Category: Sport

  • Tony Clark’s surprise resignation leaves MLBPA without a leader as CBA negotiations loom

    In a stunning move Tuesday morning, Major League Baseball Players Association executive director Tony Clark resigned from his position after 12 years atop the union. The unexpected news, first reported by The Athletic, sent shockwaves across the baseball world and places the union on unsteady footing ahead of collective bargaining negotiations this upcoming winter. The current CBA expires Dec. 1, and negotiations are expected to be particularly contentious.

    The shocking reason behind Clark’s resignation came later Tuesday, with ESPN’s Jeff Passan reporting that Clark, according to an internal union investigation, had an inappropriate relationship with his sister-in-law, who was also employed by the union. Additionally, Clark was involved in a pair of ongoing investigations related to alleged financial improprieties at the MLBPA.

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    Clark, the first executive director to have played in Major League Baseball, is currently in Arizona and was slated to begin his annual tour of spring training complexes on Tuesday at the Cleveland Guardians’ facility in Goodyear. Media members were clued in on his appearance and were expected to interview Clark following his chat with the Guardians. But both meetings were abruptly canceled.

    A call among union officials, the eight-player executive subcommittee and all 30 team representatives was held Tuesday afternoon. According to Passan, the meeting ended without a vote on an interim executive director, but a vote could be held as soon as Wednesday. The MLBPA released a statement on Clark’s resignation later Tuesday.

    Mets second baseman Marcus Semien, a member of the executive subcommittee, admitted to reporters Tuesday morning that he’d yet to digest the news.

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    “It’s still something I’m processing,” he explained. “And I just want our player group to move forward this year and be able to have a good year of negotiating with leadership that cares about what players want.”

    Before the news broke about Clark’s sister-in-law, Semien expressed that he wasn’t surprised Clark’s resignation came amid multiple investigations into MLBPA’s finances. There are two separate allegations linked to Clark, one related to a youth-baseball organization called Players Way and the other revolving around OneTeam Partners, a sports-licensing company partly owned by the union.

    According to ESPN’s reporting from 2025, Players Way received more than $3 million in funding from the MLBPA over a five-year span but failed to organize a commensurate number of events. Much of that money is alleged to have been misappropriated, used to either enrich Clark directly or to reward members of his inner circle as “consultants.” As of Tuesday morning, Players Way’s website was not functioning, its X account had not posted since November and its YouTube page had not been updated in nearly two years. The investigations into Clark’s relationship with OneTeam Partners involve claims of improper self-enrichment via equity.

    Among MLB players, Clark had become a polarizing figure, criticized by some for conceding too much ground during his handling of the 2022 CBA negotiations. In 2024, a contingent of players attempted to remove Clark’s No. 2, deputy director and chief negotiator Bruce Meyer. Harry Marino, a former minor leaguer who spearheaded the successful unionization of minor leaguers, was rejected by the executive subcommittee as a potential replacement. That saga appeared to solidify Clark’s and Meyer’s standing atop the union, though frustration has continued to foment in certain corners of the rank and file.

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    Clark’s resignation further complicates what was already shaping up to be one of the most contentious CBA negotiations in recent memory. MLB’s growing payroll disparity — the Dodgers’ 2026 luxury tax payroll will eclipse $500 million, while the Marlins remain under $80 million in total — have precipitated calls for a salary cap. Although they haven’t outright admitted as much, team owners and the league are widely expected to push for a cap this winter. But a salary cap has long been a line in the sand for the union, a line on which Clark was expected to stand strong.

    That will now be somebody else’s job.

    Brent Suter, an Angels reliever and member of the executive subcommittee, told The Athletic on Tuesday that he didn’t anticipate a full job search to transpire with negotiations approaching so rapidly. Suter claimed he had an inkling of who might take the reins in an interim role, but he declined to share specifics. Meyer or Kevin Slowey, the union’s managing director of player services, were both mentioned by Yahoo Sports sources as interim options. Slowey, who pitched for Minnesota and Miami across a seven-year career, has taken an increasingly front-facing role within the MLBPA over the past few seasons. His reputation in clubhouses, as a former player, is generally better than that of Meyer, who comes from a litigation background.

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    Whichever brave soul takes on the job will need to clean the union’s dirty laundry and get the players all pulling in the same direction before bargaining commences this winter. A lockout is widely expected, with CBA negotiations likely to last well into 2027. Missed games are a real possibility. And while the MLBPA remains ideologically unified, losing the executive director months before bargaining certainly doesn’t make the union’s prospects any better.

    And so, Clark’s tenure, which featured many ups and many downs, ends on a shockingly sour note. On Tuesday, various players expressed to Yahoo Sports their frustration about the manner and timing of Clark’s exit. After more than a decade in the proverbial trenches, Clark up and left without warning, leaving his former comrades in the lurch.

  • Tiger Woods still working on recovery after latest injuries, doesn’t rule out Masters return in April

    LOS ANGELES — Tiger Woods isn’t ready to start playing competitive golf again just yet after the latest injury setbacks of his career.

    But a return to the PGA Tour may actually be only a few months away.

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    Woods, who is recovering from both a new back injury and an Achilles injury he suffered while training at home, was asked directly on Tuesday ahead of the Genesis Invitational if he was ruling out a return at the Masters in April.

    “No,” he replied plainly.

    Woods announced last March that he had ruptured his left Achilles tendon while training at home, which knocked him out for the majority of the PGA Tour season. Then in October, Woods announced he had undergone a lumbar disc replacement surgery in his lower back, which marked at least the seventh back procedure of his career.

    Woods had already started cutting his playing schedule significantly in recent years, especially after the car crash that nearly resulted in him losing his right leg in 2021. He has said repeatedly that his goal is to play in the four major championships and a select few other events each season.

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    Woods, though, missed the cut in three of the four majors in 2024. He made the cut at the Masters that season before finishing 60th. Woods has finished only three of his last 13 Tour events dating back to 2020.

    The Achilles injury is no longer an issue for him, Woods said Tuesday from Riviera Country Club. He’s able to hit full shots again. The issue, he said, is his back.

    “I can’t dunk a basketball anymore, so don’t have to worry about that,” Woods said with a laugh. “As far as the disc replacement, it’s just sore. It takes time … My body has been through a lot. It’s just one of those things where it’s each and every day, I keep trying, I keep progressing, I keep working on it, trying to get stronger, trying to get more endurance in this body and trying to get it at a level at which I can play at the highest level again.”

    [Check out all of Yahoo Sports’ golf content here in our golf hub]

    Woods is not in the field this week for the signature event on Tour, the final one on the West Coast swing, though he is the event’s host. He also said he didn’t have a direct target to start playing again.

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    “I’m trying, put it that way,” Woods said about how close he is to a return.

    Woods has won 82 times on Tour in his career, which has him tied with Sam Snead’s all-time record. He’s won 15 major championships, which trails only Jack Nicklaus’ record of 18. His last major win was at Augusta National in 2019.

    Despite his one-word comment Tuesday, Woods playing at Augusta National in a few months is still very much up in the air. He hasn’t played on Tour since the British Open in July 2024. And simply saying it’s not off the table is far from a commitment to being in the field at the premier golf event on the calendar each year.

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    Also, based on his recent playing history, no one knows how well he’d actually do at Augusta.

    But as a five-time winner, Woods has an invitation to play in the Masters whenever he wants it. If he’s physically able, knowing Woods, he’s going to make the trip.

    Now, the golf world waits.

  • Recapping All-Star Weekend, Second Half Storylines + Unrivaled 1-on-1 Recap

    We have a fun episode of The Dunker Spot coming your way!

    Nekias Duncan and Steve Jones give their broad thoughts on this year’s All-Star Weekend, before breaking down their favorite (and funniest) moments from each event.

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    From there, the guys discuss a few storylines they’ll be following closely as we begin the post-All-Star push towards the postseason. They talk about the Rockets and Timberwolves needing to find consistency, the importance of Jalen Williams, Jayson Tatum’s potential return to the Celtics and more.

    Finally, the guys recap the 1-on-1 tournament — congrats to Chelsea Gray! — before previewing the upcoming double-header as we get closer to the playoffs.

    If you ever have NBA or WNBA questions, email us at dunkerspot@yahoo.com.

    0:00 General All-Star Weekend thoughts
    12:45 Rising Stars recap
    19:51 Shooting Stars recap
    23:50 Three-Point Shootout recap
    29:50 Dunk Contest recap
    38:17 All-Star Game recap
    59:47 Can the Rockets and Wolves find consistency?
    01:08:00 Jalen Williams rounding into form
    01:10:43 Who’s the second-best team in the East?
    01:12:25 How much will Jayson Tatum factor into the second half of the season?
    01:14:30 Unrivaled 1v1 recap + double-header preview

    Inglewood, CA - February 15: Anthony Edwards was named the MVP after scoring 32 points across three games during the 75th NBA All-Star Game as part of the 2026 NBA All-Star Weekend on Sunday, February 15, 2026 at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood Sunday, Feb. 15, 2026. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

    Inglewood, CA – February 15: Anthony Edwards was named the MVP after scoring 32 points across three games during the 75th NBA All-Star Game as part of the 2026 NBA All-Star Weekend on Sunday, February 15, 2026 at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood Sunday, Feb. 15, 2026. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

    (Allen J. Schaben)

    🖥️ Watch this full episode on the Yahoo Sports NBA YouTube channel

    Check out all episodes of The Dunker Spot and the rest of the Yahoo Sports podcast family at https://apple.co/3zEuTQj or at yahoosports.tv

  • Winter Olympics 2026: Mac Forehand explains why he wasn’t robbed of gold after landing the jump of his life — ‘I wish I could do tricks like that’

    LIVIGNO, Italy – It was the biggest of big airs. And with the way multiple competitors were landing some of the biggest tricks ever attempted in the history of freestyle skiing, it felt like it could have been anybody’s gold medal.

    That’s how close the competition was Tuesday night at Livigno Snow Park for the men’s freeski big air.

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    Stomped runs. Massive spins. One haymaker after another. A trick that has literally never been done by anyone in the world on the third and final attempt.

    And it didn’t even win.

    Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics - Freestyle Skiing - Men's Freeski Big Air Final - Livigno Snow Park, Livigno, Italy - February 17, 2026. Mac Forehand of United States reacts after his third run of the Men's Freeski Big Air Final REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes

    Mac Forehand reacts after his third run of the men’s freeski big air final. (REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes)

    (REUTERS / REUTERS)

    Mac Forehand, the 24-year old from Vermont, was the one who landed it — and had to settle for the silver medal by the slimmest of margins as Norway’s Tormod Frostad came in right behind him with a trick that scored just a tick higher to give him the gold medal.

    On social media, the result was controversial because Forehand’s final trick — a nose butter takeoff into three flips and six full rotations — was so outrageous that it would have demolished the field on any other night.

    But the same could be said for Frostad’s tricks.

    And when it was over, Forehand immediately shut down any notion of complaining or second-guessing of how the final run was judged.

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    “I’ve seen it so many times before: I got robbed, someone I beat got robbed — rob this, rob that,” he said. “But we know so much about our sport. We know what scores well, what should do well. The guys that are out here tonight know what the podium is going to be at all times. People on the outside perspective might not really understand that, but that’s just how it’s going to be. And, you know, judged sports — like I’m sure in figure skating — it’s the same way. But what do they really know about our sport?”

    Here’s one thing everyone should be able to agree on: The level of skiing Tuesday was so high, particularly among the top six of the 12-person final, that there was practically no separation between the top two, bronze medalist Matej Svancer and the next two Americans, Troy Podmilsak and Konnor Ralph, who finished fourth and fifth.

    In big air, scores of the best two tricks out of three attempts are added together. Among those five, the differences were miniscule — and it seemed like they all fed off each other as the competition went on.

    “If one guys lands, I feel like everyone else is gonna land for whatever reason,” Podmilsak said. “That just happens. And people just get into these emotional things and it’s just ‘Bam, bam, bam’ — one after another and people can’t stop.”

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    It was breathtaking to watch. It was probably almost impossible to judge.

    “It’s like, how do you decide what’s harder when you’ve never done anything like that?” Ralph said. “It’s the worst job to be a judge. So I’m not mad at them. No one’s mad at them. But it could have been flip-flopped either way.”

    In the end, though, it was going to come down to the top two. Forehand landed an impossible trick — one he hadn’t even practiced before. When he vaulted to first place — and deservedly so — it seemed like he might have the gold medal in the bag.

    He wasn’t so sure.

    “I knew I’d go into first,” he said. “But I knew Tormod had another trick in his bag that could score really high.”

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    The outrage from Team USA partisans, such as it was, is easy to understand. In many big air events, it comes down to what the skiers call “spin to win.” The skier with the most rotations on a very hard trick usually gets the job done.

    Frostad doesn’t rely on spins. Both of his tricks were just 4½ rotations, but his genius is in the difficulty and style of the takeoff.

    Asked what makes Frostad’s tricks so good, Forehand broke it down this way:

    “I do a nose butter. A nose butter is a 180 before you get off the jump. I do that and continue my momentum to cork [which is an off-axis flip]. He does the butter and then instead of continuing momentum, he goes against what his skis and what his body is doing and pushes against that. That’s why it’s so much harder to rotate off of that.”

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    To put it in Italian terms, it’s like picking between Michelangelo and Da Vinci.

    Maybe a different set of judges would have seen it differently. But two different kinds of tricks that were both brilliant and well-executed? It wasn’t nearly as controversial on the podium as it was on social media.

    “Style is everything, in my opinion,” Frostad said. “Because that’s our only way to differentiate each other and to see style. It’s a trick you can learn, but you can’t really teach someone about style. That’s a whole process of finding yourself and going into different realms of using your inspiration to craft your style. And that’s why someone who spent a lot of time on their style, to me, is really impressive.  My take-offs are quite unique. The reason I came out on top is because I was doing stuff people didn’t think was possible. The judges seemed to really like it and I ended up on top.”

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    The one thing nobody argued with? This was as good as big air has ever been. With that in mind, Forehand didn’t really care about the medal color he took home — he just wanted to win one.

    “The level of skiing was off the charts today,” he said. “The way [Frostad] does it, the approach on takeoff is so unique and so different. I don’t think anyone’s ever done those two tricks before so it’s cool to see that and it’s good for our sport. We can only spin so much and it’s pushing the boundaries in a different way. I wish I could do tricks like that.”

  • Doug Moe, former NBA player and Coach of the Year, dies at age 87

    Former NBA player and coach Doug Moe has died at the age of 87, former NBA player Bill Hanzlik shared via X on Tuesday. Hanzlik played under Moe for eight seasons with the Denver Nuggets.

    The Nuggets later confirmed the news with a post in memoriam:

    Moe is credited with revolutionizing the “passing game offense” in the NBA, emphasizing constant movement and a notorious “two-second rule” — pushing players to either pass the ball or shoot as quickly as the rule’s name would imply.

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    Moe spent four years as an assistant coach before earning his first job as a head coach with the San Antonio Spurs, leading the team to a 117-135 record over four seasons before heading to Denver as an assistant coach. He was then promoted to interim head coach and spent 10 seasons with the team.

    Moe led the Nuggets to a 432-357 record over 10 seasons; those 432 wins made him the winningest coach in franchise history, prior to Michael Malone earning his 433rd win with the team in 2024. The Nuggets made the playoffs in each of Moe’s nine seasons as a full-time head coach, though the Nuggets failed to ever make it past the conference finals.

    Moe earned NBA Coach of the Year honors in the 1987-88 season. That year, the Nuggets finished first in the NBA Midwest with a 54-28 record, leading the league with 116.7 points per game. After defeating the Seattle SuperSonics in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs, they fell in the semifinals to the Dallas Mavericks.

    Despite leading the team to two Midwest Division titles in his tenure, Moe was fired by the Nuggets after the 1989-1990 season as the team looked toward its future under new leadership. Bernie Bickerstaff — the first African American president and GM in franchise history — was hired in the summer of 1990 and fired Moe not long after.

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    Moe was a two-time All-American out of UNC, selected first by the Detroit Pistons in the 1960 draft, followed by the former Chicago Packers (now Washington Wizards) in the second round of the 1961 draft. Despite having been drafted, his connection to a point-shaving scandal in college followed him, and he was eventually blackballed by the league for his connection to the alleged scheme, despite later being cleared of any wrongdoing.

    Moe went on to earn the Chuck Daly Lifetime Achievement Award from the league in 2018.

  • Winter Olympics 2026: Italy pulls Steph Curry ‘night, night’ celebration after beating U.S. for gold in team pursuit

    MILAN — They’ve trained together almost every day for years, sometimes sacrificing their own individual ambitions in speed skating for the good of the team. They’ve learned to glide around the ice almost perfectly in sync, skates lifting off the ground at the same time on every stride, bodies tilted at the same angle as they scream into the curves.

    It was worth the grind for Casey Dawson, Emery Lehman and Ethan Cepuran — even if the Olympic medal earned by the American trio isn’t the one they coveted most.

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    Dawson, Lehman and Cepuran settled for silver medals on Tuesday afternoon after advancing to the final of the men’s team pursuit competition but fading in the second half of the race against host Italy. The Italians clocked a winning time of 3:39.20, coming from behind to win the eight-lap final by more than four seconds.

    “We came out here to win,” Dawson said. “The last four years, the dream was to get gold at these Games. But today we tried our best. We put it all out there on the ice. I’m just proud of these boys.”

    The margin was wide enough that Italy’s Andrea Giovannini had time to hit Steph Curry’s signature “night, night” celebration as he crossed the finish line. That didn’t faze the Americans, who experienced a Russian speedskater giving the double bird to the pro-American crowd after beating the U.S. in the semifinals at the 2022 Beijing Games.

    Italy's Michele Malfatti (L) and Italy's Andrea Giovannini celebrate after crossing the finish line to win gold in the speed skating men's team pursuit final during the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympic Games at Milano Speed Skating Stadium in Milan on February 17, 2026. (Photo by Daniel MUNOZ / AFP via Getty Images)

    Italy’s Michele Malfatti (L) and Italy’s Andrea Giovannini celebrate after crossing the finish line to win gold in the speed skating men’s team pursuit final. (Photo by Daniel MUNOZ / AFP via Getty Images)

    (DANIEL MUNOZ via Getty Images)

    “It’s better than getting two middle fingers from the Russians four years ago,” Lehman said.

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    “They’re celebrating, they put in the work, good for them,” Dawson added.

    The outcome was bittersweet for a U.S. team that entered the Olympics ranked No. 1 in the world and that had recently dominated the team pursuit discipline. The Americans had skated to three world records, five straight World Cup season-long titles, world championship gold and Olympic bronze over the past five seasons.

    “You can’t just be the best going in,” Lehman said. “You have to be the best on the day you compete and Italy was the best today. In every round they had the fastest time. So you could say we lost gold, but I just think they were more prepared at the Olympics.”

    The U.S. also advanced to the medal round in women’s team pursuit but came away empty-handed Tuesday evening. Giorgia Birkeland, Brittany Bowe and Mia Manganello fell more than four seconds short against Canada in the semifinals and lost by more than three seconds to Japan in the bronze-medal round.

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    For the U.S. men, the path to Olympic silver began in an aerodynamics science lab nearly eight years ago. Ingmar Jungnickel, the chair of U.S. Speedskating’s sports science commission, developed a revolutionary new approach to team pursuit that allowed the Americans to shave precious seconds off their fastest times.

    Traditionally in team pursuit, the lead skater would peel off the front of the train every lap or two and reattach at the back, eager to have a teammate share the burden of fighting through wind resistance. Through aerodynamic modeling, Jungnickel showed that teams could go faster by leaving one skater at the front for the entire eight-lap race with his two teammates pushing him from behind with their outstretched hands to maintain his momentum.

    The U.S. men debuted this new technique at the 2020 World Championships and finished an encouraging fifth, less than four seconds behind the first-place Dutch. The Americans’ time was 12 seconds faster than two years earlier at the Pyeongchang Winter Games when they posted the slowest quarterfinal time and did not reach the medal round.

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    By the 2022 Olympics, the rest of the world had caught on. All three medaling teams used the technique pioneered by the Americans. Dawson, Lehman, Cepura and Joey Mantia took bronze, the second Olympic medal that the U.S. men have ever won in the event.

    “It was a crazy idea that was brought to us,” Lehman said. “We were the guinea pigs. It will be cool in 50 years when they’re breaking 3:30 or maybe 3:20 in the team pursuit and they’re still doing that same technique.”

    Over the next four years, the U.S. men blossomed into the top team in the world by prioritizing team chemistry on and off the ice. Dawson, Lehman and Cepuran see each other as much as they see their families. They even compete in the same fantasy football league, as evidenced by the unusual items that Dawson has been hauling around this World Cup season.

    Dawson is easy to spot in a crowd because of his pink, heart-festooned schoolchild’s backpack and a plastic foot attached to his phone.

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    “I lost fantasy football back in the States,” he explained sheepishly soon after he arrived in Milan. “We have a league with all our skaters, and I got last place.”

    Thankfully for Dawson, he’s a little better at skating than he is at fantasy drafts and waiver-wire pickups, so much so that he now has another attention-grabbing accessory to show off.

    He’ll return home with an Olympic silver medal around his neck.

  • Sac State goes to the MAC as conference realignment rages on

    The college football landscape never stops moving, shifting and changing. The latest change is yet another drastic move of conference realignment. Sacramento State is leaving the FCS to join the FBS as they will now become a part of the MAC. Yes, the team in California is joining the Mid-American Conference. Ross Dellenger explains why Sac State is making this move and what other avenues they pursued. Andy Staples and Steven Godfrey join the conversation and react to this decision. The conversation evolves to the broader landscape of conference realignment. The guys discuss why so many of these drastic shifts are being made and what type of changes to the college football landscape they see coming in the future.

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    Then, the guys dive into a couple of notable eligibility court cases. Trinidad Chambliss will be a Rebel for one more season after a judge in the Mississippi state court granted an injunction to give Chambliss one more season of eligibility. The guys compare s the Chambliss situation to other court cases of the past and they contrast it with the Joey Aguilar case in Tennessee. At the time of this recording, we have yet to get a ruling on Aguilar. Plus, the crew shares some of the very unique events that happened at the courthouse during the Chambliss ruling.

    Later, Andy, Ross and Godfrey revisit a topic from the previous episode. Recently, a fan of Mr. Beast proposed the idea of Mr. Beast donating $100 million to East Carolina University to try to win them a National Championship. Andy was convinced that wouldn’t do much, but Godfrey said he does not feel the same way. The crew discusses the feasibility of this, how small schools could make a big jump with a large cash infusion and what additional power ECU would have by having Mr. Beast behind them.

    All of this and more on today’s College Football Enquirer.

    Sac State goes to the MAC in the latest conference realignment move. Photo by Joseph Weiser/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

    Sac State goes to the MAC in the latest conference realignment move. Photo by Joseph Weiser/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

    (Photo by Joseph Weiser/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

    0:00:00 – Sac State to the MAC

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    14:31 – Where does conference realignment go from here?

    24:44 – Trinidad Chambliss & Joey Aguilar eligibility cases

    42:32 – Would a $100 million from Mr. Beast get ECU to the CFP?

    🖥️ Watch this full episode on YouTube

    Check out all episodes of the College Football Enquirer and the rest of the Yahoo Sports podcast family at https://apple.co/3zEuTQj or at yahoosports.tv

  • Winter Olympics 2026: Ukraine’s Vladyslav Heraskevych reportedly given $200,000 gift after IOC DQ’d skeleton racer

    Ukrainian skeleton racer Vladyslav Heraskevych was disqualified from competition last week because he insisted upon wearing a commemorative helmet, which honors more than 20 athletes and coaches from Ukraine who died during Russia’s invasion, and then saw his appeal to gain reinstatement denied.

    Despite the International Olympic Committee’s controversial decision, he’s been revered by his nation.

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    And on Tuesday, according to The Associated Press, Heraskevych, 27, received a gift of at least $200,000 to help him continue his skeleton career and keep advocating for his home country.

    That generous lump sum reportedly came from Ukrainian businessman Rinat Akhmetov, who pulled from his charity foundation to make a contribution that is equal to what Ukraine’s gold medalists earn.

    “Vlad Heraskevych was denied the opportunity to compete for victory at the Olympic Games, yet he returns to Ukraine a true winner,” said Akhmetov in a statement, per the AP. “The respect and pride he has earned among Ukrainians through his actions are the highest reward.”

    El ucraniano Vladyslav Heraskevych en la zona de mete durante un entrenamiento del skeleton masculino de los Juegos Olímpicos de Invierno, el martes 10 de febrero de 2026, en Cortina d'Ampezzo, Italia. (AP Foto/Alessandra Tarantino)

    Vladyslav Heraskevych refused to wear another helmet during this year’s Games. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)

    (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

    Akhmetov, the owner of the Shakhtar Donetsk soccer club — which consistently plays in the Champions League — and the Azovstal steel works in Mariupol, added: “At the same time, I want him to have enough energy and resources to continue his sporting career, as well as to fight for truth, freedom and the remembrance of those who gave their lives for Ukraine.”

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    The money will be paid to Heraskevych’s charity foundation, according to the AP.

    While Heraskevych filed an appeal with the Court of Arbitration for Sport over his disqualification last week, arguing that his ban was “disproportionate” and not one driven by a technical or safety violation, his Olympics came to a premature end.

    “The Sole Arbitrator, whilst fully sympathetic to Mr. Heraskevych’s commemoration, is bound by rules in the IOC Athlete Expression Guidelines,” CAS wrote in a statement.

    “The Sole Arbitrator considers these Guidelines provide a reasonable balance between athletes’ interests to express their views, and athletes’ interests to receive undivided attention for their sporting performance on the field of play.”

    Heraskevych made headlines by wearing the helmet during a training run last Monday. The IOC informed his coach and Ukrainian officials that the helmet violates article 50.2 of the Olympic Charter, which states that “no kind of demonstration or political, religious or racial propaganda is permitted in any Olympic sites, venues or other areas.”

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    The IOC provided Heraskevych the option to wear a black armband or black ribbon instead, and IOC president Kirsty Coventry met with him in-person in attempt to find a solution. Coventry later emphasized to reporters that Heraskevych was disqualified for competing with the helmet, not for his message in general.

    “The IOC was very keen for Mr. Heraskevych to compete,” it said this past Thursday in a statement. “This is why the IOC sat down with him to look for the most respectful way to address his desire to remember his fellow athletes who have lost their lives following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.”

  • Jazz C Jaren Jackson Jr. to be evaluated in 4 weeks after knee surgery

    Utah Jazz center Jaren Jackson Jr. underwent successful left knee surgery, the team announced via social media Tuesday.

    Jackson’s surgery was done to remove a localized pigmented villonodular synovitis (PVNS) growth in his left knee. He’ll begin rehab and be evaluated after four weeks. The procedure was performed by Dr. Travis Maak on Tuesday morning in Salt Lake City.

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    Utah acquired Jackson at the trade deadline earlier this month in an eight-player multi-draft pick deal with the Memphis Grizzlies. But the team announced just three games into his tenure with him that he’d be out for the rest of the campaign with the injury. Jackson is in his eighth NBA season and making $35 million this season. That number jumps to $50 million next season and to over $52 million the following year.

    In 48 games this season, Jackson averaged 19.4 points, 5.7 rebounds, 2 assists and 1.4 blocks per game. The Grizzlies are in 11th place in the Western Conference at 20-33, while the Jazz are in 13th place at 18-38 as one of the worst teams in the NBA.

    Jackson was drafted No. 4 overall by Memphis in 2018. During his time with the Grizzlies, Jackson developed into one of the league’s best defenders and took home Defensive Player of the Year honors for the 2022-23 campaign.

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    With the Grizzlies, Jackson was a three-time All-Defensive selection, two-time All-Star, two-time league leader in blocks and finished fourth in Rookie of the Year voting in 2019. He also finished second in Defensive Player of the Year voting last season.

  • How to watch Team USA compete in the women’s figure skating short program at the 2026 Winter Olympics

    The short program and the slightly longer free skate are the two performances that determine which figure skaters will go home with gold, silver or bronze at the Olympics. This year, Amber Glenn, Alysa Liu and Isabeau Levito, known collectively as the “Blade Angels,” are representing Team USA in those events at the Milan Cortina Winter Olympics. Though they also performed at the team event earlier in the competition (earning the gold medal), they’re taking part in the women’s singles competition, which starts Tuesday, Feb. 17, with the short program. You can watch it on Peacock, USA and NBC starting at 12:30 p.m. ET. The free skate is scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 19, and will determine the medalists.

    For a complete schedule of every figure skating event at this year’s games, a rundown of who is on Team USA, and how to watch, keep scrolling. And if you want to learn even more about every event at this year’s Winter Games, here’s a guide to everything you need to know about the Milan Cortina Games.

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    How to watch the women’s figure skating short program at the 2026 Winter Olympics

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    Date: Feb. 17

    Time: 12:30 p.m. ET

    Location: Milano Ice Skating Arena

    TV channels: NBC, USA

    Streaming: Peacock, DirecTV and more

    Where to stream the women’s figure skating short program at the 2026 Winter Olympics

    The entire women’s short program will be available to stream on Peacock. You can also tune in at 10:20 a.m. to watch the women’s short program warm-ups.

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    Where to watch the women’s figure skating short program on TV

    The women’s short program figure skating competition will begin with a broadcast on USA at 12:30 p.m., then switch to NBC at 2:40 p.m. The short program will re-air on USA at 1:30 a.m. ET. You can stream both on DirecTV, Hulu + Live TV and more.

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    How to watch Olympic Figure Skating without cable:

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    Who is on the Team USA Figure Skating team?

    These are the sixteen skaters on Team USA’s figure skating team:

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    • Amber Glenn (Women’s Singles)

    • Isabeau Levito (Women’s Singles)

    • Alysa Liu (Women’s Singles)

    • Ilia Malinin (Men’s Singles)

    • Maxim Naumov (Men’s Singles)

    • Andrew Torgashev (Men’s Singles)

    • Madison Chock and Evan Bates (Ice Dance)

    • Christina Carreira and Anthony Ponomarenko (Ice Dance)

    • Emilea Zingas and Vadym Kolesnik (Ice Dance)

    • Ellie Kam and Danny O’Shea (Pairs)

    • Emily Chan and Spencer Akira Howe (Pairs)

    2026 Olympic Figure Skating Schedule:

    Monday, February 9

    • Ice Dance: Rhythm Dance Warmup: 11:20 a.m. (Peacock)

    • Ice Dance: Rhythm Dance: 1:20 p.m. (Peacock), re-air at 2:40 p.m. (NBC) and 2 a.m. (USA)

    Tuesday, February 10

    • Figure Skating Preview: 12:15 p.m. (USA, Peacock)

    • Men’s Short Part I: 12:15 p.m. (USA, Peacock) and 2 a.m. (USA)

    • Men’s Short Part II: 1:45 p.m. (NBC, Peacock)

    Wednesday, February 11

    • Figure Skating Preview: 1:15 p.m. (USA, Peacock)

    • Free Dance: 1:30 p.m., re-air at 1:30 a.m. (USA, Peacock)

    • Free Dance: 2:15 (NBC, Peacock)

    Friday, February 13

    • Figure Skating Preview: 12:45 p.m. (USA, Peacock)

    • Men’s Free Skate: 1 p.m., re-air at 2 a.m. (USA, Peacock)

    • Men’s Free Skate: 3 p.m. (NBC, Peacock)

    Sunday, February 15

    • Figure Skating Preview: 1:30 p.m. (USA, Peacock)

    • Pairs Short Program: 1:45 p.m., re-air at 2 a.m. (USA, Peacock)

    • Pairs Short Program: 3 p.m. (NBC, Peacock)

    • Primetime in Milan: 8 p.m. (NBC, Peacock)

    Monday, February 16

    • Figure Skating Preview: 1:45 p.m. (USA, Peacock)

    • Pairs Free Skate: 2 p.m., re-air at 2 a.m. (USA, Peacock)

    • Pairs Free Skate: 3:55 p.m. (NBC, Peacock)

    Tuesday, February 17

    • Women’s Short Program Warmup, 10:20 a.m. (Peacock)

    • Figure Skating Preview, 12:30 p.m. (USA, Peacock)

    • Women’s Short: 12:45 p.m., re-air at 1:30 a.m. (USA, Peacock)

    • Women’s Short: 2:40 p.m. (NBC, Peacock)

    Thursday, February 19

    • Women’s Free Skate: 1 p.m. (NBC, Peacock, re-air at 1:30 a.m. on USA)

    Saturday, February 21

    • Exhibition Gala: 2 p.m. (Peacock only)

    • Exhibition Gala: 2:55 p.m. (NBC, Peacock)

    • Exhibition Gala: 3:50 p.m. (NBC, Peacock)

    More ways to watch the 2026 Winter Olympics

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