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SUGAR BOWL CFP QUARTERFINAL BETWEEN GEORGIA AND NOTRE DAME POSTPONED AFTER DEADLY TRUCK ATTACK
NEW ORLEANS (AP) — The College Football Playoff quarterfinal at the Sugar Bowl between Georgia and Notre Dame has been postponed after a truck plowed into a New Year’s crowd about a mile away early Wednesday, killing at least 10 people.
The game, originally scheduled for Wednesday night at the 70,000-seat Superdome, has been pushed back 24 hours to Thursday night.
“For now, that’s the plan,” Sugar Bowl CEO Jeff Hundley said.
The Superdome was on lockdown for security sweeps on Wednesday morning, when people with offices in the Superdome — including officials with the Sugar Bowl and Sun Belt Conference — were told not to come into work until further notice.
Some credentialed Superdome employees were permitted into offices by Wednesday afternoon.
The casualties occurred when a driver rammed a pickup truck into a crowd of revelers in New Orleans’ famed French Quarter early on New Year’s Day. The driver was killed in a firefight with police following the attack at about 3:15 a.m. along Bourbon Street near Canal Street, the FBI said.
The Georgia and Notre Dame football teams arrived in New Orleans on Sunday and have been staying at downtown hotels just blocks away from where the violence occurred.
A statement from the University of Georgia Athletic Association said that “all team personnel and members of the official team travel party have been accounted for.”
New Orleans City Council President Helena Moreno told WDSU-TV: “What you’ll see today for the Sugar Bowl, which will go on, is that the perimeter for security around the Superdome has been extended to be a larger zone.”
“So expect obviously extra security. There are more police officers who are coming in.”
The Superdome, which is about 20 blocks away, also is scheduled to host the Super Bowl on Feb. 9.
The first Super Bowl after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, also was held in New Orleans, and there was a massive security perimeter for that game including street closures surrounding the Superdome and officers — including snipers — on the tops of surrounding high-rise buildings, as well as on the roof of the dome itself.
“We are deeply saddened by the news of the devastating incident in New Orleans,” the NFL said in a statement. “The NFL and the local host committee have been working collaboratively with local, state and federal agencies the past two years and have developed comprehensive security plans.
“These planning sessions will continue as they do with all major NFL events,” the statement continued. “We are confident attendees will have a safe and enjoyable Super Bowl experience.”
EX-PRINCETON WR TIGER BECH, 28, KILLED IN NEW ORLEANS ATTACK
Former Princeton wide receiver Tiger Bech, the older brother of TCU standout Jack Bech, was one of at least 15 people killed in a mass truck attack in New Orleans early Wednesday.
Tiger Bech, 28, died after being transported to a New Orleans hospital with critical injuries suffered during the incident described by officials as a terrorist attack, according to the athletic director, Kim Broussard, of Bech’s high school alma mater, St. Thomas More Catholic High School in Lafayette, Louisiana.
A scholarship athlete, Tiger Bech earned All-Ivy League honors twice as a return specialist at Princeton, catching 53 passes for 825 yards and three touchdowns over his career.
A 2021 graduate of Princeton, he was reportedly working as a trader at the New York brokerage firm Seaport Global.
His younger brother, Jack, declared for the 2025 NFL Draft in December after finishing his senior year at TCU with 62 catches for 1,034 yards and nine touchdowns. Jack Bech transferred to TCU for his final two years of eligibility after playing for LSU.
Jack Bech posted on X Wednesday, “Love you always brother ! You inspired me everyday now you get to be with me in every moment. I got this family T, don’t worry. This is for us.”
In the wake of the attack, the Sugar Bowl between Georgia and Notre Dame was postponed from Wednesday to Thursday, Sugar Bowl CEO Jeff Hundley announced Wednesday afternoon, citing public safety.
NFL NEWS
DOMINANT SEASON FOR THE NFC NORTH WILL LEAVE A 14-WIN TEAM AS A WILD CARD
There’s never quite been a division like this season’s NFC North and there has never been a wild-card team like whoever loses the division title showdown between Detroit and Minnesota.
Led by the Lions and Vikings, both 14-2, the NFC North is set to be the winningest division since the NFL realigned to eight divisions of four teams each in 2002, with 43 wins for the four division teams with two head-to-head games remaining.
The only other divisions to combine for 43 wins since 2002 were the AFC North last season and NFC East in 2022. The NFC North will top that barring two Week 18 ties when Detroit hosts Minnesota and Green Bay (11-5) hosts Chicago (4-12).
The NFC North teams combined to go 33-11 in non-division games, with the .750 win percentage tied for the second best ever behind the .775 for the 1984 AFC West.
The Week 18 showdown between the Lions and Vikings will feature the first matchup ever in the regular season between teams with at least 14 wins. There have been only five postseason games between teams that won at least 14 regular- season games, with Kansas City beating Philadelphia in Super Bowl 57, New England beating Pittsburgh in the 2004 AFC title game, Denver beating Atlanta in Super Bowl 33, Atlanta beating Minnesota in the 1998 NFC title game and San Francisco beating Miami in Super Bowl 19.
The loser of the game in Detroit on Sunday night will drop all the way to the No. 5 seed as a wild-card team and have to open the playoffs on the road against a team that will have at least four more losses.
There has never been a wild-card team with at least 14 wins, with the previous high coming in 1999 when Tennessee went 13-3 and lost the AFC Central to Jacksonville. The Jaguars lost two games in the regular season that year — both to the Titans — and also dropped the AFC title game to Tennessee.
If Detroit has to hit the road to start the playoffs, the Lions at least have comfort in the fact that they went 8-0 away from home this season. They were the 10th team to go 8-0 or better on the road, with three of the previous nine winning the championship: New England in 2016 and San Francisco in 1984 and 1989.
Only two of those teams had to play a road game in the playoffs, with the 2014 Cowboys losing a divisional round game at Green Bay and the 1934 Bears losing the NFL title game to the New York Giants at the Polo Grounds. The Chiefs also lost the Super Bowl to Tampa Bay in the 2020 season in the Buccaneers’ home stadium in what was officially designated as a neutral-site game.
Greener pastures
When Baker Mayfield and Sam Darnold were teammates for Carolina in 2022, they combined to throw 13 TD passes for a seven-win team that fired coach Matt Rhule early that season.
The two former first-round picks from the 2018 draft are having far more success this season. Mayfield has thrown 39 touchdown passes in his second season in Tampa Bay and has the Bucs in position to win the NFC South with one more win. Darnold has thrown 35 TD passes for the Vikings.
There was only one other time in NFL history, according to Sportradar, that two players who appeared in at least one game in the same season for one team both went on to throw at least 35 TD passes for another after leaving.
The 1950 Baltimore Colts featured Hall of Famers Y.A. Tittle and George Blanda. That version of the Colts folded after that season, while Tittle went on to throw 36 TD passes for the Giants in 1963 and Blanda had 36 for the Oilers in 1961.
Turnaround coach
Jim Harbaugh’s turnaround skills had another success story in his first year coaching the Los Angeles Chargers.
Harbaugh clinched a playoff spot when Los Angeles beat New England 40-7 on Saturday after going 5-12 last season. This is the second time Harbaugh has taken over a team with a losing record and gone to the playoffs in his first season, having San Francisco go from 6-10 in 2010 before he arrived to 13-3 in 2011.
Harbaugh is the first coach in the Super Bowl era to take over two teams that had losing records the year before he arrived and take them to the playoffs in his first season.
Harbaugh also had an immediate impact in college, helping Stanford improve by three wins in his first season in 2007 and Michigan improve by five wins in 2015.
Harbaugh has gone to the postseason in four out of five seasons as an NFL coach, a rate exceeded only by four coaches with at least four seasons in the Super Bowl era: Nick Sirianni (4 for 4), Sean McDermott (7 for 8), Tony Dungy (11 for 13) and Matt LaFleur (5 for 6).
Under pressure
Caleb Williams hasn’t had nearly as much success as Harbaugh in his transition from college to the pros.
The No. 1 overall pick by the Chicago Bears is enduring a rough rookie season, losing 10 straight starts headed into the season finale. The only other QB picked first overall to lose that many consecutive starts as a rookie was Troy Aikman, who went 0-11 for Dallas in 1989.
Williams has been sacked 67 times thanks to a shaky offensive line and his inability to get rid of the ball quickly. He is nearing the record for most sacks taken in a season, with only three QBs taking more. David Carr was sacked a record 76 times as a rookie in 2002 for the expansion Houston Texans, Randall Cunningham was sacked 72 times in 1986 and Carr took 68 more sacks in 2005.
The Bears have lost 10 straight games in a season for the second time in franchise history, having also dropped the final 10 games in 2022.
CHIEFS TO START CARSON WENTZ AT QB AGAINST DENVER, WHICH WOULD CLINCH A PLAYOFF BERTH WITH A WIN
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Chiefs will start backup Carson Wentz at quarterback on Sunday in Denver in a game that means nothing to Kansas City, which has already clinched the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs, but could mean everything to the Broncos.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid announced his decision to rest Patrick Mahomes on Wednesday, shortly before they returned to practice from an extended break following their Christmas Day win in Pittsburgh. But Reid declined to say who else might spend the day with Mahomes on the sideline, pointing out that only so many players can be rested given roster limitations.
“If someone wants to start messing with it,” Reid said, “there’s not a whole lot of messing going on. So guys play.”
The Broncos would clinch a playoff berth as the No. 7 seed by beating the Chiefs, earning a trip to Buffalo for their postseason opener. If they lose, they would need the Jets to beat the Dolphins and the Steelers to beat the Bengals.
There is a good chance that Chiefs defensive tackle Chris Jones, who sustained a calf strain a couple of weeks ago, will be one of their veterans getting the week off.
The same could go for running back Isiah Pacheco, who has bruised ribs, right tackle Jawaan Taylor, who has a sore knee, and veteran tight end Travis Kelce, who similarly skipped last year’s Week 18 game.
Reid did say that he takes into consideration whether players have salary bonuses that they could achieve. And that could mean three-time All-Pro wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins gets plenty of playing time against the Broncos.
Hopkins, who was acquired by the Chiefs in a midseason trade with Tennessee, needs nine catches to reach 65 and trigger a $250,000 bonus. He has 610 yards receiving, which means another 140 would earn him another $250,000. And if one of those catches is a touchdown, Hopkins would earn an additional $500,000 for catching six of them this season.
“We want the guys to be able to reach them if they’re reachable,” Reid said.
It will be up to Wentz to deliver Hopkins the ball on Sunday.
He signed with Kansas City in the offseason as the latest veteran backup to Mahomes, following in the footsteps of Matt Moore, Chad Henne and Blaine Gabbert. And while Wentz has hardly played since the preseason — he was 2 for 2 for 20 yards in closing out a win in Cleveland — the ninth-year pro has earned the respect of just about everyone in the Chiefs locker room.
“I got to train with him in team camp, stuff like that. Carson is an elite QB and a lot of people take that for granted,” said fullback Carson Steele, who could be among those who get extra reps at Denver so that Pacheco and Kareem Hunt can get a break.
“It’s really cool to see how he performs,” Steele said, “especially being a veteran like himself.”
Wentz has started 68 games, mostly with Philadelphia, where he was chosen for a Pro Bowl while going 11-2 during the 2017 season. He never quite played to that same lofty standard the rest of his time with the Eagles, which was derailed by an injury, and Wentz has only started eight games over the past three seasons with the Commanders, Rams and Chiefs.
His decision to sign with Kansas City was made in part with an eye on building his value and starting somewhere next season.
“It’s obviously been different,” Wentz said, “but I’ve stayed locked in, stayed ready, prepared every week. I’ve taken some things from Pat, working with him, but every week I’m staying locked in and ready to go.”
NOTES: WR Mecole Hardman (knee) returned to practice, opening a 21-day window in which the Chiefs must activate him or put him on season-ending injured reserve. Reid said it is unlikely Hardman would play Sunday. … LT D.J. Humphries (hamstring strain) could play against the Broncos. The former Pro Bowl pick, who is coming off a torn ACL, appeared in just one game after signing with Kansas City in late November before getting hurt. The Chiefs have had to patch together their offensive line without him, but the hope is Humphries will be ready for the playoffs. “He’s feeling better. I just want to see how he does here in practice, give me one more go-around with him,” Reid said.
EKELER MAY BE BACK AS THE COMMANDERS ARE PLAYING TO BEAT THE COWBOYS AND GET THE NFC’S 6TH SEED
ASHBURN, Va. (AP) — The Washington Commanders opened Austin Ekeler’s practice window Wednesday, and the running back could return for their season finale at Dallas this weekend when they have something to play for even after wrapping up a playoff spot.
Washington would be the NFC’s sixth seed if they beat the Cowboys on Sunday, ensuring a wild-card round game at Tampa Bay if it wins the NFC South or the NFC West champion Los Angeles Rams. A loss or tie — unless Green Bay loses to Chicago — would send them to NFC East Division-winning Philadelphia instead.
“We’re going to go after as hard as we can,” coach Dan Quinn said. “I think the seeding portion of this is really important, and that’s what we discussed as a team. … We recognize having the 6 seed and going into the playoffs with that is a good thing, and so we’re going to fight like hell to keep that.”
Ekeler took part in what Quinn called a “jog through” workout Wednesday after missing the past four games because of a concussion that landed him on injured reserve. The 29-year-old was concussed on a kickoff return late in the Commanders’ home loss to the Cowboys on Nov. 24.
“It’s great to have him back,” Quinn said. “There’s a spring in his step, for sure.”
The Commanders beat Atlanta in overtime to move ahead of the Packers, who lost Sunday at Minnesota. The Rams would be the third seed if they beat Seattle or the Buccaneers lose to New Orleans.
DOLPHINS PREPARING QB TYLER HUNTLEY TO START VS. JETS
The Miami Dolphins are preparing quarterback Tyler Huntley to start Sunday’s critical matchup at the New York Jets instead of Tua Tagovailoa, head coach Mike McDaniel told reporters Wednesday.
However, McDaniel said if Tagovailoa is medically cleared and has seen enough improvement in his injured hip, the team is comfortable switching to start him in Sunday’s must-win game.
Tagovailoa will be limited in practice Wednesday. He initially injured his hip against the Houston Texans on Dec. 15 and absorbed another hit versus the San Francisco 49ers a week later. He missed last week’s 20-3 win over the Cleveland Browns, which kept the Dolphins (8-8) in contention for a playoff spot.
Huntley, 26, has started four games this season and completed 61 of 92 passes (66.3 percent) for 602 yards, two TDs and one pick. He also ran 23 times for 119 yards and two scores.
Tagovailoa already has missed five games this season because of a concussion while starting the other 11. He has completed 291 of 399 passes (league-best 72.9 percent) for 2,867 yards, 19 touchdowns, and seven interceptions.
BILLS LB TERREL BERNARD (QUAD) OUT VS. PATRIOTS
Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott said on Wednesday that linebacker Terrel Bernard will not play against the host New England Patriots on Sunday.
Per McDermott, Bernard is considered week-to-week due to a quad injury.
The Bills (13-3) can afford to be patient with Bernard entering their game with the Patriots (3-13) in Foxborough, Mass. Buffalo is locked into the No. 2 seed in the AFC.
Bernard, 25, has 104 tackles, two interceptions, a sack, and a fumble recovery in 13 games (all starts) this season.
He has totaled 269 tackles, 7.5 sacks, five interceptions, and four fumble recoveries in 46 career games (31 starts) since being selected by the Bills in the third round of the 2022 NFL Draft.
CARDINALS RB JAMES CONNER (KNEE) TO SIT OUT FINALE VS. 49ERS
Arizona Cardinals running back James Conner has been ruled out of Sunday’s game against the San Francisco 49ers due to a knee injury, coach Jonathan Gannon said Wednesday.
Conner, 29, initially sustained his injury in Arizona’s 36-30 overtime loss to the Carolina Panthers on Dec. 22. He was able to play this past weekend, however he exited the Cardinals’ 13-9 setback to the Los Angeles Rams after just four carries for 4 yards.
Signed to a two-year contract extension in November, Conner recorded career-high totals in carries (236), rushing yards (1,094) and games played (16). He also had eight touchdowns for the Cardinals (7-9), who have lost five of their last six games heading into season finale against the 49ers (6-10) in Glendale, Ariz.
With rookie Trey Benson (ankle) just placed on injured reserve, Michael Carter likely will receive the bulk of the workload in the backfield versus San Francisco.
A two-time Pro Bowl selection, Conner has rushed for 5,970 yards and 59 touchdowns to go along with 281 receptions for 2,217 yards and 11 scores in 107 career games (81 starts) with the Pittsburgh Steelers (2017-20) and Cardinals.
Conner was selected by the Steelers in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft.