Sports
Ex-UCLA star Tyler Ebell, a.k.a. Mighty Mouse, won't be asked to save the day after surrendering officer license
The record-setting running back with the Mighty Mouse tattoo won’t be asked to save the day again as a police officer in California.
Tyler Ebell still holds the single-season state record of 4,494 rushing yards he set in 2000 at Ventura High, and the 5-foot-8 scatback went on to star at UCLA, setting a freshman record by rushing for more than 100 yards in six consecutive games while earning second-team All-American honors.
After three years in the Canadian Football League, Ebell became a Ventura County sheriff’s deputy, seemingly the epitome of a high school and college football hero giving back to his community. Yet in 2022, Ebell was fired after an internal affairs investigation found he “committed repeated acts of serious misconduct and grossly violated the foundational principles of a law enforcement officer.”
Ebell was accused of pursuing and carrying on a sexual relationship with Nastaza Schmidt, an inmate in the jail where he worked. The Sheriff’s Office referred his case to the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training, and Ebell surrendered his certification with the agency earlier this month.
Without the certification, Ebell cannot work as an officer in any state police agency, as first reported by the Ventura County Star.
Ventura County settled a federal civil rights lawsuit filed by Schmidt and another woman in 2023 by paying them $49,999. The lawsuit accused Ebell of pressuring Schmidt into a relationship by promising to help her minimize her criminal charges.
Schmidt died two years ago, her body found on the lawn of a Thousand Oaks home after she had fled on foot from a self-storage facility she and two men were attempting to burglarize. The Ventura County Medical Examiner’s Office concluded that Schmidt, 34, died of “probable cardiac arrest,” and had a potentially lethal amount of methamphetamine in her system.
Schmidt already had a criminal history of burglary when she was arrested in 2020 and charged with identity theft, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of burglary tools. Ebell was one of the arresting officers, and according to the lawsuit filed in federal court by Schmidt in January 2023, he showered her with favors while she was incarcerated, insinuating that she would repay him with sexual favors when she was released.
The day she was let out on bail, Ebell picked her up at the jail, took her to her grandparents house and they had sex, the lawsuit alleged. Soon thereafter, Ebell’s wife and two children took a trip to Canada and Schmidt stayed at his house for more than two weeks, according to the lawsuit.
USC safety Troy Polamalu causes UCLA running back Tyler Ebell to fumble during a game at the Rose Bowl on Nov. 23, 2002.
(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)
The lawsuit also alleged that Ebell assaulted Schmidt when he confronted her and her ex-boyfriend at her grandparent’s house and that Ebell insisted she get an abortion when she became pregnant with his child.
Ebell was seen with Schmidt at a restaurant by two off-duty deputies Dec. 30, 2021, triggering an internal affairs investigation. Ebell resigned from the Sheriff’s Office a year later.
According to the lengthy internal affairs report, Ebell told detectives that he was “going through a lot of emotional stuff, and I made a ton of poor decisions not typically my character. I was looking for an escape and I found it in a friend, and it was the wrong friend in the wrong place. And I did a lot of things that I would never normally do when I’m in the right mindset.”
The result has been a steep fall for Ebell. In 2006, he and former UCLA teammates Ricky Manning Jr. and Maurice Jones-Drew were involved in an alleged assault stemming from an attack on a man in a Denny’s restaurant in Westwood at 3 a.m. Ebell was charged with felony assault but a judge downgraded it to a misdemeanor, and that charge was eventually dropped because of insufficient evidence.
According to the Los Angeles Police Department, the three allegedly harassed a man working on a laptop computer at the restaurant. “The group began by making comments that the victim looked like a geek or a nerd,” LAPD Det. Robert Lewis told reporters.
The victim asked the group to stop and complained to a Denny’s manager before someone in the group punched him in the face. He then was punched and kicked until losing consciousness, according to Lewis.
The incident occurred three weeks after Jones-Drew had been drafted by the Jacksonville Jaguars. He wasn’t charged and went on to a nine-year NFL career that included three Pro Bowl appearances and All-Pro recognition in 2011.
Manning Jr., a defensive back, had received a $21-million contract offer from the Chicago Bears only days earlier. He signed the deal and a few months later pleaded no contest to felony assault and was sentenced to three years probation, one year of anger management counseling and 100 hours of community service.
Ebell wasn’t considered big enough for the NFL, but he led the Edmonton Eskimos of the CFL with 1,318 total yards in 2007 before a ruptured Achilles tendon ended his career a year later. He returned to the hometown where at age 14 he’d sat in a Hells Angels hangout for that Mighty Mouse tattoo and became a peace officer, a job that ended for good in California this month.
The Sparks are finally in the win column, but the outcome was in doubt late Friday night.
Behind double-digit scoring from all five starters, the Sparks had by far their best offensive showing of the season, shooting 63.8% during a 99-95 win over the expansion Toronto Tempo.
The Tempo didn’t make things easy, cutting the deficit to two points late and later trailing by just three with 31 seconds remaining and possession of the ball. Marina Mabrey missed a three-point attempt before late Tempo fouls gave the Sparks enough of a cushion to win.
Kelsey Plum nearly claimed a double-double with 27 points and nine assists, while Dearica Hamby had 19 points with seven rebounds and Nneka Ogwumike scored 20 points.
Erica Wheeler, who started in place of Ariel Atkins (concussion), scored 10 points with seven assists and was a plus-16 as the primary ball handler after starting the season two for 16 from the field. That freed up Plum to be in position to score, setting up a much more efficient Sparks offense.
Toronto was shorthanded in the frontcourt without starting center Temi Fagbenle (right shoulder), and the Sparks trio of bigs had a field day with 54 points in the paint.
The Sparks came out firing on Friday, opening with a 17-2 run.
The Tempo went on a 10-0 burst heading into the second quarter but the Sparks countered to maintain momentum and led 46-38 at halftime.
A Wheeler three-pointer early in the third quarter gave the Sparks a 20-point lead. The Tempo cut it to three midway through the fourth while Brittany Sykes (27 points, seven assists) sparked Toronto’s rally. The Tempo put up more shots than the Sparks, 70-58, largely because of a 10-2 offensive-rebounding gap.
Cameron Brink’s 10 points were the only ones provided by the Sparks’ bench, while the Tempo got 42 points from reserves.
Toronto was coming off its first win in franchise history on Wednesday when it defeated Seattle but struggled against a more complete offensive team in the Sparks.
In her return to Los Angeles after winning a national championship with UCLA this spring, Tempo rookie Kiki Rice netted 11 points.
Kate Martin made her Sparks debut as a developmental player with Atkins and Sania Feagin (lower left leg) unavailable and picked up one rebound in six minutes.
The Sparks will face Toronto again on Sunday at Crypto.com Arena.
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The WNBA season has been in session for about a week, so it is far too early to make assumptions about teams. That doesn’t mean we won’t make them; it’s just too early to really believe it. I lost my first WNBA bet this season, so I’m hoping to avenge that loss here as the Sky take on the Mercury.
The Chicago Sky are one of the most poorly run franchises in basketball. They have had some great names on their team and only one championship to show for it.
Phoenix Mercury forward DeWanna Bonner shoots over Indiana Fever guard Aerial Powers in the first half at PHX Arena. (Rick Scuteri/Imagn Images)
There really isn’t a clear indication of what is wrong with the franchise, but they’ve never been able to retain their talent. Aside from Kamilla Cardoso, I can’t name a player on this team that they’ve actually drafted. They just seem to get good players and then show them the door.
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Even though they’ve had questionable front office decisions, they seem to have put together a solid team for this season – something I didn’t expect before the season started.
They are 2-0, which is too early to really say they are a good team. I also want to reserve judgment until they face a team with a longer history than last year. The Portland Tempo played their first-ever game against the Sky, and Golden State was good last year, but still is in just their second season of existence.
The Phoenix Mercury are actually considered one of the best franchises in the league. I’m sure there are issues that people have reported, but for the most part, they have good facilities, and people want to play for their team. They made it all the way to the WNBA Finals last season before falling to the Las Vegas Aces. This year, they are looking to restart that journey and see if they can win the last game of the year.
Phoenix Mercury guard Kahleah Copper dribbles the ball in the second half at CareFirst Arena in Washington, D.C., on July 27, 2025. (Emily Faith Morgan-Imagn Images)
It will need to come with some better play than they’ve shown through three games this year. They are just 1-2 for the year with a 0-1 home record. The lone win was a blowout victory over the Aces (a clear revenge game if we’ve ever seen one). Then they lost the next two games against Golden State and Minnesota. Losing to the Lynx wouldn’t be a problem, but they didn’t have Napheesa Collier, who still has an ankle injury.
I expect the Mercury to make some adjustments for this game. They haven’t looked very crisp to begin the year, but they’ve been strong on offense, averaging 87 points per game.
The Sky are going to keep relying on their offense to do just enough and their defense to lock in. The Sky do have an edge on the interior, so they can get buckets fairly easily down low. I like the over 166.5 in this game.
Chicago Sky guard Skylar Diggins chases the ball during the fourth quarter against the Golden State Valkyries at Chase Center in San Francisco, Calif., on May 13, 2026. (Bob Kupbens/Imagn Images)
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I also think it is worth betting on Kahleah Copper to go over her point total. Copper had two rough games before she broke out in the last game. Now she has the same sight lines and can attack the bigs from the Sky with her athleticism. Since going to Phoenix, she has scored 29, 7, 16, 25 and 28 points in five games against them.
For more sports betting information and plays, follow David on X/Twitter: @futureprez2024
Tom Harp has been coaching volleyball at Granada Hills High for so long that few remember he won a City Section championship as a co-head football coach with Darryl Stroh in 1987.
In the 1990s, he turned exclusively to coaching boys’ and girls’ volleyball, winning a combined 15 City titles and making 28 finals appearances. The top-seeded Highlanders will try to deliver a seventh Open Division championship on Saturday when they face West Valley League rival Chatsworth in a 4 p.m. final at Birmingham.
The league rivals split their two West Valley matches, with each going five games. Chatsworth knocked off 17-time champion Palisades in the semifinals. MIT-bound Grant Chang is Chatsworth’s 6-foot-6 powerful outside hitter.
All-City volleyball player RJ Francisco of Granada Hills shows off his hitting skills against Chatsworth.
(Craig Weston)
Granada Hills has RJ Francisco, who had 19 kills in a win over Chatsworth.
The Southern Section Division 1 final is Friday night, with Mira Costa taking on Loyola in a 7:30 p.m. match at Cerritos College.
Regional and state playoffs begin next week.
This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email eric.sondheimer@latimes.com.
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