In Brief

PRO FOOTBALL

Steelers announce decision to release veteran Ward

Hines Ward's constant, ear-to-ear smile tucked behind a black facemask has been a lasting image for Pittsburgh Steelers fans the past 14 seasons.

They won't see it again.

A four-time Pro Bowl selection, who holds franchise records for receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns, Ward, 35, will be released by the organization that drafted him in 1998.

"We had a conversation today with Hines Ward and informed him that we plan to release him of his contract prior to the start of the 2012 NFL calendar year," Steelers president Art Rooney II said in a statement on the team's website Wednesday. "Hines has been an integral part of our success since we drafted him in 1998, and we will forever be grateful for what he has helped us achieve."

A four-time Pro Bowl selection, Ward will finish his Steelers career with 1,000 catches, 12,083 yards and 85 receiving touchdowns. He helped Pittsburgh to three AFC championships and two Super Bowl titles.

Also: Denver Broncos wide receiver Demaryius Thomas testified at former teammate Perrish Cox's sexual assault trial in Castle Rock, Colo., saying that Cox carried a sleeping woman into his bed and then told Thomas: "I think she's ready."

Cox is accused of sexually assaulting the woman, who testified earlier Wednesday. Both the woman and Thomas told jurors they kissed on an air mattress at Cox's apartment after meeting up at a club with Cox and Cox's girlfriend.

Thomas said the woman fell asleep, and he dismissed Cox's suggestion, saying he didn't want to have sex with the woman because she was drunk.

"I wanted to have sex with her, but I didn't," Thomas testified. "We hadn't done nothing before. I wasn't going to try nothing that night because she had been drinking. She had got drunk."

Cox's lawyer, Harvey Steinberg, objected to Thomas' testimony because he hadn't used the "she's ready" phrase in a previous interview and asked for a mistrial. The judge rejected that.

Former Indianapolis Colts vice chairman Bill Polian joined ESPN as an NFL analyst. He will make his debut March 12 and will appear throughout the year on several ESPN shows, including "SportsCenter."

Polian spent 24 years as an NFL general manager with the Bills, Panthers and Colts. He drafted four-time NFL Most Valuable Player Peyton Manning and built Indianapolis into a team that went to the playoffs 11 times, won eight division titles, two AFC titles and a Super Bowl.

The Arizona Cardinals will play the New Orleans Saints on Aug. 5 to kick off the NFL preseason in the Hall of Fame Game. Last season's Hall of Fame Game was canceled because of the NFL lockout.

MOTOR SPORTS

Johnson, team penalized for Daytona 500 violation

NASCAR issued steep penalties against five-time NASCAR champion Jimmie Johnson and his team for failing the first inspection for the Daytona 500.

Crew chief Chad Knaus was fined $100,000 and suspended six races, car chief Ron Malec also was barred for six races, and Johnson was docked 25 points, sending him into this weekend's race last in the Sprint Cup Series standings.

The penalties stem from a failed inspection Feb. 17 at Daytona International Speedway. NASCAR said the No. 48 Chevrolet had illegally modified sheet metal between the roof and the side windows, an area known as the C-posts.

Hendrick Motorsports immediately said it would appeal, and Knaus and Malec can attend races during the process.

"Our organization respects NASCAR and the way the sanctioning body governs our sport," team owner Rick Hendrick said. "In this case, though, the system broke down, and we will voice our concerns through the appeal process."

MISCELLANEOUS

UNLV baseball earns sweep of Cal State Bakersfield

Mark Shannon had two of UNLV's 13 hits and drove in three runs as the Rebels completed a two-game baseball sweep of Cal State Bakersfield with a 15-6 win at Wilson Stadium.

Shannon hit his first home run of the season in a seven-run fifth inning, which included a two-run single by Trevor Kirk.

Nick Libonati (1-1) picked up the victory for UNLV (5-4) with 2 2/3 innings of relief.

Also: The judge in Jerry Sandusky's 52-count child sex abuse case rejected a defense attorney's request for a two-month delay and indicated he was reluctant to push back the May 14 start of jury selection.

Judge John Cleland's eight-page memo and order said a postponement only should be a last resort and would require concrete justification.

"Absent extraordinary circumstances presented by either the commonwealth or the defendant, postponement of the trial date will only be considered if required by the demands of selecting a jury and providing for their care, conflicting demands on courtroom space, or similar logistical complications," Cleland said.

Cleland did grant Sandusky lawyer Joe Amendola three extra weeks to file a catch-all pretrial motion that had been due today.

Former UNLV football coach Mike Sanford was hired as Utah State's running backs and tight ends coach, The Salt Lake Tribune reported.

Sanford coached the Rebels from 2005 to 2009, going 16-43. He will meet his former team when UNLV visits Utah State on Sept. 29.

Sanford was hired as Louisville's offensive coordinator in 2010, but was relieved of play-calling duties early last season and left the staff two weeks later.

Bob Baffert will have a horse in the $750,000 Santa Anita Handicap this weekend. It just won't be defending champion Game On Dude.

The Hall of Fame trainer decided Game On Dude will skip Saturday's Grade 1 race at Santa Anita and chase a bigger payday in the $10 million Dubai World Cup on March 31 in the United Arab Emirates.

Baffert's hopes of winning a third straight Santa Anita Handicap will rest with 8-1 shot Prayer for Relief, whose career earnings of more than $1 million make the 4-year-old colt the richest of the race's 13 starters.

University of North Dakota teams risk forfeiting any postseason games if their teams, cheerleaders or band wear or display the school's controversial Fighting Sioux nickname and American Indian head logo, an NCAA official said.

Bernard Franklin, an NCAA executive vice president, said in a letter to university provost Paul LeBel that the university "must forfeit competition" if "it has not adhered to this requirement" in any postseason games that North Dakota teams have been invited to play in.

A Texas state association again voted down a request by a Jewish Orthodox school in Houston to move the start of its scheduled boys basketball playoff game this weekend so the team wouldn't violate its Sabbath.

The Beren Academy advanced to the 2A semifinals of the Texas Association of Private and Parochial School's boys basketball tournament, but its next game was slated for 9 p.m. Friday.

The Beren students, bound by their religion, recognize the Sabbath from sundown Friday to sundown on Saturday. The school appealed to TAPPS to change its game time, but the TAPPS board unanimously voted down the appeal, citing a bylaw.

The story gained national attention, and the TAPPS board met again but voted 8-0 to keep this weekend's schedule intact.

Michael Jordan's longtime personal residence in suburban Chicago is for sale for $29 million.

The sprawling estate is in Highland Park, along Lake Michigan, and has more than 56,000 square feet of living space. That includes nine bedrooms, 15 baths and five fireplaces.

Alex Morgan scored two goals, Abby Wambach, Carli Lloyd and Sydney Leroux had one apiece, and the U.S. women's soccer team opened defense of its Algarve Cup title with a 5-0 victory over Denmark in Lagos, Portugal.