KNBC reports:

LOS ANGELES — A member of the USC football team was arrested Wednesday afternoon as part of a sexual assault investigation, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

Police said that a female USC student told authorities that quarterback Mark Sanchez sexually assaulted her. Police said the alleged assault occurred earlier Wednesday.

Police told NBC4 that they are in the preliminary stages of the investigation. Details were not released.

Sanchez redshirted as a freshman in 2005. He earned a long list of honors as a quarterback at Mission Viejo High School.

Cripes.

(Hat tip: Ed Joyce.)

This is apparently very much breaking news, as there’s nothing yet about it on Google News or Technorati.

UPDATE, 9:38 PM: Boi From Troy, alerted to the story by yours truly, is on the case.

UPDATE, 9:57 PM: And now there’s an AP article with some additional details:

Sanchez, 19, was arrested around 4 p.m. just north of campus and was being booked for investigation of sexual assault, police Officer Jason Lee said.

“The alleged assault occurred earlier today,” Lee said. The USC student reported it to police but no other details were immediately available.

A spokesman for USC said the university will release a statement later Wednesday.

Sanchez is listed on the Trojans’ depth chart as the backup to John David Booty, but is expected to battle for the starting job this fall. Booty practiced only once this spring before he injured his back and had to undergo surgery.

Sanchez played the recent spring scrimmage and has been practicing with the first unit.

As I wrote in comments: “We should be careful not to rush to judgment, obviously, especially in light of the Duke rape case. We don’t know yet what Sanchez did or did not do… what we do know is that this is very bad news for USC.”

Thanks again to Ed, whose tip allowed me to scoop the rest of blogosphere on this story.

[UPDATE, 10:36 PM: The L.A. Times has new details:

Mark Sanchez, a redshirt freshman battling to become USC’s starting quarterback, was arrested in the 4100 block of McClintock just north of the campus at about 4 p.m. today after a female USC student reported to police that she had been sexually assaulted by Sanchez earlier in the day, said Officer Jason Lee, an LAPD spokesman.

LAPD’s elite robbery-homicide division is investigating the case. Sanchez, 19, has been booked on suspicion of sexual assault, and is in custody in the jail at LAPD’s Parker Center, in downtown Los Angeles. He has not been charged, Lee said.

USC Coach Pete Carroll, who was out of town recruiting, said early this evening that he was aware of Sanchez’s arrest and that the Trojan football program would cooperate fully with the LAPD.

I could be wrong, but I think the “4100 block of McClintock” must be a mistake, because I don’t believe such a location actually exists. So far as I know, McClintock extends from around 3000 to around 3700. For there to be a “4100 block,” it would need to extend south of campus, which I don’t believe it does. (See map here.)

The university housing locations on McClintock are Cardinal Gardens (3131 S. McClintock), Parkside (3730) and Parkside Suites (3771). I’m guessing either the L.A. Times reporter misheard or the police officer misspoke, and they really meant the “3100 block of McClintock,” in which case we’re probably talking about Cardinal Gardens. According to Becky’s and my recollection, a lot of athletes live there, because they’re the nicest apartments on campus.

UPDATE TO THE UPDATE: Indeed, the last alleged sexual assault involving a USC football player, Eric Wright, supposedly occurred at Cardinal Gardens, in Wright’s apartment. In that case, though, no charges were ever filed (though Wright was shown the door, and now plays for UNLV). Another reason to remember we should exercise caution here, and not rush to judgment.]

[UPDATE, 11:24 PM: I was right! The L.A. Times has corrected the address, and is now reporting: “Sanchez was taken into custody at the Cardinal Gardens Apartments in the 3100 block of McClintock Ave., just north of the campus.”

Meanwhile, from WeAreSC, via NDNation:

Statement from USC’s Michael Jackson, Vice President, Student Affairs:

“We’ve heard of an allegation of sexual assault against USC student Mark Sanchez. We are waiting for the LAPD to provide us with a report. We will of course cooperate fully with the investigation of this matter.

“The university takes charges of sexual assault seriously. Depending on the facts as established by the LAPD, we will determine the appropriate action. In the interim, the student will be placed on interim suspension while the case is pending.”

Statement from USC head football coach Pete Carroll:

“We’re just learning about this. We’ll cooperate fully and do whatever we can to assist. At this point, this is being handled by the University’s Student Affairs office and we’ll follow along with whatever action the university takes.”

In an interesting twist, Jackson used the phrase “charges of sexual assault,” but the L.A. Times changed it to “[allegations] of sexual assault,” because no charges have been filed — and I’m guessing the Times was worried about libel there. Does this mean Sanchez could sue his own university’s Director of Student Affairs for libel?? Somebody call Todd Dickey! Methinks Jackson’s office didn’t proofread his hastily prepared statement closely enough! Heh.

Anyway, the assault allegedly occurred about 12:30 a.m., according to the Times.]

(more…)

Becky and I have spent the last 20 minutes calling pretty much every sports bar in South Bend and the surrounding Michiana area, trying to find a place where we can watch Game 3 of the Sabres-Flyers series on TV tonight. The only game that local cable subscribers can watch is Rangers-Devils on OLN, but you’d think that some sports bar in town would have all the games, wouldn’t you? But noooo… “we don’t have the hockey package” is the response I keep getting. Even BW-3, which claims it is “famous for Buffalo Wings,” doesn’t have the Buffalo game! It’s a travesty! :)

I realize South Bend is a football town, not a hockey town, but still, you’d think there’d be some bar filling this niche. It’s not like Chicago (home of the Blackhawks) and Detroit (home of the Red Wings) are that far away… and Notre Dame students come from all over the country, including hockey towns… surely we’re not the only people who have ever wanted to watch a not-otherwise-televised playoff hockey game at a sports bar in Michiana!

Anyway, if anybody knows of a sports bar in the area that gets the “hockey package,” please leave a comment…

UPDATE: Philly wins, 4-2. (It was 3-2 until the Flyers scored an empty-net goal with 15 seconds left.) So now it’s a 2-1 series. Hopefully Buffalo takes Game 4 and then wraps it up at home in Game 5.

UPDATE 2: BFLOBLOG has an excellent game summary.

You know you’re curious.

We all know Godwin’s Law, about the overuse of Nazi analogies. I propose my own. Vivier’s Law: As a debate progresses, the likelihood of somebody comparing somebody else to a Communist approaches one. If you’re against a war, you must be a member of ANSWER. If it doesn’t quite feel right when a man bankrupts a company while making millions, you clearly work for the downfall of capitalism. Dislike gas prices, and surely you must want public ownership of all natural resources. Have any problems with school, you’re ready to join a commune farm. If you’re concerned about both people and owls, you might just have a secret manifesto in your desk drawer. And all atheists worship at the shrine of Trotsky. By that time, you’re stuck explaining why your beliefs are not, in fact, anything at all like Communism, instead of why you believe your points make sense. All further intelligent debate at that point is almost impossible. As a corollary, anyone may now declare “Vivier’s” and win the debate.

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The cyclone formerly known as Monica is back over water, but she has weakened to a mere “tropical low” (what we would call a “tropical depression”) and is unlikely to re-develop into a Tropical Cyclone even as she heads southwestward into the Joseph Bonaparte Gulf.

Thanks to a well-timed left-hand turn, Monica brought only tropical-storm-force winds to the city of Darwin, and there have been no reports of deaths or injuries, contrary to earlier fears of a calamity. Thank goodness for that!

Now the big question is: just how strong was she? Despite some reports that Monica, at her peak, rivaled Supertyphoon Tip for the title of strongest tropical cyclone ever recorded on planet Earth, the storm’s exact strength is a matter of some dispute, as Dr. Jeff Masters points out.