Colleges

USF beats out UF and Big East rivals for Brooklyn forward

By GREG AUMAN
Published September 14, 2005

TAMPA - USF has picked up his second verbal commitment of the basketball recruiting season, getting Rob Thomas, a 6-foot-6 small forward from Brooklyn.

Thomas, who averaged 19 points as a junior, is in his second season at South Kent, a top preparatory school in Connecticut. Bulls coach Robert McCullum already has a commitment from Kissimmee Poinciana guard Princeton "Dante" Curry.

Rivals.com lists Thomas as a three-star talent, ranking 109th in the site's rankings of the nation's top 150 prospects for the Class of 2006. He had many other Big East suitors, including Syracuse, Pittsburgh and DePaul, as well as Florida.

It's USF's second major recruiting coup from New York City in the past year, with assistant coach Julius Allen's local ties again helping in a major Big East recruiting battleground. This spring, the Bulls landed Bronx native David Sills, a point guard.

USF has two scholarships available for the upcoming class.

UCONN: Point guard Marcus Williams was given 18 months probation and ordered to perform 400 hours of community service for his role in the theft of four computers.

Football

CLEMSON: Coach Tommy Bowden, wanting more intensity and aggressiveness against Miami on Saturday, moved junior running back Duane Coleman to the secondary. Bowden likes Coleman's enthusiasm and skills.

FRESNO STATE: Defensive end Garrett McIntyre is expected to miss Saturday's game against Oregon because of a sprained ankle.

MARSHALL: Quarterback Bernie Morris will rest his sprained left shoulder and is questionable for a Sept. 24 game at UCF.

OHIO STATE: Troy Smith will start at quarterback Saturday against San Diego State. Coach Jim Tressel said he wants better preparation; it's unclear if former starter Justin Zwick will play.

OKLAHOMA: Coach Bob Stoops said he's undecided whether suspended tailback Adrian Peterson will start Saturday against UCLA, but he expects Peterson to play. Peterson was suspended from practice Monday and Tuesday after missing classes.

PENN STATE: Linebacker Dan Connor is welcome again at practice after serving a university punishment for allegedly making harassing phone calls, but coach Joe Paterno did not elaborate on when the sophomore might play again.

TENNESSEE-UNC SERIES: Tennessee and North Carolina will play a home-and-home series in 2011 and 2012. The teams last played in 1961, a 22-21 victory for the Tar Heels.

Volleyball

Eckerd opened Sunshine State Conference play by defeating visiting Rollins College 30-23, 30-21, 25-30 and 30-27. Andrea Krzystan had a career-high 20 kills.

Softball

The University of South Florida's 2006 schedule features 14 teams from the NCAA Softball Tournament, including two that made it to the World Series. The University of Arizona Tournament, March 3-5 in Tucson, will feature USF's Ken Eriksen, the 2004 Team USA Olympic assistant coach, against Arizona's Mike Candrea, the 2004 Olympic coach.

--Information from Times wires was used in this report.

[Last modified September 14, 2005, 09:25:14]