Category: Sports

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Adam Gorney
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Rivals.com

National Recruiting Director

SAN ANTONIO – There is an in-state feel to the early stages of the recruiting process for Carmello Brooks but there are already changes that he has to consider.Texas is definitely one of the top sc…

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QUARTERBACK

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RUNNING BACK

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Rafael Nadal is set to return to tennis in February at the Qatar Open after missing the Australian Open due to a muscle tear.

Nadal made a comeback at the start of this year at the Brisbane International, where he reached the quarter-finals in his first competitive tournament in nearly 12 months.

The 37-year-old will be back in action in the week beginning February 19 in Doha – live on Sky Sports – as he looks to build up to the French Open in May, where he is a 14-time champion.

He has stated there is a “high percentage” this year will be his last season before retirement after struggling with injury in recent years.

“The problem about saying it’s going to be my last season is that I can’t predict what’s going on 100 per cent in the future. That’s why I say ‘probably’,” said Nadal at the start of this year.

“It’s obvious it’s a high percentage that it’s going to be my last time playing in Australia. But if I’m here next year, don’t tell me, ‘you said it’s going to be your last season’ because I didn’t say it.

“You never know what’s going on, you know? I can’t predict how I’m going to be in the next six months. I can’t predict if my body will allow me to enjoy tennis as much as I enjoyed the past 20 years.”

In an interview on December 13 with Spanish newspaper El Pais, Nadal said he was already thinking about the French Open, where he has won 14 of his major titles.

“When I arrive in Paris, I will know if it is my last year. And there will be a prior announcement,” he added.

“There will have passed five months on the circuit and I’ll know my reality: one can sense these things, but until he feels them he cannot do anything.”

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CHICAGO — The Chicago Bears know who will be calling offensive plays in 2023, and now they have to figure out which quarterback will be executing them.

The Bears plan to hire Shane Waldron as their next offensive coordinator, a source told ESPN, less than two weeks after beginning an extensive search that included interviews with nine candidates.

Waldron replaces Luke Getsy, who was fired on Jan. 10 along with four members of the Bears’ offensive staff. Waldron, 44, comes to Chicago after three seasons in Seattle, where was the Seattle Seahawks‘ offensive coordinator and playcaller.

In Chicago, Waldron will either guide Justin Fields into his fourth season or help a rookie, such as USC’s Caleb Williams, whom the Bears can draft with the first overall pick.

Waldron’s upbringing in the NFL began in 2008 under New England’s Bill Belichick, continued in various capacities under Sean McVay in Washington and Los Angeles and spanned the past three years under Pete Carroll, whose tenure with Seattle ended earlier this month after 14 seasons. He will now call plays under Matt Eberflus, who was retained as head coach.

Waldron’s three years of playcalling experience and work with multiple quarterbacks was a draw for Chicago. As the issues within the Bears’ passing offense became more pronounced near the end of a 7-10 season, so did the questions surrounding Fields. While the 24-year-old quarterback improved in his third season, Fields finished the season 24th in QBR (46.2) and 21st in EPA/play (0.054).

While the Bears have not committed to Fields for the 2024 season nor to using the No. 1 pick on a rookie quarterback, the guiding principle for the Bears’ search was to find an offensive coordinator who can maximize talent while creating a more balanced attack for a unit that ranked second in rushing (141.1 yards/game) and 27th in passing (182.1).

“The ability to be adaptable to the staff that you have is critical,” general manager Ryan Poles said Jan. 10. “We saw it across the league.

“There are some teams that actually got better with a lot of changes. If you don’t have the ability to adapt and adjust to the talent that you have at that position, it makes it really hard.”

While the hire doesn’t reveal which way the Bears are leaning at quarterback, here’s a look at Waldron’s track record and what it means for the Bears’ offense.

How have other quarterbacks fared under Waldron?

Waldron has worked with a variety of quarterbacks with unique skill sets, from Jared Goff to Russell Wilson to Geno Smith.

Goff had two of his best seasons in terms of pass production with Waldron as the Los Angeles Rams passing game coordinator (2018-20) and quarterbacks coach (2019). During the Rams’ run to the Super Bowl in 2018, with McVay calling plays, Goff — the top pick in the 2016 draft — threw for a career-high 4,688 yards (8.4 yards per attempt), 32 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. His 2019 season saw similar production — 4,638 passing yards — with 22 touchdowns and 16 interceptions while leading the league in pass attempts (626).

Waldron was named Seattle’s offensive coordinator in 2021, and he took on playcalling duties for the first time. During his lone season as Wilson’s offensive coordinator, the quarterback recorded his second-lowest time to throw (2.78 seconds) and finished top-10 in QBR (60.6) and passer rating (103.1). As Waldron put his stamp on the Seahawks’ offense that season, Seattle ranked 11th in rushing and 23rd in passing.

Where Waldon made his biggest mark was in 2022, after Smith became Seattle’s quarterback. After four seasons with the Jets (2013-16), with whom he completed 57.9% of his passes for 5,962 yards, 28 touchdowns and 36 interceptions, Smith thrived in Waldron’s offense last season, leading the league in completion percentage (69.8%) while passing for 4,282 yards, 30 touchdowns and 11 interceptions while winning Comeback Player of the Year.

What are the staples of a Waldron-led offense?

The Seahawks led the NFL in play-action usage (27%) from 2012 to 2021, but after trading Wilson to the Denver Broncos, they ranked 15th during Waldron’s last two seasons, according to ESPN Stats & Information. Seattle utilized multiple tight end formations at the fourth-highest rate in the league from 2022 to 2023 after ranking 19th from 2012 to 2021.

In terms of playcalling, the Bears and Seahawks were on opposite ends of the spectrum on called passes and runs in each of the past two seasons. Since 2022, Seattle ranks seventh in designed pass plays (64%) and 26th in designed runs (36%), while Chicago was 30th in designed passes (55%) and third in designed runs (45%).

The contrast extends to designed runs for the quarterback. Seattle had just eight, the fifth fewest in the league, from 2021 to 2023, compared to Chicago’s 82, the third most.

How different will the Bears’ offense look?

Hiring Waldron means the Bears’ offense will operate similarly in some ways to what it did under Getsy, who was also part of a variation of the Kyle Shanahan tree, having coached in Green Bay under Matt LaFleur.

One area where this is prevalent is on plays outside of the pocket. From 2021 to 2023, Seattle quarterbacks left the pocket on 16.5% of dropbacks, which was the fourth-highest rate in the league. From 2021 to 2023, the Bears had the highest rate (18.1%) of dropbacks where QBs created outside of the pocket.

Both Chicago and Seattle averaged 20 points per game in 2023, but the Bears possessed the ball at the second-highest rate in the league (nearly 32 minutes per game) while Seattle had the lowest time of possession in the NFL (26:47). Essentially, both teams scored the same amount of points despite the Bears having the ball for five extra minutes per game.

Adrián Beltré is all but certain to be a Hall of Famer on Tuesday night, after the Baseball Writers’ Association of America reveals its ballots. His credentials — 3,166 hits, 477 home runs, a .286/.339/.480 career slash line and the third-highest WAR ever among third basemen — make it a no-brainer. Over a career that spanned three decades with four different teams, Beltré was a four-time Silver Slugger and a five-time Gold Glover, as formidable on offense as he was dynamic on defense.

But it isn’t the accomplishments that define him. It’s how he reached them, how much fun he seemed to have along the way and how he made us feel when we watched him. It’s how he homered off a knee and made plays from the ground and glared at those who dared to rub his head. His skills were remarkable, but his vibe was unmatched.

What follows is a look through Beltré’s splendid, soon-to-be Hall of Fame career through the eyes of four of his closest observers.

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Albert Pujols: On Beltré’s impact as a Dominican star

Albert Pujols crossed home plate, bypassed the St. Louis Cardinals teammates who waited to embrace him and darted straight to the Dodger Stadium backstop. Pujols had just become the first Dominican-born member of the 700-home-run club, an exceedingly short list without qualifiers, and all he wanted to do was share the moment with Adrián Beltré, the first Dominican-born player to reach 3,000 hits.

He found him in his first-row seat and high-fived him through the netting.

“I wanted to celebrate that with my countryman, Adrián Beltré — somebody I respect, somebody special to me,” Pujols said, thinking back to that night on Sept. 23, 2022. “There was nothing really planned or anything; it was just something that came out of me. That, for me — and this is how I look at it now — was like sharing with 10 million people that were watching in the Dominican Republic. That little moment with him, it reminded me of how much it meant to our country.”

Pujols had spent most of his career admiring Beltré from afar. He felt a kinship through Beltré’s willingness to play hurt and admired his ability to maintain a competitive edge while also not taking himself too seriously, a dichotomy that to Pujols felt impossible. To this day, Pujols marvels at the game-tying home run Beltré hit off Chris Carpenter in Game 5 of the 2011 World Series, buckling to a knee while turning on a breaking ball and sending it over the left-field fence. As the years went on, Pujols often wondered aloud about what it might be like to share an infield with Beltré.

But they weren’t necessarily friends. Not close ones, at least. They competed in the same league — sometimes, like in 2004, for the same MVP trophy — then later in the same division. Their ambition created a wedge that only softened when their respective careers began to wind down. Retirement brought them closer.

“The best thing that I love about Adrián is the relationship that him and I now have,” Pujols said. “I was just with him playing golf a couple of weeks ago in the Dominican Republic. I was with him in Dubai. I feel like we have built the relationship over the last two or three years, towards the end of his career, towards the end of my career, and that’s something that I love about us.”

Pujols is one of only two players, along with Hank Aaron, to reach 700 homers, 2,000 RBIs and 3,000 hits. But Beltré occupies an exclusive club of his own, among just four players to reach 400 homers and 3,000 hits while also accumulating at least five Gold Gloves, a testament to his all-around greatness.

The two stand as mythical figures on the baseball-loving island that produced them, both because of the stardom they attained and how often they gave back. Lately, Pujols and Beltre have collaborated on charitable work in the Dominican Republic, the latest of which was Beltré’s charity golf tournament to develop a baseball facility in the Dominican town of Verón.

“He does it from his heart; he doesn’t do it just to put his name in the paper,” Pujols said. “That, to me, is what makes Adrián Beltré really special.”

Both Beltré and Pujols are certain Hall of Famers, but their trajectories were drastically different.

Pujols, who won’t be eligible until 2028, surged from the onset, immediately putting together arguably the best 10-year stretch in baseball history, then faded rather aggressively in his 30s. Beltré took a while to get going, not making his first All-Star team until his age-31 season, but he was at his best throughout the second half of his career. In some ways, he aged backward.

“It should be more impressive because of the way that he has done it — late in his career, it clicked for him, and he took advantage,” Pujols said. “He recognized it, and he turned things around.”

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Manny Mota: On Beltré’s ‘desire to be great’

It began with two folding chairs near a batting cage tucked within the bowels of Dodger Stadium, and similar settings in other major league ballparks across the country. This is where Manny Mota and Adrián Beltré spent most of their early afternoons in the late 1990s and early 2000s, talking about the work ahead of them before most of the other Los Angeles Dodgers had arrived.

“We talked like two friends,” said Mota, the Dodgers’ pinch-hitting legend who later spent four decades assisting their coaching staff. “Not like instructor and player, but like two friends sharing in what we were going to try to do — with the same idea, with the same purpose.”

Mota learned about Beltré shortly after the Dodgers signed him as a 15-year-old out of the Dominican Republic in 1994 (when he had famously, and illegally, falsified his birth date). He watched Beltré star at the organization’s Dominican academy in summer 1995 and was blown away by his strength and quickness. When Beltré and other prominent Dodgers minor leaguers were invited to train with the major league players in spring training the following year, late manager Tommy Lasorda put Mota in charge of him. And when Beltré reached the majors as a 19-year-old in 1998, he became Mota’s most important project.

They became almost inseparable, their relationship resembling that of a father and son, and it was those afternoon conversations, Mota said, that set the tone.

They typically centered on positivity.

“That was my responsibility as a coach — to not let him fall,” Mota, now 85, said in Spanish. “It was to lift him up. Because we’re here to instill confidence, not to destroy it.”

Beltré breezed through the lower levels of the Dodgers’ minor league system at 17 and 18 years old and became easily the sport’s youngest player when he was called up near the end of June in 1998. He had skipped Triple-A entirely, accumulating fewer than 300 plate appearances above the Class A level, and his inexperience was notable. Beltré batted .215 as a rookie, then was basically a league-average hitter in the four full seasons that followed. His defense was elite, his offensive tools were obvious, but consistency eluded him.

Mota remained his strongest advocate. He had long become convinced that Latin American players needed more seasoning than those who entered baseball’s pipeline domestically because of the disparity in resources, and so he continually preached patience to those above him. In Beltré, he noticed unrelenting positivity amid struggle.

“He handled it admirably,” Mota said. “He handled it in a great way because he recognized that he was at a level he belonged and just needed to make the necessary adjustments in order to succeed. That’s what he ultimately realized. He knew it was a process. It wasn’t easy. He was going to have his good days and his bad, but he was going to keep learning.”

Everything suddenly came together in 2004, in the run-up to free agency. Beltré hit a major league-leading 48 home runs, compiled 121 RBIs, slashed .334/.388/.629 and accumulated 9.7 fWAR, still the most by a Dodgers position player. His OPS, 1.017, was 269 points higher than his career average heading in. If not for Barry Bonds, he would’ve won the National League MVP Award.

That year, nearly two-thirds of Beltré’s home runs were hit to center and right field, the byproduct of a patient, opposite-field approach refined by new hitting coach Tim Wallach — but one he and Mota had begun honing years earlier in the backfields of the Dodgers’ Vero Beach, Florida, complex.

“His desire to be great — that, more than anything else, is what impressed me the most,” Mota said. “He was always ready to work and to receive instruction and to apply it. He was very positive. And he always gave you the best he had.”

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Elvis Andrus: On Beltré’s infectious joy

In Seattle, it was Félix Hernández. In Boston, it was Marco Scutaro and Victor Martinez. And so in the spring of 2011, a 22-year-old Elvis Andrus turned to a soon-to-be-32-year-old Adrián Beltré and relayed some tough news: It has to be another Venezuelan who touches your head in Texas, he told him, and that person is going to be me.

“He didn’t like it very much because he hates it when people touch his head,” Andrus said in Spanish. “But like I told him, ‘The only way I like to get hit by somebody is when you hit a home run, so I’m going to keep doing it and keep being annoying so you keep hitting home runs.’”

Beltré’s Hall of Fame résumé was built on his prowess, but his essence was marked by the spontaneity and hilarity of his antics — by the unique ways in which he emanated joy. Like when he dodged a liquid bath with a push broom. Or ran toward the pitcher’s mound during a rundown. Or stopped his stride like a Looney Tunes character. Or pushed José Altuve off third base. Or mockingly danced at Andrelton Simmons. Or screamed at Hernández on his way to first. Or dragged the on-deck circle before an at-bat, triggering one of the most ridiculous ejections in recent memory.

Beltré’s ability to exude levity and tenacity simultaneously made him unlike any others before him. It was his gift to the sport — and Andrus, his shortstop partner throughout his eight-year stint with the Texas Rangers, often triggered it with those unrelenting attempts to rub the top of his head.

Beltré would playfully take swings when Andrus touched his crown as he high-fived teammates in the dugout, but he’d get legitimately mad — at times enraged — when it happened within the sanctity of a clubhouse. But Andrus’ pestering knew no limits. Once, Andrus found an opening in the middle of a meeting on the the pitcher’s mound and Beltré reacted by flinging his glove like a Little Leaguer.

“We were in Seattle,” Andrus recalled. “We were playing, and I was messing with him because that day we had a pop-up and we did what we always did, messing around, calling each other off. I caught the ball and he told me, ‘Don’t f— around. Leave my fly balls alone. Those are mine.’ And I told him, ‘Hey, I’m the shortstop. I’m in charge here.’ Then when they’re changing the pitcher and he told me, ‘We’ll see the next one,’ I touched his head with my glove and I started running. I figured he wouldn’t do anything because we’re in the middle of the field. The last thing I imagined was that he would throw his glove. Then I saw the replay and I died laughing.”

Beltré’s tenure as Andrus’ infield partner came after five sluggish years offensively in Seattle. Some of those who know him well believe the pressure to live up to a $64 million contract — signed after his spectacular 2004 season — in a new place got to him, at least initially. Many others pointed to the difficulty of being a right-handed hitter inside T-Mobile Park at that time, before the fences moved in. Beltré went on to sign a one-year deal with the Boston Red Sox in January 2010 — a development that introduced “pillow contract” into our lexicon — and finished within the top 10 in MVP voting, parlaying a dominant season into a six-year, $96 million agreement with the Rangers.

The Rangers made the deal expecting the typical regression of a power hitter in his 30s. What they got instead was a renaissance. Over a six-year stretch from 2011 to 2016, Beltré slashed .308/.358/.516 while accumulating 167 home runs, 563 RBIs and 32.4 fWAR, seventh most in the majors. He earned three All-Star selections, won two Silver Sluggers and accumulated three Gold Gloves for Rangers teams that consistently competed for championships, establishing himself as one of the greatest third basemen in baseball history.

The environment, many believe, helped him flourish. And Andrus was a driving force. The two had neighboring lockers in their first spring training together and hit it off immediately. Beltré took on the role of an older brother, and Andrus credits Beltré more than anyone else for helping him grow. Some of Beltré’s close friends point to a telling aspect of their dynamic: Andrus, a kid when they first met, had the confidence to mess with an accomplished veteran like Beltré as often as he did. To them, it speaks to the type of teammate Beltre was.

“A lot of people were scared of Adrián,” Andrus said, “but I never understood that because he was the type of person who, if you did things correctly and played hard and played to win, he was never going to have a problem with you. I never saw him have a problem with anyone who did things right and got to the field to give their heart every day to win. That’s the only thing he asked from us as teammates. And it wasn’t just that he asked for it — it’s what he gave us.”

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Jon Daniels: On Beltré’s legendary pain tolerance

It was the middle of June 2015, three weeks into Adrián Beltré’s latest stint on the injured list. He was nursing a torn ligament in his left thumb, which he jammed while sliding into second base on the final night of May. A hand specialist met with Beltré; his agent, Scott Boras; and the Rangers’ medical staff in Anaheim, California, to inform him that surgery was the only path to improvement. Everybody but Beltré agreed.

“Can I make it worse?” Beltré asked.

Beltré had already received a cortisone injection that did not take. The pain was excruciating. He was told once again that an invasive surgery was the only option left. Beltré kept pressing.

“But I can’t make it any worse, right?”

Jon Daniels, the Rangers’ head of baseball operations at the time, was baffled but unsurprised. Daniels had spent four years alongside Beltré by that point and was often stunned by his willingness to play hurt. He knew where this was going. Beltré was told that, no, he could not make his thumb any worse than it already was.

“All right,” Beltré said, “I’ll play through it.”

“The rest of us in the room were like, ‘Are you serious?’” Daniels recalled. “I mean, I think he was having trouble doing basic, day-to-day functions.”

One of the two most vivid examples of Beltré’s legendary pain tolerance occurred in 2001, when a ruptured and infected appendix caused him to lose 34 pounds and forced him to arrive at spring training with an IV port stuck in his arm and a colostomy bag tucked into his pants. He played anyway. The other took place in 2009, when one of his testicles swelled to the size of a grapefruit because of a ninth-inning grounder that took a bad hop. Beltré singled and scored the winning run five innings later, missed the next 18 games, came back and still refused to wear an athletic cup.

But Daniels, now a senior advisor with the Tampa Bay Rays, can rattle off a handful of other, similarly impressive instances from personal experience. Like when Beltré spent a night in the hospital with abdominal blockage in 2012, then batted cleanup the following day. Or when he returned from a hamstring strain twice as fast as even the most optimistic projections in 2017. Or when he OPS’d .836 while playing with a battered thumb over the final three-plus months of the aforementioned 2015 season, pushing the Rangers into the playoffs.

The ensuing postseason began with a phone call from Rangers athletic trainer Kevin Harmon. Beltré, Harmon told Daniels, had thrown out his back and could hardly move. He was angling to play in Game 1 of the American League Division Series, but Harmon didn’t think it was possible.

Beltré was inserted into the No. 3 spot of the lineup, but he could barely rotate his hips or swing his bat while attempting to loosen his muscles in the on-deck circle. He drew a four-pitch walk in the top of the first, then attempted to play defense for two half-innings. When he came to bat again in the third, he drove an 0-1 sinker from David Price up the middle for a two-out RBI single. Had Toronto Blue Jays center fielder Kevin Pillar noticed how slowly Beltré made his way up the line, Daniels said, he might have thrown him out at first base. Beltré was subbed out for the next half-inning and missed the next two games, but he returned for Game 4.

“There was a little healthy fear of Adrián throughout the organization,” Daniels said. “I remember the couple times this guy was hurt and he had to go on the IL you were like, ‘All right, who’s going to tell him?’ It was kind of funny. If he agreed to go on the IL, you knew it was bad. Because typically he was like, ‘No, f— that, I’ll be fine.’ I mean, he’d literally just walk out of my office like, ‘No, I’m not going on. See you later.’ And you’re like, ‘I thought I was the guy in charge here.’”

Beltré made such a habit of toughing out injuries he became a master at playing through them. In some ways, injuries actually might have made him better. Beltré spent the last five months of his breakout 2004 season playing through two bone spurs in one of his ankles, a development some believe might have forced him to be more patient and make better use of his hands in the batter’s box. His elite arm strength allowed him to make difficult throws without doing too much work with his lower half, a blessing given the assortment of leg issues that plagued him. Early on, when throwing errors were a problem, having less mobility in his legs actually helped his accuracy.

Beltré played in 2,933 regular-season games in a career that spanned 21 years, more than all but 14 people in major league history.

He willed his way through an inordinate amount of them.

“I think it was this mix of competitiveness, pride and responsibility,” Daniels said. “It was just like, ‘If I can go, I’m going to do it. I want to be there for my teammates. I want to win.’ All the right reasons. He never vocalized that, so I don’t want to put words in his mouth. But that was always my sense.”

Michael Beale admits he was “wounded” by his Rangers departure but believes his experience will make him a “stronger manager”.

Beale was sacked by the Ibrox club in October, just 10 months after replacing Giovanni van Bronckhorst after his dismissal one year into the job.

His final match was a 3-1 defeat to Aberdeen, a third loss in seven games, which left Rangers trailing Scottish Premiership leaders Celtic by seven points.

The 43-year-old, who is now in charge at Championship side Sunderland, told Sky Sports he took positives away from his short spell in charge.

“There’s a lot of emotion that goes into managing big football clubs and you put your heart and soul into it,” said the former Rangers assistant to Steven Gerrard.

“That club is a club that I worked at for a number of years and invested a lot in the people, the city and everything.

“If you’re not hurt and you’re not heartbroken at times and you’re not wounded by your bad days, are you putting everything into the job?

“What it does do is it gives me huge experience moving forward as a young manager, both that time at Queen’s Park Rangers and Rangers.

“I love both clubs and the time I had at both, and I’m thankful for both experiences and certainly they’ll make me a stronger manager moving forward.”

Beale made 11 signings during his time as Rangers manager and admitted spells of instability made things difficult.

“When you come to recruitment, there was a lot of turnover in my last club,” he said.

“I still think they have a fantastic chance to fulfil whatever they want to fulfil, but there was a lot of change there and maybe that can destabilise.

“Sometimes the demands are really high and you need to hit the ground running and I’m as pleased as anyone to see the team go on and win the Scottish League Cup because we were in a good position. But there’s one thing being in a good position, another thing is going on to win it.

“To get out the Europa League group because again, we were in a decent enough position after beating Real Betis, but you still have to go away there and get the result in the end.”

Scottish Premiership and SWPL on Sky Sports

Sky Sports – This season up to 48 cinch Premiership games will be available across Sky Sports’ flagship channels, including Sky Sports Football and Sky Sports Main Event, plus at least five SWPL matches. From 2024/25, up to 60 cinch Premiership will be live on Sky Sports, in addition to the SWPL.

Sky Sports News – Running 24 hours a day, seven days a week, Scottish football fans can enjoy Sky Sports News’ (channel 409) rolling editorial coverage of the cinch Premiership and SWPL throughout the season.

Sky Sports Digital – Follow all the latest from Scottish football across SkySports.com and app, including exclusive features and interviews, plus dedicated live blog coverage, in-game clips from matches live on Sky Sports and free highlights.

Sky Sports Social – Alongside coverage and visibility for the league across all Sky Sports’ main social media channels, the bespoke X page @ScotlandSky (formerly known as Twitter) will continue to be the home of all Scottish football content on Sky Sports.

Highlights show – Tune in for a dedicated round-up from the cinch Premiership every week on Sky Sports Football.

To download the Sky Sports app click here, to visit Sky Sports website click here.

Sky Sports is the home of domestic football in the UK and Ireland, with action from the Scottish Premiership, Scottish Women’s Premier League, Premier League, WSL, EFL, and more.

Follow Celtic with Sky Sports

Follow every Celtic game in the Scottish Premiership this season with our live blogs on the Sky Sports website and app, and watch match highlights for free.

Want the Celtic latest? Bookmark our Celtic news page, check out Celtic’s fixtures and Celtic’s latest results, watch Celtic’s goals and video, keep track of the Scottish Premiership table and see which Celtic games are coming up live on Sky Sports.

Get all this and more – including notifications sent straight to your phone – by downloading the Sky Sports Scores app and setting Celtic as your favourite team.

Follow Rangers with Sky Sports

Follow every Rangers game in the Scottish Premiership this season with our live blogs on the Sky Sports website and app, and watch match highlights for free.

Want the Rangers latest? Bookmark our Rangers news page, check out Rangers’ fixtures and Rangers’ latest results, watch Rangers’ goals and video, keep track of the Scottish Premiership table and see which Rangers games are coming up live on Sky Sports.

Get all this and more – including notifications sent straight to your phone – by downloading the Sky Sports Scores app and setting Rangers as your favourite team.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — The Tennessee Titans are finalizing a deal to make Cincinnati Bengals offensive coordinator Brian Callahan their next head coach, replacing Mike Vrabel.

Callahan appeared to be Tennessee’s choice from the start to become its sixth coach. After spending five seasons in Cincinnati, Callahan was the first candidate Tennessee submitted a request to interview and the first the Titans met with virtually and in person.

Taking a closer look, Titans reporter Turron Davenport answers some of the big questions surrounding the hire, national reporter Dan Graziano dishes on what he’s hearing about Callahan and draft analyst Matt Miller spins it forward to the draft. Finally, front office analyst Mike Tannenbaum grades the Titans’ hire.

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Why did the Titans go with Callahan?

Davenport: Callahan’s track record of success dates back to his time with the Denver Broncos as an offensive assistant under Gary Kubiak which included the Super Bowl 50 victory with quarterback Peyton Manning. Although he didn’t call plays for the Bengals as the offensive coordinator, Callahan was responsible for orchestrating the game plan and implementing the offense, according to Cincinnati coach Zac Taylor. Callahan’s ability to find success despite having issues along the offensive line should bode well for the Titans, who have shortcomings there as well. After having four offensive coordinators in six seasons under Mike Vrabel, the Titans were desperately in need of stability, so bringing in Callahan ensures they’ll have the same scheme over the time he’s in Tennessee.

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How does this impact quarterback Will Levis?

Davenport: Levis will be the next in a long line of quarterbacks looking to be coached up by Callahan. Former Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford had back-to-back 4,000-plus-yard passing seasons in 2016 and 2017 with Callahan as his position coach. Callahan’s next stop with the Raiders helped Derek Carr reach his first career 4,000-yard passing season. Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow threw for at least 4,400 yards in his two full seasons with Callahan as the offensive coordinator.

Callahan will provide stability for Levis, who will be learning his fourth offense in four seasons, heading into Year 2 after he was taken in the second round of the 2023 draft. There will be some crossover for Levis since Callahan’s offense will be similar to what Taylor ran with the Bengals. Taylor and Levis’ offensive coordinator Liam Coen worked together for one season with the Rams. It might be wise for Callahan to consider Coen as the offensive coordinator and to retain current Titans quarterbacks coach/pass game coordinator Charles London to offer continuity for Levis in his second season.

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Does this signal a new direction for the Titans with an offensive head coach?

Davenport: The Titans are getting one of the bright young offensive minds in the NFL. The Bengals’ offense was seventh in points per game (26.1), eighth in yards per game (360.5) and fifth in passing yards per game (265) with Callahan as the coordinator. Outside of 2020, Tennessee surpassed that scoring average only once in six seasons under the previous regime. Callahan’s offense will include a more pass-reliant scheme, which is a change for the Titans’ run-heavy offenses that revolved around pending free agent running back Derrick Henry.

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What are you hearing around the league on the hire?

Graziano: Callahan wasn’t the playcaller in Cincinnati, but as has been pointed out to me several times, Taylor wasn’t the playcaller in Los Angeles before the Bengals hired him — and things seem to have worked out pretty well for him as a head coach. Callahan has been with Taylor since he got the Bengals job in 2019, and people in Cincinnati say Callahan has had a great deal of responsibility for game-planning and administrative elements of the offense. He gets a lot of credit for his work with Jake Browning, who has been a Bengals backup quarterback for three years and performed well following Joe Burrow’s season-ending wrist injury.

There will be a lot of speculation about whether Callahan’s father, former Raiders coach Bill Callahan, will join him in Tennessee. The elder Callahan is viewed as one of the top offensive line coaches in the league and currently occupies that position with the Browns.

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Callahan had two elite receivers in Cincinnati. Which pass-catcher would fit best with Tennessee in Round 1 of the draft?

Miller: At No. 7 overall, the Titans might not have their choice of the top three wideouts, with multiple teams needing pass-catching help ahead of them in the draft order. But they do have a great chance to land either LSU’s Malik Nabers or Washington’s Rome Odunze, with Ohio State’s Marvin Harrison Jr. likely off the board in the top five.

If available, Nabers is probably the best fit, thanks to his game-changing yards-after-catch ability that allowed him to average 17.6 yards per catch and get 14 scores in 2023. He reminds me of Stefon Diggs. Considering DeAndre Hopkins will be 32 years old next season, the Titans’ wide receiver room needs work, and either Nabers or Odunze would be a great addition. But the speed and agility of Nabers combined with Levis’ arm strength could turn the Tennessee offense around in 2024.

If Tennessee doesn’t go WR in the first round, it might consider filling needs on the offensive line or at cornerback.

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How would you grade this hire?

Tannenbaum: B+. It’s a strong hire when you look through the lens of quarterback development and the outstanding play of Burrow in Cincinnati. Titans fans should be excited Levis will now benefit from learning under Callahan, who will emphasize technique and fundamentals. In addition to Burrow, Stafford and Manning, Callahan has worked with many other quarterbacks as well.

HOUSTON — Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud‘s rookie season was memorable, but he wants more.

“I want to be the best,” Stroud said Monday — two days after the Texans’ season ended in the divisional round of the playoffs. “I don’t want to be the best rookie or the best second-year player. I want to be the best.”

Stroud was instrumental in getting the Texans to the playoffs, where he had a 274-yard, three-touchdown debut in a 45-14 win over the Cleveland Browns in the wild-card round.

He tied the rookie record for the most passing touchdowns in a playoff game and also became the youngest quarterback (22 years, 102 days) to win a playoff game since 1950, surpassing Michael Vick (22 years, 192 days).

Stroud led the league in passing yards per game (274). His 4,108 yards is third most for a rookie, and he became the first rookie since the merger to lead the league in touchdown-to-interception ratio (23-5).

“I’m just super thankful for God and Christ for really just having a rookie year like I had,” Stroud said. “To be able to be mentioned with a whole bunch of greats and be playing against greats, it’s just a blessing.”

The No. 2 pick out of Ohio State helped first-year coach DeMeco Ryans become the 27th first-year coach to win the division since the 1970 merger, and they became the third first-year coach-rookie quarterback duo since 1950 to win a playoff game, joining the pairing of Baltimore Ravens coach John Harbaugh and quarterback Joe Flacco (2008), along with former New York Jets coach Rex Ryan and quarterback Mark Sanchez (2009).

“An important question every team is looking for is that quarterback,” Ryans said. “We know how important the position is. We know how many resources go into finding the right guys as half of the league has them, and half don’t. It’s a special position. It takes a special person to play that position, and we’re happy to have C.J. leading us.”

Stroud didn’t throw an interception in two playoff games, but the Ravens held him without a touchdown in the divisional round loss.

“We know what it takes,” Stroud said. “It takes tremendous focus, tremendous will to win and stuff like that. … Even though we fell short, we put that on display. And now it’s just about bringing guys here that are with that and have that same type of mentality. And whoever stays, we keep that standard.

“We ain’t changing up for nobody. That is why we are confident.”

Hall of Fame second baseman Ryne Sandberg, who played 15 seasons for the Chicago Cubs, announced on Instagram that he has been diagnosed with metastatic prostate cancer and has begun treatment.

“To my Chicago Cubs, National Baseball Hall of Fame, extended Baseball Family, the city of Chicago, and all my loyal fans, I want to share some personal news,” Sandberg wrote in the post Monday. “Last week, I learned that I have been diagnosed with metastatic prostate cancer. I have begun treatment, and I am surrounded by my loving wife Margaret, our incredibly supportive family, the best medical care team, and our dear friends.

“We will continue to be positive, strong, and fight to beat this. Please keep us in your thoughts and prayers during this difficult time for me and my family.”

Sandberg, 64, was a 10-time All-Star during his 15 seasons for the Cubs from 1982 to 1997, amassing 282 home runs and 344 stolen bases. After his playing career, he served as manager of the Philadelphia Phillies from 2013 to 2015, going 119-159.

He has been a fixture for the Cubs at spring training and Wrigley Field over the years, providing guidance for young infielders while being an ambassador for the team. He has appeared as a pregame and postgame analyst in various media as well.

“We cannot imagine how incredibly tough it is right now for Ryne and his family, but we do know Ryne is one tough competitor and a winner,” Cubs senior vice president Julian Green told ESPN. “We are rallying around his family with locked arms as they begin their journey to conquer this battle with cancer.”

The Cubs are scheduled to unveil a statue of Sandberg outside of Wrigley Field on June 23 — the 40th anniversary of his best game with the team, when he hit game-tying home runs in the bottom of the ninth and 10th innings and had seven RBIs in Chicago’s 11-inning, 12-11 victory over the St. Louis Cardinals.

Sandberg won the National League MVP in 1984, the year the Cubs won a division title. He led the league in triples and runs scored that season while hitting .314 with 19 home runs. He also won nine consecutive Gold Glove awards.

In 1990, Sandberg hit 40 home runs, becoming just the third primary second baseman to reach the 40-homer plateau.

He was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 2005.

A round-up from Monday’s Africa Cup of Nations matches with Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Egypt and Ghana all in action on day 10 of the tournament.

Equatorial Guinea 4-0 Ivory Coast

Africa Cup of Nations hosts Ivory Coast are on the brink of a humiliating exit from their own tournament after a shock 4-0 defeat by Equatorial Guinea.

Two more goals from Emilio Nsue, the hat-trick hero from the win against Guinea-Bissau, and strikes from Pablo Ganet and substitute Jannick Buyla left the Elephants with only a slim chance of qualifying after finishing third in Group A.

Three points means they are unlikely to be one of the four third-placed teams to get through, although agonisingly they might not know their fate until Wednesday evening when the group stage is completed.

Equatorial Guinea, meanwhile, were confirmed as surprise group winners ahead of Nigeria in second. Ivory Coast had two goals disallowed for offside and snatched at a host of presentable chances, and they were made to pay.

They could have had a penalty when Nicolas Pepe burst into the area after a long ball over the top fell at his feet and was clearly fouled by Saul Coco.

Pepe opted to stay on his feet, however, but he was unable to round Equatorial Guinea keeper Jesus Owono and the opportunity went begging.

And Ivory Coast were stunned three minutes before half-time when Akapo surged past four non-existent tackles into the area and squared the ball for Nsue.

The former Birmingham and Middlesbrough full-back, now 34 and captaining his country, swept the ball home first time.

The host nation thought they had hit back immediately when Ibrahim Sangare bundled the ball into the net from Pepe’s cross but VAR confirmed the Nottingham Forest midfielder was offside.

Sangare should have equalised moments into the second half only to blaze wastefully over at the far post and Owono somehow denied Christian Kouame from point-blank range.

In the 67th minute Jean-Philippe Krasso took Seko Fofana’s pass in his stride and curled the ball past Owono, but once again VAR stepped in where an offside flag had not and the goal was chalked off.

Instead, six minutes later Ganet silenced the Alassane Ouattara Stadium with a curling free-kick which flew into the top corner.

The hosts’ fate was all but sealed when, in the 75th minute, Jose Machin led a counter-attack and teed up Nsue for a simple finish.

And arguably the biggest upset in AFCON history was complete two minutes from time when Buyla lashed home the fourth.

Guinea-Bissau 0-1 Nigeria

Opa Sangante’s own goal earned Nigeria a 1-0 win over Guinea-Bissau as they sealed their spot in the Africa Cup of Nations last 16.

The Super Eagles went ahead after 36 minutes when Sangante put through his own net but were unable to capitalise on a series of good chances to extend their lead, with Victor Osimhen going close multiple times.

With Equatorial Guinea thumping Ivory Coast in the other game in the group, Nigeria finished second in Group A to set up a meeting with the runners-up in Group C on Saturday.

The loss capped off a miserable campaign for already-eliminated Guinea-Bissau, who threatened Nigeria in the final stages but finished with three defeats.

Nigeria’s Stanley Nwabali made the first save of the game from Nito Gomes’ ambitious long-range effort, but the Super Eagles grew into the game, Joe Aribo’s powerful strike taking a deflection and giving Jonas Mendes a routine stop.

Nigeria went in front when Moses Simon whipped in a dangerous cross intended for Osimhen and Sangante smashed the ball into the roof of his own net.

They had a great chance to double the lead just before half-time as an unmarked Osimhen headed wide and threatened again two minutes into the second half when Mendes smothered Simon’s shot.

An action-packed start saw Osimhen’s headed effort loop wide and Dalcio had his low strike saved at the other end before Osimhen had an effort ruled out for offside.

Guinea-Bissau threatened in the final 10 minutes when Fali Cande’s free-kick took an awkward bounce, but Nwabali managed to push it wide before Gomes headed wide from the resulting corner.

The late pressure almost paid off as a ferocious strike from Franculino Dju was ruled out for offside and Nigeria managed to see the game out.

Egypt 2-2 Cape Verde

Mohamed Salah was in the stands to watch Egypt scrape into the last 16 of the Africa Cup of Nations with a breathless 2-2 draw with Cape Verde.

The striker stayed on to watch his countrymen in their crucial final Group B match before flying back to Liverpool for treatment on a muscle injury.

He will have feared the worst with the Pharaohs staring at an early exit after falling behind to a goal from Gilson Tavares for the surprise group winners.

But substitute Trezeguet hauled them level and Mostafa Mohamed fired them ahead at the start of stoppage time.

The Blue Sharks then rocked Egypt by equalising through Bryan Teixeira, but Ghana being pegged back 2-2 by Mozambique meant the Pharaohs clung on to second place.

With Cape Verde having already topped the group, Egypt were hoping they might not play with the same intensity that brought them two wins out of two.

Cape Verde goalkeeper Vozinha saved from Mohamed and Omar Marmoush while Zizo fired narrowly wide.

But in first-half stoppage time and with Cape Verde’s first real opportunity, the surprise package took the lead.

Ryan Mendes headed the ball into the path of Tavares, who turned sharply before crashing his shot low into the net.

Trezeguet should have equalised moments after coming on as a half-time substitute but he blazed his shot over the crossbar.

But the Trabzonspor midfielder made his mark three minutes later when he played a brilliant one-two with Ahmed Hegazy before lashing an angled shot past Vozinha.

Trezeguet almost immediately put Egypt ahead but drilled his shot across Vozinha and wide.

Mohamed had a golden chance from Trezeguet’s cross but agonisingly lifted his effort over the top.

But two minutes into stoppage time Mohamed chased on to a ball over the top and lifted it over Vozinha.

A dramatic victory seemed to have been secured but there was still time for Teixeira to fire an equaliser in the ninth minute of added time, although somehow Egypt could still celebrate qualification in the most nail-biting circumstances.

Ghana 2-2 Mozambique

Ghana conceded twice in stoppage time to draw 2-2 with Mozambique as a place in the last 16 of the Africa Cup of Nations slipped through their fingers.

Jordan Ayew scored a pair of penalties which looked to be sending Ghana through, but a thrilling finale saw Geny Catamo pull one back from the spot before Reinildo Mandava equalised at the death.

The two dropped points meant Egypt pipped Ghana to second place in Group B, despite also conceding a last-gasp leveller in a 2-2 draw with Cape Verde, and Chris Hughton’s side are highly unlikely to qualify as one of best third-placed teams.

Antoine Semenyo went close for Ghana just seconds into the game, unleashing a powerful strike from the edge of the box, but goalkeeper Ivane Carminio managed to tip the ball over the bar.

Ghana were awarded a penalty when Joseph Paintsil twisted his way into the box and was fouled by Nanani and Jordan Ayew coolly rolled the resulting spot-kick into the bottom right corner to open the scoring after 15 minutes.

The Black Stars were dealt a blow when Majeed Ashimeru was taken off on a stretcher and Mozambique continued to threaten straight after the break as Richard Ofori punched a dangerous cross away before Lau King headed wide.

They had a flurry of opportunities as Bruno Langa forced Ofori into a save and another chance went begging when the Ghana keeper palmed a corner into the path of Nene, who headed well wide of a post.

Following a rare foray into the opposition area Ghana earned another penalty after Mandava handled the ball and Jordan Ayew stepped up again to double his side’s lead in the 70th minute.

Mozambique pulled one back a minute into stoppage time when they were given a penalty after an Andre Ayew handball and Catamo fired his effort into the bottom corner.

Their dramatic comeback was complete four minutes into added time when Mandava nodded the ball home from a corner to all but end Ghana’s hopes of making the next round.

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Adam Gorney
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Rivals.com

National Recruiting Director

JURUPA VALLEY, Calif. – A lot of coaching changes have occurred among Jonah Williams’ top teams but the 2025 five-star safety has had a lot of time to figure things out, talk to new staffs and many…

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The 12th season of the Rivals Camp Series will kick off in less than two months, featuring camps and combines at locations across the United States.

Athletes who take part in the Rivals Camps are coached by top former NFL and college players and coaches and compete against the best college football prospects in their region in one-on-one drills.

The list of Rivals Camp Series alumni include Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow, Saquon Barkley, Patrick Mahomes, Puka Nacua, Sauce Gardner and 2023 Heisman Trophy winner Jayden Daniels. In fact, seven of the top 10 picks in the 2023 NFL Draft, and 17 first-rounders in total were former Rivals Camp participants.

The camps and combines are free for high school football players who will be graduating in 2025-28. Combines will be held in each city on Saturdays. The elite camps are on Sundays. Registration is required for all participants. Athletes can register for the combine nearest them starting today at www.rivalscampseries.com.

Back again for the 2024 Camp Series is the Wilson QBX camps on Saturday nights. Quarterbacks participating in the Wilson QBX events will run through a variety of drills using Wilson X Connected QB tracking technology. Every throw will collect data – spin rate, spiral efficiency, velocity and release time – that are valuable for the athletes and their coaches to measure against other quarterbacks, as well as for college coaches to evaluate. There is a $50 charge for the Wilson QBX camps. Every participant will receive a Wilson X compression jersey, throwing data, discount card for Wilson footballs and a Rivals combine Fast Pass ($30). Spots are limited. Register at https://www.rivalscampseries.com/results/wilson-qbx-camp-sat/.

The national series of regional camps and NFL-style combines attracts the country’s best high school football players and aims to improve athletes’ skills, give them verified stats needed for college recruiting and increase their exposure to college coaches.

Who can attend the Rivals Camp Series event?

Rivals Camps and Rivals Combines are a series of regional camps and combines. The camps are geared toward current juniors, but sophomores and freshmen are eligible. Combines are geared toward freshmen, sophomores and juniors. Top performers at a combine could earn an invitation to attend one of the elite camps.

What is the cost to attend the Rivals Camp Series?

Rivals Camps and Rivals Combines are free. Prospects must provide their own transportation to events. A limited number of $30 Fast Pass are available for each combine. The Fast Pass allows athletes to be the first to test at the combine, avoiding any delays that might occur, and get access to a fresh turf field for better footing. The Fast Pass athlete’s check-in window is from 8am-9am. NOTE: Fast pass athletes can check-in after 9am and will be moved to the front of all holding areas. The Fast Pass will not be available for purchase onsite. There will be no refunds for Combine Fast Pass purchases.

How can a player register for a Rivals Camp?

Coaches or players who would like to nominate a player can do so at the following link: https://n.rivals.com/underclassman_form. Over the coming months, if anything changes, new offers, significant updates, then please update us with this information in a brief email to campinfo@rivals.com. Only players who receive an invitation from a Rivals analyst can sign up for camps. There will be no walk-ups at camps. Some camp spots will be awarded to top performers at the Rivals Combines.

How can a player register for the Rivals Combine?

Players can sign up for a Combine by clicking on the register link in the schedule. Advance registration is strongly encouraged. Walk-ups are likely to be allowed to participate after the registered players have completed the events.

What happens at a Rivals Camp?

Camps will be divided into two sessions: Linemen in the morning session, skill players in the afternoon session. Players have their photo taken and do media interviews. After a dynamic warmup, players do position-specific drills (QBs, RBs, WR/TEs, OLs, DLs, LBs and DBs) with highly qualified and experienced coaches to work individually on football skills and techniques and then do one-on-ones. The one-on-ones are the highlight of the camp, during which WRs will go against DBs, RBs square off with LBs and OLs battle DLs. QBs will alternate throwing to WRs and RBs at different times. Only credentialed Rivals media and publishers will be allowed on the field. Parents and high school coaches must view the camp from the stands.

What happens at a Rivals Combine?

Players have an opportunity to have their times recorded in all the key football testing areas. Players will be timed in the 40-Yard Dash, Shuttle Run (tests athlete’s lateral quickness and explosion), 3-Cone Drill (tests athlete’s ability to change directions at a high speed), Vertical Jump (measures lower-body explosion and power) and Broad Jump (tests athlete’s lower-body explosion and strength). All players who test at a Rivals Combine will receive a Rivals profile, so each player will have his picture taken and height and weight measured.

What are the player benefits for players attending a Rivals Camp?

Players participating will be given the chance to earn national exposure from Rivals.com by competing against the best. Video and action photos will be taken, players will be evaluated by numerous Rivals.com analysts at each event and athletes will learn more about what it takes to compete at the highest level and gauge their current abilities against others at the same position.

What are the player benefits for players attending a Rivals Combine?

In addition to receiving a Rivals profile, players who have recorded times from a reputable combine have a leg up when discussing scholarship opportunities with colleges. NCSA, the top recruiting service in the country, will be on site to help explain the recruiting process to players and parents. In addition, some athletes at each combine will be invited to participate in an elite Rivals Camp.

What can players do if they do not like their combine scores?

After the combine, players will have the option to scratch any of the scores that they don’t want to be viewed by the public and college coaches. Combine participants have 48 hours to scratch any of their scores. After the 48-hour window, the scores will be locked and shared publicly. You can scratch your scores by emailing scratch@rcxexperiences.com

What should players bring to the Camp?

Players participating in the Rivals Camp will need to bring a pair of cleats and mouth guard. Gatorade will provide hydration; players are encouraged to eat a healthy breakfast the morning of the camp.

What should players bring to the Combine?

Players participating in the Rivals Combine need to bring a pair of cleats. No track cleats are allowed. Gatorade will provide hydration; players are encouraged to eat a healthy breakfast the morning of the camp.

What happens at the Saturday night Wilson QBX camp?

Quarterbacks will run through a variety of drills using Wilson X Connected QB tracking technology. Every throw will collect data (spin rate, spiral efficiency, velocity and release time) that’s valuable for training and recruiting. There is a $50 charge for the Wilson QBX camps. Every participant will receive a Wilson X compression jersey, throwing data, discount card for Wilson footballs and a Rivals combine Fast Pass ($30). Spots are limited. Register at https://www.rivalscampseries.com/results/wilson-qbx-camp-sat/.

If a player is already being recruited, should he still attend the camp?

Yes. A Rivals Camp is a tremendous way to attract attention of schools from the around the country who will be reading articles and watching video on Rivals.com. The camp also is a great way to be coached by top former NFL and college players and coaches and improve your technique. The greatest benefit, however, may be the opportunity to test yourself against the other top prospects in the region and see the competition you are competing against for scholarships.

What level of competition should the player expect at the camp?

Players at the Rivals Camp should expect to go against the very best in their region. Rivals.com is the best recruiting website in the country and top prospects are always trying to improve their ranking as well as their stock with college recruiters. Colleges cannot attend the camps, per NCAA rules, so they view the action through the stories written by our analysts and the video shot by our videographers. The best of the best will be attending these events.

Would a poor performance at the camp hurt a player’s ability to be recruited?

A poor performance at a Rivals Camp will not hurt your ability to be recruited, as our team of writers focus on the top performers at each event. However, we provide no promises when it comes to our national rankings and we expect some players to raise their stock with our analysts, while the stock of others could drop. However, the instruction a player receives at the camp and the opportunity to gauge his current skill-set against the very best is what makes these camps invaluable. We have a saying in the camp business – “you can’t get better sitting at home” – and we expect the best of the best to want to prove they belong in that select company.

Will attending a Camp or Combine potentially help a player be recruited?

Yes. A good performance at a Rivals Camp or posting top times at the Rivals Combine can certainly help your ability to be recruited. We have seen interest from colleges increase dramatically for prospects that do well at Rivals camps and combines.

What time do the events begin?

Saturday combines: Fast Pass ($30) check-in is from 8 a.m.-9:30 a.m. Regular registration (free) is 9:30 a.m to 1 p.m. Fast Pass athletes who check in after 9:30 will be moved to the front of all athlete holding areas.

Sunday camps: Morning session (linemen) registration begins at 8 a.m. Afternoon session (QB, RB, DB, LB, receivers) registration begins at 11:15 a.m.

Who can I contact for more information?

Please email questions to campinfo@rivals.com.

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Racing 92 have confirmed the signing of Owen Farrell on a two-year contract.

England international Farrell, who is currently taking a break from Test rugby for mental health reasons, had been in talks with the six-time French champions over a move to the Top 14 when his current contract with Saracens expires at the end of the 2023/24 Gallagher Premiership season.

In a statement posted on the club’s website on Monday evening, Racing confirmed Farrell will be joining them from July 1 on a two-year deal.

The 32-year-old has won 112 caps for England and served as captain during the 2018 summer Test series in South Africa before being officially appointed as Dylan Hartley’s successor for the following year’s Six Nations.

He opted to step away from the international game in the wake of England’s third-place finish at last year’s Rugby World Cup, and his decision to move to France means Farrell will be ineligible to play for the national team due to RFU regulations which, at present, do not permit head coach Steve Borthwick to select players based abroad.

His Saracens club-mate Jamie George has been named as England captain for this year’s Six Nations.

Racing director of rugby and former England head coach Stuart Lancaster, who gave Farrell his international debut in 2012, had previously stated he would be delighted to have the fly-half join him in Paris.

“Racing are often linked with key players and I’m lucky my relationships with players from England and Ireland are all part of that, but we’ll see,” Lancaster said earlier this month.

“He would be a great signing, who wouldn’t want a player like Owen Farrell?”

Scotland international Finn Russell, who enjoyed five seasons with Racing and now plies his club trade in the Premiership with Bath, had previously stated he believes fellow No 10 Farrell can be a success in the Top 14.

However, he urged Farrell to embrace everything about the culture in France as quickly as possible to ensure he gives himself every chance to make a big impression in the competition.

“I loved my time in Paris, and you’ve got to go there with an open mind and try to fit in and take to their way of life and culture as much as possible,” Russell told Sky Sports at the premiere of Netflix’s Six Nations: Full Contact documentary series.

“It is different, it is challenging at times, but if I went over there and was stuck in how I did things in Scotland then you’d find it quite difficult.

“The quicker you can get up to speed with the language and just embrace everything, even if it’s tougher times, it’s good fun.

“I think he’ll be great over there if he does go.”