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American forward Folarin Balogun took less than one minute to give Monaco the lead against Paris Saint-Germain in their Champions League playoff on Tuesday, and added a second goal less than midway through the first half. There was only 55 seconds on the clock at Stade Louis II when Balogun headed in a precise cross from the left by Aleksandr Golovin. Balogun scored again to make it 2-0 in the 18th when PSG lost the ball and Maghnes Akliouche threaded a fine pass behind the defense for Balogun to fire confidently past hesitant goalkeeper Matvei Safonov. PSG was under some pressure heading into the game after a sixth defeat of the season on Friday led to an outburst by star striker Ousmane Dembele questioning the attitude of his teammates. The return leg is next Wednesday at Parc des Princes, with the winner advancing to the last 16. PSG beat Brest 10-0 on aggregate in the playoffs last season. Reporting by The Associated Press.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

Welcome to February in men’s college basketball, where momentum can build or break in a matter of days. The Iowa State Cyclones are surging in Mike DeCourcy’s latest NCAA Tournament projections after a statement week that included a 70-67 win over the No. 2-ranked Houston Cougars — sealed by a 17-4 closing run — and a dominant 74-56 rout of No. 9 Kansas. Two top-10 victories in three days have elevated the Cyclones to a No. 2 seed in this week’s updated bracket forecast. Meanwhile, Tom Izzo’s Michigan State Spartans are sliding the other direction. A 92-71 loss to unranked Wisconsin — their third defeat in four games — dropped the Spartans to the 4-line in DeCourcy’s latest projections. As the 2025-26 regular season quickly winds down, DeCourcy shares his latest NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament projections. EAST REGION SOUTH REGION MIDWEST REGION WEST REGION And it’s never too early to check in on the bubble. According to DeCourcy’s projections, Auburn, UCLA, Indiana and Santa Clara are the last four teams in the tournament, while New Mexico, VCU, Missouri and Virginia Tech are the first four out. As for conference representation, the SEC and the Big Ten lead the way with 10 teams each, while the ACC and the Big 12 have eight teams in DeCourcy’s latest tournament projections. The Big East and the West Coast have three teams represented, while the Mountain West has two teams. Selection Sunday is less than one month away, and these projections will inevitably evolve. For now, DeCourcy’s latest bracket forecast offers a clear snapshot of who’s rising, who’s falling and which programs are already building the résumés they’ll need when March arrives.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

The 2026 UFL season is set to kick off on Friday, March 27, and it won’t be like anything you’ve seen before. Football fans are buzzing about this season’s new teams, new coaches, new players and new home games themes. That’s not the only change, with teams dropping their brand-new uniforms for the upcoming 2026 campaign. Some teams’ threads got a few minor updates, while other teams overhauled their designs entirely. New Era, Adidas, and NOBULL are the official league brand partners for the 2026 season. New Era will provide all the team game jerseys and league headgear, while Adidas will provide game shoes and gloves for all 43 games. NOBULL, the league’s exclusive training footwear partner, will outfit every player and coach with premium footwear and apparel to be worn throughout the season. The brand’s logo will be featured on all UFL team game jerseys. That said, here are the new uniforms for all eight teams for the 2026 UFL season: Birmingham Stallions Home Uniforms: GoldRoad Uniforms: White The three-time spring football champion Stallions are introducing a refreshed, modernized uniform this season. They’ll have a gold home uniform showcasing “Stallions” across the front and a white road jersey with gold and garnet accents that features “Birmingham” across the chest. The helmet is updated to a deep cardinal red. “A uniform empowers a player, and the Stallions’ new uniforms will command a new era, a new season — one where we are ready to regain a championship for Birmingham,” head coach AJ McCarron said. Columbus Aviators Home Uniforms: Navy BlueRoad Uniforms: White The Aviators’ 2026 uniforms reflect the team’s spirit to “challenge, innovate and conquer the unimaginable.” There are two editions: deep navy home jerseys that are symbolic of Ohio’s air and space trailblazers and crisp white jerseys for road games. Side pant striping draws from the club’s logo and propeller elements. The blue helmet, inspired by open skies, completes the look. DC Defenders Home Uniforms: RedRoad Uniforms: White The defending UFL champions are signaling a new era of confidence, connection and power with their new uniforms. In both the home and away versions, the striping is representative of the striping on the Washington, D.C. flag, while the stars are incorporated throughout the design. “Every thread, every stripe, and every detail of these uniforms was designed to embody what it means to play for DC,” head coach Shannon Harris said. “Our players wear more than a uniform — they wear the grit, courage, and pride of the city. Shields up. Defend the District.” It was important for the Defenders not to alter the previous designs but to lean into and celebrate the past uniforms and their connections to their history, with the team having roots dating back to the league’s launch in 2024. “As defending champions, we’re not just playing for wins — we’re playing for the city,” said Harris. “From the Potomac to the stands, this uniform captures the passion and energy of our fans, connects our community and inspires our players to rise when called. This is DC — where the bold meet the brave.” Dallas Renegades Home Uniforms: BlueRoad Uniforms: White The Renegades are signaling a new era of resilience, determination, empowerment and independence this season. The 2026 uniforms incorporate iconic elements from previous seasons but with a refreshed look. The home and away uniforms feature bold pops of red throughout via updated shoulder and pant striping. Home jerseys feature the team name front and center, while the away jerseys proudly feature the city name. The helmet is now an all-black design. “Our new uniforms represent exactly who we are and where we’re headed,” head coach Rick Neuheisel said. “They honor the toughness and identity this team has built since day one, but they also signal a new era in Frisco. The bright blue, the bold red accents, and that all-black helmet bring an edge and intensity that matches how we plan to play — fast, physical, and fearless. “When our players step onto the field, I want them to feel confident, empowered and ready to go Full Throttle. These uniforms don’t just look sharp — they make a statement about the standard we’re setting for 2026.” Houston Gamblers Home Uniforms: BlackRoad Uniforms: White The Gamblers’ new 2026 uniforms symbolize the beginning of a new era that represents renewed energy and steadfast resilience while continuing to embody the swagger, strength and resilience of Houston. The team played as the Gamblers in the legacy USFL (2022-23) before being rebranded to the Roughnecks upon joining the UFL (2024-25). Now, the team is reverting to their original name, the Gamblers, for the 2026 season. The new uniforms feature sleek black helmets, a reimagined logo, a bold spade motif running down the pants and a sleeve patch pays tribute to Houston’s spirit. “These uniforms represent exactly who we are and where we’re headed,” head coach Kevin Sumlin said. “They capture the swagger, toughness and resilience of Houston while honoring the proud history of the Gamblers. The reimagined logo and spade detail reflect confidence, high stakes and a mindset that we’re all in every time we take the field. When our players step into Shell Energy Stadium this season, they’ll do it wearing something that symbolizes belief in this city, belief in each other and a commitment to competing at the highest level.” Louisville Kings Home Uniforms: Dark GreenRoad Uniforms: Silver The Kings are focusing on uplifting the legacy of Louisville in their 2026 uniform designs, which feature a dark green and lime look at home and another with silver and pops of lime on the road. The fleur-de-lis accent and diamond motifs, timeless emblems of the city, are proudly displayed on the shoulder and across the pants. “It’s time to suit up,” head coach Chris Redman said. “The Kings’ new uniforms embody the power and determination that our team will take to the field. We proudly play for Louisville, and our new uniforms are a great nod to our city — rich in culture and nobility.” Orlando Storm Home Uniforms: BlackRoad Uniforms: White Orlando’s inaugural uniforms are designed to embody power, intensity and controlled chaos — the calm before the storm. Both uniform versions feature storm-driven shoulder elements and lightning-inspired pant piping cuts. Dark gray helmets, stripped to the essential logo, perfectly compliment the gray, purple and electric orange color palette. St. Louis Battlehawks Home Uniforms: BlueRoad Uniforms: Silver The Battlehawks are introducing a modernized design that builds on the franchise’s most recognizable elements. St. Louis’ iconic Gateway Arch is featured more prominently in this year’s design, while the Battlehawks mark appears on the sleeve. Home jerseys feature “Battlehawks” across the chest, while the away jerseys proudly have “STL” front and center. The helmet has been updated with a darker finish to add depth and edge.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

The top 25 rankings are important for understanding just who is killing it in college basketball, but we can go deeper — all the way to the bubble and beyond. The NCAA Evaluation Tool, or NET, is a rankings system used in Division I basketball to help figure out which teams are going to participate in March Madness. As the NCAA puts it, NET “takes into account game results, strength of schedule, game location, net offensive and defensive efficiency, and the quality of wins and losses,” the latter of which is determined by placing every Division I matchup into different quadrants, ranked 1 through 4, with 1 being the strongest teams and 4 the weakest — Quads aren’t just determined by record, but also whether a game was played at home, on the road or at a neutral site. Using NET, we can get a sense of which teams are the best at a given moment, as well as which ones are on the bubble for selection in March. While updated daily by the NCAA, we’ll track changes weekly. With that, here are the top 10 men’s college basketball teams through Feb. 16, according to NET. The Top 10 10. UConn (previous: 8) UConn is still winning, having lost just two games this season, but it’s just not winning by enough to keep its spot in NET, never mind to move up. The Huskies’ adjusted Net Rating, via KenPom, is just 24th: since NET incorporates offensive and defensive ratings as well as strength of schedule, UConn is in a tough spot between facing Big East teams that aren’t particularly well-regarded, and then winning, but usually just by a few buckets. If Nebraska had one more road win or Quad 1 victory, the Husker might even be in this spot instead of the Huskies. 9. Florida (previous: 9) Florida remains in 9th after picking up wins against Georgia and Kentucky since last time in. Florida didn’t do anything wrong with those wins, it just was less impressive than some of the competition ahead of it, so here the Gators stick for another week. [2026 NCAA Tournament Projections: Iowa State Surges, Michigan State Falls] 8. Purdue (previous: 10) Purdue defeated top-10 Nebraska in overtime and followed that up with a 21-point victory over Iowa, which came into the week 20th in NET. As said above, Florida didn’t do anything wrong — Purdue was just extremely back on track after a tough end to the previous month. 7. Gonzaga (previous: 7) Gonzaga might have woken up a bit after its shocking loss to Portland, as it beat Oregon State by 20 on Feb. 7, then as far as this week’s calculations are concerned downed both Washington State and Santa Clara — the last of those is particularly meaningful, since the Broncos were actually a game up on the Bulldogs in the West Coast Conference standings before this matchup, as well as a near top-40 team in NET. [Get to Know a Mid-Major: West Coast Conference] 6. Houston (previous: 6) Now, it might not look like there was any movement here, but it’s all a matter of the dates involved. For instance, Houston was 4th in NET last night, in its first game as the new No. 2 team in the poll. And then it immediately lost to Iowa State. Iowa State, meanwhile, was 8th in NET, but has not been mentioned here yet in this list because its win over the Cougars propelled it past Houston. See? Movement! 5. Iowa State (previous: 5) The Cyclones jumped from managed to negate what would have been a loss in NET by turning around what started as a tough week into two great dubs. While Iowa State lost to TCU on Feb. 10, 62-55, the Cyclones then took down then-No. 9 Kansas — which had just defeated then-No. 1 Arizona — and on Monday upset new No. 2 Houston. 4. Illinois (previous: 4) Illinois was also caught up in the Houston fallout, as the Fighting Illini were 5th in NET on Monday. Without even playing, Illinois found itself moved up another spot with Houston slipping back and Iowa State’s loss to TCU keeping it from jumping even more spots forward. As far as the things Illinois did control, a loss to Wisconsin — its third against a top-10 opponent this year — and a win against Indiana have it otherwise rooted in place. 3. Arizona (previous: 2) Arizona seemed bound to lose eventually, just based on how close some of its games had been of late and how tough the competition still ahead of it was. However, losing to Kansas without Darryn Peterson, and following that up with another loss, this time to Texas Tech, was a lot to take in, especially since the second one was a home game. 2. Duke (previous: 2) It’s entirely possible Duke would have fallen from the 2nd spot if not for Arizona’s more significant struggles. It’s not that Duke had a bad week by any means — and Monday-night blowout of Syracuse helped — but it beat Pitt by less than you would expect given the vast gulf between the two, and had its offense held back a bit by Clemson even as the defense took care of business. Good wins, but not great ones, basically, which with the razor-thin margins up top can matter. 1. Michigan (previous: 1) For instance, Michigan defeated a bubble team in Northwestern and a top-40 team in UCLA by a combined score of 42 points. It remained 1st in NET despite one fewer win than Duke because of the aforementioned margins in a pair of Quad 2 matchups. Risers and Fallers In the span of a week, some teams can see their spot in the rankings dramatically shift. Here are the five teams that rose the most in men’s college basketball in the last week… T5. Howard, 239 to 219: The Bison beat Maryland Eastern by 26 and then Delaware State 91-59, and while both are bottom-tier clubs, taking care of business is important. T5. Delaware, 289 to 269: Delaware beating FIU by 2 points doesn’t seem impressive sans context, but the Panthers were 191st in NET. Delaware then took out the similarly ranked Missouri State the next time out, 76-67 — a great week for the Fightin’ Blue Hens. 4. Robert Morris, 185 to 161: Beating Cleveland State 85-68 is how things should go in that matchup, but a 93-69 victory over then-136th-ranked Oakland was a significant W for the Colonials. T2. UIC, 141 to 116: UIC lost both of its games before last week’s check-in, but this time around defeated Drake and then Illinois State — the latter victory was particularly notable, given that it was against a near-bubble team and UIC won by 27 points. T2. Samford, 236 to 211: An impressive week for the Bulldogs, which defeated Wofford by 17 and then ETSU by 10. East Tennessee State was ranked 115th in NET, making this quite the upset. 1. Boston University, 291 to 265: A three-win week for the Terriers, which took down Army, Bucknell and Colgate by a combined 57 points. It moved BU into fourth in the Patriot League, as well, putting it in a better position for a bye in the conference tourney. [Get to Know a Mid-Major: Patriot League] …and the five that fell the furthest. T5. Marist, 149 to 169: Merrimack crushed Marist, 81-56, which despite the Warriors being atop the MAAC was a significant upset by NET’s calculations. The Red Foxes then lost a close one to Siena, and dropped to fifth in the conference and out of the top-150 in NET thanks to these defeats. T5. Kennesaw State, 167 to 187: Kennesaw State lost both of its games this week by an unfortunately close amount — 7 combined points — and while the gap between these teams wasn’t huge enough alone for this kind of shift, that both Ls came at home was less forgivable for NET. T5. Jacksonville State, 197 to 217: The loss to New Mexico State wasn’t a big deal for NET given the two were ranked close together, but dropping a game to UTEP — nearly a bottom-100 team before this W — was a problem. 4. NIU, 299 to 320: Bowling Green was nearly a top-150 team, making a loss to them par for the course here, Central Michigan started the week 305th in NET and defeated Northern Illinois by 42 points in a game in which every player that took the floor for the Chippewas scored. 3. Bethune-Cookman, 235 to 260: Bethune-Cookman isn’t a powerhouse by any means, but losses against two bottom-15 teams in back-to-back games is going to look bad for anyone, never mind a team that wasn’t close to the bottom-100. 2. Charlotte, 163 to 189: The 49ers played and lost just the one time in the past week, but it was, like with Bethune-Cookman, against one of the worst teams in Division I men’s basketball. UTSA won, 88-79, and Charlotte sank. 1. Princeton, 224 to 254: Princeton lost to Cornell by 24 points and followed it up with an L against Columbia. Both were better teams than Princeton in NET, but the loss to the Big Red stun because of the margin of defeat. On the Bubble Of the 68 March Madness teams in the tournament, 31 of them are conference champions who receive automatic entry into the tournament. The other 37 spots are at-large bids. With that in mind, we will look at the teams ranked between 64-to-73 in NET each week, as those are the ones who are the most on the bubble for the tourney. 73. Colorado (previous: 72): A funny week for the Buffaloes, as Texas Tech obliterated them by 34 points while Colorado scored just 44, but then the Buffs played BYU uncomfortably close for the Cougars, 90-86. Two losses but still running in place. 72. Oklahoma State (previous: 65): The Cowboys, however, lost twice and slipped from one end of the bubble to the other. The difference being that Colorado took its Ls against ranked teams that were also top-20 in NET. 71. Arizona State (previous: 80): While Oklahoma State lost to, in one of those games, Arizona State, which is now in the bubble because of it. 70. Syracuse (previous: 71): Syracuse got wrecked by Duke, giving up 102 points to the Blue Devils in a 47-point loss, but before that the Orange beat California in an exciting overtime game, then bested SMU, which is unranked at this point but still a top-40 team. 69. Stanford (previous: 68): A win against Boston College followed by a loss against Wake Forest is why there was very little movement here for the Cardinal. 68. Oklahoma (previous: 74): The Sooners played just one game this week, but it was a good one for them, as O-U bested 35th-ranked Georgia 94-78. 67. LSU (previous: 57): Not a great showing by LSU in the past week, but part of that was also opponent-based. The Tigers took on ranked Arkansas and got blown out by 29, then lost by 10 to Tennessee, which is unranked but 22nd in NET at the moment. 66. Missouri (previous: 61): An 86-85 win against Texas A&M could only stop the slide from an 85-68 L against Texas by so much. Texas is a tourney-caliber team, but Missouri is trying to prove it is, too. 65. Wake Forest (previous: 67): Wins against Georgia Tech and Stanford didn’t move the Demon Deacons as far ahead as expected, but some of that is also teams around Wake Forest moving, too — it slipped back to 65 during its inactivity. 64. Yale (previous: 66): Two wins for Yale is a positive, but Dartmouth and Harvard aren’t top-tier competition, so only so much progress out of the bubble in the right direction could come of it.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

A year ago, Christopher Bell got into Victory Lane at Atlanta’s spring race, kick-starting a three-race win streak. But currently, he’s not the favorite to win at ATL. Instead, Chase Elliott, Ryan Blaney and Joey Logano are locked in a three-way tie at the top of the board for the NASCAR Cup Series AutoTrader 400, which airs Sunday, Feb. 22 on FOX at 3 p.m. ET. Let’s take a look at the odds for the entire field at DraftKings Sportsbook as of Feb. 22. This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports. NASCAR Cup Series AutoTrader 400 2026 Chase Elliott: +800 (bet $10 to win $90 total)Ryan Blaney: +800 (bet $10 to win $90 total)Joey Logano: +800 (bet $10 to win $90 total)Carson Hocevar: +1000 (bet $10 to win $110 total)Kyle Larson: +1200 (bet $10 to win $130 total)William Byron: +1400 (bet $10 to win $140 total)Christopher Bell: +1400 (bet $10 to win $150 total)Brad Keselowski: +1400 (bet $10 to win $150 total)Denny Hamlin: +1600 (bet $10 to win $170 total)Kyle Busch: +1700 (bet $10 to win $180 total)Austin Cindric: +2000 (bet $10 to win $210 total)Tyler Reddick: +2200 (bet $10 to win $230 total)Ross Chastain: +2500 (bet $10 to win $260 total)Chris Buescher: +2500 (bet $10 to win $260 total)Chase Briscoe: +2500 (bet $10 to win $250 total)Bubba Wallace: +2800 (bet $10 to win $290 total)Ricky Stenhouse Jr.: +3500 (bet $10 to win $360 total)Josh Berry: +3500 (bet $10 to win $360 total)Alex Bowman: +3500 (bet $10 to win $350 total) Ty Gibbs: +4000 (bet $10 to win $410 total)Ryan Preece: +4000 (bet $10 to win $410 total)Daniel Suarez: +4500 (bet $10 to win $460 total)Connor Zilisch: +5000 (bet $10 to win $510 total)Michael McDowell: +5500 (bet $10 to win $560 total)Zane Smith: +6000 (bet $10 to win $610 total)John Hunter Nemechek: +6000 (bet $10 to win $610 total)Todd Gilliland: +6500 (bet $10 to win $660 total)Erik Jones: +6500 (bet $10 to win $660 total)Austin Dillon: +6500 (bet $10 to win $660 total)Shane Van Gisbergen: +7000 (bet $10 to win $710 total)Noah Gragson: +7000 (bet $10 to win $710 total)Cole Custer: +9000 (bet $10 to win $910 total)AJ Allmendinger: +10000 (bet $10 to win $1,010 total)Ty Dillon: +13000 (bet $10 to win $1,310 total)Riley Herbst: +13000 (bet $10 to win $1,310 total)Cody Ware: +13000 (bet $10 to win $1,310 total)JJ Yeley: +20000 (bet $10 to win $2,010 totalBJ McLeod: +20000 (bet $10 to win $2,010 total)​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

When you drop 31 points and grab 13 rebounds in an overtime win against the No. 1-ranked team in the country, chances are you are going to make a big jump on the ladder. That’s the case for Texas Tech forward JT Toppin, who put together one of the top individual performances of the 2025-26 college basketball season up to this point. Toppin’s big-time performance, coupled with an unfortunate injury to North Carolina freshman standout Caleb Wilson, led to some reshuffling in the third edition of my men’s college basketball Player of the Year Ladder. Kansas freshman Darryn Peterson is off the list for the first time this season after missing the Jayhawks’ 82-78 win over Arizona, and then producing a 10-point, zero-rebound, zero-assist showing in a loss to Iowa State. But with that comes opportunity for others, as we welcome a pair of freshman point guards to the list.With that context in mind, here’s how this week’s men’s Player of the Year Ladder shakes out. Honorable mention: Kansas guard Darryn Peterson, Wisconsin guard Nick Boyd, Texas Tech guard Christian Anderson, St. John’s forward Zuby Ejiofor, Iowa guard Bennett Stirtz 10. Keaton Wagler, Illinois freshman guard Wagler is one of five freshmen included in this week’s Player of the Year Ladder. His rise from a three-star recruit to Illinois’ best player has been so fun to watch. His scoring has slowed down a bit after his memorable 46-point outing at Purdue three weeks ago, but his entire body of work has earned him a seat at this table. 9. Kingston Flemings, Houston freshman guard Flemings probably should have been included on this list last week. He’s a freshman who joined a senior-laden backcourt with Milos Uzan and Emanuel Sharp, but he has taken control of this Houston offense, which I didn’t think would be possible. He has also played himself into a top-10 pick in the NBA Draft. 8. Braden Smith, Purdue senior guard I give point guards more credit than other positions. Smith entered this season with massive expectations, and, for the most part, he has delivered. Purdue owns the No. 3-ranked offense in the country, per KenPom, and Smith is the leader. The standout senior guard is also shooting a career-high 48% from the field. 7. Jeremy Fears Jr., Michigan State sophomore guard I still haven’t come back down from his incredible performance against Illinois last week (26 points and 15 assists). Michigan State would be average at best without Fears. His scoring has surprised me most this year. 6. Darius Acuff, Arkansas freshman guard If you haven’t watched Arkansas play this season, go on YouTube right now and catch some highlights. There you will find Acuff, the best scoring point guard in the country. He is special and he brings it every game. 5. Yaxel Lendeborg, Michigan senior forward Here comes Lendeborg down the final stretch of Big Ten play! Michigan is so talented and deep that Lendeborg can’t put up the same scoring numbers as Duke’s Cameron Boozer and BYU’s AJ Dybantsa, but he’s nearly as good as those guys — and he’s better defensively. 4. Joshua Jefferson, Iowa State senior forward When you watch Jefferson play, his athleticism doesn’t jump off the page, and he’s not nearly as big of a scorer as some of the others on this list, but he is the MVP of Iowa State on both ends of the floor. 3. JT Toppin, Texas Tech junior forward Toppin’s performance against Arizona’s stellar frontline was as impressive as anything he’s done all year. He had 31 points, 13 rebounds and came up big down the stretch in Texas Tech’s overtime win. That performance will likely keep him in the top three of my list for the rest of the season. 2. AJ Dybantsa, BYU freshman forward Dybantsa is averaging 29 points per game in the month of February. BYU’s team hasn’t been very good, but it’s not because Dybantsa hasn’t lived up to the hype. His teammate, Richie Saunders, tore his ACL on Saturday, which will put more on Dybantsa’s shoulders. 1. Cameron Boozer, Duke freshman forward No one is asked to do more for their team than Boozer. He had impossible shoes to fill, following Cooper Flagg, but he has mostly filled them. Boozer is the most consistent playmaker and rebounder on this talented list of players.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

Men’s college basketball, women’s college basketball – there’s no shortage of college ball, every night. Don’t worry, we’re here to help you figure out what you missed but shouldn’t have. Here are all the best moments from the weekend in college basketball. Iowa State takes down Houston Houston wasn’t even the new No. 2 team in men’s college basketball for a day before it was upset. Hell, the Cougars weren’t even No. 2 for 12 hours before No. 6 Iowa State delivered a loss that will likely shake up poll up once more less than a week from now. Former No. 1 Arizona didn’t receive a single first-place vote this week after a pair of losses, and Michigan took over for its first No. 1 spot in 13 years in its wake — and nearly unanimous, too, if not for a single vote that went to Houston. Whoops. Iowa State went into halftime up, 43-40, but with 7:09 left in the game it was Houston on top, 63-53, thanks to a strong start to the second half and a 25-footer from freshman guard Kingston Flemings. The Cyclones would then go on a 10-point run to tie things up until the Cougars finally scored with 3:21 remaining, courtesy a layup from freshman forward Chris Cenac Jr. Iowa State would answer with a Jamarian Batemon 3-pointer to go ahead 66-65, which Houston quickly responded to with a Flemings’ pull-up jumper with 1:49 to go — that would be Houston’s final lead, and bucket, of the game. Senior guard Nate Heise drained a 3 with 1:17 to go to put the Cyclones ahead 69-67, and then Houston’s own senior guard, Emanuel Sharp, would miss a 3, and the Cougars would turn the ball over on a shot clock violation. The game didn’t stop there, however, not with a whole 43 seconds left. Joseph Tugler would block a shot from Joshua Jefferson and Cenac recovered, leading to a Houston timeout with 19 seconds left. The Cougars would bring the ball down court, and Cenac would shoot from 10 feet out to try to tie the game at 69 — he missed, and Iowa State got the rebound and then immediately picked up a foul and another on the rebound from the missed free throw. Time expired before Houston could do anything with the rebound from another miss, and Iowa State had completed the comeback win. The Big 12 is a mess after the past week. Two Arizona losses after being undefeated prior to this put Houston in first, and then the Cougars lost their first matchup as the No. 2 team — they are still in the first, but now just half-a-game up on the Wildcats, and one up on Iowa State. Kansas and Texas Tech — which both beat Arizona! — are hanging out tied for fourth at 9-3, which is a problem since just the top four teams get a double-bye in the conference tournament. Hey, no one said it being a mess was a bad thing — instead, it’s created a lot of intrigue down the stretch here. Iowa, Heiden take down Nebraska Things have been rough for Iowa of late. Losing senior guard Taylor McCabe for the year to a torn ACL — and, as was discovered during surgery, also a torn meniscus — was a blow, and that it happened during a difficult stretch of schedule for the Hawkeyes didn’t help matters, either. McCabe tore her ACL against now-No. 10 Ohio State, then USC — unranked, yes, but currently 21st in the NCAA Evaluation Tool — No. 2 UCLA, now-No. 23 Minnesota and then-No. 25 Washington were next up. Iowa hung on against the Buckeyes, but lost to an unranked but still dangerous Trojans team, as well as dominant UCLA and surging Minnesota. The Hawkeyes recovered to win against the Huskies and knock them from the poll, however, and on Monday came up against yet another team that isn’t ranked but was 25th in NET in Nebraska. Like with Washington, Iowa was on its game here, and would take down the Huskers on the road, 80-67. The Hawkeyes had a balanced attack, with sophomore guards Taylor Stremlow and Chazadi Wright providing 31 combined points on 11-for-15 shooting, and Wright adding 4 rebounds and a game-high 7 assists. Freshman guard Journey Houston added another 10 points off the bench in 19 minutes along with 4 rebounds, an assist and 2 steals, and senior forward Hannah Stuelke missed double-digits in scoring with 9 points — all on 3s — but did add 6 rebounds, 4 assists and 3 steals for a very thorough day besides. The star of the show, though, was center Ava Heiden. The 6-foot-4 sophomore had a game- and career-high 27 points on an excellent 12-for-15 shooting, and logged a double-double thanks to leading everyone in rebounds as well with 11. Heiden had 3 blocks, too, and snuck in 3 assists and a steal in her 32 minutes alongside the rest of that production. Just a fantastic showing from the sophomore, who was the main reason that the Hawkeyes shot 60% against Nebraska — that level of efficiency helped make up for the 20 turnovers and the Huskers blocking 5 shots as a team. Iowa is now 11-3 in Big Ten play, tied with Ohio State for third in the conference behind UCLA and No. 6 Michigan. That’s a remarkable place to be considering the Hawkeyes lost McCabe and then had to get through an absolute Big Ten gauntlet amid the injury. There is still more challenge to be had, however: Purdue is on the bubble, Michigan has been fantastic, Illinois is 32nd in NET and while Wisconsin is the weakest opponent left for the Hawkeyes on the schedule, the Badgers are still a top-90 team. Iowa is going to have to earn that double-bye, especially with Minnesota coming up from behind to try to take one of those spots. Duke wrecks Syracuse Syracuse has been on the bubble — is still on it, albeit barely — but getting a spot in March Madness just got that much more difficult for the Orange on Monday. That’s because No. 3 Duke crushed them, 101-64, despite it being a game where the two starters who played the most logged 26 minutes. Freshman forward Cameron Boozer managed a 22-point, 12-rebound double-double in 22 minutes, while sophomore guard Isaiah Evans had 21 points of his own in 26. The bench provided 39 points in 79 minutes, while Duke shot a season-best 62% from the field while outrebounding Syracuse and forcing nearly three times as many turnovers as the Blue Devils committed, largely on the back of 10 steals — 7 of which came from the bench. The defense did more than steal the ball, though, as the Orange shot 41% overall and got to the line just 8 times. This was a disciplined effort, and now Syracuse is 1-7 in its Quad 1 games: the Orange have lost to Duke, as well as Houston, Kansas, Iowa State, NC State, North Carolina and Virginia — the lone Quad 1 victory for the Orange came against Tennessee. While Duke is atop the ACC at 13-1, Syracuse has fallen to 11th, which would put it in the first round of the conference tourney where seeds 10-15 play each other to narrow the field of what’s a huge, five-round tournament. That’s a long road for anyone, never mind a team on the bubble. Turnovers too much for Utah against Oklahoma State Oklahoma State’s offense didn’t fully wake up until the second half, but it almost didn’t have to, not with the way its defense was handling Utah. The Utes turned the ball over 24 times compared to the Cowgirls’ 9 times, and Oklahoma State converted those turnovers into 26 points. As the Cowgirls’ offense got going, though, it became even more obvious that Utah wasn’t making a comeback here without a miracle: the final score might have been just 73-55, but you can attribute the gap narrowing that much to a 24-point fourth quarter for the Utes, who were comparatively unchallenged defensively as time wound down. The outcome was all but predetermined after Oklahoma State outscored Utah 24-8 in the third quarter while already ahead, and even while the defense slacked in the fourth, the offense still generated 20 points of its own to mostly counter Utah’s surge. Five Cowgirls scored between 10 and 17 points, and ball movement was working in their favor with six different players picking up an assist. All but one of the eight players that picked up minutes had at least a steal — junior guard Stailee Heard led with 3, and three other players had 2. Utah was only in it at the half because Oklahoma State’s shots weren’t quite falling as needed yet, but the second half was a different story where the Cowgirls scored 44 points — again, Utah had 55 total. The Big 12 might not have a dominant team in it in the way the SEC or Big Ten do — No. 12 TCU is its highest-ranked one — but there is serious depth here. Four of its teams are in the poll this week, with No. 15 Baylor, No. 19 West Virginia and No. 20 Texas Tech joining TCU, and NET has Oklahoma State ahead of the Bears and Lady Raiders in its own rankings. Iowa State might be missing one of its top players in Addy Brown, but it still ranks 33rd in NET, while Colorado, Arizona State, Kansas, Utah, Kansas State and BYU are all in the top-60. That’s a dozen teams that are all reasonably March Madness possibilities as things stand right now. A 10-steal night Duke had 10 steals as a team on Monday, and that worked out pretty well for the Blue Devils. You know who else had 10 steals last night? Michaela Bogans. The Morgan State sophomore guard was a menace against South Carolina State on Monday, picking up 10 of the Lady Bears’ 17 steals on a night where she also scored 10 points, grabbed 4 rebounds and dished out 5 assists. A double-double that involves steals is a beautiful thing, you know. What’s the real surprise here is that Bogans has never shown off this kind of thievery before. Her previous career-high was 6 steals, but she topped out at 4 as a freshman and even after a 10-steal performance is averaging just 1.4 per game this season. South Carolina State is one of the very bottom-tier teams by NET this year, however, coming in at 357 of 363, so Bogans took the opportunity given her and played aggressive defense that resulted in a new career-best mark. What happened in Virginia last night?? Richmond visited George Mason on Monday, and something weird happened: both teams completely forgot how to shoot. Richmond has the 28th-best Offensive Rating in Division I women’s basketball thanks to scoring 110.83 points per 100 possessions, and while George Mason is nowhere near that, it’s still at 96.84, ranked 103rd. George Mason is a top-50 defensive team at 82.47 points per 100 possessions allowed, and Richmond is nothing to dismiss, either, at 87.14, good for 78th. And yet, it was the defenses that completely took over on Monday — both of them. George Mason scored 46 points on 29% shooting from the field, 8-for-24 from 3 and 2-for-6 from the line. George Mason won. Richmond was somehow worse, shooting 27% overall and 25% from 3-point range, with the game decided almost entirely because of second-chance points. The Patriots had 20 offensive boards and outrebounded the Spiders overall 47 to 36, and it gave George Mason more chances. Sometimes more chances to miss, sure, but also the opportunity to shoot 62 times to Richmond’s 49. When nothing is falling at all, volume is the only solution, and the Patriots provided that if nothing else. What’s especially wild about all of this is that Richmond isn’t some random team: even after this loss and scoring all of 37 points, the Spiders are 39th in NET and, as noted, have a legitimately productive offense that is talented enough to make some noise in March. It’s 12-2 in the Atlantic 10, in second behind 14-0 Rhode Island, and is 22-5 overall, so it’s not like the Spiders are entirely a product of their conference. And George Mason is also 12-2, while sitting in and around the bubble basically since everyone started noting which teams deserved that designation. What an oddity of a game that both teams have to hope remains a unique one, to boot.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

NFL free agency doesn’t officially open for a few more weeks. However, the Miami Dolphins helped kick off the transaction portion of the offseason on Monday. The Dolphins officially released wide receiver Tyreek Hill and are anticipated to let go of edge rusher Bradley Chubb. That’s just the start of what should be a busy month-plus ahead, as all 32 teams must be under the salary cap when the new league year begins on March 11. Free agency also opens on March 9, and teams will want to position themselves to land some of the top players on the open market. [2026 NFL Free Agency: The Top 100 Players Available and Potential Fits] For many NFL teams to get under the cap and free up space for new acquisitions, they’ll shed the worst contracts on their roster — these are usually players whose guaranteed money has run out, lessening the cap damage of cutting them. In some cases, teams will be willing to take on substantial “dead money” — that’s cap space devoted to players no longer under contract — to avoid paying out an undeserved salary.So, here are 25 names of players who aren’t free agents now, but seem likely to become available by March 11, joining a long list of pending free agents. Some of them are locks to be cut, others will hinge on how patient their teams will be. These could be starters and solid contributors for another team, just not on their current contract. 25. Mike Danna, DE, Chiefs Danna, 28, has gone full circle, from overachieving fifth-round pick to overpaid veteran. He had 17 sacks in four years on his rookie contract, including 6.5 as a full-time starter in 2023, but since signing a three-year, $24 million deal in 2024, he has just 4.5 sacks in two years, including one in 2025. It’s only $2 million in dead cap to move on from him, and you can’t pay $8 million for a player barely giving rotational production. 24. Grover Stewart, DT, Colts If I call him The Tackle at the End of This List, does anybody get that? Stewart, 32, has 109 starts in nine years with the Colts, but he dropped from 13th in 2024 to 70th in 2025 by PFF’s position rankings, and he’s due to make a non-guaranteed $12 million. As they seek more cap space to keep free agents, he could be a casualty. 23. Michael Carter, CB, Eagles Carter, 26, was acquired by the Eagles from the Jets in a pick swap during last season, but he had only 10 tackles in eight games, largely there as injury insurance. He’s due to make $10 million, so there’s no sense in keeping him unless they see him in a much larger role in 2026. He won’t draw nearly that as a free agent, but you could see him land with Robert Saleh and the Titans, who have ample cap space to upgrade their secondary. 22. Dalvin Tomlinson, DT, Cardinals Tomlinson, turning 32 later in February, signed a two-year deal with Arizona last year and is due to make $14 million in 2026. Going from Cleveland to Arizona, he dropped from 18 quarterback hits in 2024 to just three in 2025 despite starting all 17 games. PFF ranked him as the league’s 114th-best interior defender. Perhaps to Atlanta to rejoin Kevin Stefanski if they lose David Onyemata in free agency? 21. Joe Mixon, RB, Texans Mixon, 29, missed all of 2025 with a mysterious non-football foot injury, and he’s due to make a non-guaranteed $8 million in 2026, so it’s easy to see Houston moving on here. The Texans ranked 29th in yards per carry without him, but they’ll have to upgrade elsewhere. Mixon made the Pro Bowl with the Texans in 2024, rushing for 1,016 yards and 11 touchdowns, but his age and injury uncertainty will make for a limited market for him. Could he follow Bobby Slowik to the Dolphins for depth and a healthy reset there? 20. James Conner, RB, Cardinals Conner, 30, was limited by a foot injury to just three games in 2025. He had back-to-back 1,000-yard rushing seasons for Arizona in 2023-24, setting up a two-year, $19 million deal. But there’s no guaranteed money in 2026, so he’s likely cut. The Cardinals dealt with multiple running back injuries last year, but new coach Mike LaFleur will likely seek a younger backfield. Perhaps he lands as a backup in Dallas and reunites with Klayton Adams? 19. Taylor Decker, OT, Lions Decker, 32, has talked about retiring and could make the decision for Detroit. He’s played 10 years there and made 140 starts, but his Pro Football Focus grade in 2025 was his lowest since 2017. He’s due to make $18 million, and Detroit would have about $9 million in dead money if he didn’t return, but the savings could allow them to keep another free agent, or find his successor. 18. T.J. Hockenson, TE, Vikings Hockenson, 28, is the NFL’s fourth-highest-paid tight end at better than $16 million a year, and he’s totaled three touchdowns in the last two seasons while recovering from injury. Minnesota would have $12 million in dead money from cutting him, but it’s hard to see him being worth the $16 million he’s due to make. One potential landing spot? Jacksonville, which could use a proven target to pair with Brenton Strange, and he and Jaguars offensive coordinator Grant Udinski worked together in Minnesota. 17. Marshon Lattimore, CB, Commanders Lattimore, 29, has been injured and ineffective since Washington gave up third- and fourth-round picks to get him from the Saints at the 2024 trade deadline. He’s due to make $18 million and there’s zero dead money in cutting him, and he ranked 95th among corners by Pro Football Focus last season. The Commanders need a full makeover on defense and he’ll be part of it. Where does he land? Would the Bears and Dennis Allen take him for depth if they lost Nahshon Wright in free agency? 16. Mekhi Becton, G, Chargers Becton, 26, has played out the full arc of NFL highs and lows — a first-round pick, didn’t work out with Jets, bounces back with Eagles in a championship season, lands a big deal as a free agent, now soon to be cut. He’s due to make $10 million and was 77th out of 79 guards by Pro Football Focus last year. The Chargers were missing both tackles due to injury, but his play dropped off enough that he could be part of an overhaul to their interior offensive line. With Jeff Stoutland gone, the Eagles seem like less of a match to return. 15. L’Jarius Sneed, CB, Titans Sneed, 29, was a huge signing from the Chiefs two years ago — $19 million a year — but after missing only three games in his final three seasons in Kansas City, he’s played only 12 games in two years in Tennessee due to quad and knee injuries. No interceptions and a full regime change mean he’s likely done with the Titans, who have plenty of cap space but can move on here. Going back to the Chiefs on the cheap could help their difficult cap decisions. 14. Cole Kmet, TE, Bears Kmet, 26, had his role reduced with the arrival of rookie Colston Loveland this past season, finishing with 347 yards, his lowest total since his rookie year, and only two touchdowns. His contract isn’t that bad — he’s due $10 million this season, so there’s a chance the Bears could find a trade partner for a late-round pick or pick swap. It’s just hard to pay a No. 2 tight end that much, and his touchdowns have dropped from 7-6-4-2 in the last four seasons. If cut, could he be an Isaiah Likely replacement with Declan Doyle in Baltimore? 13. Kenny Clark, DL, Cowboys Clark, 30, was part of the return from Green Bay on the Micah Parsons trade, so it’ll seem like a bad cut, but you don’t need three $20 million defensive linemen on one defense, let alone the worst defense in the NFL in 2025. Quinnen Williams is staying and it’s smarter to keep Osa Odighizuwa. There’s also zero dead cap for cutting Clark, so it’s $20 million in cap savings to address the rest of the defense. He spent nine years with the Packers, so if he doesn’t go back, you could see him follow Joe Barry to Miami. 12. Geno Smith, QB, Raiders There are quarterbacks with enormous contracts and dead-money hits we’re not including here like Miami’s Tua Tagovailoa and Arizona’s Kyler Murray, thinking that those teams will eat considerable salary to facilitate a trade to avoid paying it all out. That could be the case for Smith, 35, who struggled in Las Vegas and has $18 million guaranteed in his 2026 salary. There’s a Cousins-Penix vibe to keeping him as an expensive backup, but it seems more likely they lessen the distraction for a rookie starter and just cut Smith loose. Smith is entering Russell Wilson territory as a former star relegated to bridge-type roles with no guarantee of starting. 11. Patrick Queen, LB, Steelers Queen, still only 26, was a top free agent signing two years ago. He made the Pro Bowl his first year in Pittsburgh and had 120 tackles in 2025, but Pro Football Focus had him ranked 79th out of 80 linebackers, so it’s hard to see the Steelers paying him $13 million this season. Could he land back in Baltimore with Jesse Minter and Anthony Weaver, or with John Harbaugh and the Giants? 10 Bryce Huff, edge rusher, 49ers Huff, 27, got a big contract after a 10-sack season with the Jets in 2023 — $17 million a year — but he had only 2.5 sacks with the Eagles in 2024, got traded for a fifth-round pick and managed four sacks (and two forced fumbles) for San Francisco last season. He has a $15 million option bonus coming, but hasn’t played close to that value. Soft place to land? How about a reunion with Jeff Ulbrich in Atlanta, where the Falcons might need pass-rush help due to James Pearce Jr.’s recent arrest. 9. Calvin Ridley, WR, Titans Ridley, 31, was a bad miss for the Titans, getting $23 million a year and totaling four touchdowns in two seasons. He missed half of 2025 with leg and ankle injuries and is almost certainly gone. Cutting him means $13 million in dead money, but they shed a $21 million salary as they rebrand under Robert Saleh. It would also make it easier to find a legit No. 1 receiver for Cam Ward. Could he take a one-year prove-it deal with the Commanders and his old Falcons coach, Dan Quinn? 8. Jawaan Taylor, OT, Chiefs Taylor, 28, played every snap in two Super Bowls for the Chiefs, winning one, but he’s due to make $20 million in 2026 and the Chiefs are way over the cap, so he makes sense as one of their cuts. He’s led them in penalties in each of his three years in Kansas City — 41 accepted penalties in all — and the Chiefs have invested draft picks in their line to get ahead of this. Could he follow offensive coordinator Matt Nagy to the Giants? Pro Football Focus ranked him 76th out of 80 tackles this past season. 7. Justin Fields, QB, Jets Fields, 26, has $10 million of his 2026 salary guaranteed, so cutting him means a rough $30 million for nine starts and two wins. Fields has 21 total touchdowns in 15 starts with the Steelers and Jets, so he’s likely no more than a bridge quarterback in 2026, a one-year stopgap hoping to reset himself in the right opportunity. Where does he land? He’s from Kennesaw, Georgia, so could he be a reasonably priced match for the hometown Falcons as they seek a veteran to hedge their bet on Michael Penix? 6. Stefon Diggs, WR, Patriots Diggs, 32, had a productive regular season with 1,013 receiving yards. But he only had four touchdowns before going quiet in the playoffs with 110 yards and one touchdown in four games, which is not what you pay a receiver $23 million to do. Diggs has no guaranteed money in 2026, and cutting him would result in $8 million in dead money, but it saves his $21 million salary to focus on keeping other free agents. Diggs averaged nine touchdowns a year in four Pro Bowl seasons in Buffalo from 2020-23. Will he ever get back to that level of production again? 5. Marlon Humphrey, CB, Ravens Humphrey, 29, is due to make $19 million this year but saw a significant dropoff in 2025, going from the Pro Bowl and a first-team All-Pro nod in 2024 to ranking 103rd out of 112 corners by Pro Football Focus’ grading. He has 10 interceptions in the last two seasons, so he’ll have a solid demand for his services. He’s played his entire career for John Harbaugh, so the Giants should be in play. 4. Michael Pittman, WR, Colts Pittman, 28, is due to make $24 million this season, but it’s not guaranteed, so cutting him results in only $5 million in dead money, setting up a tough call for the Colts as they decide on several key free agents. Pittman had a career-best seven touchdowns last year, but 800 yards isn’t what you’re expecting for the money he’s paid. Cutting him makes it easier for the Colts to keep Alec Pierce (at a similar cost), so if he’s cut loose, Pittman could end up on a lesser deal, perhaps reuniting with Frank Reich and the Jets. 3. Rashan Gary, edge rusher, Packers Gary, 28, had 7.5 sacks after seven games, making the most of the attention Micah Parsons was drawing from opponents. Then he went the rest of the season without a single sack or tackle for loss, so his future is very uncertain. He’s due to count $28 million against the cap in 2026, and cutting him would still leave $17 million in dead money. But it’s possible Green Bay pivots to younger rushers like Lukas Van Ness and Kingsley Enagbare and uses the cap savings to get help elsewhere. Could he follow Jeff Hafley to Miami? 2. Brandon Aiyuk, WR, 49ers Aiyuk, 27, got a massive $30 million-a-year deal less than two years ago, but the 49ers were able to void his remaining guarantees as he rehabbed from a major knee injury. He missed all of 2025 with the injury, so his value is tough to ballpark. How likely is a new team to get 2023 Aiyuk, who had 1,342 receiving yards and seven touchdowns? He’s been mentioned as a match for the Commanders, as he and Jayden Daniels were teammates at Arizona State, and general manager Adam Peters was with the 49ers when they drafted him. If he resets on a one-year deal, does he even get half what his last contract paid per year? 1. Kirk Cousins, QB, Falcons Cousins, 37, restructured his deal with the Falcons to set up a cut ahead of free agency, and Atlanta will have $35 million in dead money counting against their 2026 cap after cutting him. He played well when he filled in for Michael Penix following the second-year quarterback’s season-ending knee injury, going 5-3 and throwing 10 touchdowns against five interceptions. So, he bounced back after leading the NFL with 16 picks in 2024. With limited quarterback options in free agency or the draft, he’ll have a market at a reduced rate. Could he return to the Vikings and Kevin O’Connell? Minnesota might be on the market for a quarterback this offseason after J.J. McCarthy’s struggles in 2025.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

The next college football game is still more than six months away, but you might already have a sense of which programs are moving in the right direction. At least that’s what FOX Sports lead college football analyst Joel Klatt believes. In the most recent episode of “The Joel Klatt Show,” Klatt shared three teams he thinks are trending in the right direction and three teams that are trending toward taking a step back in 2026. As Klatt iterated, this isn’t necessarily a list of teams that he thinks will or won’t make the College Football Playoff. Rather, it’s a list of teams that are either building momentum or have lost some control this offseason. So, let’s take a look and see which teams Klatt likes at the moment and who he thinks might need a reality check. Trending up USC Klatt is optimistic about USC because of its foundation. “I think it’s time to get a little bit bullish on USC,” Klatt said. “This is a team that has the experienced quarterback coming back. I think we all now understand that’s what it takes to be successful in college football. So, you’ve got Jayden Maiava back. “Here’s the part that I actually think is more impactful: How about getting the entire offensive line back? Now, we’re talking because you’ve got a quarterback, offensive line and the entire backfield back. King Mack, who had to fill in after Waymond Jordan was injured, is back, and you have both him and Jordan back in the backfield. So, you’ve got what I believe to be, at least the potential of, the best running game Riley has had since his OU days. You remember those old Trey Sermon, Rodney Anderson days when they were just running roughshod over everybody? I think USC can be a dominant run team.” To Klatt’s point, that run game helped USC rank sixth in the Big Ten in rushing last season. Klatt believes that continuity will help the Trojans fill the void left by wide receiver Makai Lemon going to the NFL, as he also praised USC’s recent defensive coordinator hire. “Lincoln Riley lost D’anton Lynn, the defensive coordinator whom I was a big fan of, but he brings in Gary Patterson,” Klatt said. “I really love the idea of having Gary Patterson here for Lincoln Riley. He built a winner at TCU. He’s a defensive-oriented guy, he’s got high energy and a wealth of experience Lincoln can use and bounce things off of. That’s a win. Now, I think Lynn is great. So, I’m not saying this is an upgrade or a downgrade. But it’s a win for Lincoln Riley and USC to get Gary Patterson. UCLA Klatt isn’t predicting UCLA to make the CFP next season. However, he thinks the Bruins can have a “decent year,” play in a bowl game and possibly do “more” than that because of new head coach Bob Chesney.” “I think UCLA is clearly pointing in the right direction and pointing up,” Klatt said. “Bob Chesney’s a very good football coach. The reason I know that is because when Curt Cignetti left James Madison, a lot of those players left. It’s not like Chesney was left some war chest at JMU to continue to win. Guess what he did? Continue to win. Nine wins in his first season post-Cignetti, and Cignetti took 13 players with him to Indiana. Then, he took JMU to the playoff in Year 2. He went 21-6 in two seasons. He knows what it’s about. He’s a very good football coach.” Chesney’s two seasons at JMU were actually his first two years coaching in Division I. Prior to that, Chesney was one of the top coaches in the lower levels of college football. He went 111-46 over 14 seasons between his stops at Salve Regina, Assumption and Holy Cross. In addition to Chensey’s pedigree, Klatt also believes UCLA is in a great spot at quarterback entering 2026. “[Chesney] doesn’t have to start over at the most important position. He has a two-year starting quarterback — one at Tennessee, one at UCLA — and Nico Iamaleava is 25 starts in and he’s a five-star player,” Klatt said. “I know Tennessee fans don’t like this guy and maybe a lot of fans don’t like him because of everything that happened last offseason, but the fact remains that was not a good football team, except for him. He was the one that would give them a chance. Now, you surround him with some better players.” Virginia Tech Similar to UCLA, Klatt has Virginia Tech here because he likes their head coach and quarterback. “I think Virginia Tech made a great hire with James Franklin,” Klatt said. “That’s a good football coach who just kind of capped out with his ceiling at Penn State. You can’t argue with what he was able to accomplish at Penn State. The guy was successful, very successful. He didn’t win some of the bigger games and they ran him out, which is fine. I’m not saying they shouldn’t have. Candidly, I would’ve admitted that it was time for a change. But he was a very good coach. He goes to Virginia Tech, which is a place that I think he can fit and he’s recruited that area very well over his career.” Franklin has proven that point to be correct. He quickly helped Virginia Tech’s 2026 recruiting ranking improve to No. 30, while the Hokies’ transfer portal class ranked 19th this offseason, per 247 Sports. One of the highlights of that transfer portal class was quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer, whom Klatt shared an interesting anecdote about. “I hope he doesn’t get mad at me for telling this, but Grunkemeyer played really well against Indiana and Penn State,” Klatt said. “After the game, I was texting with Indiana defensive coordinator Bryant Haines in preparation for future games and I was like, ‘Credit to that offensive line, they ran the ball well.’ He texted back, ‘I was so impressed by their quarterback.’ One of the two or three defensive coordinators I respect the most in college football is Haines, and when he tells me that a guy was unbelievable and hard to stop, that tells you something.” Stock down Alabama Klatt’s reasoning for placing Alabama as a team with its stock down is simple: It isn’t on the same level as the two elite teams in the SEC, Georgia and Texas, which is a new reality in Tuscaloosa. “The reality is, they’re coming off back-to-back four-loss years,” Klatt said. “The best part of their team was Ty Simpson — by a wide margin — and they’re losing him. I don’t love what’s going on down there. They got blown out by Georgia in the SEC Championship Game. They got blown out by Indiana. Indiana did whatever they wanted to do. They ran the ball 50 times straight at Alabama. This is not the Alabama of two, three, four or five and certainly not 10 years ago. Alabama has been trending down and I think that trend is going to continue.” As Kalen DeBoer has gone 20-8 in his first two years at Alabama, Klatt has concerns for him at quarterback and across the roster. “They have got to figure out their quarterback for next year. Is it going to be Austin Mack or Keelon Russell? They’ve got zero starts between them in an era where experience is everything you need at that position,” Klatt said. “When you look at Alabama’s portal, it was OK. I don’t think it was great. To me, it was a trajectory thing for Alabama. They’re on a trajectory that is down. I don’t think that’s going to stop. It has to level out at some point in order to go back up. But I don’t sense that moment of Alabama leveling out soon.” Alabama had the 17th-best transfer portal class in the country, but only the sixth-best transfer portal class in the SEC, per 247 Sports. The Crimson Tide also lost a few starters in the portal, watching wide receiver Isaiah Horton go to Texas A&M and defensive linemen Qua Russaw and James Smith go to Ohio State. Florida State It’s been a rough couple of years for Mike Norvell at Florida State after the Seminoles went 13-1 in 2023, posting a 7-17 record in the last two years. Klatt doesn’t see that changing any time soon for a myriad of reasons. “It’s hard for me not to put Florida State on this list,” Klatt said. “Florida State was down bad and there really isn’t any light at the end of that tunnel. What happened after Week 1, beating Alabama, did not go well. Quarterback looks like it’s going to be Ashton Daniels, who bounced around and was Auburn’s backup last year and played at the end of the season after starting out at Stanford. Is that the answer you want? I don’t know. “Then, late in the coaching carousel process, Gus Malzahn, their offensive coordinator, decides to retire. I like Mike Norvell. I think Mike Norvell’s a pretty good football coach. I think that’s a challenging place. They went the portal route and then once you miss in the portal route, it’s like trying to get back on the merry-go-round when it’s going really fast. It’s tough to do. It hasn’t worked out for them.” While Florida State had the 15th-best recruiting class and 27th-best transfer portal class this offseason, per 247 Sports, Klatt doesn’t believe that’s going to lead to a sudden turnaround. “In the last two years, they’re 0-9 on the road. Is it going to get better next year? If you just base it off who they brought in, both in the high school level and from the transfer portal, I question it,” Klatt said. “Now, how good is the ACC going to be? I don’t know, but they’ve been good enough to beat Florida State.” Utah Finally, Klatt has Utah among his teams trending in the wrong direction, even though he doesn’t blame the Utes for the way they handled former head coach Kyle Whittingham’s departure. After going 11-2 this past season, Klatt thinks Utah will take a step back this year due to the coaches and talent it lost to Michigan. “Not only did Kyle Whittingham jump back into the coaching ranks, but he did so at a blue blood, where it was going to be incredibly enticing for those loyal to Kyle at Utah to join him and take a run at this thing. That’s exactly what happened,” Klatt said. “Jason Beck, who was outstanding for Utah as the offensive coordinator, leaves, and now he’s at Michigan. A couple of Utah’s best players, defensive lineman John Henry Daley and cornerback Smith Snowden, are gone to Michigan.” Klatt continued to iterate that he thought Utah did “everything right” with its succession plan, naming defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley its head coach in waiting ahead of the 2024 season. But he thinks Whittingham’s decision to go to Michigan will put a halt to the momentum the program built in 2025. “It had been setting things up for a number of years, and that might be what hurt Utah in this whole carousel,” Klatt said. “Utah had been setting this up for Morgan Scalley, the defensive coordinator, to take over for Kyle Whittingham at the right time. It was going to be the Bob Stoops to Lincoln Riley and the Urban Meyer to Ryan Day handoff. Then, it wasn’t. I’ve got to tell you, it concerns me for Utah.”​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports

Daytona International Speedway (Daytona Beach, Fla.) — A lot can change on one eventful Sunday. Tyler Reddick, a 30-year-old Californian, is now a Daytona 500 winner following a roller-coaster few years — on and off the track. Entering his seventh year of Cup racing, Reddick won back-to-back titles in what is now the O’Reilly Series — and did it for two different teams (JR Motorsports and Richard Childress Racing). Reddick is married to Alexa DeLeon — daughter of Jose DeLeon, who spent 13 years as a pitcher in the major leagues — and they have two children: Beau (6) and Rookie (15 months). Last fall, Rookie needed surgery to remove a kidney, where a tumor was pressing up against an artery, causing signs of heart failure. Reddick, driver of the No. 45 car for Michael Jordan-owned 23XI Racing, won the regular-season Cup title in 2024 and then went winless in 2025. Now coming off the biggest win of his career, he sat down with me Monday morning before flying to New York City to embark on the Daytona 500 winner media tour: Who is Tyler Reddick? Tyler Reddick is a Northern California kid born and raised, grew up dirt racing on the short tracks and outlaw carts, and he was a dirt racer that ran dirt for well over 10 years before he ever got his first opportunity racing asphalt. And of course, it was very fitting that I got my opportunity from a fellow dirt racer himself in his roots in Ken Schrader and getting to drive asphalt for the first time with him [and his ARCA team]. A dirt kid that got an opportunity from one of the greats in our sport and led to me paving my way, if you will, up the NASCAR ranks. How would your wife describe you? Father. Impatient sometimes. I’m a bit all over the place, meaning if I don’t have something to do or something going on during the day, I can be a lot to deal with sometimes. But thankfully, I have a good schedule that kind of keeps me regimented. I’m definitely the type that it’s hard for me to sit still, I think my wife would say, I’m a great father, great husband, and we work really hard to be able to share these moments together as a family. It’s important to us. [INSIDE THE WIN: How 23XI Hopes to Build on Historic Daytona 500 Win] Well, if you don’t like to sit still, and you have two young kids who probably don’t sit still, you’re fine, right? Perfect. So do you handle that part of it well? Most of the time. When I’m sleepy, I’m not great at it, but you adjust, you adapt as your family grows as things change. Things are on that side are going well. On the great days, it’s awesome to celebrate with your family. And I’ve learned to on the bad days, it’s also great because when you get to when you get back to the bus or go to the plane or you get home after the race when they stayed home, they’re able to pick you up from your low spot and bring you back to just being dad outside of the car. So in a lot of ways, it’s a positive boost on the good and bad days. Do people ask you often why you named your kid Rookie? A couple of people have. Reason is Alexa’s grandpa. Alexa’s nickname growing up, she was his little Rookie. They watched a lot of baseball growing up together. Her dad obviously played, and her grandfather loves baseball. Her grandfather’s a huge, huge baseball fan. We enjoyed kind of going off the path a little bit with Beau, but it seems like there’s a lot of Beaus running around nowadays. But at the time, it felt like it was a name that was just not common, and think for all the right reasons, of all the names we were kind of throwing around, the one that I liked the most, that she loved, was Rookie. And my son, Beau, loved it too. So it just, it just fits. Right now, when he’s being cute, Rookie’s a little cookie. And when he gets a little bit older and starts running around and being rough on stuff, he’ll be a Rookie in that sense, too. So it’s very funny how when your child is born, you don’t know what they’re going to grow up to be or who they’re going to turn into. They’re obviously yours, but they somehow just live up to their name. Beau is a Beau, and Rookie is just, he’s Rookie, like just the name fits for whatever reason. Were you in a dark place last year? I think so. Any time for me that I go a couple weeks without winning, I feel that I never would have, in my worst nightmare, wrote up that I would go here without winning. But it became reality for me. And once that happens, it’s like man, was Homestead [in 2024] my last win? It’s a possibility I may never win again. It hits you. It really does. Sometimes that’s just how it happens. One day you just don’t win again. And is that it? And thankfully for me, I’ve at least won one more. I don’t think I’m by any means done winning, but when you go on spells like that when it’s just nothing seems to fall into place, nothing goes right. It’s a lot to deal with. You have big expectations for yourself with owners like Denny Hamlin, Michael Jordan and your team. We expect each other to go out and compete for championships, to win races like the Daytona 500 and win races in general. So last year was a tough year for us, but I feel like we came into 2026 in a better place because of the hard times we went through. And then there was probably a time when Rookie had his kidney tumor where you didn’t care whether you were winning or not last year? That is fair. When I was in the car, I still wanted to win. I cared about that. But certainly, it was very different. I was in a place where that priority was being home, was being at the hospital with Rookie, and if things fell in the right place with what he had going on, and he was going to be stable enough for a few days for me to go race, it essentially fell into place every week for me to go to the racetrack. And going into it, it didn’t look like it was going to go that way. It was very realistic that when I got home from Kansas [in the middle of the playoffs], I wasn’t going to get back in the car again. Things just kind of fell where I could be at the hospital all week, and then I could hop on a plane with Coach [Joe Gibbs] or Denny, whoever it was, and get to the track the last minute, then get in the car and go racing, get in the car at the airport when I got home, and go straight back to the hospital. When I was still in the car during those times, I wanted to win really bad for a number of reasons. But, it was weird where I had no desire, nothing to go to [our shop] Airspeed, to work, or put anything into racing. It was when I was home and when my family needed me was where I needed to be. Do you ever second-guess a text or question a text you would send to Michael Jordan? It’s important to be myself. But, yes, I do find myself when I text my bosses to make sure I proofread it once, twice, maybe three times before I send it. Not when I’m texting my mom or my dad or my wife. [INSIDE THE CELEBRATION: Michael Jordan: ‘Feels Like I Won a Championship’] But Michael isn’t intimidating to text? I had a spell where I was really bad about texting anybody back. I realized I was in a bad spot when he texted me, and I thought I responded, and I saw him a week later, and he’s like, “Thanks for the text back.” And everyone just started laughing because I don’t think I was texting anybody back during that time. We do go back and forth [on text]. A lot of times he’s telling me good job or trying to pump me up after a rough race. I would consider you a little bit more of a free spirit than some of the other drivers. Is that the California in you? Or is that the Scott Bloomquist, Ken Schrader training? It’s a little bit of everything where I grew up in Northern California on a lot of farmland where I live, we lived on a lot of acres, and I’d just always go out and explore. So I definitely feel like my roots were a bit more country and off the beaten path where I was born and raised. Just the more I grew up, the more I kind of branched into who I am. I feel like there’s a time and a place to be serious, but I think it’s super important to have fun doing what you’re doing. So I tried to keep it the serious moments, be focused, but keep it as light-hearted as possible. Because you dedicate your whole life to this. It’s important that you have fun, you do it with people that you love and care about as well. Would it be fair to say on the competition side, it took a while to find that balance? It really did. There was a period in time there where I thought, the more crazy I act, the higher my odds of winning go up for whatever reason. Some of that’s balanced out for sure. And when you get married, when you have kids, you kind of have to grow up at some point,too. It’s all helped balance it out. I still have my crazy side. I just show my crazy side when I play with my kids, when we’re having fun, roughhousing, I’m crawling around on the ground with Rookie. What did you learn from Schrader and Bloomquist on the track? I feel like some of the stuff I just talked about with both of them, honestly. They were very passionate about what they did, but they also love what they did and made sure that they had fun doing it. And that was important. I saw a lot out of Scott. I never met someone that worked harder but also played harder too. That’s what it’s about. It’s easy in racing to just let the weight of expectations get you down, and if you don’t enjoy what you’re doing while you’re doing it, if things aren’t going well, it’s really easy to get into a dark place. And so I’ve just always found that working with people that you like and finding ways to have fun while you’re working just helps it all balance out with the length of the season, and when you have a rough stretch, helps you get through it. Bob Pockrass covers NASCAR and INDYCAR for FOX Sports. He has spent decades covering motorsports, including over 30 Daytona 500s, with stints at ESPN, Sporting News, NASCAR Scene magazine and The (Daytona Beach) News-Journal. Follow him on Twitter @bobpockrass.​Latest Sports News from FOX Sports