TMZ Sports - Page 50

As if 2020 couldn't get any worse for some people ... here's beloved Philadelphia Flyers mascot Gritty crushing a golf ball better than you ever will!!!

The video is nothing short of incredible -- the big orange thing took its talents to the driving range to rip some shots recently ... and Gritty unleashed some moon shots.

Seriously, even the golf bros in our office had to admit the mascot hit the ball better than they ever could!!

But, here's where it gets tricky -- some would say, "there's gotta be a PGA pro in that costume, right?!" and brush off the whole thing as a publicity stunt.

That would be easy to believe, except when you watch Gritty celebrate with its signature dance moves, which look very Gritty-esque. 🧐

We're used to seeing Gritty show off clever jabs at enemies like P.K. Subban and the Houston Astros ... but who woulda thought it could grip it and rip it like John Daly?!

Great drive, Gritty ... but how's your short game?!

Cristiano Ronaldo ain't out of the woods yet ... he reportedly tested positive for COVID again, which means he won't be able to join his Juventus teammates to take on Barcelona next week.

Remember, the 35-year-old soccer superstar initially popped for COVID last week (it was announced Oct. 13) -- and was sent home from practicing with the Portugal national team.

CR7 has since been posting photos on social media showing him training and relaxing in his mansion -- with a big ol' smile on his face.

He even posted a pic of his freshly-shaved head on Thursday morning -- flaunting a ridiculously expensive watch.

But, behind the scenes, Ronaldo -- one of the top athletes on the planet -- is still battling coronavirus, according to Spanish outlet Marca.com.

The new positive test means he'll have to miss at least another week of action before he can join his Champions League club Juventus, which is scheduled to take on Lionel Messi's Barca squad on Wednesday.

It's heartbreaking news -- EVERYONE was looking forward to Ronaldo vs. Messi!

But, in order to be cleared to participate in a UEFA match, a player must test negative for an entire week before a game ... and now that's off the table.

Sucks, but if you're gonna have to self-isolate for another week -- at least Ronaldo has a gigantic mansion to enjoy ... with a private pool, gym, etc.

Bubba Wallace is taking the high road after a famous helmet artist -- who worked with Bubba in the past -- blasted the NASCAR driver on social media for bringing politics to the sport.

The artist is Jason Beam -- one of the top helmet designers in racing. He's worked with stars like Jimmie Johnson to Kyle Busch and more.

Beam's also pretty outspoken -- and when Richard Petty Motorsports announced they have officially named a new driver to take over the #43 car (now that Bubba has left the team), Beam went after Bubba publicly.

"RPM will actually have a wheelman behind the wheel and not a political statement looking for attention," Beam posted on Twitter.

A fan responds to Beam saying -- "So is this your final position? Cuz I remember a lot of flip flopping when you started getting called out by drivers."

That's when things escalated ... big time.

"I never once flip flopped," Beam said ... "F*ck Bubba and F*ck the BLM movement and F*ck anyone who wants to censor opinions and let politics get in the way of business relationships."

"You can quote me all you want, that’s my stance and has been from the get go."

Bubba saw the tweets and decided to respond -- expressing his disappointment with the artist.

"Can usually let the BS roll off but when it’s somebody I’ve met personally and was genuinely excited to have my first few lids painted by him .. hits different."

Bubba then explained why he left Richard Petty Motorsports to join Michael Jordan's new racing team.

"I ultimately left bc I just wanted a different look. No hard feelings just a personal feeling."

Wallace had this final message for Beam -- "Damn dude. Roger that."

As for the new Richard Petty driver -- RPM announced 24-year-old Erik Jones will take over the #43 car.

"Erik is an exceptionally talented driver, and we are excited to have him join our team,” RPM CEO Brian Moffitt said.

"At only 24 years old, Erik is part of NASCAR’s next generation of stars. He has won races at every level in NASCAR he has competed in – including in the NASCAR Cup Series. Erik is a proven winner and we look forward to providing him with the opportunity to add more wins to this already impressive resume."

Donald Trump is showing major love to ex-Florida State football coach Bobby Bowden -- praising the 90-year-old for making a "full recovery" from COVID.

As we previously reported, Bowden was hospitalized at Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare earlier this month after testing positive for coronavirus.

Bowden was released from the hospital last week -- and issued a statement on Wednesday thanking everyone for the support ... while reinforcing his support for Trump.

"I just went through a battle with COVID-19 and God just wasn't ready to take me home yet to be with him," Bowden said.

He added, "I’ve had the chance to get a lot of wins in my life, but I really wanted to win this one because I wanted to be around to vote for President Trump."

Well, POTUS got the message -- and tweeted about Bobby on Thursday morning ... calling him "great" while reposting Bowden's pro-Trump message.

"Over 300 wins and 2 National Championships," Trump added, "Thank you to Florida State for giving us Bobby Bowden!"

Penn State basketball coach Pat Chambers resigned Wednesday -- following an investigation into new allegations of misconduct.

The University says the new allegations were made following a report by The Undefeated back in July that Chambers made racially insensitive comments to a black player.

The player, Rasir Bolton, told The Undefeated that Chambers made a comment to him referencing a metaphorical "noose" back in 2019.

Bolton claims Chambers approached him and said, "I want to be a stress reliever for you. You can talk to me about anything. I need to get some of this pressure off you. I want to loosen the noose that's around your neck."

Bolton said of Chambers' comment, "Due to other interactions with Coach, I knew this was no slip of the tongue."

At the time the article came out, Chambers issued a statement saying, "I failed to comprehend the experiences of others, and the reference I made was hurtful, insensitive and unacceptable. I cannot apologize enough for what I said, and I will carry that forever."

The player transferred from PSU to Iowa State shortly after the incident.

Penn State says "new allegations surfaced shortly after" the article came out -- so an investigation was launched into Chambers by Penn State's Affirmative Action and Athletics Integrity offices.

The school did not release the details regarding the new allegations.

But, Chambers issued a statement Wednesday saying he would be resigning.

"This has been an incredibly difficult year for me and my family, and we are in need of a break to reset and chart our path forward," chambers said.

"So, I’m taking a step back to prepare myself for the next 20 years."

The 49-year-old coach had been at Penn State since 2011.

UFC's newest star Michael Chandler says he's taking his job as "alternate" for the Khabib vs. Gaethje fight very seriously ... and he'll be ready to step in if either fighter can't go on Saturday.

As we previously reported, several Khabib fights have been scrapped at the last minute to due unforeseen circumstances ... from bad weight cuts to freak injuries.

So, Dana White has a backup plan for UFC 254 -- flying out Michael Chandler, one of the best lightweights in the world, to stay ready in case something happens to either Justin or Khabib before that bell rings.

"Of course I don't want bad luck to befall Khabib or Gaethje because I respect them a ton," Chandler tells TMZ Sports ... "but they needed someone to be here as an insurance policy, as a backup plan in case somebody did fall off the card. So, I've said I have to be ready."

Chandler is on Fight Island and preparing himself as if he'll fight on Saturday night -- everything from conditioning to the weight cut.

"At this point, I still don't know if whether I'm weighing in and then waiting for Khabib and Gaethje to make weight," Chandler says.

"I don't know if I'm gonna go to the arena, warm-up, get my hands wrapped until Khabib and Gaethje actually step into that cage and that cage door's locked and Bruce Buffer's announcing them."

Chandler admits it's frustrating training for a fight that might not happen -- but "I signed on the dotted line saying I'd be the alternate, I am the alternate until I'm needed no more."

"All I can do is do my job."

After UFC 254, Chandler says he's hoping to sign a contract to fight Tony Ferguson -- and if he wins that, it would put him in a great spot for a potential title shot with Khabib or Justin.

We also asked Chandler to make a fight prediction for Saturday -- and he's taking Khabib over Gaethje.

"You gotta bet on the guy who is undefeated."

But, Chandler says Gaethje is a dangerous man -- and he's got a real shot at upsetting the champ.

LeBron James is vowing NOT to engage in Twitter wars with President Trump before the election ... saying he "damn sure won't go back and forth" with #45.

The 4-time NBA champ has engaged in mutual verbal combat with POTUS in the past ... including his famous "bum" remark when defending Steph Curry and the Golden State Warriors' outspokenness against visiting the White House.

POTUS also recently ripped into the superstar ... calling him "nasty" and "a hater" for his political stance and accusing him of hurting the NBA's rankings.

Bron -- who's actively pushing to get more voters via his "More Than A Vote" campaign -- spoke with the New York Times about his public beef with Trump ... and he makes it clear he's not entertaining a long-term battle.

"I don’t go back and forth with anybody," James says. "And I damn sure won’t go back and forth with that guy."

"But, we want better, we want change in our community. We always talk about, 'We want change,' and now we have the opportunity to do that."

King James also spoke out on his decision to campaign for more voting rather than a particular candidate in 2020 ... saying, "We’ve been talking about voter suppression, we’ve been talking about police brutality, systemic racism."

"We’ve had so many things going on, and voter suppression in our communities happens to be at the forefront. So that’s something we wanted to educate our people on."

Pete Carroll just confirmed the Seahawks Seahawks have SOME interest in signing Antonio Brown ... but it ain't exactly a done deal.

The Seahawks coach was just asked about a report from ESPN's Adam Schefter which says Seattle is "positioned to make a push to sign" the WR when he's eligible to get back on the field after Week 8.

Carroll acknowledged AB is on their radar -- but that's about as much as he would say.

"We have endeavored to be in on everything that's going on -- and [Seahawks GM John Schneider] has done a marvelous job of always being tuned in to what's happening ... and this is no exception."

"So, we’ll see what happens as we go forward, but we're tuned in to what's happening there."

Of course, Brown has a troubling history both on and off the field -- causing problems with the Steelers and the Raiders ... and trashing the New England Patriots at the end of his run with the Patriots.

Off the field, Brown has been arrested for allegedly assaulting a moving truck driver and he's been accused of raping a former personal trainer. He's also publicly said horrible things about the mother of his children and trashed the police.

Don't forget the furniture throwing allegations ... and much, much more.

For his part, Brown says he's sought help for his issues and promises he's a changed man.

When Pete Carroll was asked if the team has started to look into Brown's history ... the Seahawks head coach said, "We're nowhere there right now so let's wait and see what happens."

Carroll noted that with all players, the team always does their homework -- "We will never think we can leave a stone unturned. That's how we approach everything and we’ll continue to do that here."

Look, AB can ball -- we all know that. But, will a team roll the dice???

Bad news for the Las Vegas Raiders ... offensive lineman Trent Brown has tested positive for COVID -- and there are concerns the rest of the starting linemen could have it too.

Raiders head coach Jon Gruden just told the media all 5 starting offensive linemen were sent home from practice on Wednesday due contract tracing ... stemming from Brown's positive test.

Gruden says he's not happy about the situation -- but made it clear the health of his players is the priority.

The issue ... the Raiders are set to play a pretty important game against Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Bucs on Sunday -- and many are wondering if the Silver & Black will have to take the field without their starting offensive line!

Gruden doesn't seem too concerned yet ... telling the media, "We’ll have 5 on Sunday, we’ll be ready to go."

Gruden says ... this is just the way it is (playing football during a pandemic) and he'll do the best he can to make sure the team is ready by Sunday.

As for Brown, he'll be tested and retested to make sure the positive test is accurate -- and not a false positive.

LSU has banned Odell Beckham from its facilities for the next 2 years for his antics at the 2019 National Championship game ... when the NFL star handed out $2,000 in $100 bills to LSU players.

You remember the video ... Odell -- who played at LSU back in the day -- was going crazy on the field after LSU beat Clemson on Jan. 13, 2020 ... throwing around money like he didn't care.

Guess what ... LSU cared and so does the NCAA -- since it's against the rules to just hand out money to college players like that.

LSU believes the Odell money incident constitutes a Level III violation, according to SI.com.

Remember, LSU initially told the media Odell was handing out fake money that night -- but it turned out to be real.

In fact, LSU quarterback Joe Burrow later confirmed it was real cash during an episode of the Barstool Sports podcast, "Pardon My Take."

LSU says Odell is now banned from all LSU facilities for the next 2 years.

LSU has bigger problems ... they're also accused of several other NCAA violations, which could cost them scholarships and more.

The University has self-imposed penalties -- including the loss of 8 scholarships over the next 2 years -- in the hopes of getting a lighter punishment from the NCAA. We'll see if the strategy works.

The school released a statement Wednesday saying, "LSU has worked proactively and in cooperation with the NCAA to identify and self-report any violations that occurred within our football program."

Patrick Mahomes is officially going to be part of the #GIRLDAD gang ... the NFL superstar and his fiancee just announced the couple's expecting a baby girl!

... and, the gender reveal party the two threw looked AWESOME!!!

Mahomes and Brittany Matthews posted the video announcement Wednesday ... showing they used their adorable dogs to make the big reveal.

There were also balloons, custom shirts and jackets, confetti ... and a whole lot of smiling!!!

"P.s-," Brittany captioned the video Wednesday, "Yes, my dogs walked down a run way with pink paws for the reveal 🤩😍."

Added Mahomes, "#GirlDad."

Britt and Patrick have been dating for YEARS ... and initially announced they were pregnant last month. The two got engaged at the Chiefs' Super Bowl ring ceremony just a few weeks prior.

Miami Dolphins QB Ryan Fitzpatrick was CRUSHED to hear he'd been benched in favor of Tua Tagovailoa ... telling reporters Wednesday, "My heart just hurt all day."

Fitzmagic had the 'Fins rolling the past few weeks ... dude was 3-1 in his last 4 starts with 10 total TDs -- but the team decided to hand the keys over to Tua this week regardless.

And, when 37-year-old Fitzpatrick was asked how he felt about the decision ... he couldn't hide his pain.

"It was heartbreaking for me," Ryan said, before admitting he knew this day was coming eventually after the team had drafted Tagovailoa in the 1st-round last April.

"It still, just, it broke my heart yesterday," Fitzpatrick said, "and it's a tough thing for me to hear and to now have to deal with but I'm going to do my best with it."

Ryan learned of the decision Tuesday ... and he said having to head into meetings Wednesday was tough as hell for him.

In fact, Fitzpatrick straight-up said it felt like he had been fired by head coach Brian Flores.

"I basically got fired yesterday and today my day consisted of zoom meetings with the guy that fired me and sitting in a room with the guy who replaced me for four hours."

Fitzpatrick added, "I felt like it was my team."

The Dolphins are on a bye this week ... and have said Tua will take over the starting QB reins in Week 8 against the Rams.

Odell Beckham has quite the unique perspective on the COVID-19 pandemic ... saying he's developed a "mutual respect" with the virus ... which essentially makes him feel immune.

Really.

Remember, the Cleveland Browns superstar came down with a bug days before Sunday's game against the Steelers ... and many feared it was the 'rona taking over another NFL organization.

Despite testing negative for the virus, OBJ was asked Wednesday if he was scared his illness was COVID-19 at the time ... and the dude made a gem of a statement.

"No, not in an arrogant way," OBJ told reporters. "I don't think COVID can get to me. I don't think it's going to enter this body."

He continued ... "I don't want no parts of it, it don't want no parts of me. I think it's a mutual respect."

New parents across the U.S. are honoring Kobe and Gianna Bryant in a BIG way ... experts say babies with the names Kobe and Gianna have risen dramatically in 2020.

According to BabyCenter, there's been a huge increase in newborns with the names since the NBA legend and his daughter tragically died in a helicopter crash in January.

Per the site -- which gets its data from over 500,000 new babies that were registered to the site this year -- Kobe vaulted from #595 on the list in 2019 to #216 in 2020.

The site claims that's "far and away the biggest riser on the list for boys in 2020."

As for Gianna, her name among newborns rose from #76 to #24 (seriously, #24).

In case you were wondering, the top 10 for the year for boys included Liam, Noah, Jackson, Aiden, Elijah, Grayson, Lucas, Oliver, Caden and Mateo.

For girls, the top 10 went Sophia, Olivia, Riley, Emma, Ava, Isabella, Aria, Aaliyah, Amelia and Mia.

UFC superstar Justin Gaethje says he doesn't have a healthy fear of dying -- which is exactly why he refuses to buy a motorcycle.

We should explain ...

31-year-old Gaethje says the way he's built, he goes "balls to the wall" in everything he does -- and that little voice that most people have in their heads telling them to "slow down" and "be careful" ... yeah, he doesn't have that.

He doesn't WANT to die -- but once he starts to do something that might be dangerous (like riding a motorcycle), he'll push it to the limit with no regard for his own safety.

Hence, his rule of trying not to put himself in a position where death is a real possibility. Get it?

Here's how Justin put it to us while talking about his upcoming fight with Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 254.

"I'm confident in my skills, not one bit scared to step in there. I'm looking forward to that feeling. I chase that feeling. That's why I don't buy motorcycles because I will die. That's why I do a lot of things to keep myself from even putting myself in positions where I can be in danger because once it starts, it's balls to the wall."

Scary as hell, right?!

There's a lot more ... as far as Justin's MMA career, Gaethje says he's got "at least 5 more fights" -- but he'll only count a fight if it's a "war."

"If they're not wars, they don't count."

The money is also a factor -- "As long as [the UFC is] paying me as much as they're paying me, I'm probably gonna fight until I do not believe I can be the best in the world anymore."

Gaethje says the money he'll make from the Khabib fight will mean his mother no longer has to work another day in her life.

The only issue ... mom -- a Postmaster at Safford Post Office in Arizona -- isn't ready to retire just yet!

"She's so crazy. She's like 'Son, I can't leave them for Christmas. I have to at least work until Christmas!' I'm like, 'No you don't! You don't owe them nothing!'"

"But it's just a testament to who they are and who I am."

Rose petals?? Check. Sunset views on the beach?? Check. Candles and live music?? Check and check!!

Tennis superstar Naomi Osaka and her rapper boyfriend Cordae had the most epic romantic dinner on the beach to celebrate her birthday this week ... and it legit looks like it came out of a dream.

The couple has been boo'd up in paradise for about a week to celebrate Osaka's 23rd (which was Oct. 16) ... posting up at the beach and other cozy spots.

The top highlight had to be their private dinner on the sand ... where the "Gifted" lyricist vibed to the tunes of the night as Osaka soaked it all in.

"I felt like I was in a movie," the 3-time Grand Slam winner said on Tuesday.

Of course, Osaka and Cordae have been together for over a year ... but this is by far the most romantic we've seen the couple!

Cordae has played the role of cheerleader this year as well, supporting Osaka from the stands during her U.S. Open championship run.