Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin is never shy to make noise on social media. This offseason has been no exception. After Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze received criticism for playing too much golf this summer, Kiffin poured gasoline on the fire by quote tweeting a picture of Freeze winning a golf tournament and writing, “Great job Coach!! Game is on [fire].”

Kiffin followed up on his post on Sunday by tagging Freeze in a video of a fishing boat’s stern, with numerous fishing lines in the water. Many fans interpreted the post as Kiffin saying Freeze can’t land the “big fish” or recruits. On Monday at the 2025 SEC Kickoff, Lane Kiffin addressed his recent posts about Freeze.

“I like Coach Freeze,” Kiffin said. “I think they think thought that was something to do with, like, I was fishing and it was golfing. That really wasn’t that. I have a thing with him, going back a few years ago, and he like posted a picture in response to me, of some two-pound bass or something like that.

“So I’ve kind of always posted bigger fish pictures back toward him. So it had nothing to do with his golf game, which it sounds like he’s doing amazing at that. So, that’s great for him… And I was fishing yesterday as a dead period, by the way, just making sure that we’re clear on that. People wanna say that fishing is like golfing. It’s dead period.”

In June, AL.com reported that Freeze had played over 20 times during the calendar year. Moreover, Freeze had hit the links 10 times in June alone.

Fans were frustrated when they learned about Freeze’s golf habits, especially since Auburn saw three highly-touted recruits decommit in June. For reference, South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer had the second-most recorded scores in June with three.

Meanwhile, some coaches such as Georgia‘s Kirby Smart didn’t appear to be playing any golf. During an appearance on See Ball Get Ball — David Pollack’s podcast — Freeze addressed his golf habits.

“Everybody seems to like to talk about my golf game,” Freeze said. “… I do love golf. I enjoy playing, but what people don’t realize is, I assure you that I never missed a camp day or a recruiting day but if camp got over at 3 o’clock one day, and Jill (Freeze’s wife) and I go out at 4:30, we absolutely might do that.

“I’m not apologizing for that part of it. But my focus is 100% on getting Auburn in that win column this fall. And I do think the biggest thing that’s causing most of it is the recruiting rankings right now, because we’ve been top 10 my two years here in recruiting, and currently we’re not.”

Professional players unions for the five major US sports leagues — baseball, soccer, basketball, football and hockey — appealed on Monday for American lawmakers to reject antitrust exemptions or legal liability shields in new regulations for college athletes.

While compensation for professional players seemingly knows no limit, college athletes in the US have only been allowed to begin profiting from their performance and reputation in recent years. 

Now, professional players are weighing in as Congress works to develop a national framework for student athlete profit-sharing, with pros saying they felt a duty to protect future union members while they played in college.

“Granting an antitrust exemption to the NCAA and its members gives the green light for the organization and schools to collude and work against student athletes,” the unions’ statement said.

“Historically, antitrust exemptions have been used to set prices, limit wages, and restrict access to opportunities provided by open markets, all while shielding abuse from legal recourse.”

The joint statement was sent by the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA), Major League Soccer Players Association (MLSPA), National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), National Football League Players Association (NFLPA) and National Hockey League Players Association (NHLPA).

The US House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce is considering the Student Compensation and Opportunity through Rights and Endorsements (SCORE) Act after a House settlement last month ensured National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) athletes will receive revenue sharing from their schools for Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) profits.

In a statement last week Congressman Gus Bilirakis, a Florida Republican, said a national framework governing such profit-sharing was long overdue, and praised the SCORE Act saying it “delivers the stability, clarity and transparency” student athletes and colleges need. 

A 2021 Supreme Court decision held that the NCAA is subject to antitrust laws.

In their joint statement, the players’ unions called for transparency and fair-dealing.

“It is not hard to imagine a situation where NCAA and its members collude to restrict revenue sharing and deny student athletes fair compensation with the confidence of immunity against legal action. Indeed, they have been doing exactly that for decades.

“The NCAA should not have a blank check to impose their will on the financial future of over 500,000 college athletes.”

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Associated Press

Less than two weeks after terms of a multibillion-dollar college sports settlement went into effect, friction erupted over the definition of a “valid business purpose” that collectives making name, image likeness payments to players are supposed to have.

The new College Sports Commission sent a letter to athletic directors last week saying it was rejecting deals in which players were receiving money from collectives that were created solely to pay them and don’t provide goods or services to the general public for profit.

A lead attorney for the players responded by saying those instructions went against settlement terms and asking the CSC to rescind the guidance.

“This process is undermined when the CSC goes off the reservation and issues directions to the schools that are not consistent with the Settlement Agreement terms,” attorney Jeffrey Kessler wrote to NCAA outside counsel Rakesh Kilaru in a letter obtained by The Associated Press.

Yahoo Sports first reported details of the letter, in which Kessler threatens to take the issue to a judge assigned with resolving disputes involved in the settlement.

Kessler told AP his firm was not commenting on the contents of the letter, and Kilaru did not immediately respond to AP’s request for a comment.

Yahoo quoted a CSC spokesman as saying the parties are working to resolve differences and that “the guidance issued by the College Sports Commission … is entirely consistent with the House settlement and the rules that have been agreed upon with class counsel.”

When NIL payments became allowed in 2021, boosters formed so-called “collectives” that were closely tied to universities to work out contracts with the players, who still weren’t allowed to be paid directly by the schools.

Terms of the House settlement allow schools to make the payments now, but keep the idea of outside payments from collectives, which have to be approved by the CSC if they are worth $600 or more.

The CSC, in its letter last week, explained that if a collective reaches a deal, for instance, for an athlete to appear on behalf of the collective, which charges an admission fee, that collective does not have a “valid business purpose” because the purpose of the event is to raise money to pay athletes, not to provide goods or services available to the general public for profit.

Another example of a disallowed deal was one an athlete makes to sell merchandise to raise money to pay that player because, the CSC guidance said, the purpose of “selling merchandise is to raise money to pay that student-athlete and potentially other student-athletes at a particular school or schools, which is not a valid business purpose.”

Kessler’s letter notes that the “valid business purpose” rule was designed to ensure athletes were not simply being paid to play, and did not prohibit NIL collectives from paying athletes for the type of deals described above.

To prevent those payments “would be to create a new prohibition on payments by a NIL collective that is not provided for or contemplated by the Settlement Agreement, causing injury to the class members who should be free to receive those payments,” Kessler wrote.

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AP college sports: https://apnews.com/hub/college-sports

One year after revamping its programming lineup with the additions of “Breakfast Ball” and “The Facility,” Fox Sports has canceled both shows and “Speak” in a shake-up that will also result in the exit of Joy Taylor.

According to Andrew Marchand of The Athletic, Fox Sports has canceled both “Breakfast Ball” and “The Facility” — which were added to the schedule to replace the canceled Skip Bayless vehicle “Undisputed” — as well as the longer-running afternoon program, “Speak,” featuring Joy Taylor, Paul Pierce and Keyshawn Johnson. Taylor is said to no longer be with the company with the expiration of her contract.

Last year, Taylor was accused in a broader 42-page lawsuit against Fox Sports and then-executive Charlie Dixon of creating a hostile work environment. Taylor subsequently denied the allegations made against her. During a recent appearance on Power 105.1 FM’s “The Breakfast Club,” she explained that they were “in the process of things right now” regarding her contract.

Marchand divulged that FS1 will likely be creating new shows in place of these cancellations and that “The Herd with Colin Cowherd” and “First Things First” will be continuing in their timeslots. On top of that, host Craig Carton could opt to make a return to WFAN, where he starred on morning and afternoon drive shows for over a decade. Chris Oliviero, who brought Carton to the station after he served time in prison for fraud, was recently promoted to serve as the chief business officer of Audacy and has oversight of WFAN.

Carton worked with Danny Parkins and Mark Schlereth on “Breakfast Ball,” which aired in the mornings from New York City. The network then shifted its programming to Los Angeles with “The Facility,” which included Emmanuel Acho,Chase Daniel, James Jones and LeSean McCoy.There are no details regarding the contracts or future of these on-air talents, nor if they could be part of new programming iterations.

The U.S. Classic, the top tune-up meet for the U.S. Gymnastics Championships, airs live on CNBC and Peacock on Saturday at 8 p.m. ET.

NBC airs highlights Sunday at 4 p.m. ET.

Hezly Rivera, the youngest member of the 2024 Olympic champion team, headlines the field that will compete in Hoffman Estates, Illinois.

Rivera, now 17, is joined by 2024 Olympic alternates Leanne Wong, Joscelyn Roberson and Tiana Sumanasekera.

Plus Jayla Hang, who won the Pan American all-around title in June over a field that included Rivera.

Traditionally, not all of the top gymnasts compete on all four events at Classic, though at least Rivera is expected to do so.

Gymnasts are preparing for the U.S. Championships from Aug. 7-10 in New Orleans.

Then a two-day selection competition in early autumn determines the four-woman team for the World Championships in October in Indonesia.

Simone Biles won five of the last six U.S. Classic meets dating to 2018, with Wong taking the other in 2022 during Biles’ break from competition. Biles is now on another break from competition and has not announced whether she plans to return to bid for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

2025 U.S. Classic Gymnastics Field

Gymnasts are split between two sessions — the first on Saturday at 3 p.m. ET on the USA Gymnastics YouTube page and the second at 8 p.m. ET on CNBC and Peacock.

Sage Bradford (Session 1)
Harlow Buddendeck (1)
Dulcy Caylor (2)
Ally Damelio (1)
Jordis Eichman (1)
Reese Esponda (1)
Catherine Guy (1)
Jayla Hang (2)
Gabrielle Hardie (2)
Myli Lew (2)
Nola Matthews (2)
Annalisa Milton (2)
Malea Milton (1)
Avery Moll (1)
Claire Pease (2)
Brooke Pierson (1)
Hezly Rivera (2)
Joscelyn Roberson (2)
Alessia Rosa (2)
Simone Rose (2)
Izzy Stassi (2)
Ashlee Sullivan (2)
Tiana Sumanasekera (2)
Maliha Tressel (1)
Audree Valdenarro (1)
Sabrina Visconti (1)
Camie Westerman (1)
Halle Shea Wittenberg (1)
Leanne Wong (2)
Alicia Zhou (2)

Jordan Chiles called the last three months “very, very difficult” in an interview about her Olympic bronze medal appeal.