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DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Happy Daytona Day! It’s the morning of the 500-mile Great American Race, and NASCAR’s best drivers are doing everything they can to give themselves the best chance of victory after the green flag flies (2:30 p.m. ET, FOX). But breakfast can be tricky because they need to devour something high in protein that won’t weigh them down once they’re in the driver’s seat. So what are…

The unofficial Super Bowl of racing is set to kick off NASCAR’s 2017 season in Daytona Beach on Sunday. The Daytona 500 brings NASCAR’s best racers together all with the goal of winning at one of racing’s most famous tracks. One of the racers in the field is making his return to the track after an extended layoff while dealing with concussions: Dale Earnhardt Jr. After much discussion with doctors,…

In a curious address that had drivers laughing and shaking their heads in confusion afterward, NASCAR CEO and chairman Brian France issued a stern about blocking in the drivers meeting prior to Sunday’s Daytona 500 at Daytona International Speedway. “What I don’t normally do, and I’m going to do this today, is bring up a competition issue,” France said. “This is for the drivers and what I want you to…

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COLUMBIA, S.C. – When South Carolina football took to the practice field Saturday morning, Brandon McIlwain was getting ready for a Saturday afternoon baseball game against Wright State. The sophomore quarterback currently is a sophomore outfielder with the Gamecocks baseball team, leading him to be at Founders Park and not at the first spring football practice Saturday.  Still, in the middle of a busy baseball schedule and academic obligation, McIlwain…

Sez Me … Am I missing something here? Is baseball dying? Is it in ICU? Are priests around the world, not to mention the Pope, giving it extreme unction? No. Baseball is not in need of a Sacrament. It is thriving.  And yet they continue in their efforts to MacGyver it, because, well, this is 2017, and it should be like the bullet train (except the one in California, which…

BATON ROUGE, La. — LSU senior left-hander Jared Poche’ tossed eight more innings of no-hit baseball before finally surrendering his first hit of the season in the ninth inning, and the Tigers’ offense was impressive as well, defeating Maryland 14-0. The Tigers improved to 6-1 on the year, while Maryland fell to 1-4 with the loss. Poche’ (2-0, 0.00 ERA), who decided to return for his senior season…

Oakland Athletics ace Sonny Gray hasn’t had much luck lately. In 2016, he posted new full-season worsts in starts (22), ERA+ (70), and strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.24). If 2017 is destined to go better for Gray, then consider this an ominous sign: he will not be permitted to pitch for the United States’ World Baseball Classic team. The reason? Gray was denied insurance coverage for the event, according to Susan Slusser…

Attention, sports team owners – and anyone trying to make a buck off the supposedly ever-growing American thirst to watch athletic events. Game over. TV viewership of sporting events has seemingly reached – at a minimum – a cyclical peak. Ratings for most major professional sports are headed in the wrong direction. And in today’s media-saturated world, this will become a challenge for an industry in…

Getty Images When the NFL banned Barstool Sports from covering Super Bowl week events, PFT made an issue of it because we think independent media should be able to cover the sport without constraints from the league. Now the NBA has provided an example of what can happen when a sports league gets too heavy-handed with the media, and the media lacks the will to push back. Bleacher Report has…

A GRIP ON SPORTS • The quest for perfection ended on a not-so-perfect Senior Night at McCarthey Athletic Center. That’s the news flash. But there were a lot of reasons behind it. Read on. •••••••••• • We could count the reasons behind Gonzaga’s 79-71 loss to BYU last night but that would get really long. And we really don’t have the time. We could point to the 16-of-29 from the free…

Oregon Ducks forward Dillon Brooks (24) posts up on UCLA Bruins guard Lonzo Ball (2) during the second half at Pauley Pavilion. The UCLA Bruins won 82-79.(Photo: Kelvin Kuo, USA TODAY Sports) Gonzaga’s stunning loss to BYU doesn’t just ruin a perfect season. It likely ruins the chances of notching a No. 1 seed in the NCAA tournament now. Previously the fourth best No. 1, the ‘Zags (29-1, 17-1) fell…

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BATON ROUGE, La. — LSU senior left-hander Jared Poche’ tossed eight more innings of no-hit baseball before finally surrendering his first hit of the season in the ninth inning, and the Tigers’ offense was impressive as well, defeating Maryland 14-0. The Tigers improved to 6-1 on the year, while Maryland fell to 1-4 with the loss. Poche’ (2-0, 0.00 ERA), who decided to return for his senior season…

Attention, sports team owners – and anyone trying to make a buck off the supposedly ever-growing American thirst to watch athletic events. Game over. TV viewership of sporting events has seemingly reached – at a minimum – a cyclical peak. Ratings for most major professional sports are headed in the wrong direction. And in today’s media-saturated world, this will become a challenge for an industry in which multi-billion-dollar…

BATON ROUGE, La. — LSU senior left-hander Jared Poche’ tossed eight more innings of no-hit baseball before finally surrendering his first hit of the season in the ninth inning, and the Tigers’ offense was impressive as well, defeating Maryland 14-0. The Tigers improved to 6-1 on the year, while Maryland fell to 1-4 with the loss. Poche’ (2-0, 0.00 ERA), who decided to return for his senior season…

Marcia Martinez Staff Writer @MMartinezSJR The University of Illinois Springfield is offering a course focused on America’s pastime: baseball. Several UIS baseball players are enrolled this semester in Baseball: An Interdisciplinary Approach. The class teaches baseball through economics, history, politics, technology and culture. “I said, ‘Absolutely. Sign me up,” explained UIS senior outfielder Trey Hannam. “We started off in the late 1800s and early 1900s. It…

4. Developers unveiled plans for a $200 million sports complex, Atlanta Sports City, that they say will eventually include a 15,000-seat stadium, 22 soccer and football fields, seven baseball diamonds and five basketball courts. Construction on the 200-acre complex, located in the new city of Stonecrest in southeast DeKalb County, is slated to begin this fall. Men’s and women’s pro soccer teams are expected to be announced soon for the…

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The arena has all the features that a professional sports venue needs: stands, warm-up areas for teams, massive screens for spectators and a broadcast platform for commentators. But what distinguishes this new Las Vegas arena is its dozens of video game consoles. The 15,000-square-foot e-sports venue slated to open Friday will host competitive video game tournaments. It’s part of a trend that the casino industry hopes…

Last week, I challenged you would-be cord-cutters out there to go without cable for a full week. And I pointed you to some great, totally free apps to temporarily fill the void. That was intended to gauge your readiness to let go of old-fashioned viewing habits that may or may not be satisfying your entertainment needs.  But, here’s the thing: I kind of glossed over the sports genre.  Not this time. First, as…