Athletics

Stony Brook University is hoping to build on the attention its baseball team is getting with its first-ever appearance in the College World Series by producing a television commercial that will air during the team's first-round game Friday against UCLA.

North Dakota's flagship university dropped its contentious Fighting Sioux nickname for the third time Thursday, and officials expressed hope that the latest retirement — fueled by this week's overwhelming statewide vote — would finally stick.

The University of North Dakota debuted the "Sioux" part of its nickname more than 80 years ago.

Although Western Michigan University will have a new surface at Kanley Track this fall, don't expect a men's track team to trek it.

Players testing positive for marijuana in the mighty Southeastern Conference do not face the one-year suspension that comes from getting busted by the NCAA.

Building an NCAA champion soccer program takes teamwork, great players and savvy coaches. But it also takes the best possible facilities, which is why North Carolina State University chose a Mondoturf FTS3 artificial turf system to replace one of its grass soccer fields at its Wolfpack Training Complex.

SMU announced the firing of athletic director Steve Orsini on Thursday, amid a growing clash between Orsini and president R. Gerald Turner, according to sources with knowledge of the situation.

The Big Ten cable network has been an unchallenged success promoting conference sports to a national audience and making money for its members. The academic programming its leaders had promised hasn't panned out.

It should come as no surprise that the University of Texas takes in more money than any other Big 12 athletics program.

After a Florida State trustee chairman roasted the ACC's new TV deal this week by calling it "mind-boggling" and "shocking ," FSU president Eric Barron flatly denied his school's possible interest in joining the Big 12.