Eckerd soccer team hires record-setter Fotopoulos

ST. PETERSBURG — Danielle Fotopoulos, the Division I all-time leading scorer at Florida and a former member of the U.S. women's national team, has been named Eckerd women's soccer coach.

In addition to naming Fotopoulos, one of the biggest names in state soccer history, Eckerd also named Steve Magee as its men's coach.

Fotopoulos scored 118 goals, still the D-I record, at SMU and Florida from 1994-98. She was a member of the 1999 U.S. women's World Cup championship team and later played in the WUSA, which has since folded.

She most recently was on the U.S. under-14 national team staff and has served stints as the co-coach at LSU and as an assistant at Florida.

"I am truly honored for the opportunity to be the head coach at Eckerd," Fotopoulos, 34, said. "It is a school that will attract student-athletes, it is in a great soccer conference, and I am really excited to be a part of a program with high expectations."

The men's team hired Magee, who was an assistant at UNC Wilmington the past three years. The Seahawks reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament last season.

USF: Former St. Petersburg High and N.C. State receiver Donald Bowens said Friday that he was not accepted into graduate school, so he'll spend his final year of college football at North Alabama, Terry Bowden's Division II program. Bowens, who graduated from NCSU in the spring, expressed an interest in playing close to home with the Bulls. USF will have another receiver in senior Colby Erskin, who has been granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA.

FLORIDA: Forward/center Kenny Kadji asked for and was granted permission to transfer. A 6-foot-10 native of Cameroon, Kadji had been granted a medical hardship for the 2009-10 season after missing most of the year with a herniated disc in his back. He played just 45 minutes in eight games last season. He had back surgery in February. Kadji, a redshirt sophomore, appeared in 42 games in two years at Florida, averaging 3.7 points and 2.3 rebounds per game. "I want to thank my coaches and teammates for my two years at the University of Florida," Kadji said.

OHIO STATE: Starting quarterback Terrelle Pryor said he is totally healthy after surgery in February to repair some damage in his left knee.

OBITUARY: Dennis Byrd, a former defensive tackle at North Carolina State who was to be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in December, has died in Charlotte. He was 63. In May, he was among 14 former players and coaches elected to the hall. He also played two seasons in the American Football League.

Times staff writers Greg Auman and Antonya English contributed to this report.