Sports
OpTic Texas move to 7-0 at CDL Stage 2 Major qualifying
A contestant uses a video game controller in a Super Smash Brothers Nintendo Wii Tournament at the Manteca Branch Library in downtown Manteca on jul. 10. 2008. OpTic Texas preserved their unbeaten record, sweeping FaZe Vegas in qualifying for the Call of Duty League Stage 2 Major during Week 4 on Saturday.
In the day’s other matches, G2 Minnesota swept Paris Gentle Mates and Riyadh Falcons swept Toronto KOI, while Boston Breach took down Cloud9 New York 3-1.
The 12 Call of Duty League teams are playing a full qualifying round robin to determine seeding for the second major of the season, to be held March 27-29 in Marston Green, England, as part of the DreamHack Birmingham event.
The top six teams in qualifying head straight into the Stage 2 Major playoffs, while the teams in seventh through 10th place will compete in a play-in round.
The Stage 2 Major champion will receive $150,000 and 100 Call of Duty League points, while the runner-up will get $90,000 and 75 CDL points.
On Saturday, OpTic Texas opened with a 250-190 win on Scar Hardpoint and followed that with wins on Den Search & Destroy (6-1) and Scar Overload (5-3) to improve to 7-0.
American/Dutch/Saudi Arabian player Cuyler “Huke” Garland paced OpTic Texas with 77 kills and a plus-22 kill-death differential. Jordan “Abuzah” Francois of Belgium topped FaZe Vegas with 69 kills and a plus-9 K-D differential.
G2 Minnesota picked up a 250-240 victory on Scar Hardpoint, a 6-3 win on Raid Search & Destroy and a 5-2 triumph on Exposure Overload to complete the sweep.
Cesar “Skyx” Bueno of the United States led Minnesota with 75 kills and a plus-18 K-D differential. Daunte “Sib” Gray of the U.S. wound up with 75 kills and a plus-16 K-D differential for Paris.
Riyadh had little trouble sweeping Toronto, posting victories on Blackheart Hardpoint (250-160), Raid Search & Destroy (6-5) and Exposure Overload (7-2).
Riyadh’s Saud “Exnid” Alotai of Saudi Arabia posted a team-high 63 kills and finished with a plus-14 K-D differential. Nicholas “Kips” Lyons of the U.S. collected 48 kills for Toronto, which did not have a player with a positive K-D differential.
Boston jumped out to a 2-0 lead with wins on Scar Hardpoint (250-176) and Colossus Search & Destroy (6-2) before New York got on the board with a 3-2 victory on Scar Overload. Boston then put the match away, prevailing 250-156 on Colossus Hardpoint.
Eric “Snoopy” Perez of Mexico powered Boston’s win, notching 105 kills and a plus-26 K-D differential. For New York, Mexico’s Jacob “Hide” Bustillos led the way with 82 kills. No New York player finished with a positive K-D differential.
The remaining Week 4 matches:
Sunday
–Miami Heretics vs. Los Angeles Thieves
–Toronto KOI vs. Boston Breach
–OpTic Texas vs. Carolina Royal Ravens
–Vancouver Surge vs. Paris Gentle Mates
Call of Duty League Stage 2 Major qualifying standings (match record, map differential)
1. OpTic Texas, 7-0, +17
2. Los Angeles Thieves, 4-2, +7
3. G2 Minnesota, 4-3, +1
4. Riyadh Falcons, 4-3, +5
5. Paris Gentle Mates, 3-3, -1
6. Miami Heretics, 3-3, +2
7. Carolina Royal Ravens, 3-3, -1
8. Toronto KOI, 3-4, -2
9. Boston Breach, 3-4, -3
10. FaZe Vegas, 3-5, -4
11. Vancouver Surge, 2-4, -7
12. Cloud9 New York, 1-6, -14
–Field Level Media
Sports
Which NFL Teams Improved the Most in Free Agency? Four Stand Out
The official 2026 calendar just started and the NFL still has that new-league-year smell.
Depending on what your favorite team did since player negotiations began on Monday and free agency opened on Wednesday, there’s a great chance it will end up smelling like either fresh roses or rotten eggs 11 months from now after the confetti settles on Super Bowl LXI.
Last March, the Seattle Seahawks signed quarterback Sam Darnold to a three-year, $100 million contract and went on to win the Super Bowl. Meanwhile, the Baltimore Ravens mostly window shopped, missed the playoffs and ultimately said farewell to John Harbaugh, the most successful coach in franchise history
In March 2024, the Philadelphia Eagles locked up running back Saquon Barkley on a three-year, $37.75 million deal and then rode his historic 2,000-yard season to a Super Bowl championship. The Dallas Cowboys were the last team to sign anyone, kept their purse strings knotted and showed coach Mike McCarthy the door after a 7-10 season.
Who made the largest “Lombardi leaps” this week, keeping in mind that neither the 2025 Seahawks (10-7 during the previous season) nor 2024 Eagles (11-6 in 2023) needed massive makeovers? Who plugged the decisive pieces into their championship puzzles?
Four teams fit the mold. Two made playoff runs last season and two slipped from perennial AFC contenders to 6-11 records: the defending NFC West champion Los Angeles Rams and the NFC North champion Chicago Bears and the Cincinnati Bengals and Kansas City Chiefs.
The Rams fell short of the Big Game when they allowed Darnold to throw for 346 yards and three touchdowns in the Seahawks’ 31-27 victory in the NFC Championship.
General manager Les Snead attacked the situation head-on this month, shelling out a combined $176 million to add ex-Chiefs cornerbacks Trent McDuffie and Jaylen Watson (who both own two Super Bowl rings) and also re-signing safety Kam Curl to a three-year, $36 million deal.
The Bears were 4-5 during the 2025 regular season when opponents averaged at least 6.0 yards per play (7-1 when foes were under that mark).
Seeking speed for Dennis Allen’s defense, Chicago GM Ryan Poles signed former Seahawks safety Coby Bryant and replaced Tremaine Edmunds with former Browns linebacker Devin Bush. The Bears also solidified the defensive line with tackles Neville Gallimore and Kentavius Street.
The Bengals surrendered a franchise-record 492 points last season and finished 31st in total defense, including three games with more than 500 yards allowed.
Offsetting the departure of 31-year-old pass rusher Trey Hendrickson to the Ravens, Cincinnati got better by making former Chief Bryan Cook (another two-time champ) the highest-paid safety in franchise history and making former Seahawks linebacker Boye Mafe the franchise’s first $20 million per year free agent.
The Chiefs’ 10-year playoff streak ended last winter but the dynasty isn’t dead as long as Patrick Mahomes has two healthy legs to stand on. If he returns early enough from a torn ACL, you can’t count them out.
Sure, Kansas City lost a few key players, but GM Brett Veach signed reigning Super Bowl MVP running back Kenneth Walker III, veteran safety Alohi Gilman, defensive tackle Khyiris Tonga — a solid backup for 31-year-old Chris Jones — and wideout Tyquan Thornton. Tight end Travis Kelce also committed to another season, with the encouragement of Taylor Swift.
As for the rest, don’t start burning jerseys if your team didn’t make the cut here. There will be plenty more signings and trades before next month’s draft. At the time of writing, A.J. Brown is still an Eagle, Kyler Murray is still on the market and Maxx Crosby is still not a Raven.
Sports
No. 19 North Carolina, Clemson battle again in ACC quarterfinals
Mar 3, 2026; Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; Clemson Tigers guard Efrem Johnson (4) shoots against North Carolina Tar Heels center Henri Veesaar (13) during the first half at Dean E. Smith Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Kinser-Imagn Images No. 19-ranked North Carolina and Clemson just played an airtight game that went down to the wire last week in Chapel Hill, N.C.
The fourth-seeded Tar Heels (24-7) and fifth-seeded Tigers (23-9) won’t have to dig far to pull out that game film as they prepare for a rapid rematch Thursday night in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament quarterfinals in Charlotte.
North Carolina’s 67-63 win over Clemson on March 3 wound up as the tiebreaker that determined the fourth and final double-bye into the quarters, as both teams finished 12-6 in the league. Clemson had to play Wednesday night and outlasted No. 13 seed Wake Forest 71-62.
“It was a heck of a game the first time,” Clemson coach Brad Brownell said. “Give North Carolina credit: They found ways to make plays down the stretch, made some big threes against us. But it was a heck of a matchup. Our guys competed our tails off. They did, as well. It was a great college game. Hopefully, (Thursday) is the same.”
North Carolina lost superstar freshman Caleb Wilson for the season last week. Wilson, who hasn’t played since Feb. 10, broke his right thumb while dunking as he worked to recover from a fractured left hand.
That means Clemson is familiar with how the Tar Heels look without their best player — and knows what else their rivals can do.
Luka Bogavac had the best game of his first season of college basketball when he hit six 3-pointers and dropped 20 points on Clemson. He and veteran Seth Trimble (14.0 points per game) lead the backcourt, while 7-footer Henri Veesaar (16.3 ppg, 8.4 rpg) has 13 double-doubles and seven 20-point games.
North Carolina coach Hubert Davis hopes to guide his alma mater to more postseason success four years removed from the Final Four run on his first year on the job. He knows what he wants to see in tournament play.
“We want to live in the paint and live at the free-throw line. Those plays generate open threes,” Davis said after the regular season ended with a 76-61 loss to top-ranked Duke on Saturday. “The foundation of who we are hasn’t changed whether Caleb is in the lineup or not. That’s the way we play here at North Carolina, and we’ve got to dictate that next week in Charlotte.”
Clemson’s balanced attack against Wake Forest on Wednesday was a perfect illustration of the Tigers’ season-long identity. They don’t have anyone scoring more than RJ Godfrey’s average of 11.7 points per game, but eight active players entered the week averaging at least 5.7.
Brownell utilized a “hockey sub” during Wednesday’s game — making five subs at a time to keep players fresh. Godfrey tallied 11 against Wake, Chase Thompson scored nine points, and four other players reached eight apiece. The Tigers’ bench racked up 34 points and is top-30 nationally at 30.0 bench points per game.
“Personally, it’s just how can I affect the game, winning plays, use my IQ to my advantage,” said Thompson, a freshman forward. “It brings five fresh guys going against guys that have been in the game four or five minutes. That’s an advantage, as well.”
Brownell said Carter Welling, the Tigers’ second-leading scorer at 10.2 ppg, was being evaluated after suffering an unspecified injury in the first half.
“I find it unlikely that he would play (Thursday),” Brownell said.
Clemson allows opponents to shoot a mere 32.3% from 3-point range, but in its four-game losing streak from Feb. 11-21, opponents hit double-digit 3-pointers in every game at a combined 42.7% clip. Bogavac (51 made 3-pointers) and Derek Dixon (43) are the Tar Heels’ top perimeter threats.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Mark DeRosa Needs To Take More Accountability for Team USA
Mar 18, 2023; Miami, Florida, USA; USA manager Mark DeRosa (4) returns to the dugout after a pitching change during the fifth inning against Venezuela at LoanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images Team USA was dealt a massive upset loss to Italy in the World Baseball Classic, falling 8-6. The US battled back, with Gunner Henderson and Aaron Judge having at-bats in the bottom of the 9th to tie the game, but ultimately fell short in what will be one of the greatest upsets in WBC history.
The US was -1100 entering the matchup, and it seemed like a night to give a few guys some rest. Well, that would have been the case if Team USA hadn’t needed a win to move on to the quarterfinals. Manager Mark DeRosa completely mismanaged the team, benching multiple key starters to get Paul Goldschmidt and Ernie Clement some ABs.
Somehow, nobody had told DeRosa that the US could be eliminated with a loss, and now they have to wait for the results of Mexico and Italy to learn their fates. Mistakes happen; at this level, they shouldn’t, but they do. However, the biggest issue in this entire debacle is that DeRosa was never looking to take any accountability for this disaster.
DeRosa was on MLB Network’s ‘Hot Stove’ the morning before the Italy matchup, and he openly said he was resting guys because they had their ticket punched to the quarterfinals. That mistake alone should get you fired, but he didn’t say that by accident; he had no idea that they could be eliminated with a loss!
DeRosa had Clayton Kershaw warming up in the 8th inning, then mysteriously sat him back down to get Mason Miller into the game for the top of the 9th. Somebody must’ve told him that this game was still a must-win, and he wasn’t going to waste some innings with a mostly retired Kershaw.
In the post-game, he has to take way more accountability in that situation. He messed up; he didn’t just bungle his words. DeRosa needed to step on the stand after that game and, honestly, say he didn’t know the rules of the pool calculations, and that mistake was on him.
I’m not sure how anyone can take DeRosa seriously at this point. Anytime he’s criticizing a managerial decision on MLB TV, you’ll only be thinking about how he made one of the dumbest managerial moves you’ve ever seen in the sport. Also, if he was ever thinking of actually managing an MLB team, you can kiss that goodbye.
Honestly, it’s somewhat insane that the US Baseball Federation hasn’t fired him yet. This still shouldn’t all be on DeRosa. Even if you were playing with your C team, you shouldn’t be having any issues getting past Italy. Well, when you look at Italy’s roster, it’s essentially the USA’s C team, since it’s full of guys who aren’t even dual citizens.
Well, it’s a waiting game now to see if Team USA advances. If Italy wins, Team USA advances, or if Mexico wins and scores five or more runs, the Americans also still advance. No matter what happens, I don’t think we will be seeing DeRosa in the dugouts past this WBC.
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