Free Republic

BERKELEY, Calif. — Authorities erected an 8-foot chain-link fence to separate tree-sitting protesters occupying a University of California oak grove from more than 72,000 football fans expected to descend on campus Saturday. University officials said the barrier was necessary to keep both the fans and tree sitters safe as No. 12 Cal faces No. 15 Tennessee in the Bears’ home opener at Memorial Stadium. “We’re putting up the fence to try to prevent any altercation either before or after the game,” UC Berkeley police Assistant Chief Mitch Celaya said. An Alameda County judge denied a motion Thursday by protesters, who...

MIAMI — Indianapolis Colts quarterback Peyton Manning completed his professional resume Sunday night at Dolphin Stadium. The same quarterback once criticized for his inability to win the big game won the biggest game of all. And he did it on an awful day for quarterbacks. It wasn’t all Manning, who was named Super Bowl MVP. It was all Colts in a 29-17 victory over the Chicago Bears in a rainy Super Bowl XLI. The Colts were more physical, made fewer mistakes and finished stronger in winning their first Super Bowl in 36 years. But if you’re going to single out...

Knoxville -- Tennessee was ready to forfeit to No. 3 LSU if Saturday night's game in Baton Rouge had not been rescheduled for Monday night because of Hurricane Rita. Tennessee athletic director Mike Hamilton said Friday the No. 10 Volunteers were prepared to take such action "if we felt like it would be unfair to our student-athletes and not safe for our student-athletes." Southeastern Conference commissioner Mike Slive said Thursday the game would be moved for safety reasons. LSU officials preferred to have the game Saturday or Sunday.