ORLANDO, Fla. — It’s been an offseason of few acquisitions thus far for the Dodgers.
So much so that, on the first day of MLB’s annual winter meetings at the Signia by Hilton Orlando on Monday, the most intriguing rumor surrounding the team had to do with a potential subtraction from their big-league roster.
According to multiple reports, Teoscar Hernández has come up in the Dodgers’ trade talks with other teams this winter. USA Today went as far as saying the club was “shopping” the two-time All-Star, who is entering the second season of the three-year, $66-million deal he signed last offseason.
Dodgers right fielder Teoscar Hernández hits a sacrifice fly to score Dodgers’ Will Smith during the Game 7 of the World Series against the Toronto Blue Jays on Nov. 1.
(Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Times)
“Teo certainly fits [our roster still],” Roberts said. “He’s helped us win two championships. He’s one of my favorites.”
“That doesn’t feel likely,” Gomes added of the possibility of trading Hernández. “Obviously, you can never say never on those types of things. I know that’s come up [in reports]. But that’s not something we anticipate at all.”
The idea of the Dodgers trading Hernández has felt like a long shot from the start. Though the 33-year-old slugger suffered an inconsistent and injury-plagued regular season in 2025 — both at the plate, where he had 25 home runs but hit only .247, and especially defensively, where he had several notable lapses after moving to right field — the 10-year veteran has made crucial contributions in each of the Dodgers’ two World Series runs the last couple years, and has served in a mentor role to young players in the clubhouse; none more so than Andy Pages.
Granted, moving Hernández could help the Dodgers get younger, which has been a goal for the front office this offseason as they try to navigate their aging and expensive roster. And his salary could be repurposed if the team were to make a splashier free-agent signing.
But for now, the Dodgers continue to express belief in their current core, with Roberts noting Monday that “we’re very confident with where the roster is right now” and that “there’s really no big splash we feel needs to be made.”
Plus, moving Hernández would also only further exacerbate the team’s pre-existing need for outfield help, as the club continues to evaluate both the free agent market (where players such as Cody Bellinger or Harrison Bader figure to be better, and more affordable, fits than a likely $400-million signing of top free-agent option Kyle Tucker) and trade possibilities (such as Brendan Donovan or Lars Nootbaar of the St. Louis Cardinals, Jarren Duran or Wilyer Abreu of the Boston Red Sox or — in a less likely scenario — Steven Kwan of the Cleveland Guardians).
Roberts did leave the door open to potentially moving Hernández back to left field, where he spent the majority of 2024 for the Dodgers before shifting over to his more natural right field position last year.
Still, in Roberts’ eyes, Hernández’s defense was “at least average” in right after an August series in Colorado when he made a couple particularly glaring mistakes on fly balls. His career-long defensive metrics have also been stronger in right field than left.
“I do think that with the versatility [of our roster] and how we potentially shape this roster, there’s some options,” Roberts said. “But right now, he’s our right fielder.”
With Liverpool and Mohamed Salah appearing to be moving in different directions – and Salah heading to join his Egypt team-mates for the Africa Cup of Nations next week anyway – the Reds need other players to step up and fill the Salah-shaped hole in the scoring charts. In Hugo Ekitike, they may have found that man.
Ekitike is now Liverpool’s leading Premier League scorer with five goals, while in all competitions he also tops the charts with eight. On Saturday at Elland Road, the Frenchman scored the first double of his Liverpool career, and with the goals coming in the 48th and 50th minutes, he was the first Premier League player to score twice in the opening five minutes of the second half since Raheem Sterling in March 2019 for Manchester City against Watford.
He led all players in the match for shots (5), shots on target (3) and touches in the opposition box (9) and his only disappointment must have been the scoreline – he was the first Liverpool player to score two goals in a Premier League and not win since Salah last December in a 3-3 draw with Newcastle.
Rayan Cherki
Despite playing just 398 minutes in the Premier League this season, no player has more assists than Manchester City’s Rayan Cherki (5), with two of those coming in the 3-0 victory over Sunderland.
Cherki created six chances in open play, the joint most by a player in a Premier League game this season, while at 22 years and 111 days on Saturday he was the second-youngest Manchester City player to achieve that in a Premier League game, older only than – maybe surprisingly – Mario Balotelli in February 2012 against Blackburn Rovers.
Among players to play 300 minutes in the Premier League, no player has created more chances per 90 minutes than Cherki (3.4) and only four have had more touches in the opposition box per 90 minutes (7.7). The Frenchman is currently assisting a goal, on average, every 80 minutes – also a league best.
Bruno Guimaraes
Bruno Guimaraes has taken 10 corners in the Premier League this season and it is clear which one of those was most memorable – his in-swinging delivery on Saturday against Burnley caught his former team-mate Martin Dubravka out to give the Magpies the lead.
It was not the first Premier League goal direct from a corner (or ‘Olympico goal’ as it’s known) but it was Newcastle’s first ever corner to be put directly into the opponent’s goal in the Premier League, to give Guimaraes a slice of Magpies history. Given the term Olympico goal originates from South America, it seems apt that four of the past seven direct corner goals have been scored by players from that continent – all, in fact, from Brazil. Those scorers are Matheus Pereira, Douglas Luiz, Matheus Cunha and Guimaraes.
Aside from swinging corners directly into the net, Guimaraes has been in excellent recent form – he now has four goals and two assists across his past nine Premier League appearances, scoring five in total this season. Only in 2023-24 has he ever scored more in one season, netting seven times.
The Lakers superstar scored 10 consecutive points late in the fourth quarter to seal a 112-108 win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday, finishing with 29 points, seven rebounds and six assists to help the Lakers (17-6) nab two wins out of a difficult three-game trip.
Philadelphia (13-10) crawled back from a 10-point deficit in the third quarter and tied the score with 1:28 remaining on a shot by Joel Embiid. James answered with the fadeaway three-pointer over Quentin Grimes to put the Lakers up by three with 1:11 left. He all but iced the game with a 20-foot fadeaway shot over Grimes with 27.3 seconds remaining.
Running back up the court, James held both hands low to the ground in a “too small” signal. He placed an imaginary crown on his head. He soaked in the roars from the crowd and punctuated it with his signature silencer celebration.
“That was vintage Bron,” said Luka Doncic, who finished with 31 points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists after a two-game absence for the birth of his second child. “We’re happy he was there to save us.”
James played in his 1,015th win, passing Robert Parish for the second most in NBA history. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar holds the record with 1,074. The Lakers won for the first time in Philadelphia since Dec. 16, 2016.
A day after deciding not to travel with the team for fear of spreading stomach-flu symptoms, McVay arrived Sunday morning.
McVay fist-bumped players during warmups at State Farm Stadium, his trademark gelled hair spikes in full effect. And he looked none the worse for the wear while roaming the sideline sockless and calling plays against the Arizona Cardinals.
McVay and his players were feeling good after the Rams routed the Cardinals, 45-17.
Matthew Stafford passed for three touchdowns, Puka Nacua caught two touchdown passes in a game for the first time in his career, and Blake Corum rushed for a career-high 128 yards and two touchdowns as the Rams bounced back from a loss to the Carolina Panthers and improved to 10-3, reclaiming the top spot in the NFC.
Fourteen months removed from his death at the age of 63 in October 2024, and 27 years removed from the end of a pitching career measured by more than just wins, losses and ERA, Valenzuela failed to be elected for the 2026 Hall of Fame class by the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee — a 16-person group that once every three years considers players from the 1980s or later who had not been elected to the Hall through the traditional media vote.
Needing 12 votes from that committee to attain Hall of Fame status, Valenzuela instead came up short by receiving fewer than five.
Because Valenzuela didn’t receive five votes, he will be ineligible to be back on the Contemporary Era Committee’s ballot in 2028. The next time the committee could review his case won’t be until 2031.
Until then, his name will remain among the most notable snubs from Hall of Fame induction.
From Ryan Kartje: For the 11th straight season and fourth time under coach Lincoln Riley, USC finished its season on the outside looking in at the College Football Playoff field.
But it will get to finish this football season with a first.
USC will face Texas Christian in the Alamo Bowl on Dec. 30, a source not authorized to discuss the matchup publicly confirmed to The Times. The Trojans never have spent the bowl season in San Antonio, where the Alamo Bowl has been played since 1993.
Their opponent comes as somewhat of a surprise considering the Horned Frogs finished the regular season 8-4 in a tie for fifth in the Big 12. The Alamo Bowl gets first selection of Big 12 teams and could have chosen Brigham Young, which lost in the Big 12 title game and, like USC, finished within one win of the playoff field. But the bowl presumably passed on the Cougars because they took part in the game last season.
From Ryan Kartje: Jazzy Davidson glanced at the basket with less than two minutes left in USC’s Big Ten opener and in a split-second’s time considered her options. Nearly nothing had fallen from three-point range for the Trojans. It took 25 minutes Sunday just to see one three-pointer drop, and the Trojans had made only two.
But the mere threat of the freshman pulling up from range, even on a night defined by defensive struggle, was enough to give Davidson the sliver of space she needed. After pausing she raced past her defender and toward the basket, lifting for a finger roll that propelled USC past Washington in a 59-50 victory.
The win wasn’t just a significant statement for USC ahead of its heavyweight battle with No. 1 Connecticut next Saturday. It was also a major mile marker for Lindsay Gottlieb, who became the fastest coach in program history to reach 100 wins.
Notre Dame needs USC more than USC needs Notre Dame.
The Irish are reeling today after they were stunningly left out of the 12-team College Football Playoff, but they never would have been part of the playoff conversation without a win over Holiday Bowl-bound USC.
The 10-2 Irish lost their first two games of the season before embarking on their usual cupcake schedule.
Somewhere in the muck of forgettable games against the likes of Boise State and Boston College and Navy, they needed a marquee win.
USC showed up in October and gave them the opportunity for that marquee win. Every year USC shows up in the middle of the season and gives them a chance at collecting that marquee win.
From Antony Solorzano: Any time UCLA built a significant lead in the first half, Oregon tried to slow the the Bruins’ momentum with a timeout. The first call came after a UCLA built a 10-point advantage in the first quarter, with the second timeout after UCLA pulled ahead by 19 points.
It didn’t work — the Bruins remained in control of the game.
The No. 4 UCLA women’s basketball team (9-1) earned an 80-59 win over Oregon (10-1) during their Big Ten opener at Pauley Pavilion on Sunday.
Frederico Jucá Carsalade scored with one second remaining to cap a four-goal fourth quarter, and UCLA rallied to beat USC 11-10 to win the men’s water polo championship Sunday at the Avery Aquatic Center.
It was the 14th championship for the second-seeded and defending champion Bruins (27-2), winning back-to-back titles for the fifth time.
USC (23-4), the top seed, was aiming for its 11th title — all since 1998 — in a tournament that began in 1969. The Trojans won six in a row from 2008 to 2013.
Leo Carlsson scored two goals and rookie Beckett Sennecke had a goal and an assist in the Ducks’ 7-1 victory over the road-weary Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday night.
Jacob Trouba, Mason McTavish, Alex Killorn and Frank Vatrano also scored for the Pacific Division-leading Ducks, who have won three of four. The Ducks took charge with a four-goal second period that featured a franchise-record 27 shots on Chicago’s net, capped by Carlsson’s 15th goal on a fluttering deflection for a 5-0 lead.
Ville Husso made 19 saves for the Ducks, who beat Chicago for the first time in three tries this season. Ryan Strome, Cutter Gauthier and Chris Kreider had two assists apiece.
1940 — The Chicago Bears beat the Washington Redskins 73-0 for the most one-sided victory in NFL Championship play.
1942 — Georgia’s Frank Sinkwich wins the Heisman Trophy. Sinkwich ends his career holding the Southeastern Conference record for total offense with 2,399 yards.
1948 — Southern Methodist junior Doak Walker wins the Heisman Trophy. Walker over three years scores 303 points, including 40 touchdowns and 60 points after touchdowns.
1961 — Philadelphia’s Wilt Chamberlain scores 78 points and grabs 43 rebounds in a 151-147 triple overtime loss to the Lakers. Elgin Baylor leads the Lakers with 63 points.
1963 — Cookie Gilchrist of the Buffalo Bills sets an AFL record with 243 yards rushing and ties a league record with five touchdowns in a 45-14 rout of the New York Jets.
1977 — Texas running back Earl Campbell wins the Heisman Trophy.
1987 — Ron Hextall of the Philadelphia Flyers becomes the first NHL goaltender to shoot a puck into the opposing goal in a 5-2 victory over the Boston Bruins.
2000 — Shaquille O’Neal sets an NBA record by going 0-for-11 from the free-throw line as the SuperSonics beat the Lakers 103-95. He broke Wilt Chamberlain’s record, who went 0-for-10 for Philadelphia against Detroit on Nov. 4, 1960. O’Neal had 26 points and 16 rebounds.
2002 — Oakland quarterback Rich Gannon sets an NFL record with his 10th 300-yard game of the season, throwing for 328 yards in the Raider 27-7 win over San Diego and breaking a tie with Dan Marino, Warren Moon and Kurt Warner.
2007 — Florida quarterback Tim Tebow becomes the first sophomore to win the Heisman Trophy. He beats out Arkansas running back Darren McFadden, the first player since 1949 to finish second in consecutive seasons.
2011 — Three-time NL MVP Albert Pujols agrees to a $254-million, 10-year contract with the Angels on the final day of baseball’s winter meetings. Pujols’ contract is the second-highest in baseball history and only the third to break the $200 million barrier, following Alex Rodriguez’s $252 million, 10-year deal with Texas before the 2001 season and A-Rod’s $275 million, 10-year contract with the Yankees before the 2008 season.
2011 — The NBA and players union reach financial agreement to end a 161-day lockout, shortening the season by 16 games.
2012 — Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel becomes the first freshman to win the Heisman Trophy, taking college football’s top individual prize after a record-breaking debut. Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te’o finishes a distant second and Kansas State quarterback Collin Klein is third in the voting.
2013 — Zach Johnson rallies from four shots behind with eight holes to play and beats Tiger Woods, the No. 1 player in golf, at the World Challenge. Johnson holes out from a drop area for par on the last hole to force a playoff and wins when Woods misses a 5-foot par putt on the first extra hole.
2013 — Lydia Ko, a 16-year-old from New Zealand, rallies to win her first title as a professional. Ko, making her second pro start, wins the Swinging Skirts World Ladies Masters, closing with a 4-under 68 for a three-stroke victory over South Korea’s So Yeon Ryu. She won four pro events as an amateur, taking the Canadian Women’s Open the last two years.
2022 — American basketball star Brittany Griner is released by Russian authorities in a prisoner exchange for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout; Griner detained on drug smuggling charges since February 2022.
Compiled by the Associated Press
Until next time…
That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.
In the one-step forward, one-step back world Manchester United are living in just now, they took a stride in the right direction against Wolves at Molineux.
Whether it is significant or not remains to be seen.
After all, the big win at Crystal Palace nine days ago was followed by a dire draw against third-bottom West Ham.
Before that, a three-match winning run was followed by three games without a win, culminating in a home defeat by an Everton side reduced to 10 men after less than 15 minutes.
Monday night’s 4-1 drubbing of a hapless Wolves was United’s biggest win of the season, equalling a four-goal haul Ruben Amorim’s side have not bettered in the Premier League since he came to the club 13 months ago.
United had 27 shots, their most in a Premier League game under the Portuguese manager. They have now led in games for longer this season than they did in the entirety of the 2024-25 campaign.
Yet Amorim felt compelled to add a caveat, making reference to Wolves’ lack of points on the pitch and mutinous atmosphere off it.
“This is a specific case,” he said. “We faced a team that is really, really struggling.
“You can sense it in every situation of the game.
“This moment for Wolves is really hard, as a team and as a club. We took advantage of that.”
It is why Amorim felt United were in danger of blowing a significant chance to climb into the top six and on the coattails of the sides in contention for Champions League qualification.
New Wolves boss Rob Edwards felt his side played the way he wanted in the final 15 minutes of the opening period. That included scoring their first goal in 540 minutes through Jean-Ricner Bellegarde.
It wasn’t the script Amorim envisaged. Certainly not one he wanted on a night when Sir Jim Ratcliffe had come to watch and was pictured in animated conversation with director of football Jason Wilcox in the directors’ box.
He told his players this before he left to sit in the visitors’ dugout alone with his thoughts before United re-appeared for the start of the second half.
“We should have finished that half in the different way,” he said. “At half-time, they understood we have everything to win the game.
“If you need to be really distracted, when you look at Everton, that was three points. We could have had two more points against West Ham. Look at the table. Look at the environment. Look at everything.
“We needed to win the second half. It didn’t matter the result.”
Analysing the game for Sky Sports, Jamie Carragher praised the performance but said: “We make the assumption there is a bad result around the corner.”
He is not on his own with that opinion. United have still kept only one clean sheet in the Premier League, against Sunderland at Old Trafford on 4 October. Are they on one defeat in nine, or two wins in six?
After failing to take opportunities to go second, twice, and fifth, they are now sixth. If results go their way, they could be fourth once they have played Bournemouth on 15 December. Equally they could be back in the bottom half of the table.
Andoni Iraola’s men have taken two points from their past six games but they have won 3-0 on each of their past two visits to Old Trafford.
Nothing is for certain at Manchester United these days it seems, and that includes the availability of their players.
Amorim had thought Netherlands international Matthijs de Ligt would be available for Monday’s game after missing the West Ham match with a minor injury. He was wrong. Now the manager says he can’t be sure when De Ligt will be fit.
United remain in talks with the respective national associations of Morocco, Ivory Coast and Cameroon, which Amorim says is a “good sign” but says he “doesn’t know” if Noussair Mazraoui, Amad Diallo and Bryan Mbeumo will be cleared to play against Bournemouth before they leave for Africa Cup of Nations duty.
“Let’s wait for the middle of the week,” said Amorim.
Asked what moving into sixth place means, he added: “Nothing. It’s always the same feeling. We should have more points. But that’s in the past, let’s focus on the future.”
The eight remaining candidates met with UCLA’s search committee on Zoom, each answering the same set of questions.
When those conversations ended, Martin Jarmond, the athletic director who was presiding over the Bruins’ quest to find their next great football coach, asked everyone on the committee to prioritize which candidates needed to be seen in person.
Everyone’s list included the same name: Bob Chesney.
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The James Madison coach had already wowed the committee by then, according to multiple people with knowledge of the search who spoke with The Times on condition of anonymity because of the private nature of the process.
Chesney’s experience building programs into winners, established track record of success at multiple levels, ability to develop talent and appreciation for everything UCLA had to offer were all selling points that made him an attractive candidate early in a search lasting 2½ months.
Along the way, Chesney and the six-person committee nurtured a relationship based on shared values and mutual respect, according to those familiar with the process, making him feel prioritized when other potential suitors emerged as part of a coaching carousel that threatened to spin out of control as new openings materialized seemingly by the day.
After Jarmond and Erin Adkins, the executive senior associate athletic director who was also part of the search committee, flew to see Chesney last month in Virginia, the coach and his suitors came to the same conclusion — they were a perfect match. Chesney agreed to become the Bruins’ new coach on Dec. 1, accepting a five-year deal.
On Tuesday morning on campus inside the Luskin Center, UCLA will introduce a coach whose hiring might be the coup of the carousel.
“We owe UCLA students, alumni, supporters and fans a football program built to succeed in the modern age of college sports, and hiring coach Chesney will do just that,” search committee member Bob Myers said. “We not only believe in him as a head coach, but also as a person. His character and values were a huge factor in our decision. Coach Chesney exudes all the qualities you want in someone charged with leading our student-athletes at UCLA.”
The buzz around Chesney only intensified Sunday when James Madison was selected for the College Football Playoff, dramatically increasing his profile. UCLA has agreed to allow Chesney to coach the 12th-seeded Dukes (12-1) through a CFP run that starts Dec. 20 when they face fifth-seeded Oregon (11-1) at Autzen Stadium, the Bruins undoubtedly getting free air time during the TNT broadcast when their new coach is mentioned. The committee was firmly behind Chesney participating in the playoff, celebrating his team’s selection.
The process leading to Chesney’s hiring started as most coaching searches do, with a firing. The dismissal of coach DeShaun Foster on Sept. 14 after an 0-3 start — giving him a 5-10 record over a little more than one season — left the Bruins with a need to recalibrate their approach in picking a successor.
Martin Jarmond
(Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times)
Jarmond identified three principal guidelines for the search while meeting with UCLA chancellor Julio Frenk. There needed to be alignment among everyone involved in the process about what they wanted in their new coach, ample investment to allow that coach to compete in the Big Ten and nationally, and ultimately the identification of a strong leader who embodied the school’s core values.
Jarmond was open to any candidate, including NFL coaches and college coordinators, but eventually came to prioritize sitting head coaches who had gone through the recent transformative changes in college sports involving the transfer portal, roster management and the name, image and likeness space. There was also a strong preference for someone who had experience turning around a program, building it into a sustained winner.
A search committee that included Jarmond, Adkins, Myers, sports executive Casey Wasserman, Washington Commanders general manager Adam Peters and former Bruins linebacker Eric Kendricks cast a wide net, starting with a list of 40 possible candidates. The committee gathered preliminary background information on those coaches and met regularly via phone calls and in person, with Peters often joining via Zoom because he was based on the East Coast.
Peters offered intelligence based on his extensive network of NFL personnel who regularly visited college campuses and observed coaches. Myers and Wasserman provided insights based on their vast experience as top-level sports executives. Kendricks, who has spent a decade playing in the NFL, queried candidates on playing style, practice habits, accountability measures and coaching philosophy.
As the committee continued to gather information and assess possible fit, it halved the list of candidates to 20, then narrowed it further to 12 and then eight, which included seven sitting college head coaches and one college coordinator. After the round of Zoom calls, the committee identified six candidates it wanted to remain in contention. Jarmond and Adkins flew to see four candidates in person, keeping two others in the running for possible future meetings.
After every interview and in-person meeting, the committee members always asked themselves the same things: Did this candidate possess the qualities they were seeking and could he fulfill their vision for winning?
Chesney, 48, kept checking every box from early in the process. On his Zoom with the committee, Chesney detailed his plan for winning with the Bruins and gave examples of experiences at other schools that revealed his appreciation for what it took to succeed at a highly rigorous academic institution. His resume was just as impressive as his answers.
Chesney’s 132-51 record included success at the Division III, Division II, Football Championship Subdivision and Football Bowl Subdivision levels. Part of that success included dramatic turnarounds. Assumption, which had gone 3-7 under previous coach Corey Bailey in 2012, enjoyed a steady rise under Chesney, going from 6-5 in Year 1 to 7-4 in Year 2 to 11-2 in Year 3.
It was a similar story at Holy Cross, which had gone 4-7 the year before Chesney’s arrival. By Chesney’s second season, the Crusaders started a four-year run of making the FCS playoffs, reaching a quarterfinal in 2022.
While coach Curt Cignetti already had James Madison rolling, the Dukes going 11-2 and reaching the Armed Forces Bowl in 2023, Chesney has now managed in only two years to take the program somewhere his predecessor couldn’t — the CFP.
It’s that sort of sustained success that left UCLA’s search committee with no qualms about Chesney not having won at the Power Four level. Given Chesney’s track record, the committee believed that all he needed to win big at college football’s highest level was an opportunity.
UCLA plans to support its new coach with enhanced resources, making a significant commitment to grow its assistant coach salary pool alongside additional investment in front-office, recruiting and strength and conditioning personnel as well as a restructured NIL operation.
Jarmond and Adkins flew to Virginia on Sunday so that they could accompany Chesney on his flight to Southern California on Monday ahead of his introduction a day later. Chesney will return to James Madison on Wednesday, continuing preparations to take his team somewhere the Bruins hope he can lead them.
Feeling like winners already, the Bruins are about to unveil the coach who seems to have all the answers..
A brand-new NIL
Chesney is going to have some new resources at his disposal.
As part of an aggressive restructuring, UCLA has transitioned its name, image and likeness efforts for football to the same third-party media and branding agency that handles the school’s other teams.
Champion of Westwood will assist Chesney in an effort to elevate his team’s NIL endeavors in the same way it has for men’s basketball — through its Men of Westwood arm — as well as women’s basketball, softball and other teams on campus.
Working with NIL agency Article 41, which has staff on campus to help athletes build their brands through content creation and social media strategies, Champion of Westwood is striving to create new opportunities for football players as part of an all-inclusive approach.
“Everyone is committed to being very symbiotic on this, which I think will lead to success,” said Ken Graiwer, the UCLA alumnus who runs Champion of Westwood. “Supporting NIL is supporting the program.”
As part of a new subscriber model in which payments can be made on a one-time or recurring basis, Champion of Westwood is offering benefits such as exclusive merchandise and player video updates directly from the locker room after a game.
Among its corporate sponsors, Champion of Westwood has partnered with Paige, the same apparel company that outfitted Dodgers stars Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts.
“They were looking for the next generation of top athletes,” Graiwer said of Paige identifying UCLA as a client. “These are the great kinds of things that we’re doing.”
Champion of Westwood has also assembled a new advisory board that includes former UCLA quarterback Cory Paus, mega donor Michael Price and other heavyweights in the financial and entertainment sectors who can help facilitate introductions between players and individuals or companies interested in engaging them for NIL deals.
Olympic sport of the week: Men’s water polo
The UCLA men’s water polo team after winning the national championship.
(UCLA Athletics)
It was the sort of ending the cross-town rivalry deserved.
In another back-and-forth battle, Frederico Jucá Carsalade made sure the UCLA men’s water polo team came out on top with a goal as time expired Sunday at Stanford’s Avery Aquatic Center, lifting the Bruins to an 11-10 victory over USC in the national championship game.
USC’s Jack Martin had tied the score with 2:03 left before Carsalade’s goal gave UCLA its 125th NCAA title in school history and its second consecutive championship in men’s water polo. Carsalade finished with two goals and Ryder Dodd scored three, including back-to-back goals that pushed the Bruins into a 10-9 lead before the Trojans rallied.
It was payback after USC had won two of the three previous meetings between the teams this season. The victory gave UCLA coach Adam Wright his 10th NCAA title with the Bruins — six as head coach of the men’s water polo team, two as a player for the Bruins, one as head coach of the women’s water polo team and another as an assistant coach with the women’s team.
Opinion time
What is your level of happiness with the Bob Chesney hire?
We asked, “How optimistic are you for UCLA football in 2026?”
After 612 votes, the results:
They will qualify for a lower-tier bowl game, 47.1% They will show some fight, but struggle to a losing record, 23.5% It’s going to be another long season, 14.6% They will make a quality bowl game, 10.7% The Bruins will be in College Football Playoff contention, 4.1%
Do you have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future UCLA newsletter? Email me at ben.bolch@latimes.com, and follow me on X @latbbolch. To order an autographed copy of my book, “100 Things UCLA Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die,” send me an email. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.
In addition to reiterating his frustrations with the CFP ranking process, Bevacqua also turned his ire on the Atlantic Coast Conference during a Monday morning appearance on “The Dan Patrick Show.”
“We were mystified by the actions of the conference, to attack, you know, their biggest, really, business partner in football and a member of their conference in 24 of our other sports,” Bevaqua said. “And I wouldn’t be honest with you if I didn’t say that they have certainly done permanent damage to the relationship between the conference and Notre Dame.”
With the exception of football and men’s hockey, all Notre Dame athletic teams are members of the ACC. While the Irish football team has maintained its status as an independent, it has had an agreement since 2014 to play games against at least five ACC teams each season.
Miami, on the other hand, is a full-fledged member of the ACC.
Notre Dame opened the season Aug. 31 with a 27-24 loss at Miami, followed by a one-point loss to Texas A&M the next week. But the Irish went 10-0 to finish the season, beating their opponents by an average of nearly 30 points (a number that was bolstered by their 70-7 win over Syracuse on Nov. 22).
Miami also finished the regular season at 10-2. Despite the head-to-head win over Notre Dame months earlier, the Hurricanes were ranked below the Irish every week since the 2025 CFP rankings launched in early November — until this week, when Miami jumped to No. 10 and the Irish landed at No. 11.
With No. 20 Tulane and No. 24 James Madison getting automatic bids as the American Athletic Conference and Sun Belt Conference champions, respectively, that left Notre Dame out of the 12-team CFP bracket. Notre Dame subsequently announced it was withdrawing from consideration from any college bowl games this season.
“What we’re so confused by and frustrated with is the process,” Bevacqua said. “Every step along the way, since the first CFP rankings came out, we were led to believe we were in as long as we took care of business. And we certainly took care of business with this 10-game winning streak.
“Can you think about that first ranking? You know, we and Miami were both 6-2. They had obviously already beat us the first game of the year. They were 18th. We were 10th. You know, the only thing that we did since that point was win every game by over an average of over 30 points. And you know, all of a sudden we’re 11th and on the outside looking in.”
CFP selection committee chairperson Hunter Yurachek said during the playoff’s selection show that Miami’s season-opening win over Notre Dame hadn’t factored into the rankings until this weekend — when it became clear that the two teams would be side-by-side in the rankings and one team would likely end up out of the postseason picture.
At that point, Yurachek said, he had the committee members rewatch the Miami-Notre Dame game.
“You look at those two teams on paper and they are almost equal in their schedule strength, their common opponents, the results against common opponents,” Yurachek said. “But the one metric we had to fall back on … was the head-to-head.”
Last month, the ACC football account on X posted a graphic that highlighted Miami’s win over Notre Dame and listed how the teams compared in certain statistical categories, with the Hurricanes coming out on top in two of the three cases.
Also, according to ESPN, the ACC Network replayed Miami’s win over the Irish more than a dozen times last Thursday and Friday.
“We didn’t appreciate the fact that we were singled out repeatedly and compared to Miami,” Bevacqua said. “Not by Miami — Miami has every right to do that, but it raised a lot of eyebrows here that the conference was taking shots at us.”
Asked by Patrick if Notre Dame would reevaluate its overall relationship with the ACC after this, Bevacqua simply stated, “I would just say it’s been strained.”
Patrick then asked if the damage was irreparable.
“Well, you never say irreparable, but it’s opened our eyes,” Bevacqua said. “And you know, it caught our attention.”
The ACC did not immediately respond Monday to The Times’ request for comment.
Almost 48 hours after Salah spoke, this was Arne Slot’s chance to say his piece.
Monday was a public holiday in Milan but the media conference room inside the San Siro was still packed. It is hard to think of a more anticipated pre-match media conference in recent times.
Slot used his humour to start off by joking with a reporter that he asked five questions in one, but minute by minute, details began to emerge and it was clear to see who was in charge.
When BBC Sport asked him whether he understood Salah’s comments when the Egyptian said he was “thrown under the bus”, Slot said: “Usually I’m calm, I’m polite but I’m not weak. If a player has these comments about so many things, then it’s up to me and the club to react. We reacted in a way you can see because he’s not here.”
This was Slot on the front foot and he was backed later by goalkeeper Alisson, who insisted that the Liverpool squad are firmly behind the manager who won the Premier League.
That backing from a senior player was crucial on a night where Slot was asked if he felt his authority was undermined by the whole saga.
Slot categorically denied he felt that way, even if he was surprised when he heard the quotes on Saturday night.
The Liverpool coach did not delve too much into the specifics, insisting that his conversation with Salah was short, but he said enough to explain the situation without inflaming it any further.
And, importantly, the door is still open for Salah even though Slot said he had “no clue” whether the 33-year-old has played his last game for the club.
The club insist this was mainly because of Salah bringing his own future into question. Their position is that Salah still has a contract and as Slot said, he is a “firm believer” in the possibility for a player to return.
After 10 minutes of questions solely focused on Salah, the Liverpool media officer, sat next to Slot, was adamant it was time to move on to questions about the game itself.
Ultimately though, regardless of how Liverpool fare tomorrow against Inter Milan, this is a story that will continue to dominate the agenda until there is a clear resolution.
Welcome back to the Times of Troy newsletter, where we’re left wondering if anyone will remember the Alamo (Bowl) after this bowl season.
USC will face Texas Christian in its first trip to the Alamo Bowl on Dec. 30, the night before the quarterfinals of the College Football Playoff kick off. Throw in the fact that the Horned Frogs finished in seventh place in the Big 12, and you don’t exactly have a marquee, made-for-TV matchup.
But for USC’s coach, the Alamo Bowl should carry a certain significance — if only for the fact that it’s where his reputation as a budding offensive mastermind was born.
Fight on! Are you a true Trojans fan?
Sixteen years ago this December, Lincoln Riley was on his way to a team meeting ahead of Texas Tech’s bowl game, when defensive coordinator Ruffin McNeill pulled him aside. Mike Leach, the Red Raiders’ head coach had been suspended for the bowl for allegations of player mistreatment — and would be fired days later. McNeill, the interim coach, wanted Riley to call plays for him.
Riley was 26, and reeling from the news about his mentor.
“An opportunity arose out of a not-very-positive situation,” Riley said Sunday.
It turned out to be a life-changing one for the Red Raiders’ receivers coach. McNeill already knew that Riley was a savvy young coach. But right away, McNeill told me in 2022, his sense of how to lead in such an adverse situation was special.
“I just remember him very confidently taking over the duties,” McNeill said. “He was the youngest guy on the staff, and he had to galvanize the staff immediately. He was the youngest guy on staff, and he did it with no hesitation.”
Then came the game. It was the first time Riley had been on the sideline for a game, having spent most of his time for Texas Tech in the booth. But his confidence came across right away, McNeill said.
After a chaotic few weeks in which Texas Tech could have unraveled, the Red Raiders instead put up 571 yards, its second-highest output of the entire season. Trailing midway through the fourth quarter, Texas Tech mounted two touchdown drives in the final eight minutes. On the second, Riley convinced McNeill to go for it twice on fourth down to ice the game. They converted both.
Years later, McNeill was still in awe of Riley’s performance that night.
“I wish I would’ve recorded the play-calling he did that night,” McNeill said. “I’ve heard him call a lot of games. But that night was amazing to me.”
Years later, with Riley set to return to the scene of his special night, it wasn’t lost on him how every step he’s taken since as a coach started in San Antonio.
“If you’re fortunate enough to get some pretty cool opportunities in this business,” Riley said Sunday, “you have to have some nights like that where you look back and say, you know, if this didn’t happen, would we have gotten these opportunities? Would we have coached at some of these places or experienced what we have?
“That’s definitely one for me that I still remember, like it was just yesterday.”
Texas Christian … by the numbers
TCU quarterback Josh Hoover.
(Eric Christian Smith / Associated Press)
Weeks of bowl projections went out the window when the Alamo Bowl picked TCU with its Big 12 selection. So what should you know about the Horned Frogs?
242.8. The number of passing yards allowed per game by TCU this season.
3,472. The number of passing yards from TCU quarterback Josh Hoover this season, sixth-most in the nation.
This game is shaping up to be a barnburner through the air. The Horned Frogs have been even worse defending the pass down the stretch, having allowed at least 280 passing yards in four of their past six games. Of those six teams only one (Baylor) has a passing attack anywhere near as dynamic as USC.
Both quarterbacks could put up huge numbers. Jayden Maiava threw for 41 fewer yards than Hoover this season, but also five fewer interceptions.
3.93. TCU’s yards per rush attempt this season, which ranks 97th nationally. USC’s biggest vulnerability has been defending the run, but that shouldn’t be a problem in the bowl game. TCU bookended its season with two big games on the ground — 258 yards against North Carolina and 238 against Cincinnati. But during the 10 games in between, the Horned Frogs averaged just 109.5 yards rushing per game, which would rank in the bottom 15 in college football.
9. The number of rushing touchdowns allowed by TCU this season. While the Horned Frogs have struggled to defend the pass, they’ve been stout against the run. Only 10 teams in college football have allowed fewer rushing scores.
The Biletnikoff case for Lemon
Makai Lemon makes a catch while under pressure from Iowa defensive back Zach Lutmer.
(Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)
The nation’s top receiver will be named next Friday, and while I wouldn’t begrudge anyone for suggesting fellow finalist Jeremiah Smith of Ohio State is the better pro prospect — objectively, he is — I think it’s quite clear Makai Lemon has had a better overall season than any pass-catcher in college football.
Let’s start with the basic numbers, even though those only tell part of the story: Lemon had 79 catches to lead the Big Ten, seven more than Smith and 15 more than any other conference wideout before the Big Ten championship game. He had 1,156 yards — 214 more than Smith, who was third in the Big Ten, and 11 receiving touchdowns, which tied with Smith for the conference lead.
The deeper you go into the details, the more the numbers favor Lemon. No one is more dangerous with the ball in his hands as he averaged 6.4 yards after the catch per reception this season. That’s almost two full yards more than Smith.
Lemon outperformed Smith on contested catches, pulling down 66% compared to just 46% for Smith. He was also harder to bring down, forcing 20 missed tackles to Smith’s 13.
It’s no disrespect to Smith, who will be a top-10 NFL draft pick soon enough. But Lemon has been the better receiver on the field this season. And he should get the hardware to prove it.
Bishop Fitzgerald scores a touchdown after intercepting a pass against the Missouri State Bears.
(Luke Hales/Getty Images)
—Notre Dame was left out of the Playoff. So now what? Before we consider what this means for the rivalry, I should note that I think it was the wrong decision for the committee to keep the Irish out of the field after Alabama had just been trounced in the SEC title game. But now that it has happened, you can imagine the feelings of schadenfreude around USC. The snub of the Irish only proves how much they need a non-conference opponent like USC, as my colleague Bill Plaschke pointed out before the final CFP rankings. If only there was a collective of similar teams that Notre Dame could have joined to help boost its strength of schedule. Oh well.
—The Big Ten media voted five Trojans onto the all-conference team. Lemon was obviously on the first team, as was safety Bishop Fitzgerald. Tight end Lake McRee made the second team after his best season yet at USC, and wideout Ja’Kobi Lane made the third team despite dealing with injuries through a large chunk of the year. Kicker Ryon Sayeri also made the third team after coming out of nowhere as a walk-on. Any one of USC’s running backs would’ve made the top three teams, if they’d started the full season. Maybe there was a case, at one point, for Maiava; though, the top three of Julian Sayin, Fernando Mendoza and Dante Moore are pretty competitive at quarterback. Otherwise, it seems like no Trojans had much of a case that they were left out.
—After the Miller brothers, King and Kaylon, were standouts of the 2025 season, USC is adding a third brother to the mix. Kayne Miller, a running back at Calabasas High, signed last week with USC as a preferred walk-on, starting from the bottom just like his brothers did. King and Kaylon should be getting scholarships come January, and Kayne will have the perfect blueprint to follow in their footsteps.
—Penn State hired Iowa State’s Matt Campbell as its head football coach after a roller coaster search process that tiptoed along the edge of disaster. But after all that, the Nittany Lions actually ended up with the guy who likely would’ve been USC’s coach, had Riley turned the job down in 2022. Now we’ll get to see how Campbell translates to the Big Ten after all.
Olympic sports spotlight
Aside from a loss to No. 1 Nebraska last month, USC women’s volleyball hadn’t lost a match since Oct. 11 — nearly two full months — when the fourth-seeded Trojans welcomed Cal Poly to Galen Center in the second round of the NCAA tournament last week.
But the Trojans immediately dropped their first two sets Friday. And despite winning the next two, the hole they’d dug proved to be too deep.
The upset defeat put a damper on what was an otherwise strong season for the Trojans, who finished 25-7 and 15-5 in the Big Ten.
Portal polling
Transfer portal season is fast approaching, and while USC is planning to be more selective in this cycle, there are still spots to fill with portal players.
With those needs in mind, I want you to tell me what you think: Which of these five options would you put at the top of USC’s transfer portal wish list?
Sarah Snook, left, and Dakota Fanning, who star in the Peacock miniseries “All Her Fault.”
(Victoria Will / For The Times)
If you’re looking for twists and turns this holiday season, look no further than Peacock’s “All Her Fault,” a show whose plot you could not possibly have seen coming from the pilot episode. The show, which stars Sarah Snook of “Succession,” follows a wealthy family in the wake of their young son being kidnapped. But nothing, as you might imagine, is exactly as it seems.
Credit goes to my wife, who first recommended it and nudged me at every mention of the mental load mothers deal with on a daily basis, which the show points to often.
Until next time …
That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at ryan.kartje@latimes.com, and follow me on X at @Ryan_Kartje. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.
ORLANDO, Fla. — At the start of this offseason, the Dodgers signaled a willingness to be patient and methodical in building their roster for 2026.
At the start of this week’s MLB Winter Meetings, at least, the team arrives in Orlando having thus far remained true to form.
Compared to their whirlwind offseasons the past two winters, the Dodgers have been conspicuously quiet in the wake of their second consecutive World Series championship. Their only free-agent deal has been the re-signing of veteran infielder Miguel Rojas. Their only trade was a swap of minor-league pitchers with the Seattle Mariners. The biggest news, to this point, was their decision to non-tender reliever Evan Phillips (and they could very well wind up bringing him back).
Behind the scenes, there have been efforts for more, of course. The team came up short in pursuit of free-agent relievers Raisel Iglesias and Devin Williams. They have canvassed the trade market and laid potential groundwork for possible future moves.
But for now, exactly what their winter will hold remains a largely unanswered question.
And, in all likelihood, it could ultimately be dictated by whom they’re willing to part with as they go about re-shaping their roster.
All offseason, the trade market has looked like the Dodgers’ most logical path to upgrading their roster — the place they could most easily shore up their needs in the bullpen and outfield, while still avoiding having to add another long-term contract to their expensive and aging core.
There are targets galore to go after, too, from Brendan Donovan or Lars Nootbaar of the St. Louis Cardinals, to Jarren Duran or Wilyer Abreu of the Boston Red Sox, to potentially even bigger names like Cleveland’s Steven Kwan or Minnesota’s Byron Buxton (though the latter is reportedly unlikely to be dealt this offseason).
Oh, and as long as there remains even a slim chance of two-time Cy Young-winning pitching Tarik Skubal getting traded by the Detroit Tigers, you can bet the Dodgers will be monitoring that situation, too.
For president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman and Co., the task will be trying to line up a trade package to pull off on any of those moves.
The Dodgers have plenty of chips to bring to the bargaining table, with ample young pitching depth and a minor-league farm system considered perhaps best in the sport. But balancing it all while finding value is still a challenge. Which is why, as trade rumors fly, don’t be surprised to see a potentially wide range of familiar names bandied about in such speculation.
The team’s most obvious trade bait, of course, remains their collection of young talent. They have a crop of highly-touted outfielder prospects they could potentially deal from, including Josue De Paula, Zyhir Hope, Eduardo Quintero and several others. They have a former top prospect in Dalton Rushing, who struggled through his rookie year but still possesses promising raw tools.
Most of all, they have plenty of young pitchers who could also help fetch a nice return, from ascendant minor-league prospect Jackson Ferris, to returning 2024 breakout rookies River Ryan and Gavin Stone, to potentially even more established big-league names like Justin Wrobleski (a natural starting pitcher who was stuck in more of a swingman role in the bullpen last year) and Emmet Sheehan (who is about at the same stage of his career that former top Dodgers prospect Ryan Pepiot was when he was dealt two winters ago).
The Dodgers, however, are still prioritizing the future. They want to go for a historic three-peat next season. But they also know, at some point in the coming years, they will need to cycle in a new generation of talent to maintain their championship window.
Thus, any young player traded now will come with a potential future cost.
Which could help explain why, in recent weeks, young players have not been the only ones caught up in trade rumors around the team.
Last month, ESPN cited one anonymous MLB executive who described Tyler Glasnow as a potential “sleeper name” on this year’s trade market. Last week, The Athletic reported that Teoscar Hernández’s name has come up in trade discussions, too.
Granted, the odds of either getting dealt appear low. And for now, they figure to remain key cogs in next year’s pursuit of another World Series title.
At the same time, however, they are also veterans approaching their mid-30s, with significant salaries due over the next several seasons. And if the Dodgers were to find deals to move them — either as a way to shore up other spots of the roster, or to offload money for a potential free-agent signing — it’s far from unfeasible that the club could pull the trigger.
After all, for a front office that is conscious of its roster’s advancing age, and trying to juggle both short- and long-term goals, such considerations reflect the wide net the Dodgers are believed to be casting this offseason; the kind of deliberate, exploratory mode they’ve been in while evaluating potential paths through this winter.
Perhaps this week, the team’s most serious pursuits will become clearer, as they meet with rival clubs during the league’s annual Winter Meetings at the Signia by Hilton here in Orlando.
But to this point, they are seemingly keeping their options open, content to engage in a slower winter pace as they continue to let both the free-agent and trade market develop around them.
A small group of senior figures at McLaren discuss with the drivers how they are going to approach their racing. They review what happened after each grand prix, and apply the lessons for the following race.
This happens in formal meetings, more informal conversations and ad hoc.
And they keep building on that process, over and over again.
This is all well and good in theory, but it’s only sustainable in practice if everyone sticks to the principles when problems arise, as they inevitably do through an F1 season.
In 2025, there have been a number of races where equality and harmony have been tested – particularly Hungary, Italy, Singapore and Austin.
In Hungary, Norris was allowed to switch to a one-stop strategy after a bad start left him fifth, and ended up beating Piastri, whose two-stop from an early second place saw him spend the final laps trying and failing to pass Norris for the win.
In Italy, a decision to invert the natural pit-stop choreography after they had spent the race running in the order Norris-Piastri behind Verstappen was followed by a slow pit stop for Norris, and Piastri being asked to hand back the second place he had inherited.
In Singapore, Norris scrambled past Piastri into third place at the first series of corners, banging wheels in the process, leading to the Australian saying over the radio: “Are we cool with Lando just barging me out of the way?”
In Austin, an attempted cut-back move by Piastri on Norris at the first corner of the sprint race ended up in a collision that took both of them out.
Externally, these situations have either led to accusations that Norris was being favoured, or that McLaren were meddling too much, or both.
Internally, they were dealt with quietly, behind closed doors, and with the apparent result that everyone came away satisfied it had been resolved in the best possible way.
McLaren insiders have told BBC Sport that the driver meetings really are conducted in the way they are externally presented – issues are discussed openly, constructively and calmly, and a resolution is arrived at from which everyone can move on with equanimity, even if they had issues with what happened at the time.
If there has been any deviation from that in the drivers’ minds privately, they have certainly not given any hint of it in public.
Piastri has rejected any suggestions that the team was not being fair, saying he’s “very happy that there’s no favouritism or bias”.
And Norris says: “We still always have the right to question it. We’re never going to just go around – because I think it’s just a racing driver’s mind – and be happy to accept whatever the team wants to do or what they think is correct.
“I understand that a lot of people have different opinions and think maybe other things are correct. But I still stand by the fact that Andrea and Oscar and all of us together are confident that our approach is better than what other people’s are.”
Brown says that any idea the team were siding with Norris is “nonsense”.
He explains that when they let Norris switch to a one-stop in Hungary, “Andrea and I were like, ‘This ain’t gonna work.’ But it was a free punt, and Lando drove brilliantly.”
Monza, he says, was “just like what happened in Hungary the year before”, when Norris let Piastri by for the win after a similar pit-lane arrangement.
“If the lead car is prepared to sacrifice their rights to the first call to help his team-mate, who’s actually his number one competitor in the championship, that’s great teamwork,” Brown says.
“So I understand what it looks like from the outside, but it’s not what’s going on on the inside, and we’re trying so hard to give them equal opportunity and let them race hard. I wish everyone recognised more of that.
“But I’ve definitely come to the conclusion there’s too many fans with too many views that we’ve just got to be comfortable with how we’re going racing inside McLaren, and that’s what’s most important to us.”
Hi, and welcome to another edition of Prep Rally. My name is Eric Sondheimer. The state football championship games are this weekend, but there’s also another big moment happening Tuesday. The state basketball record for career scoring may be broken.
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Jason Crowe Jr. (left) and his father coach, Jason Crowe Sr. of Lynwood after winning state Division V championship in 2023.
(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)
This is the week the four-year basketball career of Jason Crowe Jr. from Inglewood gets the respect it deserves. He’s on the verge of becoming California’s all-time career scoring leader. He has a game scheduled Tuesday against Beverly Hills at the old Morningside gym, and if all goes as expected, he’ll pass Tounde Yessoufou of Santa Maria St. Joseph, who scored 3,659 points from 2022-2025, according to the CalHiSports.com record book. Crowe is 29 points away from the record.
Crowe has been on fire in the last week, scoring 51, 50 and 41 points.
With his father, Jason Sr., serving as head coach, Crowe started his career at Lynwood before moving over to Inglewood last season. He averaged 36.0 points as a freshman when Lynwood won a Division V state championship, 37.4 points as a sophomore, 35.3 points last season at Inglewood and is averaging 43 points for 7-1 Inglewood.
He has signed with Missouri, where he and his family plan to move to after this year. His ability to score comes from his relentless ability to attack, draw fouls, make free throws and make shots.
He deserves a standing ovation Tuesday night when the record is his.
It’s championship weekend in Orange County with Saddleback College, Buena Park High and Fullerton High hosting state championship games. Here’s the schedule.
There will be an intriguing tripleheader on Saturday at Saddleback College. One of the best small-school matchups in recent years kicks off the day at 11:30 a.m. in a battle of unbeatens — Rio Hondo Prep vs. Sonora. Then Oxnard Pacifica faces Fresno Central East in the 1-A final at 3:30 p.m. followed by Santa Margarita taking on De La Salle for the Open Division championship at 8 p.m.
Dash Fifita of Santa Margarita is a 5-9, 195-pound All-CIF linebacker.
(Craig Weston)
Santa Margarita has linebacker Dash Fifita, a 5-foot-9, 195-pound senior who has risen up despite lacking the usual size for playing football at that position. The younger brother of Arizona quarterback Noah Fifita explains how he can be successful.
Santa Margarita’s much respected defensive coordinator, Steve Fifita, said he plans to return in 2026. He would like to coach defensive line at the college level again, but he’s very happy at Santa Margarita. Barring a return to college, he’s staying an Eagle.
Los Alamitos High quarterback Colin Creason tries to evade the flying tackle attempt of San Diego Cathedral linebacker Cade Smith during the CIF Division 1-AA regional playoff game Friday night.
(Craig Weston)
Southern Section Division 2 champion Los Alamitos came up short in a 1-AA loss to Cathedral Catholic, but what a season it was for the Griffins. Here’s a report.
Signing day
Andrew Williams of Fremont is a 6-foot-5, 220-pound senior who committed to USC.
(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)
Wednesday was early signing day for high school football players, and it was historic for Fremont defensive end Andrew Williams.
He was a member of USC’s No. 1-ranked recruiting class and the first inner city player to sign with USC since 2017. Here’s a report.
Boys’ basketball
Sierra Canyon and Santa Margarita, ranked No. 1 and No. 2, took a trip to the East Coast and each lost to the same team, Maryland’s Bishop McNamara. Here’s this week’s top 25 rankings by The Times.
San Gabriel Academy, led by freshman Zach Arnold, a had a break-through win over previously unbeaten Redondo Union. Harvard-Westlake’s Joe Sterling, a Texas commit, scored 36 points helped by seven threes in a win over Francis Parker.
Village Christian knocked off Crespi behind freshman Will Conroy, then traveled to Hawaii to finish runner-up to Crean Lutheran. Point guard Hunter Caplan was tournament MVP for Crean Lutheran.
Etiwanda (9-0), Corona del Mar (7-0), Chaminade (9-0) and Brentwood (10-0) are all moving up after impressive starts this season. St. John Bosco (4-0) hosts its tournament this week. A big league game is Wednesday when Arcadia hosts Pasadena in a Pacific League opener. Also Sherman Oaks Notre Dame plays Village Christian on Tuesday.
Jayshawn Kibble has provided a lift for Washington Prep in the City Section. Here’s a report.
Girls basketball
Kaleena Smith of Ontario Christian.
(Craig Weston)
What a start it’s been for defending Southern Section Open Division champion Ontario Christian, which is 9-0 and won the Troy tournament Saturday by routing JSerra. Here’s the report.
Junior guard Kaleena Smith scored 30 points to be tourney MVP and teamed with sophomore Tatianna Griffin to make the Knights pretty much unbeaten in the opening month of the season.
JSerra ruined a match-up of Ontario Christian vs. Sierra Canyon by upsetting the Trailblazers 67-63. Sierra Canyon is still waiting for standout Jerzy Robinson to return from an injury. Vivian Grenald had 19 points and Rosie Santos 18 in JSerra’s win.
Soccer
Peyton Trayer (left) and Cora Fry are Santa Margarita girls soccer players who will leave in January to train with their college programs.
(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)
The opening weeks of the soccer season have been marked by players trying to finish up club seasons and join their high school teams.
Some won’t even play when January comes around because they’ve decided to get an early start in college.
It’s an intriguing story how coaches are trying to maneuver through uncertain times on who’s coming and who’s going.
Cathedral and Loyola renew their boys’ soccer rivalry with a nonleague game on Tuesday night at Loyola.
Palos Verdes looks strong in its early matches in boys soccer.
Southern Section history
A 45-minute documentary on the history of the CIF Southern Section will get its first public airing on Saturday after the Santa Margarita-De La Salle football game on Spectrum.
(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)
The late Dr. John Dahlem, the volunteer historian for the CIF Southern Section, worked hard before his passing to put together information that would form a 45-minute documentary on the history of the Southern Section.
It will make its public television debut Saturday night on Spectrum at the conclusion of the Santa Margarita vs. De La Salle football game.
A preview was shown at a movie theater on Sunday in Santa Ana for friends and former workers in the Southern Section, and it looks thorough, interesting and well put together by executive producer Taylor Martinez.
Current statistics in 2025 about the Southern Section.
(Eric Sondheimer / Los Angeles Times)
One of the more humorous moments is Dahlem discussing the hand grenade throw, which used to be a Southern Section sport. Also a look at how girls were not real sport participants until 1974 when the Southern Section began sponsoring playoffs for girls.
Former commissioner Rob Wigod serves as the film narrator, and he might have a future in that endeavor.
Notes . . .
Erick Morales has resigned as football coach at La Puente. . . .
Standout Mater Dei girls basketball player Kaeli Wynn won’t play this season because of a knee injury that will require surgery. She has committed to South Carolina. . . .
Junior pitcher Charlie Fuller from Mater Dei has committed to Oklahoma State. . . .
Whittier is looking for a new football coach after Jimmy Welker was let go following two seasons as head coach. . . .
In January, Palisades students are expected to return to their campus with sports teams being allowed to use facilities after the Palisades fire damaged the campus. Students will be housed in portable bungalows and have use of 70% of the campus. Here’s the report.
From the archives: Michael Wilson
Michael Wilson with the catch for Chaminade in 2017.
(Jay L. Clendenin / Los Angeles Times)
Former Chaminade receiver Michael Wilson, in his NFL third season with Arizona, has been coming on strong this season. He had consecutive games of at least 10 receptions and more than 100 yards receiving.
The former Stanford receiver caught 70 passes his junior season at Chaminade. He also was an outstanding point guard until giving up basketball. He was a third-round draft pick.
From the Washington Post, a story on a high school football program that was best in Maryland, then the coach left, players transferred and now the team can’t win any games.
From the Los Angeles Times, a story on the life of former Morningside High and Lakers center Elden Campbell, who has died.
From the Wall Street Journal, a story on former Mission Viejo and Bishop Alemany receiver Phillip Bell, alleging possible CIF violations during his days in high school.
Tweets you might have missed
City Section attendance figures for football championship doubleheaders: 2,089 tickets sold Friday; 3,901 tickets sold Saturday. The commissioner is happy.
9 Divisions, 144 teams will battle in the Nations Top High School Basketball Tournament Where Champions Play🏆 December 26-30, 2025🏀 pic.twitter.com/zgH9b1HDqt
Former Grace Brethren football player Julien Stokes was named Ivy League special teams player of the year for Penn. Sierra Canyon grad Ezekiel Larry of Yale was All-Ivy League first team with Nico Brown (Edison).
Have a question, comment or something you’d like to see in a future Prep Rally newsletter? Email me at eric.sondheimer@latimes.com, and follow me on Twitter at @latsondheimer.
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Joey Barton has been ordered to do 200 hours of unpaid work in the community and pay more than £20,000 in costs
Former footballer Joey Barton has been handed a suspended sentence for social media posts about broadcaster Jeremy Vine and TV football pundits Lucy Ward and Eni Aluko.
Barton, 43, was found guilty by a jury at Liverpool Crown Court of sending grossly offensive electronic communications with intent to cause distress or anxiety.
The trial heard he had “crossed the line between free speech and a crime” with six posts on X including comparing Aluko and Ward to serial killers Fred and Rose West, and calling Vine a “bike nonce” between January and March 2024.
Barton, originally of Huyton, Merseyside, was given six months in custody, suspended for 18 months.
The ex-Manchester City and Newcastle player was also made by the Honorary Recorder of Liverpool, Judge Andrew Menary KC, to do 200 hours of unpaid work in the community and pay more than £20,000 in costs.
Following a televised FA Cup tie in January 2024 between Crystal Palace and Everton, Barton likened Ward and Aluko to the “Fred and Rose West of football commentary” and went on to superimpose their faces onto a photograph of the serial murderers.
Speaking to the BBC after leaving the court, Barton said: “If I could turn back the clock I would.
“I never meant to hurt anyone. It was a joke that got out of hand.”
He added: “Nobody wants to go to jail.”
PA Media
Judge Andrew Menary KC said Barton’s behaviour was “beyond this limit”
Barton, who has 2.7m followers on X, repeatedly referred to Vine as “bike nonce” and said in one post: “If you see this fella by a primary school call 999,” and “Beware Man with Camera on his helmets cruising past primary schools. Call the Cops if spotted.”
He was found not guilty of six other allegations that he sent a grossly offensive electronic communication with intent to cause distress or anxiety between January and March 2024.
Jurors cleared Barton, now of Widnes, Cheshire, over the commentary analogy with the Wests but ruled the superimposed image was grossly offensive.
Giving evidence, Barton, who managed Fleetwood Town and Bristol Rovers, said he believed he was the victim of a “political prosecution” and denied his aim was “to get clicks and promote himself”.
Reuters
Barton told reporters “it was a joke that got out of hand” as he left the court
On sentencing, Judge Menary KC told Barton: “Robust debate, satire, mockery and even crude language may fall within permissible free speech.
“But when posts deliberately target individuals with vilifying comparisons to serial killers or false insinuations of paedophilia, designed to humiliate and distress, they forfeit their protection.
“As the jury concluded, your offences exemplify behaviour that is beyond this limit – amounting to a sustained campaign of online abuse that was not mere commentary but targeted, extreme and deliberately harmful.”
Two-year restraining orders were issued against each of his victims which includes publishing any reference to them on any social media platform or broadcast medium.
Jewish mothers are proud when their son or daughter become successful in sports, but then there’s the greatest honor of all: their child appearing on a matzah box.
Former Rolling Hills Prep guard Benny Gealer, a senior at Stanford averaging 10.6 points this season, is a candidate for the L’Cheisman trophy, sponsored by Manischewitz looking to honor the top Jewish college sports athletes.
Forget the $10,000 prize money. The most important reward in the mind of his mother is that the winner gets to appear on a limited-edition cover of its matzah box.
So the Gealer family is all in.
Gealer was an All-CIF guard at Rolling Hills Prep who went to Stanford as a walk-on and is now starting.
PHILADELPHIA — LeBron James needed to send this message.
He still sits on his throne.
The Lakers superstar scored 10 consecutive points late in the fourth quarter to seal a 112-108 win over the Philadelphia 76ers on Sunday, finishing with 29 points, seven rebounds and six assists to help the Lakers (17-6) nab two wins out of a difficult three-game trip.
Philadelphia (13-10) crawled back from a 10-point deficit in the third quarter and tied the score with 1:28 remaining on a shot by Joel Embiid. James answered with a fadeaway three-pointer over Quentin Grimes with 1:11 left. He all but iced the game with a 20-foot fadeaway over Grimes with 27.3 seconds remaining.
Running back up the court, James held both hands low in a “too small” signal. He placed an invisible crown on his head. He soaked in the roars from the crowd and punctuated it with his signature silencer celebration.
“That was vintage Bron,” said Luka Doncic, who finished with 31 points, 15 rebounds and 11 assists after a two-game absence for the birth of his second child. “We’re happy he was there to save us.”
James played in his 1,015th win, passing Robert Parish for the second most in NBA history. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar holds the record with 1,074. The Lakers won for the first time in Philadelphia since Dec. 7, 2017.
Doncic rejoined the team Saturday after he flew from L.A. to his native Slovenia on Dec. 1. Between the 12-hour flight, a nine-hour time difference and being present for the birth of his daughter Olivia, the last week was a blur for Doncic.
Doncic still made his return look effortless, notching his second triple-double of the season.
But the 26-year-old acknowledged he was mentally and physically tired by the fourth quarter. Austin Reaves, who has averaged 40 points in games Doncic missed, misfired on his first eight shots and finished with just 11 points.
Lakers star LeBron James dunks in front of Philadelphia’s Joel Embiid, left, during the first half Sunday.
(Chris Szagola / Associated Press)
Calling on James as their third scoring option showcases the Lakers’ embarrassment of riches.
“His play throughout the game gave us such a lift,” coach JJ Redick said, noting James’ screening and ability to create advantages. “… LeBron was like our connector tonight.”
Trailing by 10 with less than a minute remaining in the second quarter, the Lakers started the third on a 9-3 run to cut the deficit to one before building a 10-point lead with 1:40 left in the quarter. Then James’ heroics helped them hold on.
Deandre Ayton had 14 points on seven-for-seven shooting with 12 rebounds. Rui Hachimura scored 17 points as all five starters finished in double figures to hold off a fourth-quarter charge from the 76ers, who were led by 28 points, nine assists and seven rebounds from star guard Tyrese Maxey.
“That’s the beautiful thing about our team,” Reaves said, “is it’s not even just us three.”
With Doncic and Reaves off to career-best starts, the Lakers are 11-5 without James, who missed the first 14 games because of sciatica. The NBA’s all-time leading scorer had never missed the beginning of a season — in his life, James stressed. Missing training camp, preseason games and practices affected James not only physically but also mentally. James had to remind himself to fall “in love with the process” to rediscover his rhythm.
His trust paid off Sunday as he scored 12 of the Lakers’ 25 fourth-quarter points.
“It’s important to be reminded every now and then of what you’re capable of,” Redick said. “For him to have the injuries, and then to sort of start the season playing catch-up in a way, and start the season playing catch-up with a team that is also in a really good rhythm, and that’s, as a player, I don’t care how good you are, that’s tough to figure out.”
Three weeks shy of his 41st birthday, James missed the previous game in Boston because of sciatica and joint arthritis in his left foot. While he made the winning assist in the Lakers’ thrilling victory in Toronto, he also lost his 1,297-game streak of scoring 10 or more points. It felt like he finally was starting to show signs of his age.
Then he unleashed a signature one-handed tomahawk dunk in transition during the first quarter against the 76ers. It was a not-so-gentle reminder that James won’t ride into the twilight of his career quietly.
“Just at 40 years old, I mean, it just takes awhile for my body to kind of get back into a rhythm,” James said. “And so it felt good tonight to kind of feel like myself a little bit, being able to run and jump and cut and catch my second wind a lot faster tonight. Hopefully that stays.”
Every made basket from James made the Philadelphia fans clamor for more. Even the road fans hope James stays longer too.
Leo Carlsson scored two goals and rookie Beckett Sennecke had a goal and an assist in the Ducks’ 7-1 victory over the road-weary Chicago Blackhawks on Sunday night.
Jacob Trouba, Mason McTavish, Alex Killorn and Frank Vatrano also scored for the Pacific Division-leading Ducks, who have won three of four. The Ducks took charge with a four-goal second period that featured a franchise-record 27 shots on Chicago’s net, capped by Carlsson’s 15th goal on a fluttering deflection for a 5-0 lead.
Ville Husso made 19 saves for the Ducks, who beat Chicago for the first time in three tries this season. Ryan Strome, Cutter Gauthier and Chris Kreider had two assists apiece.
Arvid Söderblom stopped 46 shots — 39 in the first two periods — in a standout effort for the struggling Blackhawks, who will be eager to get out of Southern California after losing 6-0 to the Kings on Saturday. Tyler Bertuzzi scored for Chicago, which has lost eight of 10 after a 10-5-4 start to the season.
Connor Bedard had an assist for his 40th point in 29 games. Carlsson, drafted one pick after Bedard in 2023, has 38 points in 29 games.
Trouba opened the scoring in the first period with an undefended slap shot after an egregious Blackhawks turnover. The veteran defenseman has five goals in his last 23 games — which is more than he scored in his previous 165 games over parts of four seasons with the Rangers and Ducks.
Sennecke set up McTavish’s power-play goal to open the second period before scoring his eighth goal on a beautiful dangle. The 19-year-old forward — who wasn’t a sure thing to make the Ducks’ roster in October — has played his way into the Calder Trophy race with nine goals and 15 assists in his first 29 games.
Anaheim’s 27 shots in the second surpassed the club record set Jan. 1, 1994.
Chicago avoided a second straight shutout with Bertuzzi’s goal on a power play moments later. Bertuzzi has scored 12 of his 15 goals on the road.
Up next for the Ducks: at Pittsburgh on Tuesday to open a five-game trip.
There were a few contenders for game of the weekend and this one was right up there.
Pau have been enjoying a brilliant season, led by Pumas Julian Montoya and Facundo Isa and former Wasps scrum-half Dan Robson.
They are currently second in the Top 14 and the atmosphere was electric at the Stade du Hameau for their first Champions Cup game in 25 years.
Both sides played some superb rugby to make for an absorbing contest which remained level until the closing stages, when George Hendy scored the winning try to give last year’s finalists a five-point victory.
But as a relative unknown to many fans watching at home, Pau certainly announced themselves on the big stage and no-one will fancy facing them at home, where they hadn’t lost this season before this weekend.
As Saints and England scrum-half Alex Mitchell said after the game: “Pau are one hell of an outfit.”
Northampton are unfancied by many but after this impressive win on the road, in which they fought back after a 20-minute card, the Saints have made a statement.
The National Baseball Hall of Fame is peppered with players who finished long, distinguished careers by donning a Dodgers uniform, their performance dwindling as their age increased. Greg Maddux, Rickey Henderson, Juan Marichal and Eddie Murray are among those who leap to mind.
An exception was Jeff Kent, who Sunday received 14 of 16 possible votes by the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee, the only player among eight on the ballot with enough for induction into Cooperstown.
With unmatched power as a second baseman and an unrelenting approach to his craft, Kent was a Dodger for the last four seasons of his 17-year career, solidifying his Hall of Fame credentials statistically while also serving as a curmudgeonly leader on a roster crowded with young stars such as Matt Kemp, Russell Martin, Andre Ethier and James Loney.
“It’s a moment of satisfaction of the things I did right in my career, the things I consistently stuck to,” he told MLB Network. “The hard work, the gratification of playing the game the right way. I love the game.”
The son of a motorcycle police officer and a product of Huntington Beach Edison High, Kent became emotional during a news conference at the 2005 MLB Winter Meetings when it was announced that he’d signed a two-year, $17 million contract with the Dodgers.
“This is the third time I’ve tried to get with the Dodgers,” he said at the time. “I want to be on a team with the potential to win because I’m running out of time. This team has that mentality.”
The Dodgers never won a World Series during Kent’s tenure, but he quickly fell into the role of a veteran leader, making himself available to the media after tough losses to shield younger players from the glare.
He said what was on his mind, sometimes to a fault, once suggesting that legendary Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully “talks too much.”
Maybe that’s why Kent getting the Hall of Fame nod from a list of candidates that included all-time home run leader Barry Bonds, 354-game winner Roger Clemens, 509-home run slugger Gary Sheffield, 1980s stars Don Mattingly and Dale Murphy, and Dodgers icon Fernando Valenzuela was unexpected.
Even Kent was surprised.
“The emotions are overwhelming — unbelievable,” Kent said. “I didn’t even expect it. For me, there were so many quality guys that the committee had to argue through and vote for. I’m grateful that they considered me and gave it a shot at putting me in.”
Valenzuela, Bonds, Clemens and Sheffield each had fewer than five votes, meaning they will not be eligible the next time their era is considered in 2031. They can be nominated once more at that time, but will not be eligible for consideration if they again fall short of five votes.
All of the candidates already had been spurned by the Baseball Writers Assn. of America. Seventy-five percent of the votes are necessary for induction, and Kent never received even 50% during his 10 years on the BBWAA ballot that ended in 2023.
“The time had gone by, and you just leave it alone, and I left it alone,” Kent said. “I loved the game, and everything I gave to the game I left there on the field. This moment today, over the last few days, I was absolutely unprepared. Emotionally unstable.”
Kent was named National League most valuable player in 2000 with the San Francisco Giants, the team with which his career is most associated. He batted a career-best .334 with 33 homers and 125 runs batted in that season and drove in more than 100 runs in each of his six seasons batting behind Bonds.
He said he plans to enter the Hall of Fame wearing a Giants cap.
“The turning point in my career was with Dusty Baker, the manager I got with in San Francisco,” said Kent, who played in college at California. “He motivated me to get the peak performance out of me.”
Kent finished with 377 career homers, 351 as a second baseman, the most ever for the position. He also is the only second baseman to collect more than 100 RBIs in eight seasons.
As a Dodger, he hit 75 homers and batted .290 in more than 2,000 plate appearances. His last manager with the Dodgers was Joe Torre, who described Kent’s impact on the franchise.
“He’s one of those players whose actions are supposed to make you understand what he thinks,” Torre said. “It’s the old pro thing.”
There has been a dispute between Cardiff and Nantes stretching back to the immediate aftermath of the crash, with the Welsh club initially refusing to pay the first instalment of the transfer fee until investigations into accountability had taken place.
The row eventually led to football world governing body Fifa ordering Cardiff to pay – and the Bluebirds appealing at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
With CAS upholding Fifa’s ruling, Cardiff paid the first instalment in January 2023 – ending an English Football League (EFL) transfer embargo in the process – and subsequently paying the remaining balance.
But the football club have always maintained they were prepared to take further action and in April 2024 lodged a complaint with Nantes commercial court, seeking damages of 120.2m euros (£104m).
The estimate for damages stems from the claimed financial and reputational losses represented by Cardiff’s relegation from the Premier League in 2019.
Cardiff’s team will present evidence from court-approved experts, including a statistical report compiled by football data company FC Analytics, that the club says shows Sala could have given them as much as a 62% greater chance of staying in the Premier League in that 2018-19 season.
In terms of the amount of damages, the sum Cardiff are seeking is based on independent analysis of the loss of income that followed relegation, the subsequent impact on the club’s overall value, as well as the original transfer fee.
Nantes did not respond to approaches for comment but have previously disputed Cardiff’s claim. Their position is said to be unchanged.
