Video Board

The Dallas Cowboys were hoping to raise the roof Friday when they unveiled their new stadium. Turns out, they might have to raise the video board, which is in the line of fire for punts. Or the league could be forced to examine its rules immediately. "It's something we're going to have to look at in the next week," Mike Pereira, the NFL's director of officiating, told The Times today. "We need to see if there's anything further we can do to make sure there's equity involved if it happens again."

Tim Tebow has heard boos before, although usually those were for former Denver Broncos starting quarterback Kyle Orton back when the beloved Tebow was his backup. But the boos at Yankee Stadium on Sunday night were definitely for Tebow, now the New York Jets' backup quarterback who was hanging out with Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade as the New York Yankees took on the Angels. Sure, there were a smattering of cheers from Jets fans and probably some random Tebowmaniacs in the stadium.

Anaheim Stadium's new video scoreboard, billed as the second-largest in North America, was supposed to debut Friday. But it didn't work for five innings. Finally, it came to life as the sixth inning started. An unknown glitch kept the board from showing anything but a purplish hue with perhaps a dozen black rectangles scattered about on the screen until the sixth. "It should be working (Saturday night)," Kevin Uhlich, Angel vice president for operations, told reporters.

Hundreds of fans and more than a dozen recruits at the Coliseum on Saturday saw USC players making spectacular touchdown catches, game-breaking runs and momentum-turning defensive plays. It was quite a show. Unfortunately, the highlights were from last season and seasons past, and they appeared on the stadium's giant video board accompanied by a pulsating soundtrack. Meantime, down on the field, the short-handed Trojans completed their third week of spring practice by going through a workout that featured a mostly pedestrian scrimmage period.

The Dallas Cowboys have added a new statistic for sportswriters to keep track of: number of times football hits video board. Punters went 0 for 10 in Saturday's Cowboys game against the San Francisco 49ers, making punters one for 24 after two games. Once, however, was enough for a weeklong controversy about whether the video board should be raised. In the end, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell ruled that the video board could remain 90 feet above the field. After the game, Cowboys Coach Wade Phillips said: "I'm not surprised at all. They kicked them high, and they kicked them long.

Hundreds of fans and more than a dozen recruits at the Coliseum on Saturday saw USC players making spectacular touchdown catches, game-breaking runs and momentum-turning defensive plays. It was quite a show. Unfortunately, the highlights were from last season and seasons past, and they appeared on the stadium's giant video board accompanied by a pulsating soundtrack. Meantime, down on the field, the short-handed Trojans completed their third week of spring practice by going through a workout that featured a mostly pedestrian scrimmage period.

Tim Tebow has heard boos before, although usually those were for former Denver Broncos starting quarterback Kyle Orton back when the beloved Tebow was his backup. But the boos at Yankee Stadium on Sunday night were definitely for Tebow, now the New York Jets' backup quarterback who was hanging out with Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade as the New York Yankees took on the Angels. Sure, there were a smattering of cheers from Jets fans and probably some random Tebowmaniacs in the stadium.

The St. Louis Rams on Thursday rejected the city's initial proposal to upgrade the Edward Jones Dome and intend to submit their own proposal by May 1. That's sure to spark further speculation that the Rams are positioning themselves for an eventual return to Los Angeles, a market they left after the 1994 season. The St. Louis Convention and Visitors Commission has offered $124 million in improvements to the dome in hopes of keeping the Rams. The franchise can break its lease after the 2014 season if its stadium is not deemed to be among the top eight in the league.

What in the H . . . DTV is going on? The NFL is tweaking the rule book less than two weeks before the start of the season just to accommodate the gigantic video board suspended over the field in the Dallas Cowboys' new stadium? Usually, the league fidgets and fusses over a rules change, making an alteration only after years of studies, statistics and arguments over the integrity of the game. This change took six days. Yes, it was an emergency situation, with the regular season almost upon us. And, no, Jerry Jones is not to blame, seeing as the Cowboys owner not only met but also exceeded the inadequate specifications of the league that there must be at least 85 feet of clearance above the field.

The Masters is over. The Tiger & Phil Show might just be getting started. Tiger Woods matched the course record with a 30 on the front nine, where he closed with three birdies Thursday morning to finish off a seven-under-par 65 at the Quail Hollow Championship. Phil Mickelson followed in the afternoon by chipping in for eagle and making a remarkable par save from under a video board for a five-under 67 that put him in a tie for second.

The St. Louis Rams on Thursday rejected the city's initial proposal to upgrade the Edward Jones Dome and intend to submit their own proposal by May 1. That's sure to spark further speculation that the Rams are positioning themselves for an eventual return to Los Angeles, a market they left after the 1994 season. The St. Louis Convention and Visitors Commission has offered $124 million in improvements to the dome in hopes of keeping the Rams. The franchise can break its lease after the 2014 season if its stadium is not deemed to be among the top eight in the league.

I was surprised to walk out of Tuesday's standing-room-only pep rally to find Farmers Field, L.A.'s new downtown football stadium, has yet to be built. From what everyone was saying inside the West Hall of the Convention Center, it's a done deal. I kept waiting for the San Diego Chargers to make a grand entrance, since they will be playing in the new joint. Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa was so pumped up he was already angling for tickets to Super Bowl 50. He reminded everyone he won't be mayor in 2016, but really wants to go to the game.

Reporting from Las Vegas — The love affair between Elvis and Las Vegas remains undimmed, on the eve of the 33rd anniversary of the singer's death. The most recent high-profile appearance of the King on the Strip, Cirque's "Viva Elvis," premiered earlier this year, bringing together without a hiccup the image of Elvis Presley's eternally blue-collar sneer, jumpsuits and rhinestones along with his populist appeal somehow integrated seamlessly into a high-end 2010 luxury Vegas resort — sculpture by Henry Moore to stroll by, a Frank Stella behind the registration desk.

Al Michaels serves as the play-by-play announcer and Cris Collinsworth provides the color commentary for tonight's N.Y Giants at Dallas game (5:20 p.m., Channel 4): Michaels says ... The stadium will be the star. Before I saw it, if you'd have asked me which stadium is tops on my list, I would have told you Seattle. But this place, there's nothing like it. The video board itself is spectacular -- the resolution, it's 60 yards long and seven stories high. I thought the board would overwhelm the stadium, but it doesn't.

The Dallas Cowboys have added a new statistic for sportswriters to keep track of: number of times football hits video board. Punters went 0 for 10 in Saturday's Cowboys game against the San Francisco 49ers, making punters one for 24 after two games. Once, however, was enough for a weeklong controversy about whether the video board should be raised. In the end, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell ruled that the video board could remain 90 feet above the field. After the game, Cowboys Coach Wade Phillips said: "I'm not surprised at all. They kicked them high, and they kicked them long.

What in the H . . . DTV is going on? The NFL is tweaking the rule book less than two weeks before the start of the season just to accommodate the gigantic video board suspended over the field in the Dallas Cowboys' new stadium? Usually, the league fidgets and fusses over a rules change, making an alteration only after years of studies, statistics and arguments over the integrity of the game. This change took six days. Yes, it was an emergency situation, with the regular season almost upon us. And, no, Jerry Jones is not to blame, seeing as the Cowboys owner not only met but also exceeded the inadequate specifications of the league that there must be at least 85 feet of clearance above the field.

Al Michaels serves as the play-by-play announcer and Cris Collinsworth provides the color commentary for tonight's N.Y Giants at Dallas game (5:20 p.m., Channel 4): Michaels says ... The stadium will be the star. Before I saw it, if you'd have asked me which stadium is tops on my list, I would have told you Seattle. But this place, there's nothing like it. The video board itself is spectacular -- the resolution, it's 60 yards long and seven stories high. I thought the board would overwhelm the stadium, but it doesn't.

Fans who go to see the California Angels tonight are sure to see at least something sparkle at Anaheim Stadium. Making its debut at tonight's game against the Chicago White Sox will be the new $3.6-million Sony Jumbotron Video board. The board is bigger and more technologically advanced than its predecessor, which toppled during the Jan. 17 Northridge earthquake. Not only are its color images far brighter, but it is also a good deal more resilient, seismically speaking, officials said.

The Dallas Cowboys were hoping to raise the roof Friday when they unveiled their new stadium. Turns out, they might have to raise the video board, which is in the line of fire for punts. Or the league could be forced to examine its rules immediately. "It's something we're going to have to look at in the next week," Mike Pereira, the NFL's director of officiating, told The Times today. "We need to see if there's anything further we can do to make sure there's equity involved if it happens again."

The Masters is over. The Tiger & Phil Show might just be getting started. Tiger Woods matched the course record with a 30 on the front nine, where he closed with three birdies Thursday morning to finish off a seven-under-par 65 at the Quail Hollow Championship. Phil Mickelson followed in the afternoon by chipping in for eagle and making a remarkable par save from under a video board for a five-under 67 that put him in a tie for second.