Shamar Arnoux committed to Tennessee in April but he’s seeing significant changes across the college football landscape and the four-star cornerback who recently transferred to Carrollton, Ga., wan…
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Wyndham Clark smashed the Pebble Beach course record with a 12-under 60 as he surged into a one-shot lead after three rounds in California.
The US Open champion is 17-under par at the Pebble Beach Pro-Am, one clear of Ludvig Åberg and two ahead of Matthieu Pavon, a winner at last week’s Farmers Insurance Open in San Diego.
Clark went out in 28 with four birdies and two eagles and then came home in 32 as his back nine featured five birdies plus his sole blemish of the day.
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Clark eclipsed the 62s Tom Kite (1983), David Duval (1997), Patrick Cantlay (2021) and Matthias Schwab (2022) had previously shot at Pebble Beach.
Justin Rose is the highest-placed British player on the leaderboard at 11 under, six shots behind Clark, after he carded a bogey-free six-under 66.
Rory McIlroy, however, is 15 shots adrift on two under after following opening rounds of 71 and 74 with a three-under 69.
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Watch Scottie Scheffler lose his balance after an extravagant swing for his tee shot
World No 1 Scottie Scheffler, Justin Thomas – targeting a first victory since the 2022 PGA Championship – and Jason Day are in the pack tied sixth on 13 under.
Day rose 28 places on Saturday after a nine-under 63, which contained eight birdies, an eagle and a sole bogey.
Watch round four of the AT&T Pebble Beach Pro-Am live on Sky Sports Golf from 4.30pm on Sunday.
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CHICAGO — Chicago Bulls star Zach LaVine is going to have surgery on his right foot, sidelining the high-scoring guard for the rest of the season.
LaVine and his agency, Klutch Sports Group, made the decision in consultation with the team’s training and medical staff, the Bulls announced on Saturday. The two-time All-Star is expected to have the surgery next week, and he will be out for four to six months.
LaVine, who turns 29 in March, played in just 25 games this season. He averaged 19.5 points and 5.2 rebounds.
Jenna Laine covers the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for ESPN. She started covering the Bucs for ESPN in 2016, but she has covered the team since 2009. Follow Jenna on Twitter: @JennaLaineESPN.
TAMPA, Fla. — The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have agreed to terms with Liam Coen as their new offensive coordinator, sources confirmed to ESPN on Saturday.
The Bucs completed interviews with their candidates early Friday morning, and Coen publicly emerged as the favorite. But sources said then that details were still being worked out with the University of Kentucky as Coen was still under contract as the Wildcats’ offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.
Terms of the deal weren’t immediately available, nor were the arrangements needed to be made with Kentucky.
Coen was an attractive candidate for the Buccaneers as he had previously worked in Sean McVay’s system, serving as the Los Angeles Rams‘ assistant wide receivers coach from 2018 to 2019, assistant quarterbacks coach in 2020 and offensive coordinator in 2022, with stints at Kentucky as offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach in 2021 and 2023.
The offense that the Buccaneers ran under now-departed offensive coordinator Dave Canales in 2023 was a system derived from Shane Waldron’s Seattle Seahawks offense. Waldron had worked with McVay for four seasons before bringing his system to Seattle. After spending the past year learning a new offense under Canales, the Buccaneers felt it was ideal to keep the offense as close to last year’s as possible for continuity.
Coen’s arrival in Tampa is an important piece to the Buccaneers potentially re-signing quarterback Baker Mayfield, as the two worked together in Los Angeles in 2022. It could also help with re-signing Pro Bowl wide receiver Mike Evans, given Evans expressed a high degree of satisfaction with the system last year. Both indicated they would like to return to Tampa Bay if it can be worked out financially, and the Buccaneers would love for them both to return as well.
Fox Sports first reported Coen agreeing to terms with the Buccaneers.
Michael Voepel covers the WNBA, women’s college basketball, and other college sports for espnW. Voepel began covering women’s basketball in 1984, and has been with ESPN since 1996.
“I’m actually very grateful to pass that baton. I’m very happy for her,” Plum said Friday on a video call from a USA Basketball women’s team camp that runs through Sunday at Barclays Center in New York.
Then-Washington star Plum set the record on Feb. 25, 2017, when she scored 57 points in the Huskies’ 84-77 victory over Utah in Seattle. She finished her college career with 3,527 points. Clark is currently at 3,424 and is averaging a Division I-leading 32.1 points per game.
The No. 3 Hawkeyes face Maryland on Saturday (8 p.m. ET, Fox), and if Clark maintains her current scoring average, the record will come Feb. 15 when the Hawkeyes host Michigan.
Plum was the WNBA’s No. 1 draft pick by San Antonio in April 2017 and has won the past two WNBA titles with the Aces. She also won a gold medal with the United States’ 3×3 women’s hoops team at the Tokyo Olympics and now hopes to make the 5-on-5 team for the Paris Games this summer.
She said she recalls the chase for the NCAA scoring record — she broke the mark of 3,393 set by Missouri State guard Jackie Stiles in 2001 — as being a stressful time.
“I remember, to be honest, [the record] was very much a low point in my life,” Plum said. “It felt like a lot of pressure, and my identity was kind of caught up in that record. I hope everyone in the media takes time to understand that [Clark] is not just a basketball player but a young woman that has feelings and emotions. She carries it with grace, but there’s a lot to handle there.
“If anything, make sure that we show her love outside of her performance. She’ll break it. I’m excited for her.”
Clark often has referenced both Plum and New York Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu, who set the NCAA record for triple-doubles (26) while at Oregon from 2016 to 2020, as players she has watched and admired. Both Plum and Ionescu were No. 1 WNBA draft picks, and Clark is expected to be in April if she declares. Because of the COVID-19 waiver for 2020-21, though, Clark could return for a fifth season at Iowa. Players have until 48 hours after their last college game this year to declare for the draft.
Whether Clark goes to the WNBA this year or not, is there a chance she could play with pros this summer on the Olympic team? Over the past 20 years, USA Basketball has taken three WNBA rookies to the Olympics: UConn‘s Diana Taurasi (2004) and Breanna Stewart (2016) and Tennessee‘s Candace Parker (2008).
However, the next U.S. training camp is April 4-7 in Cleveland, coinciding with the women’s Final Four. Thus, any college players playing in the Final Four couldn’t take part with USA Basketball unless their teams lost in the semifinals and they joined the camp late.
“There’s definitely been some consideration about inviting college kids to [April’s] camp,” U.S. national team selection chair Jennifer Rizzotti said Friday on the video call. “When we invite people, sometimes it’s an eye to the future. It’s giving them that exposure. It’s something we’ve done in the past.”
Asked about the potential impact of a college player going pro this summer or opting to stay in school, Rizzotti said she didn’t think that would be a factor in making the Olympic team.
“If they decide to return to college, we’re not going to hold that against them,” she said. “We want to be looking for the very best of the best. We know that there’s a huge jump from college to the WNBA.”
That’s the obvious obstacle for any current college player trying to make the U.S. team for the 2024 Games. The Americans — going for their eighth consecutive Olympic gold — have an enormous amount of talent vying for the 12 Olympic spots.
That’s true at all positions including guard, despite five-time Olympian Sue Bird’s retirement in 2022 after two decades playing point guard for Team USA. The current veterans at guard in this week’s camp include three from the two-time WNBA champion Aces: Plum, Jackie Young and Chelsea Gray. Plum and Young were both on the 2020 3×3 gold-medal squad, while Gray was on the 5-on-5 team. Gray is rehabbing a foot injury suffered in the WNBA Finals but is still at the USA camp.
Following this training camp, 12 players will be selected to represent the United States at the 2024 FIBA Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament Feb. 8-11 in Antwerp, Belgium.
Team USA coach Cheryl Reeve said it’s up to the selection committee to pick the players for the upcoming tournament and the Olympics, saying her job is coaching.
“I have an opportunity to express what I want in a team and how I want to play,” said Reeve, longtime coach of the Minnesota Lynx. “But we don’t get granular on the personnel. I just want to focus on who ends up on the roster and how can I best position us to be successful.”
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The polarizing moniker is still applied to the Dallas Cowboys these days, regardless of whether it rings as true as it did during their 1990s heyday, when Troy Aikman, Michael Irvin and Emmitt Smith led them to three Super Bowl titles in a four-year span.
“America’s Team.”
The team that much of America loved, and perhaps just as much loved to hate.
In truth, there have been plenty of “America’s Teams” over the years. It was the Steelers with Terry Bradshaw, Lynn Swann and Joe Greene in the 1970s. In the ’80s, it became the 49ers with Joe Montana, Roger Craig and Jerry Rice. The 2000s, of course, belonged to the Patriots and Tom Brady, Troy Brown and Rob Gronkowski.
The title these days has fallen on the Kansas City Chiefs, who play the San Francisco 49ers next weekend in their fourth Super Bowl in five years. Patrick Mahomes has become the face of the league, a record-breaking crossover star at the game’s most important position. Andy Reid has evolved into their mustachioed father figure, and a shoo-in for the Hall of Fame as he climbs the coaching career wins list. And then there’s Travis Kelce, who happens to be dating pop icon Taylor Swift.
Just like those teams before them, the Chiefs have merged zeitgeist and success to create a rapidly expanding fan base that stretches from the heartland all the way to Hollywood. And abroad, for that matter, as evidenced by the overwhelming support they have received for games in London, Mexico City and Frankfurt, Germany.
“I think you feel it a little bit,” acknowledged Mahomes, who has become ubiquitous on TV even when he’s not slinging passes on Sundays. He might be stealing some nuggies from Reid on a spot for State Farm, or manicuring his iconic ‘do in an ad for Head & Shoulders or teaming up with Kelce to take on the Warriors’ Steph Curry and Klay Thompson in a made-for-TV golf match played at Wynn Golf Club, not far from Allegiant Stadium, where the Chiefs will play the 49ers next Sunday.
“The commercials probably help out a lot,” Mahomes continued, “and the run that we’ve been on. I think until I actually go around the world and see the different types of stuff, I don’t think I’ll realize it enough, the impact that we’ve had.”
Reid already has witnessed it. He took a vacation to Italy a couple of years ago and when he walked out of his hotel the first morning, Reid was recognized almost instantly by a group of kids.
“They loved Pat,” he said with a smile. “They knew all our guys.”
Their impact on the NFL has certainly been astounding.
The league was responsible for 24 of the 25 most-watched TV broadcasts during 2023, headlined by more than 115 million viewers when the Chiefs beat the Eagles in last year’s Super Bowl. Next on the list was the AFC title game, when more than 53 million tuned in to watch the Chiefs beat the Bengals at Arrowhead Stadium.
In fact, according to Nielsen, the Chiefs were involved in 16 of the 100 most-watched TV broadcasts overall last year.
With huge viewership numbers comes massive merchandise sales, far outstripping what reasonably could be expected of a team that plays in one of the NFL’s smallest markets. The sale of Chiefs gear increased by 20% last season to rank fourth among all franchises, according to Fanatics, which takes into account its own website along with the NFL Shop and other outlets, and shipments were made to more than 80 countries around the world.
Mahomes has the fourth-fastest selling jersey in the league, Fanatics said. Kelce is No. 8 with sales up 100% over last season.
On the subject of jerseys, Kelce’s game-used threads from a 2015 game recently sold at auction for $19,520, and a jersey from 2019 sold for $36,905. The jersey Mahomes wore when he threw four touchdown passes in win over the Raiders on Oct. 10, 2022, went for $213,500 just last month, the most expensive jersey of his ever sold.
“Chiefs memorabilia has been skyrocketing this season,” said Ken Goldin, founder and CEO of Goldin Auctions, which handled all three sales. “With the record-breaking Mahomes jersey sale and the two highest-priced Kelce jerseys ever selling within weeks of each other, we really see the Chiefs fanfare boosting the memorabilia market.”
The Chiefs have become the “it team” for the Hollywood subset, too.
Jason Sudeikis, Paul Rudd, Eric Stonestreet and Heidi Gardner are regulars at games, though all have ties to Kansas City. Ryan Reynolds and Blake Lively joined Swift at a game this season. Brad Pitt often sports a hat with the Chiefs’ logo, while Henry Winkler prefers to don the No. 15 jersey of his favorite quarterback.
Melissa Etheridge is one of the longest-serving celebrity Chiefs fans. The rock icon, who grew up in nearby Leavenworth, Kansas, was recently on “Who’s Talking to Chris Wallace?” and was asked about Kelce’s relationship with Swift, which began with a much-publicized friendship-bracelet saga this past season.
“I think it’s fantastic. I love it,” Etheridge told the CNN anchor during their wide-ranging interview. “I’m just worried he’s going to retire early to be with her.”
Spoken like a true diehard.
Just like so many versions of “America’s Team,” though, a certain amount of fatigue also is setting in. What was once a plucky underdog franchise that hadn’t won a Super Bowl in 50 years, and whose quarterback had that adorable Kermit the Frog voice and whose tight end implored everyone to “fight for your right to party,” has become suffocating.
They are everywhere. Overexposed. And some fans are downright sick of them.
“I was at a watch party for the games last weekend and every time a Kelce or Mahomes commercial came on, there was this collective groan from the room,” said Justin Johnson, who helps produce the pregame show for Baltimore’s flagship radio station, 98 Rock; the Chiefs beat the Ravens 17-10 in the AFC championship game.
“This wasn’t a bunch of Baltimore fans, either. I think anyone with that level of success can quickly become the heel,” Johnson added, before musing: “We should all be so lucky to be hated like this.”
Mahomes believes the Chiefs still have plenty of work to do before they can be considered “America’s Team,” or replace the Patriots as the latest NFL dynasty. He points out that New England won six Super Bowls, tied with the Steelers for the most of any franchise, and the Chiefs have won only three — two since he’s been the QB.
They can make it four next Sunday, when they play the 49ers in a Super Bowl trending to be the most expensive ticket in history. So many high-rollers are flying in that private jet parking is maxed out, leaving some to wonder if Swift will be able to find a spot when she is expected to land from her overnight flight from her Eras Tour concert in Tokyo.
“We know nothing is going to be given to us. We’ve got an even bigger target on our back than we did last year,” Chiefs safety Justin Reid said. “But as far as the mentality in the room, we’re working to continue this dynasty, and continue to build on what we did last year, not just rest on our laurels of what we did.”
Darius Johnson admits it’s plenty early in his recruitment as a member of the class of 2025. But he also admits he has thought about coming off the board to one program he has already visited. Thou…
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Nick Wagoner is an NFL reporter at ESPN. Nick has covered the San Francisco 49ers and the NFL at ESPN since 2016, having previously covered the St. Louis Rams for 12 years, including three years (2013 to 2015) at ESPN. In his 10 years with the company, Nick has led ESPN’s coverage of the Niners’ 2019 Super Bowl run, Colin Kaepernick’s protest, the Rams making Michael Sam the first openly gay player drafted to the NFL, Sam’s subsequent pursuit of a roster spot and the team’s relocation and stadium saga. You can follow Nick via Twitter @nwagoner
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Wearing his best suit, Steve Wilks arrived for his first NFL coaching opportunity dressed to impress. It didn’t last long.
Interviewing with then Chicago Bears coach Lovie Smith and defensive coordinator Ron Rivera in early 2006 after 11 years coaching in the college ranks, Wilks made it about halfway through the conversation before his football passion took over.
After Smith asked Wilks a fairly innocuous question about a weakness in the Bears’ trademark Cover-2 zone defense, Wilks removed his coat, loosened his tie and rolled up his sleeves. He burst into detail about how it wasn’t schematics but a coaching problem, assuring Smith and Rivera he could fix it in short order.
Wilks got the job.
“Everything about him permeated confidence,” Rivera said. “If you have a guy that’s going to be confident in what he believes and what he says as a coordinator, it makes your job a lot easier. … That’s all I needed to know. And that’s always kind of been Steve’s MO.”
Wilks’ self-belief has become a necessary trait throughout a coaching career that has included 20 job titles at 16 different stops across 28 years in college and the NFL. It has carried him through dark and difficult moments to the peak of the profession. That circuitous route has brought Wilks to San Francisco for the high-profile (and high-stakes) job of 49ers defensive coordinator as they head into Super Bowl LVIII against the Kansas City Chiefs at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas (6:30 p.m. ET, Feb. 11, CBS).
The five years prior to Wilks joining the 49ers were an up-and-down journey, starting with a one-and-done stint after going 3-13 as the Arizona Cardinals‘ head coach in 2018. That resulted in Wilks joining a lawsuit initiated by Brian Flores in 2022 against the NFL for racial discrimination in which he alleges the Cardinals did not give him a “fair” opportunity because he is Black and used him as a “bridge” coach. Wilks’ portion of the suit is expected to go to arbitration, according to a source close to the case.
Wilks’ path also included a year each as the Cleveland Browns and University of Missouri defensive coordinator before going to the Carolina Panthers in 2022, where he was thrust into the role of interim coach after five games, leading them to a 6-6 record before being passed over for the head-coaching job.
Those tumultuous five years have reshaped Wilks’ coaching path, leading him to the only job he really wanted after the disappointing end to his tenure in Carolina. Wilks coveted the coordinator job in San Francisco, seeing an elite defense that could catapult him back into a lead gig if he helps the 49ers win their record-tying sixth Lombardi Trophy.
“The unfortunate part was the situation he got, it was a tough one to be in,” Rivera said. “I would’ve hoped he could have gotten a second chance sooner, but he’s had to remake himself.”
AFTER WILKS JOINED Rivera in 2006, the coaches combined for a run of success. For 10 of the 12 seasons between 2006 and 2017, Wilks worked alongside Rivera with the Bears (2006-07), San Diego Chargers (2009-10) and Panthers (2012-17).
Wilks’ ascent as Rivera’s second in command came with its share of attention. When Rivera took time away — such as when he missed the start of training camp in 2015 after his brother died — Wilks was charged with keeping the machine moving and leading practices.
Rivera promoted Wilks from defensive backs coach to assistant head coach in 2015 and defensive coordinator in 2017. At the center of Wilks’ defense was linebacker Luke Kuechly, a five-time first team All-Pro and the 2013 NFL Defensive Player of the Year. Kuechly liked Wilks for his ability to balance cracking jokes and having fun with teaching on the field.
“Guys just want transparency and honesty, and guys just want people who are consistent,” Kuechly said. “And that’s something that he’s always been. … Nothing ever changed in how he carried himself no matter which job he was in.”
Wilks interviewed for jobs with the Los Angeles Rams in 2017 and New York Giants in 2018 but landed neither. In January 2018, the Cardinals were taking a deliberate approach to hiring their coach, waiting until every other team had filled their vacancies. Wilks remained in the mix with a handful of other candidates, including Flores, then a linebackers coach for the New England Patriots, before being hired on Jan. 22.
Wilks jumped at Arizona’s offer without what he now views as doing the necessary diligence to see if it was a place he could succeed.
“When I went to Arizona, I was a young, eager coach,” Wilks said. “I think I can go in there; I can make it happen. I wasn’t given the resources nor the time.”
Because he was the last coach hired in that cycle and due to what he described as pressure from the front office to keep certain assistant coaches, Wilks felt like he wasn’t able to assemble the coaching staff he wanted to take on the daunting rebuild the Cardinals faced. It was difficult to establish a rapport with general manager Steve Keim, who was suspended for five weeks that preseason following an arrest for extreme DUI.
According to Wilks’ lawsuit, Keim and Wilks also didn’t see eye-to-eye on the Cardinals trading three draft picks to move up from No. 15 to No. 10 to draft UCLA quarterback Josh Rosen. Rosen, who started 13 games in 2018, threw 11 touchdown passes and 14 interceptions with a QBR of 24.1. Rosen started three NFL games after that season and is currently out of the league.
The Cardinals lost their first four games and finished with the NFL’s worst record. Wilks was fired after one season. It was an abrupt ending to Wilks’ first NFL head-coaching opportunity.
Cardinals owner Michael Bidwill said he was not impressed with Wilks’ plan for 2019 and beyond but didn’t offer details on what he didn’t like.
“I just didn’t feel like it was a plan that I wanted to get behind that would turn us around and get us back to the type of football that we expect and our fans deserve,” Bidwill said at the time.
“There’s a level of things that are going to happen in your life that you have no control over, but how are you going to respond?” Wilks said. “And my response is always trying to do it in a positive way.”
A DISAPPOINTED WILKS hit the reset button, making stops as defensive coordinator for the Browns in 2019 and Missouri in 2021, sandwiched around a year off in 2020. He spent more time with his family in Ohio and studied trends around college and the NFL.
Although Wilks wanted another shot at leading a team, he was reticent when the Panthers asked him to be the interim coach for the final 12 games. Ten days after he was hired, Carolina traded its best player, running back Christian McCaffrey, to the 49ers, making an already tough task more difficult.
But Wilks also saw it as an opportunity to do the job his way. He made multiple changes to the coaching staff, parting ways with cornerbacks coach Evan Cooper and defensive line coach Paul Pasqualoni. He emphasized transparency with the players, letting them know what they were doing right and wrong.
“For me it was just more like trying to stay in the moment,” Wilks said. “I just wanted to try to implement it and instill a culture that I know was going to give us a chance to win.”
Wilks’ approach worked, as the Panthers were .500 under Wilks, finishing a game behind Tampa Bay in the NFC South. Wilks got two interviews to become the Panthers permanent head coach, but the job ultimately went to former Indianapolis Colts coach Frank Reich, who was fired 11 games into this season after the Panthers started 1-10.
“I didn’t get it,” Wilks said, “So I wasn’t close enough.”
THERE WAS ONE job Wilks wanted in 2023: 49ers defensive coordinator. So after previous coordinator DeMeco Ryans was hired to become the Houston Texans‘ head coach, Wilks went for the open position.
His interest made sense, as the Niners defense had been among the league’s best for most of the previous four years and ranked at or near the top in multiple major categories in 2022. It didn’t hurt that the previous two coaches to hold the position — Robert Saleh and Ryans — had moved on to head coaching jobs with the New York Jets and Texans, respectively. Wilks got his wish, as he was hired by San Francisco on Feb. 7.
Wilks spent the offseason meticulously studying San Francisco’s defense, noting what each player does and doesn’t do well, and looking for ways to implement some of his history coaching defensive backs to make tweaks on the back end, such as a different approach to playing quarters coverage that puts his defensive backs in position to get more interceptions.
Still, Shanahan wanted Wilks to stick with the team’s base 4-3 defense, which leans heavily on zone coverage behind a four-man pass rush.
“It’s a huge challenge, especially when you’ve done football for a while,” Shanahan said. “He had to come in and feel it out too and just see how he looked at it. The challenges are you’re going to always do what’s natural to you. If you don’t, it’s really hard to do what’s right in the heat of battle.”
After a 5-0 start, the Niners lost three in a row in October as the defense gave up 24 points and 395.3 yards per game, ranking 24th and 30th in the league, respectively, during that stretch.
Wilks knew the first sign of defensive trouble would mean all eyes on him. That was the case after a Week 7 loss to the Minnesota Vikings in which he called an all-out blitz on third-and-6 from Minnesota’s 40 with 17 seconds left in the first half that turned into a 60-yard touchdown. While Wilks publicly accepted the blame, his players defended him.
Cornerback Charvarius Ward still bristles at the criticism Wilks received, not only for the 0-blitz call but for the job he’d done to that point.
“We all believed in him,” Ward said. “I’m like, s—, wasn’t his fault that I got beat on that post route against Minnesota. The ball was in my hand. I just had to make that play. If I would’ve caught that ball, we probably would’ve won that game. … Everybody tried to put the blame on him. We were like, bro, we all in this s— together.”
AS THE NINERS entered their bye, Wilks and Shanahan discussed solutions to get the defense going again. One change — moving Wilks from the booth to the field — seemed cosmetic on the surface but revealed something deeper in Wilks’ coaching approach.
The defense got back on track, and the Niners rattled off six straight wins. Wilks believes his preference to stay calm and relaxed in the booth was left over from his time leading Carolina, where focusing on the next call reigns supreme.
“A lot of that was still carrying over in my mind,” Wilks said. “I also felt like I could see the game better up there, but I didn’t have that interaction with the players and then being connected. That was the difference for me.”
Wilks and the Niners found their footing in the back half of the season. They finished tied for first in the NFL in interceptions (22), third in scoring defense (17.5 points per game), tied for fifth in takeaways (28), seventh in yards per play allowed (5.0) and eighth in yards allowed (303.9).
“I’m happy that it’s kind of calmed down and we’ve figured out our recipe,” defensive end Nick Bosa said.
That recipe has been tested in the playoffs, with Wilks again under the microscope. The Niners have given up 26 points and 159 rushing yards per game in the team’s two postseason contests.
After escaping with a NFC Championship Game win against Detroit in which his defense struggled in the first half and tightened up in the second with a few adjustments such as playing more man coverage, Wilks vowed to get things fixed.
Wilks’ efforts this season were enough to earn him a pair of head coaching interviews — with the Los Angeles Chargers and Atlanta Falcons — this cycle. He didn’t land either job but has been able to use those opportunities to sharpen his interviewing skills. A Super Bowl win as defensive coordinator would be a significant addition to his résumé.
Wilks says being in San Francisco has opened his eyes to the amount of detail and resources that go into a successful franchise. He asks questions about everything — from a team’s nutrition plan to their long-term salary cap health.
“Coming here, I’ve been shown the blueprint of how it should look,” Wilks said. “It’s done the right way. That’s what I’m looking for if I get an opportunity. And if not, I’m content being a part of this great organization and staying right here.”
COOKE CITY, Mont. — As Wesley Mlaskoch motored his snowmobile across a mountain in the Montana backcountry, the slope above him collapsed into a thick slab and began rushing down the hillside.
He had triggered an avalanche. Within seconds, the fury of accelerating snow flipped the snowmobile on top of him, threatening to bury Mlaskoch in the slide’s debris.
The Willow River, Minnesota, man survived the recent accident near Yellowstone National Park after pulling a cord on his backpack to trigger an inflatable airbag specially designed for avalanches. It floated him higher in the moving white torrent so his head stayed above the surface as he came to a stop. His brother and several friends scrambled up the slope and used shovels to dig him out, according to Mlaskoch and the others.
He was shaken up but not hurt, and by the next morning, details of his misadventure were posted online as yet another cautionary tale by the Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center, one of many organizations working around the U.S. to forecast avalanche conditions and try to prevent accidents that kill about 30 people a year on average. Four people have died so far this winter, including one in a rare slide within the boundaries of a Lake Tahoe ski resort and skiers in backcountry areas of Idaho, Colorado and Wyoming.
“I remember when I first started coming here I was cocky, like ‘It’s not going to happen to me,’” Mlaskoch said, sitting on his snowmobile back in Cooke City, Montana, reliving his brush with tragedy. “Then two hours into our first ride on our first day, it went south.”
Avalanche safety specialists say their job has become more difficult in recent years as climate change brings extreme weather and surging numbers of skiers, snowboarders and snowmobilers visit backcountry areas since the pandemic.
More people means more chances to trigger fatal avalanches despite technological advances in safety equipment, including the airbag that saved Mlaskoch and kept him off the death tally for Cooke City. Avalanches in the area have killed 22 snowmobilers and 2 skiers since 1998, making it one of the deadliest locations for snowslides in the U.S.
Experts say the potential for hazardous avalanches has set in for the winter for many mountain ranges. Scant snowfall across much of the U.S. West early in the season created an unstable layer at the bottom of the snowpack. That dangerous condition is likely to persist for months, said Doug Chabot, director of the Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center.
“That weak layer, when we get snowfall on top of it, it’s a house of cards,” he said.
Chabot is among avalanche specialists scattered across the country bringing increased attention to the dangers of avalanches and teaching people how to stay safe. They say their work has helped keep deaths from spiking despite more skiers, snowboarders and snowmobilers pushing the limits on remote mountainsides.
Breathtakingly steep terrain makes the Cooke City area particularly susceptible to avalanches. There’s no ski patrol, and the best hope for rescue is your own partner or group.
“If you’re dug up in 10 minutes, you have an 80% chance of surviving,” said Chabot. “It’s not a smooth ride as you come down. You can hit rocks, you can hit trees, you can be traumatized, and even in the best case you’re still looking at 20% of the people don’t make it.”
Southwest Montana’s Beartooth Mountains are inherently dangerous and there’s no stopping people from putting their life on the line. Chabot’s goal is to make sure they at least know what they’re getting into. For 29 years he’s observed the region’s weather and visited backcountry sites to survey the snow conditions, gauge the danger and post avalanche forecasts.
Just a few miles from where Mlaskoch nearly died and on the dame day, Chabot snowmobiled through the forest then clipped into skis to climb a steep slope. He steered wide of a funnel-shaped chute — hazardous terrain, its surface sliced up from recent snowmobile traffic — and worked his way higher. Reaching a clearing, he stopped, took out a lightweight shovel and started to dig.
As snow gets deeper, it can get denser and stronger. But as it goes through temperature changes — which are more likely and more dramatic when the snow is not deep, a variable that’s shifting with climate change-induced droughts — it sometimes transforms into sugar-like crystals. Those crystals are quick to collapse when the weight above them gets too heavy, such as after a large snowfall or when the wind piles snow on one side of a mountain.
Ten minutes into his digging, Chabot struck ground 5 feet (1.5 meters) down. He tossed icy grains from the hole. “You see I’m just shoveling sugar here,” he said.
He used a saw to isolate a column of snow and then repeatedly hit the top of the column with his shovel, increasing the force until a slab of snow broke about 2 1/2 feet (76 centimeters) from the top. It broke along the same fragile layer where the slope collapsed beneath Mlaskoch — a weak zone pervading the surrounding snow fields.
Cooke City is thronged with tourists by the thousands in summer, when it’s a bustling gateway to Yellowstone National Park. In the winter the mountain passes leading into town are closed and the community of fewer than 100 residents can be accessed only by driving all the way through Yellowstone from another entrance — a 55-mile (89-kilometer) journey past steaming hot springs, herds of bison and clutches of wildlife watchers huddled along the roadside in the cold.
After it snows — and here storms are often measured by the foot — snowmobilers and skiers pack the few hotels and inns. Snow machines buzz up and down the main street, often with a skier or two in tow, holding tight to a rope as they’re pulled into the Beartooths — 41 granite peaks ringed with massive snow fields that loom over town.
With so many deaths in their small community, Cooke City’s residents “take them personally,” said Kay Whittle, who runs the Antlers Lodge inn and restaurant with her husband Bill. Both are longtime members of a local search and rescue team that musters after accidents to help find and dig out fatal avalanche victims. Kay Whittle is also an EMT and deputy county coroner, tasking her with calling family members of the dead.
She and other business owners in recent years started more aggressively pushing their advice about avalanches, holding weekly public safety briefings at the Antlers Lodge that are promoted with flyers and by word of mouth in Cooke City’s hotels, restaurants, rental shops and two gas stations. On Saturdays at a backcountry warming hut used by snowmobilers, avalanche educators give basic rescue lessons including how to use avalanche beacons — transmitters that send a signal rescuers can use to find victims.
The equipment is expensive, but Mlaskovich attests that it’s worth it — and some local outfitters now mandate the gear before taking people out on trips.
“I’m sure these guys get tired of hearing, you know, listening to us preach to them about safety, but it’s gotta be done,” said Shannon Abelseth, a snowmobile outfitter in Cooke City. “We don’t like to send people home in body bags.”
The Jacksonville Jaguars have asked FanDuel to reimburse them for some or all of the approximately $20 million in stolen proceeds a former employee lost on the site, but the company is unwilling to pay, a source familiar with the situation told ESPN.
Amit Patel, a midlevel finance manager, has pleaded guilty to stealing $22 million through a virtual credit card system the Jaguars used for expenses. Sources with knowledge of the case told ESPN that Patel lost about $20 million of the funds on daily fantasy and sports bets at FanDuel, which had assigned him a VIP host. He lost about $1 million on DraftKings, sources said.
Patel transferred money directly from the team VCC to FanDuel, sources said.
The source familiar with the situation said discussions are ongoing among FanDuel, the Jaguars and the NFL on what the source called “a settlement.” However, the source said, “The way they see it … we got this money fair and clear. It’s not our problem that we have to forfeit it back to you.”
“I would be gobsmacked if it happened,” the source added.
FanDuel and the NFL declined to comment. The Jaguars did not respond to requests for comment.
Patel siphoned the funds over 3½ years, according to federal court documents. In December, he pleaded guilty to fraud charges in federal court in Jacksonville, Florida. He faces up to 30 years in prison and a $500,000 fine when he is sentenced March 12.
Sources said FanDuel alerted the NFL to Patel’s betting in January 2023 after he placed traditional sports bets in Tennessee. The amounts and types of wagers that triggered the investigation are unknown. The Jaguars had no knowledge of the embezzlement scheme or Patel’s extensive daily fantasy habit until they were notified by the NFL, team and league sources said.
It’s not clear what recourse the Jaguars might have to recoup the losses. Under federal law, FanDuel has an obligation to make sure funds used for sports betting were legally obtained, but the regulations are murkier for daily fantasy.
“Gambling sites have a duty to perform ‘Anti-Money Laundering’ and ‘Know Your Client’ procedures to ensure they do not onboard funds of an illicit origin,” said Stephen Bell, an attorney who practices in white-collar criminal cases. “Where the size of a customer’s bets far outweighs their income, red flags are present and should require additional due diligence to confirm the funds are clean.”
Online records show Patel was a high-stakes and high-volume daily fantasy player on FanDuel and DraftKings, both of which are official betting partners of the NFL. Patel played daily fantasy sports as far back as 2017, the records show, and his play escalated in 2021 and 2022. ESPN previously reported that Patel played daily fantasy under the username “ParlayPicker” and was believed to have racked up big losses playing against elite competition in contests with buy-ins upward of $24,000.
One veteran daily fantasy player told ESPN on condition of anonymity that they believe ParlayPicker is “the biggest loser ever on FanDuel.”
“He was legendarily bad,” the person said.
Federal authorities say Patel lived an extravagant lifestyle while employed with the Jaguars that included chartering private jets, reserving luxury hotels, acquiring multiple vehicles and purchasing cryptocurrency, a country club membership, spa treatments and a wristwatch that cost more than $95,000.
Co-workers assumed Patel’s family was wealthy. One former team employee said they remember seeing Patel’s lavish lifestyle on his social media accounts, which he has since deleted.
“I remember on Instagram he was taking baller-style trips all the time. In the Hamptons, Miami, living a large life. Bottle service at clubs,” the former employee said. “There was no way he could have afforded the lifestyle based on the Jaguar salary.”
In a Dec. 7 statement, Patel’s attorney, Alex King, denied that Patel funded his lifestyle with the stolen money and said his home and car were bought with family or earned money.
“Mr. Patel did not use the Jaguars’ VCC to fund his lifestyle, but in a horribly misguided effort to pay back previous gambling losses,” King said.
Patel said during a December court appearance that he has a “gambling disorder” and is seeing a therapist weekly for treatment. He said he underwent treatment for alcohol and substance abuse from March to June last year.
ESPN’s Michael DiRocco contributed to this report.
Brady Henderson is a reporter for NFL Nation at ESPN. Henderson covers the Seattle Seahawks. He joined ESPN in 2017 covering the team for Seattle Sports 710-AM. You can follow him via Twitter @BradyHenderson.
SEATTLE — The Seahawks plan to hire former Buffalo Bills defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier as their assistant head coach, a source confirmed to ESPN on Friday.
Frazier becomes the first assistant known to be hired to Mike Macdonald’s staff. The two will reunite in Seattle after coaching together with the Baltimore Ravens in 2016, when Macdonald had the title of defensive assistant and Frazier was the secondary coach.
Macdonald, hired Wednesday after spending the past two seasons as Baltimore’s defensive coordinator, is the NFL’s youngest head coach at 36. Frazier, 64, brings over two decades of NFL coaching experience to Seattle. He has been a defensive coordinator for four different teams, most recently filling that role for the Bills from 2017 to ’22 while also holding the title of assistant head coach from 2020 to ’22.
Frazier was also the Minnesota Vikings’ head coach from 2011 to ’13. He did not coach in 2023.
During his introductory news conference Thursday, Macdonald said he plans to call defensive plays at first and eventually hand over those duties to a coordinator.
Former Ravens linebackers coach Zachary Orr was a candidate to fill that role on Macdonald’s staff before Baltimore promoted him to DC, a source told ESPN.
The NFL Network first reported Seattle’s plans to hire Frazier.
ESPN’s Jamison Hensley contributed to this report.
Stephen joined ESPN in 2022, covering the Indianapolis Colts and NFL at large. Stephen finished first place in column writing in the 2015 Indiana Associated Press Media Editors competition, and he is a previous top-10 winner in explanatory journalism in the Associated Press Sports Editors national contest. He has chronicled the NFL since 2005, covering the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2005-2013 and the Colts since 2013. He has previously worked for the Miami Herald, Tampa Bay Times, Indianapolis Star and The Athletic.
ORLANDO, Fla. — Wide receiver Stefon Diggs, in his first comments since the Bills were ousted from the playoffs, expressed a bit of uncertainty about his future in Buffalo while acknowledging regrets about the team’s season-ending loss.
Diggs, who is participating in this weekend’s Pro Bowl Games, was asked whether he was optimistic about the future in Buffalo and delivered an answer that could be construed as noncommittal.
“I feel like I take it day by day,” he said. “Obviously, there’s a lot of changes going on, a lot of things going on. I can’t really put the carriage before the horse, you know what I’m saying? But I got a great offseason in front of me to put a lot of work in and kind of build around what we got and what we’re doing.
“I can’t tell you what the future holds, but I’m still being me.”
When asked whether he was ready to move forward with the Bills, Diggs replied, “I’m ready to go no matter which way it goes.” He did not elaborate.
Diggs had not spoken with reporters since before his team’s AFC wild-card round win over the Pittsburgh Steelers, and he regularly declines to take part in media appearances after games. In the absence of his comments, speculation has emerged about Diggs’ future in Buffalo.
Earlier in the season, Diggs was adamant when asked about his future, saying, “I’ve never really said anything about being unhappy or any instance of that. So, when you’re drawing conclusions as to stuff I’ve never said, that’s what kind of troubles me. … I’ve spoken true words. I’ve said the same thing over and over and over.”
Diggs had three catches for 21 yards in the team’s divisional round loss to Kansas City, his least productive performance of the season. He was targeted eight times, leaving him with a catch percentage of 37.5 — his second lowest of the season.
In a play that will long be remembered in western New York, Diggs dropped a deep pass from quarterback Josh Allen that could have resulted in a key fourth-quarter touchdown in the loss, with Allen delivering the ball more than 60 yards downfield.
But Bills general manager Brandon Beane, in a recent news conference, backed his team’s top receiver, who will have a salary cap hit of $27.354 million next season and three years remaining on the four-year extension he signed with Buffalo in 2022.
“We have to continue to put weapons out there to keep teams from bracketing him or locking him down in different ways to take him away,” Beane said. “…Stef can still play. I’m sure he would love to have that deep ball again. He’d be the first to tell you. He’s super competitive. He’s going to work his tail off this offseason. I know there’s various reasons or questions on this or his production … but I still see Stef as a No. 1 receiver.”
Asked about the Chiefs playoff game, Diggs on Friday said, “I’ve been in the league for a long time. Obviously, even as players, some plays we want back and some plays I want back, especially at the end of the game. But it’s not much you can do about it. Now, here as you take a couple of weeks to decompress and think about it, things could have been better. But [I’m] kind of rolling with the punches and moving forward.”
Bills reporter Alaina Getzenberg contributed to this report.
NEW YORK — Carl Weathers, a former NFL linebacker who became a Hollywood action movie and comedy star, playing nemesis-turned-ally Apollo Creed in the “Rocky” movies, facing off against Arnold Schwarzenegger in “Predator” and teaching golf in “Happy Gilmore,” has died. He was 76.
Matt Luber, his manager, said Weathers died Thursday. His family issued a statement saying he died “peacefully in his sleep.”
“Carl Weathers will always be a legend,” Schwarzenegger wrote on Instagram. “An extraordinary athlete, a fantastic actor and a great person. We couldn’t have made ‘Predator’ without him. And we certainly wouldn’t have had such a wonderful time making it.”
Comfortable flexing his muscles on the big screen in “Action Jackson” as he was joking around on the small screen in such shows as “Arrested Development,” Weathers was perhaps most closely associated with Creed, who made his first appearance as the cocky, undisputed heavyweight world champion in 1976’s “Rocky,” starring Sylvester Stallone.
“It puts you on the map and makes your career, so to speak. But that’s a one-off, so you’ve got to follow it up with something. Fortunately those movies kept coming, and Apollo Creed became more and more in people’s consciousness and welcome in their lives, and it was just the right guy at the right time,” he told The Daily Beast in 2017.
Most recently, Weathers has starred in the Disney+ hit “The Mandalorian,” appearing in all three seasons.
“We lost a legend yesterday,” Stallone wrote in an Instagram message that included a video tribute. The actor stood before a painting of him and Weathers boxing and said, “Carl Weathers was such an integral part of my life, my success … I give him incredible credit and kudos.
“When he walked into that room and I saw him for the first time, I saw greatness. … I never could have accomplished what we did with ‘Rocky’ without him.’”
Stallone ended his video tribute by saying: “Apollo, keep punching.”
Creed, who appeared in the first four “Rocky” movies, memorably died in the ring of 1984’s “Rocky IV,” going toe-to-toe with the hulking, steroid-using Soviet Ivan Drago, played by Dolph Lundgren. Before he entered the ring, James Brown sang “Living in America” with showgirls and Creed popped up on a balcony in a Star-Spangled Banner shorts and waistcoat combo and an Uncle Sam hat, dancing and taunting Drago.
A bloodied Creed collapses in the ring after taking a vicious beating, twitches and is cradled by Rocky as he dies, inevitably setting up a fight between Drago and Rocky. But while Creed is gone, his character’s son, Michael B. Jordan’s Adonis Creed, would lead his own boxing trilogy starting in 2015.
Weathers went on to 1987’s “Predator,” where he flexed his pecs alongside Ventura, Schwarzenegger and a host of others, and 1988’s nouveau blaxploitation flick “Action Jackson,” where he trains his flamethrower on a bad guy and asks, “How do you like your ribs?” before broiling him.
“We lost an icon,” former “Predator” co-star Jesse Ventura wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “Carl Weathers was a phenomenal talent, a true professional and a dear friend.”
He later added a false wooden hand to play a golf pro for the 1996 comedy classic “Happy Gilmore” opposite Adam Sandler and starred in Dick Wolf’s short-lived spin-off series “Chicago Justice” in 2017 and in Disney’s “The Mandalorian,” earning an Emmy Award nomination in 2021. He also voiced Combat Carl in the “Toy Story” franchise.
Sandler hailed his friend on social media, calling him a “great man” and “a true legend” — “So much fun to be around always. Smart as hell. Loyal as hell. Funny as hell.”
Weathers grew up admiring actors such as Woody Strode, whose combination of physique and acting prowess in “Spartacus” made an early impression. Others he idolized included actors Sidney Poitier and Harry Belafonte and athletes Jim Brown and Muhammad Ali, stars who broke the mold and the color barrier.
“There are so many people that came before me who I admired and whose success I wanted to emulate, and just kind of hit the benchmarks they hit in terms of success, who created a pathway that I’ve been able to walk and find success as a result. And hopefully I can inspire someone else to do good work as well,” he told the Detroit News 2023. “I guess I’m just a lucky guy.”
Growing up in New Orleans, Weathers started performing in plays as early as grade school. In high school, athletics took him down another path but he would reunite with his first love later in life.
Weathers played college at San Diego State University — he majored in theater — and went on to play for one season in the NFL, for the Oakland Raiders, in 1970.
“When I found , it was a completely different outlet,” says Weathers told the Detroit News. “It was more about the physicality, although one does feed the other. You needed some smarts because there were playbooks to study and film to study, to learn about the opposition on any given week.”
After the Raiders, he joined the Canadian Football League, playing for two years while finishing up his studies during the offseason at San Francisco State University. He graduated with a B.A. in drama in 1974.
After appearing in several films and TV shows, including “Good Times,” “The Six Million Dollar Man,” “In the Heat of the Night” and “Starsky & Hutch,” as well as fighting Nazis alongside Harrison Ford in “Force 10 From Navarone,” Weathers landed his knockout role — Creed. He told The Hollywood Reporter that his start in the iconic franchise was not auspicious.
He was asked to read with the writer, Stallone, then unknown. Weathers read the scene but felt it didn’t land and so he blurted out: “I could do a lot better if you got me a real actor to work with,” he recalled. “So I just insulted the star of the movie without really knowing it and not intending to.” He also lied that he had any boxing experience.
Later in life, Weathers developed a passion for directing, helming episodes of “Silk Stalkings” and and the Lorenzo Lamas vehicle “Renegade.” He directed a season three episode of “The Mandalorian.”
Weathers introduced himself to another generation when he portrayed himself as an opportunistic and extremely thrifty actor who becomes involved with the dysfunctional clan at the heart of “Arrested Development.”
The Weathers character likes to save money by making broth from discarded food — “There’s still plenty of meat on that bone” and “Baby, you got a stew going!” — and, for the right price, agrees to become an acting coach for delusional and talent-free thespian Tobias Funke, played by David Cross.
Weathers is survived by two sons.
___
Mark Kennedy is at http://twitter.com/KennedyTwits
Ireland produced a magnificent display in Marseille as they registered a first Six Nations win in France since 2018
Ireland began life in the post-Johnny Sexton era in ideal fashion, as a terrific Six Nations performance saw them to a bonus-point 38-17 victory over France in Marseille.
Scrum-half Jamison Gibson-Park, lock Tadhg Beirne, wing Calvin Nash, hooker Dan Sheehan and replacement hooker Ronan Kelleher scored tries at the Stade Velodrome against a French side who saw lock Paul Willemse shown a red card during the first half for two yellows – both high tackles.
Ireland fly-half Jack Crowley, 24, started nervously but grew in confidence and into the contest, kicking one penalty and five exquisite conversions, while also producing a gorgeous try assist for Beirne in a record points total and winning margin for Ireland in France.
Damian Penaud and lock Paul Gabrillagues scored France’s tries, who continued to fight hard and never appeared truly out of it – Ireland captain Peter O’Mahony was sin-binned in the second half with the gap seven points – but they ultimately had to swallow a home defeat.
Jack Crowley, Johnny Sexton’s Ireland replacement in the No 10 jersey, pulled the strings to victory in the Stade Velodrome
For many in the sport, France vs Ireland was the Rugby World Cup final that never was back in October’s Paris showpiece, and although the hosts carved out the first threatening attack, Ireland were far the quicker to settle into their groove.
Crowley edged Ireland into an early lead with a close-range penalty, and after Willemse collected his first yellow for a high hit to the head of Andrew Porter, the visitors notched the opening try.
Centre Bundee Aki did magnificently for it, charging forward and freeing his hands to offload for Gibson-Park to sprint in.
Ireland scrum-half Jamison Gibson-Park scored the first try after great work from Bundee Aki
A huge try chance was spurned by Ireland after Beirne charged down Antoine Dupont’s replacement Maxime Lucu to win a turnover just after a France maul – Crowley and Aki playing narrow when a wide ball would have resulted in a certain try down the left.
Within moments, Crowley missed poorly off the tee for the chance to go 13-0, with Thomas Ramos then striking at the other end after a scrum penalty.
Perhaps illustrating a measure of his mentality, Crowley brushed off a tough few minutes to play Beirne in for Ireland’s second try via an exquisitely disguised short-ball.
Tadhg Beirne scored Ireland’s second try after being brilliantly played in by Crowley
Crowley then converted for 17-3, with Willemse – only recently back on – then shown his second yellow, which was upgraded to a straight red following a bunker review, after connecting with the head of Caelan Doris in Ireland’s first carry following the restart.
France lock forward Paul Willemse was red carded for committing two yellow card offences – a very rare occurrence
Back-to-back penalties at the ruck against Ireland invited France forward, however, and though Beirne stole a lineout, a costly scrum penalty against the head eventually resulted in Penaud diving over as French persistence in kicking to the corner was rewarded seconds before the break.
Damian Penaud hit back for France with a try seconds before half-time
After Ramos uncharacteristically dragged a penalty wide, Ireland scored through Nash after they sprung the play wide and Robbie Henshaw had stepped, accelerated and offloaded brilliantly for Doris to find the championship debutant.
Calvin Nash scored Ireland’s third try on the occasion of his Six Nations debut
Crowley produced a sensational conversion off the touchline for 24-10, but France were back within a score seven minutes later, after a long TMO review saw Gabrillagues awarded a try and O’Mahony sin-binned for a cynical act in attempting to deny him.
Ireland composed themselves to get back up the other end, though, and after the brave decision to kick to the corner instead of for points, Sheehan flew over the try-line from a maul for their fourth.
Dan Sheehan’s try wrapped up the bonus-point and put Ireland on firm course for victory
There remained time for one last try, and it was almost identical to Sheehan’s as Kelleher controlled possession at the back of a maul which romped over.
Fittingly, the boot of Crowley was the final scoring act via the extras.
Farrell: A special Irish victory | O’Mahony: I’m proud – the young players a big part
Ireland head coach Andy Farrell to ITV Sport…
“Any victory here, on a Friday night to start the Six Nations off is always going to be a hard task but I think coming away with a bonus-point win is special.
“I was proud of the performance because we kept on playing for the full 80 minutes and we got what we deserved in the end.
“When you play against 14 men, the tendency is sometimes to shut up shop but we kept on playing.
“These are guys that have been in around the squad for the past couple of years so we had no doubt they are ready to play.
“Some of them, their form guarantees they are going to be in. But it is a 23-man game.”
Ireland captain O’Mahony to ITV Sport…
“It is hard to sum up. It was a serious Test match.
“I am very proud of the lads for the control of the game. We were cool, composed, might have been a bit frantic in the last 10 minutes down to 14, but we stayed to the plan the whole time.
“We didn’t get carried away with positive and negative moments and I thought it was a good start.
“I think a big chunk of the performance was the young fellas, Calvin Nash, Jack Crowley, big Joe [McCarthy]. Some big, big performances from guys getting an opportunity.”
What’s next?
Ireland are in action next Sunday, February 11 for the second round of the championship, hosting Italy at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin (3pm kick-off GMT).
Ireland’s Six Nations 2024 fixtures
Friday, February 2
France 17-38 Ireland
8pm
Sunday, February 11
Ireland vs Italy
3pm
Saturday, February 24
Ireland vs Wales
2.15pm
Saturday, March 9
England vs Ireland
4.45pm
Saturday, March 16
Ireland vs Scotland
4.45pm
France travel to face Scotland at Murrayfield in Edinburgh next Saturday, February 10 (2.15pm kick-off GMT), in Round 2 of the Six Nations.
France’s Six Nations 2024 fixtures
Friday, February 2
France 17-38 Ireland
8pm
Saturday, February 10
Scotland vs France
2.15pm
Sunday, February 25
France vs Italy
3pm
Sunday, March 10
Wales vs France
3pm
Saturday, March 16
France vs England
8pm
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More than $300 billion has been bet with American sportsbooks since 2018, when the U.S. Supreme Court released a ruling that sparked widespread expansion of legal betting. Now, for the first time, the Super Bowl — the most heavily bet single game in U.S. sports — is coming to Las Vegas.
Amazing.
In the first week since the matchup was set, there was at least one million-dollar bet, a six-figure wager on the coin flip (tails never fails!) and a slew of Taylor Swift-related prop offerings from sportsbooks.
Bigger and wilder bets are expected, and ESPN’s sports betting team, led by writers Doug Greenberg and David Purdum, will follow it all in this updating file that’s ripe for bookmarking.
Consensus point spread and total: 49ers -2, 47.5 Money line: San Francisco -130/Kansas City +110
Action report: The early betting has been lopsided on the underdog Chiefs, with BetMGM, DraftKings, ESPN BET and FanDuel each reporting 71-76% of the spread bets on Kansas City.
Action on the money line also is lopsided, with around 85% of the bets on Kansas City as of Feb. 2.
The big Super Bowl bets
• $1 million: The first of what’s expected to be several million-dollar Super Bowl bets was reported Jan. 30 by Caesars Sportsbook. The bet: $1 million on the 49ers money line (-120).
• $105,000: Legendary Las Vegas bookmaker Jimmy Vaccaro of the South Point casino reported taking a $105,000 bet on the 49ers -1 on Jan. 29.
• $100,000: Caesars reported taking a $100,000 on the coin toss to land tails from a Michigan bettor on Jan. 30. A hundred K on the coin toss? What the flip!?
Side note: The most popular prop bet at DraftKings as of Feb. 2 was… tails. The second-most popular: heads.
• $25,000 to win $1 million: A bettor with DraftKings reportedly put $25,000 on Kansas City running back Isiah Pacheco to be named Super Bowl MVP. At 40-1, the bet would pay $1 million.
• $15,000 to win $975,000: A bettor with DraftKings dropped $15,000 on Chiefs receiver Rashee Rice to be MVP. At 65-1, the bet would win $975,000.
SAN ANTONIO — When Victor Wembanyama and Zion Williamson square off on Friday night, there will be a common thread linking them beyond their status as former No. 1 overall picks with unbelievable highlight reels.
The San Antonio Spurs‘ starting point guard is the only player who has started games alongside both the New Orleans Pelicans‘ Williamson and the Spurs’ Wembanyama — playing with Williamson during the 2018-19 season at Duke and then this season with Wembanyama. Spurs guard Devonte’ Graham has also played with both players but has never been in the starting lineup with either one, leaving Jones in a club of his own.
Jones, who is in his fourth season with the Spurs, has had a front-row seat to see both Williamson and Wembanyama at the onset of their playing careers — Williamson as an 18-year-old at Duke and Wembanyama as a 19-year-old when he joined the Spurs this season.
“It’s one of one for both of them with the body they’re given and the athletic ability, which is crazy,” Jones told ESPN when asked to compare the two, “but I think the thing that sticks out is they want to win and that comes first.”
Friday’s game will be the third between the Pelicans and Spurs this season, but just the second meeting between Williamson and Wembanyama, who sat out the Dec. 1 matchup on the second end of a back-to-back. When the two did square off on Dec. 17, Wembanyama outscored Williamson 17-15 and racked up 13 rebounds and four blocks, but Williamson’s Pelicans came away with a 146-110 win, tied for their largest margin of victory this season.
Williamson, who is listed as questionable for Friday’s game with a left foot injury, and the Pelicans are fighting for a spot in the Western Conference playoffs, while the Spurs are stuck in the basement. But Jones sees how easy both of them make things look on the court and can see them having battles for years to come.
“They both think the game at a real high level, and I think [it] just comes from them being competitive and wanting to win,” Jones said. “They know that they can dominate the game in so many different ways and just the fact that they’re able to kind of defer to others at times because how the teams are playing them and the amount of attention they bring on the court or the double-teams that they bring instead of forcing it, they’re still able to make the right basketball play at the end of the day to put our team in the best position to win.”
Himself a five-star recruit, Jones was a part of a stellar recruiting class at Duke that had commitments from future NBA lottery picks RJ Barrett and Cam Reddish before Williamson even announced he would be joining them in Durham, North Carolina.
Still, Jones remembers exactly where he was when he found out Williamson would be joining them.
“I was at my brother’s game, a Timberwolves game,” Jones said. “I was sitting in our season ticket seats, just chilling there.”
Jones’ brother Tyus was in the middle of his third season with the Minnesota Timberwolves and he felt a murmur flowing through the crowd after Williamson’s decision. He said people were stopping him with excitement about how he would get to play with Williamson the next season.
Jones was rehabbing an injury when he arrived at Duke that summer, so he didn’t get to make it onto the court right away with Williamson, but he did get to watch. And he knew right away it was going to be something fun.
“The quickness that he had, the explosiveness… some of the plays he was making were crazy and it was probably even crazier than some of the ones that we’ve seen that he made in the games of his freshman year,” Jones said. “It was just freakish. You can’t even really explain what he was doing out there. It was just his athletic ability and just his strength and everything all in one.”
While Jones was surrounded by thousands of people when he found out about Williamson’s commitment, circumstances were a little different when he found out he was going to get to play with Wembanyama.
“I was just chilling at home, obviously heart racing a little bit thinking what could be if we get him,” Jones said.
“Just watching the lottery unfold, obviously not really knowing all the possibilities with the pingpong balls being rolled out and everything, but then when it got down to it, obviously that No. 2 pick got announced and we knew that we were getting the No. 1 pick.”
Jones knew something was special about Wembanyama from the start of the early practice sessions in the summer, much like he’d felt with Williamson. Still, Jones said Wembanyama has come so far from those moments to now.
“I think the thing that stuck out to me the most was just the way he thought the game,” Jones said. “You could give him the ball wherever on the court. He was reading the court really well. He was seeing cuts, he was seeing open guys, he was seeing the double-team come right away. He was just thinking the game at a very high level, even though the game’s a little bit different, he was able to still think the game at such a high level.”
Wembanyama and Williamson have vastly different frames. Williamson stands 6-foot-6 and weighs in at 285 pounds. Wembanyama is nearly a foot taller at 7-foot-4 but carries just 210 pounds on his body. Still, Jones said their games have one distinct similarity: There wasn’t a lob he could throw that they couldn’t get to.
“I don’t think I ever threw one that he didn’t get at Duke, whether it was practice or games,” Jones said about Williamson. “It was similar to Victor. Obviously, he is not 7-foot-whatever, but just his ability to just locate the ball in the air and just go get it no matter where it was, no matter who was around, he’s going to get the lob one way or another.”
There’s a bit of a different catch radius when it comes to throwing lobs to Wembanyama, including one of the first in-game ones they connected on back in the preseason.
On Oct. 13 in a preseason game against the Miami Heat, Jones set a ball screen for Wembanyama, who passed the ball to Jones on the right wing. Wembanyama then cut to the basket and Jones immediately let a pass fly as Wembanyama was just crossing the 3-point line.
It turned into an alley-oop.
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Victor Wembanyama takes flight on give-and-go alley-oop jam
Victor Wembanyama does a give-and-go with Tre Jones leading to a high-flying dunk.
“And he still seemed like it could have been thrown higher or further behind him or something,” Jones said. “It still looked like such an easy play, a routine play for him, even though he was at the 3-point line when the ball was in the air, and he caught it past the middle of the lane. It is crazy and he makes it look so easy, so nonchalant, just so routine. … It’s not anything we’ve ever seen before.”
But for all the highlight-reel dunks the two No. 1 picks have racked up — Wembanyama ranks fourth in the NBA this season with 100 dunks, while Williamson is tied for 33rd with 50 — the plays that stand out the most in Jones’ mind are a pair of blocks.
While a few plays stood out at Duke — a coast-to-coast rebound to dunk against Virginia at home over the Cavaliers’ 7-foot-1 center Jay Huff or the game when Williamson returned from the shoe blowout in the ACC Tournament against Syracuse and had 29 points and 14 rebounds on 13-of-13 shooting — the main one happened on Feb. 9 against Virginia as well.
That’s when Williamson took off from the paint and was able to block a 3-point attempt in the corner from De’Andre Hunter, who went No. 4 in the 2019 draft.
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Zion elevates for vicious block
Zion Williamson shows off his athleticism as he hustles back to a wide-open Virginia player and flies for a nasty block.
“It wasn’t like it was some 5-10 kid that we were playing in an exhibition game,” Jones said. “It was a top-10 pick, top-five pick even, and he’s making freakish plays.”
“He’s catching lobs that he’s dunking backwards and 360 and in the air but yeah, the no-look block that has to be up there,” Jones said. “He didn’t know where his guy was, so he turned around to find him and then he didn’t know where the shot was going up, put his hand up, but he was still able to block it from the other side of the paint too. We’ve never seen that before.”
