SPORTS WIRE: Weis testimony: Afraid I'd 'drop dead' from obesity
Weis, who suffered life-threatening complications and nearly died after the June 2002 surgery, testified Wednesday in his medical malpractice case against two surgeons that he has struggled with his weight all his life.
''I've probably been on every diet known to mankind,'' he said in response to questions from his lawyer, Michael Mone, in Suffolk (Mass.) Superior Court.
Weis, whose father died of a heart attack at 56, said he worried he wouldn't be able to see his two children grow up or reach his goal of becoming a head coach.
''The foremost concern was that I was going to drop dead,'' Weis said when his lawyer asked about his motivation for the surgery.
Weis claims in his suit that Massachusetts General Hospital physicians Charles Ferguson and Richard Hodin acted negligently by failing to recognize life-threatening internal bleeding and infection two days after the surgery.
Defense lawyers have said the doctors cared for Weis properly and that he experienced one of the known complications of the surgery.
• The NCAA football rules committee proposed rolling back some rules that were enacted last season to shorten games after coaches complained the changes were unfair.
The committee, meeting in Albuquerque, N.M., recommended going back to starting the clock on the snap after a change of possession instead of when the referee signals the ball ready for play. It also suggested starting the clock on kickoffs after the ball is touched by the receiving team rather than when it is kicked.
• Jilted by quarterback Clint Brewster, who decided to go to Minnesota after his father, Tim, was hired as head coach, Illinois coach Ron Zook added Phil Haig, a 6-3, 185-pound left-handed quarterback from Inver Grove Heights, Minn., who had been Minnesota-bound until the Brewsters entered the picture.
''Phil is a very athletic quarterback who fits well into our system,'' Zook said. ''He ran our offense in high school, so the transition should be a smooth one.''
NFL:
''There's no doubt in my mind,'' Singletary said after emerging from his interview. ''Absolutely.''
Singletary, the San Francisco 49ers' assistant head coach and a Hall of Fame linebacker, was the first candidate to meet with team executives.
BASEBALL:
Politte, 32, appeared in 30 games last season for the White Sox. He went 2-2 with an 8.70 ERA, but his season was shortened by inflammation in his right shoulder .
• Former All-Star Dmitri Young agreed to a minor-league contract with the Washington Nationals, getting another chance after the Detroit Tigers cut him last year following legal and substance problems.
Sun-Times wires, Herb Gould
