Nebraska's Callahan will not resign

If Nebraska interim athletic director Tom Osborne wants Bill Callahan out as football coach, he'll probably have to fire him. Callahan said he would not resign before the season ends, even if he were offered a buyout worth more than he is entitled to by his contract. "That term 'resignation' is not in our vocabulary," Callahan said. The Huskers (4-6, 1-5 Big 12) go into Saturday's final home game against Kansas State on their first five-game losing streak since 1958; they've been outscored in those five games, 226-98. Osborne has not asked for a resignation and doesn't plan to, athletic department communications chief Randy York said. Callahan's contract, signed in September, calls for him to be paid $3.125 million if he's fired this month. "You need to understand this isn't about money. I didn't get into coaching for money, for buyouts, or anything like that," Callahan said. The Huskers have one of the nation's worst defenses, allowing 35.9 points and 477.6 yards a game. "Gosh, I don't think we wanted to do this," he said. "These coaches didn't purposely tell these kids, 'Hey, don't go out there and tackle today.' "

Despite several media outlets reporting Monday that Texas A&M (6-4, 3-3 in Big 12) was to get rid of Dennis Franchione after five years, the Aggies coach said reports he was negotiating a contract buyout were untrue. "I am not going to get into the rumor game with you guys," said Franchione, who earns $2 million per year and has a contract through 2012. "There are no facts to that and I'm not into it. I'm sorry that you guys have to deal with it." Meanwhile, Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville said he's worrying about Georgia and Alabama, not a potential job opening at Texas A&M and he declined to discuss reports that his name is high on the Aggies' wish list if Franchione is fired. "As I told our players, that's the least of our worries or anybody's worries," Tuberville said. "The players, the coaches and the fans look forward to these two games, and we're not going to ruin it by discussing any of that stuff because anything I say will be looked at, turned around, and flipped around. It doesn't make any difference." . . . Miami quarterback Kyle Wright still has some aches related to the left ankle and left knee injuries he suffered three weeks ago, but will be back under center Saturday when the Hurricanes (5-4, 2-3 ACC) host Virginia (8-2, 5-1) in the game that'll end Miami's 70-year run of calling the Orange Bowl home . . . Virginia coach Al Groh stopped short of saying tailback Cedric Peerman would miss the remainder of the season because of a right foot injury, but gave no indication a return is likely . . . In Kalamazoo, Mich., quarterback Dan LeFevour scored on a keeper from 1 yard with 12 seconds left, giving Central Michigan (6-4, 5-0) a 34-31 victory over Western Michigan (3-7, 2-4), clinching the Mid-American Conference West title.

Eric Lindros, 34, is expected to announce his retirement from the NHL tomorrow, a source told the Canadian Press. Lindros was heavily involved with the NHLPA's search for an executive director and is expected to stay on with the union now that Paul Kelly has been hired. Lindros, who won the Hart Trophy in 1995, scored 372 goals and had 865 points in 760 games for the Flyers, Maple Leafs, Rangers, and Stars . . . Peter Forsberg, 34, pulled out of practice with Sweden's national team because of foot and ankle injuries, leaving his comeback plans in doubt. "If I can't play at all this season, it's probably time to pack up for good," Forsberg said . . . Hockey East extended the contract of commissioner Joe Bertagna through the 2010-2011 season. Bertagna, 56, came to Hockey East in 1997 after 15 years with the Eastern College Athletic Conference.

Joe Crawford scored 20 points and No. 20 Kentucky began the Billy Gillispie era with a 67-40 victory over Central Arkansas in the opening round of the 2K Sports College Hoops Classic in Lexington, Ky. The Wildcats advanced to the second round tonight against Gardner-Webb, which defeated Alabama A&M, 69-55. Crawford, a senior guard who started for Gillispie's predecessor Tubby Smith, was among the last players on the team to see action, not appearing until 13 minutes in. The winner of the four-team Lexington regional of the tournament benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer advances to the semifinals Nov. 15 at Madison Square Garden. In the Memphis regional, Lester Hudson scored 31 points, including two 3-pointers in the last minute, to help Tennessee-Martin (1-1) beat Maine, 66-62, in the consolation bracket of the 2K Sports College Hoops Classic in Memphis. Brian Andre had 14 points and six rebounds, and Mark Socoby added 9 points and 10 rebounds for the Black Bears (0-2). Also in Memphis, freshman guard Derrick Rose had 21 points to help No. 3 Memphis beat Richmond, 80-63, despite 25 points from David Gonzalez.

IBF champion Wladimir Klitschko (49-3, 44 KOs) and WBO titleholder Sultan Ibragimov (22-0-1, 17 KOs) hope to wrap up negotiations this week for a bout to unify two of the four heavyweight world titles at Madison Square Garden Feb. 23 . . . Goals by Kara Murphy (Dedham) and Lauren Gillespie (Casco, Maine) and a season-high 12 saves by Becky Letourneau (Greenfield) propelled the UMass field hockey team (14-8) into the NCAA Tournament with a 2-1 road win over Princeton (13-5) in a play-in game. UMass will play UConn (20-2) Saturday at 11 a.m. in Storrs; in the other bracket, Iowa (17-3) will play Boston University (17-5) at 2 p.m. . . . Don Freeland, who drove in the Indianapolis 500 eight times and finished third in 1956, died Friday in San Diego at 82.