Month: March 2022

EAGAN, Minn. (AP) — Former Green Bay Packers cornerback Chandon Sullivan will join the Minnesota Vikings. His agent announced the decision. The Vikings confirmed earlier on Friday that the 25-year-old Sullivan was in Minnesota on an official visit. Sullivan played more than 76% of the snaps last season for Green Bay. He didn’t miss a

By The Associated Press Carolina Panthers wide receiver Shi Smith was arrested Friday for unlawfully carrying a handgun, drug possession and speeding 16-24 mph over the limit in South Carolina, according to Union County Sheriff’s Office records. WYFF News 4 was the first to report the arrest. Smith, a sixth-round draft pick out of South

By PAUL NEWBERRY AP Sports Writer ATLANTA (AP) — Marcus Mariota has already addressed the most immediate issue with his new team. He’ll wear No. 1 for the Falcons, not his usual No. 8. Pro Bowl tight end Kyle Pitts already had Mariota’s preferred number. The quarterback wasn’t about to ask Pitts to give it

By The Associated Press Mike Krzyzewski would pass famed UCLA coach John Wooden for most Final Four appearances if No. 2 seed Duke can beat fourth-seeded Arkansas in the West Region final in San Francisco. The late Wooden and the retiring Coach K are tied with 12 trips each to the national semifinals. The game

By JIM VERTUNO AP Sports Writer SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Villanova began the season among the figurative favorites to reach the Final Four. The Wildcats were ranked No. 4 and boasted a veteran roster that reached all the way back to the 2018 national championship season. But by mid-December they had taken a beating from

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A jury has convicted a man of killing a college football player in Kansas and wounding another man who went on to play in the NFL. Twenty-one-year-old Francisco “Franky” Mendez was found guilty Friday of first-degree murder in the April 2019 shooting death of Dwane Simmons, a Washburn University football player.

STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) — Oklahoma State has boosted football coach Mike Gundy’s salary to $7.5 million for the 2022 calendar year. The school’s Board of Regents approved a $1 million increase in annual compensation and a $1 million annual retention bonus over each of the next five years. Other terms of his existing contract, including

PUNTA CANA, Dominican Republic (AP) — Ben Martin shot his second straight 6-under 66 on Friday to double his lead to two strokes in the PGA Tour’s Corales Puntacana Championship. Martin had four birdies in a late five-hole stretch, finishing the afternoon round on the front nine at breezy Corales Golf Course. The 34-year-old former

By DAVID BRANDT AP Sports Writer PHOENIX (AP) — The full Shohei Ohtani experience will be on display when the Los Angeles Angels take the field on opening day. The two-way star was picked to be the team’s starting pitcher for the April 7 opener at Angel Stadium against the Houston Astros. He’s also expected

By DAVE SKRETTA AP Basketball Writer WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — The women’s basketball program that Jeff Walz has built at Louisville over the past 15 years resembles in so many ways the juggernaut Pat Summitt built at Tennessee, with one important exception: winning a national championship. The Lady Vols piled up eight of them. The

By DOUG FERGUSON AP Golf Writer AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Richard Bland is having quite a ride at the Dell Technologies Match Play. He didn’t realize he would be in the 64-man field until a runner-up finish in Dubai two months ago. That meant having to cancel plans for the second time to take his

By STEVE REED AP Sports Writer CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) — The Carolina Panthers desperately wanted to land quarterback Deshaun Watson. But when the three-time Pro Bowler snubbed the Panthers’ overtures and refused to lift his no-trade clause for Carolina, it left the team back at square one searching for that elusive franchise quarterback. Panthers general

By CHUCK KING Associated Press JUPITER, Fla. (AP) — Yadier Molina quickly caught up for lost time. In his first game action this spring, the nine-time Gold Glove catcher threw out a would-be basestealer Friday as the St. Louis Cardinals played against their minor leaguers. The 39-year-old Molina missed the first week of what will

By JOHN PERROTTO Associated Press BRADENTON, Fla. (AP) — Pirates reliever and Pittsburgh-area native David Bednar looks to build on a fine rookie season and will likely serve as the rebuilding team’s closer. Bednar had a 2.23 ERA in 61 games and 77 strikeouts in 60 2/3 innings last year after being acquired from the

By DOUG FEINBERG AP Basketball Writer BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (AP) — Wes Moore isn’t worried about having to potentially face UConn in the state of Connecticut yet. That game wouldn’t occur until Monday night and would require both teams to win their Sweet 16 games on Saturday. Top-seeded North Carolina State’s coach has his team’s attention

By JOHN WAWROW AP Sports Writer BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — A person with direct knowledge of the situation told The Associated Press the Buffalo Bills moved closer to landing $200 million in NFL funding to help finance their bid to build a new stadium. The NFL’s stadium and finance committee backed the Bills’ request for

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — The Tennessee Titans have hired Chase Blackburn as an assistant special teams coach after he spent the past six seasons with Carolina. The Titans announced the hiring Friday along with two other promotions. Clint McMillan and Kylan Butler worked on the coaching staff for the 2021 season and now are full

By BERNIE WILSON AP Sports Writer After a week of mayhem on lively San Francisco Bay, it’s not unrealistic to think that SailGP’s $1 million, winner-take-all Season 2 championship will go to the last F50 catamaran remaining in one piece. It’s been that kind of season for tech tycoon Larry Ellison’s globe-trotting league, which has

By GERALD IMRAY AP Sports Writer CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — Mohamed Salah had his say this time as Egypt beat Sadio Mané’s Senegal 1-0 in the first leg of their World Cup playoff in Cairo. A Salah shot came off the crossbar and forced an own goal to give Egypt a slender lead

By DAVE SKRETTA AP Basketball Writer There were 17.3 million brackets filled out in ESPN’s Tournament Challenge this year, and the quest for a perfect one was done before the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament. And the two favorites to win it all, Gonzaga and Arizona, were done before the second weekend. Another topsy-turvy

AMHERST, Mass. (AP) — UMass has found a leader for its basketball program, hiring Frank Martin as its new coach. The 56-year-old Martin takes over the Minutemen program from Matt McCall, who was fired this month after going 58-81 over five seasons in Amherst. Martin arrives following his own dismissal from South Carolina last week

By CHARLES ODUM AP Sports Writer VENICE, Fla. (AP) — Five months later, the Atlanta Braves’ decision to have Dylan Lee start last season’s World Series Game 4 against Houston is still shocking. Even on a depleted staff, Lee was the most unlikely choice to start. Lee made history as the first pitcher to make

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Kentucky’s second-leading scorer Dre’una Edwards and teammates Treasure Hunt and Jazmine Massengill will enter the NCAA transfer portal after helping the Wildcats complete an impressive turnaround with their first women’s Southeastern Conference Tournament basketball title in 40 years. Team spokesman Evan Crane told The Associated Press Frilday via text that the

By JOSEPH WILSON Associated Press BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Gareth Bale has spoken out against the psychological harm that professional athletes can receive from the media after a leading Spanish sports daily published a column on the Real Madrid player entitled “The Welsh Parasite.” Bale says “it’s clear as day how negative media attention could

By JACK MAGRUDER Associated Press SCOTTSDALE, Ariz (AP) — Right-hander Alex Colomé has a clear path to become the Colorado Rockies’ closer, although nothing has been made official. The Rockies signed the free-agent right-hander to a one-year, $4.15 million contract to add a proven performer to the back end of the bullpen, which has not

By JONATHAN J. COOPER Associated Press PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona has long been fertile ground for a social conservative agenda, with some of the nation’s toughest laws against abortion and a history of restricting LGBTQ rights. That hasn’t changed even as Republican dominance has waned over the past five years, a fact made plain this