U.S./World Sports category, Page 196
IOC major sponsors mostly muted in runup to Beijing Olympics
The Beijing Winter Olympics are fraught with potential hazards for major sponsors, who are trying to remain quiet about China’s human rights record while protecting at least $1 billion they’ve collectively paid to the IOC. That could reach $2 billion when new figures are expected this year. Sponsors include big...
Georgia savors national championship, already looks ahead to next seasonVideo
INDIANAPOLIS — Kirby Smart learned from his former boss that the time for celebrating is short in college football. Even while he reveled Tuesday in the hangover from Georgia’s first national title since 1980, the coach already was thinking about what comes next. “The wind blows a lot stronger at...
Djokovic back into swing in Australia, visa questions lingerVideo
MELBOURNE, Australia — Novak Djokovic held a practice session Tuesday, a day after he left immigration detention, focusing on defending his Australian Open title even while he still faces the prospect of deportation because he’s not vaccinated against covid-19. The top-ranked tennis star hit the show courts of Melbourne Park,...
Georgia snaps 41-year title drought with win over AlabamaVideo
INDIANAPOLIS — Stetson Bennett delivered the biggest throws of his storybook career and Georgia’s defense sealed the sweetest victory in program history, vanquishing rival Alabama 33-18 in the College Football Playoff title Monday night for its first national title in 41 years. Bennett connected with Adonai Mitchell on a 40-yard...
College Football Playoff talks stall, dimming hopes of expansion before 2026
INDIANAPOLIS — College Football Playoff expansion talks remain stalled and the possibility of implementing a new format by the 2024 season dimmed Monday after three days of meetings failed to produce an agreement. “We have entrenched issues that are no closer to be resolved, ” Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby...
South Carolina still No. 1 in AP women’s basketball poll
South Carolina beat two more ranked opponents to strengthen its grip on the No. 1 spot in The Associated Press women’s basketball poll. The Gamecocks topped then-No. 13 LSU and No. 21 Kentucky this past week to raise their record to 8-0 against Top 25 teams this season. South Carolina...
Baylor remains unanimous No. 1 in AP Top 25; USC hits No. 5
Reigning national champion Baylor isn’t showing any sign of loosening its grip on No. 1. The Bears remained the unanimous No. 1 in The Associated Press men’s college basketball poll for the fourth time in five weeks. That came after Baylor (15-0) beat Oklahoma and TCU last week to push...
Freeport grad Harley Holloway adapting well to college game with Wooster women’s basketball
In a way, Harley Holloway felt like a freshman again. The Freeport graduate got only a small sampling of what college basketball would be like last season, her first at Wooster. Because covid-19 lopped off a significant portion of the schedule, the Fighting Scots played only eight games — losing...
Judge says Novak Djokovic can stay in Australia but saga not over
Novak Djokovic returned to the tennis court Monday for training, having won a legal battle to stay in Australia to play in the Australian Open after his exemption from strict coronavirus vaccine rules was questioned. But the government is still threatening to cancel his visa and deport him. The unvaccinated...
Mike Bianchi: Get used to SEC dominance; it’s only going to get stronger
This column is a public-service announcement to all of you college football fans who are sick and tired of seeing the Southeastern Conference dominate your sport. It’s for all of you who think watching Alabama and Georgia playing for the national championship on Monday night in a rematch of the...
Cameron Smith sets PGA Tour record and outlasts Jon Rahm at KapaluaVideo
KAPALUA, Hawaii — No one ever finished a PGA Tour more shots under par than Cameron Smith, and he needed every one of them to outlast Jon Rahm and win the Sentry Tournament of Champions. In the best scoring conditions Kapalua has seen in the 24 times it has hosted...
Georgia gets 2nd shot at Alabama with national title at stakeVideo
INDIANAPOLIS — Georgia coach Kirby Smart got an inside look at what it takes to build a college football juggernaut working for Nick Saban at Alabama for eight seasons. Blueprint in hand, Smart took over at his alma mater in 2016, and the Bulldogs have been ascending ever since, going...
Former Pitt coach Todd Graham’s Hawaii program subject of legislative hearingVideo
HONOLULU — The University of Hawaii Board of Regents plans to address the issue of morale on the university’s football team following a legislative hearing that featured testimony from former players and that the university system president criticized as one-sided. More than a dozen football players have said they are...
Different paths to title game for Alabama’s Bryce Young, Georgia’s Stetson BennettVideo
INDIANAPOLIS — Alabama’s Bryce Young and Georgia’s Stetson Bennett both transferred in 2018. One got a lot more attention than the other. Already a celebrated quarterback prospect heading into his junior year of high school, Young made headlines in Southern California when he decided to attend powerhouse Mater Dei. There...
North Dakota State beats Montana State for 9th FCS title in 11 yearsVideo
FRISCO, Texas — North Dakota State began practice more than a year ago for an unprecedented spring season that ended without a championship. Things felt much more normal for the Bison this time. Hunter Luepke ran for three touchdowns in the first half, plowing over a defender going into the...
This date in sports history: Jan. 8
1972 — The NCAA announces freshmen will be eligible to play on varsity football and basketball teams starting in the fall. 1973 — David Vaughn of Oral Roberts grabs 34 rebounds in a 123-95 win over Brandeis. 1984 — The Executive Committee of the NCAA votes to expand the championship...
NDSU looks for 9th FCS title against upstart Montana State
FRISCO, Texas — Montana State advanced to its first championship game since 1984 after consecutive playoff wins over the teams that played for the FCS title less than eight months ago. Now the Bobcats face North Dakota State, with a record eight Football Championship Subdivision titles the previous 10 seasons...
Paul Newberry: Who can stop SEC from swallowing college football?
INDIANAPOLIS — As another season winds down in the frigid heart of Big Ten country, there’s no doubt who runs college football. The SEC is the beast that ate everyone else. The College Football Playoff should be abbreviated S-E-C, not C-F-P. For those suffering from SEC fatigue, who wish someone...
Georgia, Alabama boosted by prized transfer portal pickups
Georgia and Alabama have used the transfer portal to supplement their annual bounties of top recruits. Sure, virtually every college football team has utilized the portal to bolster rosters. But Alabama and Georgia did what they do, landing talented gems to help lead them to a national championship. The top-ranked...
Top-ranked Novak Djokovic spends religious day in detentionVideo
Regardless of who made an error on the visa or the vaccination waiver or whatever, the reality Friday for tennis No. 1 Novak Djokovic was spending one of his important religious holidays in an Australian detention hotel working on his challenge against deportation. Djokovic has been receiving calls from Serbia,...
BetMGM: 2022 College Football Championship / Top 3 prop bets
By BetMGM staff writer / The 2022 College Football Playoff National Championship Game is almost here. This year, the matchup is between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Alabama Crimson Tide. BetMGM’s latest NCAAF odds have Georgia as three-point favorites. If you’re a bettor torn on the spread, perhaps you’re looking...
This date in sports history: Jan. 7
1920 — Joe Malone of Quebec scores two goals to become the NHL’s career leader with 59 and leads the Bulldogs to a 4-3 victory over the Toronto Arenas. 1925 — Harry Broadbent of the Montreal Maroons scores five goals in a 6-2 triumph over Hamilton. 1972 — The Los...
With spring season behind them, North Dakota State seeks another FCS titleVideo
FARGO, N.D. — Nearly one year after a bizarre spring season that cost perennial FCS power North Dakota State its three best players and a chance for a ninth national championship, the Bison feel like it is business as usual entering Saturday’s championship game against Montana State. The Bison (13-1)...
Novak Djokovic in limbo as he fights deportation from Australia
Locked in a dispute over his covid-19 vaccination status, Novak Djokovic was confined to an immigration detention hotel in Australia on Thursday as the No. 1 men’s tennis player in the world awaited a court ruling on whether he can compete in the Australian Open later this month. Djokovic, a...
Todd Haley returning to sidelines with USFL
Former Pittsburgh Steelers offensive coordinator Todd Haley will make a return to the sidelines this spring as the head coach of the Tampa Bay Bandits of the United States Football League. The USFL, a new professional football league, will begin play April 16. Coaches for four of the eight teams...
