TMZ Sports - Page 35

Theo Von has entered the college football chat — and he confused the hell out of some OGs on the air … which was absolutely hilarious to watch.

ESPN tapped into the TikTok zeitgeist and hired Theo Von as their celebrity guest panelist for “College GameDay” Saturday … where he, Pat McAfee and the rest of the professional analysts sat around making picks ahead of a packed schedule.

The only difference this time around was Theo’s very unpredictable nature and rants — which certainly shone through during the telecast, especially when he was talking about the matchup between Louisville and Florida State.

Apparently, TV thought it was 2013 again … ‘cause he invoked Jameis Winston’s name to talk about the Seminoles’ chances. Only problem … Winston has long left the university, something Pat reminded Theo of … forcing him to pivot and come up with a new rationale.

It was pretty typical Theo, but Lee Corso couldn’t believe (or comprehend) what he was hearing … making for a funny-ass exchange live on TV.

Gloria Allred can add another high-profile case to her resume ... 'cause TMZ Sports has learned the famed attorney has been hired by the girl at the center of the investigation into OKC star Josh Giddey as cops work to determine if he had an inappropriate relationship with a minor.

We broke the story earlier in the week ... Newport Beach PD launched an investigation into the situation, but the girl and her family are not cooperating with law enforcement.

Now that Allred is involved, it begs the question ... why?

She could be tasked with liaising with cops, or even talking to Giddey's people about a potential settlement.

We reached out to the powerful attorney who told us, "We represent the family and we have no comment."

21-year-old Giddey is one of the better young players in the league, and the story has gotten a lot of attention ... but that's not a foreign concept to Allred.

Among some of her firm's high-profile cases ... she represented over 50 women who accused Bill Cosby of misconduct. She also worked for several women who accused former U.S. Congressman Anthony Weiner of sending sexually explicit photos and messages.

There are still a lot of questions surrounding the alleged relationship, which first came to light publicly last weekend, including the girl's age, the state where it allegedly took place, and the nature of their relationship.

Mike Perry has fought in the UFC and BKFC, and can count the likes of Luke Rockhold, Cowboy Cerrone, and Michael "Venom" Page as previous opponents ... but none of those scraps were bigger than Saturday night's bare-knuckle fight with former MMA champ Eddie Alvarez!

"This is a very tremendous opportunity for me, the biggest fight of my career to date," Perry told TMZ Sports this week.

"Eddie Alvarez, he's got quite the resume. I'm happy to be against it, and I'm looking to shut it down whether that be finishing him or just picking him apart for 12 minutes."

FYI, Perry is 3-0 in BKFC (Rockhold, Page, Lane) ... and is the promotion's biggest star. Alvarez has less experience sans gloves ... he's 1-0 with a win over Chad Mendes.

As for where he goes after Eddie, Perry says he's "looking to put on a good performance and skies the limit" afterward.

"We saw Conor McGregor and me face off last time. I was talking a little bit of s*** about Sean Strickland, he's very upset about it. He's angry with me. Every time he talks to me he's like, 'We gotta box. We gotta box.' I wrote him and said, 'Come to the fight in Utah' and he didn't even open that message and read it."

Shadasia "The Sweet Terminator" Green couldn't be happier to have signed on with Jake Paul's MVP Promotions ... telling TMZ Sports her boxing career AND her life as a whole have changed "drastically" since she became a part of his fighting team.

"It's been amazing," said the 13-0 boxer, who officially joined Paul's promo earlier this year. It's "changed my boxing career in so many dimensions."

One of those dimensions, Green said, is the business side ... with the 34-year-old New Jersey native telling us that for the first time in her career, she feels like she's operating and moving like a real-deal, professional boxer.

She said the other upside is definitely the bigger paydays.

"I owe everything to MVP," she said of Jake's org., which he launched in 2021 with Nakisa Bidarian, "and I'm just grateful to be a part of their team and have Nakisa as my manager and Jake as my manager. I'm blessed."

Arnold Schwarzenegger is speaking out against the barbaric, unprovoked Hamas attack on Israel ... meeting with survivors and their families.

The former governor of California got emotional as he condemned the Oct. 7 slaughter of innocent civilians ... saying it's unlike anything he's ever seen and offering his support for Israel.

Arnold met with family members of Israeli hostages who are still being held by Hamas in Gaza .. presenting them with bronze eagle statues.

After the meeting, Arnold told us he's looking to spread peace ... because it's more powerful than hate and anger.

14-year-old Ella Shani was among the survivors traveling from Israel to Santa Monica to meet Arnold ... she recounted how her father was murdered on Oct. 7 by Hamas terrorists at Kibbutz Beeri, and how her 16-year-old cousin Amit Shani was kidnapped.

Ella says her cousin was hiding in a safe room in his home when Hamas set the place on fire and broke down the door. She says Amit and two other Israeli men from a neighboring house were ordered into a car, kidnapped and taken to Gaza.

As Ella spoke for about 30 minutes, Arnold teared up ... and they hugged in the end. He also showed her some of his cool movie memorabilia, like a robot head from 'Terminator.'

Connor Bedard is now weighing in on the unfounded rumors that his former teammate, Corey Perry, slept with his mom ... and he was adamant on Friday they're straight up "BS."

The Blackhawks superstar didn't mince words when a reporter asked him about the crass gossip that's surrounded Chicago's hockey team for the past few days ahead of their Saturday game against the Jets in Winnipeg.

"It's just a bunch of BS on the internet," Bedard said, before admitting, "It's of course been an effect on myself and my family."

"And that's not fair," he continued, according to Blackhawks beat reporter Ben Pope. "But it's out of our control. It's all just fake, made-up stuff."

Bedard is now the third person to deny the baseless allegations that first formulated on X late last month ... joining Blackhawks GM Kyle Davidson and Perry himself.

It seems he'll likely be the last, too, because according to hockey reporter Jacob Stoller, Bedard "became annoyed as the questions" about the Perry rumors continued during his Friday meeting with the media.

"I don't need to answer anymore questions about this stuff," Bedard said.

Perry was cut by the Blackhawks on Tuesday -- and while a specific reason for his departure was never given by the team ... it reportedly all had to do with an "alcohol-infused incident" with team staffers and corporate sponsors.

In a statement Perry released on Thursday, the 38-year-old apologized for his "inappropriate and wrong" behavior.

Congrats are in order for Luka Doncic and his fiancée, Anamaria Goltes -- the NBA star and the model just introduced their baby girl to the world!!

The Dallas Mavericks hooper and Anamaria shared the amazing news on Instagram on Friday ... captioning a picture of the little bundle of joy with one word -- "Gabriela."

This is the first child for the pair ... and their famous friends couldn't be happier for them.

"Congrats my man!" Patrick Mahomes said in the comment section ... with many others -- including Luka's mom, Mirjam Poterbin -- showing love as well.

Doncic is missing his first game of the season as the Mavs face off against the Memphis Grizzlies in a few hours. His absence was originally disclosed as personal reasons, but now we know it was for his daughter's arrival!

Doncic has been dating Goltes since 2016 ... and the two first met in Croatia when they were just kids. On July 7, they announced their picturesque engagement in Slovenia.

Cleveland Browns star David Njoku burned nearly a quarter of his body during his serious bonfire mishap earlier this season ... with the tight end's doctor revealing his injuries were "probably the most painful burn you can have."

The 27-year-old sat in front of a camera and detailed the September 29 incident this week ... giving a play-by-play of exactly what happened that fateful night.

Njoku said he likes to have bonfires in his backyard to relax on Fridays ... and after running out of his usual lighter fluid, he tried out a spray to ignite the logs in his pit.

Unfortunately ... when he went to start the fire, particles in the air caught ablaze and blew up in his face.

Dr. Joseph Khouri of University Hospitals explained the extent of Njoku's ailments ... saying he had second-degree partial-thickness burns, which involve the top two layers of the skin.

Khouri recommended Njoku not play right after the incident ... but of course, the tight end did the exact opposite -- suiting up for the Browns just two days later, calling the matchup against the hated rival Ravens "personal," and stating there was no way he wasn't going to play.

Njoku ended up recording six catches for 46 yards in the contest ... and he said he felt "intense" pain throughout.

A dead steer was found at a fraternity house near Oklahoma State University's campus on Friday, around 24 hours before the Cowboys and Texas Longhorns face off in the Big 12 championship football game ... and now, police are investigating.

According to J.D. Miles of CBS 11, the carcass was discovered around 6:30 AM in front of the FarmHouse Fraternity ... with its stomach cut open. The words "F*** FH" were also written on the longhorn's side.

Authorities have since removed the animal from the property ... and while a motive hasn't been officially given, most believe the act is tied to OSU's huge Saturday game against UT -- whose mascot is a longhorn.

"Oklahoma State University is appalled at the disturbing display of animal cruelty that occurred overnight at an off-campus location near a fraternity house," OSU officials said in a statement following the animal's discovery.

"The Stillwater Police Department is investigating the incident, and the university’s Office of Student Support and Conduct also has initiated an investigation."

"Oklahoma State expects all students to adhere to university codes of conduct, and appropriate action will be taken based on the outcome of the investigation."

Police are asking anyone with information to call 405-372-4171 or the tip line at 405-533-8477.

11:18 AM PT -- Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ Sports ... James Anthony Hill Jr. is Jamahal Hill's brother.

Former UFC light heavyweight champion Jamahal Hill was arrested in Michigan for domestic violence earlier this week ... TMZ Sports has learned.

According to records, the fighter was booked at a Kent County jail on Monday at around 1 AM ... and released later that evening, at 7:35 PM. That same day, prosecutors formally charged the 32-year-old with one count of misdemeanor aggravated domestic violence.

In court documents we obtained, officials allege Hill assaulted James Anthony Hill Jr., inflicting "serious or aggravated injury upon him."

It's unclear if the two Hills are related, though officials said in the docs James is "a resident or former resident" of Jamahal's household.

Further details surrounding the allegations were not made immediately available. Hill is due in court in January for a hearing on the matter.

We've reached out to Jamahal's reps for comment, but so far, no word back.

Jamahal just recently earned his light heavyweight crown in January with a win over Glover Teixeira at UFC 283 -- though he relinquished the title in July after he ruptured his Achilles while playing basketball.

Once healed, Jamahal is expected to get another crack at regaining his belt in a fight with the division's current champ, Alex Pereira.

Adidas woke up and chose violence on Friday ... the sportswear giants went straight for "dusty" Kevin Durant's neck after he took a shot at T'Wolves star Anthony Edwards' sneakers, and fans are losin' it!

It all started when the question was posed ... would KD, a Nike-signed athlete, ever rock Edwards' signature Adidas kicks? 35-year-old Durant answered the question himself, emphatically writing, "Won’t EVER see me put a big toe in them Mfers."

Adidas wasn't going to take that lying down ... their official account, with over 4 million followers, responded, and it was harsh.

"U dusty," Adidas replied. "Bouta retire soon anyway."

The burn has since been deleted, begging the question ... was the tweet sent accidentally from the official brand X account?

That's an answer we don't yet have ... but there's some evidence it wasn't a mistake.

Adidas later added, "Meant to send that from the burner account..."

Of course, Kevin, as NBA fans are well aware, has been caught using burners in the past.

FYI, Edwards' AE1s drop on December 16 ... just in time for Christmas.

2:53 PM -- TMZ Sports spoke with Ike about his big pitch to Shohei Ohtani ... and while he hasn't heard from the athlete just yet, he said he's been getting a ton of positive feedback from Giants fans for his efforts.

Ike says if he really does sign with S.F., he's fully willing to change EVERY Ike's location in America in honor of the Shohei ... which he estimates would cost him around $500k, but would be totally worth it.

Ike also spoke more about Kevin Durant's current status with his chain ... and he said the Phoenix Suns hooper STILL gets free sandwiches to this day even though he no longer plays for the Warriors -- so keep that in mind, Shohei!!

San Francisco fans are desperate to get Shohei Ohtani to sign with their beloved team ... with one supporter going as far as offering the MLB superstar free sandwiches for life AND a complete rebranding of his shop if he joins the Giants in free agency!!

Ike Shehadeh -- diehard Giants fan and founder of the Ike's Love & Sandwiches chain -- laid out his terms in a social media post this week ... saying if the two-time MVP ditches the Los Angeles Angels for S.F. this offseason, he'll hook him up with unlimited grub and his own signature menu item.

Ike -- who made similar offers to guys like Kevin Durant and Aaron Judge in the past -- took it one step further for the Japanese sensation ... saying he will also change the naming rights of his establishment to "Shohei's Love & Sandwiches" if he takes his talents to the Bay Area.

The sandwich guru even started the brainstorming process on what Ohtani's own item would look like ... taking inspiration from the Giants' orange and black colors to create a tasty steak and barbeque combo.

The Giants are among the possible realistic landing spots for Ohtani ... with the Dodgers, Mets, Cubs, Rangers and pretty much any other team that can afford him expected to enter the race.

Ohtani is reportedly slated to get at least half a billion dollars with his new deal, so he may not be worried too much about the sandwich offer ... but hey, ya can't knock the dude for trying!!

Kim Zolciak is giving the boot to Kroy Biermann's impressive shoe collection ... hoping to make a profit amid the couple's mounting lawsuits and financial troubles.

KZ hopped on Instagram Friday and listed her husband's size 13 designer shoes .. charging $350 for the cheapest Buscemi pair and a whopping $650 for Christian Louboutin sneakers.

Meanwhile, Kroy's Givenchy sneakers will set its new owners back $400 .... while his White Calfskin Rockstud Untitled Valentinos are going for $450 -- basically, you gotta cough up the cash to put your best foot forward!

However, with the piling lawsuits racking up over unpaid credit card bills, it's not just Kroy's big-name goods getting culled ... Kim also put her $1250 Gucci heels and $500 Jimmy Choo boots up for sale.

Kim is clearly banking on her ongoing high-stakes garage sale helping her with her financial woes ... and is covering her tracks by throwing some of her designer bags into the mix -- hoping to rake in thousands with her Chanel, Givenchy, and Prada items.

The on/off couple is clearly in dire financial straits ... with their money-related bickering recently ending with cops being called to their home following an explosive fight.

As we first reported... Kim was sued by Bank of America for over $50K in credit card debt last month ... after being sued in August by SAKS/CAPITAL ONE for failing to pay a $156K credit card bill.

Mitchell Robinson is a good NBA player, but he's an even better human being -- his high school coach just revealed he's been rooming with the New York Knicks center after his wife tragically passed away earlier this year.

Former Chalmette H.S. coach Butch Stockton shared the heartwarming story during the Knicks' win over the Pistons on Thursday ... when he spoke with a reporter about the 7'0", 240-pound big man's incredible gesture.

Stockton -- whose wife, Dawn, passed away in September after a cancer battle -- explained Robinson would visit them every day in the hospital prior to her death ... and he built a strong bond with the couple.

Coach said at Dawn's funeral, Robinson told everyone he was going to bring him to the Big Apple ... and he held up on that promise.

"He said, 'Coach, there’s no reason you stay down here in Louisiana anymore,'" Stockton said. "'You come to New York with and enjoy yourself and get your mind back straight because you know how much you loved your wife and I loved your wife.'"

"It's just been a great situation, to be honest with you."

Robinson -- who's averaging 6 points and 11 rebounds this season -- spoke about his roomie after the game ... saying they will continue to live together until the end of the 2023-24 campaign.

Tyreek Hill's making sure his photographer will still have a steady flow of cash this year despite his ban from NFL sidelines ... telling media members Thursday he'll cover the guy's salary after their epic TD celebration led to the punishment.

The Dolphins star said it was a no-brainer to kick the money his cameraman's way ... because the two are good pals -- and, after all, it was his endzone backflip that got the dude booted.

"I told him, 'I was going to make sure that I do what's right and take care of you and make sure you're not out of a job,'" Hill said in front of his locker. "So, that's my guy."

Hill and the photog, Kevin Fitzgibbons, have been friends for a while ... after the Miami wideout initially hired him for some video work.

And, the two's relationship ultimately led to Fitzgibbons landing a job with the NFL -- though after Hill used the cameraman's phone to film a flipping touchdown celebration ... the league revoked his credential for this season -- and perhaps longer.

The move was panned by many -- including LeBron James, who said it was "F'd UP!!!" -- and Hill said he actually tried to get Roger Goodell and Co. to reverse their decision.

"I went through every avenue," he said. "But, they've got their reasoning."

Hill explained he's still going to work with Fitzgibbons on other projects even after covering his salary ... and added that he's been giving him some positive encouragement as well.

Angel Reese is happy to finally be back with the LSU Tigers, and now she's explaining the 4-game hiatus ... saying the absence was for her mental health, so she could reset and refocus within the team.

The 6-foot-3 forward rejoined the Tigers on Thursday for their home game against Virginia Tech ... and Reese scored 19 points in the 82-64 win.

Fans were thrilled to see their Bayou Barbie back in action ... as she had been away from the team since her benching on the Nov. 14 game. Head coach Kim Mulkey was mum on the reason why.

But, now Reese is providing an explanation, speaking to the media postgame, admitting it was a long two weeks away, but it was something that needed to be done.

"Taking time to yourself is really important," Reese said, "I feel like it's just something important, resetting, refocusing within the team. I'm just happy to be back."

"My mental health is the most important before anything and I'm gonna make sure I'm okay before anything because I don't wanna cause any harm or cancer in the locker room."

Reese added, "I want to people realize that I'm not just an athlete. I'm a human, too. I go through things."

The 21-year-old said she got a lot of support from her true friends ... including Shaq, who reached out every day during her absence.

"We FaceTime every day, he checked on me, called me every single day to make sure I was good.," Reese said.

The 2023 NCAA champ also had a message for everybody who trashed her, speculating her time away had to do with bad grades or a bad attitude.

"Whatever stories that were wrote or written, don't believe everything you read," Reese said. "I'm back and I'm happy. I'm here and I'm moving forward. I'm going to take this team and help take this team as far as I can."

Outside of Reese's return and LSU's win, Mulkey also got her 700th victory, making her the fastest coach to reach the mark in men's and women's basketball.