Tuesday's sports briefs

Getting an attorney in Auburn to represent the man charged with poisoning the Toomer's Corner oak trees has proven to be difficult.

Montgomery's Jerry Blevins became the latest attorney seeking to withdraw, citing an "irreconcilable conflict" between himself and defendant Harvey Updyke Jr. Blevins said he had been retained by Updyke, but declined to elaborate on why he no longer wanted to represent him. He said the conflict arose over the weekend and that he mailed the motion to the court on Saturday.

Lee McKee, an official with the circuit clerk's office, said the judge hadn't ruled on Blevins' motion as of late Tuesday afternoon.

Two court appointed attorneys have already been allowed to withdraw from the case. Meanwhile, Auburn started removing the poisoned soil surrounding the two oak trees at Toomer's Corner on Monday. Horticulture professor Gary Keever said that the process of putting in fresh soil could be finished Tuesday.

Keever said they're removing soil down to about 18 inches, and samples will be tested to make sure that was deep enough.

He said they might know the fate of the trees by this summer or it could take years.

He said symptoms from damage to the trees would likely become visible in April and continue through the summer. That could include leaves yellowing and falling off.

Oklahoma's football team has been required to give players a week off from athletic training during the offseason after reporting a series of secondary NCAA rules violations.

The Sooners reported to the NCAA that four assistant coaches had improperly questioned players about their lack of participation in voluntary offseason workouts, and that some players had been working out more than the allowed eight hours per week.

IndyCar offering $5 million to fanThe IndyCar Series is putting up $5 million for any driver who thinks he or she can beat the open-wheel professionals at their own game in their championship race in Las Vegas.

IndyCar Series CEO Randy Bernard issued the invitation as the series announced its season-ending world championship would be held at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Oct. 16.

Bernard says up to five outside drivers can compete in the race if they're picked by a selection committee and qualify on the track the weekend of the race.

"There seems to be some evidence that some beef in China may have been stimulated in their growth by the use of steroids," WADA director general David Howman said Tuesday. "We have written to the Chinese minister to ask for a full explanation of what happens in the industry in China. We're waiting for a response."

A recent study by a WADA-accredited lab in Cologne, Germany, found that 22 of 28 travelers returning from China tested positive for low levels of clenbuterol, probably from food contamination.

Horse racing: NBC will broadcast all three legs of horse racing's Triple Crown through 2015, reuniting the sport's three biggest jewels on one network for the first time since 2005. NBC has carried the Derby and Preakness since 2001. The Belmont was carried by ABC from 2006-2010.

Minor league hockey: An assistant coach for the Colorado Eagles minor league hockey team has been suspended for the rest of the regular season for stripping down to his slacks and socks during a sideline outburst over a skirmish among players. The Central Hockey League said that Greg Pankewicz also is being fined an undisclosed amount of money for the incident during a game Saturday against the Mississippi RiverKings. The league and the team say Pankewicz tore off his suit jacket, tie, shirt and undershirt and threw them and his shoes on the ice after linesman Chris Wilson tackled defenseman Joe Grimaldi to keep him out of a fight.