ball Page 662 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Johnny Manziel's First CFL Start Did Not Go Well
Johnny Manziel started for the Montreal Alouettes Friday night, against his former team, the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. This was always going to be a tough assignment—Manziel was traded to Montreal just 14 days ago, and had only practiced with his Alouettes teammates four times before taking the field as ...

A's Rookie Produces Walk-Off Win With First Career Hit In First Career Game
This is the kind of thing that happens for a team having one of those magical runs: the two huge clutch plays that delivered a 1-0 A’s win in extras Friday night were made by a rookie, making his first career appearance in the majors, and his first career knock was a walk-off game-winner. Break up t...

Urban Meyer And Zach Smith Are Defending Themselves, Even If Their Answers Don’t Quite Make Sense
In a statement posted on his Twitter account, Ohio State coach Urban Meyer admitted Friday afternoon that he knew about a 2015 incident in which former assistant coach Zach Smith allegedly strangled his ex-wife, Courtney. After initially claiming ignorance at Big Ten media day—saying, “I know nothin...

How ESPN Ended Up Paying Brett McMurphy To Post The Year's Biggest College Football Story On Facebook
Brett McMurphy, who is about as plugged in as any college football reporter can be, was always going to scoop ESPN on the Urban Meyer-Zach Smith story. But that the Worldwide Leader paid him to not publish the scoop on their own website, well, that’s the result of a very particular kind of corporate...

Rick Ankiel, Who Could And Then Couldn't, Might<em></em>
We should begin with the important stuff. There is a league that plays at Louisville Slugger Stadium, in Louisville, over the course of a brief eight-team tournament held at the height of summer. It’s called the Bluegrass World Series, and seven of the teams in its field have rosters made up of coll...

Vikings Safety Andrew Sendejo Has A Not-So-Subtle Message For The NFL
The NFL rulebook is absolutely riddled with confounding and indecipherable rules, but I can’t remember one eliciting such strong reactions from players as the league’s doomed new helmet rule. Players have essentially been told that they can no longer tackle the same way they’ve been tackling through...

Why Your Team Sucks 2018: Denver Broncos<em></em>
Some people are fans of the Denver Broncos. But many, many more people are NOT fans of the Denver Broncos. This 2018 Deadspin NFL team preview is for those in the latter group. Read all the previews so far here....

The Helmet Rule's Debut Was Really Messy
Football is back! With a game that didn’t count. And was mostly played by guys who will barely or not at all play meaningful snaps in the games that do count. And you probably didn’t even realize the first preseason game was even happening, until now. Feel the excitement!!! But, anyway, some stuff t...

Maikel Franco Punctuates Walk-Off Dinger With Incredible Bat Flip
Every bat flip demonstrates a certain amount of contempt for the bat. Something like who needs this piece of shit or get this fucking thing out of my face, odd and rude attitudes to have towards a tool that just helped you do one of the coolest things in baseball, which is sock a mighty dinger....

Dan Mullen's "No-Weapons" Policy Allows Florida Players To Carry Loaded AR-15s, Duh
Dan Mullen has what he describes as a “no-weapons” policy. No weapons! Simple enough. Certain of his players at Florida have certainly understood this “no-weapons” policy to mean no weapons, as would seem to be implied by it being a no-weapons policy:...
![Why Did EA Censor A Lyric About Colin Kaepernick In <i>Madden 19</i>? [Update]](https://images.deadspin.com/tr:w-900/yuozvh0yrcitx5es0zbc.png)
Why Did EA Censor A Lyric About Colin Kaepernick In <i>Madden 19</i>? [Update]
Colin Kaepernick is already being kept out the NFL by 32 owners terrified of his protests against police brutality and racial discrimination. It looks like he might also have been completely erased from the upcoming edition of Madden NFL, too....

Phil Knight's Money Couldn't Keep Oregon Out Of College Football's Middle Class
Welcome to the Deadspin 25, a college football poll that strives to be more democratic and less useless than every other preseason poll. Leading up to the college football season kickoff, we will give you previews of the 25 teams that you, the readers, voted to be most worthy of writing about. Now, ...

Art Briles Got A New Job Coaching Football In Italy
Disgraced former Baylor head coach Art Briles has a new job. After a botched stint in the CFL and a pair of aborted college consulting gigs, Briles has accepted the head coaching job with Florence’s Italian Football League team, Guelfi Firenze....

Why Your Team Sucks 2018: Houston Texans<em></em>
Some people are fans of the Houston Texans. But many, many more people are NOT fans of the Houston Texans. This 2018 Deadspin NFL team preview is for those in the latter group. Read all the previews so far here....


Why Sam Darnold's Holdout Was Bigger Than The Jets
Monday morning, as Sam Darnold’s holdout from Jets training camp was entering its fourth day, the view from two of the country’s top football writers was that a deal simply needed to get done ASAP....

If You Think Urban Meyer's Career Is Over, You Underestimate The Power Of Winning<em></em>
Would it be too much to say that winning feels like great sex? The rush of adrenaline, the euphoria, the permission to scream and yell and do whatever you want in the dark of night. The sense that you are invincible and, better yet, unique and special. The scientific term for feeling as if your team...

That Might've Been Sonny Gray's Last Bad Start For A While
Sonny Gray, last year’s big trade deadline acquisition, has had a poor 2018, with an ERA of 5.56 and a role in the rotation that’s gone unthreatened only because the Yankees haven’t had any other real options. That last part changed this week when New York went out and got Lance Lynn, who hasn’t bee...

The Best Sports Of The Night Is These Dogs Licking Peanut Butter
This has been an especially draining news day, and the most prominent sporting event tonight is *shudders* the MLS All-Star Game, so the time has come to look at some dogs. Please, appreciate the innocence and enthusiasm of these good boys named Bentley and Charlie, who both like peanut butter very ...

Ohio State Puts Urban Meyer On Paid Leave Amid School's Investigation Of Zach Smith
As part of its investigation into reports of domestic violence committed by former assistant football coach Zach Smith, Ohio State has placed head football coach Urban Meyer on paid administrative leave. Offensive coordinator Ryan Day will take over in Meyer’s absence....