“THE SCOREBOARD”
INDIANA SRN WEEK ONE FOOTBALL BROADCAST SCHEDULE
EVANSVILLE MEMORIAL AT JASPER
HERITAGE CHRISTIAN AT COVENANT CHRISTIAN
GREENFIELD-CENTRAL AT BEECH GROVE
BATESVILLE AT TRITON CENTRAL
ORDER THE 2024 INDIANA FOOTBALL DIGEST: https://indianafootballdigest.com/
MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL SCORES
CHICAGO CUBS 6 TORONTO 5
PHILADELPHIA 3 WASHINGTON 2
PITTSBURGH 5 SEATTLE 3
NY YANKEES 3 DETROIT 0
KANSAS CITY 7 CINCINNATI 1
TAMPA BAY 5 ARIZONA 4
BOSTON 12 BALTIMORE 10
NY METS 7 MIAMI 3
MINNESOTA 4 TEXAS 3
MILWAUKEE 5 CLEVELAND 3
CHICAGO WHITE SOX 5 HOUSTON 4
LA DODGERS 7 ST. LOUIS 6
COLORADO 7 SAN DIEGO 3
LA ANGELS 3 ATLANTA 2
MINOR LEAGUE BASEBALL SCORES
INDIANAPOLIS 3 ST. PAUL 2
DAYTON 6 FORT WAYNE 5
SOUTH BEND 15 CEDAR RAPIDS 2
WNBA SCORES
INDIANA 98 PHOENIX 89
ATLANTA 83 SEATTLE 81
CONNECTICUT 109 DALLAS 91
EARLY COLLEGE FOOTBALL SCHEDULE
SATURDAY, AUG. 24 IN WEEK ZERO:
AER LINGUS COLLEGE FOOTBALL CLASSIC: FLORIDA STATE VS. GEORGIA TECH (IN DUBLIN, IRELAND) | 12 P.M. ET | ESPN
MCNEESE AT TARLETON STATE | 2:30 P.M. ET| ESPN2
MONTANA STATE AT NEW MEXICO | 4 P.M. ET | FS1
FCS KICKOFF: NORTH ALABAMA VS. SOUTHEAST MISSOURI STATE (CRAMTON BOWL IN MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA) | 7 P.M. ET | ESPN
MEAC/SWAC CHALLENGE: NORFOLK STATE VS. FLORIDA A&M (CENTER PARC STADIUM IN ATLANTA, GEORGIA) | 7:30 P.M. | ABC
SMU AT NEVADA | 8 P.M. ET |CBS SPORTS NETWORK
DELAWARE STATE AT HAWAII
THURSDAY, AUG. 29
NORTH CAROLINA AT MINNESOTA | 8 P.M. ET | FOX
NORTH DAKOTA STATE AT COLORADO | 8 P.M. ET | ESPN
SACRAMENTO STATE AT SAN JOSE STATE | 10 P.M. ET | TRUTV AND MAX
FRIDAY, AUG. 30
TCU AT STANFORD | 10:30 P.M. ET | ESPN
SATURDAY, AUG. 31
AFLAC KICKOFF GAME: CLEMSON VS. GEORGIA (MERCEDES-BENZ STADIUM IN ATLANTA, GEORGIA) | 12 P.M. ET | ABC
PENN STATE AT WEST VIRGINIA | 12 P.M. | FOX
SOUTH DAKOTA STATE AT OKLAHOMA STATE | 2 P.M. ET | ESPN+
MIAMI (FL) AT FLORIDA | 3:30 P.M. ET | ABC
NOTRE DAME AT TEXAS A&M | 7:30 P.M. ET | ABC
GEORGIA STATE AT GEORGIA TECH | 8 P.M. ET | ACC NETWORK
TEXAS A&M-COMMERCE AT SAN DIEGO STATE | 8 P.M. ET | TRUTV AND MAX
SUNDAY, SEPT. 1
ORANGE BLOSSOM CLASSIC: NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL VS. ALABAMA STATE (HARD ROCK STADIUM IN MIAMI GARDENS, FLORIDA) | 3 P.M. ET | ESPN
VEGAS KICKOFF CLASSIC: LSU VS. SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA (ALLEGIANT STADIUM IN LAS VEGAS, NEVADA) | 7:30 P.M. ON ABC
MONDAY, SEPT. 2
BOSTON COLLEGE AT FLORIDA STATE | 7:30 P.M. ET | ESPN
NFL PRE-SEASON
WEEK TWO:
SATURDAY, AUGUST 17:
ATLANTA AT BALTIMORE, 12:00 PM
CINCINNATI AT CHICAGO, 1:00 PM
N.Y. GIANTS AT HOUSTON, 1:00 PM
DETROIT AT KANSAS CITY 4:00 PM
MINNESOTA AT CLEVELAND, 4:25 PM
N.Y. JETS AT CAROLINA, 7:00 PM
ARIZONA AT INDIANAPOLIS, 7:00 PM
WASHINGTON AT MIAMI, 7:00 PM
BUFFALO AT PITTSBURGH, 7:00 PM
SEATTLE AT TENNESSEE, 7:00 PM
L.A. RAMS AT L.A. CHARGERS, 7:05 PM
TAMPA BAY AT JACKSONVILLE, 7:30 PM
DALLAS AT LAS VEGAS, 10:00 PM
SUNDAY, AUGUST 18:
GREEN BAY AT DENVER, 8:00 PM
NEW ORLEANS AT SAN FRANCISCO, 8:00 PM
WEEK THREE:
THURSDAY, AUGUST 22:
INDIANAPOLIS AT CINCINNATI, 8:00 PM
CHICAGO AT KANSAS CITY, 8:20 PM
FRIDAY, AUGUST 23:
JACKSONVILLE AT ATLANTA, 7:00 PM
MIAMI AT TAMPA BAY, 7:30 PM
SAN FRANCISCO AT LAS VEGAS, 10:00 PM
SATURDAY, AUGUST 24:
CAROLINA AT BUFFALO, 1:00 PM
PITTSBURGH AT DETROIT, 1:00 PM
BALTIMORE AT GREEN BAY, 1:00 PM
L.A. RAMS AT HOUSTON, 1:00 PM
MINNESOTA AT PHILADELPHIA, 1:00 PM
L.A. CHARGERS AT DALLAS, 4:00 PM
N.Y. GIANTS AT N.Y. JETS, 7:30 PM
CLEVELAND AT SEATTLE, 10:00 PM
SUNDAY, AUGUST 25:
TENNESSEE AT NEW ORLEANS, 2:00 PM
ARIZONA AT DENVER, 4:30 PM
NEW ENGLAND AT WASHINGTON (NBC), 8:00 PM
NFL WEEK ONE SCHEDULE
THURSDAY, SEPT. 5
- BALTIMORE RAVENS AT KANSAS CITY CHIEFS, 8:20 P.M. ET (NBC)
FRIDAY, SEPT. 6
- GREEN BAY PACKERS VS. PHILADELPHIA EAGLES (IN SÃO PAULO, BRAZIL), 8:15 P.M. ET (PEACOCK)
SUNDAY, SEPT. 8
- PITTSBURGH STEELERS AT ATLANTA FALCONS, 1 P.M. ET (FOX)
- ARIZONA CARDINALS AT BUFFALO BILLS, 1 P.M. ET (CBS)
- TENNESSEE TITANS AT CHICAGO BEARS, 1 P.M. ET (FOX)
- NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS AT CINCINNATI BENGALS, 1 P.M. ET (CBS)
- HOUSTON TEXANS AT INDIANAPOLIS COLTS, 1 P.M. ET (CBS)
- JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS AT MIAMI DOLPHINS, 1 P.M. ET (CBS)
- CAROLINA PANTHERS AT NEW ORLEANS SAINTS, 1 P.M. ET (FOX)
- MINNESOTA VIKINGS AT NEW YORK GIANTS, 1 P.M. ET (FOX)
- LAS VEGAS RAIDERS AT LOS ANGELES CHARGERS, 4:05 P.M. ET (CBS)
- DENVER BRONCOS AT SEATTLE SEAHAWKS, 4:05 P.M. ET (CBS)
- DALLAS COWBOYS AT CLEVELAND BROWNS, 4:25 P.M. ET (CBS)
- WASHINGTON COMMANDERS AT TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS, 4:25 P.M. ET (FOX)
- LOS ANGELES RAMS AT DETROIT LIONS, 8:20 P.M. ET (NBC)
MONDAY, SEPT. 9
- NEW YORK JETS AT SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS, 8:15 P.M. ET (ESPN/ABC)
TOP NATIONAL HEADLINES/NEWS RELEASES
COLLEGE FOOTBALL NEWS
AS COLLEGE FOOTBALL EVOLVES, SO DOES THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PLAYERS AND THEIR CEO-LIKE COACHES
Ra’Shaad Samples was a reticent and newly appointed student-assistant, shagging balls at practice with a group of wide receivers who were recently his teammates, when he received one of his first important lessons about coaching.
“Ra’Shaad, you have to talk to coach,” Samples recalls then-Houston coach Tom Herman yelling at him from across a practice field.
The 29-year-old Samples has come a long way since. Now heading into his first season as running backs coach at No. 3 Oregon, he has made stops at Texas, SMU, TCU, the Los Angeles Rams — where he was the youngest position coach in the NFL — and Arizona State.
This tumultuous and uncertain period of college football, with rules about player compensation and transfers seemingly changing every six months, has made more than a few coaches — including Nick Saban — question whether the job is really for them anymore.
For younger coaches like Samples — the potential head coaches of the future — evolution is everything. The 30-something head coaches Samples has worked for — the Rams’ Sean McVay, Arizona State’s Kenny Dillingham and now Oregon’s Dan Lanning — have taught him: It’s not about keeping up with trends, but being a trendsetter.
“I actually think about that all the time,” Samples said. “I think the most important part of staying competitive in college football is fluidity and being able to change with the times.”
In the past that meant being willing to try new offensive and defensive schemes, incorporating social media into a recruiting strategy or embracing fourth-down analytics.
Now, as college football becomes more like the pros, the fundamental relationship between player and coach is changing. As is a program’s organizational chart. Recruiting is becoming more transactional and talent retention is as important — if not more so — than talent acquisition.
College football head coaches have long been compared to CEOs of large companies, but as these operations grow the need to reliniquish or delegate control increases — but how much?
“Some coaches are way more hands on than others, but there are so many more hats (to wear) I think the quality of help that you have is really important in hiring good people and being excited and surprised with how they do their job,” said the 38-year-old Lanning, who is 22-5 in two seasons leading the Ducks. “But I also know that if it’s important to me as a head coach, I better be involved in it in some way. And if I’m not, then it’s probably not going to be to the standard.”
Dollars and sense
Since 2021, when the NCAA lifted its ban on athletes using their names, images and likenesses to earn money, millions of dollars have flowed to major college football players through booster-supported NIL collectives.
The next evolution of college sports is revenue-sharing with athletes.
“There’s a business relationship that has to be had between players and coaches now that didn’t exist,” Samples said.
Dillingham, who at 34 is the youngest head coach in major college football, said money doesn’t change everything. Where a player decides to play is still often a decision made with parents and loved ones, weighing an assortment of factors that NFL players do not.
“So, it’s how do you manage 18- to 22-year olds?” Dillingham said. “That’ll never change regardless of how much money the kids make. May there be more obstacles with it? Yes.”
Relationships still matter in recruiting, Lanning said.
“I think parents and players are protecting their best interests and not going to hurt themselves by going to a place, but they’re certainly not picking just a place that gives them the best deal,” Lanning said. “It’s about the relationship to get a seat at the table.”
Still, with players now able to switch schools easier than ever before, those connections need to be made more quickly to either attract transfers or to keep the players you have from leaving.
“We talk about how do you microwave the relationship process?” said Herman, who is in his second season as head coach at FAU.
Dillingham said: “For years it was how do I get somebody in the door. And now it’s how do I get somebody to stay in the house. And those are two different models.”
Samples, a former blue-chip recruit from Dallas whose father, Reginald, is a Texas high school coaching legend, has a reputation as an ace recruiter. As an assistant under Sonny Dykes, Ra’Shaad Samples was key in helping SMU sign its best class in decades in 2021.
“His gift is his relatability,” Herman said. “His gift is his relationships.”
True CEO
Major college football teams are already transitioning to NFL-style personnel departments, hiring general managers and staffers whose sole focus is scouting and roster management. Some are dabbling in salary cap management, too, with an eye toward the looming revenue-sharing system.
Herman said he could see a future where, just like in the NFL, a GM moves above the coach on a college program’s org chart.
As the organization grows, a head coach’s role will be more focused on tying the different aspects together.
“I think you’re going to truly have to make it a CEO model and develop branches of governing your program,” Samples said. “I think more than ever, the head coach’s job outside of Xs and Os is going to be able to create systems and implement systems and implement playbooks, not just for the offense or the defense, but implement playbooks for player development.”
Dillingham talks about spotting trends and building upon them. It’s not enough to be a step ahead.
“Everybody looks for what’s next?” Samples said. “What’s the answer to what’s next? You know, what’s next after what’s next?”
COLLEGE FOOTBALL PREVIEW-BIG 10: MICHIGAN STATE
PICK SIX
What a difference a decade makes. For the 10-year anniversary of the 2013 Rose Bowl team, Michigan State brought back the team and head coach Mark Dantonio to the sidelines of Spartan Stadium. Aside from the helmets, this program is completely unrecognizable from those golden years. They went away from what worked under Dantonio: player development, nation-best defense, elite secondaries, and the so-called “Little Brother” chip on their shoulder. The Mel Tucker hire changed the identity towards national recruiting – and away from the MI, OH, Rust Belt region – and while they brought more flash and higher-rated classes on paper, it didn’t translate onto the field. Tucker’s 11-win 2021 season turned out to be anomaly in hindsight, but it was impactful enough for the school to give him a 10-year extension and one of the biggest contracts in college football history. 14 games later he was fired, with cause, due to off-field conduct. The on-field performance in 2023 was the proverbial rock bottom for Michigan State football. After Tucker was fired, they lost six straight games and finished with consecutive losing seasons for the first time since 2005-06. Against Washington, the defense allowed 713 yards. The offense only mustered up 55 yards against Penn State. Both are all-time worst performances in 127 years of Spartan football. The Big Ten East was once a “Big Four” with Michigan State competing toe-to-toe with Ohio State, Penn State, and Michigan. That is no longer the situation, and they lost to all three by a combined score of 129-3. Michigan State lured away one of the sport’s most respected head coaches from his alma mater, and Jonathan Smith brings them a chance for a full program reset. Back to the Big Ten fundamentals: power football, ball control, big offensive lines, stout defense, and yes, elite player development. Smith calls it “Low Ego, High Output.” At Oregon State, not only were they at a recruiting disadvantage against the West Coast big spenders, but they also dwelled in the shadows of their in state mega-brand rival. Quietly but consistently, Smith built Oregon State into a physical force. He inherited a program that was 7-29 in the three years prior, and then in full seasons he steadily built from 2 wins, to 5, to 7, and then the school’s third 10-win season ever. The perfect representation of Smith’s program: they rallied from 27 points down to beat Oregon – and did so without attempting a single pass. OFFENSE Smith brought plenty of Oregon State players with him along with six coaches – none more important than the offensive duo of coordinator Brian Lindgren and offensive line guru Jim Michalczik. He also brought his franchise quarterback from Corvallis. Aidan Chiles was a near-five-star recruit, got significant game experience as a true freshman, and comes in as the #2 rated quarterback in the entire transfer portal. Chiles has a big 6’3 frame and brings knowledge of the system after getting a few drives per game last season as the backup behind DJ Uiagalelei. All three of Michigan State’s quarterbacks – original starter Noah Kim, his replacement Katin Houser, and Sam Leavitt – have departed, and Smith signed a veteran in three-year FCS starter Tommy Schuster from North Dakota. 84 The run game is completely broken here, but the Oregon State crew pulled off a similar miracle in Corvallis. Not including the Kenneth Walker explosion in 2021, Tucker’s rushing offenses ranked 122nd, 110th, and 125th nationally. Last year’s output of 90 yards/game was the program’s worst rushing attack since they began tracking in 1947. All three running backs return with former UConn transfer Nate Carter as the workhorse and Jalen Berger and Jaren Mangham both coming off of injuries. The backs will go as far as the offensive line allows, and last year it ranked second-worst in my OL Run Push metric – in front of only Iowa. Three full-time starters depart but Michalczik brought a starter with him off of his Joe Moore Award semifinalist line. At Oregon State, Tanner Miller earned second-team All-America honors from ESPN and will be an impact starter here right away. The staff also added an FCS All-American in Luke Newman (Holy Cross). Left tackle Brandon Baldwin was a full-year starter and after spring ball they added Andrew Dennis, the #3 rated interior lineman transfer this cycle. Michigan State lost Jayden Reed to the pros, and then had their best playmaker Keon Coleman poached by Florida State. Without them, there was no game-changer in the pass game and not a single receiver posted a 100-yard game all season. Two starters, Montorie Foster and Jaron Glover, do return but this position needs growth. The staff signed a four-star Nick Marsh but interestingly didn’t add a single transfer here. Oregon State tight end touchdown record-holder Jack Velling is an instant boost, and they also have a former four-star Brennan Parachek moving up the depth chart with Maliq Carr gone.
DEFENSE Smith would have wanted to bring his defensive coordinator too, but Trent Bray took over the head coach spot at Oregon State. Instead he hired Joe Rossi away from Minnesota where he built consecutive Top 25 defenses in 2021 and 2022. They have just as much repair work on this side of the ball, as Michigan State ranked in the bottom ten of my opponent-adjusted defense numbers. They were even worse against the pass, placing third-worst in all of Power 5. Pass defense has been a recurring nation-worst problem here which is a far cry from Dantonio’s top-rated “No Fly Zone” a decade ago. Rossi’s transition defense will at least be comprised of veteran players as they return both linebackers, three of six defensive linemen, and five of six defensive backs. Cal Haladay led the team in tackles for a third straight season but is getting pushed by two incoming transfers Jordan Turner (Wisconsin) and Wayne Matthews (Old Dominion) who was ranked as the #4 transfer linebacker this cycle. Four-star Jordan Hall took over a starting backer role as a true freshman last year and this group is the strength of the defense. From 2011-2018 Michigan State’s rush defense ranked in the national top ten six out of eight years. They were nowhere near that the past two seasons placing 101st in 2022 and 68th in 2023. The best pass rusher Zion Young transferred out to Missouri and the top two tackles Simeon Barrow and Derrick Harmon both left. Maverick Hansen is the last man standing in the middle, defensive end Khris Bogle returns for a sixth college season, and former four-star Jalen Thompson took over a starting spot last year. The entire secondary is back but it’s a group that needs improvement. Chance Rucker started as a true freshman at corner, Dillon Tatum returns to the other corner, and late addition Ed Woods (Arizona State) will push them both. Safety Malik Spencer returns along with do-it-all nickel Angelo Grose who is the veteran of the secondary after four seasons.
OUTLOOK Michigan State hit rock bottom last season and now the rebuild begins. They hired a guy who fixed a broken Oregon State program and brought them to the AP Top 10 with far fewer resources than their peers. While they struggled in every area last year, at least Smith’s rebuild is jump-started by a veteran defense, impact offensive transfers, and proven coaches and coordinators. It will be another year in the league’s bottom five, but they will at least rise out of last place.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL PREVIEW-BIG 10: ILLINOIS
PICK SIX
In 2022 Illinois’ eight-win campaign was led by the best statistical pass defense in FBS since the peak Alabama dynasty over a decade ago. In the months following the season, momentum was stunted as defensive coordinator Ryan Walters took the head coaching job at cross-division rival Purdue, and not one, but three of those defensive backs were drafted in the first 70 picks of the NFL Draft. Expectedly, the pass defense collapsed. In my opponent-adjusted pass defense metric, Illinois fell from #1 to #58 of 70 Power 5 teams for the largest year-over-year decline in the nation. That led to a collapse on the scoreboard too, as they fell from #1 in scoring defense all the way to #96 in FBS – a two touchdown per game drop from 13 to 29 points allowed per game. In the tight-margin Big Ten West, this sent Illinois into a series of one score games and their mistake-filled football caught up to them. Illinois was the only Power 5 team to finish in the national bottom ten in both turnover margin and penalties/game. The end result was a drop from 8-5 to 5-7, a Big Ten West flip from 5-1 to 1-5, and the second missed bowl season in three years for head coach Bret Bielema. While the 2023 win total signals a step back, the overall three-year job by Bielema has been a net positive for Illinois. He’s posted the school’s best three-year start to a tenure since John Mackovic 1988-1990, has demonstrated the ability to hire quality coordinators, and has improved the recruiting profile by actually focusing on the home state unlike the prior staff. Arguably more important in the new free-transfer, NIL world, is roster retention. Bielema constantly talks about the importance of retention, and has backed it up. Last cycle he, the staff, and their collective convinced six draftable players to return to Champaign for a final season. All six earned All-Big Ten honors and Johnny Newton was named a first-team All-American. That is quite the “recruiting” haul, and signals how important retention is for this developmental program.
OFFENSE 86 The defensive back trio wasn’t the only missing piece from the 2022 team. Workhorse 1,600-yard back Chase Brown went pro and left a giant void in the backfield, and caused coordinator Barry Lunney to shift more towards a pass-first offense. Luckily, Illinois hit again from the quarterback transfer market, this time bringing in a pair of signal callers who eventually started games in 2023. Luke Altmyer was a blue-chip recruit from Ole Miss and John Paddock was an experienced starter from Ball State. Altmyer had some growing pains early on but led two game-winning drives before getting injured in November. Then Paddock stepped up to start the final three games – his 507-yard explosion helped Illinois out-pace Indiana. Both guys finished in the Big Ten’s top six in QB Rating, and Altmyer now benefits from a second-year starter bonus in 2024. He flashed very high upside, evidenced by his Big Ten ranks in scramble yards (#1) and deep passes (#2), but he also threw 10 interceptions and fumbled four times. Without Brown, five running backs got carries and all five missed time with injuries. This was just the second time in Bielema’s career that his offense did not feature a 1,000-yard back. Reggie Love and Kaden Feagin combined for 1,000, Love transferred to Purdue, and Feagin appears ready for the full workload in 2024. In his three games as the lead back, he averaged 100+ yards/game and notched three touchdowns while flashing both physicality and explosiveness. Lunney’s offense will go as far as his offensive line will allow. They were poor again in pass protection (112th nationally) allowing sacks on 10% of pass attempts. Even worse, they must replace both starting tackles Julian Pearl and All-Big Ten Isaiah Adams. Josh Kreutz is back at center and is their strongest lineman going forward. Super-recruit Zy Crisler struggled at tackle but finished strong at right guard and will start there again this fall. The staff hit the portal and added two Power 5 linemen – Kevin Wigenton (Michigan State) and Melvin Priestly (Georgia) – but it’s non-AQ JC Davis (New Mexico) that drew a Top 10 transfer OL ranking and is a projected starter at tackle. Since he started as a head coach in 2006, Bret Bielema has produced the second-most NFL draft pick offensive linemen, trailing only Nick Saban. Bank on him and the staff to fix the line in 2024. There is more change at the skill positions as Illinois loses its top two wide receivers and top tight end. Isaiah Williams was originally a top-rated quarterback recruit, switched to receiver, and ended up posting the school’s seventh 1,000-yard season and first All-Big Ten first-team receiver honor since 2011. Even with his first two years spent at quarterback, Williams leaves Champaign in second place all-time in receptions (214) and fifth in receiving yards (2,304). Casey Washington is also gone after finishing in the league’s top ten. Pat Bryant steps into the lead receiver role after a productive 560-yard season; his seven touchdowns placed in the league’s top five. Malik Elzy and Kenari Wilcher combined for just ten catches last year but both rising sophomores move into starting roles for 2024.
DEFENSE Devon Witherspoon, Sydney Brown, and Quan Martin left a crater in the secondary, and their replacements struggled with coverage breakdowns, penalties, and injuries in 2023. Returning starter Tahveon Nicholson ended up leading the nation in penalties and safeties Matthew Bailey and Demetrius Hill were sidelined with injuries. The secondary’s underperformance impacted new defensive coordinator Aaron Henry’s playcalling. Since the base coverage couldn’t be trusted, he rarely brought blitzes or extra pressures which led a massive drop in my Negative Play Rate (Top 25 in 2022 to Bottom 10 in 2023) which tracks disruption in the backfield. Even Bielema said the defense needed to be more aggressive, and I think you’ll see that in Henry’s second year. Xavier Scott earned All-Big Ten honorable mention after leading the league in pass breakups from the nickel spot, the injured safeties will be back for fall camp, and Tyler Strain is a veteran at the nickel spot. Nicholson transferred out to Louisville and this unit needs to improve in 2024. Keep an eye on summer addition Terrance Brooks (Texas), a former Top100 recruit. Instead of a secondary rebuild, this year the change occurs in the trenches as Illinois says goodbye to two program stars. Johnny Newton was named a consensus first-team All-American and Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and led all FBS defensive linemen with 44 pressures – mostly facing double-teams all season. He also blocked a nation-best four kicks in 2023. Keith Randolph posted a third all-league season and this pair is a major loss of firepower. Starting nose tackle Denzel Daxon and top rotational lineman Bryce Barnes add to the attrition up front. The linebacker core will need to be the strength, and Seth Coleman was a key piece that the staff was able to retain for a bonus year. Coleman’s six sacks in Big Ten games ranked second, and Gabe Jacas rounded into form late last season to create an outside duo to build around. Tackle-leader Dylan Rosiek and Kenenna Odeluga also return in the middle. James Kreutz is surging up the depth chart and can challenge for a starting job in the fall.
OUTLOOK In 2023 they had to replace three elite defensive backs and their ace coordinator. This time around Illinois loses their two giants on the defensive line, top two offensive linemen, and their do-it-all receiver. Bielema is a great program builder but talent-wise they are barely treading water in this super-conference.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL PREVIEW-BIG 10: NORTHWESTERN
PICK SIX
12 short months ago, the Northwestern football program was completely broken. On the field, their previous two seasons were total failures with a combined 4-20 record and an 11-game losing streak heading into 2023. Off the field, it was even worse. Former star linebacker and long-time head coach Pat Fitzgerald was suspended and then ousted after hazing and abuse allegations spread in the summer. So Northwestern entered the 2023 season with the lowest win projection, the least talented roster on paper, and a first-time head coach as new defensive coordinator David Braun was vaulted into the head role just months before kickoff. Even the most loyal Wildcat supporters were forecasting another two or three win season at best. And then out of nowhere, Northwestern rose from the ashes like a phoenix. While it occurred outside of ESPN’s Playoff-or-Bust bubble, this was arguably the best coaching job in all of college football. Against the strongest headwinds, Braun repaired the locker room, refocused the team, developed his players, redesigned the defense, and then it clicked on the scoreboard. Northwestern improved from 1-11 to 8-5, and that seven-win jump was the best in FBS from 2022 to 2023. My opponent-adjusted Game Grader paints a similar story, as Northwestern jumped up to #42 after consecutive #68 (of 70 Power 5) seasons for the biggest jump among Big Ten teams and a top five improvement nationally. With virtually the same roster that had lost 17 of 18 games, Braun rattled off wins over Big Ten West foes. Northwestern rallied from a 31-10 deficit to beat Minnesota, suffocated Wisconsin 24-10, beat Purdue 23-15, and out-paced Illinois 45-43. In the final year of Ryan Field, the team gave fans field storming excitement not just once, but twice. Then they hit the jackpot in Vegas, beating Utah and putting an exclamation point on a special revival season for the program. Braun became the first head coach here since 1903 to win at least five games in his debut season. His defense was the main driver of change and success, and as such, he was rewarded with the removal of the interim tag heading into 2024 and beyond. Now the attention shifts to the off-field talent acquisition game, where Northwestern has historically had limitations in high school recruiting, and now faces academic hurdles in the transfer market. Braun’s initial recruiting class ranked just #79 nationally – second-worst in the new 18-team Big Ten – and the portal offered no help as they placed dead last in the transfer class rankings. 2023 was already a miracle. With no sign of a talent infusion, Braun may need to pull off another one to sustain, much less build off of, that initial success.
OFFENSE Braun hired a former opponent to run his offense. 28-year-old Zach Lujan was in charge of South Dakota State’s offense the past two seasons and the resume speaks for itself: two national titles, a 29-1 record, and FCS Coordinator of the Year. Even Braun’s North Dakota State dynasty struggled against him, and the Dakota Marker has shifted to the Jackrabbits as they have won five straight in the rivalry. Lujan’s two offenses averaged over 34+ points per game, and did so with a run-heavy scheme, sharp fundamentals, pre-snap motion, Run-Pass Option, designed quarterback runs, two or three tight end formations, and a stout offensive line. 88 At a quick glance, the strengths of Lujan’s offense are missing on the current Northwestern roster. They are lacking a dual-threat quarterback, the tight end room doesn’t have the top-end depth, and the offensive line was one of the nation’s worst in 2023. Ben Bryant transferred in from Cincinnati and helped improve the pass game after nation-lows in 2022. He completed 63% of passes and placed seventh in the Big Ten in QB Rating. Brendan Sullivan got a handful of starts as a true freshman in 2022, and did so again last year when Bryant was out with an injury. He matched Bryant’s completion percentage and actually posted a higher QB Rating while adding more elusiveness in the pocket. They went 2-2 with Sullivan as the starter, and the Howard win almost became another embarrassing FCS loss. In the two losses to Nebraska and Iowa, Northwestern posted just one touchdown and lost both by one score. In a post-spring shocker, projected starter Sullivan transferred out to Iowa, leaving behind a fall camp battle between longtime veteran Ryan Hilinski or May addition Mike Wright who has stated games at Vanderbilt and Mississippi State but has very little time to learn the playbook. The offensive line deserves their fair share of the blame. The loss of All-American Peter Skoronski was felt all year, and Northwestern finished in the national bottom ten in both line stats. They allowed a sack on 13% of pass plays (128th nationally) and ranked just 122nd in my OL Run Push number. Three starters return – Josh Thompson, Caleb Tiernan, Ben Wrather – but their best lineman Josh Priebe transferred to Michigan after gaining all-league honors. The staff did add Colorado starting guard Jack Bailey, but this unit needs serious improvement. Cam Porter returned to his 2021 form as the workhorse starting running back and led with 651 yards. He will return as the starter for a third season in 2024, backup Anthony Tyus transferred out to Ohio, and Joseph Himon will get an increased role after flashing explosiveness last year. Last cycle, Northwestern added two key receivers from the portal and in total this position was much improved. Cam Johnson (Arizona State) and AJ Henning (Michigan) joined Bryce Kirtz to form a dynamic trio that had been missing here for years. Johnson departs but the other two return for 2024, Reggie Fleurima is a former four-star, and Calvin Johnson was in the rotation last year. The tight ends were underutilized here last year, which contrasts with Lujan’s TE-heavy style.
DEFENSE As if he didn’t already have enough on his plate, Braun doubled as the defensive coordinator last year. His first unit improved in all of my defensive stats, most notably jumps into the Top 40 in scoring and yards per play. Statistically, it looked “bend but don’t break” given their poor completion percentage and lack of disruption in the backfield paired with a Top 10 mark in limiting explosive plays. Braun promoted linebackers coach Tim McGarigle to defensive coordinator. McGarigle was a star linebacker here in the 2000s and still holds the FBS record for career tackles (545) – he has been pivotal as a coach here churning out tackle-machines every year since 2018. The unquestioned star of the defense is returning for a final season. Linebacker Xander Mueller earned third-team All Big Ten honors, posted 110 tackles, five sacks, three picks and came up with timely plays all year. His co-star, tackle machine Bryce Gallagher heads to the pros, but the rest of the front seven returns intact. All four starting linemen are back, plus rising star Anto Saka. Defensive end Aidan Hubbard is the star up front and his three-sack performance helped flip the Maryland game to a win. The staff must replace both starting corners – Rod Heard and Garnett Hollis – who were both standouts last year. The safety duo of Devin Turner and Coco Azema returns.
OUTLOOK Braun’s debut was impressive but it will be even more difficult to stack a consecutive winning season after a double coordinator switch and no sign of talent infusion from the high school ranks or the transfer portal. They were statistically worse than their record would indicate, and with a tougher schedule, that will revert back toward the bottom of the league.
NFL NEWS
REPORT: BENGALS OT D’ANTE SMITH INJURES PATELLA TENDON
Cincinnati Bengals offensive tackle D’Ante Smith injured his patella tendon on Thursday and is likely out for the season, ESPN reported Friday.
Smith was carted off after suffering the injury during Cincinnati’s joint practice Thursday with the Chicago Bears.
Roughly 10 minutes before Smith went down, Bengals running back Chris Evans tore his patella tendon. Evans, a fourth-year veteran, will miss the season.
Smith, 26, has appeared in three regular season games — including one start — for Cincinnati, which selected him out of East Carolina in the fourth round of the 2021 draft.
Smith was active for eight games last season but never saw playing time. He last appeared for the Bengals in the 2023 AFC Championship Game, according to the team’s website.
Cincinnati’s offensive line depth was already shaky after rookie first-rounder Amarius Mims strained his pectoral muscle, which will keep him out for several weeks.
The Bengals continue preseason play against the Bears in Chicago on Saturday.
–Field Level Media
SAINTS OT TALIESE FUAGA (BACK) MISSES PRACTICE
The New Orleans Saints’ top draft pick this year, offensive tackle Taliese Fuaga, missed practice Friday because of back tightness but should be ready for the regular season, coach Dennis Allen said.
Fuaga had left practice Thursday in Irvine, Calif., before any team drills took place. The rookie has been starting at left tackle after playing right tackle at Oregon State, where he was a first-team All-America selection in 2023. Landon Young filled in at left tackle for Fuaga on Thursday.
“Looked to me like prior to even starting practice, looked to me like he was kind of stretching his back out a little bit,” Allen said of Fuaga on Thursday. “I would say this, I would say if he is a healthy body and capable of playing, then he’ll play in the game. And if he’s not, he won’t. But I really have no idea right now. The only thing I know is that he had some back tightness.”
The Saints selected Fuaga with the 14th overall pick in April.
Wide receiver and kick and punt returner Rashid Shaheed also didn’t practice Friday because of a toe or foot injury, Allen said.
Shaheed had been dealing with a hamstring injury before recently returning to full practice. Allen did not indicate if Shaheed would play in the Saints’ preseason game Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers in Santa Clara, Calif.
Shaheed, 25, has caught 74 passes for 1,207 yards and seven touchdowns in 27 games (14 starts) in two seasons with New Orleans. He went to the Pro Bowl and was selected first-team All-Pro in 2023 as a punt returner. He returned 25 punts for 339 yards, a 13.6-yard average, including one touchdown.
The Saints open the regular season Sept. 8 in New Orleans against the Carolina Panthers.
–Field Level Media
BILLS QB JOSH ALLEN, STARTERS TO PLAY MORE THAN QUARTER VS. STEELERS
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen and many of the team’s other healthy starters will play approximately a quarter and a half in a preseason game against the host Pittsburgh Steelers on Saturday.
Bills coach Sean McDermott was none too pleased about his team’s performance in its first preseason game, saying that it was not up to “our standard” in a 33-6 setback to the Chicago Bears.
Allen completed 2 of 3 passes for 22 yards and had one carry for seven yards in one quarter of action last Saturday. He was replaced by Mitchell Trubisky.
Buffalo wraps up its preseason against the Carolina Panthers on Aug. 24.
–Field Level Media
BENGALS K EVAN MCPHERSON AGREES TO 3-YEAR EXTENSION
Cincinnati Bengals kicker Evan McPherson agreed to terms on a three-year, $16.5 million contract extension, his representation announced Friday.
Per Sportstars Inc., McPherson will pocket $10 million in the first year of the deal.
McPherson, who was set to enter the final year of his rookie contract, has proven to be money in the postseason. He has made all 19 of his field goal-attempts — including three from at least 50 yards — during seven playoff games.
McPherson, 25, made 26 of 31 field-goal attempts and all 40 extra-point tries last season. He has made 83.9 percent of his field-goal attempts and 95.5 percent of his extra-point tries during his three-year career with the Bengals, who selected him in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft out of Florida.
–Field Level Media
BASEBALL NEWS
MLB ROUNDUP: RED SOX TOP O’S IN 12-10 SLUGFEST
Masataka Yoshida smashed a three-run home run in Boston’s four-run fourth inning and the visiting Red Sox went on to beat the Baltimore Orioles 12-10 on Friday night.
Rafael Devers, Jarren Duran and David Hamilton also homered for the Red Sox, who snapped a two-game skid. Yoshida and Duran each had three of Boston’s 14 hits. Yoshida had four RBIs, and Duran scored three runs.
Ramon Urias went 3-for-3 with a two-run home run and finished with five RBIs and Jackson Holliday had four hits for the Orioles, who fell despite compiling 17 hits and dropped a game behind the American League East-leading New York Yankees.
O’s ace Corbin Burnes (12-5), who was the AL starter in the All-Star Game, lasted only four innings, allowing career highs in runs (eight) and hits (10) with three walks. He struck out seven.
Cubs 6, Blue Jays 5 (10 innings)
Seiya Suzuki’s single in the 10th inning scored Ian Happ as Chicago beat Toronto at Wrigley Field.
The Cubs took a commanding 5-2 lead into the 9th inning, but the Blue Jays loaded the bases with one out against Hector Neris. After a run scored when Neris was called for a balk, George Springer tied the game with a two-run triple.
Chicago hit four homers to account for its first 5 runs, three of them off Toronto starter Yariel Rodriguez. Tyson Miller (4-1) pitched a scoreless 10th inning for the win.
Yankees, 3, Tigers 0
Aaron Judge hit his 44th home run, Gerrit Cole pitched six strong innings as visiting New York defeated Detroit.
Judge, who hit his 300th career homer in the Yankees’ previous game Wednesday against the Chicago White Sox, blasted a solo shot in the eighth inning over the center field wall at an estimated 431 feet.
Oswald Peraza supplied a home run in his first major league appearance this season, while Cole (4-2) held the Tigers to four hits while recording eight strikeouts. Clay Holmes struck out two in the ninth for his 26th save.
Royals 7, Reds 1
Bobby Witt Jr. hit his 25th home run, Michael Lorenzen allowed one run in his return to Cincinnati and Kansas City beat Reds to open a three-game interleague series.
Witt added a double and single to raise his major league-leading batting average to .352. The All-Star shortstop also scored three runs for Kansas City, which has won consecutive games for the first time since winning five straight from July 29-Aug. 2. Vinnie Pasquantino added a three-run home run in the ninth.
Tyler Stephenson doubled twice on his 28th birthday and had the lone RBI for Cincinnati, which had its four-game win streak snapped. Nick Martinez (6-6) allowed three runs on eight hits and walked none while fanning four over six innings.
Rays 5, Diamondbacks 4
Jonny DeLuca scored from first base on a single and an error in the bottom of the ninth inning as Tampa Bay notched a walk-off win over Arizona in St. Petersburg, Fla.
On first base with two outs against reliever Justin Martinez (5-3), DeLuca raced to third after Brandon Lowe’s single was deflected into shallow center by second baseman Blaze Alexander. Center fielder Jake McCarthy failed to pick up the ball barehanded, and DeLuca sprinted in to end the Rays’ three-game losing streak and the Diamondbacks’ six-game winning streak.
With the Diamondbacks down to their last strike in the top of the ninth, Corbin Carroll launched his 12th homer, a two-run shot to right, to tie the game.
Phillies 3, Nationals 2
After Washington scratched across a pair of runs in the top of the ninth inning to forge a tie, Trea Turner capped a four-hit performance with a walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the frame to give Philadelphia the victory.
The Phillies loaded the bases before Turner plated Brandon Marsh with an RBI single to left field. Turner recorded his second straight strong performance after collecting three hits, two runs and two RBIs in Philadelphia’s rout of the Nationals on Thursday.
Carlos Estevez (2-4) was credited with the win despite permitting two runs on three hits in one inning. Phillies starter Aaron Nola tossed 6 2/3 scoreless innings, scattering seven hits and two walks while striking out four.
Pirates 5, Mariners 3
Pittsburgh got six effective innings from Paul Skenes and scored five unanswered runs to help snap a 10-game skid with a win against visiting Seattle.
Skenes (7-2) allowed two runs on three hits, struck out six and walked four to earn his first win since July 11. Pirates reliever David Bednar gave up a leadoff home run to Jorge Polanco in the ninth but recovered to earn the save.
The Mariners, who have lost four straight, jumped ahead on Luke Raley’s two-run homer in the fourth. Oneil Cruz had two RBIs before exiting with left ankle discomfort, while Pirates teammate Andrew McCutchen collected an RBI before leaving with left knee discomfort.
White Sox 5, Astros 4
Luis Robert Jr. went 4-for-5 with two home runs and four RBIs to carry visiting Chicago to a victory over Houston, snapping the Astros’ eight-game winning streak in the opener of a three-game series.
Robert smacked a two-run home run to left field off Astros rookie right-hander Spencer Arrighetti (5-11) in the third inning and homered again off Arrighetti in the fifth to extend the White Sox to a 4-1 advantage. Garrett Crochet, who allowed one run on four hits in four innings, struck out nine and leads the majors with 12.71 strikeouts per nine innings.
Arrighetti, who amassed 33 strikeouts over his last three starts, allowed four runs on seven hits and two walks with five strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings for the Astros.
Mets 7, Marlins 3
Sean Manaea tossed seven solid innings as New York topped Miami in the opener of a three-game series.
Jeff McNeil and Brandon Nimmo homered in the fourth inning for the Mets, who won for the second time in seven games to ensure they’d remain no more than two games back of the NL’s third wild card. Manaea (9-5) allowed three runs on five hits and one walk while striking out four. He retired eight in a row between the first and the third innings.
Jake Burger homered for the Marlins, who have lost seven of 10. Marlins rookie Roddery Munoz (2-7) took the loss after allowing five runs (four earned) on five hits and three walks while striking out five in 3 1/3 innings.
Brewers 5, Guardians 3
Aaron Civale threw six shutout innings and Willy Adames connected on a three-run homer to push Milwaukee past Cleveland in the opener of a three-game series.
Civale (4-8) allowed four hits, struck out four and walked one, winning back-to-back starts for the first time since July of last season. Civale was drafted by the Guardians in 2016 and played his first 3 1/2 major league seasons with Cleveland. Joel Payamps pitched the ninth for his sixth save for the Brewers, who have won three in a row.
Jose Ramirez and David Fry homered and Will Brennan contributed three hits for the Guardians, who had their five-game winning streak snapped.
Twins 4, Rangers 3
Carlos Santana and Ryan Jeffers each homered, helping lead visiting Minnesota to a win over Texas.
Minnesota starter Simeon Woods Richardson (4-3) went five innings, allowing two runs on three hits to pick up the win. Santana finished with three RBIs for the Twins, who have won four of their last five games.
Wyatt Langford finished 1-for-4 with two RBIs for Texas, which has dropped eight of its last 10 games. Starter Andrew Heaney (4-13) took the loss after 4 1/3 innings of four-run, five-hit ball.
Dodgers 7, Cardinals 6
Kevin Kiermaier hit a three-run homer and an RBI single and Gavin Lux and Mookie Betts also homered as Los Angeles edged St. Louis.
The Dodgers erased a 4-2 deficit with a five-run sixth inning to win for the sixth time in eight games. Starter Justin Wrobleski (1-1) returned from the minors to allow four runs on four hits in five innings, and Michael Kopech struck out two in a 1-2-3 ninth inning to earn his 10th save.
Paul Goldschmidt hit a two-run homer, Pedro Pages hit a solo homer and an RBI single and Masyn Winn also hit a solo shot for the Cardinals, who lost their fifth straight game. Pages’ homer to center field traveled 462 feet, making it the longest homer at Busch Stadium this season.
Rockies 7, Padres 3
Charlie Blackmon homered among his two hits as Colorado cooled off a streaking San Diego squad in Denver.
Brendan Rodgers also went deep for the Rockies and rookie Jordan Beck had three hits to back starter Cal Quantrill’s solid start and end Colorado’s three-game losing streak.
Ha-Seong Kim and Xander Bogaerts homered and Jackson Merrill, Luis Arraez and David Peralta contributed two hits each for the Padres, who are 19-5 in the second half of the season with three of those losses to the two teams with the worst records in the NL, the Marlins and Rockies.
–Field Level Media
WNBA NEWS
CONNECTICUT VISITS ATLANTA FOLLOWING HOWARD’S 30-POINT OUTING
Connecticut Sun (19-6, 10-4 Eastern Conference) at Atlanta Dream (8-17, 3-10 Eastern Conference)
College Park, Georgia; Sunday, 3 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: Atlanta Dream hosts the Connecticut Sun after Rhyne Howard scored 30 points in the Atlanta Dream’s 83-81 victory over the Seattle Storm.
The Dream are 3-10 in Eastern Conference games. Atlanta is third in the Eastern Conference in team defense, giving up 81.2 points while holding opponents to 42.6% shooting.
The Sun have gone 10-4 against Eastern Conference opponents. Connecticut is the best team in the Eastern Conference allowing only 73.6 points per game while holding opponents to 43.7% shooting.
Atlanta is shooting 41.4% from the field this season, 2.3 percentage points lower than the 43.7% Connecticut allows to opponents. Connecticut averages 81.0 points per game, 0.2 fewer than the 81.2 Atlanta gives up to opponents.
The teams play for the fourth time this season. In the last matchup on July 7 the Sun won 80-67 led by 23 points from DeWanna Bonner, while Allisha Gray scored 19 points for the Dream.
TOP PERFORMERS: Gray is averaging 15.6 points for the Dream.
DEWANNA BONNER SCORES 29, MARINA MABREY ADDS 17 AS SUN ROUT WINGS 109-91
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — DeWanna Bonner scored a season-high 29 points, Marina Mabrey added 17 points in her debut for Connecticut and the Sun beat the Dallas Wings 109-91 Friday night in the return to action for both teams after a monthlong break for the Paris Olympics.
Alyssa Thomas had 12 points, 14 assists and eight rebounds for Connecticut (19-6) while Tyasha Harris scored 14 points, Brionna Jones had 12 and Olivia Nelson-Ododa contributed 10 off the bench.
After an 8-0 start by the Wings, Thomas scored Connecticut’s first six points to spark an 11-0 run that was capped by a Bonner 3-pointer. From there, the Sun never trailed again.
Satou Sabally finished with 20 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and two steals in her season debut for Dallas (6-20). The 2023 WNBA Most Improved Player missed the first 25 games of the season due to a shoulder injury sustained while helping Germany qualify for the Olympics.
Arike Ogunbowale led the Wings with 21 points, Natasha Howard scored 17 and had 11 rebounds and Teaira McCowan finished with 12 points and seven boards.
Bonner hit four 3-pointers and moved past Tamika Catchings (606) into eighth on the WNBA’s career made 3-pointers list with 608. Diana Taurasi of the Phoenix Mercury is the all-time leader with 1,421.
Mabrey and Bonner each scored 13 first-half points as Connecticut built a 50-38 lead at the break.
The Sun set a season high for points in a game and scored the most points by a Wings’ opponent this season. Connecticut shot 38 of 66 (57.6%) from the field, tied its season high with 11 made 3-pointers and tied a franchise record with 30 assists.
The Sun acquired Mabrey, who averaged 14 points per game for Chicago this season, on July 17 in exchange for Connecticut’s 2025 first-round pick, guards Rachel Banham and Moriah Jefferson and the right to swap first-round picks in 2026. Connecticut also acquired Chicago’s 2025 second-round pick in the deal.
COLLEGE ATHLETICS
RUTGERS AD PAT HOBBS RESIGNS, CITES HEALTH CONCERNS
Pat Hobbs resigned from his position as Rutgers’ athletic director, multiple outlets reported Friday, while Ryan Pisarri will take over the post on an interim basis.
Hobbs had been the Big Ten’s longest-tenured active athletic director after taking over at Rutgers in 2015. His contract ran through 2028.
The 64-year-old Hobbs cited health concerns for his sudden departure in an email to school president Jonathan Holloway.
“After meeting with my cardiac team this week and having just been apprised of the results of my latest round of testing, it is clear that I can not continue to serve as Athletic Director given the requirements of the position,” Hobbs wrote.
“I recognize this is not the ideal timeframe to depart, however other factors need to take precedence.”
Hobbs played a role in the resurgence of Rutgers men’s basketball when he hired current head coach Steve Pikiell in 2016 from Stony Brook.
Pikiell guided the Scarlet Knights to the NCAA Tournament in 2021 and 2022, the program’s first back-to-back tournament bids since 1975-76.
Hobbs also brought back football coach Greg Schiano, who left Rutgers after the 2011 season to coach the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, while later serving on the staff at Ohio State.
The Scarlet Knights have gone 19-28 with a 9-27 mark in Big Ten play since Schiano returned in 2020. They went 7-6 last year to notch their first winning season since 2014.
Hobbs addressed the school’s athletic staff in an internal note.
“It has been an honor and a privilege to serve with you. I look forward to enjoying all your success this season and in the years ahead,” he said.
Pisarri, 40, has worked with Rutgers’ athletic staff since 2011. He most recently served as deputy athletic director.
–Field Level Media
GOLF NEWS
TALOR GOOCH PART OF THREE-WAY LEAD AT LIV GREENBRIER
Talor Gooch holed out for an eagle during a bogey-free, 7-under-par 63 to share the first-round lead at LIV Greenbrier with Smash GC teammate Jason Kokrak and Colombia’s Sebastian Munoz on Friday in White Sulphur Springs, W.V.
Gooch, Kokrak and Munoz hold a one-shot edge over Brooks Koepka, Jon Rahm of Spain, Matt Jones of Australia and Richard Bland of England after 18 holes at The Greenbrier resort, which used to host a PGA Tour stop.
Koepka’s Smash GC had a day to remember, as Kokrak, Gooch and Koepka combined to score 20 under to take a four-stroke lead in the team competition. Rahm’s Legion XIII is tied for second with Ripper GC, which counts Jones among its members.
“It’s always nice to look up there (at the leaderboard) and see everybody,” Koepka said. “I think (fourth team member John Catlin) got off to a pretty good start, and then next thing I know, next leaderboard, I think (Kokrak) was 5 under. Then the next time I see Gooch at 7. It was always fun to look at the leaderboard because you never know what was going to happen.”
Koepka, for his part, put six birdies on his card without a bogey, but the shot of the day belonged to Gooch. He was 2 under when he got to the par-4 fifth hole, and his wedge shot into the green landed past the pin and spun back straight into the cup.
Gooch won the LIV Golf individual title in 2023 but has yet to win an event this season.
“It’s a long tournament. It’s not won in a day,” Gooch said. “It’s always good to have a day where golf is easy. Golf hasn’t been as easy this year as it was last year, so hopefully we can have a couple more easy days coming up.”
Kokrak, who started his round on the 15th hole, had a strong finish with six birdies and one bogey over his last 10 holes.
“As Talor said, golf is a fickle game,” Kokrak said. “It’s hard to be consistent all the time. This year I kind of started off pretty — I would say solid but not great, and then kind of just fell into a little bit of a slump. I think I found something nice in my golf swing the last week or two, so looking forward to continuing to play well this week and build on that and looking forward to finishing off the year strong.”
Munoz opened with a bogey at No. 7 before piling up eight birdies. Both Kokrak and Munoz are seeking their first win on the Saudi-funded LIV circuit.
Rahm, who earned his maiden LIV victory in his last time out at LIV UK, had a bogey-free round with an eagle at the par-5 12th and four birdies.
The group tied at two off the lead at 5 under features Australians Marc Leishman and Lucas Herbert, Tyrrell Hatton of England, Scott Vincent of Zimbabwe and Caleb Surratt.
–Field Level Media
DENNY MCCARTHY, HIDEKI MATSUYAMA SHARE LEAD AT ST. JUDE
Denny McCarthy made 160 feet of putts on his way to a 7-under-par 63 that rocketed him into a tie for the second-round lead with Hideki Matsuyama of Japan at the FedEx St. Jude Championship on Friday in Memphis, Tenn.
In the first leg of the FedEx Cup playoffs at TPC Southwind, McCarthy and Matsuyama (64) stand at 11-under 129, one stroke ahead of Sam Burns (63) and two in front of World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler (65). Englishman Justin Rose carded a second straight 66 to sit in a tie for fifth at 8 under with Nick Dunlap (65).
McCarthy is known as one of the best putters on tour, but so far that has not translated into any victories. He could become the third player to make a playoff event his maiden PGA Tour title, following Camilo Villegas (2008) and Will Zalatoris (2022).
McCarthy’s highlight birdie putts included a 26-footer for birdie at the par-3 fourth hole; a 28 1/2-footer at the par-3 eighth; and a 32-footer at the par-4 13th.
“Listen, I’ve missed a couple of short ones, too. I think these greens are really tricky in close,” McCarthy said. “They’re really subtle with the grain, hard to find the slope. … So I’ve missed a couple ones I’d like to have back, but they probably all even out with some of the longer ones I make.
“I’m just trying to put, like I said, the same amount of intention and focus on each putt, whether it’s short or long, trying to make it but not trying to ram it 8 feet by.”
McCarthy has been dealing with a labrum injury in his hip.
“It’s bothering me, and I’ve been able to do enough the last few days to push through it,” he said. “Like I said, the heat helps it.”
Matsuyama, who carded seven birdies and one bogey Friday, is also a man dealing with some adversity.
He shares the lead despite his usual caddie and his coach being unable to make the trip to the States. The three were robbed in London before they were set to fly to Memphis, and both his caddie and his coach had their passports stolen.
Matsuyama entered the week No. 8 in the FedEx Cup standings. As things currently sit, he’s projected to jump to third place.
“I like the system, especially where I am at,” Matsuyama said. “It’s a little bit — I don’t know if unfair is the right word, but (Scheffler) deserves to be much further ahead than just two strokes there at the TOUR Championship. With that in mind, it’s tough for him, I think. But for me, I’m enjoying it.”
Burns matched McCarthy and Norway’s Viktor Hovland (7 under, tied for seventh) for the round of the day with his 63. He went birdie-eagle-birdie at Nos. 2-4 on his way to shooting 6-under 29 on the front nine.
“I hit a wedge in there close on 2, hit a good drive on 3 and hit a really good 5-iron close,” Burns said. “Really just was giving myself good looks. Made one from off the green on 6. Other than that, just hit some good shots and was able to make some putts.”
Scheffler’s bogey-free round was looking pedestrian until he rolled in three birdies in a row at Nos. 15-17. The final putt on No. 17 was from nearly 23 feet away.
“I think you’ve got to be playing some really great golf to shoot a low score” at TPC Southwind, Scheffler said. “There’s opportunity out there. The greens aren’t super firm. You can attack when you’re in the fairway. But there’s a good amount of water on the course.”
There are no 36-hole cuts during the playoffs. Among other notables, Xander Schauffele shot a 69 Friday and is tied for 13th at 5 under; Rory McIlroy of Northern Ireland struggled to a 73 and is 1 over; and Jordan Spieth followed an encouraging first-round 68 with a 75 that dropped him to 3 over, in a tie for 65th.
–Field Level Media
SCOTT PAREL HAS PUTTING BREAKTHROUGH, SHOOTS 63 TO LEAD IN CALGARY
Scott Parel fired a 7-under-par 63 to grab the first-round lead at the Rogers Charity Classic on Friday in Calgary.
Parel’s seven-birdie, zero-bogey outing put him one stroke ahead of Wes Short Jr., Scott McCarron and Mario Tiziani, who are tied for second. A large group tied two back at 5-under 65 features New Zealand’s Steven Alker, Ireland’s Padraig Harrington, Spaniard Miguel Angel Jimenez and Boo Weekley.
Parel, 59, hasn’t won on the PGA Tour Champions since April 2022. He hadn’t even broken 70 in his past 20 rounds.
He said his putting had been holding him back until he got a tip from his coach this week.
“My putts, I felt like, were starting right of where I was intending,” Parel said. “(My coach) just said, ‘You know what, your golf swing has been very good, slow tempo, and your putting stroke used to have very good, slow tempo,’ and I got to where … I wasn’t letting the putter get back. I was going through.
“So he said, ‘Just be patient. Just be patient. Let that club get back just like in your golf swing.’ Yeah, so that helped today.”
McCarron turned his round around by making two eagles over his final eight holes, at Nos. 11 and 18, both par-5s. His latter eagle was a putt in the 54-foot range with multiple breaks.
“(The eagle) got a big reaction,” McCarron said. “I kind of walked it in the last 10 feet with the arms raised, so it was kind of cool. It was fun.”
Tiziani started his round on the back nine and birdied his first four holes, adding another at No. 15 for good measure. He finished his day with seven birdies and a single bogey, and he hit 17 of 18 greens in regulation.
“The scores that the elite players are shooting out here, if I think I’m going to win a golf tournament, I think I got to play a little more aggressive,” said Tiziani, who has yet to win on the PGA Tour Champions. “They shoot low scores every round, and I just feel like I have to have that mentality to — not play, you know, out of my comfort zone, but sometimes I think I play a little bit more not to make a mistake, and you’re just not going to win out here playing that way.”
Short also eagled the 11th hole to go with five birdies and one bogey.
Stephen Ames, a Canadian who’s No. 2 in the Charles Schwab Cup points race, shot a 3-under 67. Defending champion Ken Duke opened with a 1-under 69, as did Ernie Els of South Africa, the Charles Schwab Cup leader.
–Field Level Media
TOP INDIANA SPORTS/NEWS RELEASES
COLTS FOOTBALL
HOW TO WATCH THE ARIZONA CARDINALS AT INDIANAPOLIS COLTS
The Indianapolis Colts will host the Arizona Cardinals in the second week of the preseason. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. ET on Saturday, Aug. 17, at Lucas Oil Stadium.
The teams will participate in two joint practices at Grand Park in Westfield this week. Get tickets to Training Camp at Colts.com/camp.
The contest will mark the 13th all-time preseason matchup between the teams, with Colts leading the series 6-5-1. In their last preseason contest, Indianapolis visited the Cardinals and lost, 9-5.
Complete gameday information available at Colts.com/Gameday.
Tickets for Sunday’s game are available at Ticketmaster.com.
For all the ways you can watch, listen and replay Colts games check out Colts.com/WaysToWatch
WATCH ON TV
- Kickoff: 7:00 p.m. ET
- TV coverage: CBS4
- Play-by-Play: Greg Rakestraw
- Analyst: Rick Venturi
- Sideline: Larra Overton
WATCH ON MOBILE
Inside the local broadcast area
Colts fans in the Indianapolis area will be able to stream the game on Colts.com. Look for the ‘Watch Live‘ button at the top of the homepage at kickoff!
➡️ Are You In-Market? Check your local TV listings or broadcast map to confirm availability.
Is there an international stream available?
Colts fans in Germany and Austria will be able to stream the game on Colts.com. Look for the ‘Watch Live‘ button at the top of the homepage at kickoff!
Outside of the broadcast area (US only)
Colts fans can stream LIVE out-of-market preseason games with NFL+ during the month of August, plans starting at $6.99/month. Learn more here.
What else does NFL+ offer?
- Phone & Tablet: Live local and primetime regular season and postseason games
- TV, PC, Phone & Tablet: NFL Network, live game audio, NFL Films’ shows and more on-demand and ad-free!
- NFL+ Premium: Get access to full game replays shortly after the final whistle. All-22 coaches’ film gives you a sideline and endzone view of every player on the field, no matter where the ball goes. In a hurry? Condensed game replays show you all the action-packed highlights of each game.
- And more!
Other ways to watch
Watch every out-of-market Sunday afternoon game with NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube and YouTube TV. Learn more.
LISTEN LIVE
Local Radio coverage: Sunday’s game can be heard in Indianapolis on 93.5 / 107.5 The Fan, 97.1 HANK and the Ascension St Vincent Radio Network
- Play-by-Play: Matt Taylor
- Color Analyst: Joe Reitz
- Sideline: Jeffrey Gorman
➡️ List of Colts Affiliated Radio Stations (Ascension St Vincent Radio Network)
Radio streaming information:
- On Your Phone: Fans in the Colts home market can listen to the local broadcast on the Colts App and Colts.com.
- Outside Of Indianapolis: Fans everywhere can listen to the local broadcast of the game on Colts.com (Desktop Only).
Other ways to listen to Colts games:
- NFL+: Live game audio (home, away & national calls) for every game of the season. Learn more here.
- Games are also available on SiriusXM Channel 813.
Colts Gameday radio coverage begins three hours before kickoff
- 4:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m.: Colts Pre-Game Huddle on 93.5 / 107.5 The Fan
- 6:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.: Countdown to Kickoff on 93.5 / 107.5 The Fan, 97.1 HANK and Ascension St Vincent Radio Network
- 7:00 p.m.: Cardinals at Colts on 93.5 / 107.5 The Fan, 97.1 HANK and Ascension St Vincent Radio Network
- End of game – Midnight: Fifth Quarter Huddle on 93.5 / 107.5 The Fan, 97.1 HANK and Ascension St Vincent Radio Network
- Midnight – 1:00 a.m.: Fifth Quarter Huddle on 93.5 / 107.5 The Fan
Can’t Stream The Radio Broadcast?
If you are within the 100 mile radius of Indianapolis and can’t stream the radio broadcast it could be your Wi-Fi network or cellular provider. Check your IP address at whatismyip.com. If that shows you as outside of the radius you won’t be able to stream the radio broadcast on mobile.
INTERNATIONAL COLTS FANS
Germany and Austria: Colts fans in Germany and Austria will be able to stream the game on Colts.com. Look for the ‘Watch Live‘ button at the top of the homepage at kickoff!
Other International Fans: All preseason games are available to both free and paid Game Pass International users. PLUS, watch every regular season game live and on-demand, RedZone and NFL Network! Blackout restrictions apply. Learn more about Game Pass International.
INDIANA FEVER
CLARK SCORES 29 TO HELP FEVER FEND OFF FURIOUS MERCURY RALLY
INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Caitlin Clark started fast and finished with 29 points and 10 assists while Kelsey Mitchell scored 28 points to help the Indiana Fever fend off a furious second-half rally from the Phoenix Mercury for a critical 98-89 victory on Friday night.
In the first game since the Olympic break, Mitchell made six 3-pointers and Clark had four as the Fever celebrated the restart of the WNBA season by adding another twist to the budding rivalry between Clark and three-time league champion Diana Taurasi.
Indiana swept the three-game season series with Phoenix as Clark tallied the 10th double-double of her rookie season.
Kahleah Copper, one of Phoenix’s three U.S. Olympic gold medalists, led the Mercury with 32 points and eight rebounds. The other two — Taurasi and Brittney Griner — finished with 16 points and 10 points, respectively, after scoring just 12 combined in the first half.
The rivalry was initially stoked in April when Taurasi predicted that Clark, the No. 1 overall pick, would face a rude awakening in her first pro season. Phoenix added more fuel this week with a Twitter video that included a young fan asking “Who’s Caitlin? I’m here for Taurasi,” and then there were two brief scuffles during the game.
But whether it was the fatigue of Olympic competition or returning to action with two road games in two days, Taurasi and her teammates weren’t themselves early — and it proved costly as the Mercury fell into a 48-20 deficit midway through the second quarter.
When Taurasi and Griner got going, though, the Mercury stormed back. They cut the halftime deficit to 54-37 and opened the second half on 25-7 run to take a 62-61 lead late in the third quarter.
It didn’t last. The Fever capped a quarter-closing 12-3 spurt with Katie Lou Samuelson’s buzzer-beating 3-pointer to take a 73-65 lead and never trailed again.
All-Star weekend
Former Fever star and Hall of Famer Tamika Catchings addressed the crowd during a first quarter timeout to celebrate the city’s selection as next season’s All-Star Game host. Catchings will be one of five co-chairs on the local organizing committee.
The league announced Indiana’s selection Wednesday. The game will be played July 19. Phoenix hosted this year’s All-Star weekend. Indiana hosted the 2024 NBA All-Star Game.
Banner night
Before tipoff, the Fever paid tribute to the late Jim Morris, former vice chairman of Pacers Sports & Entertainment and an instrumental figure in the Fever franchise. He died in mid-July. Following a video, the Fever unveiled Morris’ banner in the rafters.
He’s the ninth player, coach or executive to be so honored and the first to have been honored for both the Fever and Pacers franchises.
Up next
Mercury: Hosts the Chicago Sky on Sunday.
Fever: Hosts the Seattle Storm on Sunday.
INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS
CHANDLER DAZZLES IN VICTORY FIELD DEBUT AS INDIANS WIN FOURTH STRAIGHT AGAINST SAINTS, 3-2
INDIANAPOLIS – Pittsburgh Pirates No. 1 prospect Bubba Chandler tied his career high with 11 strikeouts, and Henry Davis laced a tiebreaking RBI single in the seventh inning to help the Indianapolis Indians emerge with a 3-2 win over the St. Paul Saints on Friday night at Victory Field.
After St. Paul (56-61, 18-25) tallied a pair of runs in the top of the seventh to take the lead, Indianapolis countered with a two-run half inning of its own after the stretch. Jake Lamb scored on a fielder’s choice RBI after being walked earlier in the inning and the Indians (55-59, 22-19) took the lead for good on Davis’ two-out knock to right field.
Hunter Stratton (S, 1) stranded two men in scoring position in the ninth to seal Indy’s ninth win in 10 games against St. Paul this season.
With the game scoreless in the bottom of the fifth inning, Billy McKinney broke through with a solo shot to right field. Chandler then put the finishing touches on his 6.0-inning shutout performance by pitching around a leadoff single and walk in the sixth, retiring the final three batters of the frame.
With Chandler out of the game, the Saints grabbed their brief lead with an RBI single off the bat of former Indian Diego A. Castillo and a sac fly courtesy of Yunior Severino.
Chandler was lights out in tying his single-game strikeout high, the first coming this season with Double-A Altoona on June 24 vs. Akron. He allowed just five hits and two walks and has not allowed a run in 13 innings of work in his first two Triple-A starts.
Fineas Del Bonta Smith (W, 3-1) surrendered two runs (one earned) on two hits with a walk and a pair of strikeouts. Diego Castillo (L, 0-4), who blew the save in Indy’s 6-5 win on Wednesday, yielded two runs on three hits with two punchouts in 1.0 inning pitched.
Indianapolis and St. Paul will meet for the penultimate contest of the six-game set tomorrow at 7:05 PM at Victory Field. RHP Thomas Harrington (0-1, 6.10) gets the nod for the Indians and RHP Randy Dobnak (9-5, 3.61) will counter for the Saints.
INDIANA BASEBALL
BLAKE ALLEN HIRED AS ASSISTANT COACH
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – A coach of over 20 years and a veteran leader with Midwest ties, former DePauw head coach Blake Allen was added to the Indiana Baseball staff as the program’s third assistant coach. Head coach Jeff Mercer made the hire official on Friday (Aug. 16) morning, finalizing his 2025 coaching staff. He will wear the number four on his jersey.
“Blake was my mentor and role model when we coached together at Western Kentucky,” Mercer said. “He taught me the obligation of a college baseball coach; the work ethic, investment and responsibility to provide the players your absolute best effort daily. Blake will bring that same level of care to Indiana. He’ll make us all better and I am excited to work with him again.”
Allen, who worked with Mercer during their overlapping stints at Western Kentucky, will coordinate team practice, help coach team defense, work with infielders and hitters and will man the third base box on gamedays. He brings along 20+ years of coaching experience as an assistant and head coach, highlighted by five years working at national powerhouse Vanderbilt.
“I want to thank Coach Mercer and Indiana University for this wonderful opportunity,” Allen said. “I am grateful to be here at IU and I am extremely excited to work with Mercer, the players and this amazing staff.”
In his most recent stop, Allen served as the head coach at DePauw for the past eight seasons. His wife, Cristin, worked simultaneously at DePauw as the head women’s soccer coach. The Tigers finished 23-17 in 2024, the best mark of a team during his tenure. DePauw went 12-4 in the North Coast Athletic Conference.
At DePauw, Allen oversaw the development of Grady Johnson as one of the league’s most prolific hitters in 2024. The freshman hit .370 on the season, collecting 61 hits over 165 at-bats in his freshman season. On the mound, Michael Vallone finished off his senior season with a 2.95 earned run average in 58.0 innings pitched. He worked a 7-1 record with a WHIP of 0.98. Vallone was named a Division Three All-American.
Prior to his time at DePauw, Allen worked as an assistant coach at Vanderbilt across two different stints. He worked with Tim Corbin from 2004-08 and then again from 2015-16 in Nashville. He was part of the staff that won the 2007 SEC Regular Season and Tournament titles.
In his initial tenure with the Commodores, Allen worked with hitters and catchers and assisted with strength and conditioning. His first four seasons saw him coach 38 players that signed professional contacts. Two of his catchers (Brian Hernandez – 2006, Shea Robin – 2008) were taken in the top-20 rounds of the MLB Draft.
The connection between Allen and Mercer dates back to their days together at Western Kentucky. Mercer, a volunteer assistant from 2012-13, worked with Allen who was a full-time assistant between 2009 and 2015 with the Hilltoppers. Allen worked in a variety of roles including time spent as the hitting, pitching and catching coach.
During Allen’s time in Bowling Green, Western Kentucky was ranked in the top-25 on three occasions and won one Sun Belt Conference title and made the NCAA Tournament in 2009. That 2009 team finished as one of the best offensive lineups in program history. On the season, the Hilltoppers smashed 88 home runs, 124 doubles and hit .330.
In five seasons working with the Western Kentucky hitters, its offense hit over .300 on two occasions and set then-program records in runs (538) and RBIs (490). He worked with outfielder Kes Carter who went on to become the 56th overall pick in the 2011 MLB Draft, the highest picked player in program history.
Allen began his playing days at DePauw but finished his collegiate career at Blackburn college, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in 2001. He went on to earn his Master of Science from Indiana State in 2003. In addition to baseball, Allen has previous experience working with football programs and strength staffs. He has two daughters – Keelyn and Quinley Jane – and a son, Rooney. His family resides in Plainfield.
INDIANA WOMEN’S SOCCER
NEIGHBORS’ GOAL LIFTS HOOSIERS PAST VOLS IN SEASON OPENER
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Sophomore midfielder Kennedy Neighbors goal in the 50th minute led the Hoosiers to a 1-0 victory against Tennessee (0-0-1) in their regular-season opener at Bill Armstrong Stadium.
KEY MOMENTS
• Indiana (1-0-0) saw their first opportunity in the first half within the 14th minute from senior midfielder Hope Paredes. Goalkeeper Jamie Gerstenberg sent a long drop kick deep into the field finding Paredes for the first chance, but the Vols keeper was there for the stop.
• The Hoosiers held Tennessee to two shots on goal, but even with the advantage Gerstenberg had a great first half between the pipes picking up two saves in the first half before the teams entered the locker rooms, 0-0.
• The Vols’ cleansheet didn’t last long, as IU started the second half more aggressive and scored in the 50th minute. Neighbors netted the gamewinner with a loose ball from freshman forward Layla Sirdah in the 18-yard box before striking it straight at the Vols veteran keeper to put the team up, 1-0.
• Graduate defender Avery Snead saw another great opportunity in the 52nd minute to extend the lead but couldn’t convert on the opportunity.
• Tennessee looked to counter with two shots on goal in the 52nd and 83rd minutes, but Gerstenberg recorded a couple more big saves to seal the match.
HOOSIER POINTS
GOALS: Neighbors (50′)
ASSISTS: Layla Sirdah
NOTABLES
• Neighbors netted her first career goal and the gamewinner over Tennessee.
• Sirdah and Snead made their first debuts with Indiana.
• Freshman defender Haden Vlcek also saw her first minutes on the pitch for the Hoosiers.
• Indiana out shot the Vols 10-7 and led 8-6 in corners.
• Indiana extended its undefeated streak at home to 9-0-3.
• The Hoosiers are now 2-0-1 against the Volunteers.
• Gerstenberg tallied four saves on the night. She is now tied fourth career victories with 23.
UP NEXT
The Hoosiers will head to Muncie, Ind. for a midweek match with the Ball State Cardinals on Tuesday, Aug. 20th. Kickoff is set for 5:30 p.m. on ESPN+.
PURDUE MEN’S BASKETBALL
PURDUE TO FACE CREIGHTON IN CHARITY EXHIBITION GAME
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – For the second straight season, the Purdue men’s basketball team will hit the road for a charity exhibition game, traveling to Omaha, Nebraska, to take on Big East power Creighton.
The game will be played at the spacious CHI Health Center in downtown Omaha on Oct. 26, tipping at 8 p.m. ET. Broadcast information will be made available at a later date.
The game will benefit the United Way of the Midlands Disaster Relief Fund after destructive tornadoes ravaged Omaha and surrounding areas on April 26th, 2024. The tornadoes, including Nebraska’s first EF-4 tornado in almost 10 years, caused an estimated 2.1 billion dollars worth of damage.
Additional donations can be made to the United Way of the Midlands Disaster Relief Fund at UnitedWayMidlands.org/DisasterRelief.
Tickets will go on sale to the general public at 11 a.m. ET, on Monday, Aug. 26, via Ticketmaster.com. For more information, contact the Creighton Athletics ticket office at 402-280-5297.
It marks the second straight season that Purdue will play a charity exhibition game. A year ago, Purdue and Arkansas faced off in late October in Fayetteville, benefiting the same cause after tornadoes ripped through Arkansas.
“We are excited to be traveling to Creighton and playing the Bluejays for a great cause to start our season,” Purdue head coach Matt Painter said. “The Omaha area was ravaged by tornadoes in late April and we hope that this charity game will continue to support disaster relief to the region. Creighton is an outstanding program led by an outstanding coach in Coach McDermott and this game will really help us prepare for the season, much the same way the Arkansas charity game a year ago helped us.”
“We are thrilled to host Purdue for an exhibition game,” said Creighton head coach Greg McDermott. “Coming off a trip to the National Championship game, Coach Painter will once again have one of the best teams in the country. It will be a tremendous opportunity for us to play high-level competition as we prepare for a top-notch non-conference schedule and the always difficult, BIG EAST. I can’t thank Coach Painter enough for bringing his team to Omaha. It is a unique event that our fans will truly enjoy all while supporting the United Way of the Midlands Disaster Relief Fund.”
Both squads figure to be ranked in the top 20 when the preseason polls come out in mid-October. The two teams were on opposite sides of the bracket in the Midwest Regional a year ago and could have played each other in the Elite 8.
The Boilermakers are coming off a spot in the 2024 National Championship game and a 34-5 record. Three starters are scheduled to return in addition to three other players that played at least 31 games this past season. Head coach Matt Painter also welcomes a five-member recruiting class that is ranked among the top 10 nationally.
Creighton posted a 25-10 record a year ago and advanced to the Sweet 16 for the third time in the last four seasons. Led by one of the top defensive players in the country, Ryan Kalkbrenner, the Bluejays return three of their top-six scorers and welcome in a pair of highly-regarded transfers.
The teams have met just once previously, a 91-72 Purdue victory on Jan. 4, 1961.
NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL
CROSS III, EVANS, MILLS SELECTED TO LOMBARDI AWARD WATCH LIST
Graduate defensive linemen Howard Cross III and Rylie Mills, and senior tight end Mitchell Evans, have all been named to the 2024 Lombardi Award Watch List. This accolade continues to honor the outstanding college football lineman, whether on offense or defense, who displays exceptional performance and ability and embodies the character and discipline that Vince Lombardi championed throughout his life.
OL Joe Alt was a finalist for the award in 2023. Five Notre Dame players have earned the honor throughout its history: DE Walt Patulski (1971), DE Ross Browner (1977), DT Chris Zorich (1990), OL Aaron Taylor (1993) and LB Manti Te’o (2012).
In 2023, Cross III and Mills helped Notre Dame to become the nation’s top pass-efficiency defense (97.09), the program’s best effort since 1980 (4th), and the fifth-overall defense (276.3).
Cross III piled up 66 stops in 2023, which ranked second among all Power 5 front-four defensive lineman. This 2024 preseason, he has earned selection to watch lists for the Walter Camp Player of the Year, the Bednarik Award, the Outland Trophy, the Lott IMPACT Trophy and the Nagurski Trophy. He has been named a preseason First Team All-American by USA TODAY, Sporting News and Walter Camp.
A 2023 Bednarik Award semifinalist, Cross III announced his status as a premiere defensive player in the country during the come-from-behind battle at No. 17 Duke on September 30. Leading the Irish with 13 tackles, Cross III also forced two fumbles (including the game-clinching fumble with 0:27 remaining) and claimed national defensive player of the week honors from Walter Camp, the Bednarik Award and the Senior Bowl. Cross III earned Second Team All-America honors from FWAA, Walter Camp, the Associated Press and The Sporting News in 2023.
Also named to the 2024 Outland Trophy Watch List, Mills played and started in all 13 games in his senior season (2023). He finished the season with 47 tackles (22 solo), 5.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. Mills also earned four quarterback hurries and recovered a pair of fumbles
A member of the 2024 Sporting News Preseason All-America Second Team, Evans had a breakout season in 2023 before being sidelined with an injury. He played in eight games as a junior, starting seven, and ended the season as the team’s top receiving target, averaging 52.8 yards per game. Through those eight games, Evans totaled 29 receptions for 422 yards and a touchdown during the season, averaging 14.6 yards per catch. Evans has also been named to the 2024 watch lists for the Mackey Award, the Biletnikoff Award and the Comeback Player of the Year.
BUTLER WOMEN’S SOCCER
BUTLER AND OHIO DRAW IN SEASON OPENER
INDIANAPOLIS – The Butler women’s soccer team faced Ohio in the Sellick Bowl to open the 2024 season, a contest that ended in a 1-1 draw. The Bobcats, out of the MAC, took a one-goal lead early in the second half, but the Bulldogs responded five minutes later to level the score.
Key Moments
58′ | Ohio’s Rayann Pruss collected a ball 30 yards out and sent a high-arching shot just over the reach of Butler’s goalkeeper. The Bobcats took a 1-0 lead.
63′ | Talia Sommer sent a ball from the middle of the field to the right sideline. Lucia Englund touched the ball past her defended and worked around the corner. Her hard cross was deflected into the air by the Ohio keeper, and Leila Lister was waiting on the far post to head it in. The score was level, 1-1.
Butler Points Summary
GOALS: Leila Lister
ASSISTS: Lucia Englund, Talia Sommer
Bulldog Bits
· Leila Lister’s goal was the second of her career.
· Lucia Englund’s assist was a career-first.
· Talia Sommer’s assist was the 11th of her career.
· With four saves in the match, Anna Pierce now has 90 in her career.
Up Next
The Bulldogs host Purdue on Sunday evening. Kickoff in the Sellick Bowl is set for 7 pm.
IU-INDY WOMEN’S SOCCER
WOMEN’S SOCCER OPENS CAMPAIGN WITH 1-1 DRAW WITH TOLEDO
INDIANAPOLIS – The IU Indianapolis women’s soccer team opened the 2024 campaign with a 1-1 draw on opening night of the college soccer season at Michael A. Carroll Stadium on a rainy Thursday (Aug. 15) evening. Sophomore Caroline Kelley tallied the team’s lone score on a night that featured two separate weather delays, causing the contest to span over three hours. Maia Ransom and Emma Frey collected assists while senior Ashton Kudlo made five saves in net.
Toledo’s Kaema Amachree netted an equalizer in the game’s 79th minute to cap the scoring.
“I think our kids fought to the very end. I think we weren’t as composed on the ball the last 20 minutes of the game, but our kids put forth a great effort,” head coach Chris Johnson said. “We were able to get a few young people some minutes out there and I think they showed that they’re going to play hard to the very end.”
Just over five minutes into play, the game was halted due to lightning in the area, sending the teams back to their respective locker rooms.
After the first delay, the Jaguars opened the season’s scoring in the game’s 11th minute when Kelley scored from in close off their first corner kick of the evening. Frey angled a pass to Ransom, who blasted a ball into rain soaked traffic in front of the net. Kelley collected and scored from the left side for her ninth career tally.
Play was halted once again before halftime as a steady downpour left the turf unplayable, ultimately making for a two-hour opening half of play.
IU Indy (0-0-1) flirted with danger for much of the second half as the visiting Rockets outshot the hosts 12-2 after the break and 15-5 for the evening. Amachree finally found paydirt in the closing minutes after taking advantage of a giveaway and blazing a shot over Kudlo from long distance. That came after Amachree had near misses in both the 67th and 72nd minutes against a depleted Jaguar back line.
Kudlo preserved the draw with an impressive stop against Carys Bourbeau in the 84th minute. Offensively, the Jaguars struggled to turn offensive opportunities into shot attempts as Kelley finished with two of the team’s five attempts.
The Jaguars were doubled up in corner kicks by a 6-3 margin.
The Jaguars will return to action next Thursday (Aug. 22) when they face Lindenwood at 6:00 p.m. ET on ESPN+.
INDIANA STATE WOMEN’S SOCCER
SYCAMORES WIN HOME OPENER 10-0, MACKEY RECORDS HAT TRICK
TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State Women’s Soccer opened up its 2024 season at Memorial Stadium against St. Mary-of-the-Woods, where they won 10-0 and had a record breaking game.
Alexa Mackey recorded only the second-ever hat trick in program history, scoring all three goals inside the 52-minute mark. She is the first to accomplish the feat since Sydney Lovelace scored three against Chicago State in 2014. This also marks the first multi-goal game since Sasha Thompson scored two in 2021 at Northern Iowa.
The Sycamores set the tone early in the first half, taking the lead 4-0 over the Pomeroys. Early goals for Indiana State set them into rhythm of play for the remainder of a record breaking game. Indiana State held the ball for the majority of the first half where they had 23 shot attempts and 15 shots on goal. Four goals in the first half came from Alexa Mackey (2), Emma Famulak, and Wimberley Wright.
The Sycamores continued to find the back of the net in the second half with six goals to extend their lead to 10-0. Goals in the second half were scored by Brooklyn Woods, Alexa Mackey, Alex Lehnert, Audrey Roberts, Ella Roesch, and Grace Quinn.
Indiana State was dominant defensively throughout the entirety of the game where they kept the Pomeroys to zero shot attempts.
The Sycamores tested out several lineups in the game opener, where 24 players were put in the mix. Indiana State recorded 42 shots in the victory over Saint-Mary-of-the-Woods on Thursday evening with 24 shots on goal.
News & Notes:
Thursday’s win is the first time the Sycamores won the season opener since the 2016 season, when ISU defeated Western Illinois 3-0 inside Memorial Stadium.
Broke shots on goal record with 24 (23 at Chicago State, Sept. 18, 2015)
Broke most goals scored in a single game (9 vs Oakland City, Oct. 12, 2008)
Broke most points in a single game with 30 (25 vs Oakland City, Oct. 12, 2008)
Broke most assists in a game with 10 (highest was 7, most recently completed vs. Chicago State, Sept. 11, 2016)
Largest margin of victory since Oct. 12, 2008 (9 vs Oakland City)
Tied fewest shots allowed (one time at Northwestern, Sept. 1, 2016)
Tied fewest shots on goal allowed (this marks eighth time, last at Northern Kentucky on Aug. 17, 2018)
All eight goal scorers recorded their first goals while in a Sycamore uniform. Mackey is the lone Sycamore that scored more than one goal.
Nora Henderson, Olivia Lovell, and Wimberley Wright each recorded two assists
Up Next:
The Sycamores continue their home stand next Thursday, August 22 at 5 p.m. ET against Miami (Ohio). This game will serve as ISU’s “Blue Out” game for the 2024 season.
PURDUE FT. WAYNE WOMEN’S SOCCER
MASTODON WOMEN’S SOCCER HOSTS ILLINOIS STATE IN HOME SEASON OPENER
FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Purdue Fort Wayne women’s soccer team hosts Illinois State in first home game of the season on Sunday (Aug. 18) at 1 p.m.
Game Day Information
Who: Illinois State Red Birds
When: Sunday, August 18 | 1 PM
Where: Fort Wayne, Ind. | Hefner Soccer Complex
Live Stats: Link
Watch: Link
Tickets:Link
Know Your Foe
Illinois State started their season with a 2-1 win over Green Bay. After losing all goal scorers last offseason, Sammi Cenek and Chloe Cline each scored in the season opener. Illinois State finished the 2023 season with a 3-9-4 record and a 1-6-3 Ohio Valley Conference record.
Series History
Illinois State has won all four of the meetings against the Mastodons. The last competition, in 2013, resulted in a 4-0 Southern Illinois win.
Going For Goal
Purdue Fort Wayne returns six of the 11 goal scorers from last season: Bella Reitano, Morgan Gallagher, Zoe Greenhalge, Lauren Klusek, Malia Velker and Kailey Hansen.
Touching Up The Record Book
Bella Reitano sits in 10th place for career goals per game in the Purdue Fort Wayne record book. Reitano is just two goals and two assists away from placing top 10 in both career record books.
On and Off The Pitch
Lizzie Haub was named to the 2023 Horizon League All-Academic Team and received 2023 CSC Academic All-District Honors.
‘Dons Wear Prada
Gigi Ricciardi did a fashion industry internship based in Florence, Italy this summer.
Coming Up
Purdue Fort Wayne will host Tiffin at the Hefner Soccer Complex on Thursday (Aug. 22).
SOUTHERN INDIANA WOMEN’S SOCCER
USI WOMEN’S SOCCER OPENS SEASON SUNDAY WITH TRIP TO ARKANSAS STATE
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – University of Southern Indiana Women’s Soccer opens its 2024 regular season Sunday with a road trip to Arkansas State University. The Screaming Eagles and Red Wolves kick off at 1 p.m. from Jonesboro, Arkansas.
The first all-time meeting between the two schools will begin USI’s third D-I season of its transition period.
Southern Indiana enters the 2024 campaign coming off a 4-8-7 overall record and a 3-2-4 record in Ohio Valley Conference action a season ago. Following a six-match match unbeaten streak during conference play last October, the Screaming Eagles tied for third in the OVC standings in 2023 and earned the No. 4 seed in the conference tournament. USI’s 2023 season ended against 8-seeded University of Arkansas at Little Rock in the quarterfinals with a 3-1 loss. USI will look to take another step forward in 2024 with a third consecutive OVC Tournament berth after going from an OVC first-round appearance in 2022 to being a quarterfinalist in 2023.
Head Coach Eric Schoenstein heads into his ninth season at the helm of the program and 11th overall season on the women’s soccer staff. The Screaming Eagles will be targeting win no. 75 for Schoenstein, who is second in wins in program history.
The 2024 USI squad featured 34 players – 22 returning players and 12 newcomers. Returning for the Screaming Eagles is reigning OVC Goalkeeper of the Year Anna Markland (Hoover, Alabama) between the posts. The redshirt sophomore also earned an All-OVC First Team selection in her first season with USI last year after posting a 1.21 goals against average with 73 saves and six shutouts.
Markland will have two key returning defensive backs in front of her in juniors Charli Grafton (Sunriver, Oregon) and Brynn Quick (Cottage Grove, Minnesota). Plus, USI also returns key attackers in last season’s leading goal-scorer in sophomore Pilar Torres (Chula Vista, California) and leading shot-taker in junior Peyton Murphy (Bargersville, Indiana). Torres paced Southern Indiana with four goals in 2023 while Murphy’s team-high 33 shots ranked eighth in the OVC. USI tallied 15 goals on 9.7 shots per outing.
In the 2024 Ohio Valley Conference preseason poll, Southern Indiana was projected to finish fifth in league play. Senior midfielder Maggie Duggan (Defiance, Missouri) represented USI on the 2024 OVC Preseason Players to Watch List as part of the preseason announcement. Duggan, one of four team captains, returns to the field this season following a season-ending injury in 2023 after starting the first four matches last season.
Arkansas State will be hosting its second consecutive home match and OVC school to start the season on Sunday. The Red Wolves, who were projected to tie for 10th in the Sun Belt Conference during the preseason, are coming off a 2-0 season-opening win against the Little Rock Trojans. Arkansas State scored both goals in the first half, including the first goal within the first three minutes, and outshot Little Rock 15-9 in the contest.
Last season, Arkansas State scored 17 goals on 10.9 shots per game. The Red Wolves had two players top the team with three goals, including returning senior forward Aliyah Williamson. Redshirt junior midfielder Keelyn Peacock had the most shot attempts in 2023 with 27. Peacock scored Arkansas State’s second goal on Thursday against Little Rock and had a team-high four shots.
Sunday’s 1 p.m. match can be seen with a subscription to ESPN+. Additional coverage links are available on the USI Women’s Soccer schedule page on usiscreamingeagles.com.
TAYLOR VOLLEYBALL
TU TOPS NO. 22 VCSU IN SEASON OPENER AT KEISER CLASSIC
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – The Taylor volleyball team opened its 2024 season with a 3-1 statement victory over No. 22 Valley City State (1-1) Friday afternoon at the Keiser Vipers Sports Academy Classic. TU then fell late Friday evening in four tightly contested sets to Cumberlands.
Grace Ieremia and the Trojans’ front row defense served as the catalyst in the four-set win, as TU registered 11 total blocks (22 block assists) compared to just one total blocks for the Vikings.
Taylor trailed only once in the first two sets, when it was down 2-1 early in set number one. Otherwise, the Trojans were in rhythm as they took a two-set lead that left VCSU searching for answers as to how to get past TU’s front line and, conversely, how to defend the likes of Jaylynn Dunsmore and Reagan Kleiman.
After dropping a third set that featured multiple scoring runs from both teams, Taylor responded in the fourth frame by jumping out to a 23-14 advantage.
VCSU staged a comeback to get within four points late, but Ohio Christian transfer Alexa Mader put the finishing touches on TU’s upset win with back-to-back kills.
Ieremia tied a Taylor career high with nine blocks in the season’s opening match, while Dunsmore had 17 kills. Kleiman contributed 13 kills on a monster .407 hitting percentage, and Mader and Reagan Salzbrenner chipped in six kills apiece on attack percentages above .350.
Lindsay Springer and McKaylah Flagle had match-highs with 43 assists and 18 digs, respectively, as they provided the fuel for the fire up front.
The evening’s second match for TU got underway roughly an hour and-a-half later than scheduled, with the Trojans and Patriots duking it out nearly until midnight eastern time.
All four sets were decided by four points or fewer, with Taylor earning its lone win in the second set after climbing out of an early 5-0 hole.
Springer did everything for the Trojans during the late-night match, notching 45 digs, four service aces and seven kills on just 12 attempts, but it was not enough as Cumberlands (2-0) came away with the victory despite TU recording more kills and digs as a team.
Taylor (1-1) resumes play at the Keiser Classic on Saturday with back-to-back matches scheduled for 6 and 8 p.m., respectively, versus RV Dakota State (1-1) and Mobile (2-1).
INDIANA SMALL COLLEGE WEBSITES
INDIANA WESLEYAN ATHLETICS: https://iwuwildcats.com/
EARLHAM ATHLETICS: https://goearlham.com/
WABASH ATHLETICS: https://sports.wabash.edu/
FRANKLIN ATHLETICS: https://franklingrizzlies.com/
ROSE-HULMAN ATHLETICS: https://athletics.rose-hulman.edu/
ANDERSON ATHLETICS: https://athletics.anderson.edu/landing/index
TRINE ATHLETICS: https://trinethunder.com/landing/index
BETHEL ATHLETICS: https://bupilots.com/
DEPAUW ATHLETICS: https://depauwtigers.com/
HANOVER ATHLETICS: https://athletics.hanover.edu/
MANCHESTER ATHLETICS: https://muspartans.com/
HUNTINGTON ATHLETICS: https://www.huathletics.com/
OAKLAND CITY ATHLETICS: https://gomightyoaks.com/index.aspx
ST. FRANCIS ATHLETICS: https://www.saintfranciscougars.com/landing/index
IU KOKOMO ATHLETICS: https://iukcougars.com/
IU EAST ATHLETICS: https://www.iueredwolves.com/
IU SOUTH BEND ATHLETICS: https://iusbtitans.com/
PURDUE NORTHWEST ATHLETICS: https://pnwathletics.com/
INDIANA TECH ATHLETICS: https://indianatechwarriors.com/index.aspx
GRACE COLLEGE ATHLETICS: https://gclancers.com/
ST. MARY OF THE WOODS ATHLETICS: https://smwcathletics.com/
GOSHEN COLLEGE ATHLETICS: https://goleafs.net/
HOY CROSS ATHLETICS: https://www.hcsaints.com/index.php
TAYLOR ATHLETICS: https://www.taylortrojans.com/
VINCENNES ATHLETICS: https://govutrailblazers.com/landing/index
NUMBERS IN SPORTS
4 – 8 – 1 – 9 – 24 – 44 – 3 – 32 – 35 – 5 – 14
August 17, 1933 – MLB player Lou Gehrig, Number 4 of the New York Yankees, played in a record 1,308th consecutive game in St. Louis. Gehrig got two singles in a 7–6 loss to the Browns to reach the milestone. The record was previously held by Everett Scott set 1925. Gehrig would go on to play 822 more straight games, and his record would last until it was broken by Number 8 of the Baltimore Orioles, Cal Ripken Jr. on September 6, 1995
August 17, 1944 – New York Yankees star Johnny Lindell, Number 8 tied a record with 4 consecutive doubles in a game
August 17, 1950 – Pee Wee Reese (Number 1 with the Dodgers) and Sam Calderone (Giants Number 6) each hit an inside park home run during the game between these two New York area teams.
August 17, 1957 – Baseball player Richie Ashburn, Number 1 fouled off a ball and hit a fan named Alice Roth twice in the same game at bat playing for the Philadelphia Phillies. The 1st hit broke her nose and the 2nd one hit her while she is on the stretcher being carted out of the stadium after an initial delay.
August 17, 1963 – Jim Hickman, Number 9 became the first New York Met to hit for cycle.
August 17, 1966 – Willie Mays, Number 24 reached 2nd place on all-time HR list with a blast off of Number 44, Ray Washburn, the starting pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals. Mays launched a 3-2 fastball straight over the right field fence at Candlestick Park to surpass long time Number 3 legend, Jimmie Foxx with the 535 home run of his career.
August 17, 1972 – MLB Philadelphia Phillies Steve Carlton, Number 32 won his 15th straight game
August 17, 1973 – Willie Mays, Number 24 hits 660th & last HR (off Don Gullett, Number 35 of Cincinnati)
August 17, 1980 – George Brett, Number 5 went 4-for-4, raising his batting average to .401
August 17, 1984 – Pete Rose, Number 14 returns to Cincinnati Reds as player-manager (gets 2 hits)
FOOTBALL HISTORY
August 17, 1928 – The Detroit Wolverines franchise is launched on this date.
August 17, 1951 – At Soldier Field in Chicago, Illinois the 18th edition of the Chicago College All-Star Game is played and it is the Cleveland Browns who take apart the college stars 33-0. The game’s MVP, always the top College All-Star performing player was Lewis McFadin from Texas.
August 17, 1969 – Yale Bowl, New Haven, Connecticut – The New York Jets get their first ever game with their cross town rival New York Giants in a preseason game. The defending Super Bowl champion New York Jets defeated the New York Giants 37-14 in an exhibition game, resulting in the firing of Giants head coach Allie Sherman according to Yahoo.com. It was the first game between the Jets and Giants, who have played annually in the preseason every year since.
August 17, 1991 – Arena Bowl V is played at Detroit’s Joe Louis Arena and it is the visiting Tampa Bay Storm that wins the title over the Detroit Drive in an exciting 48-42 final score. Stevie Thomas, the wide receiver/linebacker is named the game’s MVP.
August 17, 2002 – Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts opens during with pre-season tilt where the New England Patriots hosted the Philadelphia Eagles.
Hall of Fame Birthday
August 17, 1905 – Rags Matthews was an end from Texas Christian University was enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame in the induction ceremonies of 1971. Rags played both the defensive and offensive end positions for the Horned Frogs. His outstanding play earned Matthews the honor of being TCU football’s MVP both the 1926 and the 1927 seasons.
Birthdays of the Not Yet in the Hall Players
August 17, 1966 – Tuscaloosa, Alabama – Alabama State’s former offensive tackle Zefross Moss was born. Moss signed with the Dallas Cowboys as an undrafted free agent in 1988 but also played with the Colts, Lions, and Patriots according to Yahoo.com. Mr. Moss started in 137 of his 154 career NFL games.
August 17, 1968 – Waynesboro, Pennsylvania – Stanford’s great wide receiver Ed McCaffrey arrived into the world. Mr. McCaffrey was the 83rd overall pick by the New York Giants in the 1991 NFL Draft. Ed’ great career included 565 receptions for 7,422 yards and 55 touchdowns with the Giants, 49ers and Broncos. McCaffrey per a Yahoo.com report was a Pro Bowl selection and a Second-team All-Pro in 1998. He won three Super Bowls in his career: Super Bowl XXIX with the 49ers and Super Bowls XXXII and XXXIII with the Broncos.
August 17, 1972 – Renton, Washington – University of Washington’s former tight end Ernie Conwell was born. The St. Louis Rams chose Ernie in the 1996 NFL Draft with the 59th overall pick. His career spanned not only with the Rams but also Saints as he hauled in 203 career receptions for 2,188 yards and 15 touchdowns. Yahoo.com reports that Conwell was an All-Pro in 2001. He won Super Bowl XXXIV with the Rams.
August 17, 1979 – Riverdale, Illinois – Wide receiver Antwaan Randle El who once donned the uniform of the University of Indiana from 1998 through the 2001season arrived into this life. Randle El was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers with the 62nd overall pick in the 2002 NFL Draft. Besides having two stints with the Steelers he also played 3 seasons with Washington. For his career according to Yahoo.com Antwaan grabbed 370 receptions for 4,467 yards and 15 touchdowns as well as 79 carries for 438 yards with 311 punt returns for 2,557 yards and five touchdowns and 79 kick returns for 1,759 yards and one touchdown. Mr. Randle El won a Super Bowl Ring as he was part of the Pittsburgh team that won Super Bowl XL, where he threw a touchdown strike to the game’s MVP, Hines Ward on a gadget play.
TODAY IN BASEBALL HISTORY
Aug. 17
1904 — Jesse Tannehill of the Boston Red Sox pitched a no-hitter, beating the Chicago White Sox 6-0.
1920 — Cleveland shortstop Ray Chapman died from a beaning by Carl Mays of the New York Yankees on Aug. 16. This was the only on-field fatality in major league history.
1933 — Earl Averill of the Cleveland Indians hit for the cycle in a 15-4 rout of the Philadelphia Athletics.
1933 — New York’s Lou Gehrig played in his 1,308th straight game to break Everett Scott’s record of 1,307. Gehrig’s single and triple didn’t prevent the last-place St. Louis Browns from beating the Yankees 7-6 in 10 innings at Sportsman’s Park.
1944 — Johnny Lindell of the New York Yankees hit four consecutive doubles in a 10-3 victory over the Cleveland Indians.
1963 — Jim Hickman became the first New York Met to hit for cycle in a 7-3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals. Hickman got the cycle in his first four times up — in single, double, triple, homer order.
1980 — George Brett went 4-for-4, raising his batting average to .401, in an 8-3 win over the Toronto Blue Jays. Brett drove in five runs and extended his hitting streak to 29 consecutive games.
1980 — Al Oliver of Texas hit four home runs — one in the opener and three in the nightcap — as the Rangers swept a doubleheader from the Detroit Tigers, 9-3 and 12-6. Oliver also had a double and triple in the opener, giving him 21 total bases which tied the American League record for a doubleheader.
1992 — Kevin Gross pitched a no-hitter as Los Angeles beat San Francisco 2-0 at Dodgers Stadium.
1999 — Jesse Orosco set a major league record by pitching in his 1,072nd game, breaking a tie with Dennis Eckersley atop the career list. The 42-year-old Orosco took the mound with two outs in the seventh inning of Baltimore’s victory over Minnesota.
2001 — Jeff Frye became the second Toronto player to hit for the cycle as the Blue Jays beat Texas 11-3.
2002 — Alex Rodriguez became the sixth player in major league history to have five straight 40-homer seasons.
2004 — Tampa Bay’s B.J. Upton, 19, became the first teenager in more than six years to homer in a major league game, helping Tampa Bay snap a six-game losing streak with an 8-3 victory over Anaheim.
2004 — Mark Teixeira of the Texas Rangers hit for the cycle and drove in a career high seven runs in a 16-4 rout the Cleveland Indians.
2008 — Melvin Mora had two homers and two doubles among his five hits and drove in a career-high six runs to pace Baltimore’s 22-hit attack in a 16-8 win over Detroit.
2008 — Alex Rios went 5-for-6 and matched a club record with four doubles and Toronto knocked Boston ace Josh Beckett out after 2 1-3 innings in a 15-4 victory over the Red Sox.
2010 — Jim Thome ties the major league record for career walk-off home runs with his 12th, as the Twins beat the White Sox, 7 – 6.
2014 — Michael Cuddyer hit for the cycle, including a two-run double in Colorado’s five-run eighth inning, and the Rockies beat the Cincinnati Reds 10-5 to complete a doubleheader sweep.
2018 — The Chicago Cubs tied a major league record by turning seven double plays, including a game-ending effort by rookie third baseman David Bote on a grounder by David Freese to finish off a 1-0 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
2020 — For the first time of their career, brothers Kyle and Corey Seager meet in a regular season game and, fittingly, both hit homers as Corey’s Dodgers defeat Kyle’s Mariners, 11 – 9.
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Aug. 18
1915 — Boston opened Braves Field with a 3-1 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals.
1931 — New York’s Lou Gehrig played in his 1,000th consecutive game. Gehrig went hitless in the 5-4 loss to Detroit.
1948 — Brooklyn’s Rex Barney pitched a one-hitter for a 1-0 win over Robin Roberts and the Philadelphia Phillies at Shibe Park.
1956 — The Cincinnati Reds hit eight home runs and the Milwaukee Braves added two to set a National League record for home runs by two clubs in a nine-inning night game. Bob Thurman’s three homers and double led the Reds in the 13-4 rout.
1960 — Lew Burdette of the Milwaukee Braves pitched a no-hitter, beating the Philadelphia Phillies 1-0. Burdette faced the minimum 27 batters.
1965 — Hank Aaron of Milwaukee hit Curt Simmons’ pitch on top of the pavilion roof at Sportsman’s Park in St. Louis for an apparent home run. However, umpire Chris Pelekoudas called him out for being out of the batter’s box when he connected. Nevertheless, the Braves won the game 5-3.
1967 — California’s Jack Hamilton hit Tony Conigliaro on his left cheekbone with a fastball in the fourth inning of a 3-2 loss to Boston. Conigliaro was carried unconscious from the field and missed the remainder of the 1967 season and the entire 1968 season. The 22-year-old already had more than 100 home runs to his credit.
1977 — Don Sutton of the Los Angeles Dodgers pitched his fifth one-hitter to tie the National League record. Sutton gave up a two-out single in the eighth inning to San Francisco’s Marc Hill. The Dodgers won 7-0.
1995 — Tom Henke became the seventh pitcher to reach 300 career saves, surviving a rally by the Atlanta Braves in the ninth inning of the St. Louis Cardinals’ 4-3 victory.
2000 — Darin Erstad of Anaheim made a spectacular, game-saving catch in the 10th inning and followed it with a homer in the 11th as the Angels defeated the New York Yankees 9-8.
2006 — Alfonso Soriano became the third player in major league history to have at least four seasons of 30 homers and 30 stolen bases, and the Washington Nationals beat the Philadelphia Phillies 6-4.
2007 — Micah Owings went 4-for-5, including a pair of mammoth homers, drove in six runs and scored four times while pitching three-hit ball through seven innings as the Arizona Diamondbacks beat the Atlanta Braves 12-6.
2011 — Mike Jacobs became the first player suspended by Major League Baseball for a positive HGH test under the sport’s minor league drug testing procedures. The 30-year-old minor league first baseman, who was in the big leagues from 2005-10, received a 50-game suspension for taking the banned performance-enhancing substance and was subsequently released by the Colorado Rockies.
2017 — Manny Machado capped a three-homer night with a grand slam in the bottom of the ninth inning, and the Baltimore Orioles rallied past the Los Angeles Angels 9-7 in a game that featured 10 home runs.
2018 — New York Mets ace Jacob deGrom pitched his first complete game of the season and lowered his major league-leading ERA to 1.71 with a 3-1 win over the Philadelphia Phillies.
2019 — Zack Grenke records the 200th win of his career as the Astros defeat the Athletics 4-1.
2021 — hohei Ohtani continues to do it all by himself on the field. Today, he becomes the first hitter in the majors to reach 40 homers this season, and also improves his record on the mound to 8-1 as he pitches 8 full innings for the first time of his career. The Angels defeat the Tigers, 3-1.
2021 — Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman hit for the cycle for the second time in his career as they beat the Miami Marlins 11-9.
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Aug. 19
1909 — The Philadelphia Phillies were rained out for the 10th consecutive day, a major league record.
1913 — The Chicago Cubs tagged Grover Alexander for nine straight hits and six runs for a 10-4 triumph over the Philadelphia Phillies.
1921 — Detroit’s Ty Cobb got his 3,000th career hit at age 34, the youngest player to reach that plateau. The milestone hit was a single off Elmer Myers of the Boston Red Sox.
1934 — Moose Solters of the Boston Red Sox hit for the cycle in an 8-6 loss to the Detroit Tigers at Fenway Park.
1951 — Eddie Gaedel, a 65-pound midget who was 3-foot-7, made his first and only plate appearance as a pinch-hitter for Frank Saucier of the St. Louis Browns. Gaedel wearing No. 1/8 was walked on four pitches by Detroit Tigers pitcher Bob Cain and then was taken out for pinch-runner Jim Delsing. The gimmick by Browns owner Bill Veeck was completely legal, but later outlawed.
1957 — New York Giants owner Horace Stoneham announced that the team’s board of directors had voted 8-1 in favor of moving to San Francisco. The Giants would start the 1958 season in Seals Stadium.
1965 — Jim Maloney of the Cincinnati Reds no-hit the Cubs 1-0, in 10 innings in the first game of a doubleheader at Chicago. Leo Cardenas homered in the 10th for the Reds.
1969 — Ken Holtzman of the Cubs blanked the Atlanta Braves with a 3-0 no-hitter at Wrigley Field. Ron Santo’s three-run homer in the first inning provided the Cubs’ offense.
1990 — Bobby Thigpen recorded his 40th save as the Chicago White Sox beat the Texas Rangers 4-2. Thigpen became the eighth — and fastest — to accomplish this feat.
1992 — Bret Boone made history when he became part of the first three-generation family to play in major league baseball. Boone is the grandson of Ray Boone, who played from 1948-60, and son of Bob Boone, from 1972-90. Bret, 23, completed the triangle when he started at second base for the Seattle Mariners against Baltimore.
2007 — Johan Santana finished with a franchise-record 17 strikeouts in eight innings to help Minnesota edge Texas 1-0.
2009 — Florida reached 10 hits for the 15th straight game in a 6-3 loss at Houston, matching the longest streak since the St. Louis Browns had one that long in 1937. The Marlins were held to four hits the next game.
2011 — LaGrange, Ky., starter Griffin McLarty struck out 12 and hit a homer in a 1-0 victory over the hometown favorites from Clinton County in the Little League World Series at South Williamsport, Pa. The game drew 41,848 fans, breaking the record of 40,000 set in the 1989 and 1990 championship games.
2016 — Jose Altuve homered and had five RBIs, and the Houston Astros beat the Baltimore Orioles 15-8 despite allowing four home runs in the first inning. The Orioles became the first team in the modern era (since 1900) to open a game with four home runs before making an out. Adam Jones hit Collin McHugh’s first pitch into the seats in left field and Hyun Soo Kim singled before Manny Machado, Chris Davis and Mark Trumbo homered in succession.
Aug. 20
1912 — Walter Johnson won his American League-record 15th straight game, downing Cleveland 4-2 in the opener of a doubleheader. Washington’s Carl Cashion pitched a six-inning no-hitter to give the Senators a 2-0 victory over the Cleveland Indians in the second game, which was called to allow Cleveland to catch a train to Boston.
1938 — New York’s Lou Gehrig hit his 23rd and the final grand slam of his career and drove in six runs to lead the Yankees to an 11-3 win over the Philadelphia Athletics.
1945 — Tommy Brown, 17 years, 8 months, 14 days, of the Brooklyn Dodgers became the youngest major league player to hit a home run when he connected in Ebbets Field against Preacher Roe of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
1957 — Bob Keegan of the Chicago White Sox pitched a 6-0 no-hit victory over the Washington Senators in the second game of a doubleheader.
1958 — Detroit’s Jim Bunning pitched a no-hitter to lead the Tigers to a 3-0 win over the Boston Red Sox in the opening game of a doubleheader at Fenway Park.
1961 — The Philadelphia Phillies beat the Milwaukee Braves 7-4 in the second game of a doubleheader to snap a 23-game losing streak, a modern record.
1965 — Milwaukee’s Eddie Mathews hit his 28th home run, and the Braves beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-3. With the homer, the duo of Mathews and Hank Aaron passed the Babe Ruth-Lou Gehrig total of 772 home runs to become the top home-run tandem in major league history.
1974 — Nolan Ryan of the California Angels struck out 19 Tigers in a 1-0, 11-inning loss to Detroit. It was the third time this season that Ryan struck out 19 batters in a game.
1980 — Pittsburgh’s Omar Moreno stole his 70th base of the season in a 5-1 loss to Houston, to become the first player this century with three consecutive 70-steal seasons. The fleet outfielder swiped 71 in 1978, 77 in 1979.
1989 — New York’s Howard Johnson hit his 30th home run of the season in the Mets’ 5-4 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers and joined Bobby Bonds and Willie Mays as the only players to achieve 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases in two different seasons.
1995 — Jose Mesa of the Cleveland Indians picked up his 37th save in 37 opportunities to set a major league record, and the Indians beat the Milwaukee Brewers 8-5.
2005 — The Kansas City Royals ended baseball’s longest losing streak in 17 years, defeating the Oakland Athletics 2-1 to end a club-record 19-game skid.
2014 — The San Francisco Giants became the first team since 1986 to win a protest. Rain caused a delay during an Aug. 19 game after the grounds crew couldn’t put the tarp down quickly, and the umpires deemed the field unplayable. The Cubs were declared the winners by a 2-0 score after 4 1/2 innings. MLB ruled to resume the rain-shortened game with the Cubs batting in the bottom of the fifth.
2019 — By defeating the Blue Jays, 16 – 3, Clayton Kershaw of the Dodgers notches win #166 to pass Sandy Koufax for most by a lefthander in franchise history.
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Aug. 21
1926 — Ted Lyons of the Chicago White Sox pitched a no-hitter over the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. The 6-0 victory was achieved in 1 hour, 7 minutes.
1930 — Chick Hafey of the St. Louis Cardinals hit for the cycle and drove in five runs in a 16-6 rout of the Philadelphia Phillies.
1931 — Babe Ruth hit his 600th home run as the Yankees beat the St. Louis Browns 11-7.
1947 — The first Little League World Series was at Williamsport, Pa. The Maynard Midgets of Williamsport won the series.
1972 — Steve Carlton of Philadelphia had his 15-game winning streak snapped when Phil Niekro and the Atlanta Braves beat the Phillies 2-1 in 11 innings.
1975 — Pitching brothers Rick and Paul Reuschel of the Chicago Cubs combined to throw a 7-0 shutout against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Rick went 6 1-3 innings and Paul finished the shutout for the first ever by two brothers.
1982 — Milwaukee pitcher Rollie Fingers became the first player to achieve 300 career saves as the Brewers beat the Seattle Mariners 3-2.
1986 — Spike Owens had four hits and became the first major league player in 40 years to score six runs in a game as the Boston Red Sox routed the Cleveland Indians 24-5 with a 24-hit attack.
2007 — Garret Anderson of the Los Angeles Angels drove in a team-record 10 runs in an 18-9 rout of the New York Yankees. Anderson hit a grand slam, a three-run homer, a two-run double and an RBI double to become the 12th player in major league history to have 10 RBIs in a game.
2007 — Arizona’s Mark Reynolds tied the major league record for consecutive strikeouts by a non-pitcher when he fanned in his ninth straight plate appearance in a 7-4 loss to Milwaukee. Reynolds struck out in his first two at-bats against Dave Bush to match the record. Bush hit Reynolds with a pitch in the sixth, ending the streak.
2011 — Johnny Damon lost a grand slam to a video review in the seventh inning, then hit a game-ending home run in the ninth that lifted the Tampa Bay Rays over the Seattle Mariners 8-7. Damon connected for a leadoff shot in the ninth on the first pitch from Dan Cortes. The Rays trailed 5-4 in the seventh when Damon launched a drive to right-center field. First ruled a home run, the umpires changed the call to a three-run double after a video review.
2015 — Mike Fiers pitched the second no-hitter in the major leagues in nine days, leading the Houston Astros to a 3-0 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Having never thrown a complete game in his five-year career, Fiers was dominant. He struck out 10 and walked three, retiring the final 21 batters. Fiers struck out Justin Turner on his 134th pitch to end it.
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Aug. 22
1917 — Pittsburgh’s Carson Bigbee set a major league record — since tied — with 11 at-bats in a 22-inning game against Brooklyn. Pirate Elmer Jacobs pitched 16 2-3 innings in relief. The game was also the fourth consecutive extra-inning game by the Pirates for a total of 59 innings, a National League record.
1934 — Pitcher Wes Ferrell hit two home runs to give the Boston Red Sox a 3-2 triumph over the Chicago White Sox in 12 innings. Trailing 2-1, Ferrell hit a home run in the eighth inning to tie the score and with two out in the 12th, Ferrell connected again for the game-winner.
1961 — Roger Maris, en route to his 61-home run season, became the first player to hit his 50th homer in August. He connected off California pitcher Ken McBride in a 4-3 loss to the Angels.
1965 — In the third inning of a game against Los Angeles, pitcher Juan Marichal of the San Francisco Giants hit catcher John Roseboro of the Dodgers in the head with his bat. A 14-minute brawl ensued and Roseboro suffered cuts on the head. Marichal thought Roseboro threw too close to his head when returning the ball to Sandy Koufax.
1971 — The Oakland Athletics opened and closed the game with solo homers to beat the Boston Red Sox 2-1. Boston pitcher Sonny Siebert gave up both, Bert Campaneris lead off the game and Reggie Jackson ended it with two out in the ninth inning.
1984 — New York Mets right-hander Dwight Gooden, at 19, fanned nine San Diego Padres to become the 11th rookie to strike out 200 batters in one season.
1989 — Nolan Ryan of the Texas Rangers became the first pitcher to strike out 5,000 batters. Ryan struck out 13, walked two and allowed only five hits in a 2-0 loss to Oakland. Ryan began the night needing six strikeouts and fanned Rickey Henderson swinging, leading off the fifth inning, for the record.
1999 — Mark McGwire became the first player to hit 50 homers in each of four consecutive seasons, hitting Nos. 49 and 50 in the first game of a doubleheader against the New York Mets.
2007 — The Texas Rangers became the first team in 110 years to score 30 runs in a game, setting an American League record in a 30-3 rout of the Baltimore Orioles in the first game of a doubleheader. It was the ninth time a major league team scored 30 runs, the first since the Chicago Colts set the major league mark in a 36-7 rout of Louisville in a National League game on June 28, 1897.
2012 — Oakland A’s P Bartolo Colon is suspended for 50 games for testing positive for testosterone, eight days after Giants OF Melky Cabrera was also suspended for using the same performance-enhancing substance.
2016 — Adrian Gonzalez hit three of the Dodgers’ seven homers — driving in a career-high eight runs — to lead Los Angeles to an 18-9 win over the Cincinnati Reds.
2021 — Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers becomes the 28th player to hit 500 home runs with a solo home run off of Steven Matz of the Blue Jays.
TODAY IN SPORTS HISTORY
Aug. 17
1933 — Lou Gehrig of the New York Yankees plays his 1,308th straight game to break Everett Scott’s record of 1,307.
1938 — Henry Armstrong wins the lightweight title with a 15-round decision over Lou Ambers and becomes the only boxer to hold world championship titles in three weight divisions simultaneously. Armstrong won the featherweight (126-pound) title by knocking out Petey Sarron in six rounds on Oct. 29, 1937. On May 31, 1938, he won the welterweight (147-pound) championship from Barney Ross by a decision.
1960 — Flash Elorde knocks out Harold Gomes at 1:20 in the first round to win the world junior lightweight title.
1969 — Ray Floyd beats Gary Player by one stroke to win the PGA championship.
1995 — John Roethlisberger wins the U.S. National Gymnastics Championships’ all-around title in New Orleans, becoming the first gymnast in 28 years to win four titles.
1997 — Davis Love III shoots a 66 at Winged Foot to win the PGA Championship in Mamaroneck, N.Y., his first major title, by five strokes over Justin Leonard with a 72-hole total of 11-under 269.
2001 — Shingo Katayama shoots a 6-under 64, and David Toms shoots a 65 to share the second-round lead in the PGA Championship. Katayama and Toms at 9-under 131, tie the PGA record for 36 holes last set by Ernie Els at Riviera in 1995.
2005 — The NCAA purchases the rights to the preseason and postseason National Invitation Tournaments as part of a settlement ending a four-year legal fight between the two parties. The 40-team postseason NIT, which is a year older and was once the bigger event, will be run by the NCAA.
2008 — At the Summer Olympics in Beijing, Michael Phelps and three teammates win the 400-meter medley relay for Phelps’ eighth gold medal, eclipsing Mark Spitz’s seven-gold performance at the 1972 Munich Games. Of his five individual races and three relays, Phelps sets world records in seven and an Olympic record in the eighth.
2008 — Jesus Sauceda of Matamoros, Mexico, pitches the fifth perfect game in Little League World Series history and the first in 29 years for a 12-0 win over Emilia, Italy. Sauceda also stars at the plate, going 3-for-3 with six RBIs, including a grand slam in the third.
2013 — Nick Davilla throws six touchdown passes and the Arizona Rattlers defeat the Philadelphia Soul 48-39 in the Arena Bowl. The Rattlers win the championship for the second straight year, beating the Soul in both championship games.
2014 — Inbee Park successfully defends her title in the LPGA Championship, beating Brittany Lincicome with a par on the first hole of a playoff to end the United States’ major streak at three.
2014 — The Phoenix Mercury sets a WNBA record with their 29th win, beating the Seattle Storm 78-65 in the season finale. Phoenix (29-5) tops the previous mark set by Los Angeles (28-4 in both 2000 and 2001) and Seattle (28-6 in 2010).
2015 — The National Labor Relations Board dismisses a historic ruling that Northwestern University football players are school employees who are entitled to form what would be the nation’s first union of college athletes.
2016 — Jamaica’s Elaine Thompson completes the first 100-200 women’s Olympic double since 1988. Thompson wins the 200 in 21.78 seconds to become the first woman since Marion Jones in 2000 to win both Olympic sprints. Jones’ records have since been stripped, so Thompson goes in the record book along with Florence Griffith-Joyner, who starred in the 1988 Seoul Games.
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Aug. 18
1923 — Helen Mills, 17, ends Molla Bjurstedt Mallory’s domination of the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association championships and starts her own with a 6-2, 6-1 victory.
1958 — Floyd Patterson knocks out Roy Harris in the 13th round at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles to retain his world heavyweight title.
1964 — The International Olympic Committee bans South Africa from competing in the Summer Olympics because of its apartheid policies.
1982 — Pete Rose sets record with his 13,941st plate appearance.
1994 — South Africa is introduced for the first time in 36 years during the opening ceremonies of the 15th Commonwealth Games held in Victoria, British Columbia. South Africa had been banned from the Games since 1958 because of its apartheid policies.
1995 — Thirteen-year-old Dominique Moceanu becomes the youngest to win the National Gymnastics Championships senior women’s all-around title in New Orleans.
2004 — Paul Hamm wins the men’s gymnastics all-around Olympic gold medal by the closest margin ever in the event. Controversy follows after it was discovered a scoring error that may have cost Yang Tae-young of South Korea the men’s all-around title. Yang, who finished with a bronze, is wrongly docked a tenth of a point on his second-to-last routine, the parallel bars. He finishes third, 0.049 points behind Hamm, who becomes the first American man to win gymnastics’ biggest prize.
2008 — A day after winning an Olympic gold medal in Beijing, Rafael Nadal officially unseats Roger Federer to become the world’s No. 1 tennis player when the ATP rankings are released. Federer had been atop the rankings for 235 weeks.
2013 — For the first time in Solheim Cup history, the Europeans leaves America with the trophy. Caroline Hedwall becomes the first player in the 23-year history of the event to win all five matches. She finishes with a 1-up victory over Michelle Wie and gives Europe the 14 points it needed to retain the cup.
2013 — Usain Bolt is perfect again with three gold medals. The Jamaican great becomes the most successful athlete in the 30-year history of the world championships. The 4×100-meter relay gold erases the memories of the 100 title he missed out on in South Korea two years ago because of a false start. Bolt, who already won the 100 and 200 meters, gets his second such sprint triple at the world championships, matching the two he achieved at the Olympics.
2016 — Jamaica’s Usain Bolt completes an unprecedented third consecutive sweep of the 100 and 200-meter sprints, elevating his status as the most decorated male sprinter in Olympic history. He wins the 200-meter race with a time of 19.78 seconds to defeat Andre de Grasse of Canada. American Ashton Eaton defends his Olympic decathlon title, equaling the games record with a surge on the last lap of the 1,500 meters — the last event in the two-day competition. Helen Maroulis defeats Japan’s Saori Yoshida 4-1 in the 53-kilogram freestyle final to win the first-ever gold medal for a United States women’s wrestler.
2018 — Accelerate cruises to a record 12 1/2-length victory in the $1 million Pacific Classic at Del Mar, becoming just the third horse to sweep all three of Southern California’s major races for older horses in the same year.
2021 — Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman hit for the cycle for the second time in his career as they beat the Miami Marlins 11-9.
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Aug. 19
1909 — The first race is held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Twelve-thousand spectators watch Austrian engineer Louis Schwitzer win a five-mile race with an average speed of 57.4 miles per hour. The track’s surface of crushed rock and tar breaks up in a number of places and causes the deaths of two drivers, two mechanics and two spectators.
1921 — Detroit’s Ty Cobb gets his 3,000th career hit at age 34, the youngest player to reach that plateau.
1934 — Helen Hull Jacobs wins the women’s title in the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association championships.
1981 — Renaldo Nehemiah sets the world record in the 110 hurdles with a time of 12.93 seconds in a meet at Zurich, Switzerland.
1984 — Lee Trevino beats Gary Player and Lanny Wadkins by four strokes to take the PGA championship at Shoal Creek, Alabama.
1993 — Sergei Bubka wins his fourth consecutive pole vault title at the World Track and Field championships at Stuttgart, Germany.
1995 — Mike Tyson starts his comeback, knocking out Peter McNeeley in 89 seconds at Las Vegas. McNeeley’s manager Vinnie Vecchione jumps into the ring to stop the fight after his boxer is knocked down twice in the first round.
2001 — Michael Schumacher gets his fourth Formula One championship and matches Alain Prost’s series record of 51 victories by winning the Hungarian Grand Prix.
2004 — American swimmer Michael Phelps wraps up the 200/400m individual medley double at the Athens Olympics when he wins the 200m (1:57.14 OR) ahead of teammate Ryan Lochte.
2016 — Usain Bolt scores another sweep, winning three gold medals in his third consecutive Olympics. At the Rio de Janeiro Games, Bolt turns a close 4×100 relay race against Japan and the United States into a typical, Bolt-like runaway, helping Jamaica cross the line in 37.27 seconds. Allyson Felix wins an unprecedented fifth gold medal in women’s track and field, running the second leg of the 4×100-meter relay team.
2018 — Novak Đoković beats Roger Federer 6-4, 6-4 in the final of the Cincinnati Masters to become the first player to win all 9 Masters 1,000 tennis tournaments since the series started in 1990.
2018 — Jockey Drayden Van Dyke wins a record-tying seven races at Del Mar, including the $200,000 Del Mar Mile. He ties Hall of Famer Victor Espinoza for most wins in a single day in the seaside track’s history. Van Dyke’s only loss in eight mounts comes when he finishes second in the sixth race.
Aug. 20
1921 — Molla Bjurstedt Mallory beats Mary Browne, 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 to win the U.S. women’s national tennis title at the Germantown Cricket Club in Philadelphia.
1931 — Helen Wills Moody beats Eileen Bennett Whitingstall 6-4, 6-1 to capture the women’s title in the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association championship.
1944 — Robert Hamilton upsets Byron Nelson in the final round 1 up to win the PGA Championship.
1960 — Holland’s Hairos II, driven by Willem Geersen, wins the second International Trot at Roosevelt Raceway before a record crowd of 54,861.
1990 — George Steinbrenner steps down as NY Yankee owner.
1995 — Monica Seles completes a remarkable first week back in tournament tennis, routing Amanda Coetzer 6-0, 6-1 to capture the Canadian Open. Her 74 games sets a tournament record for the fewest played by a champion.
1999 — 7th Athletics World Championships open at Seville, Spain.
2000 — Tiger Woods wins the PGA Championship in a playoff over Bob May, becoming the first player since Ben Hogan in 1953 to win three majors in one year. He’s the first player to repeat as PGA champion since Denny Shute in 1937.
2003 — The U.S. wins the women’s overall team gold medal at the gymnastics world championships. It is the first gold for the Americans — men or women — at the biggest international event outside the Olympics.
2004 — Michael Phelps matches Mark Spitz’s record of four individual gold medals in Olympic swimming by winning the 100-meter butterfly. He edges teammate Ian Crocker to win his fifth gold medal. Shortly after winning his seventh medal of these Olympics, Phelps gives up his spot in the medley relay to Crocker.
2006 — Tiger Woods wins the PGA Championship for a five-shot victory over Shaun Micheel and his 12th career major. He becomes the first player to win the PGA twice on the same course, having done so at Medinah in 1999.
2008 — Usain Bolt of Jamaica breaks the 200-meter world record, winning in 19.30 seconds at the Beijing Games. He is the first man since Carl Lewis in 1984 to sweep the 100 and 200 at an Olympics.
2012 — Augusta National invites former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and South Carolina financier Darla Moore to become the first female members since the club was founded in 1932.
2016 — Allyson Felix and LaShawn Merritt anchor the 4×400 relay teams, and the U.S. exits the final night of action at Olympic Stadium with 31 medals — its most in a non-boycotted Olympics since 1956. The U.S. women’s basketball team beats Spain 101-72 for a sixth straight title.
2018 — Alabama becomes the second team to be ranked No. 1 in the preseason Associated Press Top 25 poll for three straight seasons. The preseason AP poll started in 1950 and since then only Oklahoma from 1985-87 had started No. 1 in three straight years.
2023 — FIFA Women’s World Cup Final, Stadium Australia, Sydney: Spanish captain Olga Carmona scores the only goal of the game as La Furia Roja score a 1-0 win over England.
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Aug. 21
1901 — William Larned wins the first of seven men’s singles titles in the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association championship.
1914 — Walter Hagen captures the U.S. Open golf title by edging Chick Evans.
1920 — Jock Hutchinson wins the PGA golf tournament with a 1-up victory over J. Douglass Edgar.
1931 — Babe Ruth of New York hits his 600th home run as the Yankees beat the St. Louis Browns 11-7.
1932 — Helen Hull Jacobs beats Carolyn Babcock to win the women’s singles title in the U.S. Lawn Tennis Association.
1982 — Mystic Park becomes the first 3-year-old trotter to win the American Trotting Championship.
1985 — Mary Decker sets the world record in the mile run with a time of 4:16.71 in Zurich.
1990 — Kelly Craig becomes the first female starting pitcher in Little League World Series history, opening for Trail, British Columbia. She fails to retire any of the three batters she faces but the Canadian champions rally for an 8-3 victory over Matamoros, Mexico.
2003 — Paul Hamm puts together a near-perfect routine on the high bar to become the first American man to win the all-around gold medal at World Gymnastics Championships. Needing a 9.712 or better to beat China’s Yang Wei, Hamm strings together four straight release moves during his 60-second routine — one of the toughest feats in gymnastics — for a 9.975 and the gold.
2004 — American super-swimmer Michael Phelps wins his 6th gold medal of the Athens Olympics even though he doesn’t swim the final of men’s 4 x 100m medley relay; US wins in world record 3:30.68.
2008 — At the Summer Olympics in Beijing, Yukiko Ueno pitches 28 innings in two days, including seven to shut down the U.S. softball team, 3-1, and give Japan the gold medal. It was the first loss for the Americans since Sept. 21, 2000 — 22 straight games. LaShawn Merritt upsets defending champion Jeremy Wariner to lead a U.S. sweep of the 400 meters track event. David Neville gets the bronze. The U.S. men and women both drop the baton in the Olympic 400-meter relays and fail to advance out of the first round. Jamaica’s Veronica Campbell-Brown easily wins the 200 meters to cap the first sweep of all four men’s and women’s Olympic sprints in 20 years.
2010 — Kyle Busch makes NASCAR history with an unprecedented sweep of three national races in one week, completing the trifecta with a victory in the Sprint Cup race at Bristol Motor Speedway. Busch, winner of the Nationwide race a day earlier and the Trucks race on Aug. 18, becomes the first driver to complete the sweep since NASCAR expanded to three national series in 1995.
2011 — The Los Angeles Sparks run off 16 straight points to overcome a 15-point, second-half deficit and hand the Tulsa Shock their WNBA-record 18th consecutive loss with a 73-67 victory. The Atlanta Dream lost 17 in a row in their inaugural season of 2008.
2016 — Kevin Durant scores 30 points and helps the Americans rout Serbia 96-66 for their third straight gold medal. That caps an Olympics in which the U.S. dominated the medal tables, both the gold (46) and overall totals (121). The 51-total-medal margin over second-place China the largest in a non-boycotted Olympics in nearly a century.
2018 — Liu Xiang of China sets a world record time of 26.98 seconds to win the women’s 50-meter backstroke gold medal at the Asian Games. Liu becomes the first woman to swim under 27 seconds in the event, breaking the mark of 27.06 set by fellow Chinese swimmer Zhao Jing at the 2009 world championships in Rome.
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Aug. 22
1851 — The United States wins the first international yacht race. The schooner named “America” beats 14 British yachts.
1885 — Richard Sears beats Godfrey M. Brinley, 6-3, 4-6, 6-0, 6-3 to win the U.S. men’s national tennis championship held at the Newport (R.I.) Casino.
1898 — Malcolm Whitman beats Dwight F. Davis, 3-6, 6-2, 6-2, 6-1 to win the U.S. men’s national tennis championship held at the Newport (R.I.) Casino.
1948 — The Chicago Cardinals beat the College All-Stars 28-0 in front 101,220 fans at Chicago’s Soldier Field.
1949 — The Philadelphia Eagles beat the College All-Stars 38-0 at Chicago’s Soldier Field. It’s the largest shutout in the series, later matched by Green Bay in 1966.
1950 — Althea Gibson becomes the first black tennis player to be accepted in competition for the national championship.
1957 — Floyd Patterson knocks out Pete Rademacher in the sixth round to retain his world heavyweight title at Sicks Stadium in Seattle.
1965 — In the third inning of a game against Los Angeles, pitcher Juan Marichal of the San Francisco Giants hits catcher John Roseboro of the Dodgers in the head with his bat. A 14-minute brawl ensues and Roseboro suffers cuts on the head. Marichal thought Roseboro threw too close to his head when returning the ball to Sandy Koufax.
1984 — Evelyn Ashford sets the world record in the 100-meter dash with a clocking of 10.76 seconds in a meet at Zurich, Switzerland.
1987 — Brazil snaps the 34-game winning streak of the U.S. men’s basketball team with a 120-115 victory in the Pan Am Games. Oscar Schmidt scores 46 points to lead Brazil. Cuba wins a record 10 of 12 gold medals in boxing and beats the U.S. 13-9 in the baseball final.
1989 — Nolan Ryan of the Texas Rangers becomes the first pitcher to strike out 5,000 batters in a 2-0 loss to the Oakland Athletics. Ryan fans Rickey Henderson swinging on a 3-2, 96 mph fastball for No. 5,000.
1994 — DNA testing links O.J. Simpson to murder of Nicole Simpson & Ron Goldman.
1999 — Jenny Thompson breaks Mary T. Meagher’s 18-year-old 100-meter butterfly record at the Pan Pacific swim championships. Thompson with a time of 57.88 seconds lowers the mark of 57.93 set by Meagher.
2004 — American sprinter Justin Gatlin wins the coveted Olympic 100m gold medal in Athens in 9.85 ahead of Francis Obikwelu of Portugal & American Maurice Greene.
2007 — The Texas Rangers becomes the first team in 110 years to score 30 runs in a game, setting an American League record in a 30-3 rout of the Baltimore Orioles in the first game of a doubleheader.
2008 — Usain Bolt helps Jamaica win the 400-meter relay final in 37.10 seconds for his third gold medal and third world record of the Beijing Games. Bolt becomes only the fourth man, and the first since Carl Lewis in 1984, to win all three Olympic sprint events. Bryan Clay wins the decathlon, the first American to win the 10-discipline event at the Olympics since Dan O’Brien at Atlanta in 1996.
2018 — Ohio State suspends football coach Urban Meyer three games for mishandling repeated professional and behavioral problems of an assistant coach, with investigators finding Meyer protected his protege for years through domestic violence allegations, a drug problem and poor job performance.
2018 — The NCAA ditches the RPI for its own evaluation tool to select teams for the NCAA Tournament. The NCAA Evaluation Tool will rely on game results, strength of schedule, game location, scoring margin, net offensive and defensive efficiency and quality of wins and losses. NET will be used for the 2018-19 season by the committee that selects schools and seeds the tournament.