An independent investigation by an outside law firm found that Burns had received six figures in loans from Michael Awad, according to the Akron Beacon Journal.
The loans began in 2023, after Burns said his house had flooded, and was struggling financially because he hadn’t sold his home in Minnesota. Burns began to pay the $109,000 in loans he had borrowed on Halloween 2023, and paid them off with nine checks over 14 months, according to the investigation.
There was no evidence that Burns paid interest on the loans.
While Burns received the loans from Awad, Awad helped him open a credit card with Hometown Bank. In 2024, Burns failed to make the minimum payments and exceeded the credit card’s limit and was sued by the bank, according to the Akron Beacon Journal.
The bank’s suit against Burns was settled once the former Kent State coach had paid off what he owed.
The loans that Burns received might have violated the state's ethics laws, which prevent state employees from receiving benefits from boosters.
Burns was hired by Kent State prior to the 2023 season and saw little success as head coach. The team went 1-23 during his tenure, and they did not have a win over an FBS team.
Kent State has the longest active losing streak in NCAA Division I football.
New York Yankees second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. was given a fine and one-game suspension after he lashed out at an umpire online and in-person after being ejected following a controversial call in the team’s win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday.
MLB senior vice president of on-field operations Michael Hill announced the decision on Friday, citing a violation of the league’s social media policy.
Chisholm was ejected in the seventh inning after he argued a third strike call from plate umpire John Bacon. After arguing at the plate, Chisholm was thrown out of the game.
According to MLB.com, Chisholm then took to social media to share his difference of opinion. He sent a post on X at around 9:24 p.m. which read, "Not even f---ing close." The post was sent while the game was still going on, and was swiftly deleted.
The post was an apparent violation of Major League Baseball’s social media policy, which prohibits the use of electronic devices during games. According to the policy, "electronic equipment" may not be used 30 minutes prior to the start of a game until its conclusion.
Additionally, the policy prohibits any content "that questions the impartiality of or otherwise denigrates a Major or Minor League umpire." Chisholm’s actions on Thursday night appeared to violate both of those rules.
He was fined an undisclosed amount and was suspended for one-game. Because he appealed the decision, Chisholm was able to play in New York’s 1-0 victory over Tampa Bay on Friday night. He started at second base and went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts.
"I'm a competitor, so when I go out there, and I feel like I'm right, and you're saying something to me that I think doesn't make sense, I'm going to get fired up and be upset," Chisholm said after his ejection.
"I lost my emotions, I lost my cool. So, at the same time, I still got to be able to stay out there and play defense for my team. That's why I'm here."
John Cena and Coy Rhodes had one final confrontation on Friday night in the final "SmackDown" episode before their WrestleMania 41 matchup at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.
Cena and Rhodes traded shots at each other, as they’ve been doing for weeks. For a moment, Rhodes was on the receiving end of some boos from the crowd at the T-Mobile Arena. Cen had a reminder for the "American Nightmare."
"On Sunday to beat you, I don’t have to wrestle," Cena told Rhodes as he chopped him in the head.
Cena then attempted to put Rhodes into his signature Attitude Adjustment maneuver but Rhodes countered and hit the 16-time WWE champion with a Cross Rhodes and left Cena on his back in the middle of the ring.
It was the final message sent before their epic match on Night 2 of WWE’s premier live event.
Rhodes told Fox News Digital in the days leading up to WrestleMania that facing Cena was a "first-time-ever" experience for him because of the turn Cena has made away from the fans.
"I look at a lot of stuff now, like John and my match at WrestleMania 41. I really look at it like it’s the first time ever," Rhodes explained. "John was somebody who came in and, not right away, but he did find his footing quickly in terms of who John Cena was going to be, and he waved that flag and carried his brand very firmly, very in a disciplined manner for as long as he did.
"Really helped pull the wagon at WWE during a transitional period as well. I feel like he’s always been that John for me – good guy or bad guy. You needed to work as hard, if not harder, and you need to get to his level, otherwise he was going to step over you and then leave you in the dust."
Rhodes added that he never would have thought Cena would have turned heel during his career, being that he’d been beloved by fans for so long.
"So, now, looking at the matchup, that’s why I say it feels like a first-time-ever for me, because early in my career, I hadn’t found my footing. I didn’t know who I was," he said. "And now, especially judging from these past several interactions in the ring, I feel like we do know who each other are now. . . . I couldn’t have put it in my wildest dreams that this would be a WrestleMania headline match and main event, especially under the circumstances it’s come under. But that’s the beautiful thing about pro wrestling; it’s too tough to call."
WrestleMania 41 Night 2 is set for Sunday at 7 p.m. ET. Should Cena win, it would be a record-breaking 17th WWE title for him.
This story discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, please contact the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
The agent of former LSU Tigers wide receiver Kyren Lacy took aim at the NFL in a lengthy post released Friday in the wake of Lacy’s apparent suicide, calling out the league for revoking his combine invitation "without acknowledgment or consideration of the facts."
Rocky Arceneaux of Alliance Sports released a scathing statement in the days that followed Lacy’s death. The 24-year-old football player was found dead from a "self-inflicted gunshot wound" after a police chase in Texas on Saturday night.
"Kyren was a special talent, but an even better person. In December, Alliance was blessed to welcome Kyren into our family. His infectious personality and love of life positively affected everyone. Staff and clients alike," Arceneaux began his statement. "He loved football. The fact that it was also going to be a means to provide for his family meant even more. His family was his everything."
Arceneaux then turned his attention to the NFL, accusing the league of "alienating" athletes like Lacy.
"To the NFL, shame on you for revoking Kyren's Combine invitation without acknowledgment or consideration of the facts. I urge you to re-evaluate your processes and provide athletes with the necessary due process before alienating them from their peers and dreams they've worked so hard for. Shame on the investigating agency for being more concerned about public perception and pressure to charge someone – than actually investigating the facts."
Arceneaux cited Lacy’s attorney in saying "there was a high probability the felony charge of negligent homicide would have been declined by a grand jury this past Monday."
Lacy was accused of driving recklessly – speeding and passing in a no-passing zone – when the motorist swerved to avoid Lacy and crashed into another vehicle in December. He fled the scene of the crash without calling for aid, Louisiana State Police said at the time. An arrest warrant was obtained for Lacy for negligent homicide, felony hit-and-run and reckless operation of a vehicle.
A grand jury was reportedly set to hear evidence in the case on Monday.
"Kyren was heartbroken by the tragic loss of Mr. [Herman] Hall. He was willing to adhere to any civil matters, regardless of the Grand Jury's decision. That aside, the system failed us, and we are now mourning the loss of two lives," Arceneaux said.
Lacy had declared for the NFL Draft after leading LSU in touchdowns receiving with nine last season, but his draft stock plummeted following news of the fatal car wreck.
"K2 - You should have had the chance to reach your dream of playing in the NFL, in just a week's time. It hurts that the pressure, public perception, social media bullying – all without having the facts were too much to bear. We hoped to see you flourish as an elite WR in the NFL, but God needed you on his team more. Your memory will never be forgotten, we will not let your death be in vain, and you will not be Mr. Irrelevant," Arceneaux added.
Lacy led law enforcement in Texas on a police chase for miles on Saturday before eventually crashing his car. When deputies with the Harris County Sheriff’s Office removed him from the car in order to take him into custody, they discovered that he was dead from a "self-inflicted gunshot wound."
Fox News Digital’s Ryan Gaydos and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
Seth Rollins said the WrestleMania 41 Night 1 main event between him, CM Punk and Roman Reigns is a battle for the "soul" of the company.
Rollins has feuded with both competitors for a long time. He was in the main event of WrestleMania 40, which saw him and Cody Rhodes defeated by Reigns and The Rock on the first night.
Rollins tried to get a last lick on The Rock on Night 2 of that event, but Reigns prevented that from happening.
The performance Rollins has put on over the last 18 months could go overlooked. He tried to convince Rhodes to challenge him for the world heavyweight championship at WrestleMania 40, but Rhodes declined.
Instead, he lost to Drew McIntyre. He returned to the ring after a short break to attempt to excise some demons in his bitter battle with Punk. A Royal Rumble mishap and Reigns’ involvement in a subsequent steel cage match thwarted those attempts.
While Heyman and Rollins feuded on screen, the WWE Hall of Famer praised "The Visionary" and came around to the notion he’s been the "MVP" for some time.
"To be blunt, and perhaps out of character, proud of Seth Rollins, because Seth Rollins could have easily been the forgotten man in all of this," Heyman told Fox News Digital. "It became, as the internet would joke, as if Roman Reigns and CM Punk are fighting over Paul Heyman who has become the baddie in this situation — I’m the hot girl.
"Seth Rollins could have been the odd man out, could’ve been the opponent for CM Punk and the former partner of Roman Reigns. Instead, in many ways, Seth Rollins has eclipsed us all with the level of his performances opposing Roman Reigns and CM Punk and Paul Heyman in this story. He has upped his game at a shocking level of mobility that I think has caught us all off guard."
Heyman said he was always "proud" of someone who achieved lifelong dreams like Punk getting to the main event of WrestleMania for the first time while Reigns continues his story of being the "Tribal Chief" in a post-Bloodline world.
"At the same time, I admittedly stand in awe across the ring from Seth Rollins, who last year The Rock called the ‘MVP of WrestleMania weekend,’ and I enviously and jealously didn’t like that. And experienced it so up close this year, I have no choice than to agree with him."
Heyman dismissed fans on social media who have failed to give Rollins his flowers, saying he’s seen pro wrestlers fail in the ring and seen praise on social media for them while others spout nonsense while ignoring historical facts.
"When you can find detractors of (Abraham) Lincoln or you can find proponents of people who blatantly suck, at some point you have to say these are not the opinions of those that matter," he said.
On the final "Monday Night Raw" before WrestleMania 41, Rollins stood tall in the ring as he delivered stomps to Punk and Reigns. Punk even took a spear from Reigns.
Heyman was already put through a table last year by the Bloodline faction. Could he see himself taking another finishing move this year?
"Am I prepared for it? I understand the possibility of it and perhaps the probability of it, and I’m hoping to escape the inevitable as I have managed to do for most of my career," he told Fox News Digital. "But if the storyline calls for a stomp or a spear or a GTS or a referee knocking me out, then that’s what the public is gonna get to see."
While speaking with Fox News Digital at WrestleMania After Dark at the LIV Fontainebleau in Las Vegas, Mysterio vowed to unmask him.
"One thousand percent," he said with a smile. "There’s no doubt in my mind that I’m going to do everything I can to take that mask off who that El Grande Americano is."
The two will meet on the first night of WrestleMania 41. Mysterio and Andrade defeated Santos Escobar and Dominik Mysterio in a tag-team match last year. They had some help from Philadelphia Eagles greats Lane Johnson and Jason Kelce.
Mysterio has won at the last two WrestleMania events, defeating his son at WrestleMania 39 too.
Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas is hosting WrestleMania 41 .
She offered some advice to the women of NXT who will compete in matches at this year’s Stand & Deliver and have hopes of making the WrestleMania 42 card in New Orleans next year.
"Give everything you have every single time you step in the ring," Valkyria told Fox News Digital. "I know the Stand & Deliver girls have a big tag match with a shot at the tag championships. We have Tatum Paxley in one corner. So, if I become a double champion I might be in the ring against her."
Valkyria and Paxley bonded during their NXT days, but Paxley has since found a new partner in Gigi Dolin. The two will try to earn a shot at the WWE women’s world tag team championship by coming out as the victors in a four-way tag match, which will occur on the Stand & Deliver kickoff show.
Roxanne Perez and Cora Jade, Meta-Four’s Lash Legend and Jakara Jackson and Jacy Jayne and Fallon Henley are also in the match.
Dakota Kai was a two-time NXT tag team champion when she performed for the brand and was named the 2019 Future Star of NXT. She’s seen time on the main roster, becoming a two-time WWE women’s tag team champion with Iyo Sky.
Kai knows what it takes to perform at Stand & Deliver.
"The women’s division is so stacked right now in NXT. I think it’s just, "Don’t forget why you do this — for the love of it,'" Kai told Fox News Digital. "There’s going to be a lot of ups and downs and things like that. It’s just how it is.
"But as long as you remember why you do it — the love for it — that will get you through anything."
Stand & Deliver begins Saturday at 1 p.m. ET at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The Los Angeles Dodgers' two-way superstar was away from the team for the birth of his first child Friday.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Ohtani was with his wife and on MLB’s paternity list before the Dodgers’ series opener Friday night against the Texas Rangers.
"He and Mamiko are expecting at some point. That’s all I know," Roberts said. "I don’t know when he’s going to come back, and I don’t know when they’re going to have the baby, but obviously they’re together in anticipation."
Ohtani, 30, posted on his Instagram account in late December that he and his 28-year-old wife, a former professional basketball player from his native Japan, were expecting a baby in 2025.
"Can’t wait for the little rookie to join our family soon!" the Dec. 28 post said. It included a photo showing the couple’s beloved dog, Decoy, and a pink ruffled onesie along with baby shoes and a sonogram that was covered by a baby emoji.
Ohtani can miss up to three games while on paternity leave. The Dodgers have a three-game series in Texas before an off day Monday. They play at the Chicago Cubs Tuesday.
It's no secret Bill Belichick runs a tight ship, but his style is apparently rubbing some people in Chapel Hill the wrong way.
Belichick, who turned 73 Wednesday, took the UNC football coaching job in December after the Tar Heels moved on from Mack Brown.
The 2024 football season was Belichick's first away from the sideline in nearly 50 years. He had some interviews but never got a job and eventually took the season off, other than some media appearances.
Belichick has been on the job for about five months, and, according to one reporter who covered Belichick with the New England Patriots, some "everyday employee[s]" aren't fond of what's going on.
"From rumblings I heard — and this is not recent, and this a month or two ago — they’re not loving the Bill Belichick experience. If you’re an everyday employee down there, which is probably what a lot of the people here in 2000 felt when Bill came aboard and said, ‘I don’t know if I like this,' it’s uncomfortable," Tom Curran said on WEEI this week.
Curran's report came after The Athletic highlighted some "notable takeaways" from Belichick's tenure, including treating the program like an NFL team and his 24-year-old girlfriend involvement in operations.
The Athletic recently obtained emails in which Hudson showed concern about fans attacking Belichick and his personal life. Belichick also asked UNC employees that Hudson be copied on emails.
Belichick reportedly kept tabs on some NFL jobs before taking the UNC gig, including the New York Jets. It was also reported Tom Brady and Belichick shared somewhat of an interest, but nothing ever materialized.
A federal judge ruled against Maine state Rep. Laurel Libby Friday in her lawsuit to have her censure in the state legislature overturned. Libby was censured Feb. 15 for a social media post that identified a transgender athlete who won a girls state pole vault title.
The judge who made the ruling is Rhode Island U.S. District Court Judge Melissa DuBose, who was appointed by former President Joe Biden just before he left office in January.
DuBose denied Libby's motion for a preliminary injunction Friday, ruling the process House Speaker Ryan Fecteau used to impose the sanction reflected the will of the majority of Maine House members.
DuBose presided over the case after every district judge in Maine refused to take it.
Judges John C. Nivison, John A. Woodcock, Lance E. Walker, Karen F. Wolf, Stacey D. Neumann and Nancy Torresen signed recusal orders shortly after the case was initially filed. No reason was given.
Libby is "disappointed" by the ruling but plans to appeal it and will take the case to the court of appeals and, potentially, the U.S. Supreme Court.
"I certainly won't leave any stone unturned in getting my constituents their voice and vote back," Libby told Fox News Digital.
Libby represents 9,000 constituents in Maine's 90th district and has not been able to speak or vote on their behalf in the state legislature for 62 days.
That cost her a chance to vote on the state's biannual budget and propose a bill to expand access to mental health resources for residents.
With her censure remaining in place, it will prevent Libby from voting on or speaking on the House floor about a bill that would add trans inclusion in girls sports to the state constitution.
Her colleagues will be voting on the Democratic majority's bill after it passed with a slim simple majority in the House Thursday but will need a two-thirds majority in both chambers before it can go before voters. If passed, it would codify in the state's constitution the Maine Human Rights Act (MHRA), which protects the rights of transgender athletes to compete for sports teams of the opposite sex.
"I will not be able to vote on that," Libby said.
Libby's social media post that prompted the censure thrust the entire state into an active legal battle with President Donald Trump's administration over the issue of trans athletes in girls sports.
The U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the state for its ongoing defiance of Trump's "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports" executive order. Maine has faced federal pressure in the last two months over its refusal to comply, including two federal investigations, a funding freeze by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and now a lawsuit.
The Democratic leadership in the state, led by Gov. Janet Mills, has fought back, filing their own lawsuit against Trump over the funding freeze. Another federal judge has already ruled the USDA must unfreeze the funding.
"I’m happy to go to court and litigate the issues that are being raised in this court complaint," Mills told reporters Thursday.
A survey by the American Parents Coalition found that out of about 600 registered Maine voters, 63% said school sports participation should be based on biological sex, and 66% agreed it is "only fair to restrict women’s sports to biological women."
The poll also found that 60% of residents would support a ballot measure limiting participationinwomen’s and girls sports tobiological females. This included 64% of independents and 66% of parents with kids under age 18.
The WWE Universe made it loud and clear that they support Jey Uso ahead of his attempt at winning the World Heavyweight Championship against Gunther at this weekend's WrestleMania 41.
If it wasn’t clear, fans who packed Brooklyn Bowl Las Vegas for WaleMania on Thursday made their voices heard with ear-popping "yeet" chants throughout the night.
Gunther’s actions have made clear he’s not going to go down easy. He has owned Uso in the ring, and also sent a message with a bloody beatdown of Uso's twin brother Jimmy weeks before the two are set to go 1-on-1 for the championship in Allegiant Stadium on Saturday.
He admitted on Friday to Fox News Digital he was happy to rain on the fans’ parade.
"I enjoy it. I love to p--- on any parade," Gunther said. "I’m the party pooper in this company, and I’m very proud of that. I enjoy doing that.
Gunther won the World Heavyweight Championship over Damian Priest at SummerSlam back in August. One of his only losses in singles competition over the last year came at Crown Jewel against Cody Rhodes, and against Sami Zayn at WrestleMania 40 for the Intercontinental Championship.
Since then, Gunther has proven to be one of the most dominant superstars the WWE roster has to offer.
Uso earned the right to challenge Gunther with his win in the men’s Royal Rumble. He’s only held one singles title in his career, the Intercontinental Championship, which he dropped to Bron Breakker.
Dominik Mysterio will enter WrestleMania 41 with the odds stacked against him as he tries to win the first main-roster singles title of his career in a fatal four-way match for the Intercontinental Championship.
Mysterio will go up against Penta, his Judgment Day stablemate Finn Balor and champion Bron Breakker. He’s had quite a tough time trying to get a leg up on the competition in any of the matches he’s been in with the three competitors.
Rey Mysterio will be on hand to watch Dominick compete. The father and son have been on-screen rivals and even squared off against each other at WrestleMania 39 and 40. Even as the two have been locked in a bitter feud, Rey said he couldn’t be prouder.
"Man, it’s incredible," he told Fox News Digital at LIV Fontainebleau in Las Vegas for WrestleMania After Dark. "Words can’t express how I feel — I try to separate the storyline from how I actually feel as a father. The amount of pride that I feel to see his growth and everything he’s done in such a short amount of time is incredible.
"He must know that I’m very proud of him. I don’t get tired of telling him… The execution and discipline that he has inside the ring and with his peers comes from the raising his mom did. The talent that he has inside the ring, that’s just genetics. It’s been around his whole life, and I think there’s no doubt that he’s meant to be a WWE superstar."
Dominik won a tag-team championship with his father and is a two-time NXT North American champion.
Breakker has held the Intercontinental Championship since Oct. 21, 2024, when he defeated Jey Uso for it.
Paul "Triple H" Levesque, WWE’s chief content officer will be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame on Friday night, and it will be the second time he is a part of the ceremonies.
Levesque first went into the Hall of Fame as a member of the D-Generation X stable in 2019, but at the beginning of the year, WWE executives Nick Khan and Shawn Michaels surprised him with the revelation that he will be honored as a singles competitor, as well.
Paul Heyman was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame before WrestleMania 40 last year and called himself a "Paul Levesque guy." He spoke glowingly about Levesque in an interview with Fox News Digital ahead of the ceremonies.
"The company was in a very unique situation at the time," Heyman said, referring to Vince McMahon’s departure as chairman months before WrestleMania 40 following sexual misconduct allegations and the rise of Khan and Levesque into greater executive roles. "The leadership was still very new. Nick Khan’s reign of running the company was still very new. Paul Levesque’s reign of running the creative was still very new. And this was the first Hall of Fame and WrestleMania completely put together under the oversight and management of Paul Levesque.
"Everyone was looking around waiting for the old administration to come back in and take the board over a second time and that wasn’t going to happen. And someone from within whose voice carries weight in the locker room had to tell everyone else, ‘We’re in a new era, we have new bosses, they’re doing OK — in fact, they’re doing really good. And we should all follow them because, so far, they’ve proven themselves to be worthy of the kingdom that they have inherited."
Heyman said that was the reason why he spoke highly of Levesque during his own Hall of Fame induction speech last year in Philadelphia.
He praised Levesque’s prowess as the company’s creative chief.
"I understand the level of control that position affords a human being, and the manner in which Paul Levesque collaborates creatively with everyone and delegates creatively with those who’ve earned his respect is mind-boggingly different than anybody else I’ve ever worked with, including outside of this industry," Heyman said, adding the closest comparison is having watched Rick Rubin produce music.
"So, for him to get his moment, both as a talent and also, I’d suggest, for what he’s doing now, is richly deserved, long overdue and happy for him and proud of him."
MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred and President Donald Trump met at the White House Wednesday, MLB confirmed to Fox News Digital.
What Manfred and Trump discussed is unclear. The Washington Post was the first to report on the meeting.
"President Trump is a longtime fan of baseball. As he has done in the past, Commissioner Manfred was pleased to visit the White House again to discuss issues pertaining to baseball with the president," an MLB spokesperson told Fox News Digital of the visit.
The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.
One thing Trump and Manfred may have discussed is the subject of Pete Rose's Hall of Fame candidacy. Trump said he would pardon Rose posthumously after he died at age 83 in September 2024.
"Major League Baseball didn’t have the courage or decency to put the late, great, Pete Rose, also known as ‘Charlie Hustle,’ into the Baseball Hall of fame. Now he is dead, will never experience the thrill of being selected, even though he was a FAR BETTER PLAYER than most of those who made it, and can only be named posthumously. WHAT A SHAME!" Trump posted to Truth Social in February.
"Anyway, over the next few weeks I will be signing a complete PARDON of Pete Rose, who shouldn’t have been gambling on baseball, but only bet on HIS TEAM WINNING. He never betted against himself, or the other team. He had the most hits, by far, in baseball history, and won more games than anyone in sports history. Baseball, which is dying all over the place, should get off its fat, lazy a--, and elect Pete Rose, even though far too late, into the Baseball Hall of Fame!"
Rose is MLB’s hit king with 4,256 career hits. He was the National League MVP in 1974 and was a 17-time All-Star, a three-time World Series champion and a three-time batting champion.
However, the Cincinnati Reds star became a polarizing figure when news of his gambling on games rocked the sports world. Rose received a lifetime ban from MLB in 1989.
The meeting between Trump and Manfred also comes after a feature story about Jackie Robinson's military service was briefly taken down from the Department of Defense's website for a day before being restored.
MLB celebrated Jackie Robinson Tuesday, April 15, the 78th anniversary of Robinson breaking MLB’s color barrier.
A school board meeting in California Thursday night included protesters chanting "Hail Satan!" in support of transgender athletes in girls sports.
The Chino Valley Unified School District (CVUSD) board meeting in San Bernardino County featured opposing protesters delivering impassioned speeches on the issue, and many speeches cited biblical scripture. At one point, police escorted a woman who was there to oppose trans inclusion, citing the Bible.
Footage from the meeting shows several protesters there to support trans inclusion, chanting "Hail Satan!"
"Yes, public comments did include speakers saying, ‘Hail Satan,’" the school district said in a statement.
CVUSD school board President Sonja Shaw condemned the protesters's chants.
"At last night’s board meeting, we passed several pro-parent and pro-female athlete resolutions that provide measures that protect girls sports and uphold the fundamental rights of parents to raise and guide their children without government interference or radical agendas," Shaw told Fox News Digital.
"In response, a small but loud group of outside agitators descended on our meeting, screaming, cussing and even chanting phrases like ‘Hail Satan’ all in front of families and children.
"According to what was shared with me from their own social media posts, they tried to rally tons of outside groups to overwhelm our district, but what a complete embarrassment. That’s all they got? A handful of angry, disruptive individuals trying to bully a community that’s working to protect kids and ensure that education remains focused on learning, not divisive ideologies."
Shaw added that she received a death threat via email in the days leading up to the meeting in response to her stance opposing trans inclusion in girls sports.
"Just a few days before this meeting, I received a violent and graphic death threat in my email. This is the level of hatred and evil we’re up against. But no threat, no mob and no political machine will scare me into silence," Shaw said.
Multiple parents who attended the meeting told Fox News Digital what they witnessed.
"What we witnessed was deeply unsettling — adults behaving in a sadistic and hateful way, all in the name of equality," said Christina Salazar, who's daughter Isabel's speech at the meeting was interrupted by the chants.
"There was even a teacher from my daughter’s school who was interrupting the meeting yelling and said ‘Hail Satan’ as he walked out and flipped everyone off."
Fellow San Bernardino County mother Nichole Vicario claims some of the opposing protesters identify as "Satanists."
"I also witnessed extreme and inappropriate behavior from the opposing side. Some individuals shouted "Hail Satan," identified themselves as Satanists and used vulgar, aggressive language throughout the meeting, even with children present," Vicario said.
"Despite the chaos, the board remained composed and strong, clearly committed to protecting girls sports, not just for Chino Valley, but as a stand for girls across California and potentially the entire country."
The state has seen multiple chaotic occurrences at school board meetings in recent months related to debates over trans athlete inclusion.
During a Lucia Mar Unified School District (LMUSD) board meeting Wednesday, a high school junior track athlete at Arroyo Grande High School named Celeste Diest cried during a speech recounting her experience of having to change in front of a biological male trans athlete before practice while that athlete allegedly watched her undress. But her speech was interrupted when she was told to "wrap it up" by the board president.
After her speech, the audience erupted in a roaring applause, and the board president began slamming her gavel down to try and temper the growing applause, but the cheers only got louder after that.
In December, a Riverside Unified School District board meeting drew national attention and massive opposing protests outside the meeting. Multiple witnesses from the meeting previously told Fox News Digital pro-trans activists at the event were harassing the anti-trans protesters on the other side and disrupting a women's prayer group during a prayer circle prior to the meeting.
The prayer group, Young Women for America (YWA)'s Inland Empire chapter in California, alleged pro-transgender activists showered them with insults.
"Members of the pro-LGBTQ groups started heckling and harassing the people in line who were speaking in opposition of their values. Some of these adult protesters were even coming up to the young girls that were going to be speaking and were yelling at them close to their face," YWA Inland Empire Chapter President Tori Hitchcock alleged.
A new bipartisan survey by the Public Policy Institute of California found the majority of California residents oppose biological male trans athletes competing in women's sports.
"Most Californians support requiring transgender athletes to compete on teams matching the sex they were assigned at birth," the poll stated.
"Solid majorities of adults (65%) and likely voters (64%) support requiring that transgender athletes compete on teams that match the sex they were assigned at birth, not the gender they identify with. An overwhelming majority of public school parents (71%) support such a requirement."
The Trump administration announced Monday it would be freezing $2.2 billion in multi-year grants and contracts for Harvard University after university President Alan M. Garber announced the same day the school would not be complying with the Trump administration's demands to combat antisemitism.
In response, Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr wore a Harvard basketball shirt for a news conference Tuesday night.
"Is something going on?" he jokingly asked, drawing laughter from the media.
"[Harvard coach] Tommy Amaker is a friend of mine. He sent me this shirt, and it felt like a great day to wear it," Kerr added. "I believe in academic freedom. I believe it’s crucial for all of our institutions to be able to handle their own business the way they want to, and they should not be shaken down and told what to teach, what to say, by our government. That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard, but it's kind of par for the course right now. This is me supporting Harvard.
"Way to go, way to stand up to the bully."
Kerr, whose father Malcolm was a professor in the Middle East and was assassinated in 1984, has long opposed Trump. Kerr endorsed Kamala Harris for the 2024 election.
Kerr spoke to reporters after his Warriors defeated the Memphis Grizzlies in the play-in tournament to earn the seventh seed in the Western Conference.
Garber said the federal government has threatened partnerships with several universities, including Harvard, over accusations of antisemitism on campuses. He also noted that the Trump administration issued an updated and expanded list of demands, saying if the school plans to maintain a financial relationship with the federal government, it must comply.
"It makes clear that the intention is not to work with us to address antisemitism in a cooperative and constructive manner," Garber wrote. "We have informed the administration through our legal counsel that we will not accept their proposed agreement."
Earlier this month, a federal antisemitism task force announced a review of Harvard's federal grants and contracts, worth nearly $9 billion, as the university faces an investigation into campus antisemitism.
Fox News' Greg Wehner, CB Cotton, Alexis McAdams and Hanna Panreck contributed to this report.
In December, six weeks after his stroke, Popovich had not ruled out a comeback, saying tongue-in-cheek, "No one is more excited to see me return to the bench than the talented individuals who have been leading my rehabilitation process. They’ve quickly learned that I’m less coachable."
Popovich confirmed in late February he would not return for the rest of the season.
"Mitch Johnson and his staff have done a wonderful job, and the resolve and professionalism the players have shown, sticking together during a challenging season, has been outstanding," he said in a statement at the time. "I will continue to focus on my health with the hope that I can return to coaching in the future."
Popovich is the NBA’s career leader with 1,401 victories and another 170 postseason wins while winning five NBA titles. He is in his 29th season, all with San Antonio. The team missed the playoffs this year.
Fox News' Ryan Gaydos and Paulina Dedaj contributed to this report.
A new bipartisan survey by the Public Policy Institute of California found the majority of California residents oppose biological male trans athletes competing in women's sports.
"Most Californians support requiring transgender athletes to compete on teams matching the sex they were assigned at birth," the poll stated.
"Solid majorities of adults (65%) and likely voters (64%) support requiring that transgender athletes compete on teams that match the sex they were assigned at birth, not the gender they identify with. An overwhelming majority of public school parents (71%) support such a requirement."
California Gov. Gavin Newsom admitted trans athletes competing in girls sports is "deeply unfair" during an episode of his podcast last month but defended allowing it out of empathy for the transgender population.
The state was one of the first to defy President Donald Trump's "Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports" executive order when he signed it Feb. 5.
The California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) said it will continue to follow the state's law that allows athletes to participate as whichever gender they identify as, a spokesperson told Fox News Digital.
"The CIF provides students with the opportunity to belong, connect, and compete in education-based experiences in compliance with California law [Education Code section 221.5. (f)] which permits students to participate in school programs and activities, including athletic teams and competitions, consistent with the student’s gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on the student’s records," a CIF statement said.
A law, AB 1266, has been in effect since 2014 and gives California students at scholastic and collegiate levels the right to "participate in sex-segregated school programs and activities, including athletic teams and competitions, and use facilities consistent with his or her gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on the pupil’s records."
California Code of Regulations section 4910(k) defines gender as "a person’s actual sex or perceived sex and includes a person’s perceived identity, appearance or behavior, whether or not that identity, appearance, or behavior is different from that traditionally associated with a person’s sex at birth."
On April 1, the state assembly and its Democratic majority struck down two bills that would have amended the laws to only allow student-athletes to compete based on their biological sex.
U.S. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon served a warning to Newsom to comply with Trump's order barring transgender athletes from competing in women’s sports. The warning and investigation come after California made itself the first "sanctuary" state in the nation for transgender minors and has engaged in a multi-year battle with school districts over their notification policies.
"Allowing participation in sex-separated activities based on 'gender identity' places schools at risk of Title IX violations and loss of federal funding. As Governor, you have a duty to inform California school districts of this risk," McMahon wrote in the letter.
"As Secretary of Education, I am officially asking you to inform this Department whether you will remind schools in California to comply with federal law by protecting sex-separated spaces and activities. I am also officially asking you to publicly assure parents that California teachers will not facilitate the fantasy of ‘gender transitions’ for their children."
LeBron James' endorsement of Kamala Harris last year came with an added bonus for him.
Records show that on Jan. 28 the former vice president paid James' entertainment company $50,000 for "campaign event production."
The NBA's all-time leading scorer has long been critical of President Donald Trump, and James urged his followers to "vote Kamala Harris" the week before the election with a video that garnered criticism for out-of-context clips.
James and his longtime business partner, Maverick Carter, founded the company, Springhill Entertainment, in 2020.
"What are we even talking about here?? When I think about my kids and my family and how they will grow up, the choice is clear to me. VOTE KAMALA HARRIS!!!" James posted on X.
With the post, James shared a video that featured negative headlines about Trump's rally at Madison Square Garden and a clip of Tony Hinchcliffe saying he and a Black person in the crowd carved watermelons. The video also features other headlines that said Trump spewed "nazi rhetoric" and clips of African Americans being assaulted.
Commenters said the clips were taken out of context and ripped James, but he doubled down days later.
"Having a daughter, having a wife, having a mother and things of that nature, what (Harris) believes in when it comes to women’s rights that’s what the future with my kids and where I see our country should be. I feel like that endorsement is only right. I mean, come on – you guys know me. It damn sure wasn’t going the other way," he said at the time.
Carter and James have been linked since high school. The two played basketball at St. Vincent-St. Mary High School in Akron, Ohio, and are also minority owners of the Boston Red Sox and the English soccer club Liverpool.
When former President Joe Biden decided on Harris as his running mate in 2020, James voiced support.
"Congrats and well deserved Sen. Kamala Harris!! Love to see and support it! Appreciate you JB," he wrote at the time.
The four-time MVP endorsed Hillary Clinton for president during the 2016 election and campaigned for her in Ohio while he was still with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
James previously called Trump a "bum" when Trump rescinded a White House invite to Stephen Curry.
"Going to White House was a great honor until you showed up!" he said at the time.
Trump also once said it "wasn't easy" to make James "look smart."
When Trump said he was losing interest in the NBA after players knelt during the national anthem, James said, "I really don't think the basketball community are sad about losing his viewership."
LSU gymnast and social media star Olivia "Livvy" Dunne announced the end of her gymnastics career in a social media post Thursday after the Tigers failed to successfully defend their NCAA championship title.
The fifth-year senior shared a post on social media after LSU finished third in the NCAA semfinals at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas, Thursday.
"[Peace] out gymnastics it’s been real… and of course forever LSU," she said in a post on X.
Dunne, 22, did not compete this week after revealing in an Instagram post last month that she had been sidelined with an "avulsion fracture of my patella."
"It absolutely breaks my heart not to get the opportunity to compete in the (Pete Maravich Assembly Center) one last time," Dunne wrote at the time.
The New Jersey native was injured after returning for her fifth year at LSU. She had an extra year of eligibility due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Dunne, who is dating Pittsburgh Pirates pitching sensation Paul Skenes, was one of the NCAA's top NIL earners and boasted millions of followers across several social media platforms. She played a role in helping LSU win its first NCAA title last year.
While LSU failed to defend its title as a No. 1 seed, Utah clinched its fifth straight Final Four appearance at the NCAA women’s gymnastics championship. It joins UCLA, Oklahoma and Missouri.
