TMZ Sports - Page 18

Alabama A&M football linebacker Medrick Burnett Jr. has passed away at 20 years old after suffering a severe head injury during a game last month.

According to local officials, he died at 5:43 PM Wednesday evening at UAB Hospital.

Burnett Jr. was involved in the collision during A&M's matchup with Alabama State on Oct. 26 -- one day before his birthday. He received treatment in the ICU ... and according to his sister, had several brain bleeds and swelling.

Kai Asakura is fighting for the flyweight title in the main event of UFC 310 -- his first-ever bout in the United States -- and the Japanese MMA star says there's one special person he'd love to see Octagon-side ... Shohei Ohtani!

TMZ Sports recently chopped it up with 31-year-old Asakura before his UFC debut -- a title bout vs. Alexandre Pantoja going down December 10 in Las Vegas -- and the 21-4 fighter hopes the newly minted World Series champ can squeeze in a trip to Sin City.

"I have never met [Ohtani]," Asakura told us through a translator. "But I'd love him to come and watch my fight."

Gilbert Arenas' high school superstar son, Alijah, tells TMZ Sports he'd wreck pops in 1-on-1 right now ... but the only problem?? He claims the ex-NBA star is ducking him!!

We caught up with the Arenas fam at LAX recently ... and asked who currently holds the bragging rights on the court.

"You gonna answer that?" Gilbert asked Alijah with a smirk. "He ain't got a win yet!"

Jake Paul's win over Mike Tyson did nothing to change Claressa Shields' opinion on how she'd fare against the boxer ... 'cause she tells TMZ Sports she still believes she'd whoop El Gallo's ass in the ring.

We caught up with the former world champion out at LAX ... and got her thoughts on all things Paul after his unanimous decision win over Iron Mike -- as well as the hate he's gotten over the years.

Shields believes the backlash isn't much about his skillset ... but more about his choice of opponents.

Taylor Swift's skipping deal hunting for football on Black Friday ... hitting up the Kansas City Chiefs game against the Las Vegas Raiders with Travis Kelce's fam.

The singer-songwriter arrived at Arrowhead Stadium just minutes ago ... with Travis' mom Donna walking alongside her down the tunnel and into the stadium.

Taylor's in her comfy, cozy K.C.-fan era ... red quarter-zip top and black pants on -- bracing the elements out in Missouri. It's currently 35 degrees in KC -- so, certainly not shorts and t-shirt weather.

The Matt Eberflus era is over in Chicago -- the Bears just fired the guy in his third year with the team ... marking the first in-season head coaching move in franchise history.

The news broke on Friday ... less than 24 hours after the Bears' sixth-straight loss at the hands of the Detroit Lions on Thanksgiving Day -- a result that was met with heavy criticism.

With the ball and down 23-20 in the final minute of the game, Eberflus elected not to use a timeout to stop the clock ... and Chicago's late push came up short.

Alexis Ohanian, tennis legend Serena Williams' husband, detailed a recent health scare in a post on Instagram ... in which he says he got half his thyroid removed.

The Reddit cofounder and entrepreneur explained it all in a post put up on Thanksgiving day ... showing a snap of him with a scar on his neck while gowned up in a hospital bed -- saying the procedure came after "tracking some suspicious nodules on my thyroid for the last 4 years."

Alexis says the nodules kept getting bigger over time, and his most recent biopsy revealed "they’d very likely turn cancerous" -- adding he wasn't going to take a chance.

Former Green Bay Packers linebacker Brady Poppinga is suing a Southern California hospital and several of its doctors -- claiming they contributed to his teenage son's tragic death last year.

The ex-NFLer filed the suit in Los Angeles this week ... alleging multiple physicians at Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center did not properly care for Julius Poppinga after the family had admitted the 17-year-old into the facility's ICU.

In the suit, Brady and his wife, Brooke, say they brought in their boy on Aug. 27, 2023 with chest pains and breathing issues ... but despite 'round-the-clock attention from docs, he didn't get better.

Dakota Ditcheva is one win away from being crowned the promotions flyweight champion -- and from stacking a million bucks -- so, what's the plan if she emerges victorious Friday night?!

Shopping spree!!!

TMZ Sports caught up with the 26-year-old ahead of the big PFL Championship card on November 29 in Saudi Arabia, with the English-born fighter saying she already has plans for the $1 million prize.

Conor McGregor might've lost his gig as the face of Proper No. 12, but his business corner isn't completely empty ... with one company telling TMZ Sports the results of the recent civil case will have zero impact on its relationship with the UFC superstar.

McGregor has racked up countless endorsement deals throughout his career ... including a deal with Swedish fitness brand Boxbollen, a product that promotes exercise at home.

We spoke with Boxbollen co-founder Jacob Eriksson days after a jury found McGregor liable for assaulting Nikita Ni Lamhain in 2018 ... and he said while the company takes these matters seriously, it's not abandoning the Irish athlete.

Shaboozey might be at a bar gettin' tipsy ... but, his halftime show performance was full of just clean, family fun -- at least, that's what some on the internet say.

Here's the deal ... the singer-songwriter performed during halftime of the Detroit Lions game against the Chicago Bears -- playing several of his hit songs including "Tipsy (A Bar Song)," "Last of My Kind" and others.

The 6-minute performance was well-received both in the building and online ... with many on X applauding the show for being fun and family-friendly.

Tom Brady's had plenty of detractors since his debut in the broadcast booth earlier this year, but Rich Eisen clearly ain't one of them ... he tells TMZ Sports he finds the former QB's mic chops amazing.

The famed sportscaster -- who's worked play-by-play at a few NFL games this season -- gushed over TB12's first foray into color commentating ... saying out at LAX this month Brady is "one-of-one."

Eisen loves the fact that the future Hall of Famer can speak on just about every single issue that crops up in a game -- including injuries, winning, losing and playing into his 40s.

It wouldn't surprise Brett Favre if Deion Sanders is the next head coach of the Dallas Cowboys ... the Hall of Famer tells TMZ Sports he thinks the move is certainly possible.

America's Team, of course, is currently managed by Mike McCarthy ... but with the squad floundering at 4-7 and his contract slated to end following the season, there's been a whole lot of speculation Jerry Jones could be looking for a new sideline guy in 2025.

And, with Sanders' ties to Dallas and his impressive résumés at both Colorado and Jackson State -- Favre says he could see a situation where Jones taps Prime Time to be that man.

Turkey Day is all about food and football ... and while we can't help with the former, TMZ Sports has got ya covered with the latter -- presenting the wives and girlfriends of all the NFL teams playing on Thanksgiving!!

The first matchup on Thanksgiving is the Bears and Lions ... and despite the game being in Detroit, we're sure Jonathan Owens' wife, Olympic legend Simone Biles, will be supporting her man throughout the action.

The same goes for DJ Moore's lady, Rae, and Keenan Allen's wife, CiMo ... who are always cheering on Da Bears each week.

Kim Zolciak and Kroy Biermann's ongoing financial and marital drama has taken another turn — cause TMZ has learned the estranged couple is now officially living apart as their Georgia mansion heads to the auction block.

Sources with direct knowledge of the situation tell TMZ ... Kim and Kroy secured their own, separate rental houses not far from where their longtime marital home is. We're told their 4 minor children — Kroy Jr., Kash, Kaia, and Kane — will split their time between their parents' rental homes.

The two now living apart marks a significant shift in their contentious divorce saga, which has played out in court and in public. Until this week, the pair had been living under the same roof in their sprawling 7-bedroom, 11-bathroom estate, despite over a year of mounting financial troubles.

It’s the end of an 'Era' for Taylor Swift ... and Vancouver’s going all out to send her off with a massive bang as she wraps up her tour with three final shows.

As you can see from these pics, the city's going full Swiftie mode, with a giant "SWIFTCOUVER" sign by the water, a billboard ft. lyrics from her tune "Long Live," and to top it all off, a street sign reading "Taylor Way Vancouver."

Taylor’s not hitting the stage in Vancouver until December 6, 7, and 8 at BC Place Stadium, but after two years of touring, the city clearly couldn’t wait any longer to roll out the red carpet for her epic farewell.