Coaches Not Liable in Player's Death

A federal appeals court has decided who can't be held liable for a high school football player's death. The three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta ruled today three Rockdale County High School football coaches cannot be held liable for the death of a 15-year-old. Tyler Davis died the morning after collapsing from the heat during voluntary workout in July 2006. His parents sued the school system, the state of Georgia and various school employees. The court ruled the coaches are entitled to qualified immunity as public employees performing their duties.

(Associated Press)

Georgia Tech buried in bowl game

The hope of Georgia Tech's football team to complete a 10-win football season met disaster Wednesday night. In their worst defeat in 3 years, Tech was buried in a 38-3 loss to LSU in the Chick-Fil-A bowl from the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. The good news for Tech? It happened while the calendar still showed 2008.

The Yellow Jackets had a terrible night with their special teams--miscues included a fumbled punt return and failed recovery of an onside kick. LSU's Tigers scored 28 second quarter points.

Tech wraps their season with a 9-4 record under first-year head coach Paul Johnson.

Governors up ante in SEC showdown

The SEC football showdown between Florida and Alabama is coming to the Georgia Dome in Atlanta tomorrow. And the governors of Florida and Alabama have upped the ante on the outcome. The Sunshine State's Gov. Charlie Crist has agreed that if the Gators lose to the Crimson Tide on Saturday, he'll send Alabama Gov. Bob Riley a box of Florida oranges. If the Gators prevail, Riley will ship over a rack of ribs from the famous Dreamland Barbeque in Tuscaloosa. The game is being billed as a showdown between a team known for its power and one famous for its speed.

(Associated Press)

Female students joins football team

After a rule reversal, a 14-year-old girl played in her high school football game over the weekend. Kacy Stuart of Paulding County played for the Crusaders football team of New Creation Center. Stuart played because the Georgia Football League reversed its ban on her playing, after originally overriding the school's decision to let her play. Kacy's mom said it only took a letter from their lawyer.

(Associated Press)

Gas crunch = cancel UGA game?

As drivers in many parts of north Georgia continue their search for gasoline, there has been one call for a measure that many may consider drastic--cancel tomorrow night’s Georgia-Alabama football game. That is the suggestion of an Atlanta petroleum executive, who questions whether it’s smart for tens of thousands of drivers to strain spotty gas supplies on the way to Athens. Governor Sonny Perdue’s spokesman responded, calling the idea "ridiculous".

UGA warns of ticket scams

Football ticket scam artists could target University of Georgia fans. UGA is warning that high demand for tickets to Saturday night's game between Georgia and Alabama could bring ticket scalping, scam artists and fake tickets. The warning comes after a high number of bogus tickets surfaced at last weekend's Auburn-LSU game.

UGA Chapel Bell returns to Athens

The University of Georgia has its chapel bell back. The historic instrument – run passionately after every Georgia victory – was towed through downtown Athens Tuesday.

UGA removed the 173-year-old bell in the spring and sent to Ohio to be cleaned and polished. On Friday, the 700-pound bell will be hoisted up into its new tower. The original dated 1913. The new tower, built over the summer, closely resembles the original height and shape.

There is also a new rope with which fans can ring the bell. Georgia football season opens August 30th hosting Georgia Southern University in Sanford Stadium.

UGA's Chapel Bell will be home soon

The University of Georgia's beloved Chapel Bell will be back in place for the start of football season. It has spent the summer undergoing repairs at an Ohio foundry. Fans ring the bell for Georgia victories. It will be re-installed in the next few weeks once its tower is finished being re-built. The Georgia Bulldogs' first game is August 30th against Georgia Southern.

Final: GHSA State Football 4A Championship

Northside (Warner Robins) 20 Ware County 14

Northside's Eagles won their 2nd straight championship in Class 4A Friday night in Waycross.

Trailing 14-10 late in the 4th quarter, Northside tailback Tijuan Green took a direct snap, and hit Nick Bass on a 40-yard touchdown strike and the go-ahead score with 5:23 remaining. The Eagles would add a field goal with just over 2-minutes left to close the scoring.

Green finished with 232 yards of total offense to help lead Northside to victory. The Eagles were able to comeback and win, overcoming 4 turnovers. Ware County's Gators weren't able to muster much on offense, with only 98 total yards on the night.

Northside is the 7th team in Georgia history to finish back-to-back 15-0 seasons.

High school wraps up investigation of athletic programs

A high school in the eastern Georgia town of Evans has wrapped up an investigation of its athletics program.

The investigation at Greenbrier High School comes after questions about whether the football team may have had several ineligible players this year. Ed Williams, an assistant principal at Greenbrier, said administrators planned to send their report to the Georgia High School Association on Tuesday afternoon.

The investigation follows allegations that the school failed to send academic and medical records of several football players to the GHSA. The records determine whether a team member is eligible to play.

School officials won't confirm how many players were in question, but several news reports have indicated that number may be as high as 13.

The team has already voluntarily forfeited two of this year's games. That's because school officials determined that a player that was academically ineligible had played in those games, said Williams.

Administrators investigated all fall and winter sports.

They declined to comment on their findings.

The GHSA will now review the investigation and determine whether punitive measures will be taken against Greenbrier.

The school's athletic director has stepped down, pending the outcome of the investigation.

The team had a 5-5 record this season. The two forfeits put them at 3-7.