Mark Helfrich is Oregon's next man in.
The Ducks wasted little time finding a replacement for Chip Kelly, promoting their affable offensive coordinator to head coach Sunday. Kelly left to become coach of the Philadelphia Eagles on Wednesday.
Helfrich is the third straight offensive coordinator at Oregon to be promoted to the top job, following Kelly and his predecessor, Mike Bellotti.
The 39-year-old Oregon native signed a five-year deal with the Ducks for a reported $9 million.
Sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the it had not been announced said Sunday that Oregon promoted wide receivers coach Scott Frost, the former Nebraska quarterback, to replace Helfrich as offensive coordinator.
• Football
Three up for award: Larry Fitzgerald of the Arizona Cardinals, Joe Thomas of the Cleveland Browns and Jason Witten of the Dallas Cowboys are finalists for the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award. The only league award that recognizes a player's community service as well as his playing excellence, the Walter Payton winner will have a $20,000 donation made in his name to his favorite charity.
Fitzgerald, Thomas and Witten were chosen from among the 32 team nominees, all of whom receive a $1,000 donation to the charity of their choice.
Niners favored: Sports books in Las Vegas made the San Francisco 49ers a favorite in the Super Bowl over the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday night based on the team's solid record and popularity with sports fans.
Oddsmakers gave the 49ers an early 41⁄2-point handicap and put the total score at 49 points for the Feb. 3 game in New Orleans.
May tell story: The person cast as the mastermind of the hoax involving Notre Dame's Manti Te'o may tell his side of the story, a family member said Sunday.
Peter Navy Tuiasosopo, uncle of Ronaiah Tuiasosopo, says the family plans to hold a meeting this week to determine when and how his nephew would talk about the bizarre prank.
Crist is MVP: Kansas quarterback Dayne Crist threw for a touchdown and ran for another to lead the National to a 34-0 victory over the American on Saturday night at the second annual NFLPA Collegiate Bowl.
• Basketball
Agree to sale: The Maloof family has agreed to sell the Sacramento Kings to a Seattle group led by investor Chris Hansen, two people familiar with the decision said Sunday night.
Pistons victorious: Rookie Andre Drummond had 16 points and seven rebounds, and Detroit won in its return from Europe, beating Boston 103-88. Kevin Garnett scored 16 points for Boston, and Rajon Rondo had eight points, 15 assists, nine rebounds and nine turnovers.
• Elsewhere
Australian Open: Five months after he ended a 76-year drought for British men in Grand Slam tournaments with a win at the U.S. Open, Andy Murray is into the quarterfinals at the Australian Open and on track to make it two in a row. The third-seeded Murray easily beat Gilles Simon of France 6-3, 6-1, 6-3 on Monday for his fourth straight-sets win in a row.
Serena Williams had a similarly easy time advancing to the quarterfinals and a chance to win her third major in a row with a 6-2, 6-0 win over Maria Kirilenko. She's still on course for a potential semifinal meeting with defending champion Victoria Azarenka, who advanced with a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Elena Vesnina.
Reliever to Chicago: A person familiar with the situation says the Chicago White Sox have agreed to a one-year contract with free agent reliever Matt Lindstrom.
The hard-throwing Lindstrom gives the White Sox another reliever to help set up closer Addison Reed. The right-handed Lindstrom pitched a combined 47 innings for Arizona and Baltimore last season, posting a 2.68 ERA with 40 strikeouts and 14 walks. Lindstrom is 13-15 with a 3.64 ERA over six seasons.
High ratings: NHL fans have tuned in to hockey's return to television. NBC's broadcast Saturday earned the highest preliminary rating for a non-Winter Classic regular-season game since 2002. The network said Sunday its regional coverage of Blackhawks-Kings and Penguins-Flyers averaged a 2.0 overnight rating. That's up 67 percent from the average for games last year.
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