The Associated Press

The Associated Press

BOSTON – Boston manager Terry Francona underwent further tests yesterday, a day after he complained of chest tightness, while his Red Sox players spent their off day in Toronto.

The former University of Arizona outfielder was taken Wednesday from New York to Boston, where his case is being supervised by team physician Dr. Thomas Gill, a staff surgeon at Massachusetts General Hospital.

The manager originally went Wednesday morning to New York Weill-Cornell Medical Center when he complained of chest pains after arriving at Yankee Stadium.

“They’re continuing examination,” team president Larry Lucchino said yesterday. “He did not have a heart attack. He had some symptoms that caused some concern on the part of the team doctors.

“The tests may include some type of procedure to determine whether there’s any specific diagnosis or reason for the chest pains.”

The nature and results of the tests have not been disclosed.

The team has not said which hospital Francona was taken to and had no official statement on his condition. It didn’t say whether he would manage during the three-game series in Toronto starting today or in Monday’s home opener against the New York Yankees.

The Red Sox are scheduled to get their World Series rings during a pre-game celebration on Monday.

“I’m thinking about him. I think he’s going to be getting better,” center fielder Johnny Damon said. “He’s being treated by the best doctors in the world.”

Citizen Staff Writer

Kevin Millar put it best.

“It was scary because you’re talking about real-life stuff. You’re not talking about wins and losses,” the Boston Red Sox first baseman said.

He was discussing the situation involving Boston manager Terry Francona, who was taken to the hospital yesterday after suffering chest pains.

An ambulance took Francona to Weill-Cornell Medical Center in Manhattan. The Red Sox were in New York playing the Yankees. All this while Boston is still aglow over the Red Sox’s first World Series championship in 86 years.

He will be transferred by helicopter to a hospital in Boston and will be under the supervision of Red Sox team doctor Thomas Gill.

In his first season as manager, Francona guided an improbable team of free spirits and king-size egos to an American League Championship Series victory over the Yankees, then a sweep of the World Series against the St. Louis Cardinals.

In the process the infamous “Curse of the Bambino” was wiped out. Hopefully, the curse hasn’t struck back.

Francona has a history of serious health problems, dating at least a few years back when he suffered chest pains in Seattle while interviewing for the position of manager of the Mariners.

During that incident, doctors discovered a blood clot had progressed to his lung. Blood-thinners were administered and the 46-year-old former University of Arizona all-American outfielder appeared to be doing well.

Then staph infections were discovered in both knees, requiring four operations.

Francona is a guy with his priorities in proper order: family, friends, the Red Sox.

Francona was hired to get the most out of extremely high-salaried, usually sensitive and moody athletes and prevent them for killing or maiming each other in the clubhouse. Where previous managers failed miserably, Francona was able to bring the Red Sox together and in one glorious October win it all.

“My job is to manage,” he told us last fall. “I manage people. These guys may be crazy, but they respect each other, and they can play ball.”

That they can. And Francona can manage with the best of them. It may be slightly out of line here – although he’d be the first to bring it up – but Francona has unwittingly provided UA with its second major league manager.

He was the first. And in his absence, Boston bench coach Brad Mills is the Red Sox manager. They roomed together on the road with the Wildcats in 1978 and 1979, and Mills led them to a come-from-behind 7-3 win over the Yankees yesterday.

The Associated Press

The Associated Press

BOSTON – New England Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi is considering sitting out next season for health reasons, The Boston Globe reported yesterday.

The former University of Arizona star and Pro Bowler is contemplating whether he can play next season after being treated for a mild stroke last month.

“I can relate to you only that Tedy is considering not playing next year,” Bruschi’s recently hired agent, Brad Blank, told the newspaper. “Beyond that, I cannot comment on anything.”

Bruschi, 31, was admitted to Massachusetts General Hospital on Feb. 16 and released a couple of days later.

KOLD-TV in Tucson has reported that Bruschi was readmitted to the hospital so doctors could repair a hole in his heart.

Patriots coach Bill Belichick declined to provide information about Bruschi’s medical condition.

“Tedy has made all the comments. I leave it at that,” said Belichick, who is in Hawaii for the NFL owners meetings.

Bruschi, a nine-year veteran, has been a key member of the defense that helped New England win three of the last four Super Bowls.

Bruschi, who has three years remaining on his contract, hadn’t been represented by an agent since his rookie season.

He is scheduled to earn $850,000 in 2005, $1.35 million in 2006 and $1.7 million in the final year of his contract.

The deal would be voided if he retired, but he could earn his full salary if the team elected to place him on its physically unable to perform list.

Green likes Mexico games

KAPALUA, Hawaii – Arizona Cardinals coach Dennis Green is all for hosting a regular-season game in Mexico City, which his team will do on Oct. 2 against San Francisco.

“I’m very proud the league selected us,” Green said yesterday at the NFL’s annual meetings. “We have severe weather issues at our place that time of the year.”

Most coaches have cringed at the idea of giving away a home date, citing home field advantage as being too significant to ignore.

The Cardinals regularly draw small crowds to Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe as they prepare to open their own arena in 2006.

And the Sunday night game on ESPN figures to draw more than 100,000 fans to Azteca Stadium, not to mention an international TV audience.

Citizen Staff Writer

By CORKY SIMPSON

csimpson@tucsoncitizen.com

The event was basketball, but a lot of people in McKale Center last night were thinking about a football player in a Boston hospital.

Tedy Bruschi, who just led the New England Patriots to a third Super Bowl championship, is recovering from a mild stroke after suffering an apparent ruptured blood vessel in his head.

The former University of Arizona linebacker was admitted Wednesday to Massachusetts General Hospital, but was walking, talking and in good spirits last night, the team said.

“I talked to Heidi (Bruschi’s wife) and everyone is optimistic,” said Tucson attorney Burt Kinerk, a longtime friend and adviser. “He’s such a great guy, and the kind of athlete who won’t allow his team to lose.

“We were down by two touchdowns to Arizona State one year, and Tedy just willed that comeback victory.”

The Boston Globe reported on its Web site yesterday that Bruschi had a broken blood vessel in his head and suffered from partial paralysis that has since gone away. A broken blood vessel can cause a stroke if it deprives the brain of oxygen.

The Patriots said Bruschi could be released as early as today.

“It has been determined that these symptoms were the results of a mild stroke,” team spokesman Stacey James told The Associated Press. “Tedy is in good condition and, as always, his spirits are high. He is walking and talking normally.

“The outpouring of support has been overwhelming, and the Bruschi family is very appreciative,” James added.

An estimated 700,000 people a year in the United States suffer strokes. While broken blood vessels can cause them, a vast majority result from clots that block the brain’s arteries.

Brian Mullen of the NHL’s New York Islanders attempted a comeback two years after suffering a mild stroke and undergoing surgery to correct the heart problem that caused it in 1993. He had a seizure during his training and retired when no team would take a chance on him.

Houston Astros pitcher J.R. Richard, one of the most dominant right-handers of the late 1970s, had his career cut short when he suffered a blockage-caused stroke in 1980 at age 30. His comeback attempt was also unsuccessful.

Unlike heart attacks, strokes usually cause no pain, so the warning signs often are missed by victims and people around them. Symptoms include sudden weakness or numbness, dimness or loss of vision, difficulty or inability to speak and severe headaches.

“Just from what I’ve heard, it doesn’t sound too bad to me. I sure hope Tedy will be OK,” said Fred Enke, one of the top all-round athletes in UA history and a former Detroit Lions quarterback.

Bruschi was a defensive star at Arizona from 1992-95.

“Tedy is one of the great young athletes who ever played here, but more importantly he is a great young man,” UA athletic director Jim Livengood said. “Our thoughts and prayers are with him and his family.”

A nine-year NFL veteran, Bruschi is the centerpiece of the Patriots defense that helped the team win three of the past four Super Bowls, including a 24-21 win over the Philadelphia Eagles on Feb. 6.

On Sunday, Bruschi played in his first Pro Bowl.

Bruschi, 31, was selected as the AFC’s Defensive Player of the Week three times, including the first-round playoff victory over the Indianapolis Colts. A second team Associated Press All-Pro selection, he ranked second on the team with 128 tackles and tied for second with three interceptions.

“Everybody loves Tedy,” said Rudy Castro, former UA athlete and longtime Tucson school teacher/administrator and civic leader. “We’re all pulling for him.”

At least one UA fan hinted that Bruschi has nothing else to prove.

“Tedy’s done so well in the NFL, he could probably retire,” said Dick Moe, a Tucson security consultant. “Maybe this is the time. We’ll have to see.”

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

The Associated Press

The Associated Press

BOSTON – Ex-Arizona Wildcat and New England Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi was admitted to Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston yesterday after complaining of headaches.

“He is in good condition and will be held for further evaluations,” the team said in a statement. “The Bruschi family appreciates everyone’s concern, but requests that you respect their privacy at this time.”

Bruschi was to spend the night at the hospital and more tests were scheduled for today, Patriots spokesman Stacey James said.

Bruschi, a 6-foot-1, 247-pound nine-year NFL veteran, is a key member of New England’s defense that has helped the team win three of the past four Super Bowls, including a 24-21 win over Philadelphia on Feb. 6.

Bruschi, selected in the third round of the 1996 draft out of Arizona, was second on the team in tackles during the regular season with 122, behind only safety Rodney Harrison with 138. He also had 3 1/2 sacks and three interceptions during the regular season.

He had two fumble recoveries in the team’s 20-3 divisional playoff win over the Indianapolis Colts and an interception in the Super Bowl.

Bruschi has 753 tackles, 25 sacks and 11 interceptions in his career.

He played in last weekend’s Pro Bowl in Hawaii for the first time.

The Associated Press

By MARK JEWELL

AP Business Writer

BOSTON – Raytheon Co. yesterday said fourth-quarter earnings rose 20 percent on a boost in spending for its military electronics and missile systems, a result that beat Wall Street’s expectations.

The Waltham-based defense contractor said net income for October-December rose to $245 million, or 54 cents per share, compared with a profit of $205 million, or 49 cents per share, in the year-ago period.

Net sales last quarter were $5.7 billion, up 12 percent from $5.1 billion in the period a year earlier.

Raytheon Missile Systems, based in Tucson, contributed to the growth, posting net sales of more than $1 billion, up 7 percent from $943 million compared to fourth quarter 2003, a Raytheon news release said.

The missile operation employs about 10,000 people.

For the year, the missile operation’s sales reached $3.84 billion, compared with $3.53 billion last year, the release said.

For Raytheon as a whole, pension expenses reduced earnings in the most recent quarter. Raytheon also reported a $55 million charge in the quarter from early redemption of debt. That expense was offset in part by a one-time $42 million gain from a recent change in tax law that gives U.S.-based international companies a one-year window to reduce their tax rate on overseas profits brought to the United States and reinvested here.

Raytheon’s quarterly profit from continuing operations came in at $246 million, or 54 cents per share, compared with $217 million, or 52 cents per share, a year ago.

Those results beat by 8 cents a share the consensus forecast of analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call.

Raytheon shares rose 30 cents, closing at $38.10 on the New York Stock Exchange yesterday.

The stock has traded in a 52-week range of $29.28 to $41.89.

Raytheon said sales gains resulted from a 12 percent increase in defense sales to $4.7 billion.

Raytheon retired $1.2 billion of debt in the quarter, bringing the year’s total debt reduction to $2.2 billion and the company’s year-end debt total to $4.6 billion.

Raytheon’s full-year profit was $417 million, or 94 cents per share, compared with a profit of $365 million, or 88 cents per share, in 2003.

The company reiterated a forecast for 2005 earnings, with expectations for a full-year profit of $1.80 to $1.90, excluding one-time items. The forecast accounts for higher pension expenses offset by profit improvements in 2005.

The consensus estimate of analysts is for full-year earnings of $1.88, excluding one-time items.

The Associated Press

The Associated Press

BOSTON – Amaré Stoudemire wanted to be more aggressive, and that was bad news for the Boston Celtics.

Stoudemire scored 42 points, Quentin Richardson added 23, and the Phoenix Suns won their fourth straight with a 128-119 victory over Boston last night.

“(Amaré) just got it going early, and they had no answer for him,” Phoenix forward Shawn Marion said. “He’s a beast, and it’s easy when you’ve got No. 13 (Steve Nash) feeding you the ball.”

Phoenix got all of its scoring from six players. Joe Johnson and Jim Jackson scored 17, Marion added 16, and Nash finished with 13 points and 15 assists.

Paul Pierce led Boston with 34 points and nine rebounds. Ricky Davis scored 19 for the Atlantic Division-leading Celtics (20-23), who had won five straight at home.

“We were extremely tentative in the first half, but came out and competed and were much more aggressive in the second half,” Celtics coach Doc Rivers said.

Boston outscored the Suns 36-22 in the third quarter and cut a 26-point deficit to 118-109 with four minutes left, but Phoenix responded with baskets from Nash and Stoudemire to push the lead to 13 with 3:10 remaining.

“It’s easy when you’ve got a point guard who passes as well as Steve does,” Stoudemire said. “He makes everything a lot easier and just gets the job done. I think Boston did a good job of hanging in there. They gave it a last fight, but we just pulled it off.”

The Suns connected on 13 of 25 3-pointers, with Richardson going 7 of 9 from long range.

Phoenix led 40-31 after the first quarter, when Stoudemire and Richardson were nearly unstoppable. Stoudemire made seven of eight shots from the field and scored 16 points, while Richardson hit four of five 3-pointers and had 12 points.

The Suns extended their lead to 20 midway through the second quarter on Stoudemire’s layup and went into halftime with a 74-48 advantage, the largest of the game.

“They have good chemistry,” Pierce said. “It’s tough when you’ve got a team that plays with great chemistry. They put their guys on the floor, and they understand their roles.”

By ALAN GREENBERG

The Hartford Courant

FOXBORO, Mass. – Tedy Bruschi is one of six Patriots left from the team that went to the 1997 Super Bowl. Troy Brown, Willie McGinest, Ted Johnson, Ty Law and Adam Vinatieri are the others.

“We call ourselves the four-timers,” said Bruschi, a former University of Arizona All-American. “We have a special fraternity. We recall that first Super Bowl, then going rock-bottom (5-11 in 2000, Bill Belichick’s first season). And then we dug ourselves out.”

Have they. After a three-day break following their 41-27 AFC Championship Game victory in Pittsburgh on Sunday, the Patriots returned to Gillette Stadium yesterday to start preparing for the Super Bowl against the Eagles on Feb. 6.

The Patriots will try to win their third Super Bowl in four years, something just the Cowboys did (1993, ’94, ’96).

While players rested, the Patriots coaches, their bodies older but less bruised, have been assembling the outline of their game plan.

“You don’t want to get yourself too excited and two geeked up yet,” Bruschi said. “We’ve still got to go down to Jacksonville (Sunday) and then we’ve got a whole week left.”

The Patriots went to Philadelphia in week two last season and beat Donovan McNabb & Co., 31-10. It was a good day for most of the Patriots, although linebacker Rosevelt Colvin broke his left hip in the first half and missed the rest of the year.

It cleansed the sour taste in the Patriots’ mouths after the Bills crushed them 31-0 at Buffalo in the season opener, five days after Belichick dumped four-time Pro Bowl safety Lawyer Milloy when Milloy refused to take a pay cut.

That seems like a long time ago. Then, the Patriots were a team adrift, wondering which team they were more like – the one that won the 2002 Super Bowl or the mediocre, defenseless bunch that finished 9-7 and out of the playoffs the next season.

Now that the question has been answered, someone asked linebacker Bruschi how his Patriots compare to other dynasties – the Steelers of the 1970s, the 49ers of the ’80s and the Cowboys of the ’90s.

Bruschi, who grew up in northern California, talked in brief generalities about the Cowboys and 49ers. But when asked about the Steelers – who won four Super Bowls in six years – he said, “They’re before my time. You’re asking me about the Patriots. I’ll let some team in the next decade talk about us.”

He didn’t shy away when asked about Patriots quarterback Tom Brady, who, Sports Illustrated said, had a 103-degree fever and chills last Saturday and had to be administered fluids intravenously.

“Joe Montana is the best quarterback of his day,” Bruschi said. “I think we’ve got the best quarterback of today.”

For an undersized linebacker (6 feet 1, 247 pounds) who some never thought could survive a 16-game season as an NFL starter, Bruschi is in his glory days. Not only was Bruschi AFC Defensive Player of the Week for forcing two Colts fumbles in the divisional playoffs, he was profiled in Sports Illustrated before that game and on the magazine’s cover last week.

Asked about being increasingly regarded as the public face of the Patriots, Bruschi, 31, called it “a tremendous compliment. It’s not like I got here (as a third-round draft choice in 1996) and learned to be this (ultracompetitive) way. I’ve always been this way …. When the going gets tough, grit your teeth and don’t run away from your problems.”

Bruschi, who recently admitted he once had a drinking problem and has always owned up to being a bit of a hellion in his youth, said his on-the-field motivation has changed.

“Now it’s a motivation to make my family proud,” Bruschi said. “I have a wife and three young sons. My motivation is to let my sons know that Daddy is doing everything he can to make them proud of me.”

But how does he stay motivated for his fourth Super Bowl? Does going to so many in such a short time make for a ho-hum experience?

“Absolutely not,” Bruschi said. “This is my fourth Super Bowl, and every one is special. You’ve got to cherish it. You don’t get here every year, even though our first- and second-year players don’t know that. I enjoy it very much.

“It’s a big celebration of America’s most popular sport. It does get a little overbearing at times, but that’s because it’s the biggest spectacle in sport.”

While the Patriots will be center stage next week on Super Bowl Sunday, they will try to remain on the fringes of the weeklong madness leading up to the game. The team will stay at an undisclosed hotel. Bruschi said he didn’t care. “As long as there are film projectors in our hotel room and places we can get our physical conditioning done,” he said.

Citizen Staff Writer

By PAUL CORO

The Arizona Republic

BOSTON – The Suns will activate Leandro Barbosa before tonight’s game with the Celtics, although the backup point guard probably won’t see action until at least Sunday.

Phoenix had a brief practice yeterday in Springfield, Mass., in conjunction with a team appearance at the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

This is the first game that Barbosa is eligible to play after sitting out five games on the injured list because of a left ankle sprain. Because Barbosa has been limited in his court work while rehabilitating the ankle, he likely won’t jump back into the fray tonight unless there is a pressing need.

Phoenix would be more likely to turn to Smush Parker and let Barbosa shoot for a Sunday return at Toronto. This is the final day of Parker’s 10-day contract.

Barbosa’s return, the Suns’ commitment to have him in the rotation and Parker’s lack of game time suggest that Parker will not get a second contract.

Phoenix then would have an active roster spot open.

No-brainer

As if you didn’t know, the Suns are a vastly different team with Steve Nash back.

In three losses without Nash, Phoenix shot 37.4 percent and averaged 87.3 points and 13.3 assists.

In four games with Nash back, the Suns are shooting 53 percent (better than 50 percent in each game) and are averaging 122.5 points and 26.3 assists.

It was Nash dishing out praise like assists after his 17-assist game Wednesday in Milwaukee.

“My teammates are terrific players who can finish and shoot,” he said.

Amaré Stoudemire has benefited the most, going from 16.7 points per game on 34 percent shooting without Nash to 30 points per game on 71 percent shooting since Nash’s return.

Quick fit

Jim Jackson has hit 11 of 16 shots (6 for 9 on three-point tries in the past two games.

“I told Shawn (Marion) to give me a week,” Jackson said. “I’ve got a long way to go, but I like the progress.”

That room to grow may be defensively, where Jackson has picked up 14 fouls in 61 minutes with the Suns.

“As he learns the defensive system a little bit, if we have one, and keeps in the flow, he’s going to be an important piece,” Suns coach Mike D’Antoni said of Jackson. “He already is. I expect him to average 15 to 20 points a game.”

The Associated Press

The Associated Press

FOXBORO, Mass. – There’s a certain way of doing things for New England. Players fall in line or they don’t stay long.

Work hard. Know your responsibilities. And, most of all: No one is more important than the team – not even a cover-boy quarterback with a supermodel on his arm and matching Super Bowl MVP trophies on his nightstands.

“Any person that thinks he’s above anything isn’t going to fit in, and they’re not going to last,” Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi said yesterday before the team left to play the Pittsburgh Steelers in tomorrow’s AFC Championship Game.

“If we think there’s a guy like that, we’re going to let you know about it,” said Bruschi, an ex-Arizona Wildcat. “We’ve had that talk with a lot of guys.”

Atlanta will visit Philadelphia in the NFC title game tomorrow. The Super Bowl is Feb. 6 in Jacksonville, Fla.

New England quarterback Tom Brady is 7-0 in the playoffs, but he hasn’t let success go to his head.

“That’s just who Tom is,” Bruschi said. “Tom is a guy that wants to work. Tom knows that he can’t win a game all by himself. Somebody has to block, somebody has to tackle, somebody has to catch the ball that he throws. I think he knows that more than anyone.”

A sixth-round draft pick and a fourth-stringer as a rookie, Brady quickly realized the way up the depth chart was to work hard and keep his mouth shut.

He isn’t about to change now, even though he’s met the Pope, hung out at the Playboy Mansion and been the guest of the first lady at the State of the Union address.

“Those guys, they see all the … stuff that might be said. Those guys know me pretty well, and I think they know what makes me tick,” Brady said. “You go out, you put the work in like everybody else. You hold yourself accountable.

“You gain respect from your teammates by working hard and preparing and not asking anything more of them than you would ask of yourself.”

Brady will lead the Patriots against Pittsburgh in a rematch of the 2002 AFC Championship Game, which New England won 24-17 on its way to its first NFL title.

It’s also a rematch of the Steelers’ Halloween night victory that ended New England’s record 21-game winning streak.

In that one, Brady threw two interceptions, and the Patriots ran for 5 yards as Pittsburgh won 34-20. Steelers rookie Ben Roethlisberger threw for 196 yards and two touchdowns to keep alive a win streak of his own: He has won 14 straight since taking over as starter.

“We most definitely have all the confidence in the world in Ben. We’re 15-1 because of him,” cornerback Deshea Townsend said.

Asked whether Roethlisberger could handle defensive schemes devised by Patriots coach Bill Belichick, Townsend said, “They said the same thing the last time. He’s a very confident guy. He’s very poised for a rookie, and I’m sure he’ll do fine.”

Roethlisberger will try to bounce back from a bad game against the New York Jets last week, when he threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown and another near the end of regulation. He led late scoring drives that ended with a game-tying touchdown pass to Hines Ward and Jeff Reed’s winning 33-yard field goal in overtime.

“To throw two interceptions and come back in overtime and still drive us down the field and lead us to the game-winning field goal speaks volumes about the kid,” Ward said. “I mean, he showed that determination all year. So I have all the confidence in the world he’s going to come out and have an excellent game.”

Philadelphia has lost in the NFC title game three years in a row.

To prevent a fourth straight defeat, the Eagles have to stop Falcons quarterback Michael Vick.

Vick’s speed, quickness and escapability make him the most dangerous running quarterback in the league. He can turn any play into a touchdown from anywhere on the field.

But he faces the stingiest defense in the conference, and Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Johnson is known for confusing young quarterbacks with complex blitzing schemes.

“I don’t want to change too much. We know what Michael is, and we have to be smart,” Johnson said. “You watch the teams that have had success, and it’s the teams that have team speed and teams that are good tacklers. We have some team speed, and we have to tackle.”

The Eagles lost in the 2002 NFC title game at St. Louis, then fell at home to Tampa Bay in 2003 and Carolina last year.

CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS

TOMORROW

• NFC: Atlanta (12-5) at Philadelphia (14-3), 1 p.m., Fox

• AFC: New England (15-2) at Pittsburgh (16-1), 4:30 p.m., CBS

By ALAN GREENBERG

The Hartford Courant

FOXBORO, Mass. – Other teams wear throwback jerseys. The Pittsburgh Steelers are a throwback team.

Their offense is as hard and unyielding as coach Bill Cowher’s jutting jaw.

The Steelers led the AFC in rushing and would have led the NFL if not for the uniquely talented Michael Vick in Atlanta.

The Steelers have an offensive line led by guard Alan Faneca and center Jeff Hartings, both Pro Bowl players. Behind them is a 5-foot-11, 255-pound path-clearing rolling rock, better known as fullback Dan Kreider. Behind him is 256-pound Jerome Bettis or 245-pound Duce Staley.

Bettis and Staley would be the featured back on most teams, but they don’t mind sharing the spotlight.

“This wouldn’t work on a lot of teams: two guys that love the ball, two guys that want the ball, two guys that are competitive,” Staley said.

They’re the ones with the football, and as much as he’d like to, Patriots linebacker Tedy Bruschi knows it’s rather unlikely he’ll be ripping it out of their arms the way he did right after the Colts’ Dominic Rhodes caught a pass in the flat last Sunday.

“The running game sets it all up for them,” said Bruschi, an ex-Arizona Wildcat. “We’re going to have to stop the run to win.”

Every team that plays the Steelers (15-1, 1-0) knows that and says it, but nobody really does it.

In compiling the league’s best record and a 15-game winning streak, the Steelers have turned the clock back 40 years to when all college coaches, and some in the NFL, liked to say, “Three things happen when you throw the ball, and two of them are bad.”

The Steelers rushed a league-high 618 times this season and threw 358 passes.

It’s not as if they don’t have a solid quarterback in rookie Ben Roethlisberger (17 TDs, 11 interceptions) or capable receivers.

Hines Ward (80 catches for 1,004 yards) was selected to the Pro Bowl for the fourth consecutive year, and Plaxico Burress’ stats (35 catches for 698 yards, a 19.9 average) are impressive, considering he missed nearly half the season with a leg injury.

What the Steelers have is the mind-set that running the football is Steelers’ football.

Last season, with a seemingly burned-out Bettis, no Staley (he was with the Eagles) and an injury-riddled offensive line, the Steelers were uneasy riders on Tommy Maddox’s inconsistent right arm.

They finished 6-10 and next to last in the league in rushing.

Now they have a healthy line, and Bettis is rejuvenated because of a lighter workload.

“Bettis, Staley, Roethlisberger, you’ve really got to bring your lunch when you tackle these guys,” Bruschi said. “If you don’t bring Roethlisberger down the first time you hit him, which we didn’t always do in the first game (a 34-20 Steelers victory Oct. 31), he’s going to throw it to Plaxico.”

At 6 feet 5 and 240 pounds, Roethlisberger isn’t easy to bring down.

And as a former college basketball player, Burress wins most jump balls against shorter defenders.

“This is a game where the schemes don’t matter,” Bruschi said. “It’s ‘Am I tougher than you are? Are you tougher than me?’ ”

The Patriots’ linebacking corps has been tougher than most this season.

After an injury-riddled 2003 in which Rosevelt Colvin (broken hip) played one full game and Mike Vrabel and Ted Johnson missed chunks of the season, only Roman Phifer, six weeks shy of his 37th birthday and the oldest player on the team, has missed playing time.

The 6-4, 255-pound Johnson, the best run-stopper among Patriots linebackers, is enjoying a renaissance after several injury-plagued seasons.

He could be a key performer tomorrow after having a much smaller role against the pass-oriented Colts.

The Associated Press

The Associated Press

FOXBORO, Mass. – Bill Belichick can dissect Peyton Manning’s every tendency, neutralizing the NFL MVP’s record-setting talent in game after game. He relishes the chess match with opposing coaches – always staying one move ahead.

There’s one person Belichick can’t quite figure out, though, and he’s right there in the New England Patriots’ locker room.

“Tedy (Bruschi) is a very instinctive player. It’s not something you really can coach,” Belichick said about the former University of Arizona star.

Belichick is not known to gush, but Bruschi earned the coach’s praise by recovering two fumbles Sunday to help New England beat the Colts 20-3 and advance to the AFC title game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

“He is the kind of guy you always want on the field, because if something unexpected happens like that, he almost always does the right thing,” Belichick said of the player some fans are calling “Tedy Ballgame,” an homage to former Red Sox Ted Williams’ “Teddy Ballgame” nickname.

New England led 6-0 in the second quarter Sunday when Indianapolis drove into Patriots’ territory, and Dominic Rhodes caught a pass in the backfield and was met immediately by Bruschi.

While bringing down the Colts’ running back, Bruschi managed to gain possession of the ball, and the two players hit the ground together.

Bruschi said the play was a case of “somebody wanting it more than the other guy. It was me and him, and the ball was right there. That was a takeaway. Hopefully, they won’t be calling that a giveaway, because that was a takeaway.”

The play kept the Colts off the scoreboard on that drive and, when they got the ball back on a punt, the loss of field position and time kept them from reaching the end zone before having to kick a field goal from the 5-yard line at the end of the half.

Bruschi had a smaller part in the Colts’ other fumble, falling on the ball after Rodney Harrison knocked it out of Reggie Wayne’s hands. He also showed he could think quickly when he fielded a short kickoff to start the second half and returned it 15 yards to the 44-yard line.

“He has a great knack for the ball,” Belichick said. “He has a great feel for just playing football, whether it is kickoff returns, punt team, the running game, pass coverage or blitzing.”

Bruschi also had eight tackles in the game, which, after all, is his primary responsibility. It’s the second time in as many games against the Colts that he’s made an impact: He intercepted Manning at the 1-yard line on Indianapolis’ first drive in the season opener.

For Bruschi, it was all he could do to bite his lip while hearing all offseason about how the Patriots’ secondary manhandled – illegally, the Colts say – the Indianapolis receivers. During the offseason, the NFL told officials to pay closer attention to contact more than five yards from the line of scrimmage.

The Patriots said they wouldn’t be deterred by the new “point of emphasis,” and they weren’t.

Manning, who set NFL records with 49 touchdowns and a 121.1 passer rating in the regular season, delivered his worst performance of the season, failing to throw a touchdown pass for the first time.

“I wonder what rules they want to change now,” Bruschi said. “Maybe it will be we can’t play a game in the snow. I don’t know, but they will think of something. I was just tired of it. I was tired of hearing how we didn’t win the game, that they lost the game by giving the ball away.”

CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS SUNDAY

• NFC: Atlanta (12-5) at Philadelphia (14-3), 1 p.m., Fox

• AFC: New England (15-2) at Pittsburgh (16-1), 4:30 p.m., CBS

The Associated Press

The Associated Press

BOSTON – Red Sox managers just never learn.

With an eerie resemblance to last year’s postseason debacle, Pedro Martinez took a lead into the eighth inning before tiring, and the New York Yankees rallied past Boston 6-4 last night to open a 5 1/2-game advantage in the American League East.

“It had a lot of similarities to the playoff game last year,” Yankees starter Mike Mussina said. “History tends to repeat itself, but usually not that quickly.”

Grady Little was the Red Sox manager last fall when he left Martinez in during the eighth inning of Game 7 of the AL Championship Series. The Yankees overcame a 5-2 deficit to tie it and earned a World Series berth when Aaron Boone homered in the 11th.

Little was let go after the season and replaced by ex-Arizona Wildcat Terry Francona.

Francona, much as his predecessor did, sent Martinez (16-8) back out for the eighth even though he needed 101 pitches to get through the first seven innings.

Boston fans let Francona hear about it yesterday, much as they did his predecessor.

Hideki Matsui homered on pitch 103 to make it 4-4, and Bernie Williams followed with a ground-rule double.

Martinez struck out Jorge Posada, who hit the game-tying double off the Red Sox ace in the ALCS, but Ruben Sierra singled home the go-ahead run and – finally – chased Martinez.

“If I run out there after two pitches … it would make it look like I wasn’t making a very good decision before the inning,” Francona said.

“We put a lot of thought into what we’re doing. I was disappointed it was a tie game instead of having a one-run lead, but two pitches into the inning he’s still, in my opinion … he’s OK.”

Diamondbacks lose again

SAN DIEGO – Pinch-runner Khalil Greene scored the winning run on third baseman Chad Tracy’s fielding error with one out in the ninth inning, and the San Diego Padres kept slim playoff hopes alive by beating the Arizona Diamondbacks 6-5 last night.

Arizona fell to 47-107.

Another title for Braves

ATLANTA – The cigars were bigger than ever, the champagne and beer just as cold.

The scene in the joyous Atlanta Braves clubhouse showed that winning never gets old.

The Braves clinched their 13th consecutive division title last night, winning the NL East with an 8-7 comeback victory over the Florida Marlins.

Picked to finish behind Philadelphia and Florida by many before the season, the Braves were six games under .500 and 6 1/2 games out of first place on June 23. They are 58-26 since, leaving the Marlins and Phillies to fight for second place.

The Associated Press

Former Arizona recruit Jeff Allison is just the latest to fall into drug addiction from painkillers.

By STEVE WILSTEIN

AP Sports Columnist

Jeff Allison dreamed a year ago of leaping from first-round draft choice for the Florida Marlins to National League All-Star.

Instead, he sank from a prescription drug addiction to a heroin overdose.

The former University of Arizona recruit had it all: the 95-mph fastball, the $1.85 million signing bonus, the gushing praise of Marlins manager Jack McKeon.

Now it’s all gone, and the Marlins want nothing more to do with this 19-year-old who showed so much promise but delivered nothing but trouble.

Hospitalized and released a few days ago in his hometown of Peabody, Mass., Allison is not alone among athletes who have gotten hooked on opiates such as OxyContin that were prescribed by doctors or procured on the black market.

“I detoxed a pro football player just last week,” Dr. Clifford A. Bernstein, medical director of the Waismann Institute in Beverly Hills, Calif., said Tuesday. “He was a defensive end, retired two years now. He said he’d been doing OxyContin all through his college career and five years in the pros.”

OxyContin, dubbed “hillbilly heroin,” is one of the most powerful narcotics prescribed by doctors. Along with its widely used relative, Vicodin, they are the painkillers of choice among athletes. Both are opiates, just a few steps away chemically from street heroin.

Bernstein has treated about a dozen Major League Baseball players, a similar number of NFL players, a couple of NBA players, about 150 well-known Hollywood celebrities and several thousand weekend warriors for addictions to opiates.

“Pitchers throw out a shoulder, hurt a wrist, elbow, get lots of aches and pains,” Bernstein said. “They get exposed to these opiate medications early, usually starting with Vicodin. Next thing you know, the pain is going away, and they’re feeling good because these things give you a little energy. And they start thinking, ‘Hey, the doctor gave it to me, I’m winning games, no problem.’”

Except there can be serious problems, including breathing difficulty, disorientation, dizziness, hearing loss, constipation, sweating, vomiting and, in overdoses, death. OxyContin is prescribed for moderate to severe pain in chronic conditions, but it’s a dubious, if not irresponsible, choice for athletes to take in high dosages throughout the season.

“With these athletes, there’s a big push to get them on the field, whether it takes OxyContin or whatever,” said Bernstein, a chronic pain specialist who uses an accelerated treatment called the Waismann Method to get people off opium-based painkillers.

“I stand toe to toe with these other pain doctors who think chronic pain needs to be treated aggressively. I just don’t agree that OxyContin is the way to treat it.”

Opiates mask pain but perpetuate their own need and hook patients, Bernstein said.

“After a while, the drug just doesn’t work, so you need more,” he said. “And if you don’t have it, you get very sick, and your pain is worse, which is withdrawal. Your body convinces you that you need more and more. Football players are always hurting. You talk to them, and they say Vicodin flows freely in the locker room.”

Athletes tell Bernstein they take Vicodin like candy, getting it from the pharmacy, over the Internet or in Mexico. Instead of taking a 5- or 10-milligram dose twice a day for a week or so, many gulp much higher dosages.

Vicodin, generically hydrocodone, is similar to the more powerful, suspended-release OxyContin, known generically as oxycodone.

“With OxyContin, 80 milligrams is a pretty strong dose that a lot of people use,” Bernstein said. “Most guys that are hooked on it are taking 40 to 80 milligram tablets two or three times a day. I’ve seen people coming in on a 10- or 20-a-day habit.”

For Allison to go from OxyContin to heroin doesn’t surprise Bernstein.

“It’s just the next step,” Bernstein said.

Allison, who spent three days in the hospital because of the heroin overdose, according to police, could find help from the kind of treatment for chemical imbalance that Bernstein has used on other patients.

It may not be too late for Allison to recover his health, kick his drug problems and get back on the path to stardom he seemed to be on a year ago when the Marlins made him the 16th pick overall.

He had been a standout at Peabody High School, going 8-0 without allowing an earned run in 63 1/3 innings as a senior. He signed with UA but decided to turn pro.

He has issues to settle and a lot of growing up to do. He showed up three weeks late to Florida’s camp this spring, reportedly failed at least one drug test and was placed on baseball’s restricted list for leaving extended spring training without permission.

The Marlins may never give him another chance, but another team probably will if he cleans himself up and gets serious about the game again. Pitchers with 95-mph fastballs are always in demand. The treatment is out there. The question is whether Allison will go for it and whether other athletes will learn a lesson from his unhappy tale.

PHOTO CAPTION: The Associated Press

Former UA recruit Jeff Allison was drafted by the Marlins a year ago. He was recently hospitalized for a drug overdose, police say.

Citizen Staff

He says Bush lacks compassion he promised 4 years ago

By C.T. REVERE

ctrevere@tucsoncitizen.com

U.S. Rep. Raúl Grijalva’s speech to the Democratic National Convention took just five minutes to deliver but left a lasting impression.

The Tucson Democrat, sporting an uncharacteristically dapper suit and tie, shed the kid gloves in what has been billed as a nonconfrontational convention.

In the last of three nominating speeches for Sen. John Edwards, the party’s vice presidential candidate, Grijalva laid into President Bush, saying his administration has lacked the compassion he promised four years ago.

“Our health is jeopardized by the environmental policies of George Bush. Our public lands are being traded away to commercial interests. Mr. President, where is the compassion?” Grijalva asked. “We have been led into a war based on deception and manipulation, a war in which our brave men and women risk their lives daily. Mr. Bush, where is your moral imperative to the truth and to make the world a better place for all humanity?”

He also took Bush to task for giving tax cuts to the rich while education, the elderly and working families fall through the cracks.

The direct approach came as no surprise to Pima County Democratic chairman Paul Eckerstrom.

“I expected that from Raúl,” he said. “He represents the working families, people who have worked hard all their lives. That’s Raúl, and he’s never going to change. George Bush said he was going to be a compassionate conservative, and he has been anything but.”

Vivian Juan-Saunders, the chairwoman of the Tohono O’odham Nation, said she was proud watching Grijalva from the convention floor.

“He represented the state of Arizona very well. I was pleased that he mentioned the state has 22 tribes and shared that with the audience.”

Grijalva, who made part of his address in Spanish and appeared nervous early in his speech, said the Kerry-Edwards ticket offers new direction for America.

“We have endured the George Bush way, and that is the wrong way,” he said. “Come Nov. 2 it will be the start of the Kerry-Edwards way, a better way.”

PHOTO CAPTION: Gannett News Service

‘Our health is jeoparized by the environmental policies of George Bush. Our public lands are being traded away to commercial interests. Mr. President, where is the compassion?’ – U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva, during his speech at the Democratic National Convention yesterday nominating Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina to be the Democrats’ vice presidential candidate.