Police fire tear gas into a crowd of soccer fans, who panic and rush for the exits. There are so many trying to escape and some of the gates are locked. The stadium becomes a death trap.
People are trampled in the desperation. Others suffocate, crushed by the weight of bodies around them.
They are the details of last weekend’s soccer game in Malang, Indonesia, where 131 people, some of them children, died in a crush after police fired tear gas at fans of home team Arema FC. It’s also the story of the Estadio Nacional disaster in Lima, Peru, in 1964, when 328 died in a panic sparked by tear gas. It was the same in Accra, Ghana, in 2001, when 126 died.
Soccer’s three worst stadium tragedies occurred over a 60-year span but are so strikingly similar that its clear lessons haven’t been learned.
The world’s most popular game has historic problems of hooliganism, and Indonesia has its share of team rivalries that have led to violence. But Arema had the only fans in the stadium. Just them and the police.
“Not a single rival supporter. How can that match kill more than 100 people?” said a sobbing Gilang Widya Pramana, the president of Arema.
The blame has landed at the feet of the police, like it did in Lima, and Accra, and elsewhere.
Some Arema supporters rushed the field in anger at their team’s loss. Yet, major soccer tragedies have almost always been caused, experts say, by a heavy-handed overreaction by police and poor stadium safety. Firing tear gas in enclosed stadiums is universally condemned by security experts. Locking exits goes against all safety regulations.
“Actually, fans killing other fans is an incredibly rare thing,” said Prof. Geoff Pearson of the University of Manchester, an expert on the policing of soccer fans. “When we look at pretty much all the major (soccer) tragedies, I can’t think of an exception off the top of my head, all of these have been caused by unsafe stadiums or practices, or inappropriate policing.”
Indonesia, a country of 273 million, is due to host next year’s Under-20 World Cup. It is soccer’s “sleeping giant,” said James Montague, a journalist and author who traveled there to watch games with fans.
Montague found a passion for soccer that matches, even outstrips, the game’s leading countries. He said he also found “largely decrepit” stadiums, corruption and mismanagement everywhere and the kind of police that would “smash me in the face with a baton just because I’m standing there watching a football match.”
Soccer was believed to have reached a turning point 33 years ago with the Hillsborough disaster, where 97 Liverpool fans died as a result of a crush at a stadium in Sheffield, England, in 1989. Police were eventually found to have been to blame for letting fans into an already overcrowded section but it took 27 years before the police’s lies and coverups — blaming drunken fans for the deaths — were fully exposed.
Hillsborough led to sweeping reforms in English soccer, making stadiums safer and demanding police change.
That echoes in Indonesia this week. So do calls for justice. Indonesian authorities have laid charges against six people for the crush, three of them police officers.
But a lack of ultimate accountability — “the state closes ranks,” Montague said — has also been a repeat feature.
A BBC report on the 50th anniversary of the Lima disaster found that only one police officer had been sentenced for soccer’s deadliest stadium tragedy, getting 30 months in prison. More than 30 years after Hillsborough, one official has been convicted of a safety offense and fined. Police were acquitted after Africa’s worst sports disaster in Accra despite an inquiry that blamed them for the reckless firing of tear gas and rubber bullets.
Soccer authorities stand helpless. FIFA, the governing body of world soccer based in Switzerland, has recommendations that tear gas should never be used in stadiums. But soccer bodies can’t dictate the tactics used by a country’s security forces, even if it’s at a soccer game.
“It is all down to the organized culture of the police,” said Ronan Evain, executive director of Football Supporters Europe, a group that represents fans’ interests.
Soccer’s inability to interfere in domestic security matters is underlined by the situation in Egypt, where a 2012 stadium riot that killed 74 people came amid a decade of harsh crackdowns on fans by security forces. Dozens of fans have been killed in encounters with police at and away from games, and some fan groups were declared terrorist organizations because they were critical of the Egyptian government, which has been widely accused of human rights violations.
The African soccer body is even based in Cairo but has no authority to intervene.
It’s the police, Pearson said, who have to be “willing to admit their mistakes and learn from their mistakes.” But that kind of institutional change is grudging.
Hillsborough did bring effective reform for England, but it stands almost alone. Lessons were lost after Lima and Accra, and the same can happen again after Indonesia.
Only days after last weekend’s tragedy, police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at soccer fans outside a stadium in Argentina and one person died in the chaos.
George Lawson worked at the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation when he raced to the unfolding tragedy at Ohene Djan Stadium in Accra 21 years ago. He remembered being stunned by the sight of dozens of bodies lying on the ground. He recalled his country coming to a standstill.
But while an inquiry demanded the stadium be totally upgraded, the only lasting change has been a bronze statue erected outside as a memorial, with the inscription: “I am my brother’s keeper.”
“When things happen like this, there’s a hullabaloo,” Lawson said. “And after some time people forget about it.”
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AP Sports Writer Graham Dunbar in Geneva contributed to this report.
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DENVER — Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson was still preaching the gospel of opportunity and belief Thursday night, but in the wake of an ugly 12-9 overtime loss to the Indianapolis Colts in which he threw two interceptions, Wilson did not mince words on his play.
“It’s very simple — at the end of the day I’ve got to be better, I’ve got to play better,” Wilson said. “The defense played their butts off tonight, we had some key good drives. … At the end of the day throwing two interceptions can’t happen. Can’t happen. I let the team down tonight.”
Wilson threw his second interception with just over two minutes to play in regulation when the Broncos had a chance to put the game away. And his errant throw on fourth-and-inches from the Colts’ 6-yard line in overtime, when he didn’t see an open KJ Hamler and tried to squeeze the ball in to Courtland Sutton instead, was the last play of the game.
The Broncos, Wilson and coach Nathaniel Hackett included, elected to go for the win with over two minutes left in overtime rather than get a first down and then have the chance to throw for a potential winning touchdown.
“We had a good play call on. … Guy made a good play,” Wilson said. “I was ready to move around if I needed to. … We went for it. We didn’t want to end in a tie, we wanted to win the game. … I’ve got to find a way to make a play, whatever it takes.”
Wilson, who finished 21-of-39 passing for 274 yards with no touchdowns and the two interceptions, was out of sorts for much of the night. He was just 9-of-17 passing for 69 yards in the first half.
The Broncos’ red zone woes continued as they finished without a touchdown and have scored just two touchdowns in their three home games combined. They entered the night last in the league in red zone scoring and won’t climb the rankings any after Thursday.
Wilson threw both of his interceptions in the fourth quarter, both on plays that started inside Colts territory when points on either of those drives likely would have given the Broncos the win.
“We felt like we should have won that game. I felt like I let us down tonight,” Wilson said.
He added: “Lot of season left, lot of opportunity. [There is] so much good, but the bad is bad. We should have won that game. It’s on me.”
Wilson briefly spoke with a visibly upset Hamler after the game, and several of Wilson’s teammates also stopped to talk to Wilson as he sat in front of his locker, in full uniform, well over an hour after the game had ended.
“Got to finish, execute,” Hamler said of the offensive struggles. “We just got to execute better. Defense [is] fighting their ass off, and we just got to back them up better. I did everything I can. I fought my ass off. The offense fought its ass off.”
Wilson was checked for a concussion in the second half Thursday but cleared to return by the medical staff on site.
“I answered all of their questions and everything,” he said.
Wilson had also been listed on the Broncos’ injury report in the days leading up to the game with a right shoulder injury.
“It’s having these negative plays,” Wilson said. “That’s on us. That’s all on us as players. It starts with me. It’s not on coach Hackett, it’s not on anybody else.”
LAS VEGAS — Roman Josi was kind of joking. But he also kind of wasn’t upon assessing what the Norris Trophy landscape could look like over the next decade.
Josi, who won the Norris as the NHL’s top defenseman after the 2019-20 season, would know. The 31-year-old Nashville Predators captain appeared to be in position to capture a second Norris last season, when he scored 23 goals, amassed 96 points and averaged more than 25 minutes per game.
Then came Cale Makar. The 23-year-old Colorado Avalanche star dazzled throughout the season in scoring 28 goals, accruing 86 points and also averaging more than 25 minutes per game.
Josi had more first- and third-place votes, but Makar, in his third NHL season, came away with his first Norris by a difference of 25 points.
“He could have left me that one, right? Because he’s probably going to win 10 in the next 10 years,” Josi said. “Last year, there were so many guys who had unbelievable years and it is going to be the same going forward. There are more and more guys coming. It’s going to be a huge challenge. It’s also going to be a lot of fun.”
Josi has a point. The year before Makar won, New York Rangers star Adam Fox took home the Norris as a 23-year-old. The achievements of Fox and Makar add to a growing belief that the impact the young, puck-moving defensemen will have on the NHL is only beginning.
Many of them are not old enough to rent a car without signing a waiver, but they are playing a role in driving discussion about where this league is heading.
“Growing up, I felt like that was kind of the way the game was heading,” said Werenski, who was drafted eighth overall by the Columbus Blue Jackets in 2015. “A lot of defensemen were puck-moving. I played at the U.S National Team [Development Program] with Noah Hanifin and Charlie McAvoy, guys who play similar styles to me. Now you see Cale Makar and Roman Josi. Those guys are so talented, almost scoring 30 goals and 100 points and still playing great D.
“Nowadays to be successful, the game is so fast, you have to be a good skater. But you also have to be able to create offensively as well.”
PUCK-MOVING DEFENSEMEN have always existed in the NHL, but the influx seems to have picked up considerably over recent seasons.
Buffalo Sabres general manager Kevyn Adams, who played 10 years in the NHL as a center, said he felt like the evolution was starting to happen around the time he retired in 2008. Early in his career, defensemen played a bigger and meaner style. Toward the end, that type was still around, but players like two-time Norris Trophy winner Duncan Keith, who could skate and take space away, had begun to emerge.
Adams said more defensemen over the years have developed into stronger skaters who could read plays, break up neutral zone activity and make life difficult for opposing forwards while also having the offensive skill to become a complete threat.
“I look at a player we drafted — Mats Lindgren — in the fourth round,” Adams said of one of the Sabres’ picks in 2022. “He has some elite skating tools at 18 years old. Those are the type of defensemen you are seeing more of. If you can have that, the feet, you can defend well and make a good first pass, those are valuable. The ones that are extremely intelligent who can process the game at a high level and sort out reads, those types of defensemen are becoming more valuable.”
The Sabres hired Adams in 2020, putting him in charge of a rebuild in Buffalo. Part of his strategy has centered around Dahlin and Power. Dahlin was drafted two years before Adams arrived, whereas Power was selected with the No. 1 pick of the 2021 draft.
Adams said Power’s ability to process the game in addition to his defending, skating, puck-moving ability and vision were all traits the organization believed would translate at a high level.
“You look at our team with Rasmus already in the group, there was a thought that if we get into a big game, they could both be on the ice for 30 minutes a game whether it is together or separately,” Adams said. “That is a really valuable thing to have.”
Dahlin, who was drafted with the first pick in 2018 by the Sabres, said growing up in Sweden shaped how he viewed the game. Countrymen Victor Hedman, Erik Karlsson and Nicklas Lidstrom have combined to win 10 Norris Trophies since the start of the century.
That trio inspired a generation of Swedes. Dahlin said he grew up with Adam Boqvist, who plays for the Blue Jackets, and Rasmus Sandin, who plays for the Toronto Maple Leafs. He recalled how they all played the same style.
“I was able to realize at a young age that a defenseman can also have fun offensively,” Dahlin said. “I’m a little mixed. I have my own style. But I for sure looked at those guys.”
Makar, who was the second defenseman drafted after Heiskanen (No. 4 overall) in 2017, said he started playing defense in atom hockey (age 9-10). He said he liked being a forward but enjoyed being a defenseman more because it allowed him to be the first skater back and in a position to control the game.
He praised his youth coaches who helped him gradually get more comfortable being a puck-moving defenseman. Makar said those coaches showed him a lot of faith, to the point he admits to looking like “a little bit of a puck hog” when watching footage from his youth hockey days.
Even back then, Makar could use his agility, stickhandling, speed, timing and vision as a way of deceiving opponents to his advantage. But because he did not see defensemen at higher levels play that way, Makar thought it might not work as he went up the ranks.
“It might have been the first year in Canada they aired the NCAA championship with [Shayne] Gostisbehere and Union,” Makar recalled. “That was kind of the first guy where I was like, ‘Wow. He’s doing that. All the stuff that I am doing right now, but at a level that is way higher.’ In my mind, it was like, ‘Wow. There is some hope there.’
“It was the first moment I realized there was a change in style. That was definitely a defining moment for sure.”
Dahlin, Makar and Werenski were all top-10 draft picks who broke into the league at an early age. Dahlin played as an 18-year-old after spending two seasons with Frolunda, facing older competition back home in Sweden. Makar played at the University of Massachusetts prior to debuting in the Stanley Cup playoffs at 20, while Werenski, who starred at the University of Michigan, came to the league at 19.
By comparison, the 2008 draft had four defensemen — Doughty, Zach Bogosian, Alex Pietrangelo and Luke Schenn — who were taken with the second, third, fourth and fifth picks, respectively. Doughty debuted at 19 and played 81 games his first season. Bogosian debuted at 18 and played 47 games. Pietrangelo broke into the league at 19, but his first full season came at 21, while Schenn played 70 games in his age-19 season. Karlsson, who was drafted 15th, played in 60 games as a 19-year-old.
So while playing young defensemen is nothing new, Pietrangelo said teams have changed their approach with them. The Vegas Golden Knights star said it feels like more teams are trying to find ways to take advantage of the salary cap, and one is by trusting young players on cheaper deals before they become too expensive. He also said the game has developed into requiring more skilled defensemen than in the past, when the focus was to have more physical blueliners.
“I think now the young players are just better skaters,” Pietrangelo said. “Some of these guys that come in now, obviously, you look at Makar and those guys are just exceptional. For the most part, every defenseman at our camp can skate and move the puck. That’s kind of where the game is going.”
Pietrangelo said he initially played third-pairing minutes in his first full season with the St. Louis Blues. He eventually gained more trust from the coaches and began working his way into a top-four role. Pietrangelo finished his rookie campaign with 11 goals and 43 points in 79 games while averaging 22 minutes.
Avalanche coach Jared Bednar said generating offense has become so difficult that teams need all five players on the ice to contribute. He said the previous philosophy was to pair a puck mover with a stay-at-home partner. There is still the expectation all defensemen know how to defend, but there is also an understanding they must be part of the offense.
Bednar, who is the third-longest tenured coach in the NHL, has gone through the experience of trusting a young puck-moving defenseman on three separate occasions. The process the Avs used to assimilate Samuel Girard, as well as Makar and Byram, required buy-in from the entire team.
“First and foremost, you have to be able to check to play in this league, whether you’re a forward or a defenseman,” Bednar said. “To help drive the offense out of them, we encourage our guys to push themselves up the ice and be part of it. There’s the decision-making process. Not only the defensemen who are up in the play, but for our forwards. It’s really team driven. If you want your defensemen to be up in the play, then your forwards have to know their responsibilities are filling in for them. So you’re working in that five-man unit all the time.”
WITH THE INCREASED responsibilities for this crop of young defenseman comes increased compensation. These players are now starting to get paid a lot of money by the time their entry-level contracts expire.
Getting to that point took time. ESPN interviewed four agents who spoke on the condition of anonymity so they could speak freely. All four have negotiated deals for young puck-moving defensemen.
“The market has moved $2.5 million in the course of three years,” one agent said. “When we did a client’s bridge deal, I wanted eight years at $7 million to $7.5 million and that is what I was fighting for. When we did his second deal, the first thing my client said was, ‘Boy, aren’t you glad we did not sign that deal?’ because by that point, the numbers had shifted into the $9 million range.”
For example, both McAvoy and Werenski were among the first of the group who signed bridge deals after their ELCs ended. McAvoy signed a three-year deal worth $4.9 million annually while Werenski signed for three years at $5 million.
Werenski signed with the Blue Jackets on Sept. 9, 2019 while McAvoy re-signed with the Boston Bruins less than a week later.
“I’ve never been on that side of the table [as a general manager]. But the point of the bridge deal is to keep the cap [hit] low,” the agent said. “The bridge deal allows you to have a competitive team with a player that has no leverage.”
The same agent compared the Bruins’ situation with McAvoy to that of the Maple Leafs with Auston Mathews, who was also drafted in 2016. He said the Bruins signing McAvoy to a bridge deal before agreeing in October 2021 to an eight-year extension worth $9.5 million per year that starts in 2022-23 allows the Bruins to hypothetically have McAvoy on their roster for 14 seasons, including the three years from his entry-level deal. It’s a contrast with Mathews, who signed a five-year extension after his ELC, which means he’ll be under team control for only eight seasons.
“As long as the marketplace is what it is, you are happy to pay them,” the agent said. “That is another piece of this. If a guy is that good, why not give them the money? You can keep them for 14 years or possibly lose them after eight or nine years.”
Signing bridge deals is still a possibility. Every team’s situation is different. But the class that featured Fox, Heiskanen, Hughes and Makar saw a deviation from bridge deals, with those players signing long-term contracts after their initial deals.
“We had a guy who went to college and then had an immediate impact in the NHL,” another agent told ESPN. “To me, that first class was the one that sort of opened the door for young defensemen playing immediately, and that second elite class blew the doors off and basically said, ‘Hey, we need to be paid.’”
That same agent said that was his approach when it came to getting his client a new contract after his entry-level deal ended. The agent’s argument was that even though his client is a defenseman, the statistical projections for him were higher than forwards of a similar age who were given long-term deals.
“We never thought a bridge deal was a possibility,” the agent said. “He accomplished enough at the point where we felt we could get some term there. In fact, the team wanted to go longer term and they felt very confident in my client’s value. They wanted to lock him up for as long as they could.”
So why not go longer if the team is willing? The agent explained how signing a deal of at least six years means his client will be around 29 or 30 when it comes time for his next contract. He would be young enough to sign one more large deal before having to worry about age being used against him.
While signing a long-term contract yields life-changing wealth and security, there is another factor to consider. Over time, the market almost surely will go up.
“While we felt good about the total dollar number,” the agent said, “we did not want to chase every last dollar on this contract knowing the landscape will rise.”
Consider the contracts signed by that second wave of young defensemen. Heiskanen signed first on an eight-year deal worth $8.45 million annually on July 17, 2021. Makar signed a week later for six years at $9 million annually. Hughes signed Oct. 1, 2021 for six years at $7.85 million annually while Fox, who still had a year left on his entry-level contract, signed a month later for seven years at $9.5 million annually.
The fourth agent who spoke with ESPN alluded to how those deals would lay the foundation for the next group of defensemen, which includes Dahlin, Drysdale and Seider.
“Makar is at $9 million and teams will say, ‘Are you better than Makar?’” the agent said. “That is what teams will say in negotiations. A [young] defenseman can come along and make $10 million and not be better than Makar or Werenski or Josi. It’s not a function of that player being better, but more how the market is moving.”
Doughty and Karlson are proof that teams are willing to sign a defenseman to a contract worth at least $10 million annually. But Doughty started making $11 million in the 2019-20 season. By that point, he had already won a Norris, two Stanley Cups and was a four-time All-Star. Karlsson’s new deal went into effect that season, and it saw him earn $11.5 million after he won two Norris Trophies and was a five-time All-Star.
What is the likelihood that a team would be willing to give a player who is either 21 or 22 that kind of money? Especially if they do not have a Norris or a Stanley Cup?
“There will be a moment,” one of the agents said. “It’s going to be about the percentage of the cap by that point. I am really hopeful and bullish with where the NHL is. I am hoping in 10 years the cap has gone up significantly. In other sports, there are other young players who make $10 million a year and we don’t blink an eye. The way the game is played and the way offense has to be created from the back end, defensemen will continue to be more and more important.”
As the prominence of these players continues to rise, what does that mean for the Norris Trophy going forward? Pietrangelo said it has changed from the days of Chris Pronger, who won the Hart Memorial Trophy and the Norris in the 1999-2000 season. He said Pronger didn’t need to score 90 points to win the Norris because he had a physical style that made him impactful in every area of the game.
For the record, Pronger scored a career-high 14 goals and a career-high 62 points while averaging more than 30 minutes per game that season. He would have led the league in ice time by nearly four full minutes if he hit those numbers during the 2021-22 season. Pronger’s 14 goals would have been tied for seventh among defensemen while his 62 points would have been ninth.
Makar said it feels like the Norris balloting today leans more toward offensive defensemen. That, in turn, places those with fewer points but consistently strong defensive efforts at a disadvantage.
“It’s almost like you need an extra award for the most all-around guys,” Makar said. “For me, it’s rounding out that game and making sure I can be an option for my team and be up for those individual things. But at the end of the day, there has to be a ‘both sides of the game’ award. There has to be.”
BANGKOK, Thailand — Richard Bland, Branden Grace and Eugenio Lopez-Chacarra upstaged their more-illustrious opponents on Friday to shoot 7-under 65s and share the lead after the first round of the LIV Golf Invitational-Bangkok.
Marc Leishman and Ian Poulter were a stroke behind while Kim Sihwan, Brooks Koepka and Morgan Jediah were among those two behind in the 54-hole event.
The tournament is being played on the new Stonehill Golf Club north of downtown Bangkok. The course was created by American designer Kyle Phillips and opened this year.
Dustin Johnson, who leads the money list with just over $12.5 million in five events, shot 70. British Open champion Cameron Smith, who won the last LIV event in Chicago in mid-September, shot 72.
It’s the first time LIV Golf is being played outside the United States since its inaugural event in early June near London.
Before the start of play, players learned that they still won’t accrue ranking points on the LIV series. The Official World Golf Ranking said in a statement Thursday that it had denied the MENA Tour’s request to immediately add the Saudi-funded series to its schedule.
The OWGR said the MENA Tour did not give it sufficient notice and there would not be time to finish the review ahead of the Bangkok tournament and next week’s event in Saudi Arabia.
LIV Golf created an alliance with the little-known MENA Tour, which hasn’t run a tournament of its own since March 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. The MENA Tour stands for Middle East and North Africa and is a developmental tour that has been getting the bare minimum of world ranking points since 2016. It has 54-hole events with a 36-hole cut, offering a $75,000 purse.
“I don’t think it really was much of a response. I just hate when you sit on the fence. Just pick a side,” Koepka said Friday. “If it’s yes or no, just pick one. So I’m not a big fan of that.”
Bryson DeChambeau, who shot 69 Friday, said the decision by the rankings group was only “delaying the inevitable.”
“We’ve hit every mark in their criteria, so for us not to get points is kind of crazy with having the top — at least I believe we have the top players in the world,” DeChambeau said. “We certainly believe that there’s enough that are in the top 50, and we deserve to be getting world ranking points. When they keep holding it back, they’re going to just keep playing a waiting game.”
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DENVER — Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson was still preaching the gospel of opportunity and belief Thursday night, but in the wake of an ugly 12-9 overtime loss to the Indianapolis Colts in which he threw two interceptions, Wilson did not mince words on his play.
“It’s very simple — at the end of the day I’ve got to be better, I’ve got to play better,” Wilson said. “The defense played their butts off tonight, we had some key good drives. … At the end of the day throwing two interceptions can’t happen. Can’t happen. I let the team down tonight.”
Wilson threw his second interception with just over two minutes to play in regulation when the Broncos had a chance to put the game away. And his errant throw on fourth-and-inches from the Colts’ 6-yard line in overtime, when he didn’t see an open KJ Hamler and tried to squeeze the ball in to Courtland Sutton instead, was the last play of the game.
The Broncos, Wilson and coach Nathaniel Hackett included, elected to go for the win with over two minutes left in overtime rather than get a first down and then have the chance to throw for a potential winning touchdown.
“We had a good play call on. … Guy made a good play,” Wilson said. “I was ready to move around if I needed to. … We went for it. We didn’t want to end in a tie, we wanted to win the game. … I’ve got to find a way to make a play, whatever it takes.”
Wilson, who finished 21-of-39 passing for 274 yards with no touchdowns and the two interceptions, was out of sorts for much of the night. He was just 9-of-17 passing for 69 yards in the first half.
The Broncos’ red zone woes continued as they finished without a touchdown and have scored just two touchdowns in their three home games combined. They entered the night last in the league in red zone scoring and won’t climb the rankings any after Thursday.
Wilson threw both of his interceptions in the fourth quarter, both on plays that started inside Colts territory when points on either of those drives likely would have given the Broncos the win.
“We felt like we should have won that game. I felt like I let us down tonight,” Wilson said.
He added: “Lot of season left, lot of opportunity. [There is] so much good, but the bad is bad. We should have won that game. It’s on me.”
Wilson briefly spoke with a visibly upset Hamler after the game, and several of Wilson’s teammates also stopped to talk to Wilson as he sat in front of his locker, in full uniform, well over an hour after the game had ended.
“Got to finish, execute,” Hamler said of the offensive struggles. “We just got to execute better. Defense [is] fighting their ass off, and we just got to back them up better. I did everything I can. I fought my ass off. The offense fought its ass off.”
Wilson was checked for a concussion in the second half Thursday but cleared to return by the medical staff on site.
“I answered all of their questions and everything,” he said.
Wilson had also been listed on the Broncos’ injury report in the days leading up to the game with a right shoulder injury.
“It’s having these negative plays,” Wilson said. “That’s on us. That’s all on us as players. It starts with me. It’s not on coach Hackett, it’s not on anybody else.”
Jodi Ewart Shadoff is yet to find a win in the LPGA Championship; She carded eight-under-par 64 on day one of the Mediheal Championship; Alison Lee and Ruixin Liu are tied for second
Last Updated: 07/10/22 7:37am
Jodi Ewart Shadoff is yet to secure an LPGA Tour win but has set herself up nicely on day one of the Mediheal Championship
England’s Jodi Ewart Shadoff, a 34-year-old veteran still looking for her first career LPGA Tour win, holds a two-shot lead after the first round of the LPGA Mediheal Championship on Thursday.
Ewart Shadoff carded an eight-under-par 64 at The Saticoy Club while Alison Lee and China’s Ruixin Liu are tied for second at 66, with Danielle Kang, South Africa’s Paula Reto and Thailand’s Atthaya Thitikul sharing fourth place at 67.
Ten players are tied for seventh place at 68.
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Ewart Shadoff has finished in the top 10 on tour 27 times, including this year at the LPGA Match-Play when she tied for fifth and the ShopRite LPGA Classic when she finished third.
On Thursday, she started on the back nine and opened with a birdie, then added an eagle at the par-five 14th hole.
She made the turn following consecutive birdies, then had her lone bogey of the day at the par-four first hole before finishing hot and making four straight birdies ahead of a closing par.
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Lee’s bogey-free round concluded with four birdies on the front nine.
“I feel like I was hitting it really good all day today,” Lee said.
“I feel like I pretty much hit all my shots in makeable birdie range.
“I could have made a lot more…. I just feel like I played really awesome today.
“I would say it’s not a super easy course. It felt easy today obviously because I played so well. Other than that, you definitely need to think a little bit when you hit your approach shots and really need to keep in mind where the pin is and where the slopes are, too.”
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Liu was one over par through five holes, but a string of four consecutive birdies straddling the turn sparked her bogey-free run for the rest of the round.
Kang produced a strong round in her homecoming to Ventura County, where she grew up.
“All my friends aren’t out here yet, so I’ll let you know when they all come,” Kang said.
“My brother coming is a big deal for me, because I love it when he watches.
“He’s kind of my big teacher. He always knows how my game works.
“Today, he’s going to tell me what went well and what didn’t, and I learn from that.”
Defending champion Matilda Castren of Finland, who established the event’s scoring record of 14-under 274 while beating Taiwan’s Min Lee by two shots last year, is tied for 71st after a one-over 73. Lee is tied for 39th at one-under
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MIAMI — UDONIS HASLEM was vacationing in Orlando with his family this past July when he saw a black SUV pull up to his rental house.
“My antenna goes up,” the Miami Heat veteran says of the moment. “A black SUV? I can’t see inside it? I told my kids, ‘Go in the house.’”
Haslem was right to be suspicious.
“I start walking up to the car, and [Heat vice president of sports media relations] Tim Donovan jumps out with T-shirts [with an image of Udonis on them],” he says. “I think he was shocked by my initial response, but that’s because I didn’t know who the hell it was.”
It’s ironic, given how much this surprise visit was so much about two decades of familiarity.
Donovan’s arrival marked the Heat’s invitation for Haslem, then a free agent, to return for a 20th NBA season, an offer he officially accepted when he re-signed for one year with Miami in August. He will join Dirk Nowitzki (Dallas Mavericks) and Kobe Bryant (Los Angeles Lakers) as the only NBA players to have played at least 20 seasons all with one franchise. And at 42, he will remain the oldest player in the league for one more season — one he announced in August at his basketball camp in Miami.
But Haslem would still like his say in the discussion of what exactly a power forward in his 40s can offer a team.
“This is not a f—ing charity case,” he says. “My guys know what I bring to the table, appreciate me and respect me.
“I’m not joking. Trust me, I’d be the first one to get the f— out of here if I couldn’t do it anymore. I’m not gonna get my ass kicked by little guys every day.”
When his signing was announced, critics discussed the Heat’s inability to quit Haslem on social media. Among the more popular posts was one pointing out that since 2017, Haslem made the most money per minute played in the league: He has played just 273 minutes, or the equivalent of less than six full NBA games, in that time.
Udonis Haslem is the highest-paid active player per minute in the last five seasons.
Could the spot be better utilized on developing young talent? Would Haslem be just as valuable as an assistant coach? Or does the man, who is affectionately called “UD” as well as “OG,” because of his extensive tenure with his hometown franchise, have something left to offer a team with which he’s already won three championships?
“I understand what my role is, so why not play?” he counters. “Some day, it’s gonna be over. But everything about me being here and being a part of this is based on the fact that I can still contribute if I need to.”
Haslem is the fabric of the Heat franchise and probably the greatest single contributor to the oft-referenced Heat culture. Those who see him daily recognize his contribution to winning is real, and not some myth the organization is keeping alive.
This is, after all, still a Pat Riley-led franchise. One of the former Heat coach-turned-president’s consistent messages is, the older you get in the NBA, the better condition you must maintain. Hence, Haslem has gotten more lean in the past few seasons to maintain his agility. Riley says Haslem is currently under 5% body fat.
Despite not seeing the floor in the playoffs since 2016, Haslem felt he played his part in Jimmy Butler’s impressive performance in Miami’s 2022 playoff run by testing him in one-on-one battles before home games.
“It gets competitive up here, bro,” Haslem says. “He makes some shots on me that drive me nuts sometimes.
“If you ask anybody, that [playoff run] started up here. I was watching that s— on Joel Embiid, it was literally déjà vu of the s— he makes on me up here. I said to myself, ‘This is why we do what we do. This is why we come up here and we play 1s, and we get competitive. That’s how I know he can lead us to where we need to go.’”
Those individual sessions aren’t reserved for just Butler. Any Heat player, any size, any age gets a shot at Haslem whenever they want to sharpen their skills.
“That definitely surprised me, because I didn’t think he was gonna be playing and moving like that,” Heat forward Caleb Martin says. “A lot of people at his age have been done playing for years. He’s still in here getting it in, top-tier shape. To see him coming in and working like he does every day, knowing he’s probably not gonna get into the game … it’s impressive.”
Added teammate Victor Oladipo: “I played against him when I was coming back in rehab. OG can still slide ’em. It’s not no tough out. He’s gonna make you work for every inch. He’s willing to do whatever to help us be better, and he doesn’t even have to. He’s the most selfless person we have.
“He’s not UD sometimes. He’s UD all the time.”
THE LEGEND OF Haslem began during George W. Bush’s first presidential term in 2003, after a year playing overseas and getting in NBA shape.
A leaned-out Haslem had spent time with both Miami’s and San Antonio’s summer squads, looking almost nothing like the wide-bodied post-presence he was in three years at Florida. He’d spent his college career dominating in the low post with hook shots and heart, but was now trying to make his name with defense and an evolving midrange jumper.
“I didn’t want him to get down to [Spurs coach Gregg] Popovich, because I knew Pop would sign him in a heartbeat,” Riley recalls.
Playing for his hometown team eventually convinced Haslem to sign his first NBA deal with Miami over San Antonio, joining rookie Dwyane Wade and the newly-acquired Lamar Odom from the LA Clippers.
Before Haslem’s initial game in a Heat uniform, Riley gave the first indication that Haslem and the organization would begin a long-standing partnership.
“We were down in Puerto Rico after a week of training camp, I think it was our first preseason game,” recalls Riley, who would eventually hand the head-coaching duties to Stan Van Gundy five days before the 2003-04 season began. “We all went to the shootaround, and this is the first time I’m going to say, ‘OK, this is our starting lineup.’ And I called out Dwyane, I called out Eddie [Jones], I called out Brian [Grant], I called out Caron [Butler]. And I said, ‘OK UD, you’re starting at the 4 ahead of Lamar Odom.’
“Players were looking around because Lamar was a very, very talented player. And that’s where Udonis showed me, showed everybody that he was one of the great competitors in our franchise and in this game.”
Haslem started the first 24 games of that season (Odom eventually started all 80 regular-season games he played with the Heat that season) before being moved to the bench. He averaged 7.3 points and 6.3 rebounds for a surprising Heat team that reached the Eastern Conference semifinals. Haslem would then start 360 of the next 362 games he played over the following five seasons, and all 22 games of the 2006 Heat championship run — capped by a 17-point, 10-rebound performance in the championship-clinching Game 6 in Dallas.
“I said to him, you’re going to be wide open a lot,” Riley recalls telling Haslem before that game. “Get into the creases, get into the gaps. He hit a baseline jumper, hit another elbow jumper, and then he got an offensive rebound and put that back in. He had no fear of the big moment. He never did.”
Among the greatest signs of respect Haslem received from his peers was when the Heat’s Big Three — Wade, LeBron James and Chris Bosh — took slightly less than their maximums in 2010 so Haslem could re-sign with the team and be a part of what would be a run of four Finals appearances in four years.
Haslem, at this point playing mostly as a reserve, thanked them with moments of unforgettable support — most notably by filling in for an injured Bosh early in the 2012 playoffs. Against the Indiana Pacers in the second round, Haslem’s Game 5 retaliation against Tyler Hansbrough would become the moment that most typified that stage of his career.
Hansbrough had fouled Wade in the head and neck area one play earlier. So Haslem, himself wearing eight stitches over his right eye from a collision one game earlier, committed a hard foul against the Pacers forward, leaving Hansbrough bloodied and getting OG ejected and suspended for Game 6.
“Just staying ready so I didn’t have to get ready,” Haslem says, of his biggest contribution to that championship. “CB gets hurt, we don’t win the Indiana series or the Boston series without me. Regardless of what my role was, we don’t win that series without me, which means we don’t win the Finals without me.”
When the current iteration of the Heat was built around Jimmy Butler, Haslem discovered a running mate with a similar affection for work. And as the Heat were making a run to the NBA Finals in the Orlando bubble in 2020, he had another chance to prove his worth.
“We were going to be comfortable with being uncomfortable,” Haslem says. “This is not home. This is our job. It’s almost like going to Europe to play: You spend your nine months there, and then you bring your ass home.”
Together, they came up with a plan. “Soon as we hit the bubble, we were on some militant s—,” Haslem recalls.
“I was crazy, I was sleeping on the couch. I never slept in the bed. I slept on the couch for the three months I was in there. I had my cabinets full of Campbell’s soup, water bottles and a little shot of Hennessy on the side. I never left my room, either. Me and Jimmy didn’t have many friends.”
Haslem is proud of his part in taking the fifth-seeded Heat to the NBA Finals inside the bubble, even though they lost to the Lakers in six games. Last season, he remained visible throughout Miami’s run to the Eastern Conference Finals. The most in-your-face moment came when he broke up an on-bench argument between Butler and coach Erik Spoelstra in the midst of a late-season losing streak.
“He brought it down to a level where all parties understood this was about winning, period,” says former Heat all-star Alonzo Mourning, now the team’s vice president of player programs and development. “Every team wants a player like that in their locker room. We’re just fortunate enough to have that.”
HASLEM WAS INITIALLY unsure about returning for this season. But it was a conversation from two years ago with his father Johnnie that convinced him to reach that round number.
“We were just going through the summer, and he was like, ‘S—, the way you’re going, you could do 20,’” Haslem recalls from their talk in 2020. “I thought he was crazy. I was like, ‘I don’t know about that.’ But he said I should really think about it.
“And then Dwyane mentioned it. Those are two people that I trust and I value their opinions. So I started thinking, ‘If the mind holds up and the body holds up, that’s a hell of a class to be in.’”
But while Haslem is inevitably being celebrated with jersey swaps and tributes for the next seven months, his father won’t be around to see what he helped inspire.
Johnnie died Aug. 30, 2021, at the age of 70, taking with him the perfect ending to his son’s underdog story.
“It just wasn’t gonna be the ending I envisioned after 20 years,” Haslem says. “That was the most important piece, my dad. Not to take anything away from my stepmom or my wife or my kids, but from the day I picked up a freakin’ basketball, that dude’s been right there.
“It definitely dampened it, put a dark cloud over it. But there are a lot of people that deserve to be a part of this. I didn’t want to forget about those people.”
Those include his family and friends, and his teammates.
“He’s constantly making me better, whether it’s talking, breaking down film, playing one-on-one,” Butler said. “He’s in everybody’s ear for the better because he knows what it takes to win, he’s been a champion, and he wants everybody else to feel the same. Glad to have that guy back.”
Back in a jersey, specifically. Not only because OG still has something left in those 42-year-old legs, but because when he is finally done, he envisions more than just an assistant coach role.
Haslem looks at what Buster Posey just did in San Francisco, joining the Giants’ ownership group just one year after his 12-year career with the team, and is determined to do the same with the Heat.
Until then, his goals are more about making sure his impact carries on. His value over the past several years of his career can only truly be measured by those in uniform with him. And he’s hopeful his work resonates well after he’s retired.
“I want to pass the torch to Bam [Adebayo] as the next bearer of the culture,” Haslem says. “I want to continue to mold and help Jimmy be the champion that he deserves to be. And I just want to leave this locker room headed in the right direction.
“I want kids somewhere to say, ‘I want to have a career like Udonis Haslem — undrafted, worked for everything I got, won three championships, retired and went into ownership with the same organization I played with for 20 years.’”
NEW YORK — Bam Adebayo scored 17 points and undrafted rookie Jamal Cain added 15 points and 11 rebounds as the Miami Heat defeated the Brooklyn Nets 109-80 on Thursday night.
Kevin Durant led Brooklyn with 22 points on 8 of 12 shooting in 26 minutes. Ben Simmons had four points and 10 rebounds for the Nets.
Miami star Jimmy Butler played for the first time in the preseason, scoring two points in the first half and then sitting in the second half. Tyler Herro and Victor Oladipo didn’t play for the Heat.
The Nets were minus Joe Harris, who was resting an ankle that left him out most of last season, and Kyrie Irving, who had the night off after the birth of his child. Seven Heat players scored in double figures.
Kyle Lowry had 15 points and Dru Smith, Duncan Robinson and Jamaree Bouyea each added 12 for Miami. Cain signed with the Heat in July after playing for Marquette and Oakland University.
Cam Thomas scored 13 points and Markieff Morris 10 for the Nets.
Through the first half, the teams tried various combinations, mixing the starters with some key bench players. Both sides seemed to stretch their stars for some extra minutes in the shortened NBA preseason.
Durant played 19 minutes in the first half and scored 18 points, making six of seven shots. Simmons and backcourt mate Royce O’Neale each played 18 minutes.
MAGIC 102, SPURS 99
Paolo Banchero, the overall No. 1 pick in the June draft, had nine points and five rebounds as Orlando beat San Antonio.
Wendell Carter Jr. had 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Magic. He shot 8 of 13 as most of the Orlando starters played between 20 and 23 minutes. Franz Wagner had 12 points and Moritz Wagner scored 10.
Doug McDermott led the Spurs with 14 points, and Keita Bates-Diop added 12.. Devin Vassell and Tre Jones scored 11 points each.
THUNDER 131, ADELAIDE 36ERs 98
Tre Mann scored 26 points, including hitting 8 of 10 on 3s, as Oklahoma City beat a team from the Australian National Basketball League.
Lindy Waters III scored 23 points and Eugene Omoruyi added 19 points for the Thunder.
Craig Randall II, who had 35 points in the 36ers’ 134-124 win over the Phoenix Suns earlier in the week, led Adelaide with 27 points. Robert Franks scored 20 points and Antonius Cleveland had 19 points.
Adelaide used torrid 3-point shooting, hitting 56% from beyond the arc, to defeat the Suns in the opening game of their preseason tour. But the accuracy was not the same against Oklahoma City as the 36ers went 11 of 36 from distance.
HAWKS 123, BUCKS 113
Dejounte Murray scored 25 points in his Atlanta debut and the Hawks beat Milwaukee in the NBA’s first game in the United Arab Emirates and the Arabian Gulf.
The teams will play another preseason game on Saturday at Etihad Arena.
Giannis Antetokounmpo led the Bucks with 19 points. Jevon Carter added 17.
Murray also had nine assists, eight rebounds and two blocked shots. He was acquired from San Antonio for three first-round picks in the Hawks’ biggest offseason move.
Hawks star Trae Young had 22 points. Young and Murray combined to make 13 of 16 free throws, all in the first half.
The game featured the NBA’s three Holiday brothers. Aaron Holiday had 16 points and Justin Holiday added nine for the Hawks. Jrue Holiday had 12 for the Bucks.
De’Andre Hunter had 17 points for Atlanta.
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More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports
BOSTON — The New England Patriots caused irreparable damage to a U.S. flag signed by Tom Brady by improperly displaying it in the team’s hall of fame at Gillette Stadium, the flag’s owner contends in a federal lawsuit.
After the flag had been on display a couple of months, Brady’s signature written in blue Sharpie had significantly faded, which reduced the flag’s value by as much as $1 million, according to the suit filed against the team Wednesday in Boston.
A Patriots spokesperson said Thursday that the team had no immediate comment.
The flag, described as “a priceless piece of sports memorabilia and historical artifact,” flew over the now-closed Foxboro Stadium on Dec. 22, 2001.
Daniel Vitale, 42, of Hampstead, New Hampshire, bought the flag in 2020 as an investment.
“I am a die-hard Patriots fan and have been for 40 years,” Vitale told The Associated Press by phone Thursday. “That flag was so significant to me because it was right after 9/11 and it was the last regular-season game at Foxboro Stadium.”
Vitale lent the flag to the Patriots Hall of Fame in June 2021 after being assured that it would be cared for properly. He wanted it back a couple of months later because he thought it might skyrocket in value, as Brady, who now plays for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, was contemplating retirement at the time, according to the lawsuit.
Vitale’s youngest daughter has autism, and the family wanted to hire a full-time nanny to care for her, he said.
But when Vitale got the flag back, Brady’s signature had faded.
Neither the lighting at the Hall of Fame nor the glass on the display case were designed to protect autographed sports memorabilia, and there was “a significant gap in the glass directly in front of the flag through which unfiltered light and heat could pass,” according to the lawsuit, which estimates the loss in value as ranging from several hundred thousand dollars to as much as $1 million.
The suit alleges breach of contract, negligent misrepresentation and fraudulent misrepresentation, and it seeks a jury trial and unspecified damages.
The lawsuit was a last resort. “I’ve tried to do everything I can to settle with these guys, but they don’t even want to talk to us,” Vitale said.
HENDERSON, Nev. — Victor Wembanyama blocked a shot Thursday afternoon, ran to the other end of the court, went airborne from just inside the foul line, corralled an alley-oop pass with one hand and slammed home a dunk.
The entire sequence lasted eight seconds.
It may have been the signature moment — and there were a lot of candidates — from Wembanyama’s two-game trip to the U.S., which ended Thursday with the French phenom’s Metropolitans 92 team rallying from 16 points down to top the G League Ignite 112-106. He led the way, of course, with 36 points and 11 rebounds.
“As a first impression of the American game, that was really great,” Wembanyama said.
So was he.
His final numbers from two exhibitions: 73 points on 22-for-44 shooting, nine 3-pointers, 15 rebounds and nine blocked shots. He flies back to France on Saturday, and the next time he plays in the U.S. there likely will be an NBA logo on his jersey, presumably after he becomes the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.
“It’s very, very special for France,” Metropolitans 92 coach Vincent Collet said. “Not only for France. He has huge potential. He’s a huge talent.”
The reviews are in from this two-game Vegas residency for Wembanyama, who stands 7-foot-3 in bare feet, and they were of the raving variety. The best of the bunch may have come from Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James, who suggested that calling Wembanyama a unicorn might not fully indicate how unique he is.
Instead, James went with an out-of-this-world comparison.
“Everybody’s been a unicorn over the last few years, but he’s more like an alien,” James said. “No one has ever seen anyone as tall as he is but as fluid and as graceful as he is out on the floor … He’s, for sure, a generational talent.”
Sure enough, when Wembanyama’s around, a viral moment can happen at any time. It might be a dunk. It might be a block. It might be a fadeaway 3-pointer from the corner while his momentum has him drifting toward the baseline. It might be a 28-foot 3-pointer from the wing. It might be him kicking a ball into a monitor and narrowly missing fellow French center Rudy Gobert.
Yes, all those things happened.
The scene: Gobert and fellow Minnesota Timberwolves standout D’Angelo Russell, in town to play the Lakers in a preseason game later Thursday, decided to postpone their afternoon nap — a staple of the NBA gameday routine — and make the 20-minute ride from Las Vegas to watch the game, arriving at halftime.
Gobert made a quick appearance on the game’s televised broadcast. Wembanyama, standing nearby, stuck one of his massive feet into the path of a pass by Ignite center Eric Mika. The ball ricocheted into the monitor near Gobert’s seat, knocking it over.
Gobert laughed. Wembanyama raised his hand to apologize.
“Hey, he played soccer too,” Gobert said.
Gobert raves about Wembanyama, who almost certainly will be the first top-five draft pick from France. And he doesn’t think there’s any real comparison: Gobert said Wembanyama’s defensive instincts remind him of himself, while his ballhandling and shooting remind him of Kevin Durant.
“What strikes me the most about him is his maturity,” Gobert said. “Obviously, he’s a very unique talent and he has a very unique physique. But his maturity and his confidence … he’s very unique.”
Thursday’s game had a bit of a scare, and the other top NBA draft headliner in this showcase got the worst of that moment.
Scoot Henderson, the guard whose 28 points led the Ignite to a 122-115 victory on Tuesday night in the exhibition opener, left Thursday’s game after less than five minutes. The reason: He banged knees with Wembanyama.
Henderson switched onto Wembanyama, who was dribbling on the wing. Wembanyama made a move, collided into Henderson and tumbled to the court, looking initially like he got the worst of that exchange. But Henderson, who was called for a foul on the play, wound up limping off for evaluation and the Ignite quickly said he wouldn’t be returning.
“Scoot’s fine,” G League coach Jason Hart said. “It was precautionary.”
There are 31 games left on Metropolitans’ 34-game schedule in the French league, and the plan — as of now — is for Wembanyama to finish his season, which is slated to go through mid-May. The NBA Draft is June 22.
Bouna Ndiaye, one of Wembanyama’s agents, said some NBA teams might not understand why he’s playing. The reason, he says, is because nobody can get Wembanyama out of the gym.
“He wants to live on the court,” Ndiaye said.
What these two games showed, in many ways, was just that the tapes of Wembanyama that have been coming out of Europe over the last few years weren’t lying. He needs to get stronger. There’s much he can still polish. He is, by all accounts, exceptional already.
“Just before we came in last Saturday, we had a meeting with our doctor and we are going to prepare to plan the next two months to increase what he is doing, besides the court, to strengthen the body,” Collet said. “We’re always careful also with how much time he is practicing, not to go too far. … We plan so that we limit the risk.”
When Thursday was over, when the comeback was complete, Wembanyama briefly lifted his arms skyward in celebration, then shook a lot of hands, partook in a lot of hugs and posed for a lot of pictures.
With that, the draft hype continued on.
“I’m still excited and so happy about it,” Wembanyama said. “I know I’m so lucky to have this chance.”
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More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports
Arguably the top-two teams in high school football meet up Friday night when Bellflower (Calif.) St. John Bosco travels to Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei for the annual clash between the two Trinity League rivals.
By our count, there are 66 players with offers that will be on the field at Santa Ana Stadium. Here are some recruiting news and notes on some of them heading into the matchup.
Oregon, Oklahoma and Ohio State are the three schools on the visit list for Baker, and he recently returned from Eugene where he had an excellent time. The Ducks could have the edge right now, especially as he’s hit it off with that coaching staff, but the Buckeyes are coming on strong and there’s a lot of respect for the coaches in Norman as well. USC absolutely will be in this race as well as the Trojans look to reinforce the line of scrimmage – and a local talent like Baker wouldn’t hurt.
*****
The 2024 four-star quarterback who’s already thrown for 1,376 yards with 17 touchdowns so far this season has been a little more challenging to figure out because while other QBs in his class are coming off the board, Brown seems to be in no rush at all. USC and Oregon are definitely two to watch in the coming months, but Washington, Cal, Stanford, Alabama, Clemson, Michigan and others are involved, too.
*****
The 2024 four-star defensive back from Mater Dei has tremendous length and instincts, so his recruitment should remain busy through his junior season and beyond. At a game earlier this season, Brown was wearing USC gloves and the Trojans are definitely high on the list, but he said it wasn’t a recruiting statement, more that the gloves matched his jersey. Still, USC will be right there until the end as Penn State, Alabama, Michigan State and Nebraska are some others to watch.
*****
There is going to be some serious SEC talk around Carter’s recruitment, especially after the massive 2024 offensive lineman took visits to the Southeast this summer and had some great visits. Texas and others will be in the mix as well, but the early guess is that USC looks strongest in his recruitment. On the field, Carter is a physical and tough force of nature but off the field he’s on the quieter side, so staying closer to home wouldn’t be a shocker. Plus, he is a regular at USC home games.
*****
Alabama, Georgia and Texas are three schools to definitely monitor in Davison’s early recruitment, but the team to beat right now is Ohio State. The 2025 standout running back from Mater Dei was in Columbus for the Buckeyes’ big win over Notre Dame and he closely watched how they use their backs. He also said hello to Ezekiel Elliott, one of his idols, and it just feels a lot like Ohio State has captured his attention the most. It’s still very early though.
*****
After being committed to Cal for more than six months, Jones backed off that pledge heading into his senior season and now has a new list of teams to watch in his recruitment. The four-star safety from Bosco has had interest in Colorado, UCLA, Louisville and Oregon State. The Golden Bears remain high as well, so they cannot be totally disregarded moving forward. With the coaching change at Colorado it would be surprising to see Jones head to Boulder, but it is likely he stays in the Pac-12 so UCLA would make a ton of sense.
*****
A 2024 four-star linebacker at Bosco, Lockhart made an early commitment to Ole Miss in January and so far there has been no serious discussion of a flip. His brother, Danny, plays for the Rebels and Lockhart loves the coaching staff – starting with Lane Kiffin – and the big-time SEC environment in Oxford. However, Alabama has offered and that could become an issue for Ole Miss moving forward, and USC is now involved as well. Lockhart visited with the Trojans in late July and they will absolutely play a factor as his recruitment goes through his junior season.
A Louisville commit since late May, the four-star receiver from Bosco is now looking at trips to Texas and Georgia and others cannot be counted out. This is not necessarily a sign the Cardinals are slipping in his recruitment – as other California prospects, including numerous teammates, are committed there as well – but Texas did finish second in his recruitment and the Bulldogs are also coming on strong. Until Moore takes all of these visits, his recruitment could remain in flux.
It remains a two-team battle for the four-star linebacker from Mater Dei as Arizona and Stanford have leapt ahead in Su’a’s recruitment. The two Pac-12 schools offer vastly different things as the family feel, the coaching staff and many friends on the team in Tucson all play a role for Su’a. When it comes to Stanford, it’s the coaching staff and especially the education that are standing out. At some point, Su’a will decide which one to pick.
*****
This could boil down to a two-team race between Ohio State and Oregon, and it’s widely believed the Buckeyes would be considered the frontrunner at this point. The high four-star defensive end had an excellent time in Columbus earlier this season for Ohio State’s win over Notre Dame, and he hit it off with the players and coaches there. Going away for school like his brother, DJ, is definitely a serious consideration. Oregon is making a strong pitch, though, and a visit there earlier this season when Bosco played at Autzen Stadium is on his mind. USC and Alabama would be the others to watch.
*****
A new offer from Georgia is definitely big, and the Bulldogs are now much more on Viliamu-Asa’s radar, and Ohio State is going to play an impactful role in his recruitment as well, especially after he visited Columbus. But this feels like he’s USC’s recruitment to lose. The 2024 four-star inside linebacker is a throwback to the Polynesian heavy-hitters the Trojans used to recruit, and Viliamu-Asa has all the ability to follow in their footsteps.
*****
Notre Dame remains a serious contender for Woodyard, and the Irish coaching staff has made him a big-time priority, but Ohio State has made up tons of ground and might really be the team to watch in his recruitment now. It’s probably too close to call and there could have been some post-visit euphoria, but it sounded like the Buckeyes made huge leaps after he was in Columbus for their win over the Irish earlier this season. USC and others will be in the mix, but Woodyard will have Ohio State and Notre Dame there until the end.
Match report as Eddie Nketiah, Rob Holding and Fabio Vieira scored to send Arsenal top of their Europa League group with a 3-0 win over Bodo/Glimt; the Gunners are now two wins away from sealing a spot in the knockout stages; Arsenal host Liverpool next on Super Sunday, live on Sky
So much so that Rodgers would have preferred to spend a little more time overseas.
Rodgers was not complaining or second-guessing Matt LaFleur’s decision to do most of their prep work in Green Bay, but after hearing his coach talk about how difficult the lead-up to this game is, Rodgers sound amused about the way coaches stress over every little detail.
“Listen, coaches are creatures of habit, even more than players,” Rodgers said Wednesday. “Anytime there’s a minute adjustment to the schedule, it throws them all out of whack. So I wouldn’t read too much into that.
“We’re all excited. I think the reason I said I wanted to go over early was just to experience a little bit of that culture, to be able to get out and see some sights and interact with fans and … shoot, go to a pub and have a Guinness or whatever the local brew is. That’s what we all want to do, those of us that want to go over early.”
Earlier Wednesday, LaFleur gave a measured response when asked how difficult this week is.
“I’m not going to give you my honest answer,” LaFleur said. “I’d rather refrain. It feels like a Thursday night game for us as coaches just in terms of all the preparation you’ve got to do. But you just do it, so it is what it is.”
LaFleur has coached twice in the London game — once during his time as an assistant with the Los Angeles Rams and once with the Tennessee Titans. After studying past plans and consulting members of his staff who have coached in that game before, LaFleur decided not to leave until late afternoon or early evening Thursday.
That means the Packers will fly overnight. By the time they arrive in London, it will be Friday morning. They have a practice scheduled for 1:15 p.m. London time on Friday.
“Obviously the time we’re leaving might put a little stress on the schedule,” Rodgers said. “But that’s way down at the bottom of the concerns.”
With the Packers and Giants each at 3-1, it will mark the first time in 32 NFL games played in London that both teams have winning records. Before this season, the Packers were the only NFL team that had not played a regular-season game overseas. Neither the Packers nor the Giants have their bye next week.
“Right now, just the way that we are going about it with our schedule, [we’re] trying to keep everything as normal as possible,” receiver Randall Cobb said. “Obviously, tomorrow we’ll be traveling, which is a little different, but I just try to put it in the mind frame of us going to the West Coast and having an extra day on the West Coast. We’ll see what it entails on the other side of it, but as far as here preparing, we’re preparing the same way to find a way to win a football game.”
Victor Wembanyama has been the talk of the NBA for the last few days. Now, even LeBron James is impressed by him.
A 7-foot-4 center and projected No. 1 overall pick in the NBA draft, Wembanyama scored 37 points Tuesday night against the G League Ignite and Scoot Henderson, the projected No. 2 pick. Wembanyama plays for the French pro team Metropolitan 92.
“Everybody has been labeling this unicorn thing,” James said. “Everybody has been a unicorn for the last two years, but he’s more like an alien. I’ve never seen — no one has ever seen anyone as tall as he is, but as fluid and as graceful as he is out on the floor.
“… His ability to put the ball on the floor, shoot step-back jumpers out of the post, step-back 3s, catch-and-shoot 3s, block shots … He’s for sure a generational talent.”
For his part, Wembanyama describes himself in other terms.
“I’ve always been trying to be original,” he told the Associated Press. “Unique, that’s the word. “My goal is to be like something you’ve never seen.”
The hype train for Wembanyama is off and running. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and Jonathan Givony reported that there is no plan to shut down Wembanyama ahead of June’s draft. That likely won’t slow down the comparisons.
“He’s a 7-foot-4 Durant who blocks shots — and he’s not even close to what he’s going to be,” one NBA GM told Wojnarowski and Givony. “He will be the most hyped player since LeBron.”
Duke (4-1, 1-0 ACC) at Georgia Tech (2-3, 1-1), Saturday, 4 p.m. ET (ACC Regional Sports Network)
Line: Duke by 3½ points, according to FanDuel Sportsbook.
Series record: Georgia Tech leads 53-35-1, including wins in two straight.
WHAT’S AT STAKE?
Duke snapped a 13-game ACC losing streak in last week’s 38-17 home win over Virginia. The Blue Devils have started 4-1 for the first time since 2018 and are 1-0 in the ACC for the first time since 2019. A win gives Duke its best ACC start since 2015. Georgia Tech’s 26-21 win last week at then-No. 24 Pittsburgh snapped a nine-game losing streak against FBS opponents. The Yellow Jackets seek consecutive wins for the first time since they beat Miami and Virginia in 2018.
KEY MATCHUP
Blue Devils WR Jalon Calhoun vs. Georgia Tech secondary. Calhoun leads the Blue Devils with 356 yards on 23 receptions and ranks fifth in the ACC in yards receiving. Of his 23 receptions, 15 have gone for a first down and seven have covered at least 20 yards. The Jackets are without top safety Jaylon King, who underwent right leg surgery and is likely done for the season. King had 32 tackles in five games, most among the secondary, one interception and a forced fumble. Freshman Clayton Powell-Lee will replace King.
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Duke: In his first year as a starter, QB Riley Leonard leads the ACC and ranks eighth nationally with a 72% completion rate. He ranks fourth in the conference in total offense after compiling 1,176 yards passing and 260 rushing and has completed 18 passes of at least 20 yards.
Georgia Tech: LB Charlie Thomas had seven tackles, an interception and a fumble recovery in the second half at Pitt. The only thing holding Thomas back is targeting penalties. He’s had to sit out the first half of two games. One more, and he’ll have to sit out a full game.
FACTS & FIGURES
Duke is first in the ACC with 14 rushing TDs and third in rushing offense (200.4) and in yards rushing (1,002). … RBs Jaylen Coleman and Jordan Waters and Leonard each have at least 240 yards rushing. … After finishing 2021 ranked last in the ACC in turnover margin, the Blue Devils are first in the league and tied for fourth nationally at plus-1.6 per game. … Georgia Tech RB Hassan Hall rushed for 157 yards on 20 carries last week to become the first player to rush at least 20 times and average at least 7.8 yards per rush against the Panthers since West Virginia’s Steve Slaton in 2006.
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{{ timeAgo(‘2022-10-06 11:02:36 -0500’) }} football Edit
Clint Cosgrove
• Rivals.com
National Recruiting Analyst
Clint Cosgrove sits down with 2024 receiver Jeremiah McClellan to discuss recent game day visits to Ohio State and Texas A&M. The Rivals200 recruit from Missouri also breaks down his latest offers from both Texas & Texas A&M.
