Sports
Bennett Stirtz, Iowa target seventh straight win at Maryland
Iowa guard Bennett Stirtz (14) drives toward the basket against Northwestern guard Jayden Reid (4) and Northwestern forward Nick Martinelli (2) Feb. 8, 2026 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City, Iowa. It’s not easy to find a signature win on Iowa’s resume. The Hawkeyes have yet to beat a ranked team in four tries.
But by virtue of being nearly flawless against the rest of its competition, Iowa (18-5, 8-4 Big Ten) has risen to No. 20 in the NET Rankings and, barring a late-season collapse, is on its way to gaining a berth in the NCAA Tournament.
The Hawkeyes face another unranked foe Wednesday in College Park, Md., when they put their six-game winning streak on the line against Maryland (9-14, 2-10).
Both teams are coming off wins Sunday in which they got clutch performances from their top threats.
In Maryland’s 67-62 victory at Minnesota, guard David Coit went on a personal 7-0 run in the final 26 seconds and finished with 29 points.
In Iowa’s 76-70 win over visiting Northwestern, guard Bennett Stirtz scored a career-high 36 points to rescue the Hawkeyes from an otherwise lethargic performance.
“We were kind of in a little lull, a little asleep,” Stirtz said. “And I knew that I needed to get going late in the first half.”
Iowa coach Ben McCollum said that it’s the Hawkeyes’ collective effort that allows Stirtz to thrive individually.
“The thing with really good players that people don’t realize is the players around him have to allow him to be great,” McCollum said. “A lot of teams have great players … but their teammates want some more shine out of it, so they won’t allow that player to be great.”
Maryland knows all about Stirtz. He scored 25 points on 10-of-17 shooting when the Hawkeyes rolled to an 83-64 victory on Dec. 6 in Iowa City.
Unlike Stirtz, Coit has been wildly inconsistent this season, often finding himself in the doghouse of first-year coach Buzz Williams.
Despite scoring binges of 43 and 41 points in wins over Penn State and Mount St. Mary’s, Coit has come off the bench in 10 of Maryland’s 23 games, including the win Sunday.
It was a much-need victory as the Terrapins had lost their previous four games by an average margin of 28 points.
“I thought the fight, the togetherness was as good as it’s been in a long, long time,” Williams said.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Reports: LHP Jordan Montgomery agrees to reunion with Rangers
Sep 22, 2024; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Jordan Montgomery (52) pitches in the first inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images Left-hander Jordan Montgomery agreed to a one-year contract with the Texas Rangers, multiple media outlets reported on Wednesday.
Per the Dallas Morning News, the deal is worth $1.25 million.
Montgomery, 33, is recovering from his second Tommy John surgery of his career. He also had the procedure in 2018.
He was 8-7 with a 6.23 ERA in 25 games (21 starts) in his first season with Arizona in 2024.
A World Series champion with Texas in 2023, Montgomery is 46-41 with a 4.03 ERA in 166 career games (161 starts) with the New York Yankees (2017-22), St. Louis Cardinals (2022-23), Rangers (2023) and Diamondbacks.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Orioles' Jackson Holliday (hand) likely out weeks after Opening Day
Sep 27, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; Baltimore Orioles second baseman Jackson Holliday (7) at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images Baltimore Orioles second baseman Jackson Holliday will miss Opening Day due to a broken hamate bone in his right hand, general manager Mike Elias announced on Wednesday morning.
Holliday, who sustained the injury during live batting practice last Friday, will undergo a procedure to address the issue on Thursday. His timeline for recovery likely will be measured in weeks, per Elias.
Holliday, 22, batted just .242 with 17 homers and 55 RBIs in 149 games last season.
He is the top overall pick of the 2022 MLB June Amateur Draft and the son of seven-time All-Star Matt Holliday.
New acquisition Blaze Alexander likely will take the younger Holliday’s place in the field.
Also on Wednesday, Elias announced third baseman Jordan Westburg is nursing a right oblique injury. The injury, however, is not expected to prevent Westburg from playing at the start of the regular season.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Report: Giants hire Brian Callahan as QBs coach
Tennessee Titans coach Brian Callahan exits the field after the game against the Indianapolis Colts at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn., Sunday, Sept. 21, 2025. Former Tennessee Titans head coach Brian Callahan is being added to John Harbaugh’s coaching staff as the quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator for the New York Giants, ESPN reported Wednesday.
Callahan, 41, was fired by the Titans last October after a 1-5 start. Tennessee posted a 4-19 record under Callahan, who was hired by the Titans after five seasons as the Cincinnati Bengals’ offensive coordinator that included a three-point loss in Super Bowl LVI.
ESPN reported Callahan also interviewed with the Giants for the offensive coordinator position, which ultimately went to Matt Nagy. The latter was a former offensive coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs and head coach of the Chicago Bears.
Callahan, who will be coaching former first-round pick Jaxson Dart in his second season in the league, has extensive experience developing quarterbacks. He was the offensive coordinator for four seasons for Joe Burrow with the Bengals, was the quarterbacks coach in 2018 for Derek Carr with the Las Vegas Raiders and for two seasons for Matthew Stafford with the Detroit Lions.
In addition to Dart, Callahan will be working with veteran quarterback Jameis Winston.
Callahan and Nagy are part of an offensive staff that also includes former Rice University head coach Mike Bloomgren as offensive line coach and former offensive coordinators Greg Roman as senior offensive assistant and Tim Kelly as tight ends coach.
–Field Level Media
Brûléed Yogurt? Yes, Please!
Reports: LHP Jordan Montgomery agrees to reunion with Rangers
