Justin Timberlake on the Marine Corps Ball: “It is one of the most moving evenings I’ve ever had.”

Justin Timberlake attended the 236th Marine Corps Birthday Ball as Corporal Kelsey DeSanti’s date.

It looked like he was so touched on the event that he posted a very intimate personal blog about his experience.

He posted on his personal blog saying that “it is one of the most moving evenings I’ve ever had.”

On the experience he said, “I knew I would have an evening that I would not forget…Something I could tell my friends about. What I did not know was how I was moved I would be by the whole experience.”

The Friends with Benefits star was also moved on a video about Pearl Harbor and the September 11 terrorist attacks. He said, “There was a common theme that I began to notice as well. No matter what the situation. No matter how dire… They were the FIRST. There on the front lines. No questions.. just reaction.”

“It was a surreal moment to be in that room with so many of our great Marines who have such a different type of connection to those stories.”

“One that we who don’t serve will never understand. It was familial.It was like they were listening to their own blood brothers.”

On the blog, he also gushed about his date, Corporal DeSantis, saying, She seems to me to be so humble and honest. She also simultaneously seemed like she was nervous about the whole evening and if I was going to enjoy myself.. I have to tell you, it’s not everyday that I meet a 23-year-old girl and she’s more worried about if I’m having fun or if I’m comfortable.”

He added, “It hit me all of a sudden that these were the type of people who look after us and our freedom..Humble, concerned for others before themselves.. This was the type of person our Marine Corps was building. I was blown away.”

Lastly, he had a message to his new heroes. He said, “To all of you that served everyday for us.. ensuring our freedom, I say, my deepest gratitude to you. I have met so may of my heroes..From Michael Jordan to Michael Jackson..And nothing makes me feel more honored and pride than when I get to meet one of you. Last night changed my life and I will never forget it.”

READ MORE - Justin Timberlake on the Marine Corps Ball: “It is one of the most moving evenings I’ve ever had.”

Former Giants RB Tiki Barber engaged to Traci Lynn Johnson

Tiki Barber, the former New York Giants running back, proposed to his girlfriend, Traci Lynn Johnson, over the weekend.

"They got engaged," Mark Lepselter, Barber’s agent and close friend, of Tiki and Traci, told the New York Post. "[Tiki’s] very happy, and he’s moving forward with his life."

Barber, 36, is still in the middle of a bitter divorce battle with his wife Ginny, whom he left in 2009 while she was pregnant with their twin daughters.

While working for NBC as a football analyst, Barber met Johnson. And he reportedly left his wife for Johnson, a 24-year-old former NBC intern. In late 2010, NBC declined to renew his contract.

The story that hit the tabloids painted him as an adulterer, though Barber said he and his wife had separated before he accelerated his relationship with Tracy.

"I was in a bad marriage," Barber said in a June 2011 interview with HBO's Bryant Gumbel. "It was in trouble for a long time. And we decided to get separated. But Ginny got pregnant in the middle of it. And a lot of people think children save marriages; sometimes it makes it worse. And we split soon after she was pregnant.

"And I was on my own for a few days, and then I moved in with Tracy. And then, five months later, here comes the New York Post stalking me."

Barber announced his retirement from football in 2007, but decided in early 2011 that he’d return to the NFL. He has worked out for a few teams, including the Dolphins, but has yet to land with a franchise for the 2011 season.

Barber’s agent said that financial interests will not play a significant role in Barber’s destination. “We’re not looking to turn this into an auction,” Lepselter told USA Today. “There are only a handful of coaches he would want to play for.”

Appearing on HBO’s “Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel,” Barber said football represents a necessary anchor in a life turned upside down by the depressive aftermath of scandalous divorce and disintegration of his television career.

"The game never needs you because there's always someone else to come and take your place," he said. "But right now, I need the game."

READ MORE - Former Giants RB Tiki Barber engaged to Traci Lynn Johnson

NFL Week 1 odds: Hall of famer Lee Roy Selmon died

NFL Week 1 odds: One of the most important defensive elements in pro football history and legend of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers , Lee Roy Selmon, has died at age 56, two days after suffering a massive heart attack.

Selmon, who was the first player selected from around the 1976 Draft, drafted as the first element in the history of the expansion franchise for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was intrenado from Friday September 2 at St. Joseph's Hospital of Tampa . Initially, a spokesman for his restaurant chain had mistakenly announced his death, however, Dewey Selmon, Lee Roy's brother, denied that statement.

On Saturday 3, a hospital report indicated that the condition had improved Selmon.

Unmistakable with his jersey number 63, Selmon, superstar college with the University of Oklahoma and the Sooners uniform was twice named All-American Dream Team and in 1975, won the Lombardi Award and Outland prestigious Trophy.

During his brilliant career, was selected to six Pro Bowls and chosen as Defensive Player of the Year in the NFL in 1979. He retired in 1984 and in 1995 he was enthroned as the first "buccaneer" in the Hall of Fame in Canton.

The number 63, Selmon is the only retired by the Buccaneers organization and Highway Tampa, Florida, was named in his honor.

Recently, Selmon was named the No. 98 player in the NFL Network program "The 100 best players of all time."

In a statement from the organization of the Buccaneers, expressed grief over the loss of Selmon.

"Tampa Bay has lost another giant," said Glazier family in the written statement. "Today is a really bleak for the Buccaneers fans, for fans of Sooners and for all football fans. Being the first 'Buc' to be inducted into the Hall of Fame, certainly distinguishes Lee Roy, however, its height off the field as a real gentleman, he is out of the stratosphere. "

READ MORE - NFL Week 1 odds: Hall of famer Lee Roy Selmon died

Week 1 NFL Predictions, Picks & Odds

Everyone is thrilled that the NFL is finally ready to get started, and that means it’s time to take a look at week 1 NFL predictions. It’s never too early to start mapping these out, and the first games will be upon us before you know it. Here are the opening week 1 NFL predictions to get your season started off the right way.

At Green Bay -4 New Orleans
The defending champions open up the season at home, and are showcased in the very first game of the year. There’s no better place to start your week 1 NFL predictions, and the Packers are rightly the favorites at home to begin their title defense.
At Baltimore -3 Pittsburgh
This classic match-up between hated rivals is a tough one to pick right out of the gates. Which team will be in better form after the lockout? These are always toss-up games, and the -3 advantage goes to the home team, the Ravens, although this one can always end up going to either team.
At Tampa Bay -2.5 Detroit
Tampa Bay isn’t a very large favorite at home against the Lions, which some might find surprising. The Lions though are a dark horse team for many people with their vaunted defensive line, and Matt Stafford is healthy to start the year. Which young team will prevail to get their season moving in the right direction?
Atlanta -2.5 At Chicago
The Falcons are road favorites going into Chicago against the Bears, surprising to some considering that the Bears were in the NFC championship game last season. An important test for each squad, because both of them have lofty playoff aspirations for the season. This is a tough one to call with your week 1 NFL predictions, and both sides have something to prove.
At Kansas City -6.5 Buffalo
One of the largest spreads to be found with any week 1 NFL predictions is the Chiefs at home by 6.5 against Buffalo. The Chiefs were a playoff team last season, while the Bills didn’t do much last year, and didn’t seem to make any big offseason moves to improve the squad either.
At Houston -3 Indianapolis
This one completely depends on the health of Peyton Manning. If he’s out there and playing, then the Colts probably wouldn’t be underdogs, even on the road. But there’s a chance he misses the first game of his career. This match-up may have to wait until the last minute with your week 1 NFL predictions so you get as much information about his injury and status as possible.
Philadelphia -5 At St. Louis
The Eagles, the big winners of the offseason with everyone they signed and all the trades they made, are heavy favorites for a road squad. St. Louis is a young and improving team though and won’t want to be embarrassed on their home field as the season begins.
At Cleveland -6 Cincinnati
Which of these two divisional foes and rivals will start to turn things around in 2011? As the line suggests, more people believe in the Browns with their week 1 NFL predictions over the Bengals, but six points seems heavy between two teams when neither one is really expected to be a good squad.
At Jacksonville -3 Tennessee
Both the Jaguars and the Titans know they need to do some improving on the field if they want to make a run in 2011. The big question for the Titans is that you don’t know if Chris Johnson will be on the field to do the running for them. No Chris Johnson means an easy selection of the Jaguars with your week 1 NFL predictions.
NY Giants -3 At Washington
The Giants have been battered by injuries and some turmoil in the offseason, and so they’ll be limping into the first game of the season. But the Redskins aren’t expected to do much, and don’t have a clear cut number 1 quarterback, so they’ll be expected to lose their home opener against their NFC East rival.
At Arizona -6.5 Carolina
When you start a rookie quarterback, you’re going to be the heavy underdogs in lots of games, and that’s especially true when you were the worst team in the league the year before. The Cardinals are optimistic with new QB Kevin Kolb, and with Larry Fitzgerald locked up to a nice new, lengthy deal with the team.
At San Francisco -5.5 Seattle
The NFC West was tight last season because no team was able to finish with a .500 record, so everyone was in that same mediocre range. New head coach Jim Harbaugh has a lot of hype behind him, and that probably explains the heavy point spread in their favor even though the Seahawks are the more experienced and proven team right now.
At San Diego -8.5 Minnesota
This seems like a pretty wide margin for the Chargers, even at home. The Vikings want to rebound after failing to perform to expectations last season, and they have Adrian Peterson, Donovan McNabb and a stout defense to help do just that. The Vikings could be upset picks with your week 1 NFL predictions here, or at least should beat that point spread.
At NY Jets -4.5 Dallas
The Jets are a trendy Super Bowl pick for many people, and the Cowboys are coming off a disastrous 2010 season. It’s also the first game to be played in the brand new stadium that the Jets and Giants have, so they’ll be feeding off of plenty energy and excitement and should get the job done.
New England -6.5 At Miami
Things aren’t looking too bright in Miami even if the weather has been sunny. The quarterback situation is unresolved, with nobody really believing in Chad Henne. The Patriots are expected to be one of the forces of the league yet again, and so are lofty favorites even on the road against a divisional opponent, and it’s justified.
At Denver -2.5 Oakland
This battle between AFC West rivals features two teams trying to get started in the right direction. Both have major quarterback questions, new coaches and staffs, and more. So this could be an ugly one, and Denver gets the slight advantage as they are the home team.

READ MORE - Week 1 NFL Predictions, Picks & Odds

Gordon wins NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Atlanta

                                                                                          For most of the afternoon, Jeff Gordon was the man to watch at Atlanta Motor Speedway Tuesday.

He led laps early and late. He appeared to have a historic NASCAR Sprint Cup victory in hand.

But as the laps wound down, a battle of champions developed. Gordon, who had appeared to have the race in hand, suddenly fell back into a battle with team mate Jimmie Johnson.

Gordon had passed his teammate to take his final lead on Lap 276 of the 325 at the rain-delayed and then rain-interrupted AdvoCare 500 Tuesday afternoon.

Both drivers were chasing their cars on the track. Both drivers were hungry. They raced clean, but they raced hard.

Johnson dove inside Gordon with three to go, his latest attempt to take the win. Gordon again clipped him off at the last minute, holding his spot.

Gordon, a four-time series champion, was a consistent frontrunner throughout the race — the only one who was strong start to finish. He earned his 85th career Cup win, which puts him in sole possession of third on the all-time winners list. And he further secured his role as one of the favorites for the 2011 championship.

Gordon took the win, with five-time defending Sprint Cup champion Johnson finishing second. Tony Stewart, Kurt Busch and Carl Edwards rounded out the top five.

Two days after the race was postponed because of rain, it looked like it just might end under the same conditions. Drivers struggled to get into any kind of rhythm as a misty rain began to steadily interrupt the action shortly after the halfway point of the race Tuesday afternoon.

The interruptions threatened to alter the race, but in the end had little impact.

Gordon’s win was set up following a late pit stop. On Lap 247, Martin Truex Jr. led the field following a caution period and a crafty two-tire pit stop, but immediately surrendered the spot to Johnson, who took his first commanding lead of the day. David Ragan was running ninth and blew up, but the caution did not come out until Regan Smith brought out the yellow flag with heavy damage on his car after getting hit by Mark Martin.

That set up another restart in a race that had been highlighted by tight battles every time the green flag waved.

Johnson slipped away from the field at that point, as Gordon began to make his trek toward the front of the field. On Lap 267, he took second from Edwards and began trying to move up on Johnson. Gordon had led 100 laps in the race and had been the frontrunner when it hit the halfway point, but lost positions on pit stops later in the race.

Gordon soon began putting pressure on Johnson for the lead and, on Lap 276, he took the lead from his teammate. He pitted eight laps later and held the position through green-flag stops. Johnson trailed by .652 second after the stops cycled through.

Gordon’s dominant position was hard to track in a race in which drivers faced a series of interruptions after reaching the halfway point.

The first brief interruption for rain had found Edwards in the lead. The second threatened to net a surprise winner as J.J. Yeley and Landon Cassill opted to stay out during the pit sequence to take the top two spots, but they pitted as the green flag came out. The latter stoppages set up thrilling restarts with top drivers going three wide for the lead as rain continued to be a threat.

After Yeley and Cassill pitted, Matt Kenseth retook the lead, restarting alongside teammate Edwards. On the restart, as Kenseth pulled away on the outside, Kevin Harvick whipped around inside of Edwards and began dueling with Edwards for second. The two closed on Kenseth for the lead as rain threatened at the track.

Kenseth was pulling away, radioing his team that he was about to wreck on the track and that a caution needed to be thrown. NASCAR quickly did just that as the mist hit the track once more, putting out the caution flag on Lap 221.

Again, Kenseth and Edwards started side by side, with Harvick and Johnson right behind them. Charging forward on the restart, Johnson suddenly moved into second and began mounting a challenge on Kenseth. Edwards soon moved back into the fray and the trio began to battle for the top spot.

With 85 laps to go, Johnson and Edwards put pressure on Kenseth. Johnson kept trying to clear Kenseth and couldn’t quite do it. Then Edwards moved right onto Kenseth’s bumper as Clint Bowyer slid up and cut off Juan Pablo Montoya, who hit him with his bumper and caused Bowyer to hit the wall, causing the caution on Lap 242. That was a crushing blow for Bowyer, who is trying to fight his way into a spot in the Chase for the Sprint Cup.

And then Gordon took over.

The early segment of the race featured a showdown between Gordon and kyle Busch. The pair combined to lead 120 of the early laps in the race, but Busch struggled after brushing the wall and dropped out of contention for the win as the race wore on.

READ MORE - Gordon wins NASCAR Sprint Cup race at Atlanta

Don't sleep on Saints in Super Bowl talk

Five years ago, the New Orleans Saints were looking for stability as a franchise and a team on the field. Five years later, it's clear they found it.

Half of the equation was signing one of the game's elite quarterbacks, Drew Brees. The other half was choosing right again by hiring Sean Payton as their head coach.

That winning combination was first seen when the Saints went from 3-13 in 2005 to 10-6 in '06, and doing their small part in helping the community around New Orleans heal from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. There was promise of accomplishing greater things in the near future, which came to fruition with their victory in Super Bowl XLIV.

After following up that last season with an 11-5 wild-card berth and making a shockingly quick playoff exit at Seattle, it would be easy to think they've taken a step back out of vying for another NFC championship. That would be a big mistake.

Appropriately, Payton was rewarded for his great body of work on Labor Day with a contract extension through '15. The Saints' familiarity with him on the sidelines and Brees under center is the biggest reason they're consistent contenders. Even with considerable roster shakeups since '06, neither competitor has lost his edge in pushing the Saints every year.

"You don’t ever really arrive, you’re just constantly ongoing, developing players, and with the way our league is now, there’s always that turnover in five to six years," Payton said Monday. "The offseason has become important (and) certainly the continuity with the coaching staff is important."

The Atlanta Falcons, Philadelphia Eagles and the Super Bowl XLV champion Green Bay Packers — against whom the Saints open the regular season on Thursday night — have all seen a brighter spotlight cast on them this offseason. But the Saints have done some quiet reloading of their own to keep with the NFC's other offensive powerhouses.

The marquee pickup was their rookie first-round draft pick, running back Mark Ingram, the '09 Heisman Trophy winner and national champion from Alabama. Even though the Saints have a deep running game, Ingram can provide them with a necessary hammer to help Brees finish drives in the red zone.

Ingram is expected to have an immediate impact, starting with what's likely to be a high-scoring affair at Lambeau Field.

“I think he’s more than ready" Payton said. "He’s anxious. Here’s why: He’s been very consistent during training camp."

Ingram is just one of three intriguing new weapons for Payton's offense. In free-agent addition Darren Sproles, the Saints get a slightly older but arguably quicker version of Reggie Bush to assist them as a third-down runner and receiver. Second-year tight Jimmy Graham, now a starter, is primed for a breakout season.

They'll need all of those players to contribute — and good production from their aggressive defense — to beat Green Bay. Although the Week 1 matchup of the past two Super Bowl champions is huge way to kickoff for the Saints, they're careful not to put everything into it as a way to put behind last season's playoff disappointment.

"You don't want to make it bigger than it is, because at the end of the day you still have 15 games after that," linebacker Jonathan Vilma said about his team's preparation for the Packers. "We would love to get a quality win on the road against a NFC opponent.”

Considering the Saints face stiff competition in their own division, both from reigning NFC South champion Atlanta and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers — a surprise 10-6 team last season — every conference win is vital. The opener is a chance for the Saints to get a potential leg up on the Falcons and Bucs, who also open with tough NFC North opponents in Chicago and Detroit, respectively.

Former Cowboys and Dolphins coach Jimmy Johnson, a studio analyst for FOX NFL Sunday, sees the Saints and Falcons once again being in a tight battle for postseason position.

"If you look at the entire league, what we’re going to find out in the early part of the season is that because we didn’t have offseason programs and minicamps, the veteran teams and the teams that retained their coaches will be much stronger than some of the other teams early in the season," Johnson said in a conference call.

"Veteran teams, especially the Saints and the Falcons will be much better. It’s a two-team race in the NFC South as far as I’m concerned."

Wherever you look, the Falcons, Eagles and Packers have dominated as the preseason picks to make Super Bowl XLVI. The Saints, however, are well equipped to make it a great four-team race to take the NFC.

READ MORE - Don't sleep on Saints in Super Bowl talk

Telluride Loves Tilda Swinton, But Needs to Talk About 'Kevin'

One of the most chattered-about entries at the Telluride Film Festival was the late-bowing “We Need to Talk About Kevin,” which stars festival tributee Tilda Swinton as the beleaguered mother of a teenaged boy who commits a Columbine-style massacre.

The undercurrent of the talk on the streets, of course, had to do with another troublesome male figure: We need to talk about Oscar.

Among the English-language films receiving their world or U.S. premieres at the Colorado festival, a common thread emerged: great performances in lesser-loved or dark, difficult movies that it may be hard to get art-house audiences to spend $12 on ... or to get Academy members to watch for free.

Also read: From Clooney's 'Descendants' to Pixar's 'La Luna': 10 Buzziest Films at Telluride

These worries particularly applied to the two buzz films that dominated the second half of the four-day festival, “We Need to Talk About Kevin” and “Shame,” both of which didn’t start unspooling for patrons until Sunday, and left some tired attendees shaking their heads at the grueling contents therein -- even as they added, “Wasn’t he/she great?”

Some of these sentiments also applied to the Glenn Close project “Albert Nobbs” and David Cronenberg’s “A Dangerous Method,” though audiences weren’t wildly polarized over these so much as lukewarm (with certain exceptions, like A.O. Scott, who raved about American movies, only runaway favorite “The Descendants” walked away with a widespread love for the film to equal the adoration for its actors.

Also read: George Clooney's 'Descendants' Sucks Up All the Air at Telluride Fest

Nothing looks to be a tougher sell than “Shame,” director Steve McQueen’s decidedly NC-17 portrayal of soul-crippling sexual addiction. The first 10 minutes are front-loaded with full-frontal shots of leading man Michael Fassbender, and the action gets more graphic in the last act. But how do you push as "sexy" a movie that means to point out how unsexy extreme erotic compulsiveness can be?

Hearing that I had a “Shame” screening scheduled for later in the day Monday, two New York women down the row had some words of wisdom. “You’ll need to take a shower afterward,” said one. The woman next to her offered even stronger, and more amusing, counsel. “Make sure to have sex beforehand,” she advised me, “because you’ll be off it after.”

Fassbender -- who also appeared, pants mostly on, as Carl Jung in “A Dangerous Method” -- is frankly amazing in “Shame,” all the way to the remarkable scene near the end when he simulates graphic intercourse while wearing one of the most anguished expressions in the history of cinema. It's a good thing McQueen lays off the casual frontal nudity after the first reel, so we can rightfully claim we couldn't take our eyes off Fassbender's face.

Dyed-blonde Carey Mulligan, meanwhile, may not be having anyone calling her “Audrey Hepburn-esque” anymore after her role as Fassbender’s similarly degraded sister, although she gets off kind of light on the nudity front. The one non-sex scene that’s going to prompt considerable polarization is a jazz club sequence where a not entirely on-pitch Mulligan sings a radically slowed down rendition of “New York, New York” that goes on for so many minutes, it almost starts to qualify as torture porn.

“We Need to Talk About Kevin,” based on a popular British novel, is an exceptionally well-mounted portrait of a serial killer’s mother, and would seem like a shoo-in to usher Swinton toward award consideration -- if not for the fact that literally every single one of its 112 minutes is grim and filled with overwhelming dread. The back-and-forth flashback structure telegraphs all the atrocities to come, leaving the audience with nothing to hang on but the sight of Swinton’s once-vibrant character being increasingly overwhelmed by her son’s implicit menace and her spouse’s aggravating naïveté. For fans of great acting, that’s almost enough.

As the husband, John C. Reilly so overplays the ineffectual card, you hardly believe he could get a job or a wife, much less share a huge Connecticut house with a character as sharp and accomplished as Swinton’s. But the two kids who play Kevin as a toddler and teenager make such deeply convincing and disturbing sociopaths that someone should make use of them by quickly mounting a “Bad Seed” remake or “Omen” sequel. Come to think of it, maybe that’s what “Kevin,” in its own smart, arty way, already basically is, since the film ultimately doesn't seem to have much more to impart than ... Evil Happens.

That these entries didn’t inspire across-the-board accolades doesn’t mean nothing at Telluride did, just that unanimity was largely reserved for a handful of international entries.

Also read: Watch Out, Oscar: Here Come the Film Festivals

Unofficial polling on the streets and on the gondola showed four clear favorites. One was Alexander Payne’s George Clooney vehicle “The Descendants,” which enjoyed an overwhelmingly successful world-premiere engagement at Telluride on its way to Toronto. The other three arrived in the U.S. via earlier stops at Cannes.

Attendees weren’t shy about calling the Iranian film “A Separation” a masterpiece, and it won’t be any surprise to see this riveting morality tale topping year-end critics’ polls.

Agnieska Holland’s equally dazzling but less intrinsically inviting “Into Darkness” won raves from everyone who had the moxie to submit to a two-and-a-half-hour Holocaust drama. “Holocaust suspense picture” might be a better way of selling the film, with its brilliantly directed action setpieces -- which, just to make things difficult, take place in nearly pitch-black Polish sewers. 

But if anything equaled “The Descendants” as a popular favorite, it was the French-made, American-set “The Artist,” a bona-fide black-and-white silent movie that left most of the passholders who caught it in a state of delirium that could only partly be attributed to the altitude. In something close to a repeat of the feel-good bliss surrounding "Slumdog Millionaire's" debut at Telluride three years ago, predictions ran rampant that “Artist” could cross over to mainstream audiences and even, conceivably, get a nod for the Academy’s top honor -- the kind of soothsaying you could blame on the lack of local oxygen, incredible foresight, or both.

READ MORE - Telluride Loves Tilda Swinton, But Needs to Talk About 'Kevin'

D.C. searching for more road points at K.C.

Kansas City, KS — 

D.C. United has quietly turned its fortunes around after a disastrous 2010, and its road form has been a major reason why Ben Olsen's club is just two points out of a playoff spot.

D.C., which had the worst record in Major League Soccer last season, has four wins and four draws in 11 road matches, and visits Livestrong Sporting Park on Sunday to battle Sporting Kansas City.
K.C. (8-7-9) has just one loss since its new $200 million stadium opened this season, and is 7-1-8 overall in 16 games since late May. With a win on Sunday, Sporting could move within a point of the top spot in the Eastern Conference.

The Columbus Crew lead the East with 37 points, but Kansas City sits just four points back in third place entering the weekend's games. With three teams just two points or less behind in the standings, K.C. cannot afford to slip up.

United (7-6-10) is among the group behind K.C., as it sits even on points with Red Bull New York for fifth but just six points off the East lead.

Sporting had gone 14 straight games without a loss until a 2-1 loss to Seattle Sounders FC on Aug. 6, but the club rebounded with a 3-1 win over the Portland Timbers and plays its next four and six of its next seven at home.

"We needed this game," K.C. midfielder Milos Stojcev said after the Portland win. "We need wins now, and we are playing well as a team. Everyone has been playing very well, and most of all, we believe in each other.

"But now, we need more wins so we can go to the playoffs."

United overturned last season's woes early this year, but since signing Dwayne De Rosario in a trade with Red Bull New York, Ben Olsen's club has turned into playoff contender.

United is 3-1-6 in its last 10, and 3-1-4 since De Rosario arrived. Thursday's 1-1 draw at the Chicago Fire pulled D.C. even with New York, and a road win on Sunday would put the team in position for a top-three finish and playoff spot.

"When you come back and tie a game it always somewhat feels okay," Olsen said after the draw against Chicago. "The guys really worked hard in the second half. Credit them for a good second half. We have to play the whole ninety together at this point."

United will be without goalkeeper Bill Hamid, who injured his hamstring late in the first against Chicago and will be sidelined for an unknown period.

"We don't know the severity of it but we will know shortly," Olsen said after the match about Hamid's injury.

K.C. and D.C. will also know Sunday where they sit in the Eastern Conference, as the race for playoff spots will go down to the wire, and Sunday's game will put the winner in much better position. 

READ MORE - D.C. searching for more road points at K.C.

‘The Daily Show’ defends Rick Perry: ‘The real bigot here is Ed Schultz’

After Texas Gov. Rick Perry spoke earlier this week of a “big black cloud that hangs over America,” referring to the nation's enormous debt, MSNBC host Ed Schultz called racism. Schultz was sure the big black cloud Perry spoke of was none other than President Obama.
Wait, rewind.
Schultz later apologized for his interpretation, but “The Daily Show” couldn’t resist pointing out how ludicrous it was. Jon Stewart started out the ribbing with a montage of clearly innocuous statements featuring names of colors before declaring: “The real bigot here is Ed Schultz.”
Stewart also noted that, to be fair, “debt” was only two words after “cloud” in Perry’s comments.
“That’s the thing about clouds,” Stewart joked, “some people see a racist dog whistle, while some people see George Washington wrestling a leprechaun.”

READ MORE - ‘The Daily Show’ defends Rick Perry: ‘The real bigot here is Ed Schultz’

Five lessons tablet OEMs can learn from HP TouchPad fiasco

Don’t launch a product, launch an ecosystem

One of the biggest mistakes that HP made with the TouchPad was to  release a product and then hope that an ecosystem would magically form around it. Things might have worked that way with the iPhone, but that was a long time ago and the platform didn’t have much in the way of competition.

Why should consumers gamble on a product like the TouchPad (and HP’s lack of commitment to the platform shows just how much of a gamble it was) when there is an established player in the market.

New products entering the market now need to have an ecosystem that users can tap into. If a company wants to launch a product without a decent ecosystem to support it, then that company better have invested in time travel technology, because the only way it’s going to work is to travel back in time to a world before the iPad.

Have a little faith in your products

How much faith do you think HP had in the TouchPad to trash the project in 49 days?

When consumers by a PC or a tablet or a smartphone, they don’t just want a device, they want to see a long-term commitment from the vendor in the form of updates and apps. This means that users expect a vendor to properly support a product for a decent length of time (a few years).

If HP can bin the TouchPad so rapidly, how committed is it to its other products and services? What message does this send customers and potential customers?

Don’t expect a weekend blockbuster

I’m not really sure how many TouchPads HP was expecting to sell in the first year, but I can’t imagine how bad the initial sales had to be for the company to dump the product after less then two months.

Did HP expect the TouchPad to be an overnight success? Seriously? Has hardware gone the way of movies where success or failure is judged on the basis of the first weekend? I hope not.

Don’t take people’s money if you can’t deliver

Companies don’t operate in a vacuum, and dumping products shortly after releasing them isn’t a good way to build long-term consumer confidence.

Think about it - if you’d just bought a TouchPad, would you be in the mood to buy another HP product in a hurry?

Unknown operating systems are a gamble

People have heard of Windows and Mac, and Android and iOS. webOS came from nowhere and HP expected people to embrace it without giving customers a solid ‘why’. The promise of apps and updates wasn’t enough (and given that the platform died within a couple of months, can you blame people for being wary).

If you’re going to bring out a tablet with an unknown OS, take the time to actually sell it to customers.

READ MORE - Five lessons tablet OEMs can learn from HP TouchPad fiasco

PRC's policy on state cellphone texting hazy

Taxpayers footing the bill for the cellphones of Public Regulation Commission employees can't see the text messages on those phones unless the state can get a subpoena.

That's the word from Verizon wireless after The New Mexican requested text messages from the state-issued cellphones of Commissioner Jerome Block Jr. and others at the regulatory panel.

"I don't have access to the actual text message content a user is sending or receiving on their mobile number," Heidi Jackson, of Verizon's Business and Government Customer Operations, wrote to the Department of Information Technology, which forwarded the newspaper's request to the phone company.

"If you have an agency that needs this information we will need a subpoena in order to provide this information," she wrote.

State rules regarding the New Mexico State Records Center and Archives views a text as an electronic message subject to retention by an agency if it includes business matters. If the subject is not related to work, the message can be deleted.

It is up to each agency to retain records, according to state statute.

But the Public Regulation Commission has no policy requiring employees to archive or preserve text messages of any kind on taxpayer-funded cellphones.

"Our cellphone policy is pretty vanilla," PRC Chief of Staff Johnny Montoya said Friday. "It doesn't refer specifically to anything about text messages."

Enforcing a policy that required retention could prove tough, he said.

"How would I discipline an employee for not retaining those?"

Still, he said, he is willing to look into the issue further and see if the texts can be made public.

"If there is a way to get access, I'm all for that," he said.

However, he said most employees understand that anything done on state equipment is subject to public scrutiny.

"[Former Gov.] Bruce King used to say 'don't ever put anything in email that you don't want to end up on the front page of The New Mexican," he said.

Sources say some of the texts on Block's phone could possibly help shed some light on questions surrounding the commissioner, who is under scrutiny for spending on state gas cards. Block is also facing questions in a stolen car case and has missed about a third of PRC meetings so far this year. He has admitted a prescription drug addiction but does not plan to resign.

Sarah Welsh, executive director of the New Mexico Foundation for Open Government, said the lack of text message retention is something that can be dealt with in policy.

"Employees who are given devices for communicating about public business should understand that messages sent on the devices are public records," she said.

"There should be a mechanism for forwarding the messages automatically to a public server, and/or an explicit requirement to store messages and produce them upon request," she said, noting that email-use policies already have similar provisions.

"The agency shouldn't have to get a subpoena to access what are essentially its own records."

At the same time, though, some agencies have policies that allow for limited personal use of a cellphone or email.

Welsh said in those cases, an employee may have an expectation of privacy for personal messages.

The state's Department of Information Technology doesn't have a policy on retaining text messages. But if it had an infrastructure in place, possible policies might include requiring all employees with state phones to export messages to a database on a regular basis or reaching an agreement with Verizon to export all messages to a state-owned database, a spokesman said.

States across the country approach text message retention differently.

In North Carolina, for example, texts are not required to be kept, because they are considered records of "short-term value," while in Florida they are required to be kept for various lengths, depending on the content.

Meanwhile, the PRC is still without an email retention policy, after The New Mexican reported in June 2010 that the agency was going to revamp it.

At the time, the then-administrative services division director said no one was following it.

The 2009 policy calls for employees of the regulatory agency to sort their own emails and determine what is public. Those public records then must be forwarded to an address for retention. But nothing was being sent there.

The issue came up after The New Mexican requested the emails of former Insurance Superintendent Mo Chavez, who left the job in the wake of criticism over approval of a hike in health insurance premiums for some 40,000 individual customers of Blue Cross Blue Shield.

Chavez at the time said he has nothing to hide and cleaned his inbox at the direction of the agency's information technology staff.

Montoya said Friday that the PRC is looking into buying more server space to have room to archive emails, and a policy on doing so would come after that. 

READ MORE - PRC's policy on state cellphone texting hazy

WWE 12: Friday Night SmackDown Aug 12 results and updates

WWE 12: Friday Night SmackDown Aug 12 results and updates. The weekend has been great for WWE fans. Two major events 625 Friday Night SmackDown and SummerSlam on Sunday night make the world wrestling fans in cheer. 625th edition of WWE SmackDown took place at Sacramento in California, just 48 hours before the SummerSlam Pay-Per-View at the Staples Center.
In SmackDown, WWE Chief Operating Officer announced Triple H announced he would be the chief guest referee of the WWE Title Unification between CM Punk and John Cena at the SummerSlam, one of four major WWE events in a year.

The humorous chat between Triple H and Christian Cage was the major attraction of the Friday night WWE event. The World Heavyweight Champion, slated to take on Randy Orton in the No Holds Barred match for the World Heavyweight Championship at SummerSlam amused that he would sue Triple H, his children and even the entire WWE fans.

The reason for his ‘lawsuits’ was that Triple H put him in a battle with a fighter, who has severe anger management issues. He argued that Triple H was supporting Ortiz.

Christian was later announced to take on Sheamus at the SmackDown. But the champion was defeated by Sheamus. What will be the champion’s fate in his celebrated clash against Ortiz? This is a million dollar question for Sunday evening.

One another featured bout of the Friday Night SmackDown was Intercontinental Championship match between Ezekiel Jackson and Cody Rhodes. WWE Money in the Bank winners Alberto Del Rio took on Daniel Bryan, who will meet Wade Barret in a singles match at the SummerSlam, the year’s second biggest WWE event after Wrestlemania. Sheamus Vs Mark Henry is another singles match event of Sunday night.

READ MORE - WWE 12: Friday Night SmackDown Aug 12 results and updates

WWE News: WWE 12 video game roster revealed

The following are the rosters for the WWE 12 video game that was announced on Saturday. Thanks to Dot Net reader Jonathan Crowe for passing along the report.

Raw: John Cena, John Morrison, Kofi Kingston, R-Truth, Husky Harris, Santino Marella, David Otunga, Evan Bourne, Goldust, Zack Ryder, Mason Ryan, Triple H, The Miz, Alex Riley, Alberto Del Rio, Rey Mysterio, Michael McGuillicuty, Big Show, Dolph Ziggler, Drew McIntyre, Mr. McMahon, CM Punk

Smackdown: Ted DiBiase, Mark Henry, William Regal, Daniel Bryan, Tyson Kidd, Sheamus, Cody Rhodes, Kane, Yoshi Tatsu, Jack Swagger, Justin Gabriel, Heath Slater, The Undertaker, Christian, Sin Cara, Ezekiel Jackson, Wade Barrett, Randy Orton

Divas: Eve, Natayla, Maryse, Layla, Michelle McCool, Beth Phoenix, Kelly Kelly

Legends: Stone Cold Steve Austin, Arn Anderson, Ricky Steamboat, Road Warrior Hawk, Road Warrior Animal, Vader, Kevin Nash, Booker T, Eddie Guerrero, Demolition Smash, Demolition Axe, Edge, The Rock

They had The Miz, Todd Grisham, and Jerry Lawler as the presenters. Randy Orton and Cory Ladesma also made appearances.

READ MORE - WWE News: WWE 12 video game roster revealed

Cubs place volatile pitcher Carlos Zambrano on disqualified list

John Nestor – AHN Sports Correspondent

Atlanta, GA, United States (AHN Sports) – The Chicago Cubs appear to have had just about enough of Carlos Zambrano.

The Cubs placed Zambrano on the disqualified list Saturday, saying the starting pitcher would receive no pay and have no part in team activities for 30 days.

Zambrano cleaned out his locker and left the team after giving up five homers and being ejected from Friday night’s 10-4 loss to the Braves.

After Zambrano did not return to the team Saturday he was put on the disqualified list.

“This was the most stringent penalty we could enforce without a release,” Cubs general manager Jim Hendry said.

Hendry said Major League Baseball and the players’ association would discuss Zambrano’s statements about his baseball future.

“There’s not much worse than running out on your teammates in the middle of a ballgame,” Hendry said.

Zambrano was ejected by plate umpire Tim Timmons in the fifth inning after throwing two inside pitches to Chipper Jones. The pitches followed homers by Freddie Freeman and Dan Uggla.

Worse to Hendry was that the incident came on the night the Braves honored former manager Bobby Cox.

“I feel that anything at all to detract from Bobby Cox’s night other than usual competition is totally intolerable.”

READ MORE - Cubs place volatile pitcher Carlos Zambrano on disqualified list

Panthers' Newton displays strong, erratic arm in win

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Cam Newton showed glimpses Saturday night of why the Carolina Panthers made him the No. 1 pick in the NFL draft, from the strong arm that zipped the ball downfield to the mobility that bought extra moments in a collapsing pocket.
He also looked like a rookie quarterback struggling with his accuracy.
Newton led two field-goal drives in his NFL, debut, and Jimmy Clausen threw a touchdown pass to Greg Olsen to help the Panthers beat the New York Giants 20-10 in an exhibition game.
Newton, the Heisman Trophy winner from Auburn, twice failed to get the Panthers into the end zone on promising first-half drives. But he also brought some big-play potential to the league's worst offense last season and a franchise desperately needing a fresh start.
In fact, the loudest cheer might have come when Newton took the field less than a minute into the second quarter.
"I was just trying to go out there and first off prove to myself that I could play on this level," Newton said. "After that first little completion, I started to get the juices flowing. It was like, 'Hey, I'm in the NFL,' and I started to get a little swagger about myself."
Newton completed 8 of 19 throws for 134 yards, including two completions of at least 30 yards. Newton played until early in the fourth quarter before giving way to veteran reserve Derek Anderson.
"They had me guessing out there, and I know this is just the beginning of what's more to come," Newton said.
Michael Boley , who returned an interception 56 yards for a score for the Giants' only touchdown, said Newton looked "pretty comfortable" and has "a pretty good cannon."
The game also marked the debut of Panthers coach Ron Rivera, who replaced John Fox as the franchise begins an overhaul after a two-win season.
Rams 33, Colts 10 in St. Louis– Sam Bradford produced 17 points in four possessions with big help from a defense that jumped on Peyton Manning's backups for two early interceptions as St. Louis opened the preseason with a victory over Indianapolis.
Josh Brown's 60-yard field goal capped an almost perfect first half not just for offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels' rebuilt attack but for all phases. Brown's boot bettered his career best of 58 yards in 2003 with the Seattle Seahawks, and he added a 53-yarder in the third quarter.
Manning underwent neck surgery May 23 and has not practiced. The Colts have said they expect him to be ready for the opener Sept. 11 at Houston.
Bears 10, Bills 3 in Chicago – Jay Cutler played just one series and watched as Chicago beat Buffalo even though the offensive line did little to ease any lingering concerns.
The Bills got two sacks from Shawne Merriman and nine in all, but the Bears prevailed on a soggy night in which both teams pulled their starters early.
Browns 27, Packers 17 in Cleveland – Super Bowl MVP Aaron Rodgers threw a touchdown pass before swapping his helmet for a baseball cap in the first quarter as defending champion Green Bay opened its exhibition season with a loss.
Titans 14, Vikings 3 in Nashville, Tenn. – Jake Locker threw a 45-yard touchdown pass in his NFL debut, and Tennessee beat Minnesota to make new coach Mike Munchak a winner in an exhibition opener.

READ MORE - Panthers' Newton displays strong, erratic arm in win

Local books: buried secrets, Amanda Knox's travails, time-traveling and BC parks

                                                                                                                              New releases

  "When the de la Cruz Family Danced" by Donna Miscolta (Signal 8 Press, $16.95). Seattle author Miscolta pens the story of Johnny de la Cruz, who returns to the Philippines and has a quick sexual encounter with an old flame. Years later, 19-year-old Winston Piña finds a letter his recently deceased mother wrote — but never sent — to Johnny. Miscolta will read from her novel, along with Oliver de la Paz, who will read from his poetry collections, at 7 p.m. Thursday at Seattle's Elliott Bay Book Co.

"The Fatal Gift of Beauty: The Trials of Amanda Knox" by Nina Burleigh (Broadway, $25). The latest book-length investigation of the events surrounding the incarceration, trial and conviction of Seattle student Knox in Perugia, Italy. Burleigh, a contributing editor at Elle, lives in New York; Publisher's Weekly called her book " a powerful example of narrative nonfiction."

"The Brahms Deception" by Louise Marley(Kensington, $15). Seattle author Marley returns with the story of Frederica Daniels, a brilliant musicologist who gets to time-travel back to the era of Johannes Brahms. A rival scholar is elected to bring her back, but Frederica doesn't want to return.

"British Columbia's Magnificent Parks: The First 100 Years" by James D. Anderson (Harbour, $44.95). An informative, copiously illustrated book on BC's park system, by a career park administrator.

"Only Mine" by Susan Mallery (HQN Books, $7.99). The Seattle author produces a new installment in her "Fool's Gold" series: Dakota Hendrix, a psychologist, has to screen eligible bachelors for a romance reality competition filming in her hometown of Fool's Gold. Complications ensue.

READ MORE - Local books: buried secrets, Amanda Knox's travails, time-traveling and BC parks

Bachmann, Paul soar in Iowa’s straw poll

AMES, Iowa - Representative Michele Bachmann of Minnesota won the Republican straw poll here last night, giving her campaign a significant boost while severely clouding the future of her home-state rival, former governor Tim Pawlenty.

Bachmann won 28.6 percent of the votes, becoming the first female candidate to win the informal contest in a state that holds the first-in-the-nation caucuses. Pawlenty came in third, trailing Representative Ron Paul of Texas, which is a severe blow to a campaign that has struggled to show signs of traction.

“This is the first step towards taking the White House in 2012 and we have just sent a message that Barack Obama will be a one-term president,’’ Bachmann said after stepping out of her blue campaign bus, where she had broken down in tears and hugged her husband for a long while after learning of her victory. “You’ve done it, Iowa. Now it’s on to all 50 states.’’

The poll holds no official significance, and with nearly 17,000 ballots cast, participants represent less than 3 percent of the 640,000 Republicans registered in the state. But it is the first time Republicans are formally voicing their opinions on the still-fluid field of candidates. The result often helps whittle the slate, sending a clear signal to candidates who should pack their bags and go home, and it helps fund-raisers decide which candidates they should get behind.

Candidates who finish lower than they expected often choose to drop out of the race if they are unable to show signs of political promise six months before the nominating contest formally begins.

“It’s a big boost for her,’’ Mike Huckabee, the former Arkansas governor who won the caucuses in 2008, told reporters. “Whoever wins or comes in second, they get gas for their fire. Whoever doesn’t, they get water for theirs.’’

Bachmann has used solid debate performances and a spunky rhetorical style to energize supporters drawn to her devout conservatism. But the straw poll was a crucial test of whether she could convert the energy around her into actual votes.

“It’s very important we come back to Iowa,’’ said Ed Rollins, Bachmann’s campaign manager. “We have to come back and win the caucus.’’

Pawlenty had perhaps the most at stake, and, by most estimates, desperately needed to show some signs of strength. His campaign began with high hopes that he would be able to win votes using his everyman appeal and his experience as a conservative governor of a liberal state.

He spent weeks campaigning throughout Iowa, visiting coffee shops and GOP dinners. He hired a top-rate team of consultants in the state and committed to the long slog of organizing supporters and getting them signed up.

He was hoping to use the straw poll to lift his profile, but he will probably now have to recast his campaign; some speculate he may drop out, though yesterday he said he would not. He garnered only 13.6 percent of the vote.

Pawlenty issued a brief statement last night congratulating Bachmann and saying: “We made progress in moving from the back of the pack into a competitive position for the caucuses, but we have a lot more work to do.’’

The day was also marked by a political event hundreds of miles from here. Governor Rick Perry of Texas announced his candidacy in South Carolina. His name wasn’t on the ballot - nor would he arrive in Iowa until today - but his presence was heavily felt thanks to an organized write-in effort by supporters who got him 4.3 percent of the votes, which was slightly better than current national front-runner Mitt Romney, who got 3.4 percent.

While many dismiss the poll’s significance, hordes of media descended upon this college town in the center of the state to witness the spectacle. Paul, whose campaign paid $31,000 for primo real estate on the university grounds, hosted a sprawling compound of tents and an inflatable two-story slide called “The Sliding Dollar.’’

“Others will come into the race,’’ Paul told a large, enthusiastic crowd of supporters wearing red Ron Paul T-shirts. “They’re looking for the super establishment candidate who can challenge us, but it won’t dilute our vote.’’

Paul, who took 27.7 percent of the vote, has an ardent group of supporters, and has proven adept at mobilizing them and winning straw polls. Most political observers and polls, however, suggest he will have trouble with a more broad-based national campaign.

Paul placed fifth in Ames in 2007, drawing 9.1 percent of the votes. This year he had predicted a better finish.

As voters arriving in the early morning on fleets of buses funded by campaigns made their way across the parking lot to the Hilton Coliseum at Iowa State University, Perry volunteers handed out fliers telling Iowans to gather at noon to watch the governor’s announcement speech streamed live at a designated tent. A couple hundred showed up for the broadcast.

“We came here to seal the deal,’’ said Lauren Pierce, president of the college Republicans club at University of Texas at Austin. “It’s kind of weird because everyone in Iowa expects such individualized attention from all the candidates. They are very spoiled here. They’re upset, angry at us almost, because he’s not here.’’

Pierce’s friend, another University of Texas student, assured voters that Perry would be in town today, with expected appearances at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines and at a GOP fund-raising dinner.

Romney had no presence at the straw poll and the campaign was making no effort to reach out to supporters. Only two people were spotted yesterday wearing Romney T-shirts or stickers.

“We’ve had lots of people come up and ask us where we got our T-shirts, because they wanted to find them,’’ said Jacqui Norman, a 40-year-old from Ames, who was wearing a yellow Romney shirt that was handed out four years ago. “We had a couple dozen stickers left over, so we gave those to some people.’’

It was a marked difference from his strategy four years ago, when Romney spent ample time and resources competing in Iowa. He won the straw poll, but lost the caucuses, and his team has been trying to downplay expectations in a state that has not always been friendly territory.

In addition to Romney, two other candidates - former House speaker Newt Gingrich and former Utah governor Jon Huntsman Jr. - had no presence at the straw poll but their names did appear on the ballot. Gingrich got 2.3 percent of the vote, while Huntsman got 0.4 percent.

Bethany Carson, who will turn 18 before the 2012 election, came to the poll with her parents and three siblings after hearing from nearly all of the candidates in the past week. She said she was drawn to Bachmann, Herman Cain, and Rick Santorum, but ultimately cast her vote for Paul because “he’s just right.’’

“Isn’t it kind of strange that one little tiny state like Iowa gets all this attention?’’ asked her father, Tim Carson.

The 17-year-old responded by quoting Santorum. “The people in New Hampshire say Iowa picks the corn and New Hampshire picks the president, but Santorum says Iowa picks the field.’’

READ MORE - Bachmann, Paul soar in Iowa’s straw poll

4 Killed, 40 Hurt In Indiana State Fair Stage Collapse

INDIANAPOLIS -- At least four people were killed and 40 people were injured in a stage collapse at the Indiana State Fair during a severe thunderstorm on Saturday night.

Indiana State Police confirmed the fatalities and said the injuries to some victims are so severe that the death toll could rise.
Information about the people who died wasn't immediately released. ISP 1st Sgt. Dave Bursten said that the Marion County Coroner's Office had confirmed the identities of two of the people who were killed by early Sunday morning.

The number of injured could also increase, as authorities don't have a handle on how many people drove themselves to hospitals or were taken there by means other than an ambulance.
The collapse happened about 8:50 p.m. as Sugarland, a country music act, was preparing to perform on the fair's main stage.
The National Weather Service said winds estimated at 60 to 70 mph buffeted the stage ahead of a line ofservere thunderstorms. A severe thunderstorm warning had been issued for Marion County before the collapse.
"What hit really wasn't a storm. It was a significant gust of wind," Bursten said.
David Lindquist, a reporter for the Indianapolis Star who was there to cover the concert, told 6News that an announcement was made that weather was moving in about two minutes before the winds kicked up, but those in front of the stage had little time to get out of the weather, if they wanted to do so.
"There is an evacuation plan that is prepared. There were preparations in progress in anticipation of a severe storm arriving around 9:15," Bursten said. "Personnel were being put in place for an evacuation if that were deemed necessary."

An on-site emergency center was set up at the fairgrounds immediately after the collapse. Other people at the concert converged on the collapsed stage in the immediate aftermath, trying to pull the injured from beneath the mangled wreckage.
"It's gratifying to know that people at a moment's notice will jump in to help others," Bursten said.
"After the stage fell, it was complete chaos. Everyone had froze," said Jason Scofield, who was at the concert. "There was hundreds of people trying to lift the front of the stage up."
People ran to escape the collapse, but they tripped over each other as the stage came down, another witness told 6News.
"It was very scary, but I'm very fortunate I escaped with minor injuries," a 14-year-old victim said. "There was people underneath the stage trying to get out. The stage hit me. It was like a scene from a movie. It just happened so fast."
Indiana Task Force One was called in to search the debris, along with several K-9 units. The K-9 units were called back about 11:30 p.m., as the search beneath the stage was completed.
Most patients were taken to Wishard Memorial Hospital and Methodist Hospital, both equipped with trauma facilities. Hospitals brought in extra personnel to handle an influx of patients.
Other patients were taken by ambulance to various hospitals in and around Indianapolis, and some were driven to hospitals. Several children were among those injured, and at least three of them were taken to Riley Hospital for Children.
The injuries run the gamut from broken bones to head injuries and severe bruises.
The Indiana State Fair canceled events for Sunday and planned to reopen on Monday with a special ceremony remembering those who died and were hurt. It was not immediately known what will happen with concerts scheduled in the coming days.
"Our heartfelt feelings for the families of those that have lost loved ones," Bursten said. "Pray for the families that have lost members."
Officials asked anyone worried about a loved one they haven't heard from after the stage collapse to contact the American Red Cross, which opened its headquarters on East 10th Street in Indianapolis. People trying to get in touch with loved ones can call the Red Cross at 317-684-4305. The organization said it had a list of 33 injured people as of 2:45 a.m. and was working to add others who were hurt to the list.
Mayor Greg Ballard said he's pleased at the response from emergency responders. A command center had been set up at the fairgrounds this year.
"All the units are operating well together," Ballard said. "Everything is very coordinated to respond to this event."
Officials urged people who were at the concert and weren't injured to update their social media accounts, such as Facebook and Twitter, to cut down on calls to authorities from concerned friends and loved ones.
Sugarland posted this message on the band's Facebook wall:
"You may see on the news that our stage collapsed tonight. We are all right. We are praying for our fans, and for the people of Indianapolis," the post read. "We hope you will join us. They need your strength."

READ MORE - 4 Killed, 40 Hurt In Indiana State Fair Stage Collapse