Sports briefs

Lobos' prized QB recruit leaving school

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Freshman quarterback Emmanuel Yeager, the star of coach Mike Locksley's first recruiting class at New Mexico, is leaving school because of an undisclosed family issue.

Locksley said Tuesday that Yeager, who chose New Mexico over Louis?ville and had been touted as a potential starter next fall, has been released from his scholarship.

"He and I have been in discussion about this over the past month and it was a tough decision for him to make, but I respect him for doing what's best for his family," Locksley said in a news release.

Yeager participated in New Mexico's spring practice last month after graduating early from Coolidge High School in Washington, D.C. At 6-foot-2 and 190 pounds with 4.6 speed in the 40-yard dash, Yeager is a dual-threat quarterback who has been compared to West Virginia's Pat White. His commitment to New Mexico was seen as evidence of Locksley's skill as a recruiter.

Locksley, a former assistant at Illinois, Florida and Maryland who was hired in December for his first head coaching position, said Yeager "needs to be closer to home."

"While we hate to lose any player from our program, we wish him all the best in the future," Locksley said.

School officials said Locksley would have no additional comment.

Woman indicted in Pitino extortion case

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The estranged wife of a longtime aide to Rick Pitino was indicted Tuesday on federal charges of trying to extort money from the Louisville men's basketball coach and lying to the FBI.

Karen Cunagin Sypher, 49, faces a combined maximum penalty of seven years in prison and a $500,000 fine if convicted of the two charges, federal authorities said. Sypher is the estranged wife of Louisville equipment manager Tim Sypher. Karen Sypher's attorney, Thomas Clay, said she would plead not guilty during her arraignment today.

The case became public last month when Pitino released a statement saying someone had tried to extort him. Pitino said he reported it to the FBI, and Karen Sypher surrendered to authorities a few days later when she was named in a criminal complaint. The complaint said Tim Sypher brought Pitino a written list of demands from his wife, including college tuition for her children, two cars, her house paid off and $3,000 per month. The demands later escalated to $10 million instead.