Lions roar again today at California Live tournament
Faith Christian School girls basketball, last year's darling from the mid-valley winning a Northern California D-VI Regional, is scheduled to compete in the Bay Area Basketball Coaches Association (BABCA) section as one of 67 teams over three days.
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The Lions, which feature two of the premier incoming seniors in Northern California in Lauren Harris and Presley Berry, open today (Thursday) against Mission Oak at 2:20 p.m. on court 3. The Lions, 29-2 and No. 9 in the final MaxPreps Sac-Joaquin Section computerized poll for 2024-25, will also face off against the section's overall No. 10 Lincoln (Stockton) Trojans; Tracy; Acalanes; and Mills over the course of the pool play portion of the tournament. FCS and Lincoln tipoff at 4:40 p.m. Thursday on court 2; Acalanes takes flight against Faith on Friday at 4:40 p.m. on court 9 in the opener of a doubleheader that ends with Faith and Tracy at 7 p.m. Friday. The finale for Geoff Harris' club will come against Mills at 2:20 p.m. Saturday on court 1.
The BABCA was founded by Bay Area High basketball coaches in 2021 as part of the 'Let Them Play' movement to restart the playing of prep basketball in California during COVID-19. Membership includes boys and girls coaches across all divisions – public and private – from multiple sections in the Golden State, according to its history section on its website.
Two years ago, BABCA started its first Girls California Live tournament at the Roebbelen Center, resulting in over 100 teams participating and 75 college coaches in attendance, according to the BABCA.
To purchase tickets to today's event visit https://gofan.co/app/school/CA100461.
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Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Panthers' disappointing preseason results should trigger a change in approach
With the NFL's regular season nearing closer, excitement, optimism and hope are flowing through the veins of fanbases across the sport. But when it comes to the Carolina Panthers faithful, all of those feelings may be a bit cautious—particularly after their latest exhibition offering. Saturday's preseason contest against the Houston Texans was quickly soured by the starting offense, which totaled all of three net yards over two painfully stagnant possessions. Between that eventual 20-3 loss and their previous one, a 30-10 defeat to the Cleveland Browns, the Panthers amassed all of 13 points and just one touchdown while three of the first team's four total drives ended after just three plays. Both outings have reminded fans of last summer, when the offense appeared rather vanilla. The defense hasn't exactly helped either, as the unit still shows a lack of depth up and down the depth chart. The responsibility rests with head coach Dave Canales and his staff. For the second consecutive year, the team has failed to strike an early rhythm—and the approach from the sideline has been thrown into question yet again. Many, like in 2024, thought the starters should've received more reps to ignite some momentum. That, however, wasn't much of a concern for Canales—who believes the group got an adequate amount of work in during their joint practice with Houston last Thursday. In fairness, the Panthers haven't been the only team to exercise this preseason strategy. You get the starters a couple of drives, give the assistant coaches an opportunity to call plays and simplify the playbook to its basics. But that process is more fitting for established contenders, not for these Panthers. The lack of execution and questionable play-calling concepts, specifically on offense, haven't done much for the greater good. Carolina, as a growing squad, must use this time to continue figuring out who they are rather than going through the motions. Although Canales and his staff are also learning and growing—the fans, especially these ones, deserve to see a better product and a better approach to the summer. (After all, they won't be allowed to regularly see their team practice until 2027.) In the end, or at least in a few weeks' time, this point could all be moot. Perhaps the disappointing results thus far won't mean anything, as is the case with much of every preseason. If history, however, is any indicator, then Week 1 of 2025 in Jacksonville may look like Week 1 of 2024 in New article originally appeared on Panthers Wire: Panthers' bland preseason approach still leaves fans yearning for hope
New York Times
31 minutes ago
- New York Times
Commanders takeaways: Jayden Daniels, Bill Croskey-Merritt show off their speed
LANDOVER, Md. — The second game was always going to be about the starters. Quarterback Jayden Daniels would get his first and only snaps of the preseason, receiver Deebo Samuel would make his Washington debut and most of the Commanders' remade defensive line would get some live reps. But in the 48 hours or so before kickoff, attention shifted to two starters whose futures with the team are in limbo. Advertisement Washington's one-time lead running back, Brian Robinson Jr., was held out of the game amid trade speculation. Coach Dan Quinn and general manager Adam Peters met with Robinson on Sunday afternoon to inform him of the plan, then Quinn addressed the team. Quinn declined to share any specifics about that conversation and wouldn't say if it was related to Robinson's uncertain future with the team. He joined 12 other Commanders starters who did not play Monday, including Terry McLaurin, the star receiver who is in a prolonged contract dispute with the team. 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Forbes
31 minutes ago
- Forbes
Top 10 College Football Players To Watch In 2025
College football's preseason is unique in that there is a one-month buildup to kick off with media polls, watchlists, Heisman projections and top 25 polls rolling out and allowing for ample debate. Speaking of debate, many outlets release lists of top players at each position, or top players overall. With respect to the latter, chimes in with a top 10 (alphabetical) list of players to keep tabs on in 2025. This is not a list of Heisman hopefuls, though at least of few among the players noted below will likely be right in the thick of the conversation. Rather, it is about a player's impact and how critical he is to the success of his team. Drew Allar Allar's stock soared a year ago when he led the Nittany Lions to the Big Ten championship game and CFP semifinal, which they lost to Notre Dame on a field goal with seven seconds remaining. It was an ill-advised pass by Allar that was picked, and led to the winning score. Additional motivation heading into 2025? Maybe. Unfinished business? Definitely. Allar, who set an FBS record by opening his career with 311 pass attempts without an interception, threw for 3,327 yards and 30 total touchdowns in 2024. A major reason why Penn State is expected to be in the national title hunt once again is because Allar will operate behind a very experienced and very deep offensive line. A weak non-conference slate of Nevada, FIU and Villanova will allow Allar and PSU to build momentum before No. 7/7 Oregon visits Happy Valley on September 27. Caleb Downs If there is a player from the defensive side of scrimmage who could make a run at the Heisman, Downs is that player. His first season in Columbus after transferring from Alabama was a rousing success as the safety was a unanimous first-team All-American for the national champion Buckeyes. While statistics do not tell the story in total, Downs nonetheless was second on the team in solo tackles (48), third in tackles for loss (7.5), intercepted a pair of passes and broke up six more. One of his six punt returns resulted in a 79-yard TD against Indiana. Downs, who entered the portal less than one week after Kalen DeBoer was hired in January 2024 to succeed Nick Saban in Tuscaloosa, and after being named SEC Freshman of the Year, is the leader of a unit that lost a good amount of production as well as its coordinator after leading the nation in scoring defense (12.9 points) and total defense (255 yards). Former Detroit Lions coach and New England Patriots DC Matt Patricia takes over for Jim Knowles, who left for Big Ten rival Penn State. There is big test out of the chute against Arch Manning and visiting Texas on August 30. Cade Klubnik It was impressive in of itself that Klubnik threw 36 touchdown passes last season, good for third nationally. What stands out even more is that he threw only six interceptions for an impressive 6:1 ratio that was second best among the 41 quarterbacks with at least 20 touchdown passes. Klubnik, who as a freshman in 2022 saw good chunks of action in 10 games (one start) while backing up D.J. Uiagalelei, became Dabo Swinney's clearcut No.1 in 2023. There were growing pains, for sure, though Klubnik has only gotten better and heads into 2025 as a serious Heisman candidate. An August 30 season opener in primetime against visiting LSU and fellow Heiman hopeful, Garrett Nussmeier, will be must-see viewing. D.J. Lagway As a true freshman quarterback playing in the SEC and thrown into the fire in mid-season, it was no surprise Lagway's performance was rather uneven at times. He also showed plenty of character and determination in leading the Gators to four straight wins to close out an 8-5 season that was capped by a Gasparilla Bowl win over Tulane in which Lagway captured MVP honors after a shaky start. Indeed, fortunes changed in Gainesville when coach Billy Napier turned to Lagway to lead the offense in the season's second half, which included back-to-back home wins over ranked LSU and Ole Miss. With the strong finish to 2024, it comes as no surprise the Gators open the season in the top 25 for the first time since 2021. A three-game stretch against preseason top 10 teams that begins September 13 at LSU, followed by a trip to Miami then, after a bye, a visit from top-ranked Texas will be the ultimate test for Lagway and the Gators. Jeremiyah Love Love may have to carry the load in every sense until C.J. Carr or Kenny Minchey grows comfortable running the Irish offense. Regardless, what may very well be the best offensive line in college football will see to it there is ample daylight as it often did last season, which did not end well for the running back. There were questions – and a brace – surrounding Love's right knee during the Irish's playoff run. He carried the ball only four times for three yards in the national championship game loss to Ohio State. Though Love's 98-yard TD sprint against Indiana in a first-round playoff matchup was certainly electrifying, he otherwise had only 78 yards on 28 carries for a paltry 2.8 yards per tote in four playoff games. Love is a game-breaker of a runner who, even with his struggles in the playoff, averaged an eye-opening 6.9 yards per carry to place sixth nationally. A healthy Love should have an explosive 2025. Arch Manning The most-hyped recruit in the land is now in his third year with the Hook 'Em's? After appearing in two games and maintaining a redshirt in 2023, the nephew of Eli and Peyton saw action in 10 games last season and made a pair of starts in place of Quinn Ewers, who was injured during UT's third game against UTSA. Manning came on and sparkled (9-for-12, 223 yards, 5 total TDs) in a blowout. He then started the next two games, both victories versus Louisiana-Monroe (258 pass yards, 2/2) and Mississippi State (325 pass yards, 2/0) in the Longhorns' first conference clash as a member of the SEC. All told, Manning threw for 939 yards and 9/2. Kyle Flood's offense now belongs to Manning. As if the glare has not been intense enough since his arrival in Auston, he and the 'Horns open at defending national champ Ohio State on August 30. The anticipation for Manning's first season atop the QB depth chart is such that there are not enough watchlists to go around. Indeed, the time is now for the 6-foot-4, 220-pound cannon-armed 21-year-old signal caller. While it may be surprising that he was left off the preseason Manning Award watchlist, it is a list that changes during the season. For the record: Grandfather Archie finished fourth in Heisman voting at Ole Miss in 1969 and his Rebel uncle, Eli, finished third in 2003. Uncle Peyton's career at Tennessee included being runner-up in 1997 after finishing eighth in 1996. Garrett Nussmeier Tigers fans were holding their breath earlier this month only to exhale when a knee injury Nussmeier sustained the second week of preseason camp was fortunately not serious. That was good news for college football fans for the simple reason Nussmeier emerged as one of the nation's top quarterbacks while throwing for 4,052 yards and 29 touchdowns last season, his first as a starter. He led LSU to 9-4 mark and win over Baylor in the Texas Bowl. Jayden Daniels handed off the baton along with the keys to the LSU offense ahead of the ReliaQuest Bowl following the 2023 regular season. Nussmeier responded by throwing for 395 yards, three touchdowns and taking home MVP honors in a win over Wisconsin. He carried the momentum into the 2024 season, though there is unfinished business to tend to as something more than a nine-win season is expected in Baton Rouge with No. 13 leading the way. It starts with the visit to Clemson noted above with Cade Klubnik. J.T. Parker Tom Allen had Abdul Carter unleashing all manner of havoc at Penn State last season. The defensive coordinator, hired by Dabo Swinney in January, has the luxury of a similarly disruptive force in Parker. The 6-foot-3 and 260-pound end was fifth nationally in tackles for loss a year ago with 19.5 while placing ninth in sacks with 11. As impressive as those numbers are, the exclamation point to the type of season he had were the school-record six forced fumbles. The Tigers allowed 23.4 points per game last season, which was the most Clemson allowed since yielding 24.8 in 2012. Led by Parker, Allen has star power and depth reminiscent of the smothering 2017 to 2019 units the allowed less than 290 yards per game. The first major test this season will be the August 30 season opener against visiting LSU. Jeremiah Smith Smith has played a lot of football the past two years, and won a lot of games. He starred with the nation's No. 2 high school team at Chaminade-Madonna in his native Miami in 2023 and dazzled as a freshman with the national champion Buckeyes last year. Add it all up, and he played 30 games in the two seasons while team went 28-2. Smith had a quiet game with one catch in what was nonetheless a two-touchdown win for Ohio State over Texas in a semifinal playoff matchup. That was an outlier for Smith, who otherwise shined in the other three playoff games (18-378-5) and finished the season with 15 TD catches while averaging 17.3 yards per reception and 82 yards receiving per game. His effort earned him second team All-American honors. True, Will Howard will not be targeting Smith this season. Still, first-year OC and former Buckeyes' receiver, Brian Hartline, should have a dynamic unit with (presumed QB1) Julian Sayin and Smith as the headliners. Ryan Williams Williams is now old enough to vote after turning 18 in February. As a 17-year-old who reclassified so that he could take the field with the Tide in 2024, Williams had 865 yards on 48 receptions for a hefty 18.0 yards per catch. He totaled 10 TDs, including two on the ground, and averaged 10 yards on a dozen punt returns. Again: All at age 17! Few will forget his game-winning 75-yard touchdown catch in what was a stunning back-and-forth of a fourth quarter in the Tide's 41-34 win over Georgia to open SEC play. Williams had a season high 177 yards against the Bulldogs, answering the question in only his fourth collegiate game about how would handle the national spotlight. It is easy to understand why there is much anticipation in Tuscaloosa heading into his sophomore season.
