CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Actor Jason Segel has been honored as Man of the Year by Harvard University’s Hasty Pudding Theatricals.

He got the traditional pudding pot Friday evening after a roast by the nation’s oldest undergraduate drama troupe.

Segel plays Marshall Eriksen on the CBS comedy “How I Met Your Mother.” He co-wrote and starred in last year’s “The Muppets.” And Friday he sang a version of “Rainbow Connection” written by the troupe.

Segel got his start in the short-lived but critically acclaimed television series “Freaks and Geeks.” He later wrote and starred in the 2008 movie “Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” which earned more than $100 million worldwide.

Hasty Pudding honored actress Claire Danes as its Woman of the Year.

Last year’s Man of the Year was Jay Leno.

LOS ANGELES – Attorneys for a deputy who arrested Mel Gibson on suspicion of drunken driving want to call the Oscar-winner as a witness during an upcoming trial to determine if the officer suffered discrimination because of the case.

The trial will focus on what happened to Deputy James Mee after he arrested the actor-director in 2006, and whether he endured discrimination because he is Jewish.

Mee’s attorneys are hoping to show the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department moved to protect Gibson because the star had a close relationship with the department before his arrest.

Attorneys for the county have denied Mee faced discrimination or retaliation.

The case is likely to focus heavily on Gibson’s arrest, when the actor made anti-Semitic comments that Mee claims his superiors forced him to remove from a report.

Mee also alleges he was ostracized and his opportunities for promotion were blocked after he arrested Gibson.

Gibson’s reputation was damaged for years after details of the arrest and his anti-Semitic and sexist rant was leaked to celebrity website TMZ.

The actor apologized for his conduct, and his conviction was expunged in 2009 after he completed all the terms of his sentence.

Sheriff Lee Baca also could be called to testify, according to a witness list filed Thursday.

Attorneys for the county are asking a judge to block jurors from seeing a video of Gibson in a jail booking area and a public service announcement that Gibson recorded for the agency prior to his arrest.

Gibson appeared in a deputy’s uniform for the spot, and Mee’s attorneys claim it is important context for jurors to consider.

Gibson’s work as a spokesman for the department helps explain “the circumstances that serve as a backdrop to the harassment and hostile work environment that Deputy Mee suffered,” his attorneys wrote in a court filing. Gibson “wasn’t just another arrestee. He was the `public face’ of the department.”

Neither Gibson nor Baca have been deposed in advance of the trial, which is scheduled to begin on Feb. 14. If they are called as witnesses, Baca’s testimony is expected to last about an hour, while Gibson may spend about 90 minutes on the witness stand.

“He’ll do whatever is legally appropriate,” Baca’s spokesman Steve Whitmore said. “We look forward to telling the whole story.”

Gibson’s spokesman Alan Nierob declined comment.

In all, 28 possible witnesses are listed in a pretrial filing, but it’s unlikely all will testify.

Mee’s attorney Etan Lorant said he has been unable to serve Gibson with a subpoena but may not need to call the actor to the stand if he is able to show jurors footage from an interview with Diane Sawyer after the arrest.

Superior Court Judge Barbara Scheper ruled last month that the case should go to trial if it cannot be settled, but noted that Mee’s attorneys might have trouble proving their case.

“While I think it’s thin, I think there are enough facts to create a question for the jury to decide,” Scheper said during a January hearing.

She noted that Mee remains a deputy, although he no longer patrols for drunken drivers in the coastal community of Malibu.

___

Anthony McCartney can be reached at http://twitter.com/mccartneyAP

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – The competition is fierce on season two of NBC’s “The Voice,” and we haven’t even met the contestants.

Recording artists Blake Shelton, Christina Aguilera, Cee Lo Green and Adam Levine have all returned as judges. The frenemies picked up right where they left off when taping began in the fall. The show, where the winner is decided by viewers, premieres Sunday after the Super Bowl.

“The four of us coaches just have such a love-hate relationship,” said Shelton. “We’re all high-fiving and drinking together, and as soon as somebody comes up on that stage and we hear them and they’re really good, the gloves come off. It’s like, `Did you just say that to me? Why did you say that dude?’ `I just wanted to get that girl.’ `Oh, OK.’ Then you’re back and everything’s good again.”

The first season of “The Voice” was a ratings success for NBC, but there are a few changes this time around: The judges will pick 12 contestants for their teams instead of eight, and each team has two official celebrity mentors.

Levine recruited Alanis Morissette and Robin Thicke. Shelton signed up his wife, Miranda Lambert, and Kelly Clarkson. Green asked Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds and Ne-Yo, and Aguilera enlisted Jewel and Lionel Richie.

When asked why he decided to join Aguilera’s team, Richie said with a mischievous smile: “She snuck up on me.”

It turns out Aguilera had a secret weapon: Richie’s daughter, Nicole. The two have been friends for years.

“I got the phone call that said, `Dad.’ And you can’t beat `Dad.’ That’s an insider insider,” said Richie. “`The Voice’ is just me hanging out with people who have been in my life for a very long time. … I’m just thrilled to be on the show.”

Richie is also friends with Shelton. They recorded a song together for Richie’s upcoming country duets album, “Tuskegee.”

Richie said he’s learned a thing or two from being in the music business for three decades, but his advice doesn’t necessarily translate into a contestant winning a reality singing competition.

“What’s so amazing to me is trying to explain to someone what they should do, which is taking the time — I’m a 35-year overnight success. I’m still trying to get it right,” he said.

He added: “I take my hat off to these new artists, because I don’t even think I could take the pressure.”

Competition aside, Shelton means it when he talks about the friendships he’s made through “The Voice.”

Last season’s runner-up Dia Frampton has been Shelton’s opening act on his “Well Lit and Amplified” arena tour.

“It really is turning into a situation that I hope is going to last for a long time, because you get close with people,” he said about the show. “Even though it’s a working relationship that we start with, by the end of the season the four of us coaches … and many of the contestants are pretty tight. I hope it lasts a long time.”

“The Voice” will end its 14-week run with the season finale on April 8.

____

Online:

http://www.nbc.com/the-voice

____

Caitlin R. King covers entertainment for The Associated Press. Follow her at http://www.twitter.com/caitlinrking

INDIANAPOLIS – Sorry, Los Angeles. The only NFL expansion happening anytime soon is to next season’s schedule of Thursday night games.

During his annual Super Bowl news conference, Commissioner Roger Goodell said Friday there hasn’t been any discussion about adding to the league’s 32 teams, and indicated he’s not too keen about the idea of shifting a franchise, either.

“We have not talked about expansion in the league at all. It has not been on our agenda. It is not something we’ve focused on with our membership. And I don’t see that in the foreseeable future,” Goodell said. “We want to keep our teams where they are. We believe that’s healthier for the league in the long term. We’re working to get stadiums built and make sure we do whatever we can to make sure those teams are successful in those communities.”

Los Angeles, the second-largest market in the U.S., has been without an NFL team since the Rams and Raiders both left after the 1994 season.

“We would like to be back in Los Angeles, if we can do it correctly,” Goodell said. “There are a lot of issues that have to be balanced there.”

He announced that every club will appear on prime-time TV in 2012, thanks in part to a new slate of Thursday games that now will be scheduled from Week 2 through Week 15. NBC will air a game on Thanksgiving night; the other 12 Thursdays will go on the NFL Network, which aired eight games in 2011.

“We think it’s great for the fans, for the teams — and great for the network,” Goodell said.

He discussed a wide variety of issues during his 45-minute session with reporters, touching on topics such as concussions, testing players for human growth hormone, and games in England, Mexico and elsewhere.

Asked about an Associated Press story this week based on interviews with a dozen former players, including Hall of Fame member Tony Dorsett, who have filed lawsuits against the league related to concussions, Goodell said: “We have done a great deal to try to address issues that are specific to our former players. We will always make sure that player health and safety is the No. 1 priority in the NFL.”

“We will not quit. We are not done yet. We’re going to do what we possibly can to help our retired players, the current players and future players, by making the game safer,” Goodell said.

“And we will do that with rules, we will do that by improving the equipment, and we will do it by making sure that we pioneer research that’s going to make sure we understand all there is about brain injuries, brain disease, and make sure we’re being responsible leaders.”

Asked about a report that the language in player contracts might be changed to prohibit suing the league, Goodell replied: “In certain cases, a club and a player may have individual negotiations, but there is no league-wide effort to do that.”

He pointed out this season’s new kickoff rules meant to improve safety, saying injury rates were down, particularly for concussions.

Noting one possible change for next season, Goodell said the league likely will increase its use of replays to help team doctors assess possible injuries by putting TVs on every sideline. That’s something the league began during the playoffs, in reaction to Cleveland Browns quarterback Colt McCoy going back into a December game after a helmet-to-helmet shot.

Goodell said the league also will consider having independent neurological doctors at games to examine players and determine if they should be held out because of concussions. When the AP interviewed a group of current players about that last year, 31 were in favor, and 10 against it.

“We’re not going to relent on safety,” he said, noting that it’s important that “the medical decisions are always overriding competitive decisions.”

Two hours later, at another news conference down the hall from where Goodell spoke, Indianapolis Colts center Jeff Saturday said recent changes to concussion protocols are working.

“Awareness is helping,” said Saturday, a member of the union’s executive board. “I know players hate it, and we get fined. But if it saves a guy’s wife from having to take care of him when he’s 50 years old, I’m all for it. A guy’s got to sit out.”

Having the league impose a rule limiting hits in practice was necessary, Saturday said, because every coach has different philosophies. Tony Dungy and Jim Caldwell, the Colts’ last two coaches, didn’t have their players hit a lot in practice. But Saturday said others, such as former Colts coach Jim Mora and former Jets and Browns coach Eric Mangini, never backed off.

“There’s a lot of unknowns about brain injury and the brain itself,” Goodell said. “We’re all learning.”

Other items addressed by Goodell on Friday:

• The NFL would like to start testing for HGH this offseason; the league and players haven’t been able to resolve an impasse even though the new, 10-year collective bargaining agreement added that performance-enhancer to the drug program. On Thursday, NFL Players Association executive director DeMaurice Smith said: “No one will bully us into a test.”

“We have been working to try to address the issues the union has raised,” Goodell said. “We believe the science is clear. I do not hear any dispute from scientists around the world on the fact that this test is valid and we have the basis to put in and implement an HGH test that is fair to the players. We expect to be able to do that.”

• Asked about complaints from the city of St. Louis about last month’s announcement that the Rams will play one “home” game in London in each of the next three seasons, Goodell said: “We’re going to play the London games. We hope it will be with the Rams and the New England Patriots next year. That’s what we planned. … But there are issues that obviously are going to have to get resolved. We know there are discussions going on. We hope that will get resolved shortly.”

The league is looking into bringing a regular-season game back to Mexico, and would like to eventually consider other sites in Latin America. Similarly, if its current plans for games in London prove successful, other spots in Europe could get games.

• All the buzz and speculation this week about injured Colts quarterback Peyton Manning, who didn’t play this season, doesn’t bother Goodell, who said that hasn’t been a distraction in the run-up to Sunday’s game between the New York Giants and New England Patriots.

“I understand the interest,” Goodell said.

As for whether Indianapolis might host another Super Bowl, Goodell said that’s a possibility, because “they’re doing a fantastic job.”

___

AP National Writer Nancy Armour and AP Sports Writer Joe Kay contributed to this report.

___

Howard Fendrich can be reached at http://twitter.com/HowardFendrich

LOS ANGELES – Federal prosecutors dropped their investigation of Lance Armstrong on Friday, ending a nearly two-year effort aimed at determining whether the seven-time Tour de France winner and his teammates participated in a doping program.

Armstrong has steadfastly denied he doped during his unparalleled career, but the possibility of criminal charges threatened to stain his legacy as the world’s greatest cyclist and could have cast a shadow over his cancer charity work.

“This is great news,” Armstrong attorney Mark Fabiani said in a statement. “Lance is pleased that the United States Attorney made the right decision, and he is more determined than ever to devote his time and energy to Livestrong and to the causes that have defined his career.”

The probe, anchored in Los Angeles where a grand jury was presented evidence by federal prosecutors and heard testimony from Armstrong’s former teammates and associates, began with a separate investigation of Rock Racing, a cycling team owned by fashion entrepreneur Michael Ball.

U.S. Attorney Andre Birotte Jr. announced in a press release that his office “is closing an investigation into allegations of federal criminal conduct by members and associates of a professional bicycle racing team owned in part by Lance Armstrong.”

He didn’t disclose the reason for the decision, though Birotte has used discretion in pursing high-profile criminal cases before. Last February, his office closed an investigation of mortgage giant Countrywide Financial Corp.

The pronouncement comes after a pair of less-than-successful cases against top athletes accused of doping. Home run king Barry Bonds was found guilty of obstruction of justice and sentenced in December to 30 days’ home detention — a conviction he’s appealing — but prosecutors were unable to convince a jury he lied about using steroids. Roger Clemens’ steroid trial is slated for April 17 after a judge declared a mistrial last summer when prosecutors showed jurors inadmissible evidence.

Investigators looked at whether a doping program was established for Armstrong’s team while, at least part of the time, they received government sponsorship from the U.S. Postal Service. They also examined whether Armstrong encouraged or facilitated doping on the team.

The hurdle for prosecutors wasn’t so much to prove whether any particular cyclist used drugs, but to determine if Armstrong and other team members violated federal conspiracy, fraud or racketeering charges. Unlike Bonds and Clemens, who testified before a federal grand jury and Congress, respectively, and were accused of lying under oath, Armstrong was not questioned in front of the grand jury.

Armstrong won the Tour de France every year from 1999-2005.

Betsy Andreu, who with her husband and former Armstrong teammate, Frank, accused the cycling champion of doping, said she was shocked by Birotte’s decision.

“Our legal system failed us,” she said. “This is what happens when you have a lot of money and you can buy attorneys who have people in high places in the Department of Justice.”

Led by federal agent Jeff Novitzky, who also investigated Bonds and Clemens, U.S. authorities sought assistance overseas, requesting urine samples of U.S. Postal riders from France’s anti-doping agency and also meeting with officials from Belgium, Spain and Italy.

Prosecutors also subpoenaed Armstrong supporters and ex-teammates to testify in Los Angeles. Among them were Ukrainian cyclist Yaroslav Popovych, who rode on three Armstrong teams dating back to 2005; Allen Lim, an exercise physiologist for Team Radioshack; and longtime Armstrong friend Stephanie McIlvain.

The investigation began after Novitzky was told about a cache of PEDs found by a landlord in the vacated apartment of Kyle Leogrande, a cyclist who rode for Rock Racing and had a doping ban, according to several people familiar with the case.

The case also was spurred by disgraced cyclist Floyd Landis, who claims Armstrong had a long-running doping system in place while they were teammates. Landis, who was stripped of the 2006 Tour de France title for drug use, acknowledged in 2010 he used performance-enhancing drugs after years of denying he cheated.

One of the most serious accusations came during a “60 Minutes” interview last May when former teammate Tyler Hamilton said he saw Armstrong use EPO during the 1999 Tour de France and in preparation for the 2000 and 2001 tours.

The report also said Armstrong loyalist George Hincapie, another ex-teammate, told federal authorities that he and Armstrong supplied each other with PEDs and discussed them. Hincapie released a statement after the segment aired, saying he did not speak with the show and didn’t know where it got its information.

U.S. anti-doping officials said Friday they will not be dissuaded by the government’s decision to close the Armstrong probe.

“Unlike the U.S. Attorney, USADA’s job is to protect clean sport rather than enforce specific criminal laws,” said Travis Tygart, chief executive officer of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. “Our investigation into doping in the sport of cycling is continuing and we look forward to obtaining the information developed during the federal investigation.”

As the investigation progressed, Armstrong assembled a legal team, hired a spokesman and briefly created a website to address any of the allegations reported by the media.

Frustrated by a slew of news articles about the investigation, Armstrong’s attorneys filed a motion in July, asking a judge to order federal agents to testify about their contacts with reporters.

Some legal experts said it’s rare for federal prosecutors to announce they are no longer pursuing criminal charges against someone, and wondered if Armstrong’s stature may have played a role in the decision. Birotte noted in his announcement the intense media interest in the case.

“The government always has a tremendous amount of prosecutorial discretion regarding whether or not to bring an indictment. In this case it appears that they have acted judiciously and likely considered all of the good works of Lance Armstrong and his foundation,” said Mathew Rosengart, a former federal prosecutor who is not involved in the case.

___

Associated Press writers Pete Yost in Washington and Anthony McCartney in Los Angeles contributed to this report.

STORRS, Conn. – University of Connecticut basketball coach Jim Calhoun, who missed three games earlier this season because of NCAA sanctions, is taking an indefinite medical leave of absence because of back problems.

The Hall of Fame coach of the defending national champions, who turns 70 in May, has been suffering for several months from spinal stenosis, a spinal condition that causes him severe pain and hampers mobility.

“I had back pain like never before last summer, thought it was back spasms,” he told The Associated Press on Friday. “I saw a neurologist and he told me about scoliosis, stenosis and other things and that there could be things like a bone spur and that I could probably need something done at some point. I went for the physical therapy and it worked, but it started to lock up sometimes recently and it was worse.”

George Blaney, the team’s associate head coach, said Calhoun began feeling pain in his legs and rear end during this week’s road trip to Georgetown.

“When we got off the plane, he really had trouble getting in the car and going home,” he said.

Blaney will lead the team in Calhoun’s absence. The Huskies (14-7, 4-5 Big East) have lost four games in a row and fell out of the Top 25 for the first time in 28 weeks. They host Seton Hall on Saturday before travelling to Louisville Monday.

The school confirmed that Calhoun will miss at least those two games.

Spinal stenosis is a narrowing of the spine, normally associated with aging and sometimes with arthritis. If physical therapy and medicines aren’t effective, surgery may be considered, although some people’s symptoms may not improve after an operation.

“The bottom line is I’m going to need some work done,” Calhoun told the AP. “In January the shooting pains were getting worse and after one plane ride I couldn’t even get up. I tried to hide it. I’m taking medicine right now for the pain and they are waiting for things to quiet down and I’ll meet with the doctor next week. I told (university president) Susan (Herbst) about it and said I could make it through the season that there were only 3 1/2 weeks left. But it’s just so bad, even getting through practice. Now I’m going to see what the next step is. The bottom line is I’m hurting.”

Calhoun has had a history of health problems. He is a three-time cancer survivor, overcoming prostate cancer in 2003 and skin cancer twice, most recently in 2008.

“I don’t know anybody tougher,” Blaney said. “He doesn’t use Novocain when he goes to the dentist. He’s a tough guy and usually `No’ spurs him on.”

Calhoun has missed 21 games during his career at UConn, 17 for medical reasons. He has had to leave another 11 games with health problems. His last extended medical leave came in 2010, when he missed seven games with stress-related issues.

Blaney said Calhoun missed practice on Thursday, and could not get out of bed Friday morning. Blaney informed the team just prior to Friday afternoon’s practice.

“We wish we could be there to help him, and he wishes he could be there to help us,” said guard Shabazz Napier, a team captain. “Sometimes you have to go on a journey without your captain and we’re going to do whatever we got to do to fulfill his dreams and fulfill ours at the same time.”

Napier and forward Alex Oriakhi called a players-only meeting to discuss the team’s recent slump, and talk through any issues players were having with one another.

“It’s tough,” said freshman center Andre Drummond. “We’ve had a couple of downfalls, a couple of roadblocks throughout the way, but that’s life. That’s one of the things you’ve got to get through. That’s what we’re doing right now. We’re fighting through it and we’re not going down without a fight.”

Calhoun is No. 6 on the all-time wins list with 867. He has won three national championships at Connecticut and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2005. He coached the team to its fourth Final Four and third national title last April.

The subject of Calhoun’s tenure is not new. He said last month he decided to not retire after last year’s national championship in large part because he wanted to see through the NCAA sanctions leveled on him and his program for recruiting violations. The NCAA required Calhoun to sit out wins over South Florida and St. John’s and a loss to Seton Hall for violations that included a finding that the coach had failed to maintain “an atmosphere of compliance” in the program.

He told reporters that the idea of bringing closure to that issue was a “major, major factor” in his decision to come back this season.

In August, Calhoun said through the assistant director of athletics that he informed Herbst he would coach during the coming season.

In June, he said he felt good, worked out and spent a lot of time riding his bike. Each year, he rides between 25 and 50 miles at his annual Jim Calhoun Cancer Challenge Ride and Walk. In 2009, he broke several ribs and was hospitalized after falling during the charity event.

Connecticut has gone 9-9 in games that Blaney has coached, including 2-1 during Calhoun’s recent suspension.

Guard Ryan Boatright, who has missed nine games this season while the NCAA investigated his eligibility, said he thinks the team will rally under Blaney. He said both coaches are able to motivate the team, but their styles are much different.

“There’s not as much yelling,” he said. “Obviously the cuss words are down to a (lower) level. It’s a difference.”