BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — All-Big 12 point guard Jada Williams will play next season at LSU. She was among nine Iowa State players who entered the transfer portal after the season. Coach Kim Mulkey announced the addition of Williams, who averaged 15.3 points and led the Big 12 with 7.7 assists per game in her only season at Iowa State. Williams ranks among the top earners for name, image and likeness in women’s college basketball and is one the most popular on social media platforms. She has nearly 600,000 followers on Instagram, more than 500,000 on TikTok and almost 18,000 on X.
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Keelon Russell was the star of Alabama’s spring game. He completed 21 of 33 passes for 240 yards, with four touchdowns and an interception. Although the Crimson Tide didn’t keep official stats, Russell led his unit to seven scores on nine drives — four TDs, three field goals, a missed field goal and an interception near the goal line. He also extended several plays with his legs despite wearing a noncontact jersey. Teammate and receiver Ryan Coleman-Williams says it felt like he was “playing a video game” when Russell was directing the offense.
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (AP) — Alabama football coach Kalen DeBoer says wide receiver Noah Rogers will miss the early part of the regular season because of an injury sustained in the team’s annual spring game. Rogers was carted off the field Saturday after attempting to catch a pass in the end zone. DeBoer delivered a partial timeline Monday during a radio interview with WTUG-FM in Tuscaloosa. A fourth-year junior, Rogers caught 68 passes for 919 yards and three touchdowns over the last two seasons at N.C. State. Alabama opens the season against East Carolina on Sept. 5.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Calling Florida overdue to win consistently would be an understatement in Gainesville. And new coach Jon Sumrall knows it as well as any diehard who watched the team’s annual spring game unfold at the Swamp. Sumrall says “we've got to wake this beast up" and adds that Florida is “a sleeping giant.” He believes winning is coming. Florida is a paltry 29-37 over its last 66 games, including losing seasons in four of the last five years. It would be unacceptable at just about any Power Four program. It’s downright embarrassing for one that has three national titles and eight Southeastern Conference championships since 1990.
UNDATED (AP) — The NFL draft is seeing fewer longshots from small schools. The rise of NIL deals and the crowded transfer portal have concentrated talent in power conferences. The shift is impacting the draft, with fewer players from nonpower conferences being taken during the three-day event. Only 24 of 257 NFL draftees last year came from nonpower conferences. The NCAA's policy changes on name, image, and likeness, along with transfer rules, have altered scouting strategies, focusing more on traditional football powerhouses.
UNDATED (AP) — The NIL deals that are transforming college sports are also allowing NFL teams to gain insight into how a young player will react to having money before they get a big pro contract. For many evaluators, it has become an important tool in the draft process. A prospect who stays focused despite lucrative deals is more likely to make a smoother transition to the pros. Scouts want to see if a player’s performance dips after making a lot of money or if he maintains the same work ethic and consistency. How they interact with teammates is also a key dynamic.
UNDATED (AP) — UCLA's baseball team is on the cusp of entering all-time territory with the 27-game winning streak it carried into the week. The Bruins have matched 2015 Illinois for most consecutive wins in Big Ten history. A nonconference win against UC Santa Barbara on Tuesday would give UCLA the longest streak in the nation since Fairfield won 28 in a row in 2021 and longest among power-conference schools since Texas reeled off 33 straight in 1982. Coach John Savage says he doesn't talk to the team about the streak. He says the Bruins have bigger goals.
