Four-star defensive end Cassell Cruickshank will visit Tennessee for the Vols' football game versus Auburn on Oct. 3, according to Tyler Harden of 247Sports.
He will also visit Florida State, South Carolina, Georgia, Oklahoma, Auburn, Alabama, Florida, Texas A&M, Texas and Notre Dame this season.
The 6-foot-6, 230-pound prospect is from E.E Smith High School in Fayetteville, North Carolina. 247Sports ranks him as the No. 5 defensive end in the class and No. 1 player in North Carolina.
Tennessee offered Cruickshank a scholarship on March 3. His visit on Oct. 3 will be his first to Tennessee.
North Carolina State was the first school to offer him a scholarship on Nov. 1, 2025. Other Power Four schools to offer Cruickshank scholarships include Wake Forest, Nebraska, Mississippi State, SMU, Miami, Virginia Tech, LSU, North Carolina, Kentucky, Duke, Missouri, Ohio State, Ole Miss, Oregon, Georgia Tech, Vanderbilt, Indiana, Virginia, California, USC, Texas Tech, Maryland and Michigan.

#visit #four #auburn

Bill Simmons has doubled down on his praise for Drake Maye, ranking him ahead of Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow.
After a decent rookie year, Maye exploded in his second season, leading the New England Patriots to the Super Bowl.
He had 31 touchdowns, eight interceptions, 4,394 passing yards and a quarterback rating of 113.5 in the 2025 regular season.
Having won 23 first-place MVP votes and proven himself in the playoffs, Maye is now considered one of the NFL's best QBs.
Simmons had explained why the Patriots quarterback is better than Burrow and Jackson ahead of the 2026 campaign.

#jackson

As we gear up for the 2026 football season, Aggies Wire is breaking down nearly every player on the Texas A&M roster. Throughout the preseason, each profile will highlight a player's background, high school recruiting rankings, and projected role under head coach Mike Elko.
This is one of those seasons where we learn a great deal about the direction of the program. You can argue that, given the circumstances, the Aggies have overachieved, yet late‑season losses have kept them from fully capitalizing on their potential. You can also argue the opposite: that A&M could have finished with a less impressive record but played more consistent football overall. Both perspectives point to the same truth: this team will only go as far as Marcel Reed can take it.
Reed has improved every season, and in his first full year as the starter, he spent most of the fall firmly in the Heisman conversation. But when the lights were brightest, he didn't play his best football, struggling against Texas in back‑to‑back seasons and again versus Miami in A&M's first-ever College Football Playoff appearance. At the same time, he delivered one of the greatest performances in program history, engineering a historic second‑half comeback against South Carolina.
Both Elko and Reed understand what comes next. For Texas A&M to silence its critics and take the next step as a national contender, Reed must elevate his game, and the Aggies must finish stronger than they have in years past.
Hometown: Nashville, Tennessee

#reed #season #argue

The Tennessee **** ans are one week into training camp, and the fingerprints of new head coach Robert Saleh can already be felt by all of the organization.
The **** ans do still have some questions that must be answered in camp, but one thing is starting to look more certain by the day: the **** ans' defense will be much improved in 2026. Not only have the **** ans improved the roster around Jeffery Simmons, they improved the braintrust with the additions of Saleh and defensive coordinator Gus Bradley.
How much of an improvement was it? Zachary Pereles and the staff at CBS Sports looked at the defensive playcallers across the league and have Saleh clearly inside the top 10.
No. 6: Robert Saleh, **** ans coach
Points: 49 | Highest rank: 2 | Lowest rank: 10

#robert #much #defensive #rank

NORMAN — Brent "Double Nickels" Venables is the oldest head coach in the SEC, but he was once a 28-year-old co-defensive coordinator on Bob Stoops' first OU staff.
Even younger than Ben Arbuckle, then 29, when Venables hired the former Washington State offensive coordinator to run OU's offense. Arbuckle, who's since turned 30 and is a month shy of 31, is set to enter his second season as the Sooners' OC.
Year 1 was as rocky as the mountains that bear his name. Oklahoma ranked ninth in passing, 13th in rushing and 14th in yards per play in the 16-team SEC. Quarterback John Mateer, who followed Arbuckle from Wazzu to OU, was ineffective after injuring his hand. OU's offensive line was green. The running game stagnated. The passing attack was void of big plays.
But now Mateer is healthy, and his supporting cast is more experienced.
Arbuckle included.

#mateer #coordinator #passing #norman

There is a difference between becoming a champion and learning how to carry yourself like one.
Notre Dame had already climbed the mountain in 1988, finishing a perfect season with a national championship and establishing itself once again among college football's elite. But championships do not buy much patience the following fall. If anything, they make the target bigger. Every opponent wants to be the one that knocks off the defending champion, every close call becomes evidence of vulnerability, and every week brings another test of whether the magic of the year before can somehow survive.
By November 18, 1989, Notre Dame had answered every one of those questions.
The Irish arrived at Penn State 10–0, ranked No. 1 in the country and riding a 22-game winning streak that stretched all the way back to the beginning of their championship season. Yet Beaver Stadium represented something Notre Dame still had not conquered. The Irish had played there four times and lost all four, including a painful 21–20 defeat in 1987 that helped extinguish their national championship hopes.
This time, Notre Dame arrived as the team everyone else was trying to derail.

#notre

In theory, a starting spot in the top 10 of the preseason US LBM Coaches Poll should bode well for a team's chances of concluding the season in the 12-team College Football Playoff. In practice, however, that's anything but a guarantee.
Though the expansion to 12 is still fairly recent, we need look no further than last year to see just how speculative preseason rankings can be. Of the preseason top 10 in 2025, fully half did not wind up making the playoff. That list includes preseason No. 1 Texas, as well as notable name-brand programs like Penn State, Notre Dame, Clemson and LSU.
So what could trip up this year's top 10? To be sure, they all benefit from a lofty starting point, but all will face plenty of challenges over the long fall where things could go very right or terribly wrong. Here's a look at the keys for each of the top 10 teams hoping to carve a path to the playoff.
HAYES: New generation of disdain: Gen Z discovering joy of hating Notre Dame | Opinion
TOPPMEYER: Alabama's season hangs on one decision Kalen DeBoer can't afford to get wrong

#well

Ohio State topped the 2026 preseason US LBM Coaches Poll when it was released Aug. 4, marking the program's first preseason No. 1 ranking in the poll since 2015.
However, if history is any guide, that may not be the place the Buckeyes want to be.
USA TODAY Sports ******* yzed the history of Coaches Poll preseason rankings and compared the eventual champions to their initial rank, spanning the UPI and USA TODAY-administered versions of the poll since 1978.
Across the 48 years of the Coaches Poll since 1978, the No. 1 ranked team has won the championship just five times. Oklahoma did so in 1985, Florida State in 1993 and 1999, Southern California in 2004 and Alabama in 2017.
Coaches Poll: One lingering question for each Top 25 team in preseason rankings

#poll #coaches #state #rankings

Sophie Cunningham has become the face of the transgender athlete debate consuming women's sports, and the scrutiny hasn't stayed confined to the WNBA. Athletes across other sports are now being asked to weigh in, too.
This week, it was Coco Gauff's turn. Asked about the WTA's new genetic testing policy, the World No. 4 tennis superstar gave her answer, and the reaction split almost immediately into two camps that agreed on nothing except that she'd said something worth arguing about.
Gauff's comments came after the WTA introduced a mandatory genetic testing policy in July, requiring all players to submit to a one-time test screening for the SRY gene as a condition of eligibility.
World No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka backed the policy earlier in the week, stating it wouldn't be fair for women to compete against "biological men."
But Gauff gave a longer, more careful answer than her top-ranked peer.

#genetic

Former West Ham United attacker Pablo Fornals dedicated a goal to the Hammers yesterday after helping Real Betis beat **** nal in a pre-season friendly. The La Liga club ran out 3-1 winners over the Gunners, and Fornals was the star of the game, **** isting twice before scoring the last goal of the game. The former Hammers star put up the crossed irons with his arms as he celebrated the goal, and West Ham fans were delighted with his gesture. The 30-year-old spent four and a half seasons at the London Stadium club before returning to Spain in February 2024.
Fornals bagged 23 goals and 19 **** ists in 203 games for the Hammers, and things could have been different for manager Nuno Espirito Santo's side if they had such a player within their ranks last season.
West Ham will now look to start life in the Championship on an impressive note as they eye an immediate return to the Premier League.
They have yet to make any new signings this summer but are in negotiations with Tottenham Hotspur for the permanent transfer of Manor Solomon.

#fornals #hammers #club #last

ONE SAMURAI 4 arrives at the iconic Ariake Arena in Tokyo, ***** an, on Saturday, October 17, bringing a pair of World ***** le fights to what is already one of the most anticipated cards of the year.
Reigning ONE Flyweight Kickboxing World Champion "The Kicking Machine" Superlek will defend his 26 pounds of gold against reigning ONE Strawweight Kickboxing World Champion Jonathan Di Bella in a blockbuster cross-division showdown. Also on the card, reigning ONE Atomweight Muay Thai World Champion Nadaka puts his crown on the line against Malaysia's surging finishing specialist Rifdean "Magic Boy" Masdor.
Rooted in the honor and discipline of the Bushido spirit, these high-stakes World Championship showdowns join the previously announced ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World ***** le defense featuring reigning king Jonathan "The General" Haggerty against former ***** leholder Hiroki Akimoto.
The occasion is further elevated by the prestigious ONE Championship Hall of Fame induction of Interim ONE Flyweight Kickboxing World Champion Takeru "Natural Born Krusher" Segawa.
After spending the past two years competing in the bantamweight ranks, "The Kicking Machine" is finally coming home. Once he settles unfinished business against Abdulla "Smash Boy" Dayakaev at The Inner Circle 25 on Friday, August 7, Superlek will shift his full focus back to the division he has long ruled.

#kickboxing #champion #flyweight

The SEC is mired in a national championship drought, but the conference still claims to have unmatched depth. That argument might gain steam after the release of the preseason US LBM Coaches Poll. Nine SEC teams are ranked in the Top 25, more than any other conference. That includes six teams in the top 11.
So, were Big Ten coaches in the wrong last week when they took a victory lap at the SEC's expense during Big Ten Media Days? As one Big Ten coach put it, the SEC would like to pretend it's still 2005.
On this edition of "SEC Football Unfiltered," a podcast from the USA TODAY Network, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams discuss the Big Ten's chest-thumping and explain why they're OK with it.
Subscribe to SEC Football Unfiltered
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They also react to the coaches poll, where Ohio State ranks No. 1, and offer a few SEC teams that could be overrated and underrated.

#unfiltered

The Detroit Pistons' G League affiliate, the Motor City Cruise, will hold open tryouts with a $250 fee to find potentially hidden talents.
Anyone with the dream of making it to the NBA has some clear pathways to follow. Usually, it involves being a top-ranked high school player who plays in the NCAA or being a prodigious international prospect.
However, the G League is also a crucial tool. While it is mostly populated with young NBA players and some veterans hoping to get their shot, it might be the perfect way to find any hidden local talents.
The Pistons' Motor City Cruise will join the Nuggets' Grand Rapids Gold ($200), Chicago's Windy City Bulls ($250), Mavericks' Texas Legends ($300), and Toronto's Raptors 905 ($225).
The Motor City Cruise will hold its tryout on September 13 from 12 to 5 PM at the Henry Ford Detroit Pistons Performance Center.

#city #cruise

One of my pet projects during the spring was to put together a list of Livingston County track and field records.
It would've been easy to just list the top performance in each event by pooling information from school record boards, but what fun would that be? I tried to go at least five performances deep in each event.
Anything that happened in what we call the Athletic.net era is easy to find. The potential issues come if an older record from, say, the 1990s is no longer on a school record board and isn't listed on A.net. So, I put together this list realizing I could miss those types of performances. If you can provide proof of a performance I missed, send it to billkhan35gmail.com and I'll pass it on to my replacement.
It also gets really tricky with sprints because of hand-timed performances that were converted. For any event under 400 meters, I included only times that were captured electronically. As a result, my list of 100- and 200-meter times is pretty short. I extended the lists in the 800, 1,600 and 3,200 because distance running is so strong in this area and I'm confident in the accuracy of those performances.
The list also does not include performances from meets not run in a school uniform. That excludes Hartland senior Elliana Neuer's incredible triple at Nike Outdoor Nationals in June. She ran times that were faster than the county records in the 1,600 (4:48.80) and 800 (2:12.66) and a 3,200 time (10:38.03) that ranks her third.

#performances #times #county #easy

Liverpool have been at the centre of attention for some time now.
Before the 2026-27 summer transfer window even opened, the Anfield outfit were expected to undergo many changes throughout their ranks.
Several areas among their first-team squad needed upgrading which is what led many fans to believe that another rebuild was on its way.
However, thanks to many different things, that has been far from the case and now, it feels like the Reds are in limbo.
Many members of their first-team squad are being linked with moves away and, since there's only around a month left of the transfer window, decisions on the future of those players will need to be made as soon as possible.

#first #anfield #however

There are a lot of areas among their ranks that still need an upgrade or two.
In fact, some people are even suggesting that Andoni Iraola left a better team in Bournemouth than the one he has moved to.
Of course, if everyone was fit, that wouldn't be the case but, with how many players the Spaniard has out injured at the moment, the Reds' team need some serious surgery.
Fans have already demanded that changes are made with most people knowing that at least another four or five players are needed at Liverpool to get them to be competitive again.
However, after their huge amount of spending last summer, resources are limited and it's unclear whether the Reds will get all the deals that they need to over the line.

#need #fans

Cameron Norrie progressed to the Canadian Open last 32 with a straight-set win over Ignacio Buse.
Ranked four places below the Peruvian number 33, Norrie beat Buse 6-3 6-3 in a match which lasted one hour and 29 minutes.
The British number two ended a six-match losing streak with a run to the Los Cabos Open semi-finals last week and beat Camilo Ugo Carabelli in his opening match in Montreal.
In the last 32 he will face Australian world number seven Alex de Minaur, who married British number two Katie Boulter in July and is preparing to play doubles with her at the US Open.
At the first opportunity, Norrie broke Buse and served out to claim the first set.

#norrie #last #british #beat

Greenskeeper **** et Management, an independent firm that specializes in disciplined value investing, recently released its Q2 2026 scorecard. A copy is available to download here. After a slow start to the year, the Fund gained 10.9% in the quarter, lifting its year-to-date return to 1.9%. The rebound came as markets showed signs of rotating away from momentum stocks and toward companies supported by reasonable valuations. Please review the Fund's top five holdings to gain insights into their key selections for 2026.
In its second-quarter 2026 investor letter, Greenskeeper **** et Management highlighted Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) as a leading performance contributor. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG), the parent company of Google, offers various platforms and services, including online search and advertising, cloud solutions, and artificial intelligence. On August 03, 2026, Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) closed at $372.47 per share, reflecting a market capitalization of $4.56 trillion. Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) posted a one-month return of 2.43%, while its shares gained 90.70% over the past 52 weeks.
Greenskeeper **** et Management stated the following regarding Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) in its Q2 2026 investor letter:
"Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG), +23.2%, was our third-best performer in the quarter. After more than two years of market concern that AI chatbots would cannibalize Google's core search business, recent results are proving those fears unfounded. Boosted by AI Overviews and AI mode, Search revenue grew nearly 20% in the most recent quarter. This performance was driven primarily by higher paid-click volume, alongside a modest rise in revenue per click— demonstrating that AI integration is enhancing, rather than displacing, the platform's core value proposition. Alphabet's Cloud division is showing even stronger momentum: its backlog has nearly doubled, while operating margins expanded to 33%, highlighting both robust demand and expanding operating leverage. Meanwhile, management continues to invest heavily in compute infrastructure. With market-leading positions across search, cloud, digital advertising, and AI, we believe Alphabet remains exceptionally well-positioned to earn strong returns on its capex and compound intrinsic value over time."
Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) ranks 7th on our list of 40 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. According to our database, 201 hedge fund portfolios held Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) at the end of the first quarter, compared to 203 in the previous quarter. In 2025, Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) achieved its first-ever $400 billion annual revenue and in Q1 2026 its consolidated revenue reached $109.9 billion, up 22% or 19% in constant currency. While we acknowledge the potential of Alphabet Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit s

Angel Genao delivered an MLB debut to remember for the Cleveland Guardians Wednesday night.
Cleveland's top-rated prospect, Genao was called up for his first MLB game at home against the New York Mets. He logged four straight hits to start his MLB career and knocked in a go-ahead RBI in the seventh inning. He also committed two errors on the same play.
Unfortunately for the Guardians, the lead from his go-ahead knock didn't stand, and the Mets went on to a 6-5 win in extra innings. Genao made a strong first impression regardless of the outcome of the game.
Genao, a shortstop, joined the Guardians as the 39th-ranked prospect in baseball, per MLB Pipeline. Cleveland called him up in the midst of a heated playoff race and entered Wednesday night in control of the final wild-card spot in the American League.
In his first big-league at-bat, Genao hit a single to right field in the bottom of the third inning. In his second, he hit a leadoff single in the fifth inning and eventually came around to score as the Guardians tied the game at 3-3.

#inning #wednesday

For weeks rumors have swirled that a rematch between former lightweight champion Charles Oliveira and No. 2 ranked contender Arman Tsarukyan was all but signed, sealed and delivered. The fight promotion had other plans.
Tsarukyan (23-3) will instead face No. 7 ranked Mauricio Ruffy (14-2) in the UFC 331 co-main event in a five-round fight. UFC 331 takes place on Sept. 19 at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles and is headlined by a flyweight championship rematch between ***** leholder Joshua Van and former champion Alexandre Pantoja.
Tsarukyan will enter the bout riding a five-fight winning streak. He last fought at UFC Fight Night 265 last November defeating Dan Hooker via submission. The finish earned him a 'Performance of the Night' bonus.
Ruffy has won back-to-back fights and is coming off a TKO win over Michael Chandler at the UFC Freedom 250 event at The White House in June.
The event will mark the promotion's sixth visit to Los Angeles but the first in eight years. The last time the octagon was in L.A. was for UFC 227 in August 2018.

#last #rematch #former

No (more) easy fights!
Red-hot Australian Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Lightweight prospect Quillan Salkilld competes in his first UFC main event this weekend against No. 8-ranked Mateusz Gamrot at UFC Vegas 120, which goes down Sat., Aug. 8, 2026, inside Meta Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada.
After knocking out perennial Lightweight contender Beneil Dariush in his last outing (watch highlights), the 26-year-old Aussie called out Gamrot for his next fight.
And UFC listened.
Now, with the fight just days away, Salkilld revealed that he wanted Gamrot specifically because he is done taking easy fights (like this). He wants the toughest road possible to the top of the Lightweight division.

#vegas

Runs have been hard to come by for the Angels since returning from the All-Star break.
The Angels are averaging a measly 2.5 runs per game post-All-Star break, and the struggles continued on Wednesday night, as they only mustered four hits in their 5-2 loss against the Orioles in Baltimore.
Jose Siri's solo home run in the sixth inning and Wade Meckler's RBI single in the seventh were the only runs that the Angels' bats could get across the plate.
The only other players to even reach base were Travis d'Arnaud and Nolan Schanuel. d'Arnaud weakly hit a ground ball up the middle that became a hit by bouncing off the second base bag and into center field out of the reach of Jackson Holiday and Schanuel hit a grounder in the three-four hole that Pete Alonso couldn't field cleanly. Schanuel eventually scored on Meckler's single.
Heading into play on Wednesday, the Angels were slashing .224/.303/.318 with a .620 OPS and a 26.8% strikeout rate. The slugging percentage, OPS and strikeout rate all rank as the worst in baseball in that stretch.

#only #wednesday #single

The Brooklyn Nets are pretty much done with their business for the 2026 NBA offseason as they sought to improve the roster following another disappointing season for the franchise. Brooklyn is still in the early stages of its rebuild as it still has many of first-round picks to use over the next few years and that is primarily the reason why they are highly-regarded in relation to trade ***** ets.
"Given where the Brooklyn Nets have been (and figure to be for the next few years), their first-round picks are valuable. Of course, Adam Silver's new rules aimed at reducing tanking could reduce that value a bit, but a lot of those years will be in the lottery," Andy Bailey wrote for Bleacher Report when discussing the Nets' trade ***** ets. Brooklyn is ranked as the third-best teams in the league when it comes to that precious trade chest.
"And that 2032 first from Denver, when Nikola Jokić is 37 and the aforementioned rules may be retired, could be one of the better individual ***** ets in the league," Bailey continued on the Nets. "On top of that, Brooklyn has a valuable expiring contract attached to one of the best shooters in the NBA in Michael Porter Jr."
As Bailey points out in his piece, the Nets have 12 first-round picks between now (2027) and 2033, not to mention potentially getting a 13th first-round pick from the Philadelphia 76ers. In addition to that, Brooklyn has 19 second-round picks in the same timespan and those picks are becoming more valuable as teams are looking to more cost-control to offset the current financial reality of the CBA.
The Nets have a couple of veteran players in forwards Michael Porter Jr. and Julius Randle that could be attractive to teams either next season or beyond that could potentially add even more ***** ets to Brooklyn's collection. Time will tell if Porter and/or Randle will be used for that purpose, but as of now, the Nets are regarded as one of the teams with a significant amount of ***** ets to use in future trades.

#first #assets

Bethenny Frankel says a new medical team has concluded that she was misdiagnosed with something "pretty major," but she is not revealing which condition is being questioned.
The former Real Housewives of New York City star said several doctors reviewed her bloodwork, supplements and other medical information together before challenging one of her previous diagnoses.
Frankel described the conclusion as confusing because she had been living under the belief that the unnamed diagnosis was correct. She did not identify the original doctor, the new medical group or any treatment that may have resulted from the diagnosis.
Her disclosure follows months of public updates about chronic kidney disease, but Frankel did not say that her kidney diagnosis was the one being reconsidered.
Frankel shared the update in an Instagram video posted August 3rd, telling followers that she had joined what she called a "very legitimate" medical community. She said multiple doctors were cross-referencing her bloodwork, supplement use and other health information instead of reviewing each issue separately.

#kidney

Intesa Sanpaolo, Italy's largest banking group, slashed its Bitcoin ETF holding, BlackRock's iShares Bitcoin Trust (IBIT), by 93.7% last quarter. The bank also tripled its stake in the iShares Staked Ethereum Trust ETF, its new Form 13F shows.
The quarterly disclosure adds to evidence that some institutions now favor yield-bearing Ethereum funds over Bitcoin products.
The bank reported 40,723 IBIT shares worth $1.36 million as of June 30, down from 646,809 three months earlier. Its reported call position shrank 99.3%, from an underlying 2.5 million shares to just 18,000.
A new put position covering 500,000 IBIT shares also appeared in the filing. Puts typically gain value when the underlying **** et falls, which suggests a defensive stance on Bitcoin (BTC).
Meanwhile, the bank's iShares Staked Ethereum Trust holding jumped from 116,200 shares to 349,600, worth $7.1 million. Its Bitwise Solana Staking ETF position collapsed from 2,817 shares to just seven.

#shares

April Chapple, a former Tennessee volleyball player and a member of the Tennessee Athletics Hall of Fame, has died. She was 62.
Chapple, an Inglewood, California, native, starred for Tennessee from 1981-84, helping the program win three SEC regular-season championships and three SEC Tournament ******* les.
The Lady Vols reached the NCAA Tournament in all four of Chapple's seasons, and in 1982, Tennessee earned its first NCAA Tournament win in program history, beating Northwestern in five sets.
In 1984, she was named SEC Player of the Year and SEC Tournament MVP, on her way to becoming UT's second All-American in volleyball.
Among the program's all-time leaders, she ranks second in career aces (244) and third in career kills (1,650). Her top season for aces came in 1983, when she tallied 95, ranking second in the non-rally scoring era. In 1984, she recorded her best season in kills with 483, a total that ranks ninth in program history during that same era.

#tournament #season #ncaa #three

MADISON – Jeff Grimes has a simple philosophy for how Wisconsin's offense can be better in 2026.
"Run the ball better, and throw it better," the Wisconsin offensive coordinator said with a laugh. "How about that? If we run and pass better, we'll be better."
In seriousness, though, the Badgers have room to grow in many specific areas after their four-win season in 2025. UW ranked 133rd nationally in both yards per game and points per game. The defensive numbers were better in many regards, but the unit still was far from perfect.
Here are the four areas that Grimes and defensive coordinator Mike Tressel identified as key areas for the Badgers in 2026:
One of Tressel's key goals for the 2025 defense was to force more turnovers, but the Badgers instead moved in the wrong direction.

#better #grimes #coordinator #defensive

A rematch is on tap for Cali.
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is headed back to Crypto.com Arena — a.k.a. Staples Center — in Los Angeles, California, for UFC 331 on Sat., Sept. 19, 2026, and the promotion is bringing a pretty loaded card with it.
In the main event, UFC Flyweight champion Joshua Van runs it back with longtime champion Alexandre Pantoja after their first encounter ended in an awful injury.
In the co-main event, No. 2-ranked Lightweight and almost-title challenger Arman Tsarukyan finally returns to action against Brazilian knockout artist Mauricio Ruffy in a five-round fight with major ***** le implications.
Pantoja and Van collided in the co-main event of UFC 323, but the fight lasted only 26 seconds after then-champion Pantoja dislocated his elbow and Van became champion in one of the most unfortunate ***** le changes in recent memory.

#main #fight #cali #fighting

Two Bulldogs are being recognized in the preseason after being named to watchlists for the nation's top players.
Senior defensive back Simeon Harris has been added to the watch list for the Bronko Nagurski Award, given to college football's best defensive player of the year.
Last season, Simeon was second on the team in tackles and ranked 7th in the nation for interceptions.
Senior defensive lineman DJ Lafitte named to the Outland Trophy watch list, the award given to the nation's top interior lineman.
Simeon - a natural leader. Very vocal, understands football, very aware of his surroundings and can help everyone in the backend. With DJ, his evolution while he's been here. I knew DJ before I got to fresno... and the young man that you see now..." Fresno State Football head coach Matt Entz said. "Young men have an opportunity to grow up in programs like ours where it's all about the development it's all about the growth."

#defensive #Football #list

While millions of TV viewers saw the impact of Luke Kuechly's skills with the Carolina Panthers over the years, few knew how hard he hit better than those who worked and played with him every day.
Mick Mixon, former Panthers play-by-play announcer: "So a lifetime ago I played in a cover band called the Franklin Street Band. We were hired to play Casey Beamer's rehearsal dinner party in Georgia. Frank Beamer, head coach of Virginia Tech is Casey Beamer's dad. The Panthers had just drafted Luke Kuechly about three weeks prior. So here's my moment. I say, Coach Beamer, your Hokies played Boston College. What can you tell me about our first round draft pick? He set his beverage down and he looked it right into my soul. And he said, Mick, let me tell you something. In 40 years of coaching, I've gone across the field exactly one time to congratulate another player who single-handedly kicked our [butt]. And that was Luke Kuechly."
Al Holcomb, former Panthers defensive coach: "From a linebacking standpoint, one of the biggest things about Luke was he had a great first step. His first step was so quick that it was hard for offensive linemen to get up and try to block him. He was out in front of them beating them to the point of attack."
Steve Wilks, former Panthers defensive coordinator: "As a coaching staff, we would go downstairs and probably have dinner around seven 7:30. We've gotten off the field maybe about 2 o'clock. Meetings are over maybe about 3:30, no later than four. We're downstairs eating and the next thing you know it's 7:45 and Luke comes around the corner, so when everybody's gone home, Luke is still there."
Kurt Coleman, former Panthers safety: "I think for myself, I never got a chance to really appreciate Luke until I got to watch Luke with my own eyes. And when you get to watch him with your own eyes, you understand why he's great. Yeah, he's an incredible athlete, incredibly smart. But he wants it."

#coach #played #casey