UTICA - The Utica, Northridge and Johnstown football teams all used late scores to earn victories in Week 4 on a wild night across Licking County and beyond.
Licking Valley and Newark Catholic each improved to 4-0, and Heath and Watkins Memorial also were victorious.
Columbus Academy 36, Granville 14
Heath 58, Washington CH 28
Johnstown 37, Mount Vernon 30

#johnstown #heath #week

VERNON - Over the summer, Vernon College volleyball went through a litany of changes, bringing in sixteen new players and retaining just one.
After a slow start to a new season, the team will look for steady improvement on the way to a playoff berth.
Parker Hollendoner breaks down the 2026 Vernon College Lady Chaps.
Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Texomashomepage.com.

#college

Although the Friday night lights went out on them at Heroes Stadium on Friday, Johnson and Judson plan to use the quarter and half they managed to play to good use.
That's all they can do after their season opener was canceled when a storm rolled through in the middle of the second quarter. It began with a lightning delay at 8:10 p.m., followed by strong winds and pouring rain before the electricity went out about an hour later.
The lights were still out at 9:30 p.m. when the game was called. The non-district game won't be completed. Although Johnson led 7-0 when the game was stopped, it doesn't count as a result because it didn't go a full half.
This wasn't exactly the way Vernon Hughes envisioned his highly anticipated coaching debut at Judson to be. Hughes is tasked with restoring the glory of Judson football, which hasn't had a winning record in five seasons, tied with the longest stretch in program history.
Hughes is making the most of the unusual situation.

#went #quarter

The high school football season kicks off this week with 16 coaches making their debuts in Greater San Antonio. About half are veteran coaches who landed at a new school. The others are getting a chance to lead a program for the first time.
Regardless of their experience, each job has its challenges. Here's a look at the challenges each coach faces at his new position:
Myles Duelm, Madison
Duelm is taking the reins of a program that lost one of the city's top football players to graduation. Wide receiver Jordan Clay is now at the University of Washington after spending all four years of his high school career at Madison. Although Duelm is a first-year head coach, he has plenty of familiarity with the region. He was previously Reagan's offensive coordinator and also worked at Brandeis.
Vernon Hughes, Judson
Hughes takes over a team that hasn't had a winning season since 2021, which is a shocker considering the Rockets' reputation as San Antonio's most decorated football program. Hughes takes over for Mark Soto, a Judson alum who played for and won a state championship under D.W. Rutledge in 1988 but was unable to restore the Rockets to state prominence from the sidelines. The Rockets are never short on talent. Hughes' task will be utilizing that talent to get the Rockets back on track in one of Region IV's toughest Class 6A districts.
Matt McKinney, Harlan
McKinney is tasked with leading one of the city's top 6A programs in his first season as a head coach. He will look to sustain the success the Hawks had under Eddie Salas, who led Harlan to the postseason in all eight of its varsity seasons. While McKinney is in a new role, he is no stranger to the program after serving as Harlan's offensive coordinator since the school opened.

#Football #coach

Vernon Hills, Illinois-based CDW Corporation (CDW) provides information technology (IT) solutions in the United States and internationally. The company has a market cap of $17.2 billion and operates through three segments: Commercial, Government, and Education, and offers discrete hardware and software products and services, as well as integrated IT solutions, including on-premises and cloud capabilities across hybrid infrastructure, digital experience, and security.
CDW stock has lagged behind the broader market over the past year, falling 16.4% compared to the S&P 500 Index's ($SPX) 20.5% surge. Moreover, in 2026, the stock has grown marginally, underperforming the SPX's 12.1% rise.
Soros Fund Management Opened a New Position in Nebius During Q2. What This Means for NBIS Stock.
Nvidia Earnings, Jackson Hole and Other Key Things to Watch this Week
Ahead of Nvidia Earnings, Here's What Barchart Data Says Comes Next for NVDA Stock

#solutions #vernon

When IndyCar drivers roar through the streets of Washington, DC, Aug. 22 and 23, racing within sight of the White House, they'll be adding another chapter to a story that stretches back to the founding of the republic.
Presidents have been going to the races since the nation began.
Long before modern motorsports, presidents spent weekends at horse tracks and bred champion thoroughbreds. They, like America, later also took to cheering on the country's fastest automobiles.
The love of racing goes back to the nation's first president.
George Washington bred racehorses at Mount Vernon, his Virginia home, and was, according to the third president, Thomas Jefferson, "the best horseman of his age." Washington was a regular at racetracks throughout Virginia and Maryland and filled his diaries with notes from more than 150 foxhunts.

#washington #presidents #bred #white

The Mount Vernon Mountaineers hosted Forsythe, McDonald County and Strattford high schools to kick off the 2026 football season with exhibition play on Friday night.
Each school got a chance to play against one another, taking turns on both offense and defense. While there were highlights on both sides of the ball for all schools, hosting Head Coach Tom ****** feels like a jamboree is a great way to start the season.
"It's real important to see different schemes, different abilities, different types and styles of coaching and playing," he said. "It helps us getting ready for the long season."
Cox's Mountaineers showed promise with several offensive touchdowns and multiple forced turnovers. They start their 2026 season with a matchup against a Nevada Tigers team that finished the 2025 season 8-4.
McDonald County High School starred in the jamboree as well, using its quarterbacks to rush for long touchdowns on multiple occasions. The Mustangs open up their 2026 schedule with a visit to Marshfield.

#season #mountaineers #high #play

In case you missed the news, your Georgetown Hoyas secured a commitment from former DePaul big, NJ Benson. A 6-foot-8, 235-pound post-graduate from Mt. Vernon, Illinois, Benson was recently made eligible by federal court order and is forgoing a professional opportunity abroad to play with Ed Cooley and the Hoyas. "Benson" was a name Georgetown fans heard quite often over the past two years with key rebounds and put-backs against GU. He is a physical presence with great conference experience as a forward and center.
Hoyas fans should be excited as adding NJ Benson shows that Cooley can still identify talent and compete in the transfer market. This late-offseason fortification for the roster sends a message that is much louder than a mid-summer press conference. It might be time to start thinking of this roster as "intriguing" or something more.
The news of Benson's addition, reported first by On3.com, materialized from an unexpected set of circumstances. On July 31, U.S. District Judge Charlotte Sweeney in Denver granted a preliminary injunction that allows all Division I athletes who began competing in the 2022-23 season to receive a fifth year of eligibility. The NCAA had planned for a new five-year eligibility model to begin with the fall 2027 enrolling class, but the court ruling undercut this timeline, applying the standard retroactively to the high school class of 2022.
NCAA President Charlie Baker publicly stated that the ruling brings chaos to college sports and rosters across the country, referencing an effort in Congress to provide the NCAA antitrust protection on eligibility issues. A separate ruling in Tennessee applied to 19 specific basketball players, but the Colorado decision cast a much wider net. It meant all Division I players from that cycle gained another year of collegiate action.
For Ed Cooley and his staff, this administrative disruption proved advantageous. Benson opted to return to the college ranks and the Big East conference, utilizing his newly granted fifth year of eligibility to play in Washington, D.C.

#hoyas #ncaa #division

Aug. 14—MITCHELL — For Reed Rus, the decision to leave the University of South Dakota and continue his football career at Dakota Wesleyan University was about more than football.
It was about coming home.
Rus, a Mount Vernon native, made the move from the FCS-level Coyotes to the Tigers this spring, bringing three seasons of experience at USD with him to Mitchell. With Mount Vernon less than 13 miles away, the move gives Rus an opportunity to remain close to the community that helped shape him while continuing to play the game he enjoys.
"Coming home was obviously a big part in my decision to come here, but just being around the community and all that fun stuff again has been awesome," Rus said. "My plan was always to come back near Mount Vernon and to Mitchell. I know this was a pretty tight group before I came here, and I just wanted to be a part of the family."
The 6-foot-4, 230-pound linebacker is entering what is technically his senior year of school, but DWU head coach Alex Kretzschmar said Rus actually has four years of eligibility remaining. That combination of experience and remaining eligibility made Rus an attractive addition for the Tigers, who are looking to rebound from a 4-7 season last year, including a 3-7 mark in Great Plains Athletic Conference play.

#mitchell #mount #tigers #decision

Georgia annually produces some of the nation's best high school football talent, and the 2026 season is loaded with proven stars, elite recruits and future college standouts. Before kickoff, Rivals recognizes the players expected to define the season with its preseason All-State team, highlighting the top talent at every position across the Peach State.
Quarterback: Kharim Hughley, Gainesville – The Clemson commit finished his junior season with 2,400 yards passing and 33 touchdowns. Hughley is good with his legs to extend plays, he can throw the ball on the move and he took Gainesville to state championship game last season.
Running Back: Gary Walker, Creekside – This time a year ago, Walker was not being talked about the way he should have. After a junior season where he rushed for over 1,600 yards, was a key part of a record-breaking offense, and scored 20 touchdowns. The Clemson commit is a star.
Running Back: Moonie Gipson, Kell – Gipson has been one of the top running backs in the state since his freshman season. The Georgia Tech commit ended the season last year with a tough injury, but that was after he rushed for 1,918 yards and 25 scores.
Wide Receiver: Taurean Rawlins, Mount Vernon – The Georgia commit finished his junior season with almost 70 receptions, 1,395 yards and 25 touchdowns. He quickly rose up recruiting boards last fall and emerged as a top playmaker in the Peach State.

#georgia #junior

One week until the real thing. A look at the high school football scrimmage schedule for Friday night for Central Indiana teams:
Cathedral at Franklin Central, 7 p.m.
Franklin at Roncalli, 7 p.m.
Mt. Vernon and Perry Meridian at Fishers (jamboree), 7 p.m.
Westfield at Ben Davis, 7 p.m.

#franklin

The high school girls' golf season has teed off. Batesville was the first local program to start the season.
The Lady Bulldogs traveled to the 15-team Bloomington South Invitational at Stone Crest Golf Course. Batesville posted a team score of 337 to place fourth overall.
Center Grove won the team ******* le with a 301 followed by Castle 306, Floyd Central 324, Batesville 337, New Albany 350, Bedford North Lawrence 350, Washington 366, Southport 379, Bloomington South 381, Seymour 391, Mt. Vernon 396, Evansville Memorial 413, Columbus East 417, Madison 419 and Clay City 479.
Batesville sophomore Stella Maple carded an even-par round of 71 to place second individually.
Alexis Gallagher was next for Batesville with 78. Grace Saner finished with 92. Adelyne Koehne had a 96 and Makenna Moore completed her round with 118.

#bloomington

The Bucs have selected some players with high draft capital in recent years who did not work out the way they had hoped. From Joe-Tryon Shoyinka to Vernon Hargreaves, they have come and gone despite the hopes their selection brought to the franchise.
Now, one of those top draft picks is heading to a new home.
Former top pick Devin White signed with the Detroit Lions over the weekend. He will join a hungry Lions' defense with a chip on their shoulder, similar to White coming off one of the best years of his career.
Last season, White was the leading tackler for the Las Vegas Raiders with 174 tackles. He also added 11 tackles for a loss, showing he can still cover a lot of range for his size. His Achilles heel has been his ability to provide pass coverage, so he was able to rack up a lot of that production with a limited role on their defense.
This article originally appeared on Bucs Wire: Former top pick of the Bucs signs with the Detroit Lions

#white #years #pick

Claude Jennings Jr., Lawrence Brooks and Vernon Brown, the co-hosts of the Golf DMV podcast, have a unique relationship with the very sport they cover.
"We don't get really golf nerdy about things," Jennings Jr. said. "It's literally just the fun we have, the love we have for the game, the hate we have for the game at times. 'I'm tired of playing golf. I don't want to do this anymore.' But then we get up, [and] there's just the pure fun that we have."
Once per week, Jennings Jr., an audio engineer from Silver Spring; Brooks, a retired business owner from Damascus; and Brown, a former Air Force veteran and current defense contractor from Upper Marlboro, discuss in-person or online results from the men's and women's professional tours, interview general managers and teaching pros from area golf courses, and provide reviews of courses' upkeep, food and beverage menus and customer service.
On a recent episode, the trio interviewed Dave Mattes, general manager of the Links at Challedon in Mount Airy. A discussion on the links-style course evolved into an on-air taste test of the clubhouse's crabcakes, chicken wings and fries — much to Mattes' delight.
"We focused a lot on the menu, which is great because that was kind of what we wanted to promote," he said. "We of course want people to come to the golf course and play the golf course, but we think that the thing that makes us relatively unique is a really good restaurant and a nice event facility in a place where people can come. And so there were multiple reasons for us to want to do this other than people getting to know our golf course."

#course #want #brown

Teenager Henry Hobbs avoided involvement in a serious crash on the penultimate lap to sprint to victory in the men's 10km scratch race at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.
The 19-year-old had already claimed a gold as part of the men's 4000m pursuit team earlier in the week before following that up with a bronze medal in the elimination race on Friday.
Hobbs, whose brother Noah is a professional cyclist edged, out Australia's Thomas Cornish and England team-mate Ethan Vernon to make it three medals from his games debut.
A crash just before the start of the final lap threatened to disrupt the race with a number of riders requiring medical attention and the remaining athletes having to avoid the debris.
"I didn't feel too good in the morning so I thought if it was a sprint it would be great for me as it only needed one effort," Hobbs told TNT Sports.

#crash #teenager

Injuries are never a good thing for a team or a player, and one that knocks the player out for an entire season is devastating. The New Orleans Saints have had pretty good luck in recent years avoiding these major injuries before the season began, but that good luck ran out quickly. On the first day of training camp, one of the most important players for the Saints' future went down with a potentially season-ending injury: DT Bryan Bresee.
Before getting to what an injury like this does to the roster, we have to talk about what this means for Bresee. 2026 was set to be an extremely impactful year for Bresee. He took a step forward in 2025, and his run defense became more consistent. This season was supposed to be the year that he could put everything together and prove to everyone that he is the franchise's star DT. With a potential contract extension set in 2028, Bresee must prove to the Saints that it will be worth it, but missing an entire year could prevent that.
Now let's talk about the defense. Bresee is a very important player, and if he were going to take that developmental step forward, the defensive line could have been dangerous, but that's not going to happen now. The defensive tackle position was already a questionable group, so this new injury makes it even more of a question mark. It's arguably the weakest part of the roster. Investments have been made, such as the selections of Vernon Broughton and Christen Miller, but those are two unproven commodities. Broughton only played one game last season, and Miller is a rookie. Then, behind them, Davon Godchaux is the NT, so he wouldn't fill Bresee's position, as the former first-round pick is in Brandon Staley's 3-4 DE spot. The same is true for John Ridgeway III, so that leaves Nathan Shepherd as really the only veteran DT that can step in.
Already since Bresee went down with an injury, the Saints have utilized Broughton and Shepherd in that open spot, so those may be the two players to take over, but the edge rushers on teh roster could also be in that position. Carl Granderson started the season playing more of an OLB role for the Saints, but as the season went on, he saw more consistent success as a 3-4 DE. He may end up being a player that can step up and hold the spot down while Bresee is out.

#player #broughton

Today in Boston Celtics history, Frank Vernon Ramsey Jr. was born in Corydon, Kentucky, in 1931. As a young athlete, Ramsey took part in a number of sports at the collegiate level, but excelled in basketball for the University of Kentucky Wildcats in the NCAA ranks. The Corydon native played baseball as well as basketball under famed Kentucky coach Adolph Rupp, and later helped his Wildcats roster win an NCAA ***** le in 1951 over the Kansas State Wildcats. Kentucky then got the so-called “death penalty” due to a point-shaving scandal that rocked the school and the sport and dominated the news cycle. (Ramsey and Lou Tsioropoulos were not among those accused.)
That point-shaving scandal rocked the game to its core, and ended the senior season for the Kentuckian and one of his future teammates on the Celtics as well, Tsioropoulos, as well as Cliff Hagan, another future NBAer. The trio graduated in 1953 and were all drafted by Boston (Hagan would later be dealt to another team), Ramsey going fifth overall. With a year of eligibility left, the trio then returned to Kentucky despite having been drafted by Boston (Hagan never played for the Celtics, his rights dealt for Bill Russell), winning all 25 of their regular-season games and finishing the campaign ranked No. 1 nationally.
The Wildcats declined their NCAA invite, however — rules in that era forbade graduate students from playing in the tourney.
Ramsey’s career with Boston was interrupted by military service after his rookie campaign of 1954-55, but he won his — and the Celtics’ — first ***** le in 1957. He won six more consecutively beginning the season after the next spanning 1959-64 in what he would help pioneer as a role in the NBA — a sixth man — and garnered a Hall of Fame nod some years after retiring from the sport as a player in 1981. Ramsey tried his hand at head coaching briefly in the NBA’s chief rival league at that time, the American Basketball ***** ociation (ABA — it merged with the NBA in 1978).
At the helm of his hometown Kentucky Colonels, Ramsey’s squad would make it to the ABA Finals, where the Colonels would fall to the Utah Stars, coached by Ramsey’s former teammate Bill Sharman. The Celtics star passed away at the age of 86 at home after a post-basketball career as a bank president -- rest in peace.

Here is the week-by-week 2026 schedule for central Ohio high school football. Schedules were obtained from area schools and are subject to change.
Fairbanks at North Robinson Colonel Crawford; Harvest Prep at Versailles
Africentric at Groveport; Amanda-Clearcreek at West Jefferson; Bellville Clear Fork at Granville; Berlin Center Western Reserve at Whetstone; Berne Union at Bidwell River Valley; Bloom-Carroll at Caledonia River Valley; Bucyrus Wynford at Cardington; Canal Winchester at Grove City; Centennial at Grandview Heights; Centerburg at Utica; Chillicothe Southeastern at Fairfield Christian; Circleville at Chillicothe; Dalton at Danville; Dayton Dunbar at Briggs; Delaware at Buckeye Valley; Dublin Coffman at Hartley; Dublin Scioto at Thomas Worthington; East Knox at Northridge; Eastmoor Academy vs. Ready at Fortress Obetz; Fisher Catholic at Belpre; Franklin Heights at West; Fredericktown at Highland; Hamilton Township at Whitehall; Heath at Duncan Falls Philo; Hilliard Bradley at Big Walnut; Hilliard Darby at Lancaster; Huntington at Newark Catholic; KIPP Columbus at Beechcroft; Liberty Union at Woodsfield Monroe Central; Licking Heights at Newark; Linden-McKinley at Bexley; Logan Elm at Chillicothe Zane Trace; Madison-Plains at Westfall; Mansfield Senior at Hilliard Davidson; Marion Pleasant at North Union; Martins Ferry at Mount Gilead; Marysville at Westerville North; Millersport at Portsmouth Sciotoville East; Mount Vernon at Marion Harding; New Albany at London; New Lexington at Fairfield Union; Northland at Columbus Academy; Olentangy Liberty vs. Lakewood St. Edward at Lakewood; Olentangy Orange at Olentangy Berlin; Pickerington Central at Gahanna; Pickerington North at Troy; Reynoldsburg at Toledo Whitmer; St. Charles at Central Crossing; South at Mifflin; Thornville Sheridan at Licking Valley; Upper Arlington at Olentangy; Vermilion at Johnstown; Walnut Ridge at East; Watkins Memorial at Worthington Kilbourne; Watterson at Whitehouse Anthony Wayne; West Liberty-Salem at Jonathan Alder; Westerville Central at Marion-Franklin; Westerville South at Dublin Jerome; Westland at Teays Valley; Worthington Christian at Grove City Christian; Youngstown Ursuline at DeSales; Zanesville West Muskingum at Lakewood
Independence vs. Dayton Meadowdale at Welcome Stadium; Columbus Crusaders at Byron Center (Michigan) Grand Valley Christian
Beechcroft at Independence; Berne Union at Chillicothe Huntington; Bexley at Worthington Christian; Big Walnut at Dublin Coffman; Briggs at Dublin Scioto; Buckeye Valley at Africentric; Bucyrus Wynford at East Knox; Canal Winchester at New Albany; Cardington at Sycamore Mohawk; Centerburg at Johnstown; Cincinnati Aiken at Northland; Circleville at Washington Court House; Cleveland Glenville at Olentangy Liberty; Cleveland St. Ignatius at Pickerington North; Danville at Utica; DeSales at Walnut Ridge; East at Whitehall; Eastmoor Academy at Cincinnati College Preparatory Academy; Franklin Heights at Linden-McKi

Jul. 10—Illinois quarterback Carson Boyd, a Cardinal Ritter (Mo.) product originally from O'Fallon will throw out the first pitch ahead of a 7:15 p.m. start on Friday in the series-opening game between the St. Louis Cardinals and Atlanta Braves at Busch Stadium in St. Louis.
Boyd, Brandon Henderson, Nick Hankins Jr. and Jacob Eberhart — Illinois' St. Louis and Metro East contingent — will also sign autographs starting at 5:30 p.m. Friday at the Ford Plaza in center field.
Illinois Hall of Famer Scott Spiezio, now a Cardinals broadcaster, spent the final two years of his 12-year MLB career in St. Louis and was part of the 2006 World Series team that beat the Detroit Tigers in five games. The former Illini also played with the Athletics, Angels and Mariners in the majors.
Big Ten athletes, coaches and administrators, including Illinois athletes Reece Ihenacho, Summer Clancy, Audrey Cavaliere and Kayla Duran, will spend this weekend in Oregon as part of the conference's "Big Life Series: Pacific Northwest" trip. The annual event was created to provide an understanding of a region's history, culture and community. Previous trips have explored Selma, Ala., and Mount Vernon, Iowa.
will get a shot at his old team as the Bucks open Summer League play in Las Vegas (3 p.m., Friday, Prime). The former Illini guard was dealt by the Heat ahead of the draft in the trade.

Former Florida baseball pitcher Logan Shore has been selected to the 2026 UF Athletic Hall of Fame class.
Shore starred on the mound for the Florida Gators from 2014-16, helping pitch UF to back-to-back College World Series trips in 2015 and 2016. He still ranks second all-time among Florida pitchers in wins (30) and seventh in strikeouts (248), while holding opponents a .231 average during his UF carer.
A ******* Rapids, Minnesota native, Shore earned SEC freshman of the year honors in 2014, when he went 7-4 with a 2.16 ERA and 68 strikeouts in 95 2/3 innings.
In 2016, Shore won SEC pitcher of the year and was a Golden Spikes Award finalist, going 12-1 with a 2.31 ERA and 95 strikeouts in 105 1/3 innings.
Shore will be honored at a banquet at the F Club on October 9, the night before Florida football's homecoming game against South Carolina. He will join a class that includes gymnast Bridget Sloan, softball player Kelsey Stewart, men's basketball players Vernon Maxwell and Andrew Moten and football player Vernon Hargreaves III.

Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) is among the Best Semiconductor Stocks.
On June 24, Reuters reported that investors are gearing up for volatility ahead of Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) earnings, as sharp semiconductor swings and large flows tied to ***** eX are disrupting markets. ***** ysts forecast the semiconductor firm to post Q3 profit growth exceeding 1000% and revenue jumping nearly 285% YoY, Reuters said.
The stock has surged by 740% over the past year, lifting the market value to $1.20 trillion. Meanwhile, the Nasdaq has dipped more than 5% after a record run, Reuters noted. Chief equity market strategist at Morningstar, Michael Field, said investors are weighing whether the pullback triggers "a domino effect" or proves to be temporary.
Reuters said concerns over stretched valuations are still there, even as AI pushed spending supports earnings. Partner at Cherry Lane Investments in New Vernon, New Jersey, Rick Meckler said growth is real, but ***** umptions look "extreme." Meanwhile, Kenny Polcari, who is chief market strategist at Slatestone Wealth, warned stocks "priced for perfection" risk sharp pullbacks if results disappoint.
Micron Technology, Inc. (NASDAQ:MU) provides innovative memory and storage solutions. It operates in the Compute and Networking Business Unit, Mobile Business Unit, Embedded Business Unit, and Storage Business Unit segments.

Realistically, Mitch Oard isn't after 13, he's after 131.
Having missed last year's City Golf Tournament caused by a conflict with the Indiana State Amateur, Oard came back this year, as he always does, going after the Qualifying Tournament record set by Ike Martin back in 1993.
There's been a few 133s and a 132 since then, but the mark stands. Oard, a three-time champ and a member of the tourney's hall of fame, has the game to go after it rather than simply worrying about making the cut. No matter what seed he'd earn for match play, he'd be a tough out.
"That's part of something I look forward to (each year) is trying to get that number," Oard said. "He's had that for a really long time."
Oard started off qualifying with a 67 and came back in 70 on Sunday, June 28 at muggy Cascades, good for a 5-under 137 and a seven-stroke win over Logan Vernon, to lead the effort to see if anyone can quell Jason Bannister's four-year reign in the Men's Championship flight. It was Oard's first Qualifier ***** le since 2015

Anytime a highly touted player enters Notre Dame football program, you want to see them at their best, but it doesn’t always happen that way.
Unfortunately for former Irish defensive lineman Brenan Vernon, it didn’t go as planned. Signed in 2023 out of Ohio, he entered the program as a 4-star prospect with plenty of hype. Over the next two seasons Vernon had trouble getting onto the field, and then in 2025 he injured his MCL which required surgery.
A switch to the offense helped the team build depth, but the injury was just too much for him to overcome. As first reported by Matt Freeman, Vernon has medically retired from the game.
The first official commitment in the Marcus Freeman era didn’t work out the way anyone anticipated, as we wish Vernon the best in his endeavors post-football.
Contact/Follow us IrishWireND on X (Formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

SOUTH BEND — Notre Dame football has removed fourth-year junior defensive tackle Brenan Vernon from its official roster in the wake of his medical retirement from the sport.
A source confirmed the news Monday after Irish Sports Daily had the initial report.
Listed at 6-foot-5 and 300 pounds, Vernon appeared in just four games for the Irish. The Mentor, Ohio product played nine snaps in 2023 and eight more in 2024; he was credited with four total tackles by Pro Football Focus.
Vernon underwent surgery to repair an MCL injury in the spring of 2025 and never made it to the field last season. He was among those on a deep defensive line that flipped over to scout team offense to help out in game-week preparations in the trenches.
Recruiting: Notre Dame football dials 1-800-LEGACY, lands sons of Julius Jones

A few years ago, the Rutgers passing attack was one of the weakest units on the team; now it is perhaps the best unit on the team. While improved quarterback play has been a major driver for this turnaround, the drastic improvement of the wide receiver core needs its flowers as well. In 2022, the season before wide receivers coach Dave Brock arrived on the banks, Rutgers recorded 1,827 passing yards. In his first season as wide receiver coach, the Scarlet Knights totaled 1,788 passing yards. Their top receiver in 2022 was Sean Ryan, who recorded 440 yards and three touchdowns. The Knights’ top receiver in 2023 was Christian Dremel, who made 36 catches for 468 yards and three touchdowns.
However, everything began to change for the Knights in 2024. They got a new quarterback in Athan Kaliakmanis. Ian Strong was entering his second year with the program. On top of that, Monmouth standout Dymere Miller and a very promising wide receiver prospect named KJ Duff joined the team in the offseason, courtesy of coach Brock.
That season, the Knights were led in receiving yards by Miller, with 757, and receiving touchdowns by Strong with 5. Strong and Miller combined for 9 receiving touchdowns that year, when the year before, the entire team only had 10.
2025 was another leap forward for the wide receiver core, with Duff recording 1,084 receiving yards and seven touchdowns, while Strong recorded 762 yards and five touchdowns. DT Sheffield, who transferred to Rutgers from North Texas, another result of Brock’s recruiting efforts, recorded 577 yards and 5 touchdowns. Had he been on the 2022 or 2023 squad, he would have been Rutgers’ leading receiver by over 100 yards, yet he was the third receiver on the 2025 squad. This should help put everything into perspective about what Brock has accomplished in just three years as coach.
His success has translated well to the recruiting trail, as the team has landed a few four stars, such as Dyzier Carter, and highly viewed three stars such as Jourdin Houston and Vernon Allen, who could see a decent amount of playing time this upcoming season. Also, earlier in his tenure, Brock played a major role in securing Duff’s commitment, which turned out to be a major recruiting win.

Baseball is the Spitaleri family business and, right now, business is booming.
Led senior Sean Spitaleri, Glen Rock is back in the North 1, Group 2 sectional final June 5, taking on Ramsey. Spitaleri is a pitcher/first baseman with a 9-1 record on the hill, a team-high 15 doubles and 28 RBIs. He's the North Jersey Male Athlete of the Week, presented by HSS.
Spitaleri couldn’t escape baseball even if he wanted to – news flash, he doesn’t – his father, Steve, is the Panther's head coach and his brother Jack is a starting outfielder.
“I am not here without my teammates or my coaches,” Spitaleri said after getting home from the Panthers sectional semifinal win in Vernon on June 3. “My whole team deserves a lot of recognition. I’m super lucky to be surrounded by a bunch of great guys, our bench guys bring energy and effort and that fires me up to give 110 percent.”
Sean has heard the question his entire high school career: What’s it like to have your dad as a coach? The answer is he loves it. Steve was a standout at Dominican University and runs a private baseball academy. Sean remembers being exposed to baseball growing up but not overly pushed in that direction.

PENNSAUKEN — On the precipice of the end of her high school career, Monica Curry was feeling a little nostalgic. Curry had joined Vernon's outdoor track and field team two years ago, mainly to stay in shape for soccer. And there she was at the NJSIAA Meet of Champions on June 3, part of the new Sussex County record 4x100.
It is the third time the Vernon girls had re-set the mark, twice in just five days. The Vikings – sophomore Samantha Janus, freshman Isabella Kuzicki, Curry and senior Sophia Haw – finished fifth in 47.33 seconds.
The original mark of 48.41 had stood since 2013.
"It's really exciting," said Curry, a record-setting Vernon senior who has signed a National Letter of Intent with the University of Massachusetts for soccer.
"All season, we improved. We started in the 50s. To get to the low 47s is amazing. We exceeded everything we planned."