Texas fires AD Patterson
University of Texas president Gregory Fenves fired Longhorns athletic director Steve Patterson.
Fenves led a conference call with the university board of regents on Monday night, when it was determined Patterson would be let go. He was hired by Texas in November 2013.
The Austin American Statesman reported that several donors have told Texas officials that they will no longer donate money to Longhorns athletics as long as Patterson is the athletic director.
Fenves was promoted from provost to university president in June. Reports regarding complaints about Patterson began to surface not long after.
Among those complaints against Patterson were poor communication with donors, department employees and coaches. Other complaints involved the financing of a new tennis facility and the lack of transparency in the method used to deal with football season-ticket holders.
Among his major decisions were parting with longtime football coach Mack Brown and basketball coach Rick Barnes, who was in Austin from 1998-2015.
Princeton offensive lineman comes out as gay
Princeton offensive lineman Mason Darrow revealed in an Outsports.com profile that he is gay, becoming the only current openly gay football player in Division I.
Darrow follows former Missouri defensive end Michael Sam as college football players to come out. Sam did not reveal publicly he was gay until after he was finished playing football at Missouri, although his teammates knew much earlier.
Chip Sarafin, a backup offensive lineman for Arizona State, came out as gay in August 2014, but he since graduated.
Darrow told teammates he was gay two years ago, but it did not become public until the Outsports.com profile went live Tuesday.
“Telling my teammates was the best decision I have ever made,” Darrow said in the profile.
Darrow decided during the summer he would make his revelation public. He told head coach Bob Surace he wanted to come out the week before the Tigers’ season opener at Lafayette on Saturday.
Patriots release wide receiver Harper
The New England Patriots released rookie wide receiver Chris Harper on Tuesday.
Harper was signed by the Patriots in May as a rookie free agent from California and was active for the season opener against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday night.
During the preseason, Harper caught 15 passes for 150 yards and a touchdown.
The departure of the 5-foot-11, 185-pound Harper leaves the Patriots with Julian Edelman, Danny Amendola, Aaron Dobson and Matthew Slater as the only wide receivers on the roster. Wideouts Kenbrell Thompkins and Nathan Palmer are on the practice squad.
The Patriots could be interested in adding wide receiver Terrelle Pryor, who worked out for the team on Monday.
Packers linebacker sidelined
The Green Bay Packers received a major blow when inside linebacker Sam Barrington suffered an ankle injury that might sideline him for the rest of the season, multiple media outlets reported.
There is no definitive prognosis on Barrington’s injury, but the Packers fear the worst at this point, and NFL Media Insider Ian Rapoport reports that the Packers believe Barrington will miss the remainder of the 2015 season.