Miami Linebacker Is Killed in Auto Accident

Chris Campbell, a starting linebacker on the Miami Hurricanes’ national championship football team, was killed in a car accident early Saturday. He was 21.

Campbell apparently lost control of the Toyota Corolla he was driving and hit a tree at about 4 a.m. EST Saturday, Sgt. Raul Pedroso of the Coral Gables Police Department said.

A passenger in the car, Joel Rodriguez, was in stable condition at Jackson Memorial Hospital, Pedroso said. No other car was believed to be involved in the accident near the school’s campus, Pedroso said.

The cause of death was to be determined by the Miami-Dade County medical examiner after an autopsy and a toxicology exam.

Campbell was a three-year starter and provided veteran stability for Miami’s young linebacker corps. A senior, he was projected as a possible NFL draft pick.

Campbell had 68 tackles, two sacks and one interception in the 11 games he played last year. He missed this year’s Rose Bowl after suffering a knee injury.

Campbell’s father, 48-year-old Willie Searcy, learned of the crash while waiting for his son’s weekly call at 8 a.m.

“I had gotten up because I was looking forward to his call,� said Searcy, of Mount Pleasant, Texas. “And then, the police came to the door and told me.�

Searcy said he last talked to his son Monday, when they discussed Campbell’s May graduation and his 22nd birthday on Feb. 28.

Miami Coach Larry Coker called Campbell’s death “a terrible loss for the Miami football family.�

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Alabama has notified the NCAA of its plans to appeal recent sanctions on the football program, challenging both of the most high-profile allegations of paying recruits.

The university plans to appeal a number of key issues cited by the NCAA, including the Committee on Infractions’ designation of Alabama as a repeat violator stemming from a 1999 men’s basketball case that didn’t lead to sanctions.

Once the NCAA responds, Alabama officials will have 30 days to file a written appeal. The process typically takes five to six months.

On Feb. 1, the NCAA put Alabama on five years’ probation, stripped the Crimson Tide of 21 scholarships over three years and banned the team from playing in bowls the next two seasons for what it termed some of the most extreme violations ever.

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Tennis

Top-seeded Venus Williams advanced to the final of the WTA Diamond Games by defeating France’s Amelie Mauresmo, 7-6 (7), 6-0, in front of a capacity crowd of 12,000 at Antwerp, Belgium. Williams will face second-seeded Belgian Justine Henin, who beat Patty Schnyder of Switzerland, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4.

The win was Williams’ second over Mauresmo in as many tournaments. The two played a close semifinal at the Gaz de France last weekend in Paris, which Williams won, 4-6, 7-6 (3), 7-5.

Top-seeded Monica Seles needed 1 hour 55 minutes to defeat Australian Alicia Molik, 6-2, 6-7 (5), 6-4, to reach the final of the Qatar Open at Doha. No. 4 Tamarine Tanasugarn of Thailand easily advanced, defeating Slovakia’s Janette Husarova, 6-0, 7-6 (2).

Thomas Enqvist survived two match points before beating defending champion Yevgeny Kafelnikov, 6-7 (1), 7-6 (10), 6-4, to advance to the final of the Open 13 tournament at Marseille, France. Enqvist will face unseeded Nicolas Escude today. Escude earlier beat Cedric Pioline, 6-3, 7-5.

Germany’s Lars Burgsmuller beat Sweden’s Magnus Larsson, 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (2), to advance to the final of the Copenhagen Open against Belgian Olivier Rochus at Copenhagen. In the first semifinal, Rochus beat Italy’s Davide Sanguinetti, 2-6, 6-0, 6-4.... Ecuador’s Nicolas Lapentti and Chile’s Fernando Gonzalez advanced to today’s final with straight-set victories in the ATP BellSouth Open at Vina del Mar, Chile.

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Golf

Bruce Fleisher shot a six-under-par 65 to take a one-stroke lead over Tom Kite after the second round of the Senior PGA’s Verizon Classic at Lutz, Fla. Fleisher had an 11-under 131 total, matching the tournament 36-hole record he set in his 2000 victory on the TPC of Tampa Bay. Kite had a 66.

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Hockey

After scoring three third-period goals to tie the score, the Ice Dogs defeated the Colorado Gold Kings, 6-5, in a shootout before 4,812 at Colorado Springs, Colo.