Caitlin Clark appeared to take a playful jab at her Indiana Fever teammate Lexie Hull.
The 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year left a comment under a post from Hull showing off one of her pregame fits. Hull has spent the past few weeks in Miami playing for Rose Basketball Club. The team is competing in the inaugural season of Unrivaled, a professional three-on-three women's basketball league.
Clark and Hull seemingly developed a close friendship during their first season playing together in Indiana.
When the WNBA season paused for the 2024 Paris Olympics, Clark and Hull attended a concert in Indianapolis. At one point during Jordan Davis' show, the basketball stars joined the country music star on stage and belted out some tunes.
Hull played college basketball at Stanford and was the sixth overall selection in the 2022 WNBA Draft. She averaged 5.5 points and 2.5 rebounds per game last season.
Clark became the NCAA Division I all-time leading scorer across men's and women's basketball during her final season at Iowa. She was the top pick in last year's draft and earned WNBA All-Star honors after her rookie season.
The Fever finished the 2024 campaign with a 20-20 record and earned a spot in the playoffs for the first time since 2016.
Christie Sides was relieved of her head coaching duties shortly after the Connecticut Sun eliminated Indiana from the postseason. Stephanie White left the Sun and was named the Fever's next head coach last November. White previously served as Indiana's head coach in 2015-16.
He started the first five games of the season, but after going 2-3, head coach Antonio Pierce went with his backup, Aidan O’Connell, for Week 6 against the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Minshew was back starting by Week 8 as the Raiders struggled to put together wins. Then, in Week 12, Minshew broke a collarbone that knocked him out for the rest of the season, leaving the quarterback duties in O’Connell’s hands.
Minshew finished the year 2-8 in the 10 games he played, passing for 2,013 yards with nine touchdowns and 10 interceptions.
However, Minshew has had better seasons in the past, including a Pro Bowl year with the Indianapolis Colts in 2023. He went 7-6 in his 13 starts in place of rookie Anthony Richardson, throwing for a career-high 3,305 yards with 15 touchdowns and nine interceptions.
For his six-year career, which began as a Jacksonville Jaguars sixth-round pick in 2019, Minshew is 17-29 over his 46 starts with 11,950 passing yards, 68 touchdowns and 34 interceptions.
Last season, Carson Wentz, the former Philadelphia Eagles franchise quarterback, backed up Mahomes in Kansas City. The year before that, it was Chad Henne.
The Chiefs hope Minshew doesn’t have to step into a starting role since it would mean Mahomes would be dealing with an injury.
As California continues to defy President Donald Trump's executive order banning transgender athletes from girls sports, residents across the state are standing up to pressure officials to comply.
The California Interscholastic Federation, which is under investigation by the U.S. Department of Education over potential Title IX violations, had its meeting Thursday crashed by protesters advocating for the protection of girls and women in sports.
Multiple protesters spoke to CIF officials at the meeting, pleading with them to ban trans athletes from girls sports, citing their own experiences.
One of those speakers was St. Francis High School track and cross-country student-athlete Jordan Brace, who fears potential injuries from competing against a biological male.
"Allowing a biological male to compete against a female athlete that does not have the same kind of build or physical abilities is completely unfair and unsafe for women, and that can lead to so, so, so many injuries," Brace said.
"How many more injuries, which are sometimes permanent, will it take for everyone to realize how important it is for women to feel safe and for young girls to feel like they have fair competition."
Former high school volleyball player Payton McNabb is a female athlete who says she sustained permanent injuries from a trans opponent. McNabb says she sustained long-term physical and mental injuries in 2022 when she was spiked in the face by a transgender athlete allowed to compete on a girls team because of a policy put in place by North Carolina's high school athletic association.
The United Nations released study findings saying that nearly 900 biological females have fallen short of victories because they have been defeated by transgender athletes.
The study, "Violence against women and girls in sports," said more than 600 athletes did not medal in more than 400 competitions in 29 different sports, totaling over 890 medals, according to information obtained up to March 30, 2024.
"I want to know that I'm facing … someone who's the same gender as me," Brace said. "That I'm not being beat by someone in a race that has more physical capabilities than me, that's naturally going to be faster than me, more muscular. I don't think that anyone, anywhere, any young women, should have to deal with that, should have to fear that they aren't safe or that they are being discriminated against in their sport.
"This is a matter of women's safety."
California mother Riece Morris, who has five children who compete for schools in the state, implored CIF officials to "do the right thing," while expressing her belief the officials have "good intentions."
"Good intentions do not make good policy. Good intentions do not absolve you from being complicit in robbing the girls of California of fair competition and single-sex privacy," Morris said.
"Sacrificing girls sports by admitting boys was never a good idea. It was never going to last. So, I'm asking you to read the room, read the data and do the right thing. Do not let your legacy be that you had to be dragged kicking and screaming to do the right thing for girls after everyone else. Please stand up now and do the right thing."
California has allowed trans athletes to compete in girls' sports since 2014, and the policy has resulted in multiple controversies over the last year alone.
Martin Luther King High School in Riverside, California, is embroiled in one of the most contentious disputes on the issue.
A Dec. 19 Riverside Unified School District meeting included a parade of parents berating the board for allowing a trans athlete on the Martin Luther King girls cross-country team. A lawsuit filed by two girls on the team alleges their "Save Girls Sports" T-shirts in protest of that player were compared to swastikas.
The father of a girl who lost her varsity spot to the trans athlete previously told Fox News Digital his daughter and other girls at the school were told "transgenders have more rights than cisgender[s]" by school administrators when they protested the athlete's participation.
Stone Ridge Christian High School's girls volleyball team was scheduled to face San Francisco Waldorf in the Northern California Division 6 tournament but forfeited just before the match over the presence of a trans athlete on the team.
A transgender volleyball player was allegedly booed and harassed at an Oct. 12 match between Notre Dame Belmont in Belmont, California, against Half Moon Bay High School, according to ABC 7. Half Moon Bay rostered the transgender athlete.
The state continues to allow transgender athletes in girls sports at the risk of losing federal funding by defying Trump's executive order, and Gov. Gavin Newsom recently admitted trans athletes competing with girls is "deeply unfair."
But Newsom also won't take a decisive stand opposing transgender inclusion, arguing transgender people are "poor people" who are "more likely to commit suicide, have anxiety and depression."
California state lawmakers have introduced two bills to block trans athletes from competing in girls sports.
California Assemblyman Bill Essayli introduced one such bill Feb. 14, while fellow Assembly member Kate Sanchez announced Jan. 7 she is introducing a bill to ban trans athletes from competing in girls and women's sports.
A cousin of Le'Veon Bell has been awarded $25 million after she claimed the former NFL star sexually assaulted her for about a decade, beginning when she was a child.
In a March 2024 lawsuit filed in Franklin County, Ohio, the cousin claimed Bell began having incestuous relations with her without her consent when she was around 6 years old, and it continued until she turned 18 in 2017.
TMZ, citing court documents, reported the woman was awarded millions in a judgment two weeks ago.
"My client adamantly denies any and all allegations that have been lodged against him. Further, he was never served with a civil complaint or any documents," Bell's attorney, Thomas W. Shaffer, said in a statement to TMZ.
"The default judgment granted was based upon violations of his Fifth Amendment rights of due process for failing to be served. My client is in the process of filing a motion to open and reverse the default judgment because the merits of the case have never been litigated."
Bell took to the streaming platform Twitch to further maintain his innocence.
"I just found out this was brewing up maybe about two days ago … when TMZ hit me up. They got my number," Bell said, according to the New York Post. "The same cousin that was at all my football games. Do y’all think Le’Veon Bell, do I need to force myself upon a woman? Anybody? Do I need to force myself upon them? I don’t.
"I put this on all my kids' life, my mom’s life. I put this on everything. I never ever pushed myself on a girl when she ain’t want that s---. I’ve never forced myself on nobody. I got my pick of the litter. Stop this s-–- right now. Let alone my cousin?
"My number is so high, thousands of women, slayed by the dragon. I done slayed so many women it’s like a f---ing dragon bro. I’m a dragon slayer out here."
Bell's younger brother, La'Vonte, was ordered to pay their cousin another $11 million, according to the Post, citing court documents.
Southwest Airlines trolled the Dallas Mavericks over the team's shocking decision to move on from superstar Luka Doncic.
Doncic was the centerpiece of the blockbuster trade that sent the five-time All-Star to the Los Angeles Lakers early last month, much to the dismay of the majority of the franchise's fan base. The Mavs received Anthony Davis, Max Chirstie and a draft pick in exchange for Doncic and a package of other players.
"It’s not like we traded Luka…," the airline said in an Instagram post on Thursday. The remaining photos in the post touched on the airline's recently announced changes to its bag policy.
For more than a half-century, Southwest has allowed customers to check their luggage for free, but the airline has faced backlash after revealing it would begin applying a bag fee on May 28.
The Dallas-based carrier has recently announced several policy changes to ramp up revenue growth and meet shareholder profitability expectations, FOX Business reported.
The airline has not yet shared details on how much travelers will be charged, although the fee for a third checked bag is listed at $150 on Southwest's website.
Shortly after Donic was traded to the Lakers, fans were seen at a Mavs home game on Feb. 10 with poster-board signs that read, "FIRE NICO." The sign's wording referred to Dallas general manager Nico Harrison. Multiple fans were ejected from the game, with a team official citing the NBA's Code of Conduct.
"In the first incident, the guest brought in a sign that broke the following rule included in the NBA Code of Conduct: Clothing, garments or signs displaying explicit language, profanity or derogatory characterization towards any person(s)," Mavericks vice president of corporate communications Erin Finegold said in a statement.
Mark Cuban, who sold his majority stake in the franchise in 2023, later invited an ejected fan to sit courtside at a future Mavericks game.
Doncic reacted to the trade by saying he was initially in a state of disbelief.
"You can imagine how surprised I was," he said on Feb. 4. "I had to check if it was April 1. I didn’t really believe it."
He won his first scoring title last season before leading the Mavs to the NBA Finals. In addition to his five appearances in the NBA All-Star game, Doncic is also a five-time All-NBA selection.
Feinstein's career at The Washington Post began in 1977, but it had nothing to do with sports at first. He was a night police reporter, but he "soon distinguished himself on the sports beat," according to the outlet's obituary.
"He covered a wide range of sports and developed a talent for deep sourcing that fed personality-driven and dramatic narratives about athletes, coaches and management," the obituary continued.
While working for The Washington Post, Feinstein was also doing work for ESPN, NPR and the Gold Channel. He also had shows on SiriusXM.
Feinstein also wrote more than 40 books, including the bestselling basketball book of all-time, "Season on the Brink," which debuted in 1986 after he took a full year off from his Washington Post gig to follow the 1985 Indiana Hoosiers and their polarizing head coach, Bob Knight.
The book was a huge success, spending 17 weeks as the No. 1 bestseller after its release. And experts and casual readers alike loved how Feinstein didn't leave out a single detail about how Knight went about coaching his players during a season with an NCAA Tournament appearance but not a national championship.
The Hoosiers won Knight's third and final national title as head coach of Indiana during the 1986-87 campaign.
The book was eventually adapted into an ESPN TV film, premiering in March 2002.
Feinstein is a 23-time New York Times Best Seller who achieved the milestone of publishing his 50th book, "The Ancient Eight," which goes deep into Ivy League football. The book was released last year.
It was announced in November that Feinstein would join Longwood University as a broadcaster and teacher, providing color commentary for ESPN+ broadcasts of men's basketball games.
Feinstein's achievements have been recognized with numerous awards and inductions, which include the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame and the National Sportswriters and Sportscasters Hall of Fame.
The Los Angeles Rams officially cut Super Bowl LVI MVP Cooper Kupp after eight seasons on Wednesday after failing to find a suitable trade for the veteran receiver, a move that elicited an emotional response from his wife on social media.
The news of Kupp’s departure from the Rams came as no surprise after he announced last month that the NFL team informed him of their intentions to trade him.
Still, the official announcement on Wednesday — the start of the league year — signaled an emotional end of an era in L.A.
"Wherever we go, wherever we land, is going to be so f---ing lucky to have you in their building," Anna Marie Kupp wrote in a post shared to her Instagram Stories.
"You have the ability to turn the tides of any organization you step foot into. The man that you are, the leader that you embody, the brother on and off the field. The standard you hold yourself to and bring others along in your pursuits. People want to be better because of who you are and how you conduct your business. The joy and passion you exude in your preparation and your execution is contagious."
"I am so excited for the impact you will have in these coming years," she continued. "The relationships waiting for you. And for you to continue to tear apart your opponents. To the moon, my King."
Kupp, 31, won the NFL receiving triple crown and Super Bowl MVP honors in the 2021 season when he caught 145 passes for 1,947 yards and 16 touchdowns. But injuries have hampered his production over the last three seasons.
Tiger Woods, a supporter of President Donald Trump, is reportedly dating the president's former daughter-in-law.
The Daily Mail reports Woods and Vanessa Trump "have been seeing each other since just before Thanksgiving."
"She comes to his place on Jupiter Island. They’re not living together. She comes over and spends the night and leaves in the morning. Maybe a few nights a week," a source told the outlet.
"They just love hanging out, having dinner and schmoozing together. They’re sticking close to home, have decided not to make it a thing and go out in public. Not just yet anyway."
Representatives for Woods did not immediately respond to a request to confirm the Daily Mail's report.
Woods' son, Charlie, and Vanessa's daughter, Kai, are both competitive golfers. Kai has committed to play at the University of Miami, while Charlie has played alongside his father at tournaments. Charlie has also played at U.S. Open qualifiers, and both Charlie and Kai played at the same tournament last month.
Woods was photographed with Kai at the Genesis Invitational. Vanessa and Kai also took in a TGL match last month, which was created by Woods and Rory McIlroy.
After his highly publicized divorce, Woods was linked to Olympic skier Lindsey Vonn in the 2010s. He was dating Erica Herman at the time he won the Masters in 2019, but they too had a very public breakup that included sexual harassment allegations and an NDA lawsuit filed by Herman.
Vanessa and Don Jr. divorced in 2018.
Woods announced earlier this week he had undergone surgery for a ruptured Achilles sustained while training at home, putting his entire 2025 golf season in jeopardy. Woods has played in just 18 events since the start of the new decade, and his best finish in a major during that span is a tie for 38th at the 2020 Masters.
The Major League Soccer (MLS) team San Diego FC has announced it is investing in major stadium operation and security initiatives to crack down on the use of an "anti-gay" chant used by fans. The chant has been commonly used by fans of the Mexican national team for many decades, and has previously resulted in sanctions against the country's soccer club in the past.
San Diego FC's plan to crack down on the chant includes a drastic increase in security at Snapdragon Stadium.
"The number of stadium security personnel will be increased and strategically positioned in key areas, with a heightened presence near the opposing goalkeeper’s section. Offenders will be identified, ejected, and may face additional sanctions," the team wrote in its announcement.
The team is also now reserving the right to pause, suspend or completely abandon a match if fans use the chant.
Additionally, the team is making major changes to the team's communication with fans during and before games to prioritize discouraging the chant.
Stadium staff will now place a flyer in all seat cupholders reminding fans that discriminatory language will not be tolerated, featuring the message: "Aquí No" / "Not Here." Prior to kickoff, team CEO Tom Penn, Head Coach Mikey Varas and player Aníbal Godoy will deliver pre-recorded a message discouraging the chant.
And during the match, the team will display a visible in-stadium banner reinforcing the message condemning the chant in the supporters’ section.
The chant was most recently used during the team's home opener St. Louis City on March 1. Fans used the chant three times, despite frequent attempts by stadium staff to get the chant to stop via the public address system.
Varas condemned the fans who used it after that game.
"The chant that was heard tonight is unacceptable," Varas told reporters. "It's outside of our value system. It doesn't represent the players, myself or the club, and it certainly doesn't represent San Diego or Baja California. It's not a reflection of who we are. We're a community full of love, of support, and we believe in the power of diversity."
The chant, which is traditionally used while an opposing goalkeeper takes a goal kick, originated in the Mexican city of Guadalajara in the early 2000s.
The chant, which is repeated use of the word "puto" and translates in English to "male prostitute," went largely unaddressed by major soccer institutions, and was prominently heard at a 2004 Olympic qualifier between the U.S. and Mexico.
However, it became more controversial and frowned upon as the years went on.
In 2019, FIFA introduced its three-step protocol, the same one now used by San Diego FC, designed to deter supporters from participating in the chant.
In 2021, all Mexico fans were banned from a pair of World Cup qualifiers because of the chant.
The FIFA Disciplinary Committee announced that the Mexican National Team would have to play its World Cup qualifier matches against Jamaica and Canada that year in an empty stadium after fans used the chant during the Confederation of North, Central America, and Caribbean Association Football Nations League (CONCACAF) games against Costa Rica and the USA earlier that June. The team was also fined $73,000.
U.S. vs. Mexico CONCACAF Nations League matches had be suspended in back-to-back years in 2023 and 2024 after Mexico fans used the chant both times.
Now, the chant has made its way to the MLS ranks, and San Diego FC is trying to curb it from spreading.
The Tampa Bay Rays have made the "difficult decision" to halt an estimated $1.3 billion stadium and land redevelopment deal. The project would have secured the MLB club's future in St. Petersburg, Florida, with a state-of-the-art ballpark next to Tropicana Field.
The Rays' current home is undergoing repairs after the stadium's roof was heavily damaged by Hurricane Milton in October. The Rays will welcome visiting teams to Steinbrenner Field in 2025. The 11,000-seat ballpark serves as the New York Yankees' spring training home.
Rays principal owner Stuart Sternberg said "a series of events" in October and financing delays led to "this difficult decision."
"After careful deliberation, we have concluded we cannot move forward with the new ballpark and development project at this moment," Sternberg said in a statement. "A series of events beginning in October that no one could have anticipated led to this difficult decision."
Sternberg added that the organization remains committed to resolving its stadium issue.
"Our commitment to the vitality and success of the Rays organization is unwavering. We continue to focus on finding a ballpark solution that serves the best interest of our region, Major League Baseball and our organization."
"Major League Baseball remains committed to finding a permanent home for the club in the Tampa Bay region for their fans and the local community," MLB said in a statement. "Commissioner (Rob) Manfred understands the disappointment of the St. Petersburg community from today’s announcement, but he will continue to work with elected officials, community leaders and Rays officials to secure the club’s future in the Tampa Bay region."
Tropicana Field opened in 1990 and has been the Rays’ home since they took the field in 1998. St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch, a driving force behind what was dubbed the "Here To Stay" initiative aimed at keeping the Rays in the city for another 30 years, said the decision was disappointing, but "it is not unexpected."
It's possible the Rays could be sold, he noted.
"If, in the coming months, a new owner who demonstrates a commitment to honoring their agreements and our community priorities emerges, we will consider a partnership to keep baseball in St. Pete. But we will not put our city’s progress on hold as we await a collaborative and community-focused baseball partner," Welch said.
Under their current contract with the city of St. Petersburg, the Rays would play three more seasons at their existing ballpark after it is repaired. Those repairs are expected to be completed in time for the 2026 season.
"The City of St. Petersburg is currently advancing plans to restore Tropicana Field for the 2026 season," Sternberg said. "We are thankful for their efforts and are excited to return to our home field next spring."
The proposed 30,000-seat stadium is a signature piece of a broader $6.5 billion revitalization project known as the Historic Gas Plant District, which refers to a predominantly Black neighborhood that was forced out by the construction of Tropicana Field and an interstate highway spur.
The Rays' decision puts the broader project in limbo.
The Rays had faced a March 31 deadline to decide whether to continue with the new ballpark project. Under the agreement previously approved by the city and Pinellas County, the governments would cover about half the cost of the $1.3 billion stadium, with the Rays and their development partner Hines covering the rest, including any cost overruns.
The University of Minnesota welcomed Kansas to U.S. Bank Stadium, the home of the Minnesota Vikings, this week, and the Jayhawks offense wound up looking like the Vikings offense.
Kansas won by four touchdowns, defeating the Golden Gophers, 29-1, and made history while doing so.
In the third inning, off two different pitchers, the Jayhawks hit five straight home runs, tying the NCAA record set in 1992 and pulling off a feat that has never been done in the major leagues.
It all started with Chase Diggins' three-run blast with no outs, but Max Soliz Jr. followed up with a solo shot of his own.
Minnesota went to the bullpen, but that didn't stop the home run barrage as Brady Counsell, Brady Ballinger and Jackson Hauge followed with homers. Counsell is the son of former big leaguer and current Chicago Cubs manager Craig Counsell.
The game was called after seven innings due to the mercy rule.
"I’ve never been a part of anything like that," Counsell said. "I think kind of in the moment I didn’t really realize that we had three, and after (Brady) Ballinger went deep that was four. We were kind of like, ‘Oh my gosh. What is happening?’"
After Hauge went deep, "It was, Wow! That’s crazy!'" Counsell added.
The first college team to hit five consecutive homers was Centenary, which did it against Stephen F. Austin in the first inning of a game in 1992. Eastern Illinois matched the feat in the fifth inning against Morehead State in 1998, and before Wednesday, it was most recently accomplished by South Carolina against Georgia in 2006.
"I actually didn’t know we had four when I went up to the plate because they made a pitching change," said Hauge, who actually had two homers in the game. "It was Diggins, Soliz and then a pitching change. I was just going up there thinking, ‘This would be awesome to go back-to-back-to-back.’ When I got back in the dugout, they yelled, ‘Five!’ So it was pretty cool."
Kansas also set a record for margin of victory against a Division I opponent.
Caitlin Clark is ready to take on the WNBA in year two with the Indiana Fever, but first, she had to support her boyfriend on the college stage.
Clark's boyfriend, Connor McCaffrey, is an assistant coach with the Butler Bulldogs, and they had a matchup against St. John's in the Big East Tournament on Thursday at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
Clark was spotted wearing a Butler hat right near the team's bench, and much like she was watching her former Iowa Hawkeyes play in the Big Ten tournament, she was animated throughout the game that ultimately ended in defeat for her side.
St. John's, the favorite to win the Big East title as the No. 1 seed, defeated Butler, 78-57, to advance to the semifinals of the tournament, which will be played on Friday.
At 14-19, it is safe to say that Butler won't be heading to the NCAA Tournament this year despite their best efforts.
McCaffrey is the son of legendary Hawkeyes men's basketball coach Fran McCaffrey, and the 6-foot-5 guard played at Iowa from 2017-23, where he averaged 6.5 points and 4.1 rebounds per game over 166 contests.
The younger McCaffrey is following in his father's footsteps now, as he joined Butler's staff in September 2024 as an assistant coach after previously serving in a basketball development coordinator role with the NBA's Indiana Pacers.
Being in Indianapolis made sense from a couple standpoint, as Clark also played her Fever games at the Gainbridge Fieldhouse – the same home as the Pacers. Clark went on to become the 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year, breaking numerous rookie and league records in just her first season.
Clark and McCaffrey have been dating for almost two years now.
McCaffrey's Butler season may be coming to a close, but Clark's will be underway in May when the Fever take on the Chicago Sky to kick off the 2025 campaign.
The six-foot-nine freshman lingered on the floor for a few moments before being helped up by his teammates.
Flagg then limped to the bench, clearly in distress, before sitting down. After he left the game, Flagg was put in a wheelchair and taken to the locker room.
Despite the injury, Flagg returned to the bench from the locker room to cheer on his teammates in the second half, but he did not re-enter the game.
Duke coach Jon Scheyer said in his postgame press conference that there was swelling in the ankle.
"He sprained his ankle. X-rays were negative, which is great. We just have to see how he recovers and how he goes from there," Scheyer said.
The name, image, and likeness (NIL) system in college athletics has been welcomed by student-athletes who have been able to cash in on brand partnerships, some of whom are making millions fresh out of high school.
Kansas State's Coleman Hawkins, though, is showing a different side of that system when athletes don't meet expectations despite those millions.
The Wildcats fell to the Baylor Bears, 70-56, in the Big 12 tournament, and the loss ended the team's 2024-25 campaign.
Kansas State head coach Jerome Tang said in his postgame comments that the team was unlikely to accept a bid to a consolation tournament — the NIT or the new College Basketball Crown tournament in Las Vegas.
Hawkins, a transfer from the Illinois Fighting Illini, was supposed to lead the Wildcats to the NCAA tournament, something he handled well last season with an Elite Eight appearance. He also declared for the NBA Draft but returned to college and reportedly got paid $2 million to transfer to Kansas State.
But the 23-year-old Hawkins didn't have the same season he had with Illinois last year, averaging 10.7 points, 6.9 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game, while shooting 40.1% from the field and 30.3% from three-point territory. Hawkins averaged 12.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.7 assists, while shooting 45.1% from the field last season.
With Kansas State not meeting expectations this season, Hawkins showed a brutal side of being a top-paid player.
"These guys haven't experienced some of the things I've experienced," Hawkins said through tears, referencing the backlash he's gotten from fans this season. "I really wanted to come in and impact the program. I'm sorry for crying, but, s---, this s--- hurts.
"I feel like I let a lot of people down. I feel like I did a poor job of letting people talk about me. It affected my play. It was happening all year. I wish I could just go back and block out everything, not for myself, but for the team, so we could have a more successful year. This is a learned lesson for me, and I wish the best for the future of this program."
Hawkins finished his fifth year of college, meaning his playing days at this level are done. He will now look ahead to potential professional opportunities, which could be declaring for the NBA Draft yet again.
But Hawkins' emotions and, more importantly, the vitriol and backlash he received, is the reality of this pay-to-play system that the NCAA and every college sport are still trying to navigate.
Much like professionals who sign big-money contracts, expectations go through the roof when the dollar amount is made public. Fans expect the players to play up to their contract, and when that doesn't happen, the backlash can be brutal.
Hawkins noted that going through that since the beginning of the season and blocking it out wasn't easy.
President Donald Trump mocked Democrats for their ongoing support of trans athletes in women's and girls' sports during Thursday's meeting with NATO leader Mark Rutte. Trump even suggested he hopes the party continues to push its stance on the issue to hurt their future election prospects.
While criticizing Democrats for continuing their public arguments for supporting trans inclusion, Trump suggested 95% of Americans oppose it, and that Republicans should capitalize on their opponents' stance on the issue.
"I saw this morning where one of them is pretty well known. One is arguing, fighting like crazy for men playing in women's sports. I think it's about a 95% issue, but in a way, I want [Democrats] to keep doing it, because I don't think they can win a race," Trump said.
"I tell Republicans, 'Don't bring that subject up right now, because there's no election right now. But about a week before the election, bring it up, because we can't lose."
It was the second day in a row that Trump mocked Democrats on the issue, after making similar comments during Wednesday's meeting with Ireland Prime Minister Micheál Martin.
"Who would allow men to play in women’s sports? And they’re still fighting it, they’re still . . . . It’s gotta be a 95% issue," Trump said. "But they’re on television this morning, I see this person, a Democrat, say, ‘We should have the right . . . no, no. Men should not be allowed – they’re hurting women. They’re hurting women. Very badly, they’re hurting women. . . . And they’re also demeaning women. But who would want these things? Everything is transgender. Everybody transgender. That’s all you hear about. That’s why we won the election in record numbers."
Trump's claim that it is a "95% issue" is not backed by data. However, there is data that at least the majority of Americans, including most Democrats, oppose trans inclusion in women's sports.
A New York Times/Ipsos survey found the vast majority of Americans, including a majority of Democrats, don't think transgender athletes should be permitted to compete in women's sports, as 79% of participants said that biological males who identify as women should not be allowed in women's sports. Of the participants who identified as Democrats, 67% said that transgender athletes should not be allowed to compete with women.
According to a Gallup poll last year, nearly 70% of Americans said that biological men should not be permitted to compete in women's sports.
Additional data suggests the issue affected the decisions of voters in the November election.
A national exit poll conducted by the Concerned Women for America legislative action committee found that 70% of moderate voters saw the issue of "Donald Trump’s opposition to transgender boys and men playing girls' and women’s sports and of transgender boys and men using girls' and women’s bathrooms" as important to them.
Additionally, 6% said it was the most important issue of all, while 44% said it was "very important."
Trump leveraged the issue and took a firm stance in banning trans athletes in women's and girls' sports as a key campaign issue in 2024. His campaign ad that featured the slogan "Kamala is for they/them, Donald Trump is for you" was hailed as the most effective ad of the election.
Trump made good on his campaign promise to issue a ban when he signed the "Keeping Men out of Women's Sports" executive order on Feb. 5. However, many Democrat-run states have since defied the order and are still letting trans athletes compete with females.
In response, Trump's administration has launched investigation against four of those states – California, Minnesota, Massachusetts and Maine – over potential Title IX violations for their continued defiance of the order.
Trump's Department of Health and Human Services has already determined that Maine has violated Title IX, while the Department of Agriculture has already cut millions in funding to eight Maine universities.
The Republican-controlled Congress attempted to set a stricter precedent for enforcing a national trans-athlete ban in women's sports with the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, but it was filibustered in the Senate after it received no support from Democrats.
Conservative activist Riley Gaines has vowed to help Trump employ the strategy of using the issue against the Democrats who blocked the bill, as she has said she will work to help unseat every Democrat who voted against the bill in the 2026 midterms and 2028 election.
Hanna Cavinder, who plays basketball for the Canes, recently wiped Carson Beck off her Instagram and no longer follows the quarterback; Beck transferred to Miami earlier this year after spending five years at Georgia.
Cavinder posted TikToks of herself and Beck on a trip with her twin sister, Haley, and her boyfriend, Dallas Cowboys tight end Jake Ferguson, earlier this week.
But, according to Betr Media, it appeared that Beck added another girl on Snapchat, saying that he and Cavinder broke up "literally this past weekend." Another apparent message said "things just start not working out ya know, feel it coming."
This is not Beck's first incident with Snapchat; he was once accused of sending raunchy messages to other girls.
Beck and Cavinder each had a vehicle stolen last month in Florida.
Beck, the former starting quarterback at Georgia, declared for the 2025 NFL Draft in December, just days after undergoing season-ending elbow surgery. He was injured in the first half of the Bulldogs' overtime victory over Texas in the SEC championship game.
Despite having another year of eligibility, Beck set his sights on the NFL after back-to-back seasons as Georgia’s starter with a 24-3 record.
But he switched course the following month, and committed to Miami to join his girlfriend.
The Cavinders initially said they were skipping their final year of eligibility, with Hanna completing her playing career and Haley saying she would play this season at TCU. However, they both returned to the Canes.
Miami is losing FBS touchdown leader Cam Ward to the NFL Draft, and Ward is in the running to be the top selection of the draft.
Fox News' Paulina Dedaj and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Justin Lower made par on the 17th hole in the The Players Championship Thursday but achieved it in an unconventional way.
Lower, 35, had his tee shot sail over the famous island green 137 yards away and into the water and needed a miracle to save par.
From the drop area about 80 yards away, Lower hit a wedge that took two big hops on the green and slowed before dropping into the hole, saving par without his putter.
The 17th hole at TPC Sawgrass is known to be difficult, and this year has been no different with many players already having found the water around the island green.
However, no one recovered as well as Lower did.
Lower began his round Thursday with 11 straight pars, including his par save, and was 1-over through 13 holes after he double bogeyed the fourth hole.
As of this writing, Lucas Glover is in the lead at 4-under par through 10 holes.
Lower turned pro in 2011 and joined the PGA Tour over a decade later in 2022.
The Akron, Ohio, native has made 60 of 102 cuts in his PGA Tour career but is yet to post a victory.
Lower came close to his first win with one runner-up and two third-place finishes. He has one top 10 finish in the 2025 PGA Tour season.
Scottie Scheffler entered The Players Championship seeking his third consecutive win at the tournament after winning the last two years.
Scheffler became the first player to successfully defend his title last season and will take his shot at more history when he tees off Thursday at 1:29 p.m. ET with Rory McIlroy and Xander Schauffele.
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen was seemingly caught off guard during his first press conference with the media since signing a lucrative six-year contract extension after he was asked if the new deal meant he was going to upgrade Hailee Steinfeld’s engagement ring.
Fresh off his MVP season, Allen signed a $330 million contract extension with a record $250 million guarantee earlier this week that will likely grant the veteran quarterback his hope of finishing his career in Buffalo.
The deal made Allen among the highest paid players in the NFL – but not the highest.
"It’s weird to say this, but what is $5 million more going to do for my life that I can’t already do right now. It’s not that crazy to me," Allen said Wednesday. "I was like, if it has any impact on the cap, let’s figure out a way to not do that."
But more eyebrow-raising than the number on the contact was one reporter’s question to Allen about whether the new deal meant he would upgrade his fiancée’s engagement ring.
"A bigger ring, you said?" Allen chuckled in apparent disbelief. "No, I think she likes the one she’s got."
Allen and Steinfeld got engaged somewhere on the California coastline in November after first being linked to one another in the spring of 2023. The couple has remained relatively private about their relationship, but Steinfeld made a red carpet appearance with Allen at the NFL Honors last month.
"I’m so grateful for what’s going on in my life and finding the person that I want to share it with," Allen said Wednesday. "When you have that piece figured out, it seems like everything else kind of comes a little bit easier."
Allen finished off one of his most memorable seasons by being named the 2024-2025 NFL MVP.
Despite missing out on the Super Bowl, he combined for 41 touchdowns, including one receiving, with a career-low six interceptions in a 13-win season.
Los Angeles Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford called his former teammate Aaron Donald a "maniac" in the weight room, and he had a story to back up that claim.
Stafford recalled the time when a Make-A-Wish recipient worked out with Donald, and how it all went terribly wrong for the young fan.
"I’ll never forget we had like a Make-A-Wish kid, ‘My dream is to go be with Aaron Donald for a day,’ kinda thing. And thankfully, this kid at that point had beaten the odds and beaten the cancer he had, I believe, and was really on the mend, and it was really cool," Stafford told NFL brothers Jason and Travis Kelce during a recent appearance on "New Heights."
"He came in, and you were like, ‘Oh man, this guy’s like going good.’ High school kid, bigger kid, loved to play football and AD was like, ‘Cool, come work out with me.’ I’m walking by I’m like, ‘Yo, what’s about (to happen).’"
"I’m over there doing like banded something and 30 minutes in and AD’s just ripping curls out. Next thing you know, this kid is puking in the trashcan in the hallway. And I’m like, ‘AD! Can you please like have a little couth, a little understanding.’"
The Make-A-Wish kid was Kyle Frazier, who reposted the clip on social media and chimed in on the story.
"Definitely a workout I will never forget, but you forgot the part where I came back and finished!" Frazier posted on X.
Frazier ended up playing college football at Georgia Southern as an offensive lineman.
Jason Kelce responded to Frazier’s post with praise.
"Puke and Rally! You’re a beast brotha, love everything about this!" Kelce said.
Donald responded with three crying laughing emojis and one facepalm emoji to the "New Heights" Instagram post.
Donald will likely be a first-ballot Hall of Famer, as he was one of the best defensive tackles of all time, recording a remarkable 111 sacks in 154 career games.
Donald made the Pro Bowl every season of his 10-year career, won the defensive player of the year award three times and was an eight-time All-Pro and a Super Bowl champion.
And Donald didn’t slow down his work in the weight room for anyone, not even a Make-A-Wish recipient.
The woman who accused Kansas City Chiefs wideout Xavier Worthy of assaulting her, resulting in his arrest last week, has been granted a protective order by a Texas judge, according to her attorneys.
Worthy, a 2024 first-round draft pick out of Texas and the silver lining in the Chiefs’ Super Bowl loss last month, was arrested in Williamson County on a charge of assault on a family or household member in which their breath was impeded.
Tia Jones, who made the allegation, was granted a protective order against Worthy after the district attorney declined to press charges against the NFL player.
"Ms. Jones has chosen to use her voice to speak up for herself," her attorney, Angelica Cogliano, said in a statement to The Associated Press. "In doing so, she looks forward to the facts and circumstances of that night coming to light through the formal legal process, and getting the justice that she deserves."
Her attorneys added that Jones is "fully cooperating" with law enforcement as they continue to investigate the allegations.
Details of the alleged assault were not immediately known, but Worthy’s attorneys said in a separate statement that the allegation was made after a female living in his home refused to leave when repeatedly asked.
She was allegedly asked to leave "upon discovery of her infidelity."
"She has refused to vacate the residence and made a number of extortive efforts prior to resorting to this baseless allegation against Mr. Worthy," the lawyers' statement said. "The complainant further destroyed a room in the residence, scratched Mr. Worthy's face and ripped out parts of his hair, which there is photographic evidence of. Worthy told law enforcement at the time of the incident he did not want to press charges against the complainant."
Worthy was released Friday, and Williamson County District Attorney Shawn Dick later told the Austin American-Statesman his office had decided not to pursue the case at this time after speaking to multiple witnesses.
He noted that Worthy was cooperating with officials.
The Chiefs said in a statement to Fox News Digital on Saturday, "We are aware and gathering information."
