UCLA football kicker Justin Medlock, suspended indefinitely by
coach Karl Dorrell on Dec. 11, pleaded not guilty to two
alcohol-related felony charges at Inglewood Superior Court on Jan.
3. On Dec. 10, 2005, Medlock, 22, was the driver in a one-car
accident that injured passenger Hannah Jun, who is on the
UCLA’s women’s golf team. Medlock was charged with one
count each of driving under the influence of alcohol causing injury
and driving with a blood-alcohol level of .08 percent causing
injury. If convicted, he faces up to six years in state prison.
Medlock, who is free on $10,000 bond, was granted a waiver by Judge
Rodney G. Forneret to return to court Feb. 10 to set a date for a
preliminary hearing. Jun, 20, suffered multiple injuries that
included a fractured vertebra in her neck, but school officials
said she is expected to make a full recovery. According to police,
Medlock crashed a 1998 Toyota Tacoma into a call box on Interstate
405 in Inglewood at 2:52 a.m. Jun was found alone inside the truck,
which had overturned. Medlock, who has one more season of
eligibility, was formally charged on Dec. 30th, the day his
teammates played Northwestern in the Sun Bowl without him.
Prosecutors decided against filing hit-and-run charges after
determining that Medlock left the scene of the accident in an
attempt to find help.
WOODEN GIVEN AWARD: NCAA President Myles Brand
awarded former UCLA coach John Wooden the NCAA President’s
Gerald Ford Award on Saturday at the historic Murat Theatre at the
2006 NCAA Convention in Indianapolis. The award, which was also
given to Birch Bayh, honors individuals who have provided
significant leadership as an advocate for intercollegiate athletics
on a continuous basis over the course of his or her career. In
their honor, the NCAA will donate an honorarium to the institution
of their choice for the benefit of student-athletes. “As we
begin the celebration of the NCAA Centennial here in Indiana, it is
only fitting to have two native Hoosiers who have made significant
contributions to intercollegiate athletics and the goal toward
equality for all people,” Brand said. “Coach
Wooden’s unprecedented coaching accomplishments based on
sound principles of scholarship and citizenship have positively
impacted the college sports world.” In 1999, ESPN named
Wooden “Coach of the 20th Century,” and in 2003,
President George W. Bush awarded Wooden the President Medal of
Freedom, the highest civilian honor American award.
AUSTIN COMMITS: Long Beach Poly wide receiver
Terrence Austin, 5-foot-11 and 180 pounds, verbally committed to
the Bruins on Saturday following the U.S. Army All-American game in
San Antonio, Texas. Austin is listed by Scout.com as the No. 9
receiver in the nation in his class, and is considered to be the
highest-ranked high school receiver coach Karl Dorrell has
recruited during his tenure.