600 ESPN SportsCenter Headlines: Week of 8/19/12

*Former Hanks High School soccer standout, Vanessa Thomas, was one of the first to commit to the inaugural women's soccer team at NMSU in 2009 of which she helped lead them to a surprising 9-9-1 finish.

* WAC commissioner, Jeff Hurd, announced Monday that NMSU will play independent football in 2013.

*The Tennessee Titans have named Jake Locker the starting quarterback over veteran Matt Hasselbeck. He will open the season on September 9 against the New England Patriots.

*The Buffalo Bills released linebacker, Shawne Merriman on Monday. Merriman has had resurfacing Achilles problems.

*Ryan Tannehill was named the Miami Dolphins starting quarterback on Monday and will start the season opener against the Houston Texans.

* Eagles QB Michael Vick left Monday's preseason game against the New England Patriots after taking a hard to hit to the ribs in the first quarter. Linebacker Jermaine Cunningham put a big hit on Vick as he released the ball. The x-rays came back negative for broken bones. Further tests revealed bruised ribs. A week earlier Vick hurt his left thumb against the Steelers. Coach Andy Reid, reported Wednesday that Vick will be ready to play in the season opener against the Cleveland Browns.

* Jerry Jones does not expect receiver, Miles Austin, to play the remainder of the preseason. He has yet to practice since straining his hamstring back in August. Jason Witten is still out resting his spleen injury. Both are expected to be ready for the season opener against the New York Giants.

* The Minnesota Vikings have decided to sit out star running back Adrian Peterson. He will not play the final two preseason games based on the surgery he underwent in December for an ACL and MCL injury. Peterson was taken off the physically unable to perform list earlier this month.

* Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver Mike Wallace plans to sign his restricted free agent tender. Wallace has been holding out for a long-term extension and is said to earn $2.7 smillion in 2012.

* The New Orleans Saints named offensive line coach Aaron Kromer as interim head coach for the first six regular season games. Kromer will take over the job while linebackers/assistant head coach Joe Vitt serves his suspension stemming from the NFL's bounty investigation.

* Former Philadelphia Eagles running back and Pro Football Hall of Fame member Steve Van Buren passed away on Thursday at the age of 91. Van Buren currently ranks third on the franchise's all-time rushing list and was voted to the Hall of Fame in 1965.

* Seahawks cuts ties with Terrell Owens.

*After being given a 50-game suspension, San Francisco Giant, Melky Cabrera created a phony website and a fake product in an attempt to dodge the ban. He tried to prove he ingested a banned substance without knowing. Cabrera used this website when he went in front of the MLB and player's union arguing against his ban.

*With the Houston Astros holding down the bottom of the NL Central -- the Astros named Tony DeFrancesco interim manager on Sunday after firing Brad Mills on Saturday night. DeFrancesco was currently managing the Houston's Triple-A affiliate, the Oklahoma City Redhawks.

* Seven-time Cy Young winner Roger Clemens will return to the mound to pitch for the independent Sugar Land Skeeters. Clemens turned 50 earlier this month and last pitched for the New York Yankees in 2007.

* Oakland A's pitcher Bartolo Colon has been suspended 50 games for violating baseball's drug policy. He tested positive for testosterone, the same performing-enhancing substance that Giant's outfielder, Melky Cabrera was suspended for.

* Angels slugger, Albert Pujols left Wednesday's game against Boston because of a right calf injury and will undergo an MRI to reveal the extent of the damage.

* The Los Angeles Dodgers and the Boston Red Sox make MLB history with a quarter of a billion dollar trade.

* University of Tennessee wide receiver Da'Rick Rogers has been suspended indefinitely for violating team rules.

* According to Tyrann Matheiu's father, the recently dismissed "Honeybadger" for LSU will not play football this year and will focus on his life. Matheiu checked into a Houston rehab center for substance abuse.

*A historic day in golf to say the least. After 80 years, the Augusta National Golf Club will allow females to partake. The club has it's first two females members in former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Darla Moore, a graduate from the University of South Carolina of which she has a business school named in her honor.

*Sergio Garcia pulled away with the win at the Wyndham Championship with four birdies in a 5-hole span on Monday closing with a 4-under 66 to finish two strokes clear of the field. He has not won a PGA Tour win since the 2008 Players Championship.

* PGA Tour's FedEx Cup Leaderboard.

*Roger Federer came through with victory over Novak Djokovic in Sunday's final at the Western and Southern Open. It was a battle between the world's top two ranked players of which Federer fired eight aces on his way to becoming the first five-time winner in the Open Era at this event.

* Roger Federer is named the top seed for the 2012 U.S. Open which will take place Monday in New York. He will be followed by No. 2 seed Novak Djokovic and No. 3 seed Andy Murray of Great Britain. No. 4 seed will be David Ferrer of Spain. On the women's side, top-seeded Victoria Azarenka will go up against champ Samantha Stosur. Serena Williams will take on world No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki.

* Lance Armstrong will be stripped of his seven Tour de France titles according to the United States Anti-Doping Agency. Armstrong released a lengthy statement on his website saying, "There comes a point in every man's life when he has to say, 'Enough is enough.' For me, that time, is now." The 40-year-old denies he has ever used performing-enhancing substances and has never failed a drug test. He won the Tour de France from 1999-2005.