When the San Diego Chargers play the Denver Broncos in an AFC divisional playoff game Sunday, All-Pro safety Eric Weddle will be matching wits with legendary quarterback Peyton Manning.

Weddle, a former multi-position star at Alta Loma High and Utah, has found a home in San Diego as the dynamic playcaller in the Chargers' secondary. The 5-foot-11, 200-pounder has been All-Pro four times and voted to two Pro Bowls.

Recently he's sported a look straight from the Brian Wilson school of grooming. Better yet, the Chargers put a microphone on him during last week's 27-10 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals.

"Have fun, enjoy this," he tells members of the secondary in a pregame huddle. "Look at all the Chargers fans out there. Wooooo, going to be great, baby! Be smart and play fast."

Here's a link to the complete video, which features Weddle making plays, praising teammates, talking strategy with players such as linebacker Manti Te'o and cornerback Marcus Gilchrist as well as talking to...

Roddy Piper and Hulk Hogan have quite a history together in professional wrestling, having helped put the WWE and WrestleMania on the map back in the 1980s.

Rowdy Roddy is hoping that he and the Hulkster also have a future together in the organization's signature event.

Piper has pitched a tag-team event for WrestleMania 30 this spring, according to the Wrestler Observer Newsletter. It would feature himself paired with CM Punk against Hogan and John Cena.

The report says that there has been "internal discussion" about such a match, but there is speculation that the 60-year-old Hogan would not pass a physical.

That hasn't stopped Piper, 59, from appearing to tease the matchup on Twitter.

I KNOW SOMETHING THAT YOU DON'T KNOW!! When you find out your going to love IT!!!! Take a guess!! THIS IS NOT A TEST, THIS IS REAL WORLD! — Rowdy Roddy Piper (@R_Roddy_Piper) January 10, 2014 Dare you to put Hogan vs Piper! Separate the men from the Boys! — Rowdy Roddy Piper (@R_Roddy_...

BOSTON — Ashley Wagner did not want to take advantage of the rules — or lack of them — to back into one of the three women's singles spots on the 2014 Olympic figure skating team.

But a dismal performance in Saturday's U.S. championships free skate means that is exactly what Wagner needs.

Falling twice, Wagner was fifth in the free skate, fourth in the short program and fourth overall as Gracie Gold won her first national title in a runaway with 211.69 points, and Mirai Nagasu probably was left on the bubble.

Wunderkind Polina Edmunds, 15, sailing along until she fell on a triple flip, rallied and took second at 193.63.

Nagasu, the 2008 U.S. champion, who had been in a steady decline after finishing fourth in the 2010 Olympics, did two strong programs and was third at 190.74, exactly eight points ahead of Wagner.

“It's embarrassing as a two-time national champion to put out a performance like that,” Wagner said. “Luckily, I had a decent season that...

BOSTON — Will there be a bump in the night that creates controversy when U.S. Figure Skating announces Sunday which two pairs it is sending to the 2014 Olympics?

It will, of course, be pretty much a tempest in a domestic teapot, given the low standing of U.S. pairs in international competition.

Given the nonspecific nature of the USFS Olympic selection rules, it is possible Felicia Zhang and Nathan Bartholomay, who took second overall after Saturday afternoon's free skate at the U.S. championships, could be bumped in favor of Caydee Denney and John Coughlin, who finished third by .29 of a point but have a more impressive international record.

Coughlin seemed resigned to the idea that wasn't going to happen. That he and Denney, who won the free skate, could not defend their 2012 U.S. title or compete at worlds last year because of his injury may factor large in the selection committee's decision.

"We rolled through the Grand Prix season and had a career best at the U.S....

There should be fewer creampuffs for UCLA’s basketball team to munch on in the future.

The Bruins’ non-conference schedule prepared them well for conference play. Of course, that’s provided that conference is the Big West or Big Sky, maybe even the American East … look out Stony Brook.

But Coach Steve Alford wants something meaty, something chewy when gearing up for the Pac-12 Conference.

“We want to play elite teams,” Alford said. “One of the reasons you come to UCLA is to play elite teams. It’s what our players want.”

It helps when the postseason rolls around, not in whether the Bruins get in the NCAA tournament, but where they will be placed.

Still, there is more to it than klieg-light moments, Alford said.

“It’s not just building a resume, but, more importantly, it’s getting ready for league play,” he said.

UCLA had a 4-2 record against teams that had winning records in non-conference play. The four wins...

The questions about the Ducks’ slow starts continue after they gave up two goals in the first 2:22 of a 4-3 victory over the Predators on Thursday at Nashville.

But in their five-game winning streak, it’s also worth noting they’ve outscored teams 20-7 after the first period.

“It’s all five guys being much tighter,” defenseman Ben Lovejoy said. “One of the best parts of our team is our forechecking and our offensive zone play. We have four lines that can grind in the offensive zone and are difficult to play against.

“With our first-period struggles, we’ve tried to make fancy plays, turning pucks over. We’re not playing as smart. When we’re at our best, we’re being simple, scoring goals the right way."

Lovejoy admitted the slow starts have led to some loud first intermissions.

“After the first period, we’ve gotten yelled at, talked about the game we need to be successful," he said. "We need to do...

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Ducks’ goalie Jonas Hiller will seek his 13th consecutive victory Saturday night against the Phoenix Coyotes, and should he win, Hiller said he’s capable of playing the next two games as well.

The Ducks (33-8-5), having won 15 of their past 16 games, return to Honda Center for a 5 p.m. game Sunday, then play at home against the Vancouver Canucks on Wednesday.

They are 18-0-2 at home.

“With back-to-backs, the second game’s not usually the problem,” Hiller said. “It’s the third game, but having an extra day [of rest] it shouldn’t be too big of a deal.”

Hiller hasn’t lost since Nov. 26 at Dallas. He’s previously been spared back-to-back showings during the streak, as Ducks Coach Bruce Boudreau gave Frederik Andersen starts Nov. 29 versus Calgary, Dec. 7 at St. Louis and Dec. 2 at San Jose.

But Hiller did go Nov. 22-23, beating Tampa Bay and Phoenix, and it’s uncertain how many starts the Ducks will...

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- Dorial Green-Beckham, a sophomore football player who led No. 5 Missouri in receptions last season, has been released after a drug arrest.

Police representative Anthony Cunis of Springfield, Mo., said Green-Beckham was arrested early Saturday on “suspicion of drug activity.” Cunis said the investigation was ongoing and declined to provide more information regarding the arrest or whether charges had been filed.

He said the department will release more information on the case Monday.

An official with the Greene County Jail confirmed that Green-Beckham was booked Saturday and later released.

Missouri spokesman Chad Moller said the school was “aware of the situation and working to learn more.”

The 6-foot-6, 225-pound Green-Beckham was considered the top prospect in the nation when he signed a letter of intent with Missouri. He set national prep records of 6,353 career yards receiving and 75 touchdown catches at Springfield Hillcrest High.

Last...

The long and contentious legal battle between Alex Rodriguez and Major League Baseball came to a head on Saturday when arbitrator Fredric Horowitz reduced the original 211-game suspension for the New York Yankees star to 162 games, which would ban Rodriguez for the entire 2014 regular season and postseason.

But Rodriguez, punished for his involvement in the Biogenesis scandal, has vowed to continue his fight, saying through a spokesman that he will contest Saturday’s decision in federal court.

“The number of games sadly comes as no surprise, as the deck has been stacked against me from Day One,” Rodriguez said. “This is one man’s decision, that was not put before a fair and impartial jury, does not involve me having failed a single drug test, is at odds with the facts and is inconsistent with the terms of the Joint Drug Agreement and the Basic Agreement, and relies on testimony and documents that would never have been allowed in any court in the United...

Penn State has landed James Franklin as football coach, bringing to State College, Pa., the most coveted college football coach in the nation.

Although the architect of an amazing turnaround at SEC doormat Vanderbilt denied all week that he had made a decision to leave for Penn State, university trustees approved his hiring Saturday morning and announced a contract was in place, details of which would be released in the afternoon.

“The contract is in line with other recent coaching contracts,” said Linda Strumpf, a trustee and head of the university's committee on compensation.

Franklin, 41, arrived in Vanderbilt in December 2010 after the Commodores had posted back-to-back seasons with records of 2-10. He equaled the best three-season start to a coaching career at Vanderbilt by going 24-15, including consecutive bowl victories the last two seasons when the Commodores went 9-4 in back-to-back seasons.

Perhaps more impressive is that Franklin led Vanderbilt to a 16-4 record...