Sports
Middle Tennessee standing in way of 4-0 start for Duke
Aug 30, 2024; Durham, North Carolina, USA; Duke Blue Devils quarterback Maalik Murphy (6) goes to throw the ball against the Elon Phoenix during the second half at Wallace Wade Stadium. Mandatory Credit: James Guillory-Imagn Images Duke aims to finish nonconference play with an unblemished record when it visits Middle Tennessee State for a Saturday afternoon clash in Murfreesboro, Tenn.
The Blue Devils (3-0) also eye their second consecutive 4-0 start and momentum heading into a Sept. 28 tilt against rival North Carolina in their Atlantic Coast Conference opener.
But first up are the Blue Raiders (1-2), who, like Duke, are led by a first-year head coach.
Despite this being the second head coaching stints for both Middle Tennessee’s Derek Mason and Duke’s Manny Diaz, they have never faced each other from opposing sidelines. Diaz was an assistant at Middle Tennessee nearly two decades ago, serving as the defensive coordinator there from 2006-09.
While Duke is coming off its third straight win after a 26-21 victory over UConn last weekend, MTSU hopes to bounce back from a 49-21 loss to Western Kentucky that Mason put on himself and no one else.
“At the end of the day, I don’t blame players, I blame me,” Mason said. “My shoulders are big enough. What we will do as a staff and as a team is hold each other accountable. Because that’s where the winning gets done.”
Middle Tennessee’s issues have shown up on defense, where it ranks 129th out of 133 FBS teams with 42 points allowed per game. Even in its lone win against FCS side Tennessee Tech, the Blue Raiders allowed 25 points.
Duke hasn’t had a problem finding the end zone, especially in crucial moments. Each of the Blue Devils’ past two wins — against UConn at home and on the road against Northwestern — required late-game comebacks.
“A lot that we have to improve on, but it’s always more fun to improve when you’re winning than when you’re not winning,” Diaz said. “(Undefeated) and eventually, going into league play where you know you’re going to be in tough games, you know you’re going to be in close games.
“What they have learned through these last couple of weeks is going to really bode well as we get further down into our season.”
The Blue Devils have been powered on offense by Texas transfer Maalik Murphy, who has thrown for 801 yards with eight touchdowns and leads all ACC quarterbacks in pass attempts with 122.
MTSU has a strong passing attack as well, led by Nicholas Vattiato who threw for 456 yards and three TDs against Western Kentucky.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Rangers activate RHP Cole Winn from 15-day injured list
Texas Rangers pitcher Cole Winn (60) throws against Detroit Tigers during the fourth inning at Comerica Park in Detroit on Friday, May 1, 2026. The Texas Rangers activated right-handed reliever Cole Winn from the 15-day injured list on Tuesday after he was sidelined since May 23 by arm fatigue.
Winn, 26, takes the spot on the 26-man roster vacated by right-hander Luis Curvelo, who was optioned to Triple-A Round Rock on Sunday.
Winn allowed two runs on two hits in a third of an inning of his most recent outing that came during a 5-2 loss to the host Los Angeles Angels. He exited the game after three batters with fatigue and soreness in his right shoulder.
In 22 appearances this season, he is 2-1 with one save, a 5.59 ERA, seven walks and 23 strikeouts in 19 1/3 innings.
In 68 career relief appearances, Winn is 2-3 with one save, a 3.91 ERA, 28 walks and 72 strikeouts in 78 1/3 innings.
Texas made Winn the 15th overall selection in the 2018 MLB Draft.
Curvelo, 25, had a scoreless inning Sunday in the Rangers’ 10-0 victory over the visiting Guardians. He has a 4.91 ERA, two walks and four strikeouts in 7 1/3 innings over seven relief appearances.
He was on the 15-day injured list with a right biceps strain from April 15 to May 19.
In 24 career relief appearances since 2025, Curvelo is 1-1 with a 5.47 ERA over 26 1/3 innings
–Field Level Media
Sports
Frances Tiafoe outlasts Daniel Altmaier in first round at Stuttgart
Jun 1, 2026; Paris, France; Frances Tiafoe of the United States returns a shot during his match against Matteo Arnaldi of Italy on day nine at Stade Roland Garros. Mandatory Credit: Susan Mullane-Imagn Images Sixth-seeded Frances Tiafoe saved 7 of 9 break points and outlasted Germany’s Daniel Altmaier 7-6 (3), 4-6, 6-4 to post a first-round victory at the BOSS Open Tuesday in Stuttgart, Germany.
Tiafoe had 24 winners and 30 unforced errors while prevailing on the grass surface after the end of the clay-court season. Altmaier had 15 aces among his 40 winners but committed 42 unforced errors.
Tiafoe next faces Australia’s Rinky Hijikata, who rallied for a 6-7 (7), 7-6 (2), 6-3 victory over German wild card Tom Gentzsch. Australia’s Nick Kyrgios beat the only other seeded player in action, prevailing 6-3, 6-4 over No. 8 Corentin Moutet of France.
The other winners Tuesday were Marcos Giron, Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff and Yannick Hanfmann, Australia’s James Duckworth, France’s Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard and Japan’s Sho Shimabukuro.
Libema Open
Adrian Mannarino of France hit 25 winners while posting a 6-4, 3-6, 7-5 victory over defending champion Gabriel Diallo of Canada in ‘s-Hertogenbosch, Netherlands.
Mannarino ended a nine-match drought in singles play dating back to the Miami Open in mid-March. Diallo had 52 unforced errors against just 20 winners. Mannarino committed 44 miscues.
Martin Damm advanced with a 6-4, 6-4 victory over Spain’s Jaume Munar. Also, China’s Zhang Zhizhen registered a 7-6 (4), 5-7, 6-1 victory over Jenson Brooksby.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Reports: Bengals restructure Joe Burrow's, save $10M in cap space
Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow (9) throws a pass to a teammate during practice on Tuesday, June 9, 2026, at Kettering Health Practice Fields in downtown Cincinnati. The Cincinnati Bengals have created $10 million in salary cap space this coming season by restructuring Pro Bowl quarterback Joe Burrow’s contract, according to multiple reports on Tuesday.
The Bengals moved from near the bottom of the league in effective cap room, $7.1 million, per reports, to in the middle. The team could have restructured up to $19.2 million by converting his entire base salary to a bonus, per the reports.
The team announced on Tuesday that second-round draft pick Cashius Howell, a defensive end out of Texas A&M, signed his rookie contract, meaning all of the Bengals’ seven draft selections are under contract.
Burrow signed a $275 million, five-year contract extension in September 2023, including $219 million in guarantees, according to reporting at the time.
Now 29, Burrow has been supportive of the Bengals’ uncharacteristic spending on free agents and a blockbuster trade since finishing 6-11 and missing the playoffs for a third straight season in 2025.
“We’re going to go win a lot of games this year and play great and win a Super Bowl,” Burrow told reporters after a voluntary workout last month.
Cincinnati signed former Kansas City Chiefs safety Bryan Cook to a three-year, $40.25 contract and former Seattle Seahawks edge rusher Boye Mafe to a three-year, $60 million deal. The team also signed former Minnesota Vikings defensive tackle Jonathan Allen to a two-year, $25 million deal.
The defense also got a major boost when the Bengals traded the 10th overall pick in April’s NFL draft to the New York Giants for three-time All-Pro defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence, who signed a one-year, $28 million extension for the 2028 season following the deal.
Cincinnati selected Burrow with the first overall pick of the 2020 NFL Draft out of LSU.
Burrow is a three-time Pro Bowl selection, including in 2025 when he completed 66.8% of his passes for 1,809 yards, 17 touchdowns and five interceptions in only eight games (all starts) because of a turf toe injury.
He has started all 77 regular-season games that he has played and completed an NFL-record career-best 68.5% of his passes for 20,810 yards, 157 TDs and 51 interceptions. Burrow has thrown for another 1,826 yards, nine TDs and four picks in seven playoff games.
He was voted the NFL Comeback Player of the Year in both 2021 and 2024.
–Field Level Media
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Rangers activate RHP Cole Winn from 15-day injured list
