry Cochell was relieved of his duties while the university reviewed remarks he made during interviews with ESPN that included a racial slur.

ESPN said Cochell, the former Cal State Los Angeles and Cal State Fullerton coach, used a slur after praising a freshman outfielder, who is black, during two off-camera interviews Tuesday in Norman, Okla. University officials were informed of the remarks by ESPN, the school said. Cochell, who is white, apologized for his comments.

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Northern California group Sausalito Challenge couldn’t complete a sponsorship deal by Friday’s entry deadline for the 2007 America’s Cup yacht race, leaving one U.S.-based syndicate to compete for the oldest trophy in international sports. BMW Oracle Racing of San Francisco will be the only U.S. syndicate in Valencia, Spain.

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Hall of Fame jockey Pat Day said he would not ride in the Kentucky Derby because he’s still recovering from hip surgery March 30, ending a record 21-year streak of Derby mounts.

Passings

Charles Bittick, an Olympic water polo player in 1960 and former NCAA swimming champion at USC, died of cancer Thursday in Yorba Linda. He was 65.

Bittick was a three-time All-American in swimming and won four NCAA backstroke titles in 1960 and 1961.