Sports

Bruce Pearl, winningest men’s basketball coach in Auburn history, announces retirement

AUBURN, Ala. (AP) — Auburn basketball coach Bruce Pearl has announced his retirement months after taking the Tigers to another NCAA Final Four. Pearl’s 38-year-old son Steven Pearl is taking over as head coach of the Tigers. In a 14-minute video posted on social media Monday, the 65-year-old Pearl says he feels it’s time to pass the torch. Pearl is leaving Auburn as the school’s winningest men’s coach after taking the Tigers to their only two Final Fours. Pearl will move into an ambassador role as an assistant to Auburn’s athletic director and says he isn’t going into politics after rumors had circulated about a potential senate run.

Backup quarterbacks Carson Wentz, Marcus Mariota and Mac Jones had success in Week 3

Backup quarterbacks had a big day Sunday. Carson Wentz and Marcus Mariota were sharp in leading their teams to lopsided wins as fill-in starters. Mac Jones overcame a costly turnover and engineered a game-winning final drive. Wentz was 14 of 20 for 173 yards and two touchdowns in Minnesota’s 48-10 rout over Cincinnati. Mariota was 15 of 21 for 207 yards and one TD, and also ran for 40 yards and a score, in Washington’s 41-24 win against Las Vegas. Jones completed 27 of 41 passes for 284 yards with one TD and one interception in San Francisco’s 16-15 win.

AP Top 25: No. 12 Texas Tech’s Joey McGuire says his team’s ascent is fueled by love, not money

Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire says he and his players know they’ve been derided presumably for trying to buy a championship by lavishing NIL riches among one of the nation’s highest-rated transfer classes. On3 reported the sum to be $28 million. That’s second in spending only to Texas and doesn’t include revenue-sharing distributions. Maybe McGuire’s players aren’t mercenaries, but it doesn’t hurt to have what McGuire called the best boosters in the country footing the NIL bill. McGuire says team chemistry rather than money is the reason his 4-0 team is off to its best start since 2013.

Two blocked field goals returned for TDs contribute to a wild early slate of NFL games

NFL fans saw two game-changing blocked field goals that were returned for touchdowns minutes apart. First, Philadelphia’s Jordan Davis blocked a 44-yard attempt by the Rams’ Joshua Karty on the final play of the game that would have won it for Los Angeles. Davis scooped the ball and returned it 61 yards for a touchdown to give the Eagles a 33-26 victory. Jalen Carter blocked Karty’s 33-yard try earlier in the fourth quarter. Shortly after Davis’ heroics in Philadelphia, the Jets’ Will McDonald jumped over the Buccaneers’ snapper, blocked a 43-yard try by Chase McLaughlin and returned it 50 yards for a touchdown to give New York a 27-26 lead at Tampa Bay with 1:49 remaining. Baker Mayfield led the Bucs to McLaughlin’s winning field goal.

CeeDee Lamb has high ankle sprain that could sideline star Cowboys receiver multiple games

FRISCO, Texas (AP) — The Dallas Cowboys say CeeDee Lamb sustained a high ankle sprain in a 31-14 loss to Chicago. The injury figures to sideline the star receiver at least one game and possibly more. Club executive vice president of personnel Stephen Jones revealed the extent of the injury on his radio show. Jones indicated it would be difficult for Lamb to play Sunday when Micah Parsons and the Green Bay Packers visit. Lamb was injured on a running play the first time he touched the ball against the Bears. He lined up in the backfield and took a handoff.

Kara Lawson is named head coach of the US women’s basketball team for the 2028 LA Olympics

Kara Lawson helped the U.S. women’s basketball team win an Olympic gold medal as a player 17 years ago. Now she’ll have a chance to lead it to another as the coach in the 2028 Los Angeles Games. Lawson was announced as the head coach for the women’s team for the next four years by USA Basketball on Monday. Naming Lawson as the coach was the first official move made by Sue Bird, who started as the U.S. national team director earlier this year. In the past, a committee would decide on the coach and roster. Lawson also coaches Duke’s women’s basketball team.

Brian Daboll is noncommittal about who the Giants’ starting QB will be against the Chargers

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) — Coach Brian Daboll is not committing to who will start at quarterback for the New York Giants in their next game against the Los Angeles Chargers. Daboll was asked repeatedly Monday about starter Russell Wilson, rookie Jaxson Dart and journeyman backup Jameis Winston and said he and his staff were evaluating everything. The Giants are 0-3 with Wilson attempting every pass so far this season and Dart getting a handful of snaps as a change of pace.

Baseball’s final week should be even wilder than expected. You can thank the state of Ohio for that

Baseball’s regular season is set for a dramatic final week in the state of Ohio. The Cleveland Guardians have a chance to complete the biggest comeback in the history of divisional play. They now trail Detroit by one game in the AL Central after once being 15 1/2 back. At the southern end of the state, Cincinnati pulled into a tie Sunday for the final wild card in the National League with the New York Mets — and the Reds have the head-to-head tiebreaker between the two.

Shawn Clark, UCF offensive line coach and former Appalachian State coach, dies at 50

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — UCF offensive line coach Shawn Clark has died nearly two weeks after being hospitalized with a medical emergency. The school announced that Clark died Sunday at 50 years old. Clark suffered the medical emergency on Sept. 9 and had been away from the team. Clark joined UCF’s staff this season after five seasons as head coach at Appalachian State. He went 40-24 in five seasons there and was 3-1 in bowl games. UCF coach Scott Frost said Clark was “so much more than a coach.” He called Clark a “remarkable man, husband, and father.”

Dublin braces for influx of Americans as Steelers-Vikings play Ireland’s 1st regular-season NFL game

Ireland has sent quite a few of its people to America over the years. The United States will be returning the favor this week. The Steelers-Vikings matchup at Croke Park in Dublin is expected to draw a larger-than-usual chunk of U.S.-based fans compared to other international games. It will be the first NFL regular-season game in Ireland, and all sides are hopeful it could lead to more. That would be good news for fans in the states, who have shown massive interest in this one. The NFL says there’s been a higher proportion of U.S. interest in this one compared to games in other markets.