Friday 3:00pm ET....Latest News....Mind Meld

• NFL Hires Nicole Gustafson As League's Chief Republican Lobbyist

• MLS, MLSPU Convening For Three Days Of Labor Talks In DC

• Hisense Expected To Announce Further Investment In NASCAR

• Earthquakes To Debut New Stadium With "Soft Opening" Strategy

The Starting Five....

The most-read stories today on SportsBusinessDaily.com:

1)  Vince Doria Discusses Time At ESPN, As He Is Set For Retirement After 23 Years At The Net

2) NBPA's Roberts Questions Media's Locker-Room Etiquette, Talks Union-League Issues

3) Kingsford Charcoal Bags Feature Ed O'Bannon, Draw Attention To Case Against NCAA

4) People & Personalities: CAA Agent Asks Van Gundy To Tone Down Bulls Criticism

5) IOC Mulls Changes To Ad Rules That Would Ease Restrictions On Non-Olympic Brands

Notes & Quotes From This Day In SBD History....

2002

"The toughest thing we've done is to go out and try and find a cast with all the chemistry you need who plays well with fans" – CBS Sports President Sean McManus , after hiring Dan Marino and Boomer Esiason for CBS' "The NFL Today" pregame show. Marino was let go after the '13 season, while Esiason is the net's lead NFL color commentator with Jim Nantz .