COLLEGE FOOTBALL-MICHIGAN
AP source: Harbaugh to Michigan
UNDATED (AP) β Michigan has found its next head football coach.
A person with knowledge of the discussions tells The Associated Press that former San Francisco 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh has signed a deal to return to his alma mater as head coach of the Wolverines. The school has announced it will hold a news conference on Tuesday.
The 51-year-old Harbaugh spent four years as head coach of the Niners, advancing to the NFC championship game and one Super Bowl in his first three seasons before going 8-8 and missing the playoffs this year.
Early media reports had Michigan offering Harbaugh $49 million over six years.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL-BOWL GAMES
Aggies beat Mountaineers to claim wild Liberty
UNDATED (AP) β No. 18 Clemson had no trouble winning its bowl game.
Cole Stoudt threw for three touchdowns and ran for another to lead the Tigers’ 40-6 pounding of Oklahoma in the Russell Athletic Bowl. Stoudt was 26 for 36 for a season-high 319 yards to help Clemson reach double digits in victories for the fourth straight year.
The Sooners had five turnovers, including three interceptions by Trevor Knight.
In other bowl games:
β Kyle Allen threw for four touchdowns and ran for a fifth to lead Texas A&M past West Virginia 45-37 in the Liberty Bowl. Allen completed 22 of his 35 passes for 294 yards, and Tra (tray) Carson rushed for a career-high 133 yards on 25 carries. Allen’s 14-yard rushing TD in the final minute of the first half put the Aggies ahead for good after they trailed by 10.
β Arkansas allowed just 59 total yards in earning a 31-7 rout of Texas in the Texas bowl. Brandon Allen threw for 160 yarsd and two touchdowns, while Jonathan Williams added 105 yards and a TD on the ground.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL-ALABAMA
Kiffin says he’s committed to the Tide
NEW ORLEANS (AP) β Journeyman coach Lane Kiffin says he’s not seeking another head coaching job and plans to return to Alabama next season as offensive coordinator. Kiffin spoke at the Sugar Bowl media session, the first time he has addressed the media since August. Head coach Nick Saban does not allow access to his assistants during regular season.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL-USC
Trojans to lose defensive lineman
LOS ANGELES (AP) β Southern California defensive lineman Leonard Williams is skipping his final year of eligibility to enter the NFL draft. Williams has been a dominant defensive lineman for three seasons with the Trojans, racking up 21 sacks and 36 1/2 tackles for losses.
NFL-COACHES
Jets, Bears and Falcons are looking for a new coach
UNDATED (AP) β The New York Jets, Chicago Bears and Atlanta Falcons wasted no time making major changes after missing the playoffs.
Jets owner Woody Johnson has decided to start fresh with the dismissal of coach Rex Ryan and general manager John Idzik.
Ryan was 50-52 in six seasons with the Jets, including a 4-12 mark this year. He guided the team to the AFC title game in his first two years before missing the postseason the last four seasons.
The Bears also fired both their general manager and coach. Marc Trestman is out as coach after two seasons, while Phil Emery was GM for three seasons. The Bears went 5-11 this year and missed the playoffs for the seventh time in eight seasons. Trestman leaves Chicago with a record of 13-19.
The Falcons have shown head coach Mike Smith the door. The firing came a day after the Falcons were blown out by Carolina 34-3 in a game that decided the NFC South championship. Smith was 66-46 with four playoff appearances in seven seasons, but the team was 10-22 over the last two years.
NFL-LIONS
Suh suspended
NEW YORK (AP) β The NFL has given Detroit Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh (ehn-DAH’-muh-kahng soo) a one-game suspension for stepping on Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers’ left leg twice, once with each foot. The incident occurred during the Lions’ loss yesterday at Green Bay and is the latest in a list of 10 punishments handed down to Suh since turning pro in 2010. The decision means Suh will miss the Lions’ playoff game Sunday against Dallas, although he still has time to appeal the suspension.
NFL-BROWNS/MANZIEL
Manziel says his distractions will end…no, really…he means it this time
BEREA, Ohio (AP) β Quarterback Johnny Manziel (man-ZEHL’) has apologized to his Browns teammates and Cleveland fans for a season of distractions, while vowing again to change.
Manziel was fined over the weekend by the team after he missed a medical treatment for a hamstring injury. Manziel said he overslept, but denied he threw a party Friday night that also caused star wide receiver Josh Gordon to miss a team walk-through and draw a suspension for the season finale in Baltimore.
NFL-BILLS
Veteran QB calling it quits
ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. (AP) β Quarterback Kyle Orton has informed the Buffalo Bills that he’s retiring after helping the team post its first winning season since 2004.
The Bills finished 9-7 this year, with the 32-year-old Orton winning seven of his 12 starts after replacing EJ Manuel. He completed 64 percent of his passes for 3,018 yards, 18 touchdowns and 10 interceptions.
Orton had one year left on a two-year contract he signed with Buffalo a little more than a week before the start of the season.
NBA-SCHEDULE
Wizards beat Rockets…Bulls get seventh straight win
UNDATED (AP) β The Washington Wizards have opened a five-game road trip by picking up their third consecutive win.
Bradley Beal pumped in 33 points and Paul Pierce added 21 on 7 of 9 shooting as the Wizards held off the Rockets 104-103 in Houston. John Wall finished with 13 points and 12 assists for the Wizards, who shot 93 percent from the free-throw line and 44 percent from beyond the arc.
James Harden had 33 points for the Rockets.
Also in the NBA:
β The Chicago Bulls are 22-9 after Jimmy Butler scored 27 points and grabbed nine rebounds in a 92-90 triumph at Indiana. Pau Gasol (pow gah-SAHL’) had 20 points as the Bulls won their seventh in a row despite blowing a 21-point lead in the second half.
β Blake Griffin scored 24 points and DeAndre Jordan grabbed 19 rebounds as the Los Angeles Clippers beat Utah 101-97. Chris Paul added 20 points and eight assists to help the Clippers improve to 13-4 at home.
β Brooklyn was a 107-99 winner over Sacramento behind Mason Plumlee’s 22 points. Joe Johnson and Jarrett Jack contributed 16 points apiece in the Nets’ fourth victory in five games.
β Brandon Knight scored 18 points and Jared Dudley added 17 as Milwaukee beat Charlotte for the first time in eight tries, 104-94 in overtime. Knight hit a layup that forced overtime after the Bucks squandered a 21-point lead.
β The Magic had dropped 11 straight to the Heat before Nikola Vucevic (voo-SEH’-vihch) provided 26 points and Victor Oladipo (oh-lah-DEE’-poh) scored seven of his 22 down the stretch in Orlando’s 102-101 triumph at Miami. Oladipo tied the game with a layup and hit a free throw to put the Magic ahead to stay.
NHL-SCHEDULE
Isles win after blowing another 3-0 lead
UNDATED (AP) β The New York Islanders coughed up a 3-0 lead in the third period for the second straight game. This time, they won.
Johnny Boychuk scored a power-play goal at 2:52 of overtime to lift the Isles past Washington 4-3. Calvin de Haan’s (deh-HAHNZ’) short-handed goal put the Isles ahead 3-0 early in the third period, but Eric Fehr and Nicklas Backstrom scored 1:49 apart before the Capitals forced overtime on Alex Ovechkin’s (oh-VEHCH’-kihnz) goal with 2:51 left in regulation.
Anders Lee and Lubomir Visnovsky (vihs-NAHF’-skee) also scored for the Islanders, who moved into a first-place tie with Pittsburgh in the Metropolitan Division.
The Penguins were 3-1 losers in New Jersey as Travis Zajac (ZAY’-jak) furnished a goal and an assist in the Devils’ first victory in two games since firing head coach Peter DeBoer (deh-BOHR’). Jaromir (YAH’-roh-meer YAH’-gur) Jagr scored the game-winner in the second period, and Cory Schneider blanked the Pens following Sidney Crosby’s goal late in the opening period.
Elsewhere on ice:
β The New York Rangers’ eight-game winning streak is over after Antoine Roussel (roo-SEHL’) scored early in the second period to lift the Stars past the Blueshirts 3-2 in Dallas. Kari Lehtonen (KAH’-ree LEH’-toh-nehn) handled 28 shots in the Stars’ sixth victory in seven games.
β Chicago erased deficits of 3-0 and 4-3 before beating Nashville 5-4 on Jonathan Toews’ (tayvz) shootout goal. Bryan Bickell (BIK’-ul) capped his two-point night by scoring the equalizer with 1:13 left in regulation of the Blackhawks’ 16th victory in 20 games.
β Carey Price stopped 28 shots and the Montreal Canadiens won for the sixth time in seven games by downing Carolina 3-1. Jiri Sekac (SHE’-kach) and Lars Eller netted second-period goals before Max Pacioretty (pash-uh-RET’-ee) clinched it with an empty-netter.
β Tampa Bay erased a 2-0 lead in the second period before Steven Stamkos scored midway through the third period to lift the Lightning past Toronto 3-2. Ryan Callahan had a power-play goal and an assist in the second period before Stamkos sent the Lightning to their third straight win, keeping them two points ahead of second-place Montreal in the Atlantic Division.
β Martin Brodeur (broh-DOOR’) extended his NHL record by posting his 125th career shutout to lead St. Louis past Colorado 3-0. Dmitrij Jaskin and Chris Butler scored second period goals before Vladimir Tarasenko capped the scoring with his team-high 22nd goal.
β Curtis Glencross and Markus Granlund scored 62 seconds apart in the first period of Calgary’s 2-1 victory against Los Angeles. Jonas Hiller stopped 26 shots in the Flames won their third straight since an eight-game losing streak.
β Boston’s Carl Soderberg provided a goal and two assists in a 5-2 triumph over Detroit. Gregory Campbell and Soderberg scored 73 seconds apart to put the Bruins ahead 3-1 in the first period.
β Second-period goals by Ryan Carter, Justin Fontaine and Marco Scandella erased Minnesota’s 2-0 deficit and led a 3-2 triumph over Winnipeg. The Wild ended an 0-2-3 skid and earned a split of their home-and-home set with the Jets.
β Bobby Ryan capped his fourth career hat trick by scoring the tiebreaking goal in the third period of Ottawa’s 5-2 verdict over Buffalo. The Senators ended a four-game skid and sent the Sabres to their fifth loss in six games.
β Antoine Vermette scored twice as the Coyotes doubled up Philadelphia 4-2 for their third straight win. Shane Doan and Oliver Ekman-Larsson also tallied to support Devan Dubnyk (DOOB’-nihk), who made 30 saves.
NHL-DUCKS
Ducks place Heatley on waivers
UNDATED (AP) β A person familiar with the decision has told The Associated Press that the Anaheim Ducks have placed veteran forward Dany Heatley on waivers. If Heatley is unclaimed by Tuesday, he could then be assigned to Anaheim’s AHL affiliate in Norfolk.
Injuries have slowed the two-time 50-goal-scorer, who has no points in six games this season. The 13-year veteran signed a one-year contract with the Ducks in free agency in July.
NHL-JETS
Winnipeg loses Kane
WINNIPEG, Manitoba (AP) β The Winnipeg Jets won’t have forward Evander Kane until early February. The club says he suffers from a lower-body injury. Details of Kane’s injury were not made available, but he blocked a shot in Winnipeg’s 4-3 overtime win in Minnesota on Saturday and missed practice on Sunday.
Kane has six goals and nine assists in 26 games with the Jets this season. He had two assists in Saturday’s game.
HOCKEY-WORLD JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIP
Yanks win again
MONTREAL (AP) β The US is 3-0 in hockey’s World Junior Championship following a 3-0 win over Slovakia.
Sonny Milano broke a scoreless tie late in the second period before Dylan Larkin and John Hayden tallied. Thatcher Demko made 17 saves for the Americans, who take on Canada on Wednesday.
T25 BASKETBALL-SCHEDULE
Duke still perfect
UNDATED (AP) β Second-ranked Duke shook off the rust from an 11-day layoff and improved to 11-0 on the men’s basketball season.
Freshman Jahlil Okafor (jah-LIHL’ OH’-kah-fohr) poured in a season-high 27 points on 12 of 15 shooting to highlight the Blue Devils’ offense in an 86-69 win over Toledo. Quinn Cook finished with a season-best 20 points and Tyus Jones added 15 to help Duke remain unbeaten.
In other top-25 games:
β Kyle Wiltjer had 15 points and six rebounds to send seventh-ranked Gonzaga past San Diego 60-48. Wiltjer provided 10 of the Bulldogs’ first 12 points and helped them carry a 35-20 lead into halftime.
β Freshman Myles Turner scored 16 points in his first career start as 11th-ranked Texas held off Rice 66-55. Forward Jonathan Holmes scored 12 points, including a 3-point play that put the Longhorns up by six with 2:50 remaining.
T25 BASKETBALL POLLS
No change at the top in either poll
UNDATED (AP) β Kentucky is the unanimous No. 1 team in The Associated Press men’s basketball poll for the fourth consecutive week, taking all 65 first-place votes after beating previous No. 4 Louisville 68-60 on Saturday.
Duke is second, followed by Virginia, Wisconsin and Louisville. Villanova, Gonzaga, Arizona, Iowa State and Utah round out the top 10.
South Carolina is No. 1 in the women’s poll for the sixth straight week. In fact, the top 10 teams remain the same as second-ranked Connecticut is followed by Texas, Notre Dame and Texas A&M.
AP FEMALE ATHLETE
Teenage pitcher wins award
PHILADELPHIA (AP) β The Associated Press has announced its female athlete of the year and the winner is somebody very few people knew of a year ago. In a vote of U.S. editors and news directors Mo’ne (moh-NAY’) Davis was chosen over Mt. St. Joseph freshman Lauren Hill, who played her first college basketball game while battling terminal brain cancer, and three-time winner Serena Williams.
The 13-year old Davis became a media darling this summer when she mowed down batters in the Little League World Series.
