Sports briefs for September 14, 2004

Tuesday, Sept. 14, 2004 | 10:17 a.m.

Ex-Raiders QB Marinovich in jail

Former Southern California and Raiders quarterback Todd Marinovich is serving a 90-day jail term stemming from an arrest in Newport Beach last month for possessing methamphetamine, officials said Monday.

Marinovich pleaded guilty last week to a felony count of possessing a controlled substance and two misdemeanor counts of resisting arrest and the unauthorized possession of hypodermic needles, said Mark Macaulay of the Orange County district attorney's office.

Marinovich, 35, starred at USC before being selected by the Raiders in the first round of the 1991 NFL draft. He also played for the Los Angeles Avengers of the Arena Football League and briefly in the Canadian Football League.

Marinovich has been jailed since his arrest Aug. 28 after officers saw him skateboarding in a prohibited area, said Sgt. Mark Hamilton of the Newport Beach Police Department. When officers caught up with him, they allegedly found methamphetamine and three syringes.

Marinovich entered his plea Wednesday before Orange County Superior Court Judge Craig Robison.

Marinovich was on probation for a 2001 conviction for felony heroin possession and was supposed to have served 80 days in jail stemming from a 2003 arrest in Los Angeles County.

Open ratings down

Roger Federer's dominant win over Lleyton Hewitt was the lowest-rated U.S. Open men's final ever. Federer's 6-0, 7-6 (3), 6-0 win over Hewitt on Sunday drew a preliminary national rating of 2.5 for CBS. That means an average of 2.5 percent of the country's TV homes tuned in at any given moment. The rating was down 29 percent from the 3.5 last year.

Rebels junior picked

Junior midfielder Jessica Brown became the second consecutive UNLV women's player to win Mountain West Conference player of the week honors, following teammate Jessica Destito.

Driver pleads guilty

Walter Case Jr., one of the top harness racing's all-time winningest drivers, pleaded guilty in a Ravenna, Ohio, court to attacking his estranged wife with a steak knife at their home. No sentencing date was announced.