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1B Sports Thursday October 3, 2013 Whitner changing name to 'Hitner' SANTA CLARA (AP) — Meet Mr. Hitner. Called by that name for years out of respect for his hard-hitting defense, San Francisco safety Donte Whitner has filed paperwork in Ohio through his lawyer to formally change his name by removing the 'W' — after receiving permission from his mother, Deborah, to do so. ''My last name was Whitner, now it's Hitner,'' Whitner said Wednesday. ''Yeah, it's legal, I'm taking the 'W' off. I asked my mom first, though. She said no in the summer, then she said yes three nights ago. It's pretty cool.'' Whitner has been in touch with Nike to determine how many No. 31 Whitner jerseys are still for sale in retail stores and elsewhere and whether he might need to financially contribute to make the switch. He doesn't seem overly concerned about that small part of the process. ''Depending how many there are,'' he said. ''I haven't really seen that many around Candlestick, unless somebody's hiding them.'' The $27 fee for legally changing his name is money well spent, Whitner said. His uncle, Mario Whitner, helped encourage Whitner's mother — Mario's sister — to go along with the switch. ''The only person I really take instruction from is my mom. That's why I'm happy this week she said yes. I asked her again,'' Whitner said. ''My uncle just came home and he pretty much convinced her. He was a guy that was there for me when I was a little, little boy and went away for a while, to prison.'' While he would love to debut his new name for Sunday night's prime-time game at home in Candlestick Park against the Houston Texans, he said it realistically would probably take another week before his new name is on the back of his uniform. That would be Oct. 13 at Arizona. Coach Jim Harbaugh learned of Whitner's plans Wednesday, then approached him in the locker room with encouraging words: ''It's kind of catchy.'' Quarterback Colin Kaepernick also approved, offering a ''good change'' with a thumbs-up of support. Is he taking a cue or two from Chad Johnson — who became Chad Ochocinco for a time — or NBA star Ron Artest's change to Metta World Peace? ''That was a lot,'' Whitner said of World Peace. ''I think one word is not as big as 10 words. It's what I do. It's my last name. Removing a letter makes it pretty cool.'' No matter what it says on the back of the safety's jersey Sunday, everybody on the defense has one name they want on the field: Willis. Linebacker Patrick Willis missed last Thursday night's 35-11 victory at St. Louis with a strained groin sustained against the Colts on Sept. 22, an injury even the All-Pro thought was far worse than it is. Defensive teammate Justin Smith deemed Willis a go for Sunday, and he returned to practice Wednesday. ''He's playing, so definitely,'' Smith said when asked about Willis' impact. Willis is encouraged with his progress considering this is an injury he has never had before. Yet he insists he won't play unless he knows he is healthy enough to help the team — and he is still dealing with some pain. ''The only thing I can do is have the right mindset,'' Willis said. ''The biggest thing right now is making sure I stay on pace and don't do too much and at the same make sure that if I'm going to be out there I can help my teammates and help us win.'' The 49ers have no imminent updates or announcements planned on the status of linebacker Aldon Smith, who entered an in-patient rehab facility last week for substance abuse. He is on an indefinite leave of absence and the team doesn't comment on personal matters. Also Wednesday, San Francisco signed quarterback John Skelton to a one-year contract, giving them a strongarmed third-stringer. Skelton signed a day after the Niners waived rookie B.J. Daniels, whom Harbaugh had hoped could still be a practice squad option before the rival Seahawks snatched him up off waivers. Skelton was cut by the Bengals on Aug. 31 when they set their 53-man roster. Cincinnati claimed Skelton off waivers when the Arizona Cardinals — the 49ers' NFC West foe — let him go in April. Skelton worked out for the team last month. ''He had an excellent workout when he was here a few weeks back, one of the better workouts I've seen from a quarterback in those workout environments,'' Harbaugh said. ''Felt like we wanted to have two veteran quarterbacks, two guys that have started games, played in games, won games. Felt that's what we needed to do at this time.'' Tehama Tracker Today's schedule GOLF Red Bluff at Eastern Athletic League Meet at Chico at Bidwell Park, Noon TENNIS Shasta at Red Bluff, 3:30 p.m.;Yreka at Corning, 3:30 p.m. VOLLEYBALL Corning at Las Plumas, 7 p.m.; Los Molinos at University Prep, 7 p.m.; Hayfork at Mercy, 6:30 p.m. Sports on TV COLLEGE FOOTBALL 4:30 p.m. ESPN — Texas at Iowa St. 7 p.m. FS1 — UCLA at Utah GOLF 6 a.m. TGC — European PGA Tour, Seve Trophy, first round, at Paris 9 a.m. TGC — PGA Tour, Presidents Cup, first round, at Dublin, Ohio 1 a.m. TGC — LPGA, Reignwood Classic, second round, at Beijing (delayed tape) NFL FOOTBALL 5 p.m. NFL — Buffalo at Cleveland NHL HOCKEY 5 p.m. NBCSN — Los Angeles at Minnesota SOCCER 9 a.m. FS1 — UEFA Europa League, Tottenham at Anji Noon FS1 — UEFA Europa League, St. Gallen at Swansea City WOMEN'S COLLEGE VOLLEYBALL 4 p.m. ESPN2 — Penn St. at Indiana AP photo Raiders quarterback Terrelle Pryor is back at practice after suffering a concussion that sidelined him against the Washington Redskins on Sunday. Pryor targets start for Raiders ALAMEDA (AP) — The Oakland Raiders got one of their two biggest offensive playmakers back at practice. Quarterback Terrelle Pryor returned to practice Wednesday and was working with the first team after missing last week's game with a concussion, while running back Darren McFadden is still sidelined by a hamstring injury that prevented him from finishing last week's game. The Raiders had hoped Pryor would play last Sunday against Washington but decided to hold him out after he complained of sensitivity to light Saturday night — a classic concussion symptom. Pryor is once again symptom free and appears on target to resume his starting role when the Raiders (13) host San Diego (2-2) on Sunday night. He plans to be the same player he was before the injury, not worried about taking another hard hit like the one Wesley Woodyard delivered on Sept. 23 in Denver that led to the concussion. ''I just try to make the right decisions and the smart decisions and be a smart person and player,'' Pryor said. ''Obviously, if there's three guys coming cramming down on me I don't want to challenge all three of those guys so get down. Just be myself and play football. That's how I have to play.'' It will be a much-welcomed return after Raiders fans booed backup Matt Flynn repeatedly while watching the offense stagnate in a 24-14 loss to Washington. Flynn, who was expected to start before losing the job in the exhibition season to Pryor, showed little pocket awareness. He threw an interception that was returned for a touchdown and took seven sacks, while leading just one scoring drive. That performance helped drop Flynn to third-team status behind undrafted rookie Matt McGloin, a fast fall after Oakland traded two draft picks to acquire Flynn and gave him $6.5 million in guaranteed money. ''It hasn't worked out like we anticipated and we've got to make decisions and we've got to move forward and continue to go,'' coach Dennis Allen said. ''Matt's going to continue to battle and scratch and claw and I still believe that he's a capable quarterback.'' Pryor had helped obscure many of Oakland's prob- lems on offense with his athleticism that has allowed him to turn broken plays into big ones. Pryor completed 65.4 percent of his passes the first three weeks for 624 yards and two touchdowns. He has also rushed for 198 yards on 26 carries and has not turned the ball over since throwing two interceptions in an opening week loss to Indianapolis. ''If you start trying to limit the things that he does, I think you decrease his effectiveness,'' Allen said. ''You have to let him be the quarterback that he is and let him make plays.'' McFadden initially got hurt in the first quarter of the loss to the Redskins and tried to come back later in the first half before shutting it down for the game. McFadden leads the Raiders with 215 yards rushing but has been hampered by a variety of injuries for his entire career. McFadden has missed 23 full games over his first five seasons because of injuries. While Allen said it is too early to know whether McFadden will miss this game, hamstrings are tricky injuries for running backs and the Raiders will likely be cautious. ''No real updates, nothing really to report,'' Allen said. ''He's got a hamstring, and he's trying to rehab it and get out there as fast as he can.'' Marcel Reece was back at practice after hurting his knee in Sunday's loss and got some time at halfback instead of his usual fullback position. Reece started four games at halfback last season because of injuries, rushing for 261 yards and catching 20 passes for 195 yards. Reece has only two carries and six catches this season. Rashad Jennings ran for 45 yards and caught eight passes for 71 yards with Reece and McFadden both sidelined in the second half last week. NOTES: C Stefen Wisniewski (right knee) did not practice but the Raiders are hopeful he will play. ... WR Andre Holmes practiced for the first time after his PED suspension. ... FS Charles Woodson (non-injury) and DT Stacy McGee (shoulder) also did not practice. ... OL Menelik Watson returned to practice for the first time since knee surgery. ... The Raiders signed RB George Winn to the practice squad. American team held in high regard at start of Presidents Cup DUBLIN, Ohio (AP) — Adam Scott was in the middle of all the chaos in South Africa as darkness gathered. Tiger Woods and Ernie Els, in a sudden-death playoff to decide the 2003 Presidents Cup, halved three straight holes and could barely see the last two putts fall. Both teams and captains were on the second green at Fancourt when a tie was proposed. That's when U.S. captain Jack Nicklaus reminded International captain Gary Player that the Americans would retain the cup as the defending champion. ''Let's keep playing!'' Scott demanded over the din. He was 23, two months removed from his first PGA Tour win. It was his first Presidents Cup. The burst of emotion got the attention of his teammates. The teams eventually agreed to share the cup. Scott would not have guessed it would be as close as he would get to being on a winning team at the Presidents Cup. The 10th edition of the Presidents Cup starts today, and the odds do not exactly favor the International team. It has seven rookies, and while all but Hideki Matsuyama have played a fair amount on the PGA Tour this year, Scott is the only team member to have won — at the Masters for his first major, and The Barclays during the FedEx Cup playoffs. The American team is regarded as one of the strongest ever for any cup — all 12 players are among the top 30 in the world ranking, and four other players from the top 30 were left out (Jim Furyk, Dustin Johnson, Nick Watney and Bubba Wat- See GOLF, page 2B NBA set for ambitious international schedule NEW YORK (AP) — David Stern is soon on his way to the Philippines and Taiwan. After that, it's off to Beijing and Shanghai. His final months as commissioner are the NBA's boldest yet when it comes to playing internationally, and he thinks bringing the league around the globe will remain important long after he's left office in Feb- ruary. ''Numerically, without question, to have 10 games this season, it's our most ambitious,'' Stern said of the schedule that begins this weekend. ''It's really just a continued statement to our international audience of our attempts to play games in their time zones and to demonstrate that we think it's a global game and we appreciate their support and interest.'' There will be 12 teams playing outside the U.S. and Canada, the most ever, and the league will play regular-season games in two countries beyond those for the first time. There are stops in old standbys and first-time trips to cities in Brazil and Spain that will be hosting major international competitions in the next few years. International growth, long a passion of Stern's, has become something much more: It's mandatory. ''If you listen to CocaCola or GE or the great brands — Samsung, Sony, Apple — increasingly more See NBA, page 2B