ORLANDO, Fla. — A Tampa judge had some strong words for new South Florida Coach Charlie Strong during a hearing Wednesday for LaDarrius Jackson, a defensive end on the team accused of sexual battery.
Jackson, 22, was arrested Monday and charged with sexual battery and false imprisonment of a woman who was reportedly an acquaintance. The junior from Alabama was making his first court appearance in the case.
Judge Margaret Taylor told Jackson she had never been ashamed to be an alumnus of USF until now. “Let’s just say that my USF diploma is not proudly hanging in my office right now,” she said.
Taylor then directed some pretty strong words to Strong (Batesville, Central Arkansas), who was hired by the school in December to replace Willie Taggart.
“Coach Strong, if you are listening, in the last couple of months there have been two arrests of your players for very violent felonies,” Taylor said. “This court, and I’m sure I’m not alone, questions whether you have control over your players. It’s fairly clear you do not have control of them off the field, and I guess only time will tell whether you have control over them on the field.
“I would implore you to think long and hard about whether being head coach at USF is a good fit for you before any other members of this community have to suffer at the hands of one of your players.”
Jackson, who was recruited by the previous regime, is the second USF player to have a run-in with the law in recent months. Hassan Childs, a defensive back, was charged with aggravated assault and possession of marijuana back in March during a road rage incident. He was dismissed from the team.
Jackson has been removed from team activities according to the TV station.
Strong responded to the judge’s comments through a statement from the school:
“While I am shocked and saddened at the recent arrest of a member of our team, I am disappointed that the actions of two players over the last two months have harmed the reputation of our program, of our wonderful university and of my character. We have high expectations of our coaches, staff and student-athletes and we hold accountable those who act contrary to our values,” Strong said.
TENNIS
Struff advances
Veteran Tommy Haas' last appearance at the BMW Open in Munich ended in a 6-4, 7-5 defeat to fellow German Jan-Lennard Struff in the second round on Wednesday. Struff hit seven aces and saved five of the seven break points he faced to win in just under an hour and a half against Haas, 39, who won the clay-court tournament in 2013. Struff goes on to a quarterfinal against No. 3 Alexander Zverev, last year's runner-up. Zverev, 20, hit five aces to beat Jeremy Chardy of France 6-4, 6-4. Earlier, German qualifier Yannick Hanfmann upset eighth-seeded Thomaz Bellucci of Brazil 7-6 (5), 4-6, 7-5 to reach the quarterfinals. The 273rd-ranked Hanfmann converted seven of his 16 break opportunities to win in 2 hours, 19 minutes and line up a match against second-seeded Roberto Bautista Agut of Spain. Bautista Agut was also made to work hard, rallying to beat Marius Copil of Romania 4-6, 7-6 (3), 7-5 in just under 2 ½ hours.
Safarova withdraws
Defending champion Lucie Safarova withdrew from the Prague Open on Wednesday ahead of her second-round match against Kristyna Pliskova because of illness. Organizers said she was ill before the tournament and her condition worsened after her 3-6, 7-5, 6-3 victory over Kristina Kucova on Tuesday. In the quarterfinals, Pliskova will face 144th-ranked Beatriz Haddad Maia. The Brazilian qualifier beat fourth-seeded Samantha Stosur 6-3, 6-2. Big-hitting Jelena Ostapenko rallied to eliminate second-seeded Caroline Wozniacki 5-7, 6-3, 7-6 (5). The Latvian will play Ana Konjuh next. Third-seeded Barbora Strycova defeated qualifier Lucie Hradecka 6-3, 7-5 and will meet Katerina Siniakova in the quarterfinals. Siniakova beat Natalia Vikhlyantseva 4-6, 6-4, 6-4. Camila Giorgi advanced with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory over Qiang Wang of China. She will next play qualifier Mona Barthel.
BASEBALL
Hamels out 8 weeks
The Texas Rangers said left-hander Cole Hamels is expected to miss eight weeks because of a strained right oblique. The Rangers put Hamels on the 10-day disabled list Wednesday and recalled righty Anthony Bass from Class AAA Round Rock. Hamels was scratched from his scheduled start shortly before Tuesday night's game at Houston. He said he felt discomfort in his right side while warming up. The four-time All-Star is 2-0 with a 3.03 ERA in five starts this season. The 33-year-old is 24-6 since Texas got him from Philadelphia at the trade deadline in 2015, and was the MVP of the 2008 World Series for the Phillies.
Kluber on 10-day DL
The Cleveland Indians have put ace right-hander Corey Kluber on the 10-day disabled list with a lower back strain. Kluber was removed from Tuesday night's game at Detroit after three innings because of back discomfort. The Indians recalled right-hander Joe Colon from Class AAA Columbus on Wednesday. Kluber is 3-2 with a 5.06 ERA in six starts this season. His durability was crucial last year, when he helped the Indians win the American League pennant despite injuries that decimated the rest of the starting rotation. Kluber has made at least 32 starts in each of the last three seasons, and he won the Cy Young Award in 2014. Colon has made nine relief appearances at Columbus this year, posting an ERA of 0.87.
Volquez blisters thumb
The Miami Marlins have put Edinson Volquez on the 10-day disabled list with a right thumb blister and recalled right-hander Nick Wittgren from Class AAA New Orleans. The moves announced Wednesday come one day after Volquez struck out 9 but allowed a career-high 8 walks in 4 1/3 innings of the Marlins' 3-1 loss to Tampa Bay. The right-hander struggled with the blister, throwing just 42 of 91 pitches for strikes. He became the first starter to walk at least 8 batters and strike out at least 9 while pitching fewer than than 5 innings since 1900, the Marlins said, citing information from the Elias Sports Bureau. Volquez is 0-4 with a 4.71 ERA in 6 starts this season.
Woman grazed by bullet
Police said Wednesday they are investigating an incident in which a woman attending a St. Louis Cardinals baseball game was grazed in the arm by a stray bullet that apparently originated outside Busch Stadium. The victim, 34, was inside the ballpark Tuesday during the game against the Milwaukee Brewers when she felt pain in her arm. She went to a first-aid station for treatment and a bullet was later found near her seat. She had an abrasion on one of her elbows. Todd Porter, 54, of O'Fallon, Ill., was at the game with his son and said he was seated in front of the victim. "Wow, I think I've been shot," the woman said near the end of the eighth inning, Porter told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. "We thought she was joking, but everybody turned around and she showed me the blood coming down from her elbow," said Porter, who left the game with his son.
GOLF
Romo signs up for Open
Tony Romo's next pursuit of a championship will be in golf. And it's a long shot. A month after the Dallas Cowboys quarterback retired, Romo is among nearly 9,500 players who signed up for the U.S. Open. He plays an 18-hole local qualifier Monday at Split Rail Links and Golf Club about 30 minutes west of Fort Worth. If he advances, the next step is sectional qualifying on June 5 to get into the U.S. Open at Erin Hills in Wisconsin. This isn't the first time Romo has tried to qualify. He made it out of local qualifying in 2010. In a 36-hole sectional qualifier where only two of the 35 players advanced, Romo opened with a 71 and withdrew in the afternoon after two weather delays. Orville Moody in 1969 was the last player to go through local qualifying and win the U.S. Open.
Sports on 05/04/2017