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EZ SU


THE SIDELINE “T


he score is 31-25, and you’re gonna take your No. 1 quarterback out?”


SamHuff asked on the Redskins RadioNetwork on Sunday afternoon, as Rex Grossman trotted out on the field. Now, I’ve impudently poked


fun atHuff in the past, but give him credit here. The Fox broadcast crewwas still speculating about a possible McNabb injury. Radio play-by- play man LarryMichael was talking about the pounding McNabb had endured. I was still trying to convincemy daughter that yes, Kit Kats are actually chocolate, and worthy of her attention. ButHuff went right to the truth, and after the quarterback switch turned into an immediate fiasco, he wasn’t


D.C. SPORTS BOG Dan Steinberg


shy about taking credit. “That was a coach’s decision,


which I questioned a little bit, but nobody paid any attention to me,” he said. “That’s true, Sam, they don’t,”


Sonny Jurgensen joked. “I’ll tell you, when you take a


star out, like Sonny orMcNabb, that’s big time,”Huff later concluded. “A big-time question.” And theHall of Famer was


Mystics Insider 6Excerpts from washingtonpost.com/mysticsinsider


Laceynamedcoach,


generalmanager After two of themost


successful seasons infranchise history, theWashingtonMystics got ridof their generalmanager andcoachina cost-cuttingmove andnowhavepromotedtheir director of basketball operations to fill those vacantpositions. TrudiLacey,who joinedthe


Mystics as anassistant coachin 2009 and became thedirector of basketball operations last season, wasnamedWashington’s general manager andcoachonMonday, replacing former general managerAngelaTaylor,whowas let go amonthago, and Julie Plank,whowas let go as coach lastweek.Lacey becomes the team’s sixthGMand12thcoachin the franchise’s 13 seasons. Ina conference callwith


reporters, Sheila Johnson, Mysticspresident andmanaging partner, summedupthemoves by saying, “This is about business.” “Wehadtomake some cost


changes,” Johnsonsaid. “Even thoughwewere successful onthe floor, youhave tounderstandwe weren’t successful onthe business side.We justhave to make these changes inorder to keepthe franchise alive.” Last season,despite losing all-


star guardAlanaBeardbefore the seasonto anankle injury, Washingtonwona team-record 22 games.TheMystics alsowere the topseedintheEastern Conference butwere swept inthe playoffs by theAtlantaDream. Inpraisinghernewcoachand


generalmanager, Johnsonhad little to say aboutLacey’s coaching orpersonnel abilities. Her firstwords aboutLaceywere “She is just anamazingwoman who’s really going to be terrific in the community at large.” Johnsonsaidthat afterPlank


turneddownher offer to become generalmanager aswell as coach, she immediately turnedtoLacey,


TELEVISIONANDRADIO


NBA 7 p.m.


NHL 8 p.m.


SOCCER 3:30 p.m.


Philadelphia atWashington » Comcast SportsNet,WJFK (106.7 FM) San Jose at Minnesota » Versus UEFAChampions League,BursasporatManchesterUnited » ComcastSportsNetPlus


COLLEGE FOOTBALL 7 p.m.


Middle Tennessee at Arkansas State » ESPN2 only from Comcast. BASEBALL


Listach leaving Nationals to join Cubs’ staff Third base coach Pat Listach


will leave theNationals to become the bench coach for the Chicago Cubs, according to a source close to theNationals.The decisionwill become official sometime after the World Series. MLB.com first reported Listach’s move Monday afternoon. Listach, a member of the Na-


tionals’ coaching staff for two sea- sons who also worked with the team’s infielders, will join new CubsManagerMikeQuade’s staff. Listach and Quade are close friends, having worked together for several seasons while Listach managed in the Cubs’ minor league system.


—AdamKilgore A Florida prosecutor said for-


mer major league baseball player Jim Leyritz had a blood-alcohol level more than twice the legal limitwhenhe drove througha red


whowas the only candidate for the job. Johnson also consulted her ex-husband, formerCharlotte Bobcats ownerBob Johnson— who knewLaceywhenshewas generalmanager andcoachof the Charlotte Sting from2003-2006 — andher sonabout thehire. Askedif she believedLacey


canhelptheMysticswin, Johnsonsaid, “Idon’t carewho youbring in, evenifwehad Michael Jordanas the coach, everything is a crapshoot.You’re going to try the best youcan. I knowshehas the ability todo it.” Thoughshe apologizedto fans


for taking as long as shedidto hire a generalmanager and coach, Johnsonsaidshedidnot feel theneedto keepthem informedas theprocessunfolded. “It’snot appropriate to situp


there andlet our fans knowevery littlemovewe’remaking.That is not goodbusiness,” Johnsonsaid. “It isnot appropriate.Andthe fans, Ihope, at thispoint are going to trust inus andtrust in me inourdecisions.We’redoing the best thatwe cantomake the Mystics a solidandviable franchise.” JudithE. Schaeffer, a season-


ticketholder for all 13 seasons andco-author of the blogDC BasketCases, saidshewas sorry she renewedher seasontickets after the latestdevelopments. “Ihave sufferedthrough, as


have other long-time fans, a revolvingdoor of coaches and generalmanagers thathas condemnedthis franchise to mediocrity orworse,” Schaeffer said. “TheMystics front office just doesn’tunderstandthe reaction here. Idon’t knowhowyouget rid of themost successfulGMand most successful coachthat a franchisehas everhad. It’s incomprehensible tome as a founding fan. I amquite frankly stunnedandsickenedbywhat hashappenedinthe lastmonthto this team.”


—KathyOrton GAIL BURTON/ASSOCIATED PRESS Duke quarterback Sean Renfree, running through theNavy defense in his team’s upset Saturday, presents Virginia’s next challenge. A solid second-half kickoff


Cavaliers snap out of funk with back-to-back wins


BY STEVE YANDA


charlottesville—Following Virginia’s 24-19 upset win Saturday over then-No. 22 Miami, junior cornerback Chase Minnifield proudly proclaimed that the Cavaliers were 2-0 . . . in their “new season,” that is. Before Virginia defeated Eastern


Michigan by 27 points Oct. 23, the team decided to make every attempt possible to rid itself of the sour aftertaste left by the Cavaliers’ 2-4 start to CoachMike London’s first season at the helm. With one half of its season completed, Virginia (4-4, 1-3 ACC) aimed to write a newscript for the latter half. Thus far—asMinnifield noted—the Cavaliers have been successful in that regard. On Saturday, Virginia will travel to Durham,N.C., to take on a Duke squad that turned in an equally surprising performance last weekend. After dropping their previous two games by a combined 52 points, the Blue Devils (2-6, 0-4)


defeatedNavy, 34-31, behind a stunningly efficient performance from quarterback Sean Renfree (28-for-30 passing, 314 yards).


Consequently, London shot down


Monday any notion that he might have to guard against a letdown following the first signature win of his head coaching tenure at Virginia. “We’re in uncharted territory,” London


said. “We have no reason to be having letdowns or things like that.We have to establish some wins around here before we even get to that point . . .We’re going down to Durham with the attitude and the mind-set that this is gameNo. 3 for us of the second season.” Duke’s passing attack will offer a stiff challenge for Virginia’s defense. The Blue Devils are averaging 261.6 passing yards per game, which ranksNo. 2 in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Sophomore wide receiver Conner Vernon is the conference’s leader in receiving yards per game (89.4). London described Duke’s offensive style


as “a pistol offense, then sort of a spread offense, and then sort of a we’re-going-to- throw-the-ball-type offense.”He said Duke’s offense reminded him of the Texas Tech attack the Virginia faced in the 2007


Gator Bowl, back when London was the team’s defensive coordinator. Texas Tech compiled 407 passing yards that game and won, 31-28. The Cavaliers expect Renfree to attempt


a lot of short, high-percentage passes and to spread the field horizontally. Last season, Duke defeated Virginia, 28-17, in Charlottesville. Vernon caught seven passes for 103 yards and a touchdown. Donovan Varner, then a sophomore, tallied seven catches for 113 yards. Although the Cavaliers will have to face


Vernon and Varner again Saturday, Virginia’s confidence is buoyed by its recent successes. The Cavaliers rankNo. 2 in the ACC in pass defense (178.4 ypg allowed), and they’ve set that mark largely without the services of two-time second team all-ACC cornerback Ras-I Dowling, who has missed nearly all of five games due to multiple injuries. “We know as a secondary that they’re


definitely going to complete some passes,” junior strong safety RodneyMcLeod said. “But you know, just stay focused, know what routes they like to run and, you know, rather than just reacting you’ll know and then be able to make plays as you see them coming.”


yandas@washpost.com


KLMNO 6


3


right. Within the first 24 hours of the Redskins’ bye week, every NFL analyst on every sports program on every radio frequency and every television station—plus several political analysts, three or four television chefs, a fewcute juggling puppies and Tony Kornheiser— had weighed in on theMcNabb benching. They all were opposed. Many vehemently so. You could see it in the juggling puppies’ eyes. They didn’t like the decision.


They didn’t like the justification —which focused on issues of terminology Sunday but morphed to issues of cardiovascular endurance Monday. And they sure didn’t like the replacement. Rex Grossman took a bigger media


TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2010


WASHINGTONPOST.COM/SPORTS Football Insider 2010: Download a free iPhone app for Redskins news. Search for “Football Insider” or “Redskins” in the iTunes store.


WASHINGTONPOST LIVEWITH IVAN CARTER 5 P.M. ON COMCAST SPORTSNET The Post’s Rick Maese will be in studio along with former Redskins GMand CSN football analyst Charley Casserly.


After looking elsewhere at quarterback, Shanahan’s in the eye of the storm


pounding thanMcNabb on Monday, without throwing a single interception. “Don’t give me that mumbo-


jumbo with Rex Grossman,” Marshall Faulk said on the “Dan Patrick Show.” “It’s not like you replaced DonovanMcNabb with PeytonManning or Tom Brady. This is Rex Grossman you replaced him with.” “If they think they can win


more games with Rex Grossman at quarterback, God bless ’em,” Mike Ditka scoffed on ESPN Radio. “Let ’em go ahead. Fire on. Shoot it. Whatever you want to do. That’s fine. But that’s foolish, fellas. It’s foolish.” “It wasn’t just taking Donovan


out. It was bringing Rex Grossman in,”Michael Irvin said on the NFLNetwork. “All of our


eyes have seen enough of Rex Grossman.” I mean, that’s a worse beating


than Grossman would take if he tried hiding behind the Redskins’ offensive line during a hail storm. But if they paused to fling daggers in Grossman’s direction, the analysts saved the brunt of their critique forMike Shanahan, who was given all the respect of a bingo caller summoned out of a senior center. “I’d like to askMike Shanahan


in private ‘Really, what’s going on here?’ ” SteveMariucci said on the NFLNetwork. “If you trade for a guy in April


who’s played 11, 12 seasons in the NFL, and you can’t teach him the two-minute drill by the time we get to the middle of the season,


then you would have to be one of the worst coaches in the history of football,” an understated Cris Carter said on ESPN Radio. “I was appalled by the whole thing, and he insulted our intelligence by lying to us after the game.” “From the time we take our


first breath, our lives are built on trust,” John Riggins wrote on his blog. “It will take some very special people to overcome [Sunday’s] breach.” “That could be the most


illogical decision of the year,” James Lofton said on the “Dan Patrick Show.” “Like Ricky said to Lucy, ‘You’ve got some ’splainin’ to do.’” That’s one day in the books.


Thirteen more to go. steinbergd@washpost.com


VIRGINIAFOOTBALL


DIGEST “Georgetown is the best fit for


me, as far asmy position,” Adams said.


—TarikEl-Bashir


light andcauseda fatal crash. Prosecutor Stefanie Newman


told a jury that a toxicology expert estimated Leyritz’s blood-alcohol content was 0.18 when the crash occurred, based on tests done three hours later. Florida’s legal limit is 0.08.


COLLEGEBASKETBALL Georgetown has received a ver-


bal commitment from Tyler Ad- ams, one of the top bigmen in the country. Adams and his father, LonnieAdams, confirmedthat the 6-foot-9, 270-pound senior from Brandon, Miss., chose the Hoyas overMississippi State. Adams is the fifth-ranked cen-


ter and 54th overall ranked player in his class by Rivals.com.He said he gave a verbal commitment to Duke inApril, butwithdrewit last month and informedGeorgetown ofhisdecisionSundaynight.


COLLEGEFOOTBALL Georgetown senior Keerome


Lawrence was named the Patriot League special teamsplayer of the week after gaining 121 yards on five kickoff returns, including a 43-yardreturn, intheHoyas’24-19 lossatFordhamonSaturday.Law- rencealsocaughtsixpassesfor103 yards and rushed for 18 yards on six carries for a total of 242 yards. —KathyOrton


Washington quarterback Jake


Locker won’t play on Saturday when the struggling Huskies face No. 1Oregon. WashingtonCoachSteveSarki-


sian said Locker had been playing with a hairline rib fracture that became a full break when Locker took a hit in theHuskies’ 41-0 loss toNo. 10 StanfordonSaturday. . . . A church bell in Buffalo Grove, Ill., tolled solemnly as mourners


JOEL RICHARDSON FOR THE WASHINGTON POST


Georgetown’sKeerome Lawrence is the Patriot League special teams player of the week.


gatheredfor the funeral of aNotre Dame studentkilledwhena tower from which he was filming foot- ballpractice toppledover. Indiana regulators are investi- gatingwhether the university vio-


lated safety rules by allowing De- clan Sullivan onto the lift on a blusteryday lastweek. Notre Dame Coach Brian Kelly


said it was his decision to hold practice outdoors onawindyday. Sullivan’suncleMikeMiley said


the family has not been thinking about who to blame for the acci- dent, but instead is focusing on celebrating Sullivan’s life.


PROBASKETBALL The Minnesota Timberwolves


have exercised contract options for next season on forwards Mi- chael Beasley and Kevin Love, guards Jonny Flynn and Wayne Ellington and center Kosta Kou- fos.


GOLF TigerWoods said itwas no sur-


prise to lose golf’sNo. 1 ranking to England’s Lee Westwood after Woods struggled through a disap- pointing year. Westwood claimed the top spot Sunday to end a record run by


Woods, who had been the world’s No. 1 golfer for 281 consecutive weeks. “As far as the world ranking is


concerned, yes, I’m not ranked number one in the world,”Woods said. “In order to do that you have towinandIdidn’twinthis year.”


HOCKEY Pittsburgh Penguins forward


Jordan Staal, expected to return this week after missing 12 games with an infection in his right foot, will be out indefinitely after suf- fering an undisclosed injury dur- ingpractice. Staal left practice after about a


half-hour with what Coach Dan Bylsma said was an upper-body injury. Staal, one of the NHL’s best


two-way forwards, couldnotwork out during the offseason and missed training camp after devel- opingmultiple infections in a foot that was cut during the Stanley Cupplayoffs last spring. —Fromnews services


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