NCAA

Deion Sanders just made a shocking -- and hilarious -- admission ... revealing Tuesday he had absolutely no clue where Mount Rushmore was located.

Prime acknowledged his geography deficiency as he was reflecting on his Colorado team's performance this year with a gaggle of media members.

While trying to explain how he felt about his 4-7 Buffaloes squad ... he said he has sky-high expectations -- similar to the height of a famous mountain that he thought was situated in SoCal.

"What's those little four heads that's in California?" he asked reporters. "What they call those? The people's faces engraved?"

When the room filled Sanders in that it was Mt. Rushmore -- and that it was, in fact, located in South Dakota, Coach Prime couldn't help but laugh.

"It's in where?" he said. "I thought it was in L.A. all this time! Wow, my geography."

To his credit, after chuckling for a few moments, Sanders thanked the crowd for "educating me."

LSU women's basketball coach Kim Mulkey is remaining tight-lipped on Angel Reese ... refusing to go into detail on the star player's current absence from the team.

The Bayou Barbie was MIA once again for the Tigers' 106-47 win over Texas Southern on Monday ... and during postgame availability with the media, Mulkey was not in the mood to explain why #10 wasn't on the court.

"Angel was not in uniform tonight. Angel is a part of this basketball team," Mulkey said. "And Angel will be back sooner than later. I'm not going to answer any more than that."

There has been a ton of speculation surrounding Reese's absence ... with fans noticing she was visibly upset during the Tigers' season-opening loss to Colorado.

The drama continued when Reese was sidelined for the second half of LSU's win over Kent State last week due to a "coach's decision" ... and she hasn't suited up since.

Of course, some folks believe it might be school related after Flau'jae Johnson's mom, Kia Brooks, claimed Reese had a "2.0 or less GPA" on social media last week ... but Mulkey made it clear she was not going to spill the beans on the current "locker room issues."

"Sometimes you want to know more than you're entitled to know. I'm going to protect my players. Always," Mulkey said ... comparing her athletes to family members.

Forget Ohio State vs. Michigan ... Donald Trump's got his eyes on attending a different college football game this weekend -- reportedly gearing up to take in South Carolina vs. Clemson on Saturday.

The former POTUS will be in attendance for kickoff at Williams-Brice Stadium in Columbia, S.C. ... according to multiple reports.

Unclear exactly why he chose the Palmetto Bowl over the huge Buckeyes vs. Wolverines matchup -- or any other big college football game Saturday, for that matter -- although South Carolina governor Henry McMaster said Tuesday he'd welcome No. 45 at the stadium with arms wide open.

Of course, Trump does have a bit of ties to both programs ... South Carolina, after all, voted for him in the 2016 and 2020 presidential elections -- while Clemson visited his White House for its two national championship celebrations in 2016 and 2018.

You'll recall ... one of the Tigers' visits to 1600 Penn. caused a little bit of a stir -- after Trump served the team a grip of fast food. Although the team's QB at the time, Trevor Lawrence, said he loved it.

The South Carolina trip will be Trump's second appearance at a sporting event this month -- he also attended UFC 295 in New York ... where he appeared to be flipped off by Bill Burr's wife.

Bronny James got to warm up with his USC teammates for the first time this season before their game on Sunday night ... and LeBron James said afterward his son is "almost" ready for a full return to the court.

The younger James got in some jump shots and dribbling work as fans filled the Galen Center just prior to the Trojans' tilt with Brown ... his first legitimate pregame action with his team since he suffered cardiac arrest during a workout in July.

The 19-year-old looked great ... showing no signs of issues -- this despite needing surgery to fix a congenital heart defect just a few months ago.

Following the USC game, Bronny headed over to Crypto.com Arena to watch LeBron play against the Rockets ... and after Dad took care of business vs. Houston -- he gushed about all the progress Bronny has made since his medical emergency.

"Today's game was the first game he got an opportunity to warm up with his team," LeBron said with a smile. "He's almost there."

LeBron added that seeing Bronny courtside gave him a little extra juice in the Lakers' 105-104 win over the Rockets.

Trojans head coach Andy Enfield, meanwhile, said Sunday night it was "great" seeing Bronny warm up ... though there's still no set timetable for a return to action.

Jim Harbaugh is waving the white flag in his fight against the Big Ten -- the Michigan head football coach has agreed to accept his three-game suspension as a result of the program's sign-stealing scandal.

U of M released a statement on the matter Thursday afternoon ... saying all sides resolved their pending litigation, with the conference closing its investigation.

"Coach Harbaugh, with the University's support, decided to accept this sanction to return the focus to our student-athletes and their performance on the field," the school said.

"The Conference has confirmed that it is not aware of any information suggesting Coach Harbaugh's involvement in the allegations."

Harbaugh's punishment means he will now miss Michigan's game against Maryland -- plus its massive rivalry with Ohio State ... which has a lot riding on it, as both schools are ranked in the top four.

Thursday's decision, however, doesn't mean Coach is out of the woods just yet -- the NCAA is still looking into the whole saga involving staffer Connor Stalions, who is accused of buying tickets to games to decipher the sideline signals of Michigan's future opponents.

The school stated it will continue to cooperate with that investigation.

Harbaugh will be able to coach during the week ... but he will be persona non grata on gameday for the next two matchups.

Paul Wight is returning to the ring Wednesday night ... something that might never have happened if not for former NBA star Xavier McDaniel, the first person to tell the Superstar formerly known as Big Show to go into professional wrestling!

Wight dropped by the TMZ offices on Tuesday and sat down with Babcock on the TMZ Sports TV show -- ahead of AEW Dynamite's Like A Dragon Gaiden Street Fight match -- where the guys discussed the 7-footer's start in the sport to his in-ring comeback.

The Wight the Wrestler origin story is pretty crazy.

Paul was a center on the Wichita State basketball team in the early '90s, but wasn't exactly Shaquille O'Neal on the court.

Because of his play on the hardwood, McDaniel, a Shockers alum who'd become an NBA star after being drafted with the 4th overall pick in 1985, gave Wight some invaluable advice ... and perhaps paved the way for him to become a titan in the wrestling industry.

"X was always pestering me, and he kept telling me I should go into wrestling. I said 'Man, listen, I'm gonna play in the NBA. That's what I've trained for since I was a kid. This is what I do,'" Wight recounted telling McDaniel (this story starts around the 14-minute mark).

"[Xavier] says, 'Man, you're gonna be the only 7-foot dude who gets cut by the Japanese team. He goes, 'I'm telling you what you need to do. You need to go into pro wrestling and be Andre The Giant's son.' He says, 'Man, you look like Andre. That's what you need to do.'"

"Xavier McDaniel saw the vision on the wall long before it ever happened."

Shortly after, Paul linked up with Hulk Hogan and Eric Bischoff ... and the rest is history.

Now, Wight's wrestling again at 51 years old (it's been a bit since he's performed in the Squared Circle, though he's been signed to AEW since '21) ... and he's teaming up with Kenny Omega, Kota Ibushi, and Chris Jericho to take on Hobbs, Konosuke Takeshita, Kyle Fletcher, and Brian Cage.

How much longer will he wrestle? Check out the full interview -- we asked him.

Johnny Manziel's rise to superstardom was nothing short of a movie ... and if Hollywood ever decides to actually turn his story into a real flick, the Heisman winner knows exactly who he wants to play him!!

Of course, Johnny's journey to becoming a household name as a college quarterback was filled with plenty of drama and excitement during his time at Texas A&M -- from partying and arrests to huge victories and hanging out with celebs like Justin Bieber and Drake, the guy couldn't keep out of the headlines if he tried.

Manziel's ups and downs were covered in a popular Netflix documentary ... and given that project's success, it wouldn't be surprising if a studio gives the green light on a feature film about Johnny down the line.

If that day comes, the former NFLer already has a guy in mind to take on the role -- Miles Teller.

"We've met a couple times in L.A. and stuff," Johnny told Broadcast Boys. "It's been talked about before. So, we'll go Miles Teller. It's safe to say."

While Teller is an accomplished actor, it's worth mentioning he's already about 15 years older than Johnny was when he tore it up in College Station ... but hey, it's Hollywood. Stranger things have happened.

College basketball and social media star Haley Cavinder has a new home -- she just announced she'll be suiting up for the TCU women's basketball team for her final year of eligibility after unretiring last month.

22-year-old Haley -- 1/2 of the popular Cavinder Twins -- made the move official on Monday ... sharing photo shoot shots of her wearing a Horned Frogs jersey and crown while sitting on a throne.

"The last rodeo #committed," Haley said.

Her sister clearly approves ... adding, "GO FROGSSS BABY" and "mom just bought purple cowboy boots after seeing this," in the comments.

Of course, the Cavinders are successful on and off the court -- they have NIL deals with companies like Betr Media and WWE ... and are among the most-profitable college athletes out there right now.

The former Miami WBB duo previously announced they would forego their final year of ball to expand their brand and business ventures ... but Haley later backtracked and said she would continue her career after taking time off.

She explained her decision to return in an interview with Forbes ... saying, "I think ending it with Hanna and announcing that we were done and not going to take our fifth year, I felt -- honestly, to be very transparent -- a lot of pressure."

"There was nothing filling the love for the game, and I just truly was like, I know I'm going to regret it down the road if I don't go back," Haley said.

The Frogs are getting a solid player -- Haley earned second-team All-ACC honors last season, averaging 12 points and four rebounds.

Former NFL cornerback D.J. Hayden -- who was a first-round pick in the 2013 draft -- was reportedly killed in a horrific car crash in Houston that claimed six lives.

The devastating accident happened at 2 AM on Saturday according to Houston Police Department's Assistant Chief Megan Howard and it involved an Acura SUV and a Chrysler 300 that ran a red light on Fannin Street.

"It appears to be going very fast, high velocity," Chief Howard said during the press conference. "At the scene, there were a total of four individuals pronounced deceased."

Chief Howard said another four were sent to the hospital ... sadly, two of them died later.

"We have a total of five males deceased, one female deceased," Chief Howard said.

According to Joseph Duarte of the Houston Chronicle, one of the deceased is former NFL player Hayden who played for the Raiders, Lions, Jaguars, and Washington.

Prior to the NFL, Hayden played two seasons (2011, 2012) at the University of Houston ... and during his senior year, he had a near-fatal injury when the inferior vena cava in his heart was torn after a hit during practice.

He survived the incident and was drafted as the 12th overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft.

D.J. logged 328 tackles, 4.5 sacks, 4 interceptions, and 4 forced fumbles in his nine-year career.

Another football player was also killed in the crash ... defensive back Zach McMillian who also played for the UH Cougars.

He was only 33.

7:55 PM PT -- Michigan and Jim Harbaugh aren't going down without a fight ... U of M has asked a court in Washtenaw County to grant a temporary restraining order that would block the Big Ten's suspension of the head coach.

The TRO would put Harbaugh's three-game regular season ban on hold until the matter could go before a judge.

While the restraining order hasn't yet been granted, the man who will ultimately decide what happens with Harbaugh -- whether he coaches in Saturday's pivotal football game against Penn State -- is a judge who happened to graduate from the University of Michigan in the 90s.

1:36 PM PT -- Univ. of Michigan officials just ripped the conference's ruling in a scathing statement ... writing, in part, "We are dismayed at the Commissioner's rush to judgment when there is an ongoing NCAA investigation -- one of in which we are fully cooperating."

"By taking this action at this hour," they added, "the Commissioner is personally inserting himself onto the sidelines and altering the level playing field that he is claiming to preserve. And, doing so on Veteran's Day -- a court holiday -- to try to thwart the University from seeking immediate judicial relief is hardly a profile in impartiality. To ensure fairness in the process, we intend to seek a court order, together with Coach Harbaugh, preventing this disciplinary action from taking effect."

The Big Ten has just suspended Jim Harbaugh for the rest of the regular season ... after it says the Michigan football team was involved in an intricate sign-stealing scheme that violated rules.

The conference announced Harbaugh will still be allowed to coach his team during weekdays while serving his suspension ... but on the Wolverines' three remaining gamedays this year, he must not be present.

Of course, it's a big deal for UM, considering two of those three contests are against No. 10 Penn State and No. 1 Ohio State.

Michigan, however, is reportedly expected to seek legal action now that could allow Harbaugh to still be able to coach his team during Saturday's game against the Nittany Lions.

The scandal surrounding Harbaugh and the Wolverines all began after team staffer Connor Stalions was accused of purchasing tickets to Big Ten games over the past three years with the intent of trying to decipher Michigan opponents' sideline signals.

In announcing its punishment for Harbaugh on Friday ... the Big Ten said it found at least some level of validity to the claims -- writing that Michigan gained "an unfair competitive advantage that compromised the integrity of competition" over it all.

This is not the first time Harbaugh has been in hot water this season ... he was also banned from the team's first three games over alleged transgressions during the COVID dead period.

Michigan is currently 9-0 despite all of the drama ... and ranked No. 3 in the nation.

El ex jugador de la NFL Matt Ulrich —ganador del Super Bowl con los Indianapolis Colts en 2006— ha muerto, anunció Jim Irsay el miércoles. Tenía 41 años.

Los detalles que rodean su muerte no han sido revelados por el momento.

Irsay compartió sus condolencias en X hace unos minuto, diciendo que a pesar de que el guardia ofensivo estuvo con el equipo por un corto tiempo, su presencia se sintió en toda la organización.

"Estoy desconsolado al enterarme del fallecimiento de Matt Ulrich", dijo Irsay en un sentido post. "Matt estuvo con nosotros solo dos temporadas, pero dejó su huella en muchos".

"Fue un gran tipo y he oído que era un gran padre... fue campeón del Super Bowl.  Mis oraciones para su familia. 🙏"

Ulrich fue un atleta estrella en Streamwood High School en Illinois. Recibió altos honores en fútbol y lanzamiento de peso antes de asistir a Northwestern.

Ulrich se unió a Indy en 2005, apareciendo en diez juegos en su carrera, ganándolo todo junto a Peyton Manning en el Super Bowl XLI.

Cuando se jubiló, fundó una empresa de fitness y también se aventuró al mundo de los negocios.

Former NFL player Matt Ulrich -- who won a Super Bowl with the Indianapolis Colts in 2006 -- has died, Jim Irsay announced Wednesday. He was 41 years old.

Details surrounding his death have not been revealed at this time.

Irsay shared his condolences on X just minutes ago ... saying even though the offensive guard was with the team for a short time, his presence was felt throughout the organization.

"I am heartbroken to hear of the passing of Matt Ulrich," Irsay said in a heartfelt post. "Matt was with us only two seasons, but left his mark on many."

"Great guy, I hear he was a great dad---and he was a Super Bowl champ.  My prayers to his family. 🙏"

Ulrich was a star athlete at Streamwood High School in Illinois ... receiving high honors in football and shot put before attending Northwestern.

Ulrich -- who went undrafted -- joined Indy in 2005 ... appearing in 10 games in his career, winning it all alongside Peyton Manning and Co. at Super Bowl XLI.

He started a fitness company in retirement ... and also ventured into business.

A fundraiser was set up to support Ulrich's family following the athlete's sudden death ... with nearly $30,000 being raised over the past 18 hours.

Tom McMakin -- the CEO of Profitable Ideas Exchange, where Ulrich worked -- donated $20k for the cause. TMZ Sports spoke with McMakin ... and he said Ulrich had the biggest heart in Montana.

"Matt had love and energy for everyone he met," McMakin said ... adding Ulrich was heavily involved in the community by coaching his kids' football teams and providing speed and strength training for young athletes.

McMakin also praised Ulrich's brain and leadership -- assisting on multiple boards for causes throughout the area and raved about his success in the office.

"An NFL lineman is usually scary ... but Matt immediately put you at ease," McMakin said. "He was a gentle giant."

Tom also commended Ulrich for continuing to focus on his health following his playing days ... pointing out the athlete had lost 40 pounds in recent years and was in "peak condition."

As for why he decided to make the substantial donation, McMakin said, "He helped build our company and he was the heart and soul to the business. It's the least we could do."

Bronny James could be one step closer to making his college basketball debut -- the USC guard is slated to have a health checkup later this month ... and if all goes well, he will be cleared to practice with his teammates.

The update came from Bronny's NBA superstar pops, LeBron, on Monday ... who doubled down on the chances his eldest son could see game action for the Trojans this season after suffering cardiac arrest on the court while training in July.

"Things are going in the right direction with Bronny's progress," LeBron told reporters after the Lakers' 108-107 loss to the Miami Heat. "He's doing rehab. Every week, he gets to do more and more."

No. 21-ranked USC kicked off its college season against Kansas State ... and of course, Bronny did not play. He has been with his teammates as he recovers ... even dancing during USC's annual Trojan HoopLA event at the Galen Center last month.

"We have a big moment at the end of this month to see if we can continue to go forward," LeBron continued. "If he's cleared, then we'll not be too long from him getting back on the floor and back with his teammates and practicing with the notion of being back on the floor and playing in a game situation."

"Everything is on the up and up. We're proud of his progress, we're proud of his strength."

As we previously reported, it was determined Bronny had "an anatomically and functionally significant Congenital Heart Defect," which caused his cardiac arrest on July 24.

Even though Nick Saban might look like he got into a fight with Francis Ngannou this week ... he revealed Thursday his eye is actually busted up because he's been screaming too much.

Many had been wondering what was wrong with the 72-year-old coach after he had been spotted in public multiple times this week with an eyeball seemingly full of blood.

Pat McAfee even joked with the Alabama honcho during his appearance on the "Pat McAfee Show" early Thursday morning -- asking if the seven-time national champion had suffered an injury squatting too much.

Initially, Saban said he had no idea what was wrong ... but during his hit on his weekly radio show on Thursday night, he announced it was simply a wound he got from yelling at his Crimson Tide players.

"[The doctor] comes to see me after practice today," Saban said. "And, he looks at me and he said, 'You been coughing?' And I said, 'No.' And he said, 'You know, you can get this from yelling.'"

"He said, 'You got it from yelling. There's nothing wrong with you. You just got it from yelling. You busted a blood vessel in your eye from yelling too much.'"

Saban and his cohosts got in a good laugh over it all ... with Nick even joking of his appearance, "It looks like I've been in a gang fight and my gang didn't show."

Saban should be fine going forward ... as the Mayo Clinic describes the issue as a "harmless" one that should subside in just a few days.

Texas Tech security didn't have to worry about fans invading the football field on Thursday night -- but they did have to deal with an opossum storming the pitch ... and the animal was sure pissed off when guards wouldn't let it continue its jaunt.

The wild scene played out at the end of the first quarter of the Red Raiders' game against TCU in Lubbock, Texas ... when an opossum somehow broke into Jones AT&T Stadium and made its way onto the field.

Broadcast cameras showed the marsupial got to the 15-yard line ... before security went to chase it down so play could resume.

Eventually, officials were able to corral it with an animal snare pole ... but you can see, the little beast was not pleased at all to be detained. In fact, it hissed and showed its teeth the entire time that it was being dragged away.

The opossum was ultimately removed from the stadium ... and the game went on -- but after TTU was able to beat TCU, 35-28, its fans asked to keep the critter!!

"Our lucky possum!!!" one Red Raiders supporter wrote on social media.

Seems the school is at least somewhat open to the idea ... its president was actually seen petting the opossum following the incident -- and the team ended up making a pic of the little guy its background image on X.

Big Boi's performance at a college football game went south real quick when he decided to share the stage with an owl that wasn't exactly feeling the vibe ... and tried to fly the coop, real quick!

Here's the deal, BB hit the stage in Georgia after Kennesaw State University's game with one of his pet owls, Kennesaw State's mascot is an owl, on his arm -- obviously thinking it would be the perfect crowd-pleaser. Ahhh, the best-laid plans of owls and men!

It did NOT go as planned, as you can see in the video... the owl got spooked right away during Big Boi's Saturday night performance and tried to fly away, but he was leashed to rapper's gloved right hand.

Sleepy Brown did his best to distract the crowd while Big Boi called in some help -- hopefully from a professional handler -- and the show went on, but it made for an awkward walk-out nonetheless.

He also shared a clip of him and the owl before the game and, at least backstage, it seemed chill.

Kennesaw State hasn't had a live owl mascot in a few years and its current mascot Scrappy is a costume.