Sierra Canyon has a defense in high school football that needs comic book treatment.
Call them “The Kaboom Squad.”
At any moment, whether it’s a lineman, linebacker or defensive back delivering the blow, be prepared to be wowed.
With size, quickness and depth, the Trailblazers have shut out opponents for 12 consecutive quarters. The opponents haven’t been bad: JSerra, Oaks Christian and Honolulu Punahou.
Will they go through their 10-game regular-season schedule unscored upon? Absolutely not. But the reason they have three shutouts in lopsided victories is that the second stringers are performing as well as first stringers when coach Jon Ellinghouse clears the bench.
Their 63-0 win over Oaks Christian broadcast on Spectrum only added to the Trailblazers’ reputation.
It’s kaboom time as Sam Amuti of Sierra Canyon High prepares to level a Punahou ballcarrier.
(Craig Weston)
A combination of returnees and transfers gives the Trailblazers a defense with few weaknesses.
Nobody is perfect, and perhaps Downey and star quarterback Oscar Rios will be the first to end the shutout streak on Friday, but this is Sierra Canyon’s best defense since the spring of the 2021 COVID season when the Trailblazers put together 18 consecutive quarters of allowing zero points and gave a scare to St. John Bosco.
All the Trailblazers’ positions are filled with talented starters and quality backups. The defensive line starts with Texas commit Richard Wesley, wearing No. 99, the number of Rams great Aaron Donald. The linebackers have a smart, fearless tackler in Ronen Zamorano. The secondary has so many college-bound players that the players’ NIL deals could pay for a trip to Hawaii. Madden Riordan (USC), Havon Finney Jr. (Louisiana State) and Brandon Lockhart (USC) lead the way. And coming soon when the sit-out period ends on Sept. 29 is kicker Carter Sobel, who was a standout at Chaminade and will add to bad field position for opposing offenses.
Sierra Canyon’s Spencer Parham gets emotional for a defense that hasn’t allowed any points in 12 quarters.
(Craig Weston)
Having seen the physicality of St. John Bosco’s offensive and defensive lines last week in a 21-14 win over Baltimore St. Frances, Sierra Canyon (3-0) still needs to keep progressing to be on the same level of the Trinity League powers needed to win a Southern Section Division 1 championship.
The Trailblazers are definitely closing the gap with the Braves and No. 1 Mater Dei. They get a good tune-up for the Division 1 playoffs with a matchup against Orange Lutheran on Sept. 18, a team they lost to last season 33-26.
Chris Rizzo, a former Taft head coach, is the Trailblazers’ defensive coordinator. He wears his baseball cap backward on the sideline with sunglasses and has many options for defensive packages.
Asked if the defense has any weaknesses, Rizzo said, “We have some weaknesses. We’re not perfect by any means. We’ve got some things we have to fix and keep getting better.”
The defense is also helping Sierra Canyon’s offense improve because it’s so difficult to move the ball during practices.
“It makes our guys better,” Ellinghouse said.
Rizzo declined to reveal which unit he thinks is best. “The secondary is pretty star-studded,” he said. “The defensive line is deep. They embrace the grind and play for each other.”
Only time will tell whether this defense is as good as some think. There’s plenty of games ahead to prove if the Trailblazers are truly The Kaboom Squad.
PHOENIX — Dearica Hamby scored 16 of her 25 points in the fourth quarter, Rae Burrell had a career-high 20 points off the bench and the Sparks beat the Phoenix Mercury 88-83 on Tuesday night but the Sparks were eliminated from the playoff race.
The Sparks needed a win and a Seattle loss to send the chase for the last playoff spot to the last day of the season on Thursday, but the Storm pulled out a 74-73 win over Golden State.
Phoenix, the No. 4 seed, will host fifth-seeded New York, the defending champion, in the best-of-three series when the playoffs open on Sunday.
Kelsey Plum added 17 points for the Sparks (21-22).
Alyssa Thomas had her eighth triple-double of the season for the Mercury (27-16) with 10 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, but she and the other Phoenix starters sat out the fourth quarter, Satou Sabally led the Mercury with 24 points and Sami Whitcomb added 11.
Phoenix led 25-19 after one quarter but the Sparks were up 45-44 at half.
The Sparks opened the third quarter with a 9-0 run for a 54-44 lead and then the Mercury stormed back to take a 59-58 lead on Whitcomb’s three-pointer.
Burrell’s driving layup in the last minute, when she tied her career high of 18 points, was the difference as the Sparks took a 63-62 lead into the fourth quarter.
NEW YORK — Carlos Alcaraz reasserted his superiority over Jannik Sinner with a 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 victory Sunday in the U.S. Open final — the third Grand Slam tournament in a row where these elite, young rivals met to decide the champion — for his second trophy at Flushing Meadows and sixth overall at a major.
President Trump sat in a sponsor’s suite in Arthur Ashe Stadium and received a mix of cheers and boos when he offered a wave beforehand and again when he was shown on videoboards after the first set. The match’s start was delayed by about a half-hour because thousands of fans were still outside in line, trying to get through the extra security measures in place because of the presence of a sitting president at the tournament for the first time since Bill Clinton in 2000.
Jannik Sinner reacts while losing to Carlos Alcaraz during the U.S. Open men’s singles final Sunday in New York.
(Seth Wenig / Associated Press)
Perhaps the extra wait got to the No. 1-seeded Sinner, who was the defending champion. Right from the beginning, under a closed roof because of rain earlier in the day, No. 2 Alcaraz was better as he sought to reverse the result from when they met at the All England Club less than two months ago.
He did just that, putting his leads over Sinner at 10-5 in their head-to-head series, 6-4 in major trophies, and 2-1 in U.S. Open championships. Plus, this win allowed Alcaraz, a 22-year-old from Spain, to take away the No. 1 ranking from Sinner, a 24-year-old from Italy.
These two guys are so, so much better than the rest of men’s tennis at the moment.
They have combined to collect the past eight Slam trophies in a row, and 10 of 13. Novak Djokovic, whom Alcaraz eliminated in Friday’s semifinals, took the other three in that span.
Carlos Alcaraz, of Spain, celebrates after defeating Jannik Sinner, of Italy, in the U.S. Open men’s singles final Sunday in New York.
(Kirsty Wigglesworth / Associated Press)
Sunday’s showdown represented the first time in tennis history that the same two men played each other in three consecutive Slam finals within a single season.
This hard-court matchup followed Alcaraz’s victory over Sinner after erasing a trio of match points on the French Open’s red clay in June, and Sinner’s victory over Alcaraz on Wimbledon’s grass in July.
Both Sinner, who had won his past 27 hard-court matches at majors, and Alcaraz offered glimpses of why they are so good, although it was rare that both were at their best simultaneously on this occasion.
Alcaraz was elite in the first, third and fourth sets, Sinner’s top efforts arrived in the second.
In sum, Alcaraz was better and for longer, ending up with twice as many winners, 42-21.
Since the start of the 2024 U.S. Open, Sinner had won 33 of 34 matches at the majors and Sunday was his fifth straight final at those events. The loss? To Alcaraz at Roland-Garros.
Indeed, over the last two seasons, Sinner is now 1-7 against Alcaraz and 109-4 against everyone else.
Alcaraz, meanwhile, has won 37 of 38 contests since May. The loss? To Sinner at the All England Club — also Alcaraz’s lone defeat in a Slam final.
In 2025, Alcaraz now has more tournament titles (a tour-leading seven) than losses (his record is 61-6, also the best in men’s tennis).
During his defeat in Wimbledon’s final, Alcaraz was caught by a camera telling his team about Sinner in Spanish: “From the back of the court, he’s much better than me.”
So perhaps that’s why Alcaraz was aggressive Sunday with his sledgehammer of a forehand — and on-target too. Whenever even the smallest opening presented itself, Alcaraz tried to barge on through with that shot, going big early in points, which worked, either for an outright winner or forcing mistakes from Sinner.
Sinner had dropped a total of just one service game in his three matches leading into the final, but he did deal with an abdominal muscle issue in his semifinal Friday. Sinner and his coach said it was nothing serious, which might be right, but Alcaraz broke right away Sunday and five times in all.
To counteract the forehand effectiveness, Sinner made a tactical switch, going increasingly after Alcaraz’s backhand when possible. That both limited Alcaraz’s opportunities to strike a point-ending forehand and drew additional mistakes off the other wing.
Paid off for Sinner. Briefly.
In the first set and third, Alcaraz’s ratios were 11 winners to two unforced errors. Truly remarkable. In the second, those numbers swung the other way: five winners, 11 unforced errors.
An hour and 20 minutes in, it was a set apiece, after Alcaraz ceded one for the first time all tournament, allowing Neale Fraser to retain his distinction as the most recent man to win every set he played at the event — all the way back in 1960.
As Sinner worked his way into things, he would celebrate just about every point he gathered by looking at the corner of the stands where his two coaches and others, including Olympic champion ski racer Lindsey Vonn, were seated and pumped his right fist.
Ah, but it was Alcaraz who seemed to have more of the ticket-buyers on his side.
Late night has a new tone in 2025, and Greg Gutfeld is the one setting it, one unpredictable quip at a time. Rewriting the rules and bringing his signature acerbic style to “Gutfeld!” on Fox News, his show is drawing in more than 3 million viewers nightly, making it the most-watched show at the edge of prime time at 10 p.m. Eastern time / 7 p.m. Pacific time, airing over 90 minutes earlier than such hosts as Jimmy Kimmel and Jimmy Fallon
Stacking up gigs, he’s also the resident wild card on the network’s hit show “The Five,” and he hosts the new reality game show “What Did I Miss?” on Fox Nation, which was just renewed for a second season. Gutfeld isn’t just leaving his mark on the network; he’s reshaping it.
Before he became polarizing to some, and well before his New York Times bestsellers and his night of reminiscing on Jimmy Fallon’s couch, Gutfeld was climbing the editorial ranks at magazines like Men’s Health, Stuff and Maxim. His biggest break came when he landed the very late slot hosting his own Fox News show, “Red Eye,” which would set the stage for his runaway success.
Taking nothing too serious while being surrounded by complete seriousness, and with “Gutfeld!” pulling in some of the strongest ratings on TV, he’s proving that irreverence can be its own kind of relevance. His refusal to put so-called untouchables on a pedestal has everyone taking notice, and like him, loathe him or don’t know what to think about a grown man obsessed with unicorns, there’s no denying that Gutfeld has turned having a good time into a full-time job. And he’s just getting warmed up.
How do you find out you’re No. 1in the 10 p.m. timeslot? Is there a cake and a massive check?
It’s more brought to you and then happens over time. I get ratings every single day, so I was able to watch us win. I guess I wasn’t that surprised by it; I just knew that it was going to take time. I thought, yeah, maybe in a couple of years, but it was in like a matter of months.
For old–school fans of “Red Eye,” “Gutfeld!” feels familiar, with the blended panel that’s always down to have a good time. But now everyone gets more comfortable chairs, which is nice too.
I agree. “Gutfeld!” is basically “Red Eye” but for everybody. Red Eye was operating on the assumption that you really had a select group of people awake at 2 or 3 in the morning. It wasn’t trying to be a cultlike pleasure; it just happened to be that way. We did want it to be for everyone, though. Now we have 10 times the viewers and we’re No. 1, so in my mind I’m going, I want the same sensibility, but I don’t want to completely confuse the viewers. I realize that my humor on “Red Eye” was deliberately obtuse in some ways, and not really deliberately. It was just surreal and bizarre, and maybe that won’t fly in prime time or late night, but like “Red Eye,” our show now is as interesting and unpredictable as that show was. And that’s 90% of the fight.
There’s definitely an unpredictability theme going on because “The Five” can get somewhat fiery at times, but not for the reasons one would think.
With “Gutfeld!” and with “The Five,” I really push the concept of teasing, because when I genuinely like somebody, I tease them. When everybody is together teasing each other, it’s a very fun thing and the viewers are in on it. On “Red Eye,” we were all basically roasting each other, and on my show, we’re all making fun of each other, some more than others. On “The Five,” of course, I needle Dana [Perino] and Jesse [Watters], they needle me, I go after Jessica [Tarlov], she makes fun of us all — we all do it, and I think that’s really the secret sauce to the success of “The Five,” “Gutfeld!” and why “Red Eye” was so beloved. You felt like you were with the people. It was like a perverted version of “Friends.”
There really is this vibe that, no matter what gets said, when the camera goes off you’re all knocking back a few together.
Yeah, I think the key is that nothing you say should warrant an apology. Meaning, if I were to insult you, you’re not going to demand an apology from me. When somebody wants an apology for a comment I always ask them, “How would that apology sound? I’m sorry that the jokes I made hurt your feelings?” How insulting is that to that person you’re apologizing to! I’m sorry I hurt your feelings with this insult. It’s like the people that are demanding an apology don’t even see how absolutely insulting it is that they are asking for it.
Some people really write their own headlines. I imagine yours ramped up after you took “The King of Late Night” joke and ran with it?
I’m trying to think where “the king” came from, and I think I have to credit Dave Rubin. I think Rubin was on during the first week of the show and said something like, “You’re going to be the king of late night. You’re going to be No. 1.” I don’t like saying stuff like that because then it’ll just be thrown back in your face, but he was right! Then, of course, I had to put it on my book cover. I don’t even know how that all happened, but putting it on the cover of my book was just, like, this audacious and ridiculous thing, having me on the top like I’m a skyscraper where King Kong swatted down people.
Silly is definitely your lane. What do you think the term “late night” even means anymore? It used to be pretty neutral, and now it’s almost like you better choose a side before you watch this comic make their TV debut!
Yeah, it kind of became defined as maybe a person who wanted to go to bed angry with somebody who wanted to go to bed happy. One thing that I always want to do is not send people to bed enraged. Sure, maybe you’re sad that Biden lost, but we’re going to have so much fun, and this is going to be great! And then Trump wins. This is going to be so much fun, and this is going to be great! So, we’re going to have fun, and things are going to be great no matter who wins or loses. I’m not going to let that impact the time that we have. I think doing a late-night show that makes everyone feel bad is a disservice. I don’t understand that. That’s when you have people switching the channel to come to us. They didn’t even know that we existed until then.
What a shakeup that channel flip caused and, also, it’s pretty monumental because the viewers are staying.
You know, for a long time they couldn’t even mention my name and it was a personal thing for them, but then I think they realized that all I did was point out what was missing. I mean, they gave me the opportunity by not addressing most of the country, and it was there for the taking. There was literally free money on the table, and so I took it, and I showed [mainstream media] that they don’t own the culture. I think it’s not just about late night; it’s about all of culture. It’s the ability to tell people, you aren’t the cool kids at the table anymore. You took people for granted, you insulted everybody else, and we’re the ones now who are having fun.
Seeing you on Fallon also looked like a lot of fun. You could seriously feel your excitement as you told him your drunken story of meeting him. You think he’d ever come on ”Gutfeld!”?
It was fun! It went the way I think we both wanted it to go, which was like an old-school TV segment you would have seen on Carson. Just two people having a fun conversation. I probably talked too much, but I had to tell that drinking story because I’ve been telling that story for years, and the only person I hadn’t told that to was Jimmy. So yeah, we were both happy about it, and it’s good to see two industry people in whatever “supposed rivalry” who genuinely like each other without that other bull—. I haven’t asked him to come on, though. Our show is a little different because if you come on, you’re on for the whole hour. You’re also on with other people so it’s kind of a bigger ask of someone, but the president did do it so…
Julian Sayin had a 40-yard touchdown pass to Carnell Tate early in the fourth quarter, Ohio State’s defense got a couple key stops in the red zone and the third-ranked Buckeyes opened their season with a 14-7 victory over top-ranked Texas on Saturday.
It was the fourth time the AP’s No. 1 team in the preseason poll has met the previous season’s national champion in the opener. The defending champ has won the last three.
Arch Manning completed 17 of 30 passes for 170 yards and a touchdown with an interception for the Longhorns.
Texas was one of five on fourth down, including being stopped twice in the red zone. The Longhorns were driving for a tying touchdown late in the game but Jack Endries was stopped by Caleb Downs on yard short of a first down to end hopes of a comeback.
Sayin was 13 of 20 passing for 126 yards. His best pass of the day came with 13:08 remaining in the game, when Tate beat Texas cornerback Jaylon Guilbeau for the long score. Tate juggled the ball before pulling it down in the end zone to put the Buckeyes up by two touchdowns.
CJ Donaldson opened the scoring midway through the second quarter on a one-yard run up the middle to cap a 13-play, 87-yard drive that took eight minutes off the clock. The Buckeyes benefitted from a pair of penalties, including a face-mask call on Colin Simmons that wiped out an incomplete pass on third and four.
Texas finally got points with 3:28 remaining in the fourth quarter when Manning connected with Parker Livingstone on a 32-yard touchdown.
The Longhorns defense forced a three-and-out, giving Texas a chance to tie.
at No. 12 Illinois 52, Western Illinois 3: Hank Beatty returned a punt 69 yards for a touchdown and broke Red Grange’s nearly 102-year-old Illinois record for yards on punt returns in the Illini’s rout Friday night to open the season.
Beatty had four returns for 133 yards to break Grange’s mark of 125 set against Nebraska on Oct. 6, 1923. The third-quarter TD return was the Illini’s first since D’Angelo Bailey did it against Ohio State in 2013.
at No. 20 Indiana 27, Old Dominion 14: Fernando Mendoza scored on a five-yard run in his debut as Indiana’s quarterback and Jonathan Brady returned a punt 91 yards for a score. Mendoza, the starter at California last season, finished 18-of-31 passing for 193 yards and ran six times for 34 yards. His TD run late in the first half gave the Hoosiers a 17-7 lead.
Indiana’s 309-yard rushing attack was led by Maryland transfer Roman Hemby, who had 23 carries for 110 yards. Kaelon Black added 92 yards and a touchdown on 17 carries. Indiana won its ninth straight home game to improve to 9-0 at Memorial Stadium under second-year coach Curt Cignetti.
Old Dominion started fast, with quarterback Colton Joseph faking out the Hoosiers’ defense on the first offensive play of the game and sprinting 75 yards for a TD, and the Monarchs controlled most of the first quarter. Brady’s punt return tied the game with nine seconds left in the quarter.
Joseph added a 78-yard TD run midway through the fourth quarter that got ODU within 27-14. He finished with a career-high 179 yards rushing on 10 carries and completed 11 of 22 through the air for 96 yards with three interceptions.
at No. 24 Tennessee 45, Syracuse 26: Joey Aguilar completed 16 of 29 passes for 247 yards and three touchdowns. He threw a 73-yard touchdown pass to Braylon Staley in the second quarter and found Star Thomas for a seven-yard score in the third. He also helped close out the win when he passed to Miles Kitselman for a two-yard TD in the fourth.
Star Thomas had 92 yards on 12 carries for Tennessee, which opened a 38-14 lead in the third. DeSean Bishop and Peyton Lewis each rushed for a TD. Tennessee (1-0) rolled to 493 yards of offense, compared to 377 for Syracuse (0-1).
Syracuse quarterback Steve Angeli was 23-of-40 passing for 247 yards and a touchdown in his first start with the Orange. He also had a pass intercepted and was sacked five times.
Notes
The Barry Odom coaching era at Purdue got off to a fast start in a 31-0 rout of Ball State when the Boilermakers scored in the first 40 seconds on a 49-yard touchdown pass from Ryan Browne to Arhmad Branch. … BYU transfer Jake Retzlaff passed for a touchdown and added a 69-yard scoring run in his Tulane debut, and the Green Wave rolled to a 23-3 victory over Northwestern. … Matthew Schecklman threw four touchdown passes and Northern Iowa defeated Butler 38-14 in a season opener to give Todd Stepsis a win in his debut as the Panthers’ head coach. … Evan Simon set a career high with six touchdown passes and Temple snapped an FBS-worst 20-game road losing streak in a 42-10 season-opening win over UMass.
Kansas City Chiefs fans sure are excited about the upcoming season.
Fanatics, the official online sportswear retailer for the NFL, reports that sales of Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce jerseys jumped a whopping 200% on Tuesday.
Clearly, fans were doing some early packing for the team’s season opener against the Chargers in São Paulo, Brazil, on Sept. 5. Those fans simultaneously realized they didn’t have enough gear to properly represent the reigning AFC champions at Corinthians Arena.
What other possible explanation could there have been?
Haha, wrong — at least, it would seem that way, based on the typical behavioral patterns of Swifties.
Kansas City tight end Travis Kelce kisses pop superstar Taylor Swift after the Chiefs defeated the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII on Feb. 11, 2024, in Las Vegas.
(John Locher / Associated Press)
Kelce and Swift’s romance can be traced back to July 2023, when Kelce was able to pass along a friendship bracelet with his phone number to Swift’s camp at an Eras tour concert in Kansas City. They officially became an item that fall.
Swift attended her first Chiefs game on Sept. 24, 2023. Fanatics reported at the time that sales of No. 87 Chiefs jerseys experienced a 400% boost over the previous day, placing Kelce among the top five NFL players in jersey sales for that day.
On Aug. 13, Swift made her first-ever podcast appearance on “New Heights,” which is hosted by Kelce and his brother Jason Kelce, the former Philadelphia Eagles center. A total of 1.3 million people tuned in simultaneously after the episode dropped, setting a Guinness World Record for most concurrent views for a podcast on YouTube.
Kelce and Swift’s joint Instagram post regarding their upcoming nuptials has received more than 33.4 million likes. Billboard reported Wednesday that it has been reposted more than any other in the site’s history, passing the 1-million mark in its first six hours.
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So, yeah, it would seem pretty on-brand for Swifties to celebrate by purchasing large volumes of Travis gear.
By the way, if you think those numbers are impressive, just imagine what the jersey sales will be like if the couple decides to hyphenate their names after saying “I do.” What self-respecting Swiftie would want to be without a “Kelce-Swift” (“Swift-Kelce”?) jersey as part of their wardrobe?
Actually, he arrived at Flushing Meadows with no hairdo — as in no hair at all, aside from some teeny, tiny specks on his head that come to a widow’s peak.
The world’s No. 2-ranked player was asked about his shocking new look following his 6-4, 7-5, 6-4 victory over Opelka. Alcaraz told reporters that he had simply wanted a haircut before the tournament, but one of his brothers “misunderstood” how to use the clippers.
The resulting mess, he said, left him with no choice but to start over with a clean pate.
“The only way to fix it is just shave it off,” a casual Alcaraz said.
Alcaraz isn’t bothered by the situation. As he reminded the reporters, hair grows back.
“I’m not really into, you know, the hair at all,” Alcaraz said. “So I’m the guy who thinks like, OK, the hair grows, you know? And then [in] a few days it’s gonna be already OK, I guess.”
Alcaraz apparently is not kidding about the speed at which his hair grows. He mentioned it to reporters during the Australian Open, after arriving in toasty Melbourne with shorter locks than usual.
Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz serves during a practice session ahead of the Australian Open on Jan. 9 in Melbourne.
(Mark Baker / Associated Press)
“I discussed with my barber that when I get a haircut… three days later it’s grown out,” Alcaraz said in Melbourne. “So I have to go more often.”
Alcaraz unintentionally provided a demonstration during the French Open, where he first sported a rather bushy look during his first-round win over Giulio Zeppieri on May 26.
Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz celebrates after winning a point during his first-round French Open match against Italy’s Giulio Zeppieri on May 26 in Paris.
(Thibault Camus / Associated Press)
Two days later, however, Alcaraz returned to the court for his second-round match against Nuno Borges with a ‘do possibly (but probably not) inspired by Moe Howard from the “Three Stooges.” Alcaraz told befuddled reporters after the match that he “had to do something” about his hair and beard, so he flew in his personal barber.
Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz returns the ball to Portugal’s Nuno Borges during their second-round match of the French Open on May 28 in Paris.
Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz celebrates after defeating Italy’s Jannik Sinner in the French Open final June 8 in Paris.
(Lindsey Wasson / Associated Press)
So if Alcaraz happens to win the U.S. Open championship, like he did in 2022, he might have a lengthy mane while hoisting the trophy at Arthur Ashe Stadium at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.
In the meantime, though, some people might continue to respond to his haircut the way U.S. player Frances Tiafoe did when asked about it by a reporter following his first-round victory over Yoshihito Nishioka.
“It’s definitely terrible,” Tiafoe said with a laugh. “He’s my guy, though. It’s funny. I looked at him and I was like, ‘I guess you’re aerodynamic’ … I don’t know who told him to do that, but it’s terrible. From a guy who gets haircuts week in, week out and prides myself on good haircuts, it’s horrendous.”
Alcaraz also laughed when he was asked about Tiafoe’s comment.
“I know he’s lying,” Alcaraz said. “He likes the haircut. He likes it, he told me.”
Others might react like Irish golfer Rory McIlroy, who expressed his full support for the radical change atop Alcaraz’s head while meeting with the Spaniard earlier Monday.
Overall, Alcaraz told reporters, reactions have been mixed — and he really doesn’t care either way.
“Some people like it. Some people don’t like it,” he said. “To be honest, I’m just laughing about the reaction of the people. It is what it is. So I can’t do anything else right now, so I’m just laughing about everything that they are talking about my haircut.”
Bishop Montgomery told officials at Mater Dei on Monday that it will not be able to play its scheduled football game Friday at Santa Ana Stadium, thus forfeiting to the No. 1-ranked Monarchs.
Numerous Bishop Montgomery players are subject to possible one-game suspensions for leaving the bench with 24 seconds left on Saturday in Honolulu during a 24-17 loss to St. Louis, another Catholic school.
The Southern Section assigned its South Bay officials unit on Monday to review video to determine which Bishop Montgomery players had left the bench, which would be a violation of CIF rules.
It has been a rough start for Bishop Montgomery, which already had five players declared ineligible by the Southern Section after a violation of bylaw 202, which involves providing false information after transferring.
Mater Dei opened its season Saturday with a victory in Florida and will move to 2-0 on the season. Bishop Montgomery drops to 0-2.
Ty Plinski, a 6-foot-3 senior receiver at Corona Centennial Hifh who made one catch all last season, became a media sensation on Friday night when he pulled off a spectacular one-handed touchdown catch in a win over Servite, landing him the No. 1 play on ESPN’s SportsCenter.
Seems like every year we have a player that develops overtime, trusts the process and shines as a senior. @TPlinski80 is that guy. Coaches every year call late looking for a 6’3 WR that can make plays/go get it. Here you go… 17 years old, no holdback, dual-sport athlete. https://t.co/SzNmLnw8VR
When he woke up, he said his phone was “blowing up.” He said he received more than 50 text messages from friends, coaches and recruiters.
“I’ve been training a lot, and it’s been part of my training routine,” he said of making one-handed catches. “It was the perfect opportunity, and I just fully extended.”
Quarterback Dominick Catalano dropped the ball, picked it up and found Plinski, who also used his lacrosse skills to make the catch.
“The zip how fast that ball comes in, it’s a lot of hand-eye coordination,” he said of lacrosse.
Plinski finished with four receptions in a 42-14 victory.
Asked why he’s kept playing, Plinski said, “It’s my passion. I love it. All my teammates are amazing.”
This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email [email protected].
Next year’s Grammys will be yet another ceremony where a blockbuster Morgan Wallen album will not take home any awards.
The country music megastar declined to submit his bestselling “I’m the Problem” for Grammy consideration, according to Hits Daily Double and Billboard, who first reported the news. The LP, featuring singles like “Love Somebody” and “What I Want,” debuted in May at No. 1 and has spent 11 weeks and counting atop the Billboard 200 album charts.
Wallen did not give a reason for declining to submit the LP. Despite being the biggest contemporary star in a commercially ascendant genre, Wallen has always had a contentious relationship with Grammy voters.
A month after the 2021 release of his second studio album, the massive hit “Dangerous: The Double Album,” Wallen was filmed using a racial slur and was briefly shunned by the music industry. He later pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor in 2024 after throwing a chair off a rooftop bar in Nashville.
“I’ve touched base with Nashville law enforcement, my family, and the good people at Chief’s. I’m not proud of my behavior, and I accept responsibility,” he wrote on social media at the time. He more recently turned heads for a testy exit from the stage at a “Saturday Night Live” taping.
While he quickly returned to selling out stadiums and dominating pop and country charts, his records never regained traction with Recording Academy voters, even as country music redoubled its critical and popular acclaim in recent years. Wallen’s only previous nominations came from his duet with Post Malone, “I Had Some Help.”
It was a night when defenders draped over Kelsey Plum, her path to the rim often crowded. And when she turned to the officials for relief, the whistles were elusive.
But when it mattered most — that being with 3.3 seconds to play and the Sparks trailing by one — Plum lowered her shoulder and slipped between swiping arms and lunging bodies.
One defender stumbled, another bit on a fake and Plum glided almost untouched into the lane, kissing a floater off the glass as the horn sounded in an 81-80 Sparks escape over the Dallas Wings.
“Just a heck of a finish by her,” Sparks coach Lynne Roberts said.
Plum’s teammates mobbed her, embracing the veteran who appeared unsatisfied during her seven minutes on the bench and frustrated after Dallas defenders batted away her attempts at the rim. All of it faded, though, once she poured in 10 fourth-quarter points en route to 20 on the night.
“I feel like that’s what basketball is all about — putting on a show for [fans],” the Sparks’ Rickea Jackson said. “Both teams truly did that and everyone enjoyed themselves and got their money’s worth tonight.”
But before the buzzer, the night belonged to Plum, Crypto.com Arena belonged to Paige Bueckers of Dallas. In fact, at times Wednesday night, it seemed as though the Sparks had six players on the floor.
Bueckers drew ovations fit for a home star. With swaths of fans flaunting her face on a T-shirt and spilling over railings for autographs pregame, the Wings rookie rode that backing into a career-high 44 points — tying Cynthia Cooper for a most by a WNBA rookie.
“She’s a phenomenal player, point blank period,” the Sparks’ Cameron Brink said.
The Sparks (17-18) entered Wednesday’s affair with a blueprint for Bueckers, Roberts recognizing pregame that “we let Paige get to the middle which is what she wants to do,” in reference to Bueckers’ then-career-high 29-point performance last Friday against her Sparks.
But Bueckers solved every look the Sparks threw at her. Double-team her high, and she threaded the ball to cutters. Leave her one-on-one, and she buried mid-range jumpers with a composure that belied her rookie tag.
“Paige was unbelievable tonight,” Roberts said. “Did we make some mistakes defensively? Sure. Was she just unconscious and playing at another level? Yes. Just kind of have to tip your hat.”
Yet across the floor from the rookie, L.A. leaned on a pair who had worn that tag just last season.
They were a product of the 2024 draft, a haul that featured Brink at No. 2 and Jackson at No. 4. Their pairing never had the chance to fully bloom last year, Brink suffering a season-ending injury just a month in.
A year later, with Brink healthy and Jackson entrenched in the starting lineup, the Sparks finally cashed in on their draft night selections. On Tuesday, the sophomores saved their team from a five-minute scoring drought to open proceedings against the Wings, spurring a 15-5 spree that stifled the noise that followed Bueckers.
“On both ends, we just looked like we’ve been off for a couple of days,” Jackson said. “I said, ‘Why does it feel like we haven’t played in a minute?’ But we picked it up. The first five minutes was crazy, but we picked it up.”
Applause followed Bueckers all game, but the final word — and the final bucket — belonged to L.A.
Maybe it’s knowing the beach is a short walk from their high school campus, but the special teams trio of punter Jackson Shevin, long snapper Jackson Reach and kicker Nico Talbott are feeling relaxed, comfortable and confident for Mira Costa High‘s football team.
Early in the season, fans sometimes need to close their eyes and pray when there’s a punt or PAT attempt. The special teams play can be that bad.
At Mira Costa, this coming season should be a good one for the special teams. The two Jacksons, Shevin and Reach, did their roles last season. Shevin is also a holder on field goals. Talbott assumes the No. 1 role for kicking. And Reach rarely leaves the field, because he’s also the team’s standout linebacker.
On any football team, it’s always intriguing to see how the special teams players blend in. Many are soccer players trying to learn the football culture.
The Mira Costa trio work well together, and it helps with their versatility. Mira Costa opens its season Aug. 29 against St. Francis. …
This is a daily look at the positive happenings in high school sports. To submit any news, please email [email protected].
Puerto Rican pop visionary Rauw Alejandro will be honored at the 38th annual Hispanic Heritage Awards.
On Wednesday, the Hispanic Heritage Foundation announced that the singer-songwriter will receive the 2025 Hispanic Heritage Award for Vision, a title that honors his groundbreaking contributions to Latin music and his role in shaping its global future.
“As an artist in constant motion, Rauw Alejandro embodies the very essence of the vision award, bold in creativity, future-focused in his global impact and unapologetically original in everything he does,” says Antonio Tijerino, president and chief executive of HHF. “His work is not just music, it’s a movement that confirms what Latin artists mean to the world.”
The award, established by the White House in 1998, is bestowed on notable public figures for their accomplishments and cultural contributions to the Latino community. Past honorees, specifically in the vision category, include Wisin, Ivy Queen, Bad Bunny, Residente and more.
The 32-year-old songwriter from San Juan welcomed the award with an unveiling of his own: the title of his next album, “Cosa Nuestra: Capítulo 0.”
“This is just the beginning … with my next project ‘Capítulo 0’ I want to keep showcasing not only Puerto Rico, but the full essence of the Caribbean.”
News of this honor should not come as a surprise to those who have been following Rauw Alejandro’s career and hustle. His 2020 debut album, “Afrodisíaco,” earned him his first Grammy nomination for best urban music album, as well as a Grammy nod for best new artist.
Throughout the years, the eclectic singer-songwriter and dance phenom has innovated the Latin music scene with the release of experimental albums like his electronic and R&B-inspired LP, “Vice Versa,” in 2021; his techno-infused psychedelic album, “Saturno,” in 2022; and his beachy follow-up, “Playa Saturno,” in 2023.
In 2024, Rauw Alejandro released his fifth studio album, “Cosa Nuestra,” a project inspired by New York City’s salsa music scene in the 1970s. Upon its release, the record landed him the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s Latin Albums chart, and No. 6 on the Billboard 200. The critically-acclaimed album is likely to claim top prizes at the upcoming 2025 Latin Grammys.
“‘Cosa Nuestra’ has always been my way of representing my island, my culture, and my people — wherever they may be,” said Rauw Alejandro in a statement. “Every detail — the beats, the visuals, the dancing — reflects part of our Puerto Rican roots and our connection with other sister cultures, because we’ve been shaping the history of music for a long time.”
The 38th annual Hispanic Heritage Awards will take place on Sept. 4 at the Warner Theatre in Washington, D.C. To date, this year’s honorees include NPR’s Felix Contreras, stoner comic Cheech Marin, Rizos Curls chief executive Julissa Prado and more.
USC star freshman Alijah Arenas will miss at least the next six to eight months after sustaining a serious knee injury that will require surgery, leaving his future with the Trojans in question.
An MRI this week found a slight meniscus tear, as well as a bone bruise, according to a person familiar with the situation not authorized to discuss it publicly, dealing a critical blow to both USC and a player it hoped could become a superstar in short order.
“Alijah is a tremendous worker, teammate, competitor and person,” USC coach Eric Musselman said in a statement. “He is understandably disappointed that he will not be able to take the court to start the season, but his health is our No. 1 priority.”
The injury comes just two weeks after Arenas was cleared to practice with USC, and three months after he survived a carwreck in his Tesla Cybertruck. Now it’s unclear how much he’ll play for USC — if at all.
At best, Arenas may be cleared to return late in his freshman season. But considering his status as a top draft prospect, there could be more to consider surrounding his return to action.
The five-star freshman was expected to step in and play a major role in his first year with the Trojans, despite being a full year younger than most freshmen in the same position. Arenas graduated a year early from Chatsworth High in order to reclassify into the 2025 class and join USC.
“We have no doubt that he will come back even stronger,” Musselman said.
PORTRUSH, Northern Ireland — Scottie Scheffler had all the time in the world to celebrate his latest major title. This British Open was never in doubt Sunday as golf’s No. 1 player delivered another dominant performance to win his second major this year and grab the third leg of the career Grand Slam.
Scheffler began with a shot into 10 inches for birdie. One hour into the final round, his lead already was seven shots and got no closer than four the rest of the way at Royal Portrush.
He closed with a 3-under 68 for a four-shot victory, sending him to the U.S. Open next year with a chance to make it a clean sweep of golf’s biggest titles.
Scheffler won the Masters by three shots in 2022 and by four shots last year. He won the PGA Championship by five shots in May. With his first career British Open title in hand, he only needs to win the U.S. Open to complete the career slam.
When he arrived in Northern Ireland, Scheffler shared some extraordinary insight while explaining that celebrating tournament wins doesn’t last but a few minutes before it was on to the next one. He loves the work required to be the best. He thrives on competition. But in terms of fulfillment, he often questions why he wants to win so badly when the thrill of winning is fleeting.
He tapped in for par on the final hole, making it all look so routine. But then he saw his family, thrust both arms into the air, pumped both arms and tossed his cap in the air. That’s what it was all about for the 29-year-old from Texas.
And he gets to keep the silver claret jug for a year.
Rory McIlroy referred to the outcome as “inevitable” when Scheffler built a four-shot lead going into the final round, and it was every bit of that.
LAS VEGAS — The Clippers signed guard Bradley Beal on Friday after the final two years of his contract were bought out by the Phoenix Suns earlier this week and he cleared waivers.
Beal, 32, is a three-time All-Star and 13-year NBA veteran. He signed a two-year contract worth $11 million, with a player option for 2026-27, according to his agent, Mark Bartelstein.
Beal averaged 17 points, 3.7 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 32.1 minutes while starting 38 of 53 games for the Suns last season. Beal shot 50% from the floor, 39% from three-point range and 80% from the foul line.
Beal joins a veteran Clippers roster led by Kawhi Leonard and James Harden. Beal will get a chance to move past his two disappointing, injury-riddled seasons in Phoenix.
“Players of this caliber are very rare, and they’re hard to come by,” Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said in a statement. “He’s been the best player on his team. You can put him in so many different spots and he’ll find ways to score: out of pick-and-roll, coming off screens, catch-and-shoot. He can create his own or he can play off the ball. He’s a great cutter. He’s also a great playmaker who is going to make everybody else better.”
First loss of summer for the Clippers
The Clippers’ bid to remain unbeaten in NBA Summer League play was derailed by a slow start Thursday night against the Denver Nuggets.
After scoring only 11 points in the first quarter while falling behind by double digits, the Clippers eventually trailed by 25 late in the third quarter only to see a furious fourth-quarter rally fall short in an 81-76 loss.
Jordan Miller had a game-high 23 points with 14 rebounds for the Clippers. Patrick Baldwin Jr. and Cam Christie each scored 16 while Trentyn Flowers had 12 points for L.A.
The Clippers (3-1) shot only 36% from the field and 23.7% from three-point range. Christie and Flowers shot a combined four of 21 from deep.
The Nuggets (1-3) did not fare much better, shooting 38.7% from the field and 30% from three-point range.
DaRon Holmes III led the Nuggets with 19 points and a game-high 17 rebounds. Spencer Jones contributed 17 points and six rebounds in the win.
The Clippers will play in a consolation game against the Memphis Grizzlies at 5 p.m. Sunday.
Lakers fall to Celtics
Bronny James scored a game-high 18 points and had five assists in an 87-78 loss to the Boston Celtics on Thursday night in Las Vegas.
The Lakers (1-3), who led 26-21 after the first quarter, committed 21 turnovers that led to 24 points for the Celtics, who outscored L.A. 19-9 in the second quarter. Boston opened a 15-point lead midway through the fourth quarter.
DJ Steward contributed 14 points and five assists for the Lakers while Christian Koloko and Cole Swider each scored 12.
Boston was led by Jordan Walsh’s 17 points and six rebounds. Hugo Gonzalez scored 13 for the Celtics.
The Lakers shot 44.3% from the field but only 21.4% (six of 28) from three-point range. The Nuggets shot 38.7% from the field and 31.8% from deep.
The Lakers completed Summer League play against the Denver Nuggets in the Friday nightcap.
Tournament time
Six teams went unbeaten in four games in Las Vegas, with the Toronto Raptors, Oklahoma City Thunder, Charlotte Hornets and Sacramento Kings advancing to a two-day tournament to determine a champion.
The Atlanta Hawks and Minnesota Timberwolves also went unbeaten but did not advance to the tournament based on tiebreakers, the first of which is point differential.
Toronto was seeded first and will play No. 4 Sacramento at 1 p.m. Saturday in the first semifinal while No. 2 Oklahoma City plays No. 3 Charlotte at 4 p.m. The winners will play at 7 p.m. Sunday for the title.
Etc.
New Orleans rookie Derik Queen is likely to miss at least the start of training camp after having surgery to repair a torn ligament in his left wrist. He was injured Tuesday during a Summer League game and the team said he will be evaluated again in approximately 12 weeks.
Ducks goalie Lukas Dostal signed a five-year contract on Thursday to remain with the team.
Dostal made the announcement on a social media post by the team. The agreement means the 25-year-old avoided an arbitration hearing.
Dostal had a 23-23-7 record with a 3.10 goals-against average and .903 save percentage for the Ducks last season.
“Lukas has proven he is a No. 1 goaltender and we are so pleased to get this deal done,” Ducks general manager Pat Verbeek said. “He is just entering the prime of his career with his best hockey ahead of him.”
Financial terms were not disclosed.
Dostal is excited about the future with a young team that includes forwards Leo Carlsson, Cutter Gauthier and Mason McTavish; defensemen Olen Zellweger, Pavel Mintyukov and Jackson LaCombe, and Beckett Sennecke, the No. 3 pick in the 2024 draft.
“That was one of the reasons that I was willing to sign a long-term deal — because it’s always about trusting the process,” he said. “And I really trust the process that’s going on in Anaheim right now.”
Of all the pop hits vying to become the song of the summer, Alex Warren’s “Ordinary” might be the most improbable: A stark and brooding ballad full of lurid Christian imagery — “Shatter me with your touch / Oh Lord, return me to dust,” goes one line — it’s about a guy seeking the kind of sexual-spiritual fulfillment not typically found on the beach or at a barbecue.
Yet the song, which has more than 720 million streams on Spotify, just logged its sixth week since early June atop Billboard’s Hot 100 — more than a month longer at No. 1 than Sabrina Carpenter’s “Manchild,” to name one of the sunnier tunes soundtracking the season. (Among Warren’s other competitors: Drake, who posted an image of the current chart on Instagram on Monday showing his song “What Did I Miss?” at No. 2 behind Warren’s hit. “I’m taking that soon don’t worry,” the rapper wrote.)
“Ordinary’s” somber tone is all the more striking given that Warren — whose father died when he was 9 and who grew up in Carlsbad with a single mother he’s described as an abusive alcoholic — first made a name for himself as a founding member of Hype House, the early-2020s conclave of TikTokers known for beaming out goofy bite-size content from a rented mansion in Los Angeles. Half a decade later, Warren is still a faithful user of his TikTok account (with its 18.8 million followers), though these days he’s mostly driving attention — often with the help of his wife, fellow influencer Kouvr Annon — to his music, which combines the moody theatrics of early Sam Smith with the highly buffed textures of Imagine Dragons.
On Friday, Warren will release his debut LP, “You’ll Be Alright, Kid,” featuring guest appearances by Blackpink’s Rosé and by Jelly Roll, who brought Warren to the stage at April’s Stagecoach festival to sing “Ordinary” and to premiere their duet “Bloodline.” Warren, 24, discussed his journey during a recent trip to L.A. from his new home in Nashville, where he lives not far from Jelly Roll and Teddy Swims. “I was just texting Teddy,” Warren says as we sit down. “I got off tour and immediately was like, ‘Oh, I want to buy a go-kart.’ Teddy FaceTimes me, he goes, ‘You a—hole. I’m trying to buy a go-kart right now too.’ Apparently, I bought the last go-kart in Tennessee.” These are excerpts from our conversation.
“Ordinary” is clearly drawing on your identity as a Christian. Yet there’s something almost sacrilegious about the song. I get that criticism a lot.
To me it’s what makes the song interesting — the erotic energy in a line like “You got me kissing the ground of your sanctuary.” I’m worshiping my wife in a way — she’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me. You can’t just write a song like that and be like, “Oh, baby, you’re my everything.” Everyone’s already done “You’re my world,” you know? I wanted to do something different — almost Hozier-esque. I wrote into it being like, I really love my wife, and I have a relationship with God — that’s something I can compare it to.
As the song has gone out, I’ve heard a lot of Christians’ opinions on it, and some people are like, “F— this guy.” There’s also so many people who think it’s a super die-hard Christian song and don’t like it either. I have to be OK with both sides hating me.
You’ve led a peculiar life, which obviously lends context to your music for anyone who knows the details. Yet “Ordinary” is big enough now that many listeners — maybe most listeners — are hearing it without knowing anything about you. This new song I’ve been teasing [“Eternity”] is about grief, and people are like, “I can’t wait to play it at my wedding.” It’s cool that people are making it their own. It reminds me of Lewis Capaldi’s “Someone You Loved,” where people were like, “Oh my God, this is a breakup record.” No, he wrote it about his grandma.
Are you a Capaldi fan? I love Lewis. I don’t look like a Justin Bieber/Shawn Mendes traditional pop star, but it’s cool because Lewis kind of made it popular to not give a f—. Lewis and Ed [Sheeran], I would say — I mean, I’ve seen Ed’s closet, and it’s just nine white Prada T-shirts.
You have an unusual voice. Thank you — I think?
It’s deeper than most pop voices right now. Does it seem unusual to you? No. I asked my wife, “Do I have a basic voice?” She was like, “What are you talking about?” I was like, “I live with this voice, and I think it just sounds like every other bitch.” But I’m my No. 1 hater.
I went back and looked at the series Netflix made about Hype House. I’m so sorry.
There’s some significant fluctuations in your weight, and I was wondering how working in a visual field from a pretty young age shaped your ideas about eating and exercise. When I started making money, I didn’t know what to do with it and I just used DoorDash every second I could. As time went on, especially in Hype House, you have so many people’s opinions and everyone’s pointing out your flaws, and the weight was definitely one of them. After that I was like, “OK, how do I fix this?” I’m 24 now — I was 22, 21 at the time, and I was like, “I should be in the best shape of my life.”
But it definitely does take a toll on you. Even now, if you go look at my TikTok comments, thousands of people are loving me. You go on Twitter, the first 400 comments are like, “He’s so ugly,” “His nose is crooked,” all these things. It hits a point where you have a thousand people loving you, but those two people not — you’re like, “Wait, are they the ones telling me the truth? Is everyone else just gassing me up?”
Kind of bleak. It’s such a strange career. I have the Kids’ Choice Awards on Saturday, and I’m like, “Should I be eating this the next few days?”
Would you say you’re in a good place in terms of how you think about your physical appearance? Looking in the mirror, probably not. But when it comes to having to approve a photo, I don’t give a s—. I’ll approve whatever, double chin and all.
Is that true? Truly, I don’t mind, because I don’t think people are watching my videos for my attractiveness. That being said, if I was lighter, I think I’d be happier looking at myself. But at the same time, I don’t care because these songs to me are more about what they’re about and less about how I look. Also, it gives me some leeway if someone catches me lacking at In-N-Out.
Warren’s song “Ordinary” now has more than 720 million streams on Spotify and has just logged its sixth week since early June atop Billboard’s Hot 100.
(Ethan Benavidez / For The Times)
You’ve said you don’t really drink or do drugs but that you get drunk once a year. What would be the occasion? I just got drunk with Ed Sheeran — I drank two Modelos and I got put on my ass. This was at Santa’s Pub [in Nashville] — me, Noah Kahan and Ed Sheeran. They had just played something, and Ed was like, “Do you want a drink?” I was like, “If I’m getting drunk this year, it’s getting drunk with Ed Sheeran.” So he gave me a Modelo, and I was like, “Whoa, I’m feeling this.” He’s like, “OK, dude, I’m on my 11th.” He hands me a second one, and my wife had to drive me home.
So I’ve been getting a little loose with it. But it’s always beer — I don’t really drink any hard stuff. Nothing against it, I’ve just always preferred Diet Coke. I wish I liked alcohol.
I mean, you can cultivate this. It’s easy to do. I’ve been trying. I had a sip of my friend’s old fashioned. I thought it was interesting — sugary, but I liked it.
Your song “The Outside” on this new record talks about the illusory nature of happiness and success. I went into it wanting to write about the things that people go through to turn to God or another power or something to get out of their own heads. I wanted to depict people finding a sense of purpose.
“Hollywood wasn’t all that she thought / City of Angels but her wings got caught / She got high enough to think she met God.” You move to L.A. to pursue a dream and you see God after doing a hallucinogenic — that’s referencing a friend of mine who’s now a Christian buff who did ayahuasca. The other [verse] is about health care — watching my friends who don’t have it because it’s so expensive.
“‘It’s just stress,’ so the doctor says / His young heart’s beating out of his chest / Student loans and medical debt.” The Luigi Mangione case happened around the time we wrote that record.
Luigi was in your head as you were writing? That second verse is literally about Luigi Mangione. Not to get political, but the things that I feel are necessary in life — you have to pay for it, and it causes people to turn to something like God. The song ends with me being like, “I talk to my dad in the sky, hoping he talks to me back.” That song means a lot to me.
Your music is extremely tidy, which stands in contrast to the singer-songwriter mode of the Zach Bryans — And the Noah Kahans, where they’re flat in some parts and it doesn’t matter because the emotion’s there.
Why is your instinct as a musician to go for something neater? Because I don’t have the luxury of being able to make what some people view as mistakes. Coming from TikTok to music, I feel like it needs to be neat — it needs to be, “Oh my God, this guy can do this.” The next album I’m working on, it’s more rugged. I’m finding different parts of my voice. I’ve been listening to a lot of older music too, which has been really good.
Such as? Hall & Oates — dude, “Rich Girl”? Billy Joel too.
Is there still a Hype House group chat? I have a group chat with not all of them but the ones that — I’m not gonna name-drop them, but the ones getting popular with music. It was formative years in my life — my college experience, I guess. We’re able to look back on it and have a moment of, like, “That sucked, but it was also awesome.”
Would people in the house have called that you and Addison Rae would be the ones to break out as musicians? No, I don’t think so — especially not me. Maybe Addison — Addison has always been cool. Everyone loved Addison, even in the house, and she’s always been so kind. Even to this day, she’s a good friend of mine. But no one would have guessed me. I don’t think anyone liked me.
In the house? Just in general. The Netflix show — a lot of it was fake, but looking at that, I feel like I’m such a better person now.
“The next album I’m working on, it’s more rugged,” says Warren, whose debut LP “You’ll Be Alright, Kid” comes out Friday. “I’m finding different parts of my voice.”
(Ethan Benavidez / For The Times)
Are you glad that “Ordinary” happened after the influencer moment in your life — that there’s a bit of separation? I started this in 2020, 2021 — I put out my first song then, and I was still an influencer, vlogging, doing all those things. Everyone’s like, “He came out of nowhere,” and I’m like, I’ve been doing this for five years.
But nobody cared until well after your time as an influencer — which might be a good thing, right? I’m not sure the overlap served Lil Huddy. In a weird way, you might’ve gotten lucky. I think about that often. I made videos with my wife — I never really made videos with the content house — and those videos were successful in their own right. I think a lot of my fans today were watching me at that time, but not for the Hype House. Actually, no, that’s not true.
It’s hard to generalize about the audience for a song this big. All I do is put my head down and promote the records. I’m not paying attention to the scope of things.
Of course you’re checking the numbers. I’m not understanding the scope besides the numbers. My monthly listeners [on Spotify], someone told me it was 50-something million — that’s sick. But I can’t contextualize that. If I’m walking down the street, how many people have heard the song and how many people know who I am? I know the song is big, but I’m under the assumption that the record’s bigger than I am.
That seems true. OK, so what does that mean? I can compare it to a Lola Young, or is it a Benson Boone? I think that’s two separate things right now. Also, I don’t know the age demographic. If I walk into a bingo night, are they gonna know who I am?
A bingo night? You know what I’m saying. The song is No. 1 on Hot AC — that’s adult contemporary. Is it someone’s mom? I don’t know who’s listening to the record. But I write songs about people passing away, and most people — no matter rich, poor, whatever — it’s typically gonna be your 40-and-up who are gonna relate to that record. Kids don’t necessarily deal with loss the same way.
Is it weird to think that a significant portion of your audience is people twice your age? No, that’s f—ing rad to me — the older audience is the hardest to grab. I think it’s safe to say that most people judge notoriety on whether their mom knows who they are, right? If that’s where I start, that’s cool.
Landon Hodge, the Mission League player of the year from Crespi, was selected with the first pick of the fourth round by the Chicago White Sox in Monday’s MLB amateur draft. The catcher is an LSU commit.
Day 2 involved rounds four through 20. Pitcher Riley Kelly from Tustin High and UC Irvine went to the Rockies with the 107th pick. Shortstop Colin Yeaman from Saugus and UC Irvine was a fourth-round pick (No. 124) of the Orioles. Pitcher Sean Youngerman, who attended Chaminade, Westmont College and Oklahoma State, went to the Phillies at No. 131.
Outfielder Josiah Hartshorn from Orange Lutheran went to the Cubs in the sixth round (No. 181). USC pitcher Caden Hunter was a sixth-round pick (No. 184) by the Orioles.
In the eighth round (No. 237), Tampa Bay took former Burroughs and Fresno State pitcher Aidan Cremarosa. Outfielder Nick Dumesnil from Huntington Beach and Cal Baptist went to the Tigers are No. 249.
In the ninth round (No. 279), the Tigers selected pitcher Trevor Heishman, who helped St. John Bosco win the Southern Section Division 1 title.
Seth Hernandez has imagined his name being announced for years at the MLB amateur draft. It finally happened Sunday. The Gatorade national player of the year and two-time L.A. Times player of the year from Corona High School was chosen No. 6 overall by the Pittsburgh Pirates.
The Pirates have been successful with Southern California pitchers, having drafted Gerrit Cole (Orange Lutheran), Paul Skenes (El Toro) and Jared Jones (La Mirada) in the past. And they took Warren pitcher Angel Cervantes in the second round on Sunday.
It was an historic opening draft for Corona High, because for the first time, a single high school produced three first-round draft picks. Shortstop Billy Carlson went No. 10 to the Chicago White Sox and third baseman Brady Ebel went No. 32 to the Milwaukee Brewers in joining Hernandez.
“It’s nuts,” said Corona coach Andy Wise, who went to gatherings at the Hernandez and Carlson houses. “It’s an absolute honor to have those kids in our program, and I couldn’t be happier for their families.”
Hernandez was considered the best right-handed high school pitcher in the draft after a sensational senior season in which he struck out 105 batters in 53 1/3 innings while walking only seven using a 99-mph fastball. His ERA was 0.39.
Wise said he has coached no one better. Hernandez missed his first two years of high school being home schooled. The last two seasons his pitching record was 18-1. He has a very good slider and changeup. He’s uniquely ready for the pressure and exposure ahead, having been watched closely for years by scouts and interviewed over and over.
Shortstop Gavin Fien from Great Oak was taken No. 12 by the Chicago White Sox.
In the second round, shortstop Cooper Flemming from Aliso Niguel went to Tampa Bay and shortstop Quentin Young from Oaks Christian was selected by the Minnesota Twins. Tennessee shortstop Dean Curley, a Northview grad, was chosen by the Cleveland Guardians.
The Colorado Rockies made USC third baseman Ethan Hedges the second pick of the third round. He’s a former Mater Dei standout. Former Lakewood pitcher Anthony Eyanson from LSU was selected by the Boston Red Sox at No. 87. Former Sherman Oaks Notre Dame first baseman Jack Gurevitch of San Diego went to the St. Louis Cardinals at No. 89. Former Huntington Beach pitcher Ben Jacobs of Arizona State went No. 98 to the Detroit Tigers.
High school shortstop Eli Willits from Oklahoma was taken No. 1 by the Washington Nationals.
