[ad_1] The Thanksgiving holiday tournaments shook up the rankings and provided the welcome boost of a few upsets. This week, conference bragging rights are on the line in the Big 12/SEC Challenge and Big Ten/ACC Challenge, and longtime foes UConn and Notre Dame meet again in a game that likely will lack the usual high stakes after the Fighting Irish fell out of the AP Top 25 for the first
[ad_1] NASSAU, Bahamas -- Captain America is back, but not without some consternation. There are plenty in and around the game who would have had no problem with Patrick Reed being put in "timeout'' for a year as penance for his pointed remarks in the aftermath of the 2018 Ryder Cup.For the reprieve, Reed has none other than his idol -- Tiger Woods -- to thank. The same Tiger Woods
[ad_1] TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Less than a week after having hip surgery, Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa returned to Bryant-Denny Stadium on Saturday and said that being back with his Tide teammates "means everything."Tagovailoa was greeted with hearty applause from fans during the Tide's home game against Western Carolina. He entered the field on a golf cart, which is where ESPN sideline reporter Lauren Sisler spoke to him during the first
[ad_1] 11:42 AM ETNoah DavisESPN Winning a soccer game requires two things: an off-field plan and on-field execution. The first part is a coaching challenge; the second is one for the players, who need to prevail in dozens of individual battles all over the field.Against Canada in October, the United States men's national team had the first in head coach Gregg Berhalter's much-discussed "system" but failed in the latter. All
[ad_1] 7:09 AM ETJeff PassanESPN CloseESPN MLB insiderAuthor of "The Arm: Inside the Billion-Dollar Mystery of the Most Valuable Commodity in Sports"At the end of every baseball season, the MVP and Cy Young voting do a reasonable job of distinguishing the elite of the elite in Major League Baseball. In terms of a position-by-position breakdown, though, the sport's only recognition comes from All-Star voting in the middle of the year.
[ad_1] Not all heroes wear capes -- and most heroes barely get the recognition they deserve. There are plenty of stars shining in this league that don't get proper spotlight.For this week's ESPN NHL Power Rankings -- voted on as always, by our panel of experts -- we identified an unsung hero on every team.How we rank: The ESPN hockey editorial staff submits selections ranking teams 1-31, and those results
[ad_1] LOS ANGELES -- Paul George knows the narrative used to be that he isn't clutch.That hasn't been true of late, and on Monday, the All-Star swingman proved that for the first time as a member of the LA Clippers. In his third game back from offseason surgeries on both of his shoulders, George beat his old team in the final seconds. He buried a catch-and-shoot, go-ahead 3 off a
[ad_1] BATON ROUGE, La. - LSU linebacker Michael Divinity returned to practice on Monday, two weeks after leaving the team for what Coach Ed Orgeron described at the time as personal reasons.1 RelatedDivinity's status on the team is unclear, however. Orgeron isn't scheduled to address the media until Wednesday.Divinity's return comes on the heels of an LSU win over Ole Miss in which the defense gave up some 600 yards
[ad_1] On a conference call with the media on Tuesday, U.S. Soccer Federation sporting director Earnie Stewart had a Chip Diller moment. Despite some poor results by the U.S. men's national team, including a humbling loss to Canada, Stewart said Gregg Berhalter's job as manager is safe no matter what the results of the next two games are, and that the U.S. was making progress.It's Stewart's duty to back the
[ad_1] We're at the part of the NHL season where trends are starting to emerge. Slow starts are no longer excusable; guys have had ample opportunity to find their groove.For this week's ESPN NHL Power Rankings, we identified a player (or area) on each team that needs to improve.How we rank: The ESPN hockey editorial staff submits polls ranking teams 1-31, and those results are tabulated to the list featured