state Page 80 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Our Conference Mock Draft: Big Ten Edition
Welcome to the new Big Ten! As a lifelong Midwesterner, I have a certain fondness for the conference, and I wanted to preserve some major rivalries while keeping an open mind for expansion to new markets....

Our Conference Mock Draft: ACC Edition
This new ACC is all about the show. We kept a couple of rivalries but our main goal is to entertain you. There are Hurricanes, Badgers, three different Tigers, and some of the most annoying people on the planet wearing their stupid scarlet. So lean back in your drop top, and turn on the 8 Ball & MJG...

Our Conference Mock Draft: Pac-12 Edition
Picking in the middle of the rounds made strategizing to keep rivals together a challenge, but we’ve got the finances to thrive once we’re inevitably forced to categorize student-athletes as employees....

Our Conference Mock Draft: SEC Edition
With the snake-draft format, I was the only one forced to make every selection in pairs. I focused on the rivalries that make college sports great to a fault, which got harder as the draft went along. I more than held my own, starting with a heavy hitter and securing one of the most underrated rival...

Which state can field the best starting 5?
Now that the Warriors have returned to glory post-Durant, NBA fans just survived one of the most unbearable periods of the NBA. One filled with superteams and razor-thin parity between the three to four coastal teams with stacked talent (Warriors, Lakers, Nets), and the rest of the small-market team...

How much will Davante Adams’ absence affect Aaron Rodgers?
In 2021, with the help of Davante Adams, Aaron Rodgers threw for 37 touchdowns and just four interceptions. Those 37 touchdowns were tied for fourth-most in the NFL. Rodgers didn’t have much help outside of Adams. While Adams did catch 11 of those touchdowns (29.73 percent of Rodgers’ total), that’s...

Bo knows kindness, too
Bo Jackson, the former MLB and NFL star considered by many to be one of the greatest athletes of all time, donated to help cover the funeral costs for the 19 children and two adults murdered at Robb Elementary School in after the Uvalde, Texas in May....

Sean Payton is already prepping the NFL for his comeback, but it won’t be with Dallas
Former New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton walked away from the sideline this offseason after 15 years but is already speaking about the possibility of a return — and it sounds like it could happen sooner rather than later....

Jimmy Garoppolo is free to seek a trade — where does he fit best?
It’s been a wild ride for Jimmy Garoppolo in San Francisco, to say the least. He’s been nothing short of a savior for the franchise, returning them to their status as a powerhouse in the NFC. But all good things must come to an end, and that time has officially come....

The A’s lone All-Star was set to fly commercial to LA — until a division rival saved the day
Being an All-Star is a good feeling, or at least I’d think so. Clearly, I’ve never been named an MLB All-Star, but the confirmation that you are in fact one of the game’s best players, getting to line up alongside several legends, and have that star next to your name on your Baseball-Reference page ...

Look out 'Bama and Ohio State, this Pac-12 power is back and looking championship-worthy
USC football is back. ...

LeBron James told the truth about Brittney Griner and Boston… people got mad — in other news, water is wet
The first step is always the hardest because people hate admitting their faults, especially in a place like America where denial is a part of this country’s DNA....

America’s addiction to gun violence caused Florida QB Anthony Richardson to drop his ‘AR-15’ nickname
Certain types of quarterbacks used to be referred to as “gunslingers.” That moniker isn’t cool anymore. ...

Stubbornness and health — that’s all Russell Westbrook has left
Short guards are notorious for aging poorly in the NBA. When quickness is your best asset, losing a step can be fatal. Only the craftiest players — think Jason Kidd, or Chris Paul — can remain effective. Whether it’s changing their playing style, using so many defensive tricks it borders on dirty pl...

NBA player movement junkies stuck smoking roaches this offseason
Rudy Gobert being the biggest name to change teams during free agency made this iteration feel like an overhyped, under-delivered trade deadline. While there’s still quite a bit of time left in the offseason, all but a star is running it back with last year’s team. Unless the Brooklyn Nets find a tr...

Miami’s Raheem Mostert is Mike McDaniel’s X-Factor
Since the dawn of time, mankind has had but one goal: “I. MUST. GO. FAST.” Whether it be speedrunning Super Mario 64 on Twitch, Joey Chestnut wolfing down 70-plus hot dogs in 5 minutes (You could never!), or Lightning McQueen going for the Piston Cup, speed has always dazzled onlookers and made for ...

After Urban Meyer debacle, things can only get better for Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars
Even a veteran Hollywood screenwriter couldn’t have scripted the Jacksonville Jaguars’ 2021 campaign to be more tumultuous....

'Fair' has got nothing to do with it
An organization can do everything right during a rebuild: Hire a good, young coach, make shrewd, smart personnel decisions, lead the NFL in rushing, make the playoffs. Those are all signs of a team trending upward....

We have some issues with ESPN’s Top 10 QB list for 2022
It’s mid-July, and we’re getting ever so close to NFL training camps opening, and you can feel the anticipation. Along with that comes a whole host of pundits writing lists ranking players at various positions — most notably, quarterback. ESPN caused an uproar over the weekend when it released its T...
