LITTLE ROCK — Safety gets good meals from storm
Hurricane Gustav struck more of a glancing blow to Oklahoma safety Nic Harris' hometown than Katrina did three years ago, but there was still damage done.
Each storm also takes a little part of Harris with it.
"Every time it happens, the population dwindles. People don't want to come back," said Harris, who is from Alexandria, La. "That's pretty sad to say and sad to hear, but you get tired of it sooner or later and people just leave."
Harris gained eight houseguests in Norman, Okla., when his family evacuated to get away from Gustav. They got to watch Harris play in the season opener against Chattanooga, and he got a few good meals out of it.
"I love it. Any time my mom cooks, it's fine," Harris said.
His family drove through the night to return home. They arrivedin Alexandria at about 4 a.m.
Tuesday, Harris said, with a mostly good report.
"For the most part, everything is good," Harris said. "A lot of wind, a lot of water but nothing too catastrophic."Not the Cowboys
Michael Wilbon of the Washington Post isn't sure who to pick in the NFL, but for now, at least, the Dallas Cowboys are out.
"A ton of people see the Cowboys as Super Bowl material," Wilbon wrote. "I see an underperforming, overrated team that has fallen on its face annually in the playoffs." Trading up
Tom Jones of the St. Petersburg Times has found at least one result of the Tampa Bay Rays' success.
"Check out Jason Burtch," Jones wrote. "He's a 29-year-old sports fan from Port Charlotte, Fla. Burtch wants Rays tickets so badly that he's willing to give up Tampa Bay Buccaneer tickets to get them.
"Last Friday, Burtch posted the following on a Rays message board: 'Would like to swap 2 tix to the bucs vs falcons game for 2 lower level seats to either the 9-4 game against the yankees or 9-15 game against the red sox. My bucs seats are 35 yard line Row N ($85 face value).'
" 'Well, first off, the Bucs game isn't a great game because it's against the Falcons,' Burtch explained on Tuesday. And it's early September so you know it's going to be hot. ... Still, I'm really into theRays and thought this was a good way to get good Rays tickets.' ''
Oprah works for bid
Thousands of spectators cheered Olympic medalists Michael Phelps, Dara Torres and Kobe Bryant on Wednesday as the city of Chicago got a high-profile boost to its bid to host the 2016 Summer Olympics.
Oprah Winfrey was taping the season premiere for The Oprah Winfrey Show at a downtown park, and she invited 150 U.S. Olympic athletes to join her. The athletes were introduced under a shower of red, white and blue confetti.
Winfrey intends the show to be a welcome home for athletes who competed in Beijing and a chance to showcase Chicago as the city bids for the 2016 Games, said Harpo Productions.
Coca-Cola coolers
Big victories are so unfamiliar to UCLA's football team that apparently it doesn't know Gatorade is the traditional beverage poured on the heads of winning coaches.
After UCLA's 27-24 overtime victory over Tennessee on Monday, its players poured Coke on Coach Rick Neuheisel.
"Coca-Cola baths are not good for my hair," Neuheisel said.
Quote of the day "You hope they start
growing whiskers because we're young." Arkansas defensive coordinator Willy Robinson on having so many freshmen play defense
Sports, Pages 18 on 09/04/2008