April 24, 2025 4:26 am
GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — The main question everyone is asking ahead of the first round of the NFL draft on Thursday night: Where is Colorado quarterback Shedeur Sanders going? They’re not just debating it on television and sports radio. Even casual football fans in town for other business are wondering which team is going to pick “Prime Time’s” son. That was a discussion among a group sitting at a restaurant near Lambeau Field on Wednesday. In a draft loaded with talented players, Sanders has dominated the conversation in the days leading up to it.
April 24, 2025 4:26 am
CHICAGO (AP) — Steve McMichael, a star defensive tackle on the Chicago Bears’ famed 1985 Super Bowl championship team, has died following a battle with ALS. He was 67. McMichael’s publicist, Betsy Shepherd, told The Associated Press that he died Wednesday afternoon. McMichael had a larger-than-life personality that made him a fixture in the Windy City for decades and a natural for professional wrestling. He was a two-time All-Pro and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2024. He ranks second to Richard Dent on the Bears’ career sacks list. McMichael revealed in April 2021 that he was battling ALS.
April 24, 2025 4:29 am
The judge overseeing the sprawling $2.8 billion antitrust lawsuit settlement involving the NCAA and the nation’s five largest conferences has delayed final approval of the plan until it is modified to address concerns about roster limits. U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken signaled she is ready to approve the rest of the settlement but wants both sides to come up with a way to not harm current athletes who will lose their spots on teams. The settlement calls for scholarship limits to be replaced by roster limits. Some attorneys argued that Wilken’s order could throw college sports into chaos.
April 23, 2025 4:24 am
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Andrew McCutchen hit a three-run homer and the Pittsburgh Pirates had 18 hits for the first time in two years in a 9-3 win over the Los Angeles Angels that stopped a three-game losing streak. Bryan Reynolds and Isiah Kiner-Falefa each had three hits with two RBIs as the Pirates won the opener of a three-game series. The 18 hits were the Pirates’ most since April 19, 2023, at Colorado. Pirates starter Bailey Falter left after four innings with lower back tightness. Chase Shugart pitched two hitless innings with three strikeouts to win his first major league decision.
April 23, 2025 4:29 am
The NHL playoffs are off to a heavy-hitting start. Teams are laying nearly 80 hits a game early in the first round after the average was just over 40 during the regular season. Alex Ovechkin and the Washington Capitals are leading the way in that department and in their series against the Montreal Canadiens after a concerted effort to finish checks in Game 1. The Colorado Avalanche and Dallas Stars have not been shy about physicality and are even at a game apiece. The Los Angeles Kings took a series lead on Edmonton thanks to Phillip Danault’s last-minute goal.
April 22, 2025 4:24 am
CRANBERRY TOWNSHIP, Pa. (AP) — Pittsburgh Penguins general manager Kyle Dubas believes better days are ahead. The Penguins are sitting out the Stanley Cup playoffs for a third straight year thanks to struggles both on defense and in net. Dubas said while Pittsburgh remains in a transitional phase at the NHL level, the organization has done a good job collecting draft picks and acquiring young prospects that could one day contribute. While Dubas declined to put a timeline on when Pittsburgh might return to contention, he said the goal remains to do so before longtime captain Sidney Crosby retires. The 37-year-old Crosby finished with 91 points in his 20th season.
April 22, 2025 4:25 am
WASHINGTON (AP) — Alex Ovechkin added another accomplishment to his illustrious career just over two weeks since breaking Wayne Gretzky’s record for the most goals in NHL history. Ovechkin scored his first overtime goal in the Stanley Cup Playoffs to give the Washington Capitals a victory over the Montreal Canadiens in Game 1 of their first-round series on Monday night. He went his first 44 playoff games over 15 previous appearances without doing that. Ovechkin scored twice to end his personal postseason drought and had a team-leading seven hits.
April 22, 2025 4:29 am
Duke star Cooper Flagg is headed to the NBA as the favorite to be the No. 1 overall draft pick. The program announced Flagg’s move in a social media post Monday. That came after a lone college season that saw the 18-year-old become only the fourth freshman named as The Associated Press national player of the year while leading the Blue Devils to the Final Four. The 6-foot-9, 205-pound forward from Newport, Maine, averaged 19.2 points, 7.5 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.4 blocks and 1.4 steals to lead Duke in each category.
April 22, 2025 4:28 am
ROSEVILLE, Minn. (AP) — Flag football participation by girls has continued to spike across the country, with the sport’s inclusion in the Summer Olympics lineup for Los Angeles in 2028 serving as the most recent bump. The college level is the natural place for the next surge of growth. Augustana University in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, is one of seven NCAA schools fielding a club team this spring in a league launched with $140,000 and logistical support from the Minnesota Vikings. The championship tournament is this weekend. More than 100 higher-educational institutions are currently offering women’s flag football as a varsity or club sport.
April 21, 2025 4:44 am
PITTSBURGH (AP) — Steven Kwan and Kyle Manzardo hit two-run homers and Manzardo added a sacrifice fly in the 10th to rally the Cleveland Guardians to a 5-4 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates for a three-game sweep. Manzardo drove in Jhonkensy Noel, who started the inning at second, with a one-out fly to left off Dennis Santana (0-1). The Pirates had two on in the 10th after Joey Cantillo walked Joey Bart leading off on four pitches. But Oneil Cruz swung at the first pitch and hit into a double play and Enmanuel Valdez flied out for Cantillo’s first career save. The Pirates (8-15) rallied for three runs in the ninth off Emmanuel Clase (3-0), who was going for his third straight save in the series.
