The NCAA wants football teams to stick to the window.

That’s the message delivered by the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision Oversight Committee on Wednesday, with the organization proposing stiff penalties for schools not observing the rules surrounding the transfer portal window in early January.

Such penalties would include the head coach being prohibited from engaging in any football activities for a period of six weeks/games, the school being nailed for a fine equal to 20% of its football budget and the program losing five roster spots for the following season.

“We felt this was appropriate to place an emphasis on this rule with where we are in Division I football,” said Mark Alnutt, chair of the oversight committee and athletic director at Buffalo. “We have a window for student-athletes to notify their school when they would like to enter the Transfer Portal. If there is movement without going through the process as it is legislated, the committee felt there needed to be significant penalties.”

Multiple incidents sparked speculation that changes could be in the offing, including a notable circumstance earlier this year in which Ole Miss was able to add Clemson transfer Luke Ferrelli outside the window, much to the frustration of Clemson coach Dabo Swinney.

The oversight was introduced via emergency legislation, set to be voted on at the Division I cabinet meeting in April. If approved, the legislation would become effective immediately.

“Attempts to circumvent the transfer window process is an issue for the sport,” Georgia athletic director Josh Brooks added. “We want to let everyone know that this is not going to be allowed, and the committee wants to protect the transfer window that has been established.”

Also on the docket is a proposal to remove limitations on the number of official visits, which would disadvantage schools with smaller budgets but bring football in line with other NCAA sports. A current waiver already allows schools an unlimited amount of visits — a vote would make the change more permanent.

–Field Level Media

The Chicago Bulls look to avoid matching the third-longest losing streak in franchise history when they host the Portland Trail Blazers on Thursday night.

Chicago has dropped 10 straight games this month since last winning against the Miami Heat on Jan. 31.

The Bulls are 0-4 on a seven-game homestand as the Charlotte Hornets ran roughshod at Chicago with a 131-99 victory Tuesday.

Chicago revamped its roster at the trading deadline with players like Nikola Vucevic, Coby White, Ayo Dosunmu and Kevin Huerter going to new destinations.

Roles have changed and the club is without recent acquisitions Jaden Ivey (left knee) and Anfernee Simons (fractured left wrist) due to injuries. Collin Sexton also was acquired during the flurry of activity.

“The trades happened. You’ve got to move forward and you’ve got to figure it out,” second-year forward Matas Buzelis told reporters. “I know we are capable when we are on the same page. We have to come in every day ready to work and try to get better. When you trade half the team and bring in new guys, it’s tough. But it’s no excuse.

“When we control the things we can control, we are going to be a great team. (Coach) Billy (Donovan) always says you get 10 guys who are on the same page and ready to fight and you can win anything.”

Buzelis exploded with a career-best 32 points during the loss to the Hornets. He knocked down six 3-pointers — his second most of the season – while topping 20 points for the third time this month.

The 21-year-old from Lithuania is averaging 15.3 points while starting all 59 games.

“I am going to be what the team needs me to be,” Buzelis said. “If that’s scoring, that’s what it’s going to be. I try to figure out during the game what the team needs.”

Patrick Williams (quadriceps) and Jalen Smith (calf) are doubtful for the Bulls.

The Trail Blazers will be without All-Star forward Deni Avdija (back) for the second straight game and 12th in the past 20. He played in each of the first 40 games of the season before the back troubles emerged.

Avdija is averaging 24.4 points, 7.0 rebounds and 6.6 assists in 48 games during a breakout campaign.

Portland is coming off a 124-121 home loss against the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Trail Blazers are 5-3 since Feb. 6.

Though the loss dropped the Trail Blazers three games below .500, veteran forward Jerami Grant was pleased with the performance.

“Definitely a step in the right direction,” said Grant, who scored 21 points. “You want to win. You’re never really happy with losses. But definitely a step in the right direction.”

Jrue Holiday led Portland with 22 points one game after the team allowed a season-low 77 points while beating the Phoenix Suns. Prior to that, the Trail Blazers gave up a season-worst 157 points in a loss to the Denver Nuggets on Friday.

“You don’t want to celebrate moral wins,” Trail Blazers interim coach Tiago Splitter said after the Minnesota contest. “But we competed against a great team … a full-strength team. That’s a pretty good team out there. I think it was just a couple details that gave them the win.”

Shaedon Sharpe (calf, fibula) will miss his eighth straight game and won’t return for more than a month. Big man Robert Williams III (foot) is questionable.

The Bulls produced a 122-121 victory in Portland on Nov. 19 when the now-departed Vucevic buried a game-winning 3-pointer as time expired.

–Field Level Media

A date with the Chicago Blackhawks is an opportune spot for the Nashville Predators to make headway on their playoff push.

Following a 20-day break since their last outing, the Predators will host the Blackhawks on Thursday night, a divisional rival that they have gotten the best of in 20 out of the past 25 meetings (20-3-2).

Despite back-to-back losses in its final two games prior to the Olympic break, Nashville’s hopes of returning to the postseason still remain very much alive.

Predators coach Andrew Brunette didn’t waver in his faith in his team when speaking to the media following its most recent 4-2 road defeat to the Washington Capitals prior to the break.

“I want them to feel good about themselves,” Brunette said when asked about how his team should approach the lengthy recess from the regular season. “I want them to have belief, and I want them to rest and recharge their batteries and come back hungry and excited. I think this group has never been tighter. You can see from night in, night out how hard they compete for each other, how much they care about each other.”

Veteran sniper Steven Stamkos’ offensive resurgence has certainly given the Predators plenty to believe in.

The two-time Rocket Richard Trophy winner as the NHL’s top goalscorer has a combined six points (three goals, three assists) over his past four games and has dominated Thursday’s opponent throughout his career. Across 35 career clashes with Chicago, Stamkos has compiled 40 points (22 goals, 18 assists).

While the Blackhawks are a long shot to sneak into the postseason for the first time in the past six seasons, they are hoping to finish outside the bottom three spots in the Western Conference for the first time since the NHL returned to its usual dual-conference format following the 2020-21 season.

“If we wanna get in the (playoff) picture, we’ve gotta win a lot of games in a hurry,” Chicago coach Jeff Blashill told the media over the break. “It’s been done in this league multiple times this year. It doesn’t mean that you have to win the first one, or you have to win the second one, or you’ve gotta put together a winning streak right away, but it means that at some point if we wanna get in the picture, we’ve gotta put together a heck of a winning streak.”

The Olympic break seemed to come at the perfect time for the Blackhawks after they lost six of their previous seven games (1-5-1), most recently being blanked 4-0 by the Columbus Blue Jackets on Feb. 4.

The road loss to the Blue Jackets also marked the end of superstar Connor Bedard’s four-game point streak (three goals, two assists).

The Blackhawks will look for their offense to take a step forward in their remaining 25 games, with goalscoring becoming a major issue of late. Chicago has mustered up more than two goals just four times over their past 14 games while posting a 4-8-2 record over that stretch.

–Field Level Media