Sports
Resurgent No. 22 Nebraska, No. 24 Illinois clash in Big Ten opener
Sep 7, 2024; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers quarterback Dylan Raiola (15) hands the ball off to running back Dante Dowdell (23) for a touchdown run against the Colorado Buffaloes during the first quarter at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-Imagn Images For the first time since October 2011, No. 22 Nebraska and No. 24 Illinois find themselves listed in the same Associated Press Top 25 poll. They’ll meet in a Big Ten opener Friday night in Lincoln, Neb., to decide which team gets to stay there.
The Cornhuskers (3-0) are off to their best start since 2016 — their most recent bowl season — while the Illini are 3-0 for the first time since 2011.
After cruising through their respective non-conference schedules, both teams will get a much better picture of their might while they clash in front of Nebraska’s 400th consecutive home sellout.
“To have two big teams ranked on a Friday night game is a little bit unusual,” said Illinois coach Bret Bielema, who has his program in the polls for just the second time in the last 13 years. “It doesn’t happen all the time. To see it play out and be a part of it is awesome. Give a lot of credit to their team and what they’ve accomplished to this point. I told our guys to continue to keep our focus, our mentality, and see where it can go.”
The Huskers have three blowouts under their belt — they led at halftime against UTEP, Colorado and Northern Iowa by a combined score of 79-10 — but head coach Matt Rhule hasn’t been overly impressed yet.
“I think any time you don’t punt in the game, you feel pretty good,” Rhule said. “So I felt pretty good about what we did Saturday offensively (against Northern Iowa). But that was all preseason to me. Now the season starts. We’ll find out where we are. This will be such a different challenge playing against these guys.”
The Illini enter Friday’s game tied for second nationally in turnover margin (+8) and tied for fifth in turnovers forced (9). Defensive back Xavier Scott is one of four FBS players with at least 3 interceptions through three games, and he has forced four turnovers overall.
But Scott and company haven’t faced a passer like Nebraska’s Dylan Raiola. Even on the rare occasions when the pass rush has forced him to improvise, the five-star freshman has appeared unflappable while completing 73.8 percent of his passes for 670 yards, five touchdowns and just one interception.
“He brings a different element immediately,” Bielema said. “He’s a very talented young man that’s got a great deep ball throw. They maximize him pretty well. There’s some things you can literally see him get better on every series — just very impressive to see.”
Rhule seems eager to find out how Raiola will handle an Illinois group that ranks 12th nationally in pass efficiency defense (an 87.98 rating versus Raiola’s 162.22).
“They’ve altered a lot of what they’re doing,” said Rhule, noting how Illinois second-year defensive coordinator Aaron Henry has been using more disguises this season. “They’ll show man and play Cover 2. They’ll show man and play zone. With a young quarterback, he’s got to recognize because they don’t show it to you. He’s got to recognize zone on the snap. And they’re taking the ball away at a high level.”
On the flip side, Bielema wants to see his rushing attack be more reliable. The Illini’s quartet of backs have been satisfactory (153.3 yards per game), but Illinois hasn’t faced anything like the Huskers’ defense, which surrenders just 2.5 yards per carry and 70.3 rushing yards per game.
“If we’re going to win in the Big Ten, we’re going to have to run the ball in certain situations,” Bielema said. “I think the greatest definition of a team is a team that can run the ball effectively when they want to run it against good competition.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Joey Logano fastest to finish in first North Wilkesboro points race since '96
Jul 19, 2026; North Wilkesboro, North Carolina, USA; Team Penske driver Joey Logano (22) takes the second stage during the Window World 400 at North Wilkesboro Speedway. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-Imagn Images Joey Logano dominated by leading a career-high 323 laps as NASCAR welcomed historic North Wilkesboro Speedway back to the Cup Series’ regular-season points schedule for the first time since 1996 in Sunday night’s Window World 450 in North Wilkesboro, N.C.
Winless since early May of last season at Texas Motor Speedway, the three-time Cup Series champion notched his 38th career victory in 16 seasons by topping Denny Hamlin’s No. 11 Toyota over the final half of the race, beating the points leader by 0.859 seconds in a long stretch of green-flag racing.
Chase Briscoe, Ty Gibbs and Shane van Gisbergen finished as the top five.
Sixth-place Bubba Wallace was the final car on the lead lap.
After three cleanly-raced support events over the weekend, Ryan Blaney was slotted first after qualifying was washed out Saturday, but his No. 12 Ford team had to fix a power steering issue that sent him to the back of the 37-car field.
That gave the point to Gibbs, who took them to green in a points race for the first time since polesitter Ted Musgrave did so on Sept. 29, 1996, before a nearly three-decade-long shutdown of the 0.625-mile short track.
Gibbs led the first 40 circuits until John Hunter Nemechek spun after contact with Zane Smith, and the first caution period ended with Hamlin taking two tires to claim the lead on the restart.
Gibbs hustled back in his No. 54 Toyota and narrowly beat van Gisbergen to win Stage 1, which consisted of 80 laps. Logano, Hamlin and Carson Hocevar were the next three finishers.
Logano, the 2024 winner of the All-Star Race at NWS, took the lead from van Gisbergen on Lap 113 in Turn 4 in the 185 laps that made up Stage 2.
The No. 22 Team Penske driver increased his advantage over second-place Chase Elliott to 3 1/2 seconds by Lap 150 and soon lapped Gibbs (speeding penalty), but Hamlin found his way to move by Elliott in the first long green-flag run on the short track.
On Lap 183, Tyler Reddick and Alex Bowman wrecked coming off Turn 2 and slid onto the pit-road entrance for the third caution, putting William Byron and Elliott two laps down after their green-flag stop.
Logano captured Stage 2 for his first segment win this season, and Hamlin, Chase Briscoe, Wallace and van Gisbergen earned top-five bonus points.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Royals RHP Stephen Kolek (flexor) hurt on rehab assignment, placed on IL
Kansas City Royals pitcher Stephen Kolek (32) pitches in the third inning between the Kansas City Royals and Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. The Kansas City Royals placed right-hander Stephen Kolek on the 15-day injured list on Sunday after he strained his right flexor during a rehab start.
Kolek was injured on Saturday while pitching for Triple-A Omaha to get him ready to return to the major league squad as soon as this week after an extended absence on the family medical emergency list.
He was scheduled for four innings or 65 pitches but made it through only 51 pitches (30 strikes) over 2 2/3 innings against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs before he exited in the third inning with the Omaha Storm Chasers’ trainer.
Kolek allowed two runs on six hits with a hit batter, no walks and three strikeouts.
“He said he didn’t feel great playing catch, but then as he got on the mound, he felt better,” Kansas City manager Matt Quatraro said Sunday. “The first couple of innings were pretty good. In the third inning, he felt more aggressive discomfort. They thought it was best to get him out of there.”
Kolek, 29, is scheduled to get imaging done on Monday.
He last pitched in a major league game on July 2, allowing three runs on four hits in two innings of a 5-2 home loss to the Tampa Bay Rays.
Kolek has been away from the team since before the birth of his daughter, Faye, who was born seven weeks premature on June 25, MLB.com reported. He has been in the hospital with his wife, Jessica, and their baby, leaving only for that July 2 start. The Royals placed him on the family emergency medical list three times and the paternity list twice as well as the restricted list on July 11, according to MLB.com.
With his child making progress, Kolek planned to return to the Royals, including Saturday’s rehab start. Major League Baseball gave the Royals permission for Kolek to have a rehab assignment, which is not the norm for players on the restricted list.
Kolek is 4-3 with one shutout, a 4.50 ERA, 12 walks and 34 strikeouts in 54 innings over 10 starts this season.
He is a career 12-10 with a 4.13 ERA, 55 walks and 150 strikeouts in 213 1/3 innings over 71 games (29 starts) for the San Diego Padres (2024-25) and Royals (2025-present). The Padres traded Kolek and right-hander Ryan Bergert to the Royals for catcher Freddy Fermin on July 31, 2025.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Injury-riddled Wings and Liberty tip Monday in rescheduled game
Jul 7, 2026; Brooklyn, New York, USA; Dallas Wings forward Jessica Shepard (32) and New York Liberty center Jonquel Jones (35) at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images The Dallas Wings will be chasing their seventh straight win when they host the slumping New York Liberty on Monday in Arlington, Texas, but they likely will be without the services of star guard Paige Bueckers.
Bueckers spent the final minutes of Sunday’s 90-82 home win over the Los Angeles Spark in the locker room after suffering an apparent head injury late in the fourth quarter.
With 3:33 remaining in the game, Sparks forward Nneka Ogwumike was dribbling down the court, got tripped up by Dallas rookie Azzi Fudd and lost her balance. She tumbled into the legs of Bueckers and the second-year player fell straight back, landing on her back.
The back of Bueckers’ head appeared to hit the floor when she fell and the 24-year-old immediately grabbed her head.
Bueckers walked off the court on her own but with members of the Wings’ staff flanking her as she continued to hold her head and had a slight limp.
Bueckers had amassed a game-high 25 points before being forced from the game. Arike Ogunbowale scored six of her 20 points in the victory over the final 2:36 while Jessica Shepard totaled 11 points and 14 rebounds.
Fudd also scored 11 points in win.
“We worked hard for this win, and when Paige went down, it was all about the rest of us stepping up,” Ogunbowale said after the victory over Los Angeles.
Wings coach Jose Fernandez had no detailed update on Bueckers’ status in his postgame press conference but said Bueckers was in good spirits. Her availability for Monday’s game is yet to be determined.
“She’s upset at Azzi because she said Azzi tripped her (Ogwumike) and took away P’s charge,” Fernandez said lightheartedly.
Monday’s game was rescheduled from July 16 because of travel difficulties for the Liberty, creating a home back-to-back for Dallas.
The Wings (17-8) enter Monday’s game carrying their longest winning streak in 11 years. Dallas has captured six straight games for the first time since the 2015 campaign when the franchise was in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
In that season, the Wings (then known as the Shock) won eight straight outings early in the year and then six in a row before bowing out against the Phoenix Mercury in the Western Conference semifinals.
The Liberty (13-12) limp into Arlington on the heels of a 108-88 loss in Indianapolis to the Fever on Saturday. Breanna Stewart led the way with 26 points and eight boards for New York, while Jonquel Jones netted 13 points and Marine Johannes and Sabrina Ionescu each added 12.
Johannes suffered a left ankle injury in the game and is questionable to compete on Monday.
The Liberty jumped out to an 11-point, first-quarter lead and were up by four at halftime before succumbing in the second half. New York’s 17 turnovers which led to 30 Fever points had plenty to do with the loss.
“We don’t like where we’re at right now, but (here) we are,” Stewart said after the loss. “(We’re) playing with that, realizing that we’re in it. We’re in the trenches, and we can either keep sinking or we can dig ourselves out.”
New York has dropped six of its past seven games and eight of its last 10. The Liberty have trailed by at least 13 points at some juncture in six of their past eight games and has lost all six of those contests.
“We’re really mature about it,” Ionescu said. “It really hasn’t been too frustrating. Every team goes through it. During the process, kind of when you’re in it, it sucks, but I think everyone has a really good mindset of knowing it’ll pay off for us in the long run.”
Key New York players Satou Sabally (concussion protocol) and Leonie Fiebich (foot) have been ruled out for the game.
It is the teams’ third and final meeting of the season. Dallas took the first two matchups, both in Brooklyn, including an 88-77 decision on July 7 that started the Liberty’s current four-game losing streak.
–Field Level Media
Joey Logano fastest to finish in first North Wilkesboro points race since '96
Royals RHP Stephen Kolek (flexor) hurt on rehab assignment, placed on IL
