TAMPA - Just two days after Plant centerfielder Corey Brown said he orally committed to FSU, his chance for a collegiate baseball career with the Seminoles apparently ended.
"(Brown) is not being offered a grant-in-aid (scholarship)," FSU athletic director Dave Hart said in a statement.
It is unusual for a school to comment about a prospective student-athlete, but Brown's case is unusual. He originally signed a national letter of intent with Virginia, but his scholarship was revoked in March when he pleaded no contest to felony battery in a highly publicized case involving allegations of sex with a 14-year-old Plant High girl. The battery charge comes with no sexual connotation, and no conviction will appear on his record if he completes his probationary period.
Brown had said he planned to finalize the paperwork on a partial scholarship to FSU soon but now is back in limbo. Other possibilities could be Miami and Southern California, schools he said expressed interest earlier in the week.
COURT DATE FOR BULL: Junior defensive end Terrence Royal has an arraignment set for June28 on a charge of trespassing in a residence hall area March13. Royal, a Wharton High graduate, was not arrested at the time because he was with his 2-year-old daughter, but a direct file was sent by USF campus police to the State Attorney's Office.
Royal, 21, and former USF player Shelly Houston were banned from the campus residence halls in February after a stolen computer was found in their room. On March13, Royal and Houston were in a car driven by a high school teammate of Royal's, Dewayne Michal Pearson, when Houston was recognized by a police officer. Houston was charged with possession of stolen property, a DVD player.
Royal, a starter for the Bulls, has a combined 70 tackles, 23 for loss, in his first two seasons.
RICHARDSON CASE: Arkansas athletic director Frank Broyles testified in the trial of Nolan Richardson's discrimination lawsuit that the former basketball coach wasn't fired for his record, his players' graduation rate, an erosion of the fan base or a perceived slip in recruiting efforts. Broyles said the sole reason Richardson was fired was because he expressed doubt in the program by saying publicly Arkansas could buy out his contract for half its $1-million-a-year value.
Richardson said he could be bought out after Arkansas lost to Kentucky on Feb.23, 2002. The next day, Broyles and Fayetteville chancellor John A. White agreed in a private meeting to fire the longtime coach. Richardson attorney John Walker says university officials didn't understand Richardson and fired him without knowing the ex-coach's perspective.
BASEBALL: Saint Leo junior centerfielder Chris Germano of Palm Harbor and left-handed pitcher Peter Martinez of Tampa were named second-team All-SSC and SSC freshman of the year, respectively. ... In New Orleans, Jeff Baisley's grand slam lifted USF (28-18, 10-11 C-USA) 9-4 over Tulane (32-15, 15-7).
GOLF: The Florida women moved to fourth in the NCAA East Region at Howey-In-The-
Hills, 27 shots behind leader Duke (578). FSU (608) was seventh and Miami (619) 12th.
SOFTBALL: Lindsey Skinner pitched a no-hitter as Alabama-Huntsville (46-10) defeated Tampa 3-0 at the NCAA Division II South Region tournament in Lakeland. The Spartans (33-14) were eliminated from the tournament. ... In Orlando, seniors Holly Groves of Seminole and Leigh Ann Ellis led USF (53-10) to a sweep of UCF (39-19). The Bulls won 8-1 in the first game, then used a four-run sixth to win Game 2 8-6. Groves had two doubles on the day and hit her 80th RBI. Ellis picked up both wins on the mound.
- Times staff Pete Young contributed to this report, which used information from Times wires.
