DeBartolo, Jones among Hall presenters

May 13, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

CANTON

Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones will be the presenter for Emmitt Smith at the Pro Football Hall of Fame inductions this summer.

Jones also served as Michael Irvin’s presenter in 2007. Smith is the NFL’s career rushing leader.

Jerry Rice, the all-time receiving leader, will be presented by Ed DeBartolo Jr., former owner of the San Francisco 49ers.

New Orleans Saints owner Tom Benson will introduce linebacker Rickey Jackson.

Former Denver Broncos running back Floyd Little will be introduced by his son, Marc.

Russ Grimm, a one-time star guard with the Washington Redskins, will have his former line coach, Joe Bugel, present him.

Ohio State’s David Lighty refractures foot

COLUMBUS

Ohio State star David Lighty has refractured a bone in his left foot and will undergo surgery.

Coach Thad Matta said Wednesday that Lighty suffered the injury during spring workouts Tuesday and will have surgery Friday at the Ohio State Medical Center.

The foot is the same that Lighty broke in December 2008, an injury that forced him to sit out the remainder of the 2008-2009 season.

Recovery is expected to take up to three months.

Lighty, a junior, averaged 12.6 points this season, helping lead Ohio State to an NCAA tournament round of 16 appearance and Big Ten regular-season and tournament championships.

AP Source: Cushing tested positive for HCG

NEW YORK

Houston Texans linebacker Brian Cushing tested positive for HCG, a fertility drug that is on the NFL’s banned substance list.

A person familiar with Cushing’s case told The Associated Press on Tuesday that Cushing had one positive test last September, then subsequently tested negative several times. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the test results were supposed to remain confidential.

The NFL has suspended Cushing for the first four games of the season. He won the AP’s NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year honor in January for outstanding on-field performance.

Serena Williams upset in Madrid Masters

MADRID

Top-ranked Serena Williams was knocked out of the Madrid Masters on Wednesday, falling 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 to Nadia Petrova of Russia in the third round.

Petrova, who has won 19 doubles titles, had 10 aces and frustrated Williams into 41 errors.

Williams had looked out of form in a marathon match against Vera Dushevina on Tuesday, which lasted 3 hours, 26 minutes. It was the longest match of her career.

In the men’s draw, second-seeded Rafael Nadal advanced to the third round with a 6-4, 6-3 win against Ukrainian qualifier Oleksandr Dolgopolov Jr.

Nadal broke early to take control of the first set, although Dolgopolov pressured the Spaniard’s serve in the second with some strong groundstrokes.

If Big 10 calls, Missouri will listen hard

COLUMBIA, Mo.

From geographic proximity to its membership in the prestigious Association of American Universities, Missouri in many ways is a natural fit for an expanded Big Ten Conference.

Need another reason? Try 13 million — that’s about how many extra dollars Missouri could expect to earn annually from a conference with its own television network and a revenue sharing model that distributes equal payments to all 11 members.

The Big Ten insists that no decisions have been made on expansion — and no offers extended, contrary to a Kansas City radio station’s report earlier this week.

The Kansas City Star reported that athletics director Mike Alden, Missouri system president Gary Forsee and Columbia campus chancellor Brady Deaton met last week to discuss the school’s potential interest in leaving the Big 12 Conference.

Vindicator staff/wire reports