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USA Today
28-05-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Where did ESPN rank Brent Venables as a player?
Where did ESPN rank Brent Venables as a player? The time of year when college football fans are hankering for college football but have little recruiting or transfer-portal news to keep up with always produces some engaging offseason content. Way off-season. Over at ESPN, college football analyst Adam Rittenberg put together a tier list of every FBS coach ranked by how good that coach was in college. More specifically, he put coaches into tiers that appear largely unranked, then capped the list with a top 30. So, where does Oklahoma's Brent Venables fit in? Not as high as Tennessee's Josh Heupel, but not in a bad landing spot. The Sooners coach slotted into the "Pre-portal transfers" tier. That tier ranks sixth of eight, though, again, differentiating between the middle tiers is a matter of perspective. Venables fit there because he began his career at Garden City Community College, becoming a JUCO All-American in 1990. From there, he transferred in-state to play for his mentor, Bill Snyder, at Kansas State. In Manhattan, Venables earned All-Big Eight honorable mention status his senior year after logging 114 tackles. No other SEC coach was among the nine remaining in that tier. The top-30 rankings yielded five Southeastern Conference head coaches. At the top, of course, former Sooners Heisman Trophy winner Josh Heupel. He immediately made his presence known in 1999 with 3,850 passing yards and 33 touchdowns. Heupel then led the Sooners to a national title in 2000, recording 3,606 passing yards and 20 touchdowns. He was named AP Player of the Year, won the Walter Camp Award and consensus All-America honors, and was runner-up for the Heisman Trophy. - Rittenberg, ESPN Oklahoma and Tennessee meet on the field with Heupel and Venables roaming the sidelines in Knoxville on November 1 this fall. Last year, Heupel's Volunteers won the matchup in Norman, 25-15. For those with a curious bit of state pride, four coaches with ties to the Sooner State ranked in the top 30. Purdue's Barry Odom (Ada) ranked 24th, Arkansas' Sam Pittman (Grove) ranked 21st, and Oklahoma State's Mike Gundy (Midwest City) ranked fifth. Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Sparks React to Major Kelsey Plum News After Three Games
Kelsey Plum built an impressive basketball career. The 30-year-old California native was the first overall pick in the 2017 WNBA Draft after a standout collegiate run at the University of Washington, where she played four seasons with the Huskies. Plum began her professional career with the San Antonio Stars, who later became the Las Vegas Aces in 2018. After the 2024 season, she was traded to the Los Angeles Sparks in a three-team deal. Advertisement So far, Plum has made an immediate impact with her new team, averaging 26.7 points per game despite the Sparks losing two of their first three contests. On Wednesday, during an 89-86 loss, Plum reached a major career milestone. The Sparks celebrated her achievement on social media later that night: "KP the shooter! Congrats to @Kelseyplum10 on making 500 career three-pointers!" Plum finished that game with 25 points and six assists in 40 minutes of play. In the season opener, she lit up Golden State with 37 points and six assists in an 84-67 victory. Throughout her WNBA career, Plum has won two league championships and made three All-Star appearances. She was named the 2022 All-Star Game MVP and earned the Sixth Player of the Year award the year prior. Los Angeles Sparks guard Kelsey Terada-Imagn Images At Washington, she was a 2017 first-team All-American, the AP Player of the Year and won both the John R. Wooden and Dawn Staley Awards. The school retired her No. 10 jersey in recognition of her accomplishments. Advertisement Plum also helped Team USA win gold at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, where the Americans edged out France 67-66. It was her second Olympic gold medal after winning in the 3x3 basketball event at the 2020 Games. The Sparks will try to bounce back at home this weekend. They'll face the Golden State Valkyries again on Friday before hosting the Chicago Aces on Sunday. Related: ESPN's Monica McNutt Makes Strong Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese Statement Related: Angel Reese's Strong Statement on Kamilla Cardoso Amid Sky Season
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Paige Bueckers' Blunt Response to Immediate Problem in WNBA Rookie Season
On Monday, the Dallas Wings dropped their second straight game, falling 79-71 at home to the Seattle Storm. Rookie guard Paige Bueckers led Dallas with 19 points, eight assists and five rebounds, improving markedly on her debut line of 10 points, seven rebounds and two assists in a season-opening loss to the Minnesota Lynx. Advertisement Yet, the Wings shot a woeful 4-for-19 from three and were repeatedly burned by Skylar Diggins, Gabby Williams and Nneka Ogwumike, who combined for 61 points. After the final buzzer, a reporter noted that defenses have been sending double teams at Bueckers "on nearly every possession" and asked how she planned to respond. "I mean it's probably smart just to get the ball out of my hands, and just trying to... adjust offensively on how to counteract a trap... and maybe less ball screens and screening," Bueckers said. "But it's just something a different look that defenses are throwing at me, which is an adjustment. And so just continue to learn and work through that." Bueckers concluded a decorated five-year career at UConn this spring as the nation's premier college player. Advertisement She led the Huskies to the 2025 NCAA title, earning all of the sport's top honors in her senior year: the Honda Sports Award, Wade Trophy, and AP Player of the Year, among others. A three-time unanimous first-team All-American (2021, 2024, 2025) and two-time Nancy Lieberman Award winner, Bueckers posted a career scoring average of 19.9 points per game, the highest in UConn history. Dallas Wings guard Paige Bueckers (5).Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images The Wings selected her with the first overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft in April. At 0-2, they now face a true test of resilience when Bueckers returns to Minnesota on Wednesday for her 'homecoming' versus the Lynx. Related: Former WNBA Champion Involved in Caitlin Clark Incident Gets Released Related: Indiana Fever Turn Heads with Roster Announcement on Thursday
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Caitlin Clark's Parents Have Strong Feelings About Indiana Fever in Year Two
Indiana Fever superstar Caitlin Clark is looking to start her second WNBA season on the right foot against Angel Reese and the Chicago Sky at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis on Saturday. Since the end of Clark's 2024 Rookie of the Year campaign, there has been a major overhaul to the Fever organization at every level, from front office changes to free agent signings like DeWanna Bonner to a new head coach in Stephanie White. Advertisement One area of consistency is the foundation provided by Clark's family. Her parents, Anne and Brent Clark, are some of the loudest supporters in attendance at many of her games. After a long offseason, they are excited for what is in store for their daughter in her second season. Indiana Fever guard Caitlin Clark (left) is cheered on by her mother, Anne (right) during a preseason game at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa Becker-Imagn Images; Grace Smith/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK Clark's mom and dad attended the preseason game the Fever played at the familiar confines of Carver-Hawkeye Arena, where her No. 22 jersey was retired after a record-breaking NCAA career with the Iowa Hawkeyes. It was roughly a two-hour drive from where they raised Clark and her two brothers, Blake and Colin, in West Des Moines. Advertisement Anne brought cookies for the ESPN crew covering the game. Brent, who used to coach his daughter, did an interview with Holly Rowe expressing the couple's initial impressions of the new-look Fever under White. "I commented to my wife earlier, it seems like — and I think Steph White is reinforcing this — she says you do not hold the ball more than one second," the former two-sport college athlete said. "It's quick decision making, they're moving the ball and that leads to a lot of points." Former Iowa Hawkeyes guard Caitlin Clark (center) poses with mother Anne Clark (left) and father Brent Clark after being named the AP Player of the Year on April 4, Lee-USA TODAY Sports In classic Clark fashion, Caitlin's dad brought up the officials without any prompting. When asked what he learned during his daughter's first season, Brent said, "there's a lot of room for improvement there, particularly in the officiating." Advertisement No matter how the season starts against Chicago, the Fever point guard can fall back on the certainty of her parents any time she needs. "She'll look to the stands every so often and I try to give her some reassurance," her dad said in 2023. "I try to do the best I can." Related: Caitlin Clark's WNBA Earnings Are Likely Lower Than You Think Related: Fans React to Paige Bueckers' Dad's Emotional Interview During WNBA Debut
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Breanna Stewart Comments on Sue Bird's Major Career Move
During her 19-year career in the WNBA, Sue Bird became known as one of the greatest players in the history of women's basketball. She helped lead the Seattle Storm to four championships, and she was named to the All-Star team an amazing 13 times. Wherever Bird has gone, she has won. She earned two national championships while at UConn, as well as five Olympic gold medals and four victories in the FIBA World Cup. Advertisement She was recently voted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, and she was also just named the managing director of Team USA women's basketball. Breanna Stewart of the New York Liberty publicly praised Bird for her new title and jokingly asked her for a favor. 'I told her, hopefully you don't cut me,' Stewart said. Stewart won two WNBA titles with Bird on the Storm in 2018 and 2020, and she's fresh off leading the Liberty to the championship last year while earning her sixth All-Star berth. The forward averaged 20.4 points, 8.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 1.7 steals, and 1.3 blocks a game last year, and thanks to her continued productivity, the Liberty are favored by many people to win it all again this year. New York Liberty forward Breanna Stewart shoots as Minnesota Lynx guard Kayla McBride defends during Game 3 of the WNBA Finals at Target Center on Oct. 16, Krohn-Imagn Images Stewart is also a former standout with the UConn Huskies, where she won the women's NCAA championship in all four seasons there. She was named the Most Outstanding Player of the tournament each time, as well as three AP Player of the Year and Naismith College Player of the Year awards. Advertisement She has also won three gold medals each in the Summer Olympics and the FIBA World Cup. The next edition of the FIBA World Cup will take place next year in Germany. Related: Paige Bueckers' Former UConn Teammate in Attendance For WNBA Debut
