x him out every opportunity," Holland said. "Cam and Prince were scari

MONTREAL -- After leaving the presidents office vacant for 18 months, the Montreal Alouettes opted to hire from within. Los Angeles Lakers Store . The Canadian Football League club announced Tuesday that Mark Weightman, the former Chief Operating Officer, will be the new president and CEO. Weightman, 41, had been filling the presidents duties anyway since Ray Lalonde stepped down in May 2012 after only 14 months on the job. "We asked Mark to lead our franchise," said Andrew Wetenhall, the son of owner Bob Wetenhall who was unable to attend the announcement due to a flu. "Hes proven himself time and again." Weightman has been with the franchise since 1995 when he worked for the defunct Baltimore Stallions. The native of St. Andre dArgenteuil, Que., moved with them to Montreal the following year and stayed on when Wetenhall bought the team from Jim Spiros in 1997. His first priority will be to fill Percival Molson Stadium, which has had empty seats since it was expanded from 20,202 seats to 25,012 in 2010. The Alouettes used to sell out the smaller stadium every game, but have generally drawn about 23,000 since the expansion. "Its a pretty high priority," said Wetenhall, a New York investment banker who is a CFL governor. "Its a marker of our commercial success and our on-field and community success to secure that support. "At the same time, were not in an at-all-costs type of mentality. We need to correctly approach the marketplace and put a winning team on the field to enable people to say Ive got to go to that event." The Alouettes went 8-10 this season and lost the East Division semifinal to the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. They have not won a playoff game since winning back to back Grey Cups in 2009 and 2010. The empty seats suggest the Alouettes popularity is waning, but Weightman said the future looks bright. The season ticket base has remained at about 17,000, but they hope to increase sales through partial season tickets, family packs and other offers. "Were still going through a transition where we have a bigger stadium and people think were not doing as well because the stadiums not full," said Weightman. "We had 23,000 where we had 20,000 for 10 years. "If you look at TV ratings and how much were followed on social media, youll see our fan base is as strong and healthy as ever. But we need to do a better job of reaching out to all our fans." He also hopes to boost the teams community involvement and its support for minor football in Quebec, which are priorities for the Wetenhall family. "In reality, we didnt have a president, so I cant say my role will change a lot, other than that Ill have to get some new business cards," added Weighman. "The important thing is the transition weve done over the last year or so. "Weve refocused on the things weve done well over the last 15 years -- winning on the field, the great experience in the stadium, and being involved in the community. Now we have to bring that to the next level." A large media contingent turned out to the news conference expecting an announcement on whether general manager Jim Popp will remain as head coach after taking over from the fired Dan Hawkins five games into the season, or on whether 41-year-old quarterback Anthony Calvillo will retire. Instead, it was a day for the men in suits. Weightman said there is no timeline for a decision on the coach, although they would prefer to make one soon so that preparations can start for the 2014 season. The future of veterans like Calvillo, who suffered a season-ending concussion in August, all-star guard Scott Flory or defensive end Anwar Stewart are not expected to be decided until after the CFL expansion draft on Dec. 16. Flory lauded Weightmans appointment. "Theres a lot of stuff going on around the league," said Flory. "Its not just our team. "The thing is, to have leadership from the top, you have to have the right people in place. The Alouettes have got it right so many times over the years. Ive been here 15 years and played in eight Grey Cups, so were doing something right." The experiment with Hawkins, who joined the team without any pro coaching experience, was a setback. Another may have been Lalondes one-season tenure as president and CEO. He left citing personal reasons, but there were reports the former Montreal Canadiens marketing guru was feuding with Popp and former coach Marc Trestman. Lalonde had replaced popular former Alouettes player Larry Smith, who left after the stadium expansion was completed in 2010 to try his hand at politics. Andrew Wetenhall said his familys commitment to the Alouettes and the CFL is as strong as ever. "I certainly am," he said. "We make decisions like this one in a family format. Were very committed to this league and its success. Weve invested 20 years almost in Montreal and were hopeful there will be another 20 or 50 to come." Stitched Lakers Jerseys . Scotlands Greg Laidlaw made one of two penalty kicks and all three conversions, and Stuart Hogg added a try in the second half. "The most important thing to come out of the game is that we did not get scored against," Laidlaw said. Los Angeles Lakers Pro Shop . The four-time Grand Slam champion has beaten Hantuchova nine straight times, with the Slovaks only win coming when they first played 10 years ago. "I had a tough first opponent who can play extremely good tennis," Sharapova said. https://www.lakersjerseycheap.com/ . The Detroit Tigers star had microfracture surgery Friday to repair the medial and lateral meniscus in his left knee. "I dont want to say it was a surprise," team president and general manager Dave Dombrowski said.AUSTIN, Texas -- No. 6 Kansas was rolling. The Jayhawks had won seven consecutive games to move to the top of the Big 12. They looked ready to cruise to another league title. So much for that idea. One trip down to No. 25 Texas showed the conference race is far from over. Wayne Selden Jr. scored 21 points, but Kansas struggled for much of an 81-69 loss to the Longhorns on Saturday. Isaiah Taylor scored 23 points and Jonathan Holmes had 22 as Texas earned its sixth consecutive win and pulled within a game of Kansas about halfway through the Big 12 schedule. "It was pretty much a dominating performance by the Longhorns over us today," Kansas coach Bill Self said. The Longhorns (17-4, 6-2), who lost their top four scorers from a 16-18 squad a year ago, have been the surprise of the Big 12 this season. Texas thumped the Jayhawks (16-5, 7-1) with suffocating defence that held the Big 12s best shooting team to 39 per cent from the floor. Kansas freshman Andrew Wiggins of Vaughan, Ont., who averaged 24 points over the previous three games, scored seven before fouling out late. The Longhorns outshot and outrebounded the Jayhawks, had 12 blocks, and once they built a double-digit lead, never left Kansas an opening to rally. "We didnt come with a lot of energy tonight. That was the result," Jayhawks forward Perry Ellis said. Taylor, a freshman guard who scored 27 a week earlier against Baylor, continued to slash his way through the Jayhawks for layups and floating jumpers, while Holmes hit from inside and outside. Holmes also went 9 for 10 from the free-throw line. Cameron Ridley added nine points, 10 rebounds and four blocks for Texas, winning his battle under the basket with Joel Embiid, Kannsas 7-foot centre. Cheap Lakers Jerseys. . Prince Ibeh also had four blocks. "We know its a long season," Selden said. "Well get back to Lawrence, regroup." The first half was pure frustration for the Jayhawks, who came in shooting 51 per cent as a team. Nothing, not even the open shots, seemed to find their way in the basket. Texas zone defence held the Jayhawks to 8-of-31 shooting in the half. Taylor and Holmes each scored 11 points and Ridley used his powerful body to push around the slender Embiid. When Holmes blocked a shot, grabbed the loose ball and raced up the court for a layup, the Jayhawks Frank Mason met him at the basket with a hard foul and the two players had to be separated. Kansas Brannen Greene was then whistled for a technical foul. Holmes made three of four free throws and Texas led 38-23 at halftime. Texas blew it open early in the second half with an emphatic basket by Ridley: a one-step, two-handed dunk over Embiid. Ridley converted the three-point play and Texas led 47-27. Kansas finally answered with consecutive 3-pointers but the Jayhawks couldnt piece together a run that could pull them close. Texas simply wouldnt let them. Holmes had a key 3-pointer and followed it with another tough layup. Demarcus Holland had the task of guarding Wiggins most of the game and despite giving up six inches, did a masterful job of frustrating the freshman into a rough shooting night. Wiggins fouled out with just over two minutes left, ending a 2-for-12 performance from the field. Holland also grabbed a team-high 11 rebonds. "I tried to box him out every opportunity," Holland said. "Cam and Prince were scaring him and he was settling for jump shots." ' ' '