NORMAN — OU’s 2025 defense got a boost Monday. Interior defensive lineman Damonic Williams announced on X (formerly Twitter) that he would return next season. Williams started every game at nose guard for the Sooners this season, playing 416 snaps — the most among OU interior defensive lineman — according to Pro Football Focus. He finished with 35 tackles, 4.5 …

FRISCO, Texas — The Dallas Cowboys (7-9) could be one of the biggest NFL head coaching vacancies of the 2025 coaching carousel. Or they could not.  The last two weeks of Cowboys football (an upset victory over the NFC South-leading Tampa Bay Buccaneers and a 41-7 faceplant against the Philadelphia Eagles) plus Dallas owner Jerry Jones’ tendency to operate with a “deadlines make deals” mentality, …

The more things change, the more they stay the same. Conference realignment has forever changed the landscape of college football, and the Rose Bowl will no longer be played between the champions of the Big Ten and Pac-12 because the latter no longer exists (at least not in a recognizable form). Yet, here, in the first year of the 12-team …

Faced with crossroads, Patriots must choose a clear path forward originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston This final four-game post-bye stretch for the Patriots was critical. Even though they were 3-10 heading out to Arizona on December 14, it was imperative they show that in this foundation-laying year they’d actually, ya know, laid a foundation. Now, three games later and …

SOUTH BEND, INDIANA – DECEMBER 20: Head coach Marcus Freeman of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish reacts during the fourth quarter against the Indiana Hoosiers in the Playoff First Round game at Notre Dame Stadium on December 20, 2024 in South Bend, Indiana. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman got his first career …

Teddy Bridgewater came out of retirement last week to sign with the Lions. Bridgewater, 32, spent last season as the Lions’ backup quarterback behind starter Jared Goff. Hendon Hooker took on that role this season. Bridgewater will dress and serve as the team’s emergency third quarterback for Monday Night Football. He is among the Lions’ inactives. Detroit’s other inactives are …

The No. 11 Alabama Crimson Tide (9-3) will wrap up their first season under head coach Kalen DeBoer when they face the Michigan Wolverines (7-5) on Tuesday afternoon in the 2024 ReliaQuest Bowl. Alabama suffered three losses during the regular season and was ultimately the first team left out of the 12-team College Football Playoff. Michigan was not in contention …

Coach Jim Harbaugh will lead the Chargers into the playoffs against the Ravens, Steelers or Texans but first the season finale comes at the Las Vegas Raiders. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times) Jim Harbaugh doesn’t care for complicated playoff scenarios. With teams still vying for divisional titles and playoff seeding, the Chargers coach, whose team clinched its first postseason …

Penn State may be the favorite in Tuesday night’s Fiesta Bowl against Boise State, but that wasn’t about to persuade a two-ton rhinoceros with its pick in this year’s College Football Playoff quarterfinal. Chutti the rhino resides in the Phoenix Zoo and has weighed in on the outcome of the Fiesta Bowl. Chutti was given a couple of boxes to …

The Detroit Lions will try to become the first team since 2020 to go 8-0 on the road when they take on the San Francisco 49ers on Monday Night Football. The last team to accomplish that was the 2020 Kansas City Chiefs, who went 14-2 overall. The Lions (13-2), who have set a franchise record for wins, defeated the Chicago …

LOS ANGELES — Will Howard sat, helmeted head in his hands, having slid to a stop at Oregon’s 26-yard line. What was supposed to be a heroic scramble by Ohio State’s quarterback to set up a possible game-winning field goal 2 ½ months ago on the road was, in fact, a disaster that has lingered. As an Autzen Stadium field …

NFL reveals date, time for 49ers-Cardinals Week 18 matchup originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area The 49ers’ final game of the 2024 NFL season officially is set. After Sunday’s slate of Week 17 games, the NFL announced dates and times for the Week 18 matchups, including San Francisco’s season finale against Arizona at State Farm Stadium. The 49ers will …

Wisconsin basketball (10-3, 0-2 Big Ten) will enter 2025 and its full conference schedule unranked in the USA TODAY Sports Men’s Basketball Coaches Poll. The latest release of the poll saw the Badgers drop out of the ‘receiving votes’ section. The team sat idle during the week — its Dec. 22 win over Detroit Mercy is its only result since …

The Detroit Lions franchise is in an unfamiliar position as the 2024 season winds down. Next Sunday, they’ll take on the Vikings for all the NFC (regular-season) marbles in the first-ever in-season matchup of 13-plus-win teams. But before that home sendoff to the season, they’re in San Francisco Monday night to take on a 49ers team that has limped through …

No. 11 Alabama faces off against Michigan in the 2024 ReliaQuest Bowl, which serves as a rematch of the 2024 Rose Bowl Game. When these teams last played, Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy diced Alabama to the tune of 221 yards and three touchdowns to win 27-20 in overtime en route to a national championship. Both teams are quite different than …