Sports
Texans co-founder and senior chair Janice McNair dies at 89
Dec 15, 2024; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Texans co-founder and former owner Janice McNair looks on with son and Texans chief executive officer Cal McNair in the background before a game against the Miami Dolphins at NRG Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images Houston Texans co-founder and senior chair Janice McNair died on Tuesday at age 89, the team announced.
McNair co-founded the expansion team with her late husband, Bob McNair, in 2002 after the Houston Oilers moved to Tennessee after the 1996 season and later became the Titans.
“Janice McNair was a woman of extraordinary generosity, grace and faith, whose impact on the Houston community and the NFL will be felt for generations,” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement.
“Alongside Bob, she helped bring the NFL back to her beloved Houston and played an essential role in building the Texans into an organization that reflects the values they held dear: service, integrityand commitment to community. Following Bob’s passing, Janice served as controlling owner for six years and continued to provide steady leadership while remaining devoted to their family, Texans, their fans and countless charitable causes.
“On behalf of the entire NFL family, we extend our heartfelt condolences to the McNair family, the Texans organization and the Houston community.”
She became the fourth person inducted into the Texans’ Ring of Honor last November, joining her husband, who died in 2018 at age 81, along with franchise icons Andre Johnson and J.J. Watt.
Janice McNair transferred principal ownership to her son, Cal McNair, in the spring of 2024.
“Mom was exceptional,” Cal McNair, Texans chair and CEO, said in the statement. “She exuded kindness, radiated joy, had an endless amount of hope and love, and lived an incredible life centered around faith, family, philanthropy and football.
“It’s impossible to describe the profound gratitude that my sisters, Ruth and Melissa, and I feel for having her as our mom. Outside of our family, nothing mattered more to her than her beloved Texans. I remain honored to lead this franchise and build on the foundation my parents set when they brought football back to Houston. Mom leaves an indelible mark on our family, our team and our community, and her giving spirit will always be embedded in the fabric of our organization. While I’m heartbroken, I take great comfort in knowing she is now reunited with my dad, her favorite teammate.”
Janice McNair, born in Myrtle Beach and raised in Orangeburg, S.C., moved to Houston with her husband in 1960. They are known for their philanthropy, having donated over $500 million to charitable causes, according to the Texans. The team said in a statement Tuesday that education and medical research are key focuses of their foundations.
She served as director of The Robert and Janice McNair Foundation, the Houston Texans Foundation and The Robert and Janice McNair Educational Foundation in Forest City, N.C.
“Mrs. McNair was an incredible woman who will be deeply missed,” said fourth-year Houston head coach DeMeco Ryans, a former Texans linebacker (2006-11). “As a player, she and Mr. McNair built an organization that felt like a family and it was a true honor to play for them.
“I will always remember the day I came home to Houston in 2023. Mrs. McNair welcomed me back into the Texans family with open arms and her signature warm smile. We shared the same vision of bringing the organization to new heights and I will continue to work every day to accomplish that goal. My thoughts and prayers are with Cal, Hannah and their family during this time.”
She is survived by four children, 16 grandchildren and 13 great grandchildren.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Brian Kelly open to coaching return: 'Lot more to give'
Oct 11, 2025; Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA; LSU Tigers head coach Brian Kelly looks on against the South Carolina Gamecocks during the first half at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images Brian Kelly is not ready to declare his coaching career finished.
The former Notre Dame and LSU head coach said he remains open to several possibilities, including taking an assistant or coordinator position after more than three decades leading his own programs.
“I don’t think I’ve closed any doors in my own mind,” Kelly said during an appearance on The Independent: A Notre Dame Football Podcast. “And I think that’s the most important thing. I’m very open-minded about what the opportunities might be for me. I have a lot more to give.”
Kelly, 64, was fired by LSU midway through his fourth season in Baton Rouge last October. He has spent the months since focusing on his health and reconnecting with former players and coaches, something the pace of running a major college program rarely allowed him to do.
His offseason stops have included a visit with Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur, who previously worked for Kelly at Notre Dame. Kelly also plans to return to Grand Valley State, where he began his head coaching career and won two Division II national championships.
A visit to Notre Dame is also expected. Kelly coached the Fighting Irish from 2010-21 before leaving for LSU while Notre Dame was still in contention for the College Football Playoff.
Kelly said he wants his return to South Bend to demonstrate support for current coach Marcus Freeman and the direction of the program.
“I just want to show that I have 100% faith and confidence in what they’re doing and how they’re doing it,” Kelly said. “Not that they need me to validate in any way.”
Kelly praised Freeman for succeeding in one of college football’s most demanding jobs despite having no previous head-coaching experience. He identified Freeman’s willingness to listen and adjust as one of his greatest strengths.
Kelly, who owns a 200-76 career Division I record with stops at Central Michigan, Cincinnati, Notre Dame and LSU, is expected to remain connected to the sport through broadcasting during the 2026 season, calling Mountain West games for CBS. It gives him an opportunity to study how college football continues to change before deciding whether to return to the sideline.
He said a future job would not necessarily have to come as the head coach of a national championship contender. After 35 seasons running programs, Kelly appears willing to consider a different role if the right opportunity emerges.
–Field Level Media
Sports
WTA roundup: Paula Badosa earns upset win in Romania
Jun 30, 2026; London, United Kingdom; Paula Badosa (ESP) hits a backhand against Emma Navarro (USA) (not pictured) on day two of The Championships Wimbledon 2026 at All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images Paula Badosa of Spain knocked out fourth-seeded Ukrainian Anhelina Kalinina 6-3, 6-1 on Tuesday to reach the second round of the UniCredit Iasi Open in Romania.
Kalinina committed eight double faults and held serve just twice across the two sets. Romania’s Elena-Gabriela Ruse also made an early exit, with Spain’s Kaitlin Quevedo eliminating the sixth seed 6-3, 6-1. Quevedo saved 12 of the 14 break points she faced and broke Ruse six times.
Third-seeded Oleksandra Oliynykova of Ukraine survived two tiebreakers to beat Turkish lucky loser Ipek Oz 7-6 (1), 7-6 (5), while No. 5 seed Panna Udvardy of Hungary outlasted Spain’s Leyre Romero Gormaz 6-3, 4-6, 6-3. French No. 8 seed Elsa Jacquemot and No. 9 seed Yulia Putintseva of Kazakhstan also advanced in straight sets.
Other winners included Slovenia’s Tamara Zidansek, Armenia’s Elina Avanesyan, Mayar Sherif of Egypt, Alevtina Ibragimova and Elena Pridankina of Russia and Poland’s Katarzyna Kawa.
Athens Open
Top-seeded Clara Tauson of Denmark recovered from a slow start to defeat Japanese qualifier Nao Hibino 7-5, 6-4 in the opening round in Greece.
Tauson fell behind by a break in the first set but worked her way back, eventually converting four break points for the match while limiting Hibino to two. No. 2 seed Ann Li had a more comfortable afternoon, sweeping Maria Timofeeva of Uzbekistan 6-2, 6-1 in 79 minutes.
Third-seeded Barbora Krejcikova of the Czech Republic also advanced in 79 minutes, beating Bulgaria’s Viktoriya Tomova 6-3, 6-3. Seventh-seeded Czech Tereza Valentova cruised past Belgium’s Sofia Costoulas 6-1, 6-2. Italian lucky loser Miriana Tona earned her first WTA main-draw victory by beating Greek wild card Sapfo Sakellaridi 7-6 (2), 5-7, 6-2 in a match lasting three hours, eight minutes. France’s Carole Monnet, Russia’s Alina Korneeva and Belarus’ Aliaksandra Sasnovich also won their matches.
–Field Level Media
Sports
ATP roundup: Stan Wawrinka bids farewell to Gstaad
Jun 30, 2026; London, United Kingdom; Stan Wawrinka (SUI) hits a forehand against Matteo Berrettini (ITA) (not pictured) on day two of The Championships Wimbledon 2026 at All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club. Mandatory Credit: Geoff Burke-Imagn Images Portugal’s Jaime Faria held off Stan Wawrinka 6-7 (8), 6-4, 6-4 on Tuesday in the first round of the EFG Swiss Open Gstaad, marking the 41-year-old’s final match on the clay in his homeland.
Wawrinka has said he will retire after this season. The three-time Grand Slam champion was presented with a gift of new skis by tournament organizers after his nearly two-hour, 38-minute affair, in which he smashed 16 aces but went 0-for-6 in break-point chances.
Greek veteran Stefanos Tsitsipas took down Peruvian No. 5 seed Ignacio Buse 6-4, 6-4, winning 37 of his 48 service points (77.1%) along the way. No. 6 seed Juan Manuel Cerundolo rallied past Zdenek Kolar of the Czech Republic 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, while Frenchman Quentin Halys, German Yannick Hanfmann, Kazakhstan’s Aleksandr Shevchenko and Swiss wild card Jerome Kym also advanced.
Nordea Open
No. 8 seed Sebastian Baez dropped the first set before charging past Swedish hopeful Max Dahlin 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 in Bastad, Sweden.
The other seeded players in action all held firm, as No. 5 seed Nuno Borges of Portugal beat French wild card Moise Kouame 6-4, 6-2; No. 6 Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands beat Japanese qualifier Taro Daniel 7-6 (0), 6-4; and No. 7 Thiago Agustin Tirante of Argentina eliminated Austria’s Sebastian Ofner 6-3, 6-4.
Other winners included Germany’s Daniel Altmaier, Georgia’s Nikoloz Basilashvili, Bulgarian wild card Grigor Dimitrov, Argentina’s Lautaro Midon, Paraguay’s Adolfo Daniel Vallejo and Italians Andrea Pellegrino and Stefano Travaglia.
Plava Laguna Croatia Open Umag
France’s Titouan Droguet won 11 of the final 12 games of his match to steamroll No. 5 seed Alexander Blockx of Belgium 3-6, 6-2, 6-0 in Umag, Croatia.
No. 7 seed Camilo Ugo Carabelli of Argentina avoided a similar fate as Blockx when he rallied from down a break in the second set to edge German qualifier Marko Topo 6-7 (2), 7-6 (3), 6-3.
Also advancing were Spaniards Pablo Carreno Busta and Daniel Merida, Argentines Roman Andres Burruchaga and Federico Agustin Gomez, Alex Molcan of Slovakia and Juan Carlos Prado Angelo of Bolivia.
–Field Level Media
Brian Kelly open to coaching return: 'Lot more to give'
WTA roundup: Paula Badosa earns upset win in Romania
