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Sports Aaron Rodgers back, to start Bears game GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers will return to start Sunday's game for the NFC North title against the Chicago Bears. Coach Mike McCarthy announced Thursday that Rodgers will be back after missing seven games because of a left collarbone injury. Green Bay (7-7-1) is 2-5-1 since Rodgers went down during the first series of a 27-20 loss Nov. 4 to Chicago. But the Packers have managed to hang on with a shot to win a third straight division title with a victory over the Bears at Soldier Field. ''We're preparing for the Chicago Bears with Aaron Rodgers as our starting quarterback,'' McCarthy said. He broke the news to the team Thursday morning before practice. The Packers have been riddled by injuries. Linebacker Clay Matthews is out again with a right thumb injury. Running back Eddie Lacy is hobbled by an ankle injury, though McCarthy is optimistic about the rookie's chances to go Sunday. ''I feel Eddie is in good place,'' McCarthy said. ''I expect him to play.'' Green Bay has also gone the majority of the season without tight end Jermichael Finley (neck) and playmaking receiver Randall Cobb (leg). Still, the Packers managed to start 5-2 despite the injuries with Rodgers leading the offense. Things changed drastically after the 2011 NFL MVP got hurt after being sacked while scrambling out of the pocket in the Week 9 loss to Chicago at Lambeau Field. The Packers went on a five-game winless skid, shuffling through three more starting quarterbacks. Green Bay then won two straight with backup Matt Flynn before falling 38-31 last week to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Losses by Chicago and the Detroit Lions set up the winnertake-all finale Sunday with the Bears for the division and a home playoff game the following weekend. Golden State's Draymond Green fined $15,000 NEW YORK (AP) — Golden State forward Draymond Green was fined $15,000 by the NBA on Thursday for failing to leave the court in a timely manner after his ejection Wednesday night against the Los Angeles Clippers. Green was ejected late in the third quarter of the Warriors' 105-103 home victory. Redding Rebels 16U Tryouts The Redding Rebels 16-and-under girls fastpitch softball organization is announcing open tryouts for their 2014 summer travel team. Players born between 1997 and 1999 are encouraged to attend. Tryouts will be held noon to 3 p.m. on Jan. 19 at Big League Dreams in Redding. The coaches will be Russ Weatherbee, Mike Meeink, and Casey Kingsbury. For further information contact Russ Weatherbee at 530-605-8427 or email russandkim@yahoo.com. The organization is seeking a new managercoach for the 2014 travelling 14-and-under team. Anyone interested in this position please contact Clint Roush at 530-275-4880 or email at deputywaterdog@sbcglobal.net. The Redding Rebels is a non-profit organization dedicated to preparing players interested in playing competitive softball after high school. Additional information is available at http://www.eteamz.com/ReddingRebels. 1B Friday December 27, 2013 LeBron James named AP Male Athlete of the Year MIAMI (AP) — The only thing that keeps LeBron James up worrying at night is basketball, which simultaneously makes perfect sense and no sense. On one hand, he's the game's best player. On the other, he's rarely impressed with himself. Even after a year like 2013 — when a spectacular wedding, a second NBA championship and a fourth MVP award were among the many highlights enjoyed by the Miami Heat star — he still is, as he puts it, striving for greatness. Or, technically, more greatness, since his enormous list of accomplishments just keeps growing. James was announced Thursday as The Associated Press' 2013 Male Athlete of the Year, becoming the third basketball player to capture the award that has been annually awarded since 1931. James received 31 of 96 votes cast in a poll of news organizations, beating Peyton Manning (20) and Jimmie Johnson (7). ''I'm chasing something and it's bigger than me as a basketball player,'' James told the AP. ''I believe my calling is much higher than being a basketball player. I can inspire people. Youth is huge to me. If I can get kids to look at me as a role model, as a leader, a superhero ... those things mean so much, and that's what I think I was built for. I was put here for this lovely game of basketball, but I don't think this is the biggest role that I'm going to have.'' Past winners include Joe Louis, Jesse Owens, Muhammad Ali, Carl Lewis, Joe Montana, Tiger Woods and Michael Phelps. Serena Williams was the AP Female Athlete of the Year, announced Wednesday. James joins Michael Jordan and Larry Bird as NBA players to win the award. ''I don't think I've changed much this year,'' James said. ''I've just improved and continued to improve on being more than just as a basketball player. I've matured as a leader, as a father, as a husband, as a friend.'' So far in 2013, with a maximum of three games left to play, James has appeared in 98. The Heat have won 78 of them. None of those was bigger than the four Miami got in the NBA Finals against San Antonio. In Game 7, James was at his best, scoring 37 points, including the jump shot with 27.9 seconds left that essentially was the clincher. ''He always rises to the occasion when it matters the most,'' Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said. Business-wise, James is booming. Some estimate his annual income around $60 million, less than one- AP file photo LeBron James celebrates with the Larry O'Brien NBA Championship Trophy and his Bill Russell NBA Finals Most Valuable Player Award after the Miami Heat won the NBA Championship in June. third of that being made on the court. His wife has opened a juice bar in Miami, and David Beckham wants James to be part of the Major League Soccer team he plans on bringing to South Florida in the next couple years. Countless people want to align with James. Few make him listen. Beckham did. ''You want to be a part of it, but it has to feel real to you,'' James said. ''You don't want to do something that doesn't feel much to you, that you're just doing for the money. We all have money. For me, my time is more than money at this point in my life.'' James has another ''decision'' to make in 2014. He can become a free agent again this summer, though still smarting from the circus atmosphere that followed him during his final season with the Cleveland Cavaliers four years ago, James is staying largely silent on what might happen. He insists he has no idea. ''I'm so zoned in on what my task is here this year that it's hard to think about anything else,'' James said. ''A guy the other day asked me what I'm going to do for New Year's, and I haven't even thought about that.'' When asked if there's anything he doesn't like about Miami, James offered few complaints, other than the often-clogged street — Biscayne Boulevard, or U.S. 1 — that leads to the arena the Heat call home. ''What is there not to like about Miami?'' James said. ''It is a home. My family is very happy; I'm very comfortable. But U.S. 1? I wish that was a highway.'' Bear in mind, he's not always unhappy when that street is gridlocked. The last two years, he's been largely responsible for hundreds of thousands of people lining that road for Heat championship parades. And if he gets his way, they'll be back next June. Washington to face BYU at Fight Hunger Bowl SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Marques Tuiasosopo is looking to get Washington back to a level it hasn't reached since he was the star quarterback more than a decade ago. Tuiasosopo leads the Huskies into the Fight Hunger Bowl against BYU on Friday night as interim coach after a whirlwind month that started with coach Steve Sarkisian leaving for Southern California and Chris Petersen being hired away from Boise State. Tuiasosopo moved up from quarterbacks coach to interim coach to lead the Huskies (8-4) in their bowl preparation against BYU (8-4). Washington is trying to win nine games in a season for the first time since going 11-1 — capped by a Rose Bowl win over Purdue in January 2001 with Tuiasosopo at quarterback. ''It's been an awesome opportunity,'' he said. ''It's been a great experience. It's something new every day. I have a big notebook of notes. It's a tremendous honor to be at my alma mater in this role. It's priceless.'' It's been a rough stretch at Washington since Tuiasosopo left for the NFL, bottoming out with a winless season in 2008. Sarkisian came in and started a rebuilding Tehama Tracker Today's schedule BOYS BASKETBALL Los Molinos vs. TBD 29th Annual Liberty Classic Mercy vs. TBD 29th Annual Liberty Classic GIRLS BASKETBALL Los Molinos vs. TBD 29th Annual Liberty Classic Mercy vs. TBD 29th Annual Liberty Classic MILITARY BOWL at Annapolis, Md. Marshall vs. Maryland, 11:30 a.m. TEXAS BOWL at Houston Syracuse vs. Minnesota, 3 p.m. FIGHT HUNGER BOWL at San Francisco BYU vs. Washington, 6:30 p.m. NBA Miami at Sacramento, 7 p.m. Phoenix at Golden State, 7:30 p.m. NHL San Jose at Phoenix, 6 p.m. Sports on TV COLLEGE FOOTBALL • 11:30 a.m., ESPN — Military Bowl, Marshall vs. Maryland, at Annapolis, Md. • 3 p.m., ESPN — Texas Bowl, Syracuse vs. Minnesota, at Houston • 6:30 p.m., ESPN — Fight Hunger Bowl, BYU vs. Washington, at San Francisco MEN'S COLLEGE BASKETBALL • 5 p.m., FS1 — Lafayette at Seton Hall NBA • 7 p.m., CSNC — Miami at Sacramento • 7:30 p.m., CSNB — Phoenix at Golden State NHL • 6 p.m., CSNC — San Jose at Phoenix WINTER SPORTS • 5 p.m., NBCSN — Olympic trials, speed skating: long track women's 3,000 and men's 5,000, at Kearns, Utah AP file photo Interim Washington Coach Marques Tuiasosopo watches his team practice Dec. 13. process that has led to four straight bowl trips. But the Huskies had not won more than seven games in a season under Sarkisian until this season. Now they are hoping to use a bowl win to provide momentum for a new era that will begin after this game when Petersen officially takes over the program. ''It would mean a lot,'' star running back Bishop Sankey said. ''The past few years we had winning seasons but struggled to get over that seven-win hump. Now that we are over it, I think the nine wins would do justice for this program and get us some more attention.'' Here are five things to watch when BYU takes on Washington in the Fight Hunger Bowl: KYLE THE QB KILLER: BYU linebacker Kyle Van Noy had another stellar season with 16 tackles for a loss, four sacks, two interceptions and two fumble recoveries. But he will have a tough time topping last year's bowl performance against San Diego State in the Poinsettia Bowl. He had 3.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, one blocked kick, returned an interception for one touchdown and recovered a fumble for another. That performance gave him some well-deserved notoriety that carried over into this season. ''I don't think many people know who our school was or I was,'' he said. ''It was a chance to prove to people that we can play.'' BIG-PLAY BISHOP: Huskies running back Bishop Sankey was one of the best in the country this season, leading the Pac-12 and ranking third in the nation with 1,775 yards rushing. He doesn't get as much attention as some other backs like Arizona's Ka'Deem Carey and Boston College's Andre Williams but has not gone unnoticed by the Cougars defense. ''He's an excellent football player,'' Van Noy said. ''He's fast, he's quick-twitched and he can get the ball in the end zone. You like that in a running back. I expect him to be a handful.'' HILL'S A HANDFUL: BYU is led by a quarterback in Taysom Hill that is putting up prolific numbers like the ones Tuiasosopo did as a player. Hill ran for 1,211 yards and threw for 2,645, becoming the first BYU player and 23rd ever to reach 1,000 yards rushing and 2,000 passing in the same season. Tuiasosopo called him a ''dynamic'' dual-threat player but Hill says he'd rather be known for his arm than his legs. ''I love to throw the football,'' Hill said. ''If you'd ask me if I want to throw or run for a touchdown, I'd say throw. That's still my tendency.'' PROFICIENT PRICE: One of the biggest reasons for Washington's improved success this season was better decision making from quarterback Keith Price. After throwing 24 interceptions the previous two years, Price had only five this season when his ratio of 20 touchdown passes to interceptions was the best in school history. ''Sometimes your desire to do something great is also the same thing that hurts you,'' Tuiasosopo said. ''He was fantastic all year.'' FEMALE FIRST: Normally the goal of the officials is to go unnoticed but that might be tough with a crew that will make history. The bowl will be the first FBS game ever to have two females on the officiating crew. Sarah Thomas will be the line judge and Maia Chaka will be the head linesman based on their work in Conference USA this season. Thomas was the first woman to work a bowl game at the 2009 Little Caesars Bowl. This is Chaka's first bowl assignment.