Memorial held for Avengers' Lucas
The Avengers held a private memorial service for Al Lucas at the Marina del Rey Marriott on Wednesday, then returned to full practice in the afternoon.
Funeral arrangements were set for Lucas, a lineman who died Sunday after he was hit in the head trying to make a tackle. There will be a wake Saturday at Northeast High in Macon, Ga., and the funeral is Monday afternoon at the Macon City Auditorium.
After playing a game Sunday at Nashville, the Avengers will fly to Atlanta and bus to Macon on Monday morning.
The Arena Football League and the af2, its minor league, will have a moment of silence at all games this weekend. All AFL players will wear a No. 76 decal on their helmets the rest of the season to honor Lucas.
The league's Hero Award, given to the player who best exemplifies the league's mission statement for on- and off-field accomplishments, has been renamed the Al Lucas Award.
The AFL has formed an Al Lucas Trust Fund. Donations can be sent to the Al Lucas Trust Fund, c/o AFL Players Association, 2021 L Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20036.
- Jill Painter
COLLEGES: The University of Colorado officially announced Mike Bohn as the school's new athletics director, hired to lead a department savaged by troubles that have played a major role in the departures of Bohn's predecessor, Dick Tharp, chancellor Richard Byyny and president Betsy Hoffman, who will leave by June 30.
Bohn comes to Colorado after an 18-month stint at San Diego State, helping put that program back together after years of declining revenue, morale and corporate support.
--Steve Becvar was named interim athletic director at San Diego State.
BASKETBALL: North Carolina junior Rashad McCants, who helped the Tar Heels to a national championship, said he will enter the NBA Draft.
Others announcing they would enter the draft were Indiana junior guard Bracey Wright and Florida junior guard Anthony Roberson.
--Forwards Justin Hawkins and Jake Schmidt and guard Jermaine Calvin are leaving Utah's basketball team.
FOOTBALL: Marshall is expected to announce Ohio State assistant Mark Snyder as its next head coach today at a news conference.
--The Heisman Trophy, homeless since the post-Sept. 11, 2001, shutting of the Downtown Athletic Club, will be housed permanently inside the planned National Sports Museum in lower Manhattan. The museum, a 100,000-square-foot facility on Broadway, is planning a November 2006 opening, said its founder and chief executive, Philip Schwalb.
AWARDS: Olympic gold medal gymnast Paul Hamm received the 75th Sullivan Award as the nation's top amateur athlete. USC quarterback Matt Leinart was a finalist for the award.
HOCKEY: The NHL and the players' association will return to the bargaining table Tuesday in New York, a source close to the negotiations said.
- Daily News Wire Services
