Stories from Saturday, December 30, 2006

TAMPA, Fla. -- The University of Tennessee announced Saturday that senior wide receiver Bret Smith will not participate in the Vols' Jan. 1 matchup versus Penn State University. "Our standard practice is always to review processes and outcomes," UT athletic director Mike Hamilton said. ...

One thing I hope to see less of in 2007 is the sometimes obvious bias in the mainstream press. Here's a big example -- The Associated Press ran the following as their lead paragraph of an international news story this week: JERUSALEM -- After weeks of restraint, Israel said Wednesday that it will renew attacks on rocket-launching militants in the Gaza Strip, threatening to derail an already shaky, month-old truce....

Every once in a while, I'm reminded of one of the first practical lessons I learned during that first year of real world work after graduating. It's an interesting enough story to repeat and it's really not aimed at anybody in particular. And the departments I'll mention aren't the kind that prompted my recollection...

Mail service will be suspended Tuesday in observance of the national day of mourning for former President Gerald R. Ford, the U.S. Postal Service announced. President Bush has ordered federal agencies to close that day. Locally, that affects not only post offices but also the Natural Resources Conservation Service and the Farm Service Agency offices located at 709 East Lane St...

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) -- Saddam Hussein struggled briefly after American military guards handed him over to Iraqi executioners before dawn Saturday. But as his final moments approached and masked executioners slipped a black cloth and noose around his neck, he grew calm...

A man asking for a tire jack soon proved he was after much more. Ricardo Olea, 24, of Shelbyville offered to help two men who said they needed the jack at The Laundry Room, Madison Street, about 7:30 p.m. last Tuesday, police said. As Olea searched for a jack in his car, one of the men pulled a pistol and ordered him to hand over all of his money and valuables, Officer Jeff Goodrich said...

TAMPA, Fla. -- Legendary coach Joe Paterno has never been one to shower his players with excessive praises. So from that perspective, it came as no surprise when he toned down his compliments toward Nittany Lion senior linebacker Paul Posluszny -- a two-time All-American and winner of the Bednarik Award as the nation's best defensive player -- as Penn State (8-4) prepares to battle 17th-ranked Tennessee (9-3) in the Outback Bowl here on Monday morning...

Tim Melear, Jamar Garrett and Ryan Brock combined for 55 points to lead Richland's Raiders over the Community Vikings 69-54 to close out the Bedford County Tournament at Cascade High on Friday night. The Vikings' (7-5) offense was cold to begin the game, mustering only seven points in the first quarter to find themselves in an early 18-7 hole...

Two weeks can make a big difference. The Cascade Lady Champions found that out the hard way Friday during the final night of the Bedford County Classic in Wartrace. After a narrow and low-scoring 31-29 win at Watertown just 14 days earlier, the host Lady Champs (3-7) dropped an up-and-down 60-55 contest to the Purple Tigerettes (9-5)...

Coach Tony Garrette has maintained from day one that his Community Viqueens' conditioning would play a major role in whether they'd be able to reach their rather lofty goals set in pre-season. The Viqueens (10-1) defeated physically gifted Class AA Giles County 57-45 in impressive fashion Friday night in Wartrace to finish with two wins in two starts in the Bedford County Classic. It's the best start to a season in Garrette's five years at the helm...

Home, sweet home. After six games in a little over two weeks on the road, the Cascade Champions returned back to their friendly surroundings and rolled over Watertown 52-24 on Friday's final night of the Bedford County Classic. The Champs (7-7) leaped out on a 13-0 run to open the game and cruised to an 18-2 cushion after one quarter...

GREENEVILLE -- A slow start, along with missed scoring opportunities inside the paint and costly turnovers, proved costly for Shelbyville Central in the semifinals of the Greene County Bank Ladies' Classic Friday night. The Eaglettes (14-2) fell behind 22-11 in the first quarter to Lexington (Ky.) Catholic (13-0) on the way to a 69-57 loss...

The 8-year-old reindeer the Times-Gazette reported last Sunday had been "kidnapped" from a Bell Buckle family's home has returned. Christmas Eve night, three days after Page Smith left the requested ransom money of "ten unmarked one dollar bills," her son Travis Moorhead, opened the front door for the surprise of his life...

The shooting of Fermin Estrada Sr. and the resulting multi-million-dollar lawsuit against the City of Shelbyville have been selected as the biggest story of 2006 by a poll of Times-Gazette staffers, beating out the regulatory dispute which kept the Celebration from naming a World Grand Champion...

After four years of inflicting my mission trip stories on the readership of the Times-Gazette, I am now asked, pretty much wherever I go, if I have any trips coming up. The answer is yes ... I think. LEAMIS International Ministries, the Sewanee-based, interdenominational group with which I've traveled for several years, is not planning a trip to Kenya in 2007. ...