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Zack Sharp Selected by San Jose Sharks in NHL Draft

Story Links KALAMAZOO, Mich. – Western Michigan freshman defenseman Zack Sharp was selected by the San Jose Sharks in the NHL Draft earlier today.  Sharp was taken in the fourth round and was the 124th overall pick. This is the fourth straight season WMU has had a player taken in the NHL […]

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KALAMAZOO, Mich. – Western Michigan freshman defenseman Zack Sharp was selected by the San Jose Sharks in the NHL Draft earlier today. 

Sharp was taken in the fourth round and was the 124th overall pick. This is the fourth straight season WMU has had a player taken in the NHL Draft. 

The Naperville, Ill. native played a key role in leading the Broncos to the National Championship, scoring nine points on five goals and four assists. He tallied 29 blocked shots and was a +19. 

Sharp was clutch in big-time moments, as four of his five goals came against opponents that were ranked or receiving votes. His biggest goal came in a 4-3 double overtime victory over Denver to help the Brown and Gold secure the NCHC Frozen Faceoff title. 

 



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Hugh Freeze Blames NIL Shadiness, Not Golf, For Recruiting Woes

© Jake Crandall/ Advertiser / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images Audio By Carbonatix The Auburn Tigers are struggling to recruit ahead of Year 3 in the Hugh Freeze era. The program, which often finds itself in the top half of the SEC rankings, is rated near the bottom of the Power 4. The Tigers‘ […]

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Hugh Freeze greets Auburn football fans.

© Jake Crandall/ Advertiser / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Carbonatix Pre-Player Loader

Audio By Carbonatix

The Auburn Tigers are struggling to recruit ahead of Year 3 in the Hugh Freeze era. The program, which often finds itself in the top half of the SEC rankings, is rated near the bottom of the Power 4.

The Tigers‘ 2026 class currently sits at 85th nationally in the 247 Sports recruiting rankings. That’s good for dead last in the Southeastern Conference.

Some of that is due to quantity. Auburn has a league-low seven commitments this offseason and is the only school in single digits.

Some has to do with quality. The Tigers’ average prospect rating is 88.99, which ranks 11th out of 16 SEC teams.

What gives? Freeze was hired in large part due to his recruiting prowess. The Tigers took a chance despite his checkered past. To this point, it hasn’t paid off.

The team is 11-14 across two seasons with the head coach at the helm. Still, they’ve had back-to-back Top 10 recruiting classes to fall back on. That’s changed this summer.

With struggles now being seen both on and off the field, Auburn football supporters are growing anxious. It’s led to over-the-top criticisms from the fanbase.

Hugh Freeze golfs too much!

At least according to some fans. They believe he’s prioritized his golf game above recruiting. Those claims cite his 10 trips to the links over the first 20 days of June.

Auburn’s recruiting ranking alone was enough to cause uneasiness. Rival Alabama’s dominance has fans spiraling.

The Crimson Tide boast a Top 5 class. They’ve swiped a pair of five-star prospects from the Tigers’ grasps in the last week.

Cedarian Morgan, the top-ranked player in the Yellowhammer State, committed to Alabama on July 2nd. Three days later, Jireh Edwards chose the Crimson Tide after taking an official visit to Auburn.

Alabama has been stuffing Auburn in a locker on the recruiting trail. Hugh Freeze says golf isn’t to blame for his poor recruiting. Instead, he referenced shady NIL practices from his competitors.

“We’re doing things the right way,” he said when discussing the House settlement surrounding player payment. “At the end of the day, that’s really what we have to do, in my opinion. We can’t put ourselves in jeopardy…

“If others are operating in a manner not with that, I’m hopeful that they’ll be called out on that at some point… We’re going by what we believe to be the accurate interpretation of [the settlement]. It’s not really to our advantage to what we’re doing right now because others, I think, are operating in a different manner.”

That sudden attention to rule following came off as ironic given his previous firing from Ole Miss. Still, Hugh Freeze believes he’s been put at a disadvantage. He hopes that changes in the coming weeks.

Auburn is struggling to recruit. Should they experience a third straight losing season, criticism of the head coach will grow. But hey, maybe this latest excuse can buy him another few rounds of golf!





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Former Spartans Getting Invites To Summer League

It did not happen in the immediate aftermath of the NBA Draft, but now a number of former Michigan State basketball players have received invitations to play on Summer League rosters. Beginning with our leading scorer and captain from last season, Jaden Akins has been invited to play with the Orlando Magic in the Las […]

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It did not happen in the immediate aftermath of the NBA Draft, but now a number of former Michigan State basketball players have received invitations to play on Summer League rosters.

Beginning with our leading scorer and captain from last season, Jaden Akins has been invited to play with the Orlando Magic in the Las Vegas competition, which begins this week.

Fellow senior Frankie Fidler, who played his final season of college ball in East Lansing, will be staying in the Midwest and joining the Milwaukee Bucks summer roster.

The third senior from last year, Szymon Zapala, has not received any invites as of yet, but he did receive a different invite this past week. He will be joining Poland’s national team for EuroBasket 2025, the continental championship tournament which begins in late August. Poland is also one of the host nations for the tournament, so Zapala will get a chance to play in front of crowds of his countrymen.

Moving on from members of last year’s squad, a couple of players who transferred out to play their final college seasons elsewhere have also received Summer League invites. AJ Hoggard, who played for Vanderbilt last year, will be joining the New Orleans Pelicans.

And Mady Sissoko, who was at Cal last season, has already gotten underway with the Oklahoma City Thunder in the lesser-known Salt Lake City Summer League. He played 21 minutes in the opening game, scoring 4 points, corralling 7 rebounds, and blocking 2 shots.

Lastly, going back a couple years, former four-year Spartan Marcus Bingham Jr. is also going to Orlando for the Summer League where he will be playing with Akins and recent draft pick Jase Richardson.


Moving away from basketball, there was one last bit of news coming out of E.L. over the weekend, this one from the football team. The defensive line is adding an edge rusher in Chris Addison from Winnsboro, Louisiana. Addison is a 6’3”, 250 pound recruit who is rated as a three-star player. He is the 22nd member of MSU’s 2026 recruiting class.



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Former Penn State men’s hockey player Connor MacEachern to play in Sweden | Penn State Men’s Hockey News

Another former Nittany Lion is heading overseas. Connor MacEachern, a 25-year-old center who spent four years with Penn State, will play in Sweden for Mora IK in 2025. Vi välkomnar den kanadensiske centern Connor MacEachern till Mora IK!🔥”I Connor får vi en skicklig center med bra skridskoåkning, spelförståelse samt fina offensiva kvalitéer” säger Sportchef Hägglund.Läs […]

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Another former Nittany Lion is heading overseas.

Connor MacEachern, a 25-year-old center who spent four years with Penn State, will play in Sweden for Mora IK in 2025.

MacEachern was productive in State College during his tenure, amassing a combined 77 points, 31 goals and 46 assists in 130 games. He also served as an alternate captain in the 2022-23 campaign.

The former Nittany Lion spent his previous two seasons splitting time between the AHL and ECHL.

MORE HOCKEY COVERAGE


'Hockey fans believe in miracles’ | Penn State men’s hockey’s path from club team to the Frozen Four

When Penn State hockey pioneer Roy Scott arrived on campus in 1971, he was disappointed the …

If you’re interested in submitting a Letter to the Editor, click here.





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Hugh Freeze addresses Auburn recruiting, defends against low rankings

Recruiting has long since been the name of the game in college football, but particularly in the SEC. The Auburn Tigers know that, as does head coach Hugh Freeze, which is part of what makes their current struggles to recruit frustrating. This comes at a time when the House settlement is taking effect in college […]

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Recruiting has long since been the name of the game in college football, but particularly in the SEC. The Auburn Tigers know that, as does head coach Hugh Freeze, which is part of what makes their current struggles to recruit frustrating.

This comes at a time when the House settlement is taking effect in college sports. Auburn and Freeze need to adjust and, while it hasn’t worked out on the recruiting trail just yet for Auburn, Freeze believes in the school’s plan and that things will end up working out.

“It’s hard to feel great when you’re not one of the top-ranked recruiting classes,” Hugh Freeze said. “And I think Auburn should be. But I’m confident in our administration and the way that they lead and trust them immensely that we’re doing things the right way. At the end of the day that’s really what we have to do, in my opinion, is we can’t put ourselves in jeopardy. We’ve got great interpretations from our administration and our legal team on what the settlement really means and how we should operate, and that’s what we’re doing. And if others are operating in a manner not with that, I’m hopeful that they’ll be called out on that at some point.”

Auburn currently has the 79th-ranked recruiting class in the 2026 cycle. That’s 16th in the SEC. Ultimately, it is likely being hurt by just how few recruits Auburn has, with only seven players currently committed. Nobody else in the SEC has fewer than 10 commits. That’s also a season removed from Auburn producing the eighth-ranked recruiting class in the entire country.

“It does seem kind of strange that we’re like some of the lowest range of numbers. I mean, we’re like, you know, really, really low compared to some. And I’m trying to figure that out, but I do think it will shake out in the long run,” Freeze said. “But it is complicated and hard to sit there and feel great about. But I feel great about our relationships and I feel great about Auburn, and I know the families know that. And I do think just after we win games this fall, which I’m confident we will, I think it’ll all kind of shake itself out.”

While the House settlement in a new challenge to overcome, Hugh Freeze has found himself getting criticized amid those recruiting struggles. In particular, some fans are upset with his golfing numbers. In the month of June alone, a very slow month for coaches, Freeze reportedly golfed 10 times. Kirby Smart and Kalen DeBoer have combined for six golf outings in all of 2025.

Hugh Freeze explains how House settlement has impacted Auburn, ability to recruit

The House settlement has certainly taken its toll. That’s something that Hugh Freeze is still trying to find a way to deal with moving forward.

“It’s quite different. First of all, you want to make sure you are operating with what the settlement says, and we think we are. We’re going by what we believe to be the accurate interpretation of it. It’s not really to our advantage to what we’re doing right now because others, I think, are operating in a different manner. But the main thing that I don’t think people understand is retaining your current roster. It used to not affect high school recruiting. You were going to sign your 20-25 guys. But now, with the salary cap, you have to look at a room like our wide receiver room where on paper, we’re not losing a single kid, and we’ve got to retain those guys because I like that room a whole lot,” Freeze said.

“So you don’t have the means, so to speak, to go after the number of high school receivers that you would normally go after because you can’t really – again, on paper, we’re not losing anyone and I don’t want to lose one. I really like that room. I love our young d-linemen. It’s kind of difficult. You’re sitting here trying to sign a class when you really don’t know what your current roster will be in January. So that’s a challenge, but you have to operate within the manner of what the settlement really says and the interpretation that we’ve received, and that’s what we’re doing.”



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Where Illinois is ranked in EA College Football 26

EA College Football 26 comes out in just a few days, and the team rankings are already here. According to ESPN, Illinois is the 25th-best team in the game, at 82 overall. The top five are Alabama, Texas, Ohio State, Penn State, and Notre Dame. The Illini’s offense didn’t rank in the top 25, but […]

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Where Illinois is ranked in EA College Football 26

EA College Football 26 comes out in just a few days, and the team rankings are already here.

According to ESPN, Illinois is the 25th-best team in the game, at 82 overall.

The top five are Alabama, Texas, Ohio State, Penn State, and Notre Dame.

The Illini’s offense didn’t rank in the top 25, but Aaron Henry’s defense is considered the 18th-best in FBS.

All of the team entrances are also released. Illinois’ is at 24:44 in the clip.

It starts with an awesome look at the Marching Illini’s pregame show, before the guys head out of the tunnel. The MI uniforms still leave something to be desired, but that’s coming from a former MI guy himself. And the trees behind the horseshoe are still there (didn’t they tear them down?).

Anywho, this should be fun.

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Local soccer players use WPSL season to prep for college season

Tough summertime competition fuels the growth of the Mankato United WPSL players and regional women’s soccer. That’s been part of the plan, according to team general manager Rustin Luedtke, who wrapped up his seventh season with the team. That growth has spawned exponential expansion of summer women’s soccer in Minnesota. “It’s kind of crazy,” Luedtke […]

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Local soccer players use WPSL season to prep for college season

Tough summertime competition fuels the growth of the Mankato United WPSL players and regional women’s soccer.

That’s been part of the plan, according to team general manager Rustin Luedtke, who wrapped up his seventh season with the team. That growth has spawned exponential expansion of summer women’s soccer in Minnesota.

“It’s kind of crazy,” Luedtke says. “There were just five teams in the state when we joined the WPSL (in 2019). Now there’s close to 100. It’s really grown. It’s a great place for college women’s soccer players.”

But there’s also the hope that Mankato area soccer players get additional time together as teammates as they look to improve on Minnesota State’s Division II runner-up effort in 2024. Twelve Mavericks played this summer with Mankato United in the regional WPSL program, finishing 4-4-3.

“It went really well,” Luedtke says. “The team progressed nicely through the season. It goes by really fast. For us, it was a really fun season.”

Luedtke, who coached at Mankato West for six years, said the team’s “high pressure, high press” style of play takes some getting used to and is an added conditioning opportunity for college-level women’s soccer players. Luedtke adds that several St. Peter High School soccer players have also played for Mankato United, growing the level of play in the region.

MSU soccer player Ella Huettl, a Mankato East graduate, echoed Luedtke’s sentiments.

“It’s (a) super quick (season),” Huettl said of the 7-week season, which wrapped up June 28. “It’s a lot of fun.”

Huettl also enjoyed the presence of three internationals on the Mankato United team, from Scotland, the U.K. and New Zealand.

“That was a super fun experience playing with them,” said Huettl, enjoying the “different style” of play, calling it “more technical.”

With 11 Mavericks on Mankato United, it seemed like an extension of the historic 2024 fall season for Huettl and teammates. Despite the 2-1 loss in the Division II national championship match to Cal Poly Pomona, there’s hope for another great run this coming fall for the Mavericks.

Improving on the 2024 run, which included a 12-1-5 regular season record and 11-0-3 NSIC championship, won’t be easy. But Huettl notes the tough summer competition, often against DI players, helps.

“The biggest desire is to go back (to nationals),” Huettl says.

Still, Huettl looks forward to a soccer break. MSU’s preseason begins Aug. 19, she notes.

Better facilities fuel growth.

“When I moved back to town in 2017, there wasn’t any turf,” Luedtke says.

Now, there are numerous indoor and artificial turf surfaces throughout the area.

Improved facilities through the Mankato area have allowed for additional practice time. Luedtke says nearly a third of Mankato United’s summer practices were moved inside the MSU field house due to wet conditions. And as soccer programs and facilities improve, “it just keeps compounding.”

“That really makes a difference,” he added.

Luedtke plans to return as Mankato United’s general manager next summer.

“Both my daughters played soccer,” added Luedtke, including one for Mankato United and with MSU. “As a family, we’ve kind of been soccer nuts for some time.”

And he’s looking forward to seeing more growth as the MSU players return to coach Brian Bahl’s successful program.

Bahl, who just received a contract extension, has an overall record of 190-29-32, an .820 winning percentage.

His daughter, Aubrey, a Mankato West graduate, will be entering her final year with the Mavericks. She and Julia Fischer, an East graduate, also played for Mankato United this summer and will again dot the MSU fall women’s soccer roster.

Huettl and Fischer were among East soccer players in 2022 that helped the Cougars to a 20-1-1 season and third-place finish in the Minnesota Class AA tournament. The East girls soccer program kept it up the next two seasons.

In 2023, East qualified for the Class AA tourney but lost an opening-round match to eventual champion Benilde St. Margaret’s. This past fall, East dropped a semifinal match to eventual AA champion Mahtomedi, then topped Orono 1-0 for a third-place finish.

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