January 10, 2026 4:37 am
Brooks Koepka is taking the first step toward possibly rejoining the PGA Tour. The AP has confirmed Koepka has applied for reinstatement. This comes just two weeks after LIV Golf announced the five-time major champion was leaving the Saudi-funded league with one year remaining on his contract. The next step belongs to the PGA Tour. The tour and Koepka’s manager have declined to comment. Among the unknowns is what kind of discipline Koepka would face for defecting from the PGA Tour in June 2022. The tour typically does not disclose disciplinary matter. The one-year ban has applied only to nonmembers.
January 9, 2026 4:37 am
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Miami will head back home for a shot at its first national championship since 2001 after beating Mississippi 31-27 in an exhilarating College Football Playoff semifinal at the Fiesta Bowl. Carson Beck scrambled for a 3-yard touchdown with 18 seconds left for the go-ahead score. He threw for 268 yards and two touchdowns with an interception. Trinidad Chambliss had put Ole Miss ahead with a 24-yard touchdown pass to Dae’Quan Wright with 3:13 left. The 10th-ranked Hurricanes didn’t play in the Atlantic Coast Conference title game but proved they belong in the CFP. They will face either top-ranked Indiana or Oregon for the national title.
January 9, 2026 4:34 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Evgeni Malkin scored a power-play goal in his return from an upper-body injury and the Pittsburgh Penguins beat the New Jersey Devils 4-1 on Thursday night for their sixth straight victory. Erik Karlsson pushed his career-best home points streak to nine games with a goal, while Connor Dewar and Blake Lizotte also scored for Pittsburgh. Sidney Crosby extended his points streak to eight with two assists and surpassed Wayne Gretzky for the second-most assists with one franchise in NHL history. Stuart Skinner made 28 saves for the Penguins.
January 9, 2026 4:36 am
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Pittsburgh offensive coordinator Arthur Smith confirmed Thursday that the Tennessee Titans have reached out to interview him for their head coach opening. Smith said he’s only focused on his current job and the future is a distraction right now. Smith coached for the Titans from 2011 when he started as a quality control assistant up to offensive coordinator in 2019 under four different head coaches. He left after the 2020 season to be head coach of the Atlanta Falcons where he went 21-30 in three seasons. The Titans were the first NFL team to fire a coach in October and now are among eight looking for a new coach.
January 9, 2026 2:36 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Ryan O’Hearn is a Pittsburgh Pirate. The veteran first baseman and outfielder has signed two-year deal with Pittsburgh worth $29 million. This is the Pirates’ first multi-year free agent agreement in nearly a decade. O’Hearn is coming off his best season, hitting .281 with 17 home runs and 63 RBIs in 2025. He made the All-Star team for the first time while playing for Baltimore and San Diego. This move follows Pittsburgh’s acquisition of two-time All-Star second baseman Brandon Lowe from Tampa Bay as the Pirates try to build an offense to help out a pitching staff led by reigning Cy Young Award winner Paul Skenes.
January 8, 2026 4:30 am
LAS VEGAS (AP) — The NFL playoffs could see an unusual number of road favorites this weekend. As of Wednesday, four road teams are favored at BetMGM Sportsbook. Green Bay is a narrow favorite at Chicago, and the same is true for Buffalo at Jacksonville. That means there’s a chance those road teams won’t be favored by kickoff. The Los Angeles Rams are bigger favorites at Carolina, and Houston is favored at Pittsburgh. There were only three road favorites all of last postseason, according to Sportradar. And even in the games this weekend where the home team is favored, the lines aren’t that big.
January 8, 2026 4:32 am
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Ty Simpson has declared for the NFL draft. Simpson leaves Alabama after one season as the Crimson Tide’s starting quarterback. The 6-foot-2, 208-pound Simpson could be one of the top quarterbacks drafted in April. Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza is seen as the likely No. 1 selection. Simpson threw for 3,567 yards and completed 64.5% of his passes this season. He threw for 28 touchdowns with five interceptions, and he ran for two scores. Alabama lost to Mendoza and top-ranked Indiana in the Rose Bowl. Simpson suffered a cracked rib that knocked him out of that game.
January 8, 2026 4:31 am
Hockey is set to be a highlight at the Winter Olympics, with NHL players returning for the first time since 2014 and top women’s players competing for the eighth time. The main arena will feature smaller ice than NHL players are used to. North American teams are the ones to beat, with stars like Sidney Crosby and Hilary Knight aiming for gold. Russia is barred from hockey due to the war in Ukraine, sidelining top players like Alex Ovechkin.
January 7, 2026 2:36 am
OWINGS MILLS, Md. (AP) — John Harbaugh has been fired after 18 seasons as the Baltimore Ravens’ coach. Owner Steve Bisciotti said Tuesday relieved Harbaugh of his duties after the Ravens were one of the league’s most disappointing teams this season. They went 8-9 and missed the playoffs after entering Week 1 as one of the Super Bowl favorites. Baltimore’s season ended Sunday night when Tyler Loop missed a last-second field-goal attmpt, allowing Pittsburgh to hold on for a 26-24 victory in the game that decided the AFC North title.
January 7, 2026 4:24 am
A team official says coordinators Kliff Kingsbury and Joe Whitt Jr. are both gone from head coach Dan Quinn’s staff with the Washington Commanders after a 5-12 season. Kingsbury, the offensive coordinator, and Whitt, who had been in charge of the defense until being stripped of play-calling duties during the season, arrived in Washington with Quinn before the 2024 season. Quinn and Kingsbury mutually agreed to part ways, according to the person who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the staff changes hadn’t been announced. Whitt was dismissed. Bobby Johnson is out as Washington’s offensive line coach, too.
