Anthony Olivieri Posts

EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey -- The UFL plans to add two more teams and four games to each club's schedule next season, according to Rick Mueller, general manager for all four of the league's teams.

Mueller, speaking exclusively to FanHouse on Thursday, said that "it looks good" for expansion in 2010. He said that there is enough talent for the league to field six teams, start the campaign in September and play a 10-game season.

Los Angeles, a city currently without an NFL team, has been rumored as a frontrunner. Mueller did not say for sure whether a deal was in place to bring professional football back to L.A. and would not mention any other locations specifically.

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EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey -- When the UFL debuted earlier this month, commissioner Michael Huyghue told FanHouse the league and its executives would do it their way.

The league proved stubborn Thursday, when the New York Sentinels played their first home game of the season under the worst of circumstances -- at least, from an exposure standpoint.

Despite its first appearance in New York City's metropolitan area, the country's undisputed media hub, the UFL may as well have played in Fargo, considering the magnitude of Game 2 of the World Series, which was being played just a few miles away at Yankee Stadium.

On the field, it wasn't much better for the Sentinels, who lost their third straight game to start the season, a 20-13 setback at the hands of the California Redwoods.

It may have been news to many in the tri-state area who were tuned in to watch Pedro Martinez's return to the Bronx with the Philadelphia Phillies.

The UFL will debut in New York City's metropolitan area Thursday, though it's unclear who will notice.

The New York Sentinels (0-2) are set to play their first home game this season, when they host the California Redwoods (1-2) at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey (7 PM ET). The contest will be played while the New York Yankees take on the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 2 of the World Series just a few miles away at Yankee Stadium (7:57 p.m. ET).

The UFL has had problems drawing fans on normal nights, without the stiff competition of a highly-anticipated World Series, pitting the defending champions (Phillies) against one of the country's most popular teams (Yankees).

STORRS, Conn. -- Connecticut police have charged a man with the murder of UConn football player Jasper Howard. John William Lomax III, 21, was charged with murder and conspiracy to commit assault.

"There is no system of justice that can bring back someone who has been taken from us," UConn Commissioner of Public Safety John A. Danaher III said Tuesday. "But we can do all in our power to investigate, arrest and assist in prosecuting those who commit a crime such as this, and we did so in this case."

Bond was set at $2 million for Lomax of Bloomfield, Conn., which is about 30 miles from UConn's campus.

The Florida Tuskers continued their dominance of the UFL. Despite the easy nature of their wins, coach Jim Haslett is confident his team has remained motivated.

Brooks Bollinger threw two touchdown passes and back-up Chris Greisen tossed one more as Haslett's Tuskers thoroughly dispatched the California Redwoods, 34-7, at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Florida on Thursday night.

"They know this is their last stop and that, if they want to get back to the NFL, they need to play at a high level, and have fun doing it," Haslett said. "And they understand that, so I don't need to harp on them."

The coach certainly had nothing to get on them about last night in the lone contest in Week 3 of the UFL's inaugural season.

Marcus Maxwell, Jayson Foster and Andrew Pinnock each had a TD grab, while Taye Biddle had five catches for 133 yards for Florida, which has won its first three games to start the season -- all in convincing fashion.

On Sunday night, October 19, 2008, Ike Hilliard fell awkwardly to the turf at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa.

Seattle Seahawks linebackers Lofa Tatupu and Leroy Hill had sandwiched the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' slim wide receiver near his head, as if trying to make him disappear into the thin fall air.

Still, Hilliard, a man with a history of neck injuries, was the luckiest man in the stadium.

You see, the 12-year NFL veteran wasn't supposed to be on the field that day. Hilliard's career, in fact, wasn't to last past its rookie season.

"I had a neck fusion year one of my NFL career, and [the doctors] weren't encouraged that I'd be able to play," said the 33-year-old Hilliard, who now is the wide receivers coach for the UFL's Florida Tuskers.

"Then, I played 11 more seasons."

The UFL has changed venues for two of its remaining games, the league announced Thursday. Presumably, the move is due to the four-team outfit's sparse attendance thus far.

The New York Sentinels' home game vs. the Las Vegas Locomotives on Nov. 4 was moved from Citi Field to Hofstra's James M. Shuart Stadium. In addition, on Nov. 14 the California Redwoods will host the Locos at San Jose State University's Spartan Stadium instead of AT&T Park, as previously scheduled.

Fans of the New York Jets don't need any more angst, especially after the abysmal performance by rookie quarterback Mark Sanchez on Sunday.

So, Jets fans, stop reading now because Brooks Bollinger, a former starter for Gang Green in 2005, has been a standout signal caller in the UFL.

Check Bollinger's numbers in two season-opening wins for the Florida Tuskers: 44-of-58, 535 yards, 7 TDs and 1 INT. Thanks in part to Bollinger, the Tuskers have scored 64 points and amassed 792 yards of total offense in those contests.

OK, masters of the obvious, success in the UFL doesn't equate to similar prowess in the NFL. It's the irony, however, that strikes us, as well as the opportunity for a social experiment.

Will New York fans second-guess anything, even if they are, in effect, second-guessing themselves?

The home debut for the California Redwoods came in front of a small gathering. Their coach, however, was excited for those that were in attendance.

Cory Ross ran for 121 yards and a touchdown as Dennis Green's Redwoods secured the first win in franchise history, a 24-7 triumph over the New York Sentinels in Saturday's final game of Week 2 in the UFL.

"It's great to play at home and get a win," Green said of the game played at AT&T Park in front of a crowd of 6,341, the smallest number through four games. "It's off to a good start for us. We played much better defense, similar to how we started defensively last week.

"Pretty good feeling of urgency on defense. Offensively, we sputtered a lot. Sometimes, we looked OK, sometimes not so good. But we did take advantage of some points there."

The Las Vegas Locomotives will play their final home game at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas on November 20, instead of the Home Depot Center in Los Angeles, the UFL announced late Wednesday.

The announcement came just hours after the Locomotives suffered their first loss of the season, a 29-15 defeat at the hands of the Florida Tuskers. It was the second game for both teams in the UFL's inaugural season.