Sports
Who got left out? NCAA Tournament committee snubs
Mar 12, 2026; Nashville, TN, USA; Auburn Tigers head coach Steven Pearl reacts to a call against the Tennessee Volunteers during the second half at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images The Southeastern Conference received 10 bids to the NCAA Tournament, but two of the biggest snubs also were teams from the league.
Oklahoma and Auburn were on the outside of the 68-team field when SMU of the Atlantic Coast Conference landed the final spot.
The Sooners (19-15) were the first team omitted, followed by Auburn (17-16). Ironically, the two schools tied for 11th place in the SEC in the regular season with 7-11 records.
Also among the first four out were San Diego State (22-11) of the Mountain West and Indiana (18-14) of the Big Ten.
Joining SMU as No. 11 seeds and among the last teams in the field were North Carolina State (ACC), Texas (SEC) and Miami (Ohio) of the Mid-American Conference.
Selection committee chairman Keith Gill said the committee got the right teams in the field. The Sun Belt Conference commissioner said it’s not easy when it is narrowed down to a few teams for one spot.
“When you try to compare those teams and get to that last team in the field, and this year that was SMU, that conversation between them and those teams outside the tournament is really challenging. All those teams had good years and have good things on their resume, and they also had some things that probably weren’t as good.
“When you try to compare those things and get to the last team in the tournament, it is tense and you just try to make sure you are making the best decision.”
Oklahoma got into the mix with a strong finish. The Sooners were just 11-12 after losing to Kentucky on Feb. 4 before winning eight of their final 11 games.
Oklahoma had a six-game winning streak during the stretch but none were against a ranked team. The Sooners went 1-1 in the SEC tourney, getting eliminated by Arkansas in the quarterfinals.
Auburn was 14-7 in late January before collapsing down the stretch. The Tigers went 3-9 the rest of the way, including a 0-4 mark against ranked teams.
Former Auburn coach Bruce Pearl — whose son Steven now coaches the team — said the Tigers should have been in due to their tough schedule.
Pearl, serving as a CBS studio analyst, said Oklahoma or Auburn should have been in the tournament instead of SMU.
“You have to win your way in or lose your way out,” Bruce Pearl said. “For me, you always say ‘You’re going to put one in, who you gonna take out?’ For me, SMU with a 191 out-of-conference strength of schedule. I don’t know that they should have been rewarded.”
San Diego State, the 2023 NCAA Tournament runner-up, was bypassed as the Mountain West got just one team (Utah State) in the field for the first time since 2017.
The Aztecs had participated in the last five NCAA Tournaments.
“I’m disappointed for our players and our great fans that we weren’t selected to compete in this year’s NCAA Tournament,” San Diego State coach Brian Dutcher said in a statement. “There are only 68 spots available and, unfortunately, we didn’t get one of them.
“We fought hard all year and in a league that featured seven teams that won at least 20 games, we completed the regular season alone in second place and reached the championship game of our conference tournament. All those are accomplishments we can be proud of, but in the committee’s eyes it just wasn’t enough to be included in the field. We respect the work they do.”
Dutcher said his team will call it a season and won’t play in any postseason tournaments.
Indiana also reportedly won’t play in a postseason season tourney after missing out on the NCAA field.
The Hoosiers finished 10th in the Big Ten (9-11 conference record) in Darian DeVries’ first season as a coach. But a late-season 1-6 nosedive that included a loss to Northwestern in its first Big Ten tourney game helped sink Indiana.
Other teams that still had hopes in the middle of last week were Stanford (20-12) of the ACC, New Mexico (23-10) of the Mountain West and Cincinnati (18-15) of the Big 12.
–Field Level Media
Sports
SoFi workers reach agreement to avoid strike ahead of World Cup
May 25, 2026; Inglewood, CA, USA; A general overall view of Sofi Stadium (Los Angeles Stadium), a host site for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images A potential strike by SoFi Stadium workers, ahead of the United States’ World Cup opening match at the venue Friday, was averted when an estimated 2,000 employees reached a tentative agreement Tuesday through their union.
The union representing hospitality workers at the stadium in Inglewood, Calif., had voted to authorize a strike last Friday, a week before the United States men’s national team was set to play against Paraguay.
Mostly composed of concessions workers as well as cashiers, dishwashers, bartenders and food attendants, the union had voted 96% in favor of the strike, which had been looming for the last few months since the existing deal with stadium operators Legends Global expired.
The new agreement earned workers a 40% pay increase for concession stands attendants and also has a clause allowing workers to walk off the job if the union believes that the presence of federal agents, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), creates a “reasonable apprehension of harm to the safety and security of workers,” The Athletic reported.
The agreement, which the union announced at a news conference, still has to be ratified by workers on Wednesday.
Kurt Peterson, co-president of the union, said the agreement will make the venue’s concessions workers the highest paid at NFL stadiums, according to a report in The Athletic, with most earning “more than $40 per hour, and many of them significantly more than that.”
Workers also will be able to earn “premium pay for mega-events, including all eight World Cup games,” Peterson told The Athletic.
SoFi Stadium is scheduled to host two of the United States’ three group-stage matches, against Paraguay (Friday) and Turkey (June 25), as well as three tournament knockout-stage matches, one of which is a quarterfinal on July 10.
The venue is the home of both the Los Angeles Rams and Chargers of the NFL. It also is slated to be a co-host for the Opening Ceremonies during the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, as well as the home for the swimming competitions.
The new agreement lasts until April 30, 2028, giving the union leverage for renegotiations before the Olympics begin.
–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
SoFi workers reach agreement to avoid strike ahead of World Cup
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