Grammy Awards: Frank Ocean, 5 other artists get 6 nominations

Six artists received six nominations each Wednesday for the 55th Grammy Awards. But none was more notable than rising R&B singer Frank Ocean, who earned nods in three of the top four categories.

Ocean was joined by Kanye West, the Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach, fun., Mumford & Sons and Jay-Z with a half-dozen nominations in the nationally televised prelude to the Grammys, which will be awarded Feb. 10. But Ocean’s multitude of nominations may have been the most surprising given the story behind his major-label debut, “Channel Orange,” nominated for album of the year along with the the Black Keys (“El Camino”), fun. (“Some Nights”), Mumford & Sons (“Babel”), and Jack White (“Blunderbuss”).

Among those shunned were big-selling releases by hip-hop star Drake, whose “Take Care” album got nods only in the rap categories; veteran Lionel Richie, who had a major comeback with a country album, “Tuskegee”; Bruce Springsteen, who launched a well-received world tour on the heels of his politically charged “Wrecking Ball” album; and teen-pop sensations One Direction.

Instead the top-award nominees featured a handful of relative newcomers: fun., Mumford & Sons, Gotye, Miguel and Ocean. A member of the notorious Odd Future hip-hop collective, Ocean made waves earlier this year by acknowledging that some songs on the album were inspired by an unrequited love affair with another man. Ocean’s dignified openness made him a hero to the gay and bisexual communities, even as other fans voiced their intolerance. Yet Ocean’s prowess as a songwriter and singer transcended the controversy, and “Channel Orange” was hailed as a soul classic by many critics. It has sold more than 300,000 copies after debuting at No. 2 on the Billboard Top 200.

Ocean was nominated for three of the four major awards: In addition to his album-of-the-year nod, he is in contention for record of the year (“Thinkin’ Bout You”) and best new artist, which included some heavy competition: Alabama Shakes, fun., Hunter Hayes and the Lumineers.

The other nominees for record of the year, which is awarded for a recording’s overall sound and production, include the Black Keys, Kelly Clarkson, fun., Gotye and Taylor Swift. The latter singer was honored for the single “We are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” but her best-selling “Red” album was released after the Sept. 30 deadline for nominations.

Getting nods for song of the year, which is awarded to songwriters, included Ed Sheeran’s “The A Team,” Miguel’s “Adorn,” Carly Rae Jepsen’s “Call Me Maybe,” Kelly Clarkson’s “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You),” and fun.’s “We are Young.”

Five-time nominees included rising R&B star Miguel, the Black Keys and 18-time-winner Chick Corea. The rapper Nas, producer-songwriter Jeff Bhasker and recording engineer Bob Ludwig received four nominations apiece.

The nationally televised event was heavy on country performers such as Luke Bryan, the Band Perry, Dierks Bentley and Hunter Hayes, in tribute to its Nashville location. The show's cohosting duties were split between L.L. Cool J and Taylor Swift, who were notable only for their awkwardness, particularly during a "duet" in which the country-pop singer beat-boxed while the rapper "sang."

Among artists with Chicago connections, West led the way with his six nominations, five of which were in rap categories. Also getting nods were R. Kelly for best R&B album (“Write Me Back”), Lupe Fiasco for best rap album (“Food & Liquor II: The Great American Rap Album, Pt. 1”), Kurt Elling for best jazz vocal album (“1619 Broadway: The Brill Building Project") and Shemekia Copeland for best blues album (“33 1/3”). The Chicago contemporary ensemble eighth blackbird received nominations in two categories, best chamber music/small ensemble performance and best classical contemporary composition, for its album "Meanwhile," released on Chicago's Cedille label.  

greg@gregkot.com

Tribune music critics Howard Reich and John Von Rhein contributed to this report.

Read More..

Guatemala detains software guru McAfee, to expel him to Belize

GUATEMALA CITY (Reuters) - Guatemalan police arrested U.S. software guru John McAfee on Wednesday for illegally entering the country and said it would expel him to neighboring Belize, which he fled after being sought for questioning over his neighbor's murder.

McAfee, who had been in hiding for three weeks, crossed into Guatemala with his girlfriend, Samantha, to evade authorities in Belize who wanted to question him as "a person of interest" about the killing of fellow American Gregory Faull.

"He entered the country illegally and we are going to seek his expulsion for this crime," Interior Minister Mauricio Lopez Bonilla said.

Guatemala government spokesman Francisco Cuevas said McAfee would be expelled to Belize and he expected the process to be completed by early Thursday morning.

There is no international arrest warrant for McAfee. Police in Belize say he is a person of interest in their murder investigation and is not a prime suspect.

McAfee was taken to a residence belonging to the immigration department guarded by a small group of police.

On Tuesday, McAfee said he would seek political asylum in Guatemala, which has been embroiled in a long-running territorial dispute with Belize. There is no extradition treaty between the two countries, and there is no international arrest warrant out for McAfee.

McAfee says he fears Belizean authorities would kill him if he returned there for questioning. Belize's prime minister has denied the claim, calling the 67-year-old software entrepreneur paranoid and "bonkers."

McAfee has been living in the tiny Central American nation for about four years.

He was one of Silicon Valley's first entrepreneurs to build an Internet fortune. The former Lockheed systems consultant started McAfee Associates in the late 1980s.

McAfee has no relationship now with the company, which has been sold to Intel Corp.

(Additional reporting by Sofia Menchu and Lomi Kriel; Writing by Gabriel Stargardter; Editing by Simon Gardner and Philip Barbara)

Read More..

Bryant eclipses 30,000, Lakers beat Hornets 103-87

NEW ORLEANS (AP) — Kobe Bryant scored 29 points, making him the fifth player in NBA history to score 30,000, and the Los Angeles Lakers snapped a two-game skid with a 103-87 victory over the New Orleans Hornets on Wednesday night.

Bryant entered the game needing only 13 points to eclipse the scoring milestone and did so with a short jumper late in the first half that was perhaps the least spectacular of his baskets, which included the usual array of soaring dunks, demoralizing transition 3-pointers and turnaround, off-balance jumpers.

Dwight Howard added 18 points and five blocked shots for the Lakers, who trailed 48-47 at halftime but seized control with a 13-0 run to open the third quarter, and the lead grew as large as 20 in the fourth.

Ryan Anderson scored 31, hitting 5 of 8 3-pointers for the Hornets, who were playing their ninth straight game without top overall draft choice Anthony Davis. Greivis Vasquez added 16 points, while Robin Lopez scored 15 points and blocked five shots.

Antawn Jamison scored 15 and Metta World Peace 11, and Chris Duhon had 10 assists for Los Angeles, which is playing without Steve Nash and Pau Gasol and won for only the second time on the road this season. The Hornets fell to 3-7 at home and lost for the 10th time in 12 games overall.

The Hornets led from early in the first quarter until halftime, going up by as many as eight points when Al-Farouq Aminu slammed down an alley-oop lob from Vasquez, energizing the largest crowd of the season at the New Orleans Arena.

Bryant helped the Lakers trim their deficit after that, hitting five free throws and his milestone on 3-foot jumper in the last 2:15 of the second quarter.

Jamison opened the third-quarter onslaught with 3, Howard followed with a fast-break layup and Bryant had two straight fast-break dunks, one of which he created himself with a steal.

Howard finished the surge with a layup.

Anderson's shooting helped the Hornets pull to 70-62 late in the third period, but Bryant hit an 18-footer and Jodie Meeks added one of his three 3-pointers to give Los Angeles a 13-point lead heading into the final period. Meeks and Darius Morris then added 3s early in the period and New Orleans could not recover.

Notes: NBA Commissioner David Stern attended the game and said he was happy to be in attendance for Bryant's milestone moment, even if the scheduling was pure coincidence. Stern was making a regularly scheduled visit with first-year Hornets owner Tom Benson, who is also the owner of the NFL's Saints, to see how Benson's plans for the NBA franchise were taking shape. Stern visited Saints headquarters, where new construction has begun on additions that will also accommodate Hornets offices and practice courts. Stern said he wanted to shake hands with Bryant after the game. "As a talent, a competitor, I think that he is up there on the pedestal with Michael Jordan. He is one of the greatest." ... Stern also discussed the possibility of a team name change, something Benson has said he wants since buying the club last spring. Stern says the club has not yet applied for a name change but that the league would likely accept whatever name the Hornets want and expedite the transition.

Read More..

Obama leads heads of state atop Forbes 2012 power list

NEW YORK (Reuters) – When it comes to power, politics trumps business, according to a new Forbes ranking on Wednesday that found heads of state occupying six of the top 10 spots among the world’s most powerful people, led by President Barack Obama.

The annual list selected what Forbes said were the world’s 71 most-powerful people from among the roughly 7.1 billion global populace, based on factors ranging from wealth to global influence.

Obama was joined in the top 10 by German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Russian President Vladimir Putin, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz al Saud of Saudi Arabia and British Prime Minister David Cameron.

The list’s highest-ranked businessman was Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates at No. 4. U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and European Central Bank President Mario Draghi, both public officials, also made the top 10.

“This year’s list reflects the changing of the guard in the world’s two most powerful countries: the United States and China,” Michael Noer, Forbes‘ executive editor, told Reuters in an email.

Noer noted that China’s President Hu Jintao, last year’s third most-powerful person, fell off the list as he is leaving power, and his successor, Xi Jinping, ranked ninth instead.

Both U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who have stated they will not be serving in Obama’s second term, were not in this year’s rankings.

While elected and appointed officials and business people made up the vast majority of Forbes’ most powerful, Pope Benedict XVI placed fifth in the rankings.

Among the oddities was Joaquin Guzman Loera at No. 63.

Loera, far from a household name, is a billionaire nicknamed “El Chapo” who as head of Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel is the world’s most powerful drug trafficker, according to Forbes.

Age was also not a barrier, with two of the youngest and oldest of this year’s most powerful — 28-year-old Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and 81-year-old News Corp CEO Rupert Murdoch — back-to-back at numbers 25 and 26, respectively.

Forbes noted that Zuckerberg fell out of last year’s top 10 after Facebook’s IPO disappointed. A gainer, meanwhile, was Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, who moved up four spots to No. 18 despite being only halfway into her first term of office.

To create the rankings, which Forbes readily concedes bore a measure of subjectivity, editors graded candidates on four criteria for power and averaged the four grades:

– Power over many people

– Control over financial and other valuable resources

– Power in multiple spheres or arenas

– Active use of power

Some measures, such as power over many people, favored leaders such as the Pope, while the world’s richest man — Mexican telecom magnate Carlos Slim Hula, worth a reported $ 72 billion — placed 11th on the strength of his wealth.

Others, such as New York’s billionaire Mayor Michael Bloomberg, scored high in all areas, placing him at No. 16.

Noer said that Elon Musk, one of the co-founders of Paypal and Tesla Motors, was “one of the more interesting newcomers” on the list due to his SpaceX company, a private space exploration venture.

“With NASA retiring the space shuttle fleet, private companies like SpaceX have been awarded huge contracts to do things like resupply the International Space Station. The commercialization of space is just beginning, but we expect it to be big business,” Noer said.

Former President Bill Clinton placed 50th, with editors noting that by hitting the campaign trail for Obama, Clinton “cemented his status as a kingmaker”, along with his nonpartisan Global Initiative raising more than $ 71 billion in commitments to fund charitable action worldwide.

Other high-ranking heads of state included French President Francois Hollande at No. 14, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at No. 19 and Iran’s Grand Ayatollah Ali Hoseini-Khamenei at No. 21.

Among businessmen in the top 20 were Berkshire Hathaway CEO Warren Buffett at No. 15, Wal-Mart CEO Michael Duke at No. 17 and Google co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin at No. 20.

The entire list can be found at www.forbes.com/power as well as the December 24 issue of the magazine.

(Reporting by Chris Michaud, Editing by Piya Sinha-Roy and Andrew Hay)

Celebrity News Headlines – Yahoo! News

Read More..

Study could spur wider use of prenatal gene tests

A new study sets the stage for wider use of gene testing in early pregnancy. Scanning the genes of a fetus reveals far more about potential health risks than current prenatal testing does, say researchers who compared both methods in thousands of pregnancies nationwide.

A surprisingly high number — 6 percent — of certain fetuses declared normal by conventional testing were found to have genetic abnormalities by gene scans, the study found. The gene flaws can cause anything from minor defects such as a club foot to more serious ones such as mental retardation, heart problems and fatal diseases.

"This isn't done just so people can terminate pregnancies," because many choose to continue them even if a problem is found, said Dr. Ronald Wapner, reproductive genetics chief at Columbia University Medical Center in New York. "We're better able to give lots and lots of women more information about what's causing the problem and what the prognosis is and what special care their child might need."

He led the federally funded study, published in Thursday's New England Journal of Medicine.

A second study in the journal found that gene testing could reveal the cause of most stillbirths, many of which remain a mystery now. That gives key information to couples agonizing over whether to try again.

The prenatal study of 4,400 women has long been awaited in the field, and could make gene testing a standard of care in cases where initial screening with an ultrasound exam suggests a structural defect in how the baby is developing, said Dr. Susan Klugman, director of reproductive genetics at New York's Montefiore Medical Center, which enrolled 300 women into the study.

"We can never guarantee the perfect baby but if they want everything done, this is a test that can tell a lot more," she said.

Many pregnant women are offered screening with an ultrasound exam or a blood test that can flag some common abnormalities such as Down syndrome, but these are not conclusive.

The next step is diagnostic testing on cells from the fetus obtained through amniocentesis, which is like a needle biopsy through the belly, or chorionic villus sampling, which snips a bit of the placenta. Doctors look at the sample under a microscope for breaks or extra copies of chromosomes that cause a dozen or so abnormalities.

The new study compared this eyeball method to scanning with gene chips that can spot hundreds of abnormalities and far smaller defects than what can be seen with a microscope. This costs $1,200 to $1,800 versus $600 to $1,000 for the visual exam.

In the study, both methods were used on fetal samples from 4,400 women around the country. Half of the moms were at higher risk because they were over 35. One-fifth had screening tests suggesting Down syndrome. One-fourth had ultrasounds suggesting structural abnormalities. Others sought screening for other reasons.

"Some did it for anxiety — they just wanted more information about their child," Wapner said.

Of women whose ultrasounds showed a possible structural defect but whose fetuses were called normal by the visual chromosome exam, gene testing found problems in 6 percent — one out of 17.

"That's a lot. That's huge," Klugman said.

Gene tests also found abnormalities in nearly 2 percent of cases where the mom was older or ultrasounds suggested a problem other than a structural defect.

Dr. Lorraine Dugoff, a University of Pennsylvania high-risk pregnancy specialist, wrote in an editorial in the journal that gene testing should become the standard of care when a structural problem is suggested by ultrasound. But its value may be incremental in other cases and offset by the 1.5 percent of cases where a gene abnormality of unknown significance is found.

In those cases, "a lot of couples might not be happy that they ordered that test" because it can't give a clear answer, she said.

Ana Zeletz, a former pediatric nurse from Hoboken, N.J., had one of those results during the study. An ultrasound suggested possible Down syndrome; gene testing ruled that out but showed an abnormality that could indicate kidney problems — or nothing.

"They give you this list of all the things that could possibly be wrong," Zeletz said. Her daughter, Jillian, now 2, had some urinary and kidney abnormalities that seem to have resolved, and has low muscle tone that caused her to start walking later than usual.

"I am very glad about it," she said of the testing, because she knows to watch her daughter for possible complications like gout. Without the testing, "we wouldn't know anything, we wouldn't know to watch for things that might come up," she said.

The other study involved 532 stillbirths — deaths of a fetus in the womb before delivery. Gene testing revealed the cause in 87 percent of cases versus 70 percent of cases analyzed by the visual chromosome inspection method. It also gave more information on specific genetic abnormalities that couples could use to estimate the odds that future pregnancies would bring those risks.

The study was led by Dr. Uma Reddy of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.

___

Online:

Medical journal: http://www.nejm.org

___

Marilynn Marchione can be followed at http://twitter.com/MMarchioneAP

Read More..

Stars out in London for 'Les Mis' premiere

LONDON (AP) — Hollywood stars Anne Hathaway and Hugh Jackman have braved the London cold to walk the red carpet for the world premiere of "Les Miserables."

Hathaway said at the premiere Wednesday that playing the role of Fantine in the film adaptation of "Les Mis" was a dream job she would have done anything to land, describing the gig as "the sort of job you should give your paycheck back" for.

The 30-year-old actress lost 25 pounds (11.3 kilograms) and cut her hair to play the role of a struggling, sickly mother forced into prostitution in 1800s Paris in the screen adaptation of Victor Hugo's classic.

Joined by Jackman and other costars Russell Crowe and Amanda Seyfried, Hathaway signed autographs and met fans in central London at the event.

Read More..

Bill passes to fast-track foreclosure of abandoned properties in Ill.

The Illinois General Assembly passed a bill Wednesday that would fast-track the foreclosure process for abandoned, vacant homes while funding foreclosure prevention efforts throughout the state.

The legislation, which now will be considered by Gov. Pat Quinn, could shrink to 90 to 100 days a residential foreclosure process that can take as long as two years in Illinois. It also would require lenders to pay additional fees to file foreclosure actions, and the estimated $41 million in fees collected annually would be used to fund homeowner foreclosure counseling and prevention efforts.

The measure was passed by the Senate Wednesday and the House Tuesday.

"It empowers communities and municipalities to have the funding necessary to maintain and stabilize communities," said Sen. Jacqueline Collins, D-Chicago, the chief sponsor of the bill in the Senate. "It's the first step to putting some stability in the housing market."

Lenders could ask courts to fast-track foreclosures for abandoned single-family homes and multifamily buildings that have six units or fewer and are not legally occupied by a homeowner or another occupant. The shortened timeline could also apply to homes under construction where no activity has taken place for at least six months and there has been damage to the property. It would not apply to vacant buildings that are secured but are either for sale, part of a probate action or comply with local regulations.
 
"In most neighborhoods, there is still some kind of market," said Adam Gross, director of affordable housing at Business and Professional People for the Public Interest, which helped craft the bill. "It's not a vibrant market, but there's some kind of market. If you have a property that sits vacant for 600 days, whatever neighborhood it is, it's going to be worth a lot less at the end of 600 days than at the beginning of that 600 days. This has the potential to be beneficial in every neighborhood."

In addition to the $50 filing fee charged to lenders in foreclosure actions, the legislation also would require lenders that filed at least 175 foreclosure complaints during the previous calendar year to pay an additional $500 per foreclosure complaint. Those that filed at least 50 to 174 foreclosure actions would pay an extra $250 and those that filed no more than 49 foreclosure actions will be assessed an extra $50 fee.

Seventy percent of the collected fees would be used to help municipalities offset their costs to secure and maintain neglected buildings. Most of the remaining funds would be used to make grants to assist foreclosure prevention programs and housing counseling programs throughout the state.

The bill's proponents estimate that the additional housing counseling funds could benefit 18,000 homeowners annually, while the ability to speed the foreclosure process for abandoned homes by as much as 17 months could save lenders $43,000 to $89,000 per property. Using a conservative estimate of 5,000 foreclosure cases fast-tracked annually, that would generate savings to the financial industry of almost $214 million a year.

Under the bill, Chicago aldermen also would receive notices of foreclosure on properties in their wards.

The bill would take effect June 1.

mepodmolik@tribune.com | Twitter @mepodmolik

Read More..

Hamstring strain could sideline Urlacher for season

The Bears have to brace themselves for the possibility of Brian Urlacher missing at least the rest of the regular season.

Multiple sources told the Tribune that Urlacher won't play for the next three games at a minimum after suffering a Grade 2 right hamstring strain during Sunday's 23-17 overtime loss to the Seahawks. An MRI confirmed the severity of Urlacher's injury.

Nick Roach is expected to make his fourth career start at middle linebacker Sunday in place of Urlacher, with Geno Hayes expected to take Roach's usual strong-side linebacker spot.

The Bears (8-4) have four more regular-season games, starting with Sunday's division matchup against the Vikings in Minnesota. Urlacher hopes to recover in time for the playoffs, which start with wild-card weekend games Jan. 5-6.

If the playoffs started today, the Bears would be the fifth seed against the fourth-seeded and NFC East-leading Giants (7-5). To remain in playoff contention, the Bears need to win at least two of their final four games against the Vikings (6-6), Packers (8-4), Cardinals (4-8), and Lions (4-8).

Urlacher's return in a month, however, might be a long shot considering the severity of the injury.

Gus Gialamas, an orthopedic surgeon from Sea View Orthopedic Medical Group in San Clemente, Calif., said a Grade 2 hamstring typically takes four to six weeks of recovery.

"Grade 2 means it's not a complete rupture, but it's a partial rupture,'' Gialamas said. "It takes a while -- maybe a week to 10 days -- for the inflammation to stop. That muscle then has to heal, and then you have a lot of physical therapy for strengthening and stretching. The goal is to avoid as much scar tissue in the hamstring as possible.

"I'm thinking he would be lucky to come back in four weeks, and I wouldn't be surprised if it was longer than that. It's just a tough injury.''

When reached by the Tribune, Urlacher declined to discuss the injury or his playing status. He initially felt a "pop'' while chasing Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson near the sideline during overtime. Urlacher pulled himself from the game before the final play.

He told WFLD-Ch. 32 this injury isn't as serious as a similar one in preseason of 2004 with which he missed seven games.

"I did that on the first day of training camp and that MRI showed more damaged back then than it did this time," he said.

The eight-time Pro Bowler entered the 2012 season recovering from a serious knee injury. He sprained the medial collateral ligament and partially sprained the posterior cruciate ligament in his left knee during last year's season finale against the Vikings.

Despite sitting out some practices to rest his knee, Urlacher started the first 12 games.

The Bears are 7-15 without Urlacher since he entered the league in 2000.

"He's the leader of our defense,'' defensive tackle Henry Melton said Tuesday. "He's a huge locker room guy. We love having him around. He's what Chicago Bears football is all about.''

Nevertheless, Melton expressed confidence in Roach.

"Nick has been rotating (at middle linebacker in practice) just in case measures called for it,'' Melton said. "It's not going to be the same without Brian, of course. But Nick can get the job done.''

The 34-year-old Urlacher has a base salary of $7.5 million in this, the final year of his contract. He expressed a desire to play at least two more seasons, depending on his health. His says his knee feels better than ever after multiple procedures. Now, it's a matter of how long the hamstring strain lingers.

General manager Phil Emery wouldn't commit to re-signing Urlacher and said any contract offers would be based on performance.

Could Urlacher have played his last game with the Bears?

"I do not think that's going to happen,'' he told Ch. 32. "But, if it does, I have had a really good and long career so I would be sad, but I would not be crushed."

Urlacher has made a statement this season with a team-leading 88 tackles, one interception return for a touchdown, three forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries. He was named the NFC's Defensive Player of the Week following his Week 9 performance against the Titans.

The club re-signed Dom DeCicco to the 53-man roster to take Urlacher's spot, bringing him back three months after he was released with an injury settlement (groin).

DeCicco was second on the team with 17 special-teams tackles as an undrafted free agent from Pitt a year ago. He did play middle linebacker during training camp when Urlacher was sidelined with his knee issue.

vxmcclure@tribune.com

Twitter @vxmcclure23

Read More..

Yahoo acquires video chat startup company

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Yahoo Inc said it acquired a five-person video chat company on Tuesday, the second deal by new Chief Executive Marissa Mayer to bolster Yahoo's mobile capabilities.

Yahoo did not disclose the financial terms of its acquisition of OnTheAir, but said the team would be joining Yahoo's mobile group.

A Yahoo spokeswoman said that Yahoo had not plans to offer OnTheAir's existing product, which lets Web users host live video conversations and was launched in March.

The deal marks the second small, mobile-oriented deal since Mayer became CEO earlier this year. In October, Yahoo acquired Stamped, a New York-based mobile startup that allows consumers to share information about favorite restaurants and music on their smartphones.

Mayer, a former Google Inc executive, has said that her top priority is to create a coherent mobile strategy for Yahoo and that she intends for at least half of the company's technical workforce to be working on mobile products.

Shares of Yahoo were up 1.5 percent at $18.82 in trading on Tuesday.

(Reporting By Alexei Oreskovic; Editing by Tim Dobbyn)

Read More..

Bret Bielema leaves Wisconsin for Arkansas

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (AP) — Bret Bielema is taking his brand of power football to Arkansas, leaving Wisconsin after seven seasons.

Arkansas released a statement Tuesday night saying Bielema has agreed to a deal to take over the program reeling following the firing of former coach Bobby Petrino.

A person familiar with the situation, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the information hasn't been released publicly, says the deal is for six years and $3.2 million annually.

Bielema, Barry Alvarez's hand-picked successor at Wisconsin, was 68-24 with the Badgers, with four double-digit win seasons. He coached Wisconsin to a 17-14 victory over Arkansas in his first season at the Capital One Bowl.

"His tough, aggressive style of play has been successful and will be appealing to student-athletes and Razorback fans," Arkansas athletic director Jeff Long said in a statement. "He not only shares the vision and values for the future of Arkansas football, he embraces them."

Bielema is leaving the Big Ten for the SEC and a Razorbacks program that opened the year with hopes of challenging for a national championship only to get mired in the Petrino scandal before stumbling to a 4-8 finish.

The move was the second stunning hire this year at Arkansas, which brought in John L. Smith as the interim coach after firing Petrino for hiring his mistress to work in the athletic department. Long announced after the season that Smith wouldn't return.

Bielema seems likely to bring a far different approach than what the Razorbacks have become accustomed to. Arkansas continually ranked among the Southeastern Conference's best passing teams under Petrino while Bielema is known for his dominant offensive lines and slew of running backs.

"During my conversation with Jeff (Long), he described the characteristics for the perfect fit to lead this program," Bielema said in a statement. "It was evident we share the same mission, principles and goals."

Wisconsin running back Montee Ball tied Barry Sanders' long-standing single-season record of 39 touchdowns last year, and this year became the FBS career leader in touchdowns. He currently has 82 touchdowns after running for three Saturday night in the Big Ten title game against Nebraska — a 70-31 romp that secured the Badgers third straight trip to the Rose Bowl, where they will play Stanford on Jan. 1.

The 42-year-old Bielema was the defensive coordinator at Wisconsin for two years before being promoted to head coach in 2006. He played for Iowa and started his coaching career there as an assistant under Hayden Fry and later Kirk Ferentz.

"I was very surprised when Bret told me he was taking the offer from Arkansas," said Alvarez, Wisconsin's athletic director and former coach. "He did a great job for us during his seven years as head coach, both on the field and off. I want to thank him for his work and wish him the best at Arkansas."

The Illinois native takes over a program still reeling following the April scandal, one eager for stability and leadership.

"I'm excited about this decision," Arkansas cornerback Tevin Mitchel tweeted.

The Razorbacks improved their win total in four straight seasons under Petrino, including a 21-5 mark in 2010-11, and finished last season ranked No. 5. They had talked openly in the spring about competing for the school's first SEC championship and perhaps a national title.

Then came the April 1 motorcycle accident that led to Petrino's downfall. The married father of four initially lied about being alone during the wreck, later admitting to riding with his mistress — a former Arkansas volleyball player he had hired to work in the athletic department.

Smith, who had been an assistant the last three seasons at Arkansas under Petrino, was chosen by Long to guide a team that returned first-team All-SEC quarterback Tyler Wilson and a host of other key playmakers. The decision was lauded by the Razorbacks, who welcomed the personable Smith back with open arms.

The season hit the skids with a stunning overtime loss to Louisiana-Monroe on Sept. 8, starting a four-game losing streak that dropped Arkansas out of the rankings. The Razorbacks finished with the school's lowest win total since 2005, missing a bowl game for the first time since 2008.

"It's very difficult for me to believe that is not a bowl-eligible team," LSU coach Les Miles said following the Tigers' win over the Razorbacks in the season finale. "Watching the talent there, (it's) very capable."

Arkansas struggled to find its identity in the SEC after leaving the former Southwest Conference in 1992, but it appeared to have finally found just that under Petrino, who was hired after leaving the Atlanta Falcons during the season in 2007.

The Razorbacks turned into an offensive powerhouse under Petrino, leading the league in scoring and total offense last season. After winning 10 games and reaching the school's first BCS bowl game in 2010, losing to Ohio State, Arkansas won 11 games in 2011, capped by a Cotton Bowl win over Kansas State.

Still, Arkansas has yet to win the SEC, losing in the conference championship game three times.

While the country watched closely to see how Arkansas would react following Petrino's dismissal, Smith made headlines of his own throughout the season. The former Michigan State and Louisville coach filed for bankruptcy during the season, revealing $40.7 million in debt he blamed on bad land deals.

He was under far more fire from Arkansas fans for the mounting losses and it will be up to Bielema to turn things around in the loaded SEC West, with Alabama, LSU and now Texas A&M.

Long said during the season that the new coach would be tasked with building on the recent success at the school, which is looking into expanding the 72,000-seat Razorback Stadium and is currently building an 80,000-square-foot football operations center.

"The infrastructure in place at Arkansas shows the commitment from the administration to accomplish our goals together and I am excited to begin to lead this group of student-athletes," Bielema said. "This program will represent the state of Arkansas in a way Razorback fans everywhere will be proud of."

Read More..