The Minnesota Vikings historically have struggled to run the football consistently to this point in the Kevin O’Connell era.
2025 was widely considered their most successful season in that department, but still, Minnesota 23rd in rushing yards (1841), 18th in rushing touchdowns (15), and 11th in yards per carry (4.5). With the team still very much a middle of the pack group in the rushing department despite some revamps to the offensive line last year, the Vikings could be looking to change things in their running back room.
One way the Vikings could try to do that is through the 2026 NFL Draft. Here are the top five running backs Minnesota could pick up in the first three rounds this April.
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Jeremiyah Love, Notre Dame
Nov 29, 2025; Stanford, California, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish running back Jeremiyah Love (4) runs with the football during the first quarter against Stanford Cardinal safety Che Ojarikre (22) at Stanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stan Szeto-Imagn Images
It’s a long shot, especially now that the Vikings finished their season at 9-8, but Jeremiyah Love could be an option if a miracle happened and he fell into the late teens this spring. Love brings a little bit of everything out of the backfield. He’s fast, shifty, balanced enough to bounce off tacklers, and he can be a receiver.
He might not quite have the athletic repertoire of a Bijan Robinson, but Love was one of the most highly productive players in all of college football over the past two years, totaling 2,497 yards rushing and 35 touchdowns since 2024. There’s a very strong chance that he ends up in the top 10 of this spring’s draft.
Jonah Coleman, Washington
Oct 4, 2025; College Park, Maryland, USA; Washington Huskies running back Jonah Coleman (1) carries the ball against the Maryland Terrapins at SECU Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Sabau-Imagn Images
Jonah Coleman is one of my favorite players that I’ve watched from this draft class so far. The man is a bowling ball at the running back position at 5’9″ and 228 pounds, and that makes him a very difficult player for opposing defenses to tackle.
Coleman absorbs contact with the best of them, and his balance will be a very attractive trait to NFL teams this spring. He won’t blow anyone away with top end speed, but there isn’t anything Coleman doesn’t do well. He is very patient behind the line of scrimmage, is a great workhorse back, and he can also contribute in pass protection and as a receiver. He caught 31 passes this past season with the Washington Huskies.
Coleman can certainly contribute at the NFL level, but because of his lack of top end speed, he likely will be available for the Vikings in the second or even third round.
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Emmett Johnson, Nebraska
Nov 28, 2025; Lincoln, Nebraska, USA; Nebraska Cornhuskers running back Emmett Johnson (21) runs against Iowa Hawkeyes defensive back Zach Lutmer (6) during the third quarter at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dylan Widger-Imagn Images
It’s been awhile since Nebraska has had a high end running back, but Emmett Johnson changed the tides in the backfield this season for the Cornhuskers. He became the first Nebraska running back with 1000+ yards since Devine Ozigbo in 2018.
Johnson thrives in zone running schemes, and he was one of the most explosive playmakers out of the backfield in all of college football this season. His 36 carries of 10+ yards tied for sixth in the FBS. If the Vikings want someone who can help in the passing game too, Johnson might be their guy after leading all running backs in the FBS with 46 receptions.
At 5’11” and 200 pounds, Johnson has a sturdy frame to along with outstanding breakaway speed and ability to change directions on a dime. He needs to get better as a blocker if he wants to truly help an NFL passing game, but he can be a difference maker in an NFL offense this year.
Jadarian Price, Notre Dame
Notre Dame running back Jadarian Price (24) celebrates with wide receiver Malachi Fields (0) after a Price touchdown in the first half of a NCAA football game against Syracuse at Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025, in South Bend.
While Jeremiyah Love stole much of the spotlight at Notre Dame this past year, Jadarian Price should not be overlooked heading into this draft. In an offense that had a top Heisman candidate in Love, Price still managed to get 120 carries in 2024 and 113 carries in 2025.
There’s a reason for that: Price is a very effective player. Every movement Price makes in the backfield seems effortless and entirely intentional. He has a terrific ability to make cuts in the blink of an eye, leaving defenses with virtually no time to react, or he’ll be gone.
That being said, there are some questions that could impact his placement in the draft. We’ve never seen him be a lead running back at the collegiate level, which is a very unique position for a player who is widely considered to be a Day 2 selection. He could also have some trouble staying on the field on third downs, particularly in passing situations. He only caught 15 passes over the course of his three years at Notre Dame. There were also some fumble concerns this year with three of them all near the goal line.
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Kaytron Allen, Penn State
Nov 29, 2025; Piscataway, New Jersey, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions running back Kaytron Allen (13) reacts after a rushing touchdown during the first half against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights at SHI Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
Like Coleman, Kaytron Allen has a very sturdy frame that keeps his legs churning through defenders. Of his 1303 rushing yards this season, 792 of them came after contact. That was the 16th-most in all of the FBS this past year.
Allen (5’11”, 229 pounds) has been a very productive player at Penn State since he arrived in 2022, totaling at least 167 carries in all four of his seasons with the Nittany Lions. He’s proven time and time again that he can be a workhorse, and a very explosive burst allows him to get to the second level of a defense in a hurry.
However, he also lacks that true home run speed like Coleman. However, unlike Coleman, Allen also has struggled as a receiver, which may force him off the field on third down passing situations. In 2025, he caught 18 passes for just 68 yards. That very likely will cause him to fall into the third round this spring.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Focus helped with this article.
Josh Frey is a senior writer at both PurplePTSD.com and VikingsTerritory.com, with a fascination for the NFL Draft. To … More about Josh Frey
Among Peter Moody and Katherine Coleman’s impressive three-year-old fillies, Alpha Sofie is poised as the pioneer for her autumn initiation at Caulfield.
Originally a Queensland filly, she registered two Eagle Farm successes before an explosive debut for Moody and Coleman via a Moonee Valley triumph, followed by an immediate spell.
Coleman expressed the team’s enthusiasm for her return, including stablemates and three-year-old fillies Sheza Alibi and Ole Dancer.
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Moody and Coleman have been pleased with Alpha Sofie’s physical conditioning and development over her layoff period.
“I think she’s improved off her last preparation,” Coleman said.
“Her work and her jump-outs leading into this first-up run have been really impressive.
“She won very comfortably at her only run for us and it was a good form race as well.
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“We’re very excited and the break did her well. She seems more mature and stronger physically this time as well.”
The Listed Atlantic Jewel Stakes (1200m) at Moonee Valley fell to Alpha Sofie, who saw off Custom, Salty Pearl and fellow stable filly Ole Dancer.
“She (Alpha Sofie) is the first one we’re unleashing and next week we’ll have Sheza Alibi and Ole Dancer back at the races, all being well,” Coleman said.
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“Sheza Alibi goes to the Desirable Stakes while Ole Dancer will go to the fillies and mares Frances Tressady Stakes.”
Flemington hosts both fixtures at 1400m. With Alpha Sofie tackling the Peter Le Grand Stakes first-up, the racing betting markets are worth a look for value.
A new strategic partnership between Swim England and Neurodiverse Sport (NdS) will strengthen neuro‑inclusive practice across aquatics.
The growing prevalence of neurodiversity is a challenge for swimming teachers, with Swim England research finding that up to four in ten children in a swimming lesson could be considered neurodivergent, with this information not always known in advance.
Certain forms of neurodiversity can involve sensory sensitivities that may be heightened in pool environments, including loud noises, bright lighting and busy spaces. Swimming teachers have highlighted a need for greater support, guidance and practical resources to help them respond effectively within group lesson settings. This is particularly important in reducing reliance on one‑to‑one provision, which can be costly and may result in children missing out on regular swimming opportunities altogether.
The collaboration will kick off with a two‑year, test‑and‑learn programme, with research-backed approaches to neuro-inclusion being explored and piloted. Mainstream swimming lessons will be a particular focus.
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Caragh McMurtry, co-founder and CEO of Neurodiverse Sport CIC, says: “Neuroinclusion is never about a single solution – it’s about understanding people, environments and experiences and being willing to keep listening, testing and adapting. We’re excited to take this next step together and to learn what genuinely helps neurodivergent people feel safe, supported and able to thrive in and around the water.”
Two national surveys are being carried out one with parents and carers and one with swimming teachers, alongside a programme of in‑depth interviews with teachers. The insight gathered will inform practical recommendations to better support neurodivergent learners and the professionals teaching them, with the aim of making swimming lessons inclusive, safe, and accessible for all.
National participation and growth manager at Swim England, Alex Barrett, says: “By working together to build robust insight and evidence, we can develop practical learning that we will share with the sector to support swimming teachers, schools and providers. This work will directly inform our wider learn to swim review and help ensure that swimming opportunities are inclusive, positive and accessible for all.”
The surveys on how to make swimming lessons more inclusive are open until Monday 23 February 2026 via these links for teachers and parents.
The team at Ciaron Maher is falling back on past successes to sharpen Strawberry Rock for a return to the winners’ circle in Hobart.
Victory in Sunday’s Group 3 Hobart Cup (2400m) would mark back-to-back successes for Strawberry Rock, who bested old stablemate Promises Kept in the previous edition.
National Assistant Trainer Jack Turnbull from Ciaron Maher Racing revealed Strawberry Rock’s month-long stay at Seven Mile Beach was aimed at injecting pace into his gallop.
Without a win since last year’s Hobart Cup, Strawberry Rock still achieved second in the Listed Mornington Cup during April.
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This time in, Strawberry Rock posted a near-identical beating to the Pakenham Cup winner as 12 months ago, and his freshest run saw him miss by 1.7 lengths in the Listed Bagot Handicap (2800m) over 2800m at Flemington on the last day of December.
“We took Strawberry over early just because of the way they are trained over there,” Turnbull said.
“The environment is much easier for them. Last year he was only treading water, and he really came on when he went there with Promises Kept.
“He was racing very dour and we needed to get some speed in his legs and hopefully we’ve done that down there again.”
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Turnbull highlighted similarities between Seven Mile Beach’s setup and Cranbourne’s facilities.
“They live in sand yards,” Turnbull said.
“The bush tracks are fantastic, and you have access to the beach. It replicates what we have at Cranbourne to an extent, but it’s deeper sand and you can incorporate wading through the water.”
Ziryab, another from the stable, is also targeting the Sunday Hobart Cup and was dispatched to Seven Mile Beach with Strawberry Rock.
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Ziryab got the better of Strawberry Rock at Pakenham and then raced in Tasmania, crossing the line eighth in the Summer Cup (2000m) on January 18 at Hobart.
“He was wide, no cover, keen, and ran poor,” Turnbull said.
“He’s given us no reason to bring him home and his work has been solid from then through to now.
“He’s the pick of the two if he was to get back into the form he was in Melbourne as Strawberry needs to lift a little, and hopefully he does.”
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The racing betting markets for the Hobart Cup are heating up, with plenty of options for punters.
Fourteen. It is an age when young boys put up posters of their favourite stars on the walls and cupboards of their room, and in the insides of their compass boxes. After what Vaibhav Sooryavanshi unleashed on the hapless English bowlers on Friday, he himself has become a pin-up star for many boys older than him. Why? Because for a brief period, he threatened to erase the original romance that Indian cricket fans felt for the number 175. Of course, Kapil Dev’s Tunbridge Wells miracle in the 1983 World Cup will always reside rent free in the hearts, minds, and souls of Indian cricket tragics, but Suryavanshi’s savagery, sauciness, and skill has established another Zimbabwe bond — coming in the country’s cricketing cathedral, the Harare Sports Club.The ingenuity of T20 batting rarely marries technical excellence and purity of strokeplay, needed in longer formats, but Sooryavanshi has that. The fact that he idolises Brian Lara, no stranger to spending long hours at the nets, and copied his bat swing by seeing videos of him stored on his phone, tells us that he knows only the big scores will keep him in sight of the people who matter. A certain Sachin Tendulkar had the same appetite for big runs in those early years of his.
T20 World Cup Groups Explained: Who Can Reach the Super 8
Explaining his bat swing, his personal coach and former Mumbai batter Zubin Bharucha, who Sooryavanshi spoke with last night, says, “Time and space are his greatest assets.” Elaborating, Bharucha says hitting thousands of balls in practice has enabled Sooryavanshi become as good as he is. “His head falls naturally into the ball a la Viv Richards, Tendulkar and Gavaskar. The bat always remains outside the line of the ball. The space, otherwise defined as how far away from the body the elbows work, like an early Tendulkar or AB de Villiers, Richards and Gavaskar.”When commentators and experts see Sooryavanshi bat, they are struck by the amount of time he has. He seems to have that extra fraction of a second to play the ball. Bharucha explains, “Time is a function created from a long and high back-lift like Lara’s. But that also means he needs to hit thousands of balls in practice because timing and rhythm can go awry since things need syncing with the rest of the body. He often talks about losing this rhythm and feels like he can’t hit a ball. This is normal for batters with that long bat swing.”But hitting 1,000s of balls in practice needs time and a distraction-free life. Surely, there are more interesting things that consume 14-year-olds, especially someone who already has crores in his bank account. Bharucha avers, “He has immense hunger and he doesn’t need any pushing.”
The youngster also loves to problem-solve by treating nets as a sacrosanct space. Bharucha explains, “He has the diligence to call me before every match and ask how he can adapt. Last night was no different, where the plan was to continue to be positive. He knew England will be bowling yorkers and bouncers to slow him down, and he knew that he had to use the space behind the keeper than just trying to pull every ball.”When you have someone who is so talented, there will be clamour in India to rush him into big-time cricket quickly, as people suggest he is too good for the Under-19 level. Bharucha wants people to tread with caution and says there is some way to go before calling Sooryavanshi a finished product. “He needs to eliminate errors and know where to score runs,” he cautions.When probed on the weaknesses, Bharucha, like a tough taskmaster, explains, “He finds it difficult to cut the ball. When in Australia, he found it tough to play the backfoot drive. The leg-side play on the front foot still does not exist because his front foot lands outside the line of the ball. With that back-lift, the short ball can be an issue, because from all that the bat has to do to get to the ball.”And what about comparisons with Tendulkar? “Tendulkar, even at 14, had a fantastic defensive technique to go with his attacking game. Sooryavanshi is still learning the defensive bit,” says Bharucha.
Novak Djokovic has opened up about his rise to world No. 1 and the resistance he faced while breaking into an era dominated by Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
Djokovic said his background and direct ambition set him apart at a time when men’s tennis was already shaped by established stars.
“Federer and Nadal come from two Western powers. I arrived from Serbia and said out loud that I was going to be number one. The entire system didn’t like that,” Djokovic said. “I felt like an unwanted guest crashing their party.”
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He explained that the reaction went beyond competition, affecting how he was viewed across the sport.
“They wanted me to play to their tune, to fit into their script,” he said. “It hurt me so much that I even changed my behaviour, hoping they would accept me.”
Djokovic added that over time he realised acceptance was not something he could control.
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“In the end, I understood that I needed to stay true to myself and accept that some people will never like me. That’s fine. I am who I am.”
Reflecting on his first spell as world No. 1, Djokovic said the dynamic with Federer and Nadal shifted, though his respect for them remained.
“I looked up to them then and I still do for paving the road,” he said. “But once I felt the distance, I said, ‘Fine. No problem.’”
Djokovic made these remarks in a sit-down interview with Slaven Bilic on the Failures of Champions podcast.
Former Major League Baseball outfielder Yasiel Puig was found guilty by a jury in a federal gambling case, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced Friday.
The verdict followed a weekslong trial that included testimony from MLB officials and Donny Kadokawa, a Hawaii baseball coach tied to Puig and the illegal gambling operation.
Puig played for three major league teams, spending the bulk of his career with the Los Angeles Dodgers. He has not appeared in an MLB game since 2019. Puig, 35, now faces up to 20 years in federal prison.
Los Angeles Dodgers right fielder Yasiel Puig reacts after the third inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks during Game 3 of the 2017 NLDS playoff baseball series at Chase Field in Phoenix, Ariz., Oct. 9, 2017.(Mark J. Rebilas/USA Today Sports)
Puig’s attorney, Keri Curtis Axel, argued the government failed to prove key elements of its case and that she plans to raise post-trial motions.
“We look forward to clearing Yasiel’s name,” Axel said.
He acknowledged in an August 2022 plea agreement that he wracked up more than $280,000 in losses over a few months in 2019 while wagering on tennis, football and basketball games through a third party who worked for an illegal gambling operation run by Wayne Nix, a former minor league baseball player.
Nix pleaded guilty in 2022 to conspiracy to operate an illegal gambling business and subscribing to a false tax return. Authorities said Puig placed at least 900 bets through Nix-controlled betting websites and through a man who worked for Nix.
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Prosecutors said that, during a January 2022 interview with federal investigators, Puig denied knowing about the nature of his bets, who he was betting with and the circumstances of paying his gambling debts.
But he changed his tune months later, announcing that he was switching his plea to not guilty because of “significant new evidence,” according to a statement from his attorneys in Los Angeles.
“I want to clear my name,” Puig said in the statement. “I never should have agreed to plead guilty to a crime I did not commit.”
Yasiel Puig of Tiburones de La Guaira of Venezuela reacts after leaving a game due to injury in the fourth inning during a game against the Dominican Republic at loanDepot park as part of Series del Caribe 2024 Feb. 9, 2024, in Miami, Fla.(Luis Gutierrez/by Norte Photo/Getty Images)
The government argued he intentionally misled federal investigators. They played in court audio clips of Puig speaking English and brought expert witnesses to testify on Puig’s cognitive abilities, The New York Times reported.
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His attorneys said Puig, who has a third-grade education, had untreated mental health issues and did not have his own interpreter or criminal legal counsel with him during the interview with federal investigators when he allegedly lied.
Yasiel Puig of Tiburones de la Guaira of Venezuela reacts in the fifth inning of a game against the Dominican Republic at loanDepot Park as part of the Serie del Caribe 2024 Feb. 1, 2024, in Miami, Fla.(Luis Gutierrez/Norte Photo/Getty Images)
Puig made his MLB debut with the Dodgers in 2013 and finished his major league career with 132 home runs and 415 RBIs. He was selected to the MLB All-Star team in 2014. Last year, he played for the Kiwoom Heroes, a professional baseball team based in Seoul.
Of course we did. This is Super Bowl week. Pats and Hawks! Bad Bunny! Commercials! Quit hogging the dip! But the thing is, though, every week feels like a super week in pro football. Regular season! NFL draft! Signings! Every week seems meaningful.
Even when it’s tough to watch.
This season, Dave Berri’s Detroit Lions were predicted to contend. But players got hurt. And the Motor City faithful suffered. Please trust that the analysis that follows was spoken in a pained tone.
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“I think in one game — against the Vikings — their starting center came off the practice squad,” Berri said. “And you’re like, ‘Well, I don’t think you’re going to win this game.’ I think they could have just said, ‘Well, probably not.’ I don’t know that you can block the Vikings defensive line with a practice squad center. And then he left the team three days later, so there you go.
“And then they were telling me, Jared Goff, you didn’t play a very good game. ‘Well, I only had one second to throw the ball. I mean, he is the center. He is pretty close to the other team. So I don’t know what you wanted me to do about that.’ So, yeah, it was just, games like that, I don’t know what you want us to do. I wish coaches could just say that. It’s like, they’re different players. Those aren’t the players I want playing. There’s a reason why they were on the practice squad.”
Poor Berri, right? And yes, you’re still on a golf site.
Berri’s other job is in sports economics. He teaches it. He’s written books and articles about it. He’s established himself as one of the country’s authorities on the subject. A couple years ago, I talked with him, and I felt it was right to do so again, considering all of the news around golf and money — and football. We talked about the PGA Tour and its new CEO, Brian Rolapp — who came from the NFL. We talked about YouTube — which now broadcasts NFL games. We talked about LIV Golf and Saudi Arabia — where the NFL is hosting an event in March. We talked about Bryson DeChambeau — who’s in the midst of contract talks not unlike a quarterback or defensive end.
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We also wondered whether pro golf could become appointment viewing — in the way that it is for the NFL.
Regardless of how the play is.
(Editor’s note: The interview has been lightly condensed.)
Brian Rolapp in August at the Tour Championship.
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I. THE PGA TOUR — AND ITS NEW CEO
Last June, the PGA Tour named Brian Rolapp as its CEO. Who’s Rolapp? An NFL man, he’d been thought of as a potential successor to NFL commissioner Roger Goodell (and he still might be). But now Rolapp is in golf, and over the past few months, he’s created a “Future Competition Committee” aimed at examining the Tour’s competitive model and developed a pathway for Brooks Koepka to return to the Tour after a four-season stint with LIV Golf.
Last year, the PGA Tour hired the second-in-command of the NFL as the PGA Tour’s first-ever CEO. What can pro golf take from the NFL model? What should it ignore?
I’m going to argue pretty much nothing. This is a totally different sport. The difficulty is, going from the NFL to the PGA Tour, is that football is a very, very good television sport. I don’t know if golf has quite the same television appeal. I think there’s a ceiling to how many people are going to tune in to watch golf. And I don’t know how you change that. Despite the amount of coverage it gets, it’s never been one of the major sports. It gets a lot of attention because it does appeal to executives, right? The people who make decisions love golf. But I don’t know that it’s the kind of sport that you’re going to get — the Super Bowl is going to have 150 million people tune in to watch this, right? I don’t know how you’re going to get that for golf. People are aware of who Tiger Woods is and stuff like that, but the number of people who tune into this is somewhat small, and I don’t know how he’s going to change that. It’s been around a long time. People are aware of it. I just don’t see what specifically you can do that’s going to dramatically change the model. Introduce defense?
One of Rolapp’s pillars is scarcity. This year, there are fewer players who have received full-time playing privileges, and there are rumors that, starting next year, there will be fewer tournaments. The thought is the PGA Tour right now runs essentially from January all the way through Thanksgiving, where there is really no offseason, whereas Major League Baseball has an offseason, NFL does, NBA does — to where you then miss it. Like where opening day in baseball is an event. Like week one of the NFL is an event. Is less play better or worse for the product?
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I think there’s an argument to be made that if you make it more scarce, then people are going to value more what they do get to see and that’s not a ridiculous argument. That’s OK. Is that going to dramatically change anything? I don’t think that’s going to happen. It’s a small change that could theoretically help. I think the counter argument is there’s a value in having it on all the time. If you look at the NFL, the NFL was scarce. It was very scarce. It used to be, if you want to watch an NFL football game, it was on Sunday. And then they moved it to Monday night, right? And that was a big change. And then they didn’t really do much after that for a long time. And now they have it so that there’s NFL games on Thursdays and Fridays and Saturdays and Sundays and Mondays. Has that made the NFL worse? I don’t know. I don’t think that’s true. And they do the same with college football. I mean, college football is on almost every night now. And so I don’t know that that’s made it worse. It is the case that if you have a lot of events, then your ratings for each one will likely be lower because people are not going to commit themselves to seven days a week watching something. But I think your overall viewership would probably be higher because you have more events you’re selling and the amount of attention people are paying to you might be higher. So I can see what he’s saying. I think that could help. I don’t know that that dramatically changes anything.
As you said, Sunday’s a big thing, Monday night’s a big thing, Thursday night’s become a must-watch event. What could the PGA Tour try to do to duplicate that?
Yeah, that’s a tough one. One issue that you have with the PGA Tour, and it’s the same problem that afflicts cricket, is that you don’t have an event that lasts three hours and decides the winner. It’s a four-day event. And that requires some level of commitment on the part of the viewer. And you could say, well, just tune in the last day. But there’s stuff that went on before that. The solution they came up with in cricket was the T20 approach where you change the game so it’s a three-hour event. And that seems to have worked. So one option is create events where instead of it’s a four-day tournament, go, OK, we’re going to do a three-hour.
Grant Horvat last March at the Players Championship.
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II. YOUTUBE — AND WHY IT’S SUCH A PHENOMENON
YouTube’s popularity has exploded, especially so in golf. Good Good. Bob Does Sports. Grant Horvat. The Bryan Bros. And many more. This past summer, there was also an International Invitational, hosted by Bob Does Sports and Barstool Sports, which attracted hundreds of thousands of views.
To me, YouTube golf has become as popular as it is because it’s fast, it’s digestible.
The advantage of YouTube is this — I’m going to give you a totally different way of thinking about this. So if you look at the rise of K-pop and how that happened, K-pop takes off internationally when YouTube becomes a thing. And the reason why YouTube is crucial to the story is because prior to YouTube, the only way you could get your music on the radio or on MTV was if a decision-maker decided to put it there. And the problem is the decision-maker has their own tastes. And their own preferences. And so they’re going to put on what they like. And we have this idea that network executives know what the audience wants. We have countless examples of network executives having no idea what the audience wants, and they’re totally shocked when they put something on there. When you do YouTube, though, YouTube is a different model. Now the viewer gets to decide. You decide what you want to listen to. And suddenly K-pop becomes this huge thing because everyone individually chooses what they want. And so when you create a product for YouTube, you’re allowing the audience to decide what they want themselves, rather than the network executive saying, ‘I have so much time at ABC or ESPN or whatever, and I’m going to dedicate this amount to that.’ And that can completely transform what you’re doing. You have to be responsive to what the YouTube audience wants, right? You have to pay attention to that because they’re choosing it themselves. They’re not letting the network do it for them.
Is there anything pro golf can take from YouTube?
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I don’t know. I think the advantage is you’re letting the viewers pick what they want, so if you give them a menu of things, you’re going to find faster what they like and what they don’t like better than what an executive could do. Because executives again are making decisions based on their personal preferences and they are absolutely convinced that they know the answer, they know what people want, but history says they don’t. How to convert that to a sports model is challenging, though. Because, again, they have to be live. I do think there’s some value if the PGA Tour could come up with events that really were in a shorter time frame. We’re going to have you play 18 holes. Or even just do nine holes. See what happens. Nine-hole pressure. I wonder if you could create a golf course — here’s an idea: Create a golf course where things are like par-6 or par-7. So make it so it’s longer, right? And do like nine of them. I mean, you can think about making events so it’s like, I’m going to highlight this particular aspect of golf. Maybe you create a course that makes the putting more difficult. Maybe you make the course that makes hitting the drives more difficult. Things like that. You could create a whole tour where you’re saying these events are going to focus on these skills, but these events will focus on these other skills.
There’s just all sorts of things you could do, but you have to create it so that the event is shorter in time period, because longer time periods, you’re really just appealing to your major fans. You’re not not appealing to the average fan. You got to bring the casual fan into the thing. That’s why the NFL works so well. Casual fans can watch it. You don’t have to know a whole lot about the intricacies of football to watch football. You can see what’s going on. They’re at the 30-yard line. I can see it. They ran a play. They got four yards. They just said it, I saw it, there you go. You don’t need to know, well, do you see how they got the four yards? Do you see the left tackle pulled on it? I don’t give a crap. You got to create events that bring in casual fans. You can’t focus on the hardcore fans. This is where the NHL went wrong. So many years ago in the NHL, they did this thing with the purple puck where you could see where the puck was. And the hardcore fans got pissed off with that. ‘I can see where the puck is.’ Yeah, most people can’t. Most people don’t know where it is. And so that really helps. ‘Yeah, I don’t like it.’ So they got rid of it. You know what, this isn’t for you. You’re going to watch regardless. I don’t need to make you happy. Hockey also suffers from a problem in that you do have to watch. It isn’t like football or baseball where it can be on in the background and you can look at the score every once in a while and go, ‘Oh, I got an idea what’s going on.’
If you look at the hockey television ratings, they are persistently very low. It does really well in person. They sell out the arenas very consistently, but the ratings on television are terrible. And they’ve always been terrible because they construct the broadcast to appeal to the hardcore hockey fan and they don’t do it to appeal to the casual hockey fan, and if you’re going to build up a sport, it’s always the casual fan that matters. That’s what baseball’s been trying to do. They had a problem with pitchers just sort of milling around on the mound and not doing anything. And people were like, It’s kind of boring watching him take 45 seconds to throw the damn pitch. Put in a pitch clock.
I think that shot clock is one of the best sports ‘inventions’ since maybe the three-point line.
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It makes the game much faster, and it gets them focused on what they’re doing. And you’re like, OK, that’s good, I like that. That’s the kind of thing that you want to do. The whole notion that the crowd has to be quiet when golfers are playing? Every other athlete has to hear noise. You can yell if you want. I think that might make it more interesting. Let ’em yell, let ’em see what happens.
Yasir Al-Rumayyan and Jon Rahm in August at LIV Golf’s team championship.
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III. LIV GOLF — AND HOW LONG THE SAUDIS WILL BACK IT
This week, LIV Golf started its fifth season, and there are questions on its future, as there are with any new sports league. The central one, though, is this: Will its primary backer, the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund, continue to support the circuit?
The last time we talked, the PGA Tour had taken money from a sports ownership group and that came after a preliminary deal between the Tour and the Saudi PIF. That is currently still being negotiated and might not see the light of day. At one point last year, Donald Trump met with the Saudi PIF governor, but nothing has happened. So the question I have is, what are the benefits and detractions to looking into Saudi investment in American sports?
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The Saudis are looking for things to invest in because the oil industry is not eternal. At some point, that’s going to be a problem for them. And there’s a huge attraction for rich people being involved in sports. And if you can’t play sports, I guess the next best thing is to buy the sports. So that’s why they’re doing it. The problem is, the Saudis tried to create a brand-new golf league by itself, which I think I told you wasn’t going to work, and it doesn’t seem like it’s working. You just can’t do that. There’s no tradition. You can’t just take people and stick them in a tournament that looks the same as every other tournament and say, well, now they’re going to compete over here doing this. It’s like, I don’t know what it is they’re fighting for. The Masters means something because there’s a history to it. But creating another league is probably not going to work If it’s the same product, which I think it was, right? Four-day tournaments, right?
Yeah, see, that’s the same thing. You’re doing exactly the same product. If they wanted to do something, what they should have done is what we were just talking about a moment ago. You know, create a bunch of contests that are totally different. But if you just do exactly the same thing, but there’s no tradition, well, I don’t think you’re going to have any audience then. It’s not the players by themselves. There’s the history that matters. What the past players did matters. If there’s no history, then it matters less. And the audience doesn’t have an idea why it’s significant. Why does this matter? And so that was the problem the Saudis have. So I understand what they were trying to do. But it was unlikely that was going to be terrifically successful. And you can see now the top stars moving back to the PGA Tour because well, money’s nice, but at the end of the day, you are a professional athlete. You do want to compete against the best, and you want people to pay attention to you.
Last year, it was reported that LIV Golf was losing money at a clip of nine figures a year, though recently the CEO of LIV Golf said that the league could turn a profit in five to 10 years. My question is, how long does Saudi Arabia stick with LIV? Do they believe in it no matter what, or do they eventually pull the plug?
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I don’t know. They have an immense amount of money. The amount of money that they’re spending on this is quite small, relative to what money they have. So therefore, they could do it indefinitely if they want, if that’s what they like. It’s really up to their preferences. I don’t believe, and I said this to you before, I don’t think they’re doing it to make a profit. They already have money. They’re not trying to make money. They do want an audience. I think they want people to pay attention to them. And if that doesn’t happen, then I don’t think they want to keep doing that. That CEO telling you — how exactly are you planning on making a profit in 10 years? What do you think is going to happen? This is where an academic would be like, I don’t see how that’s possible. Where are you getting that from? What is your analytical tool that tells you that that’s going to happen? That just doesn’t seem very likely from where you’re starting. How are you going to get an audience? If you don’t have an audience now and your stars are leaving you, why do you think you’re going to have an audience 10 years from now? Are the stars going to come back? You didn’t have much of an audience with the stars. You’ll have less of an audience without the stars. But how long will they do it? As long as they want to do it. They have the money. I think what matters to them more than anything is, is anyone paying attention?
Bryson DeChambeau on Thursday at LIV Golf’s Riyadh event.
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IV. BRYSON DECHAMBEAU — AND HIS CONTRACT
In 2022, Bryson DeChambeau was among the players who signed deals to leave the PGA Tour and join LIV Golf, and that contract is expiring at the end of the year. DeChambeau figures to have significant leverage in the negotiations, which begs the question: How much will he ask for from LIV, should he want to return?
When LIV formed in 2022, many of its stars signed contracts that are now expiring, including Bryson DeChambeau. And in that time, Jon Rahm signed for what’s been reported as a nine figure deal. And Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed left to return to the PGA Tour. And LIV continues to try to gain a foothold. And DeChambeau won a U.S. Open and developed a significant YouTube presence. Given all of that, how much money could DeChambeau demand?
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Oh, I don’t know. I have no idea. I mean, it’s obviously a lot more than [Rahm’s]. Again, the problem is, if you’re thinking about this in terms of a business like a Taco Bell, and you’re thinking about revenues and costs and how much revenue this person brings in and what they’re worth to me, the answer would be they wouldn’t pay him much of anything because there’s not really much revenue being generated. But that’s clearly not what they’re doing. I mean, they’re trying to build something here. They can’t afford to lose more stars. And they also have this incredibly large sum of money that they can throw at this. And so when that’s the case, how much money can you command?
Could he ask for a billion dollars?
I would. I would ask for $2 billion. I would just throw it out there. ‘$2 billion. What do you got? $2 billion. You got $2 billion?’ I mean, they have $2 billion. And let’s see if they counter.
Has there ever been an athlete who has had that much leverage?
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No, in the sense because you’re dealing with — what is the amount of money they have to invest in this? What do the Saudis have?
OK, so you have $1 trillion. OK, now think about that. So you think about a typical owner of a sports team. Typical owner of a sports team might have $10 billion. You have $1 trillion. And you’re desperate. I’d demand $2 billion. I’d demand $3 billion. That’s $3 billion. ‘You have $1 trillion, give me $3 billion.’ ‘You know, I’m not doing it.’ ‘Well, then I’m not playing.’ So, you know, I would demand just the most ridiculous sum of money possible because none of the revenue or cost issues make any difference. You’re doing this because you want to gain an entry into the space. And without a star, it won’t happen. So your decision is, how much are you going to pay me to make this happen for you? And if the answer is, you’re not willing to, well, then I don’t do it. Then you try it on your own. Good luck with that. It also depends on how much he wants to do it. I mean, how much do you want to actually continue participating in this? I would just throw out some ridiculous money.
Jeeno Thitikul last week at the LPGA’s Tournament of Champions.
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V. THE LPGA — AND A WNBA MOMENT
Popularity in women’s sports has skyrocketed, especially so in the WNBA. Can the LPGA, under new commissioner Craig Kessler, capture that attention, or even surpass it?
You’ve written extensively on the WNBA. And my question is, how can the LPGA duplicate that type of success?
The WNBA success came about — and I think is what happened — is that we had Covid and the women’s basketball in college and men’s basketball in college both went to bubbles. And Sedona Prince does the video and says, look, the bubbles aren’t equal. They built a giant weight room for the men. They didn’t build anything for the women. They gave them a tower of dumbbell racks. And as a result of that, the NCAA investigates itself, and there is a legal team that looks at them and they issue a report and there’s a whole bunch of media coverage and then suddenly, within months, there is a change in how women’s college basketball gets covered. Suddenly, for the first time in history, the network puts a regular-season game on the networks. That had never happened before. Suddenly they’re telling the women, you can call your tournament March Madness, just like the men’s. Suddenly, the entire tournament for the women is on television. That was not the case before that. Or at least, it wasn’t the case for much of its history. So suddenly, college basketball becomes accessible and had not been accessible before. And not surprisingly, within a year or so of that happening, one of the players becomes a massive star. Caitlin Clark becomes a huge star. And the way they report this is, oh, we discovered Caitlin Clark and now we started covering this. No, I can see in the data that you started covering it first and then Caitlin Clark became the star. That is exactly how it always goes. It’s always the coverage first and the star second. It’s not the star first and then the coverage. Then Caitlin Clark moved to the WNBA, and the networks go, you know what, we should be covering that. There’s a lot of interest in this. And then the WNBA gets a whole bunch more coverage. And people are like, in 2024, it’s Caitlin Clark. Well, then in 2025, Caitlin Clark gets hurt. But they kept the coverage the same and the ratings go up even higher. And you’re like, it was never Caitlin Clark. It was just the coverage changed.
So how can the LPGA duplicate that? Well, you somehow have to change the coverage. And how do you change the coverage? Well, that’s the real problem that they have. How do you change the coverage? How do you get it so that you get the same kind of consistent, I’m-on-television-all-the-time coverage. Think about the way the media covers the final of the major tournaments on the men’s side and how they cover the ones on the women’s side. The volume of stories is going to be a lot higher on the men’s side. If you don’t have the same kind of media attention, if you’re just reporting the winner, if you’re not doing the coverage consistently as it goes along, it’s going to limit your fan appeal. But I do think if we go back to the whole diversity issue, given the fact the LPGA is more diverse, there’s a bigger audience potentially there if you could get them to pay attention to it. I think that makes a difference. So I think there’s a lot of stories that you could tell on the women’s side. But you have to want to do that.
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When there was more media coverage of the WNBA, they told the Caitlin Clark story, they told other players’ stories. Is there a way that the LPGA can market its players to get to that level?
Absolutely. And the advantage of golf is the same advantage tennis has. The athletes are individuals and therefore the audience relates to them very rapidly. See, that’s the problem in team sports. Team sports, at the end of the day, you’re asking somebody to form an emotional attachment to something that’s entirely fictitious. There is no such thing as an Indiana Fever. That doesn’t exist. There’s no such thing as a Boston Celtic. Those things don’t exist. But when you’re doing tennis or golf or boxing, that’s a person. And if you can simply get the audience to connect to the person, where either they like the person or they don’t like the person — I’m rooting for them or I’m rooting against them — either way, you’re paying attention. So the way to do it is to find a way to get it so the audience has some kind of emotional attachment to that person. Tell the person’s story. Was there some sort of struggle that led them to become a golfer? Are there issues here that we should know about? Are there rivalries that we should know about? And that’s what happens in tennis, right? Tennis is you get to know the personalities of the players and it allows you to connect with who you’re watching. And that’s the key, right? That’s the key.
While we’ve had sporting action the past three days, Saturday marks the first day of competition — and the first medal events — at the Winter Olympics.
Here are athletes and teams to watch, along with the full Day 1 schedule (all times Eastern):
The Canadian speedskater from La Baie, Que., has won a silver and bronze in four World Cup races this season at 3,000 metres, which is the first event for the sport at the Olympics. Fellow Canadian Isabelle Weidemann also could be a contender.
The Calgary ski jumper was third, sixth and fourth in three rounds of training on Friday for Saturday’s normal hill competition. The large hill has been the Calgary native’s better event, but she could contend here, too.
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The Toronto native has been off the top pace this season, but he did finish first on Friday in the final training run for Saturday’s downhill race. Crawford won gold in super-G at the 2023 world championships.
The Canadian snowboarder from Lac Beauport, Que., finished a surprising sixth in qualifying on Thursday to reach the 12-man big air final.
Canadian women’s hockey team
After having its opener postponed because of a norovirus outbreak for Finland’s team on Thursday, Canada hits the Olympic ice Saturday to face Switzerland.
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Alpine skiing * Men’s downhill, 5:30 a.m.
Cross-country skiing * Women’s 10 km + 10 km skiathlon, 7 a.m.
Luge Women’s singles training, 7:30 a.m. Men’s singles Run 1, 11 a.m. Men’s singles Run 2, 12:32 p.m.
Mixed doubles curling(standings, scores) Great Britain vs. Canada, 4:05 a.m. Switzerland vs. Sweden, 4:05 a.m. Estonia vs. Norway, 8:35 a.m. Great Britain vs. U.S., 8:35 a.m. South Korea vs. Czechia, 8:35 a.m. Sweden vs. Italy, 8:35 a.m. Canada vs. Estonia, 1:05 p.m. Czechia vs. Switzerland, 1:05 p.m. South Korea vs. U.S., 1:05 p.m. Norway vs. Italy, 1:05 p.m.
Ski jumping Women’s normal hill individual first round, 12:45 p.m. *Women’s normal hill individual final, 1:57 p.m.
Snowboarding * Men’s big air final, 1:30 p.m.
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Speedskating * Women’s 3,000 metres, 10 a.m.
Women’s hockey (standings, scores) Germany vs. Japan, 6:10 a.m. Sweden vs. Italy, 8:40 a.m. U.S. vs. Finland, 10:40 a.m. Canada vs. Switzerland, 3:10 p.m.
Kobbie Mainoo is back in the Man Utd team under Michael Carrick but the head coach wants to see more young players making the breakthrough at Old Trafford.
If there was concern for the future of the Manchester United academy while Ruben Amorim was in charge at Old Trafford, the club’s prestigious record of blooding young players is in safe hands while Michael Carrick is around. Amorim’s relationship with the academy wasn’t a particularly strong one and his absence from games and sidelining of Kobbie Mainoo invited mistrust.
In three weeks, Carrick has shown a very different approach. He has attended two Under-21 games and an FA Youth Cup tie, and Mainoo has played every minute of his three games in charge.
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Mainoo’s renaissance has been one of the stories of Carrick’s return to the dugout. The jewel in the crown of the United academy, he is set to be offered a long-term contract that reflects his status as a key player in the first team and any concerns that he might have to leave have disappeared.
The 20-year-old was weighing up a loan move at the start of January, having failed to start a single Premier League game under Amorim this season, but he is firmly back in the picture now and contract talks are back on the agenda.
Carrick restored Mainoo to the team because he knew he needed what the Stockport-born youngster could offer, but the 44-year-old is also steeped in United’s traditions and although his contract is only until the end of the season, he has been a visible presence around the academy.
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This week, he included 15-year-old forward JJ Gabriel in first-team training, even though he is too young to appear in the Premier League this season. He also called up 17-year-old full-back Yuel Helafu, twins Jack and Tyler Fletcher, 18, and 20-year-old midfielder Jack Moorhouse.
Carrick’s focus on delivering Champions League football for United this season might prevent him from handing out many appearances to those young players, but over time, he is determined to see more of the club’s academy graduates given their chance and believes there is nothing better than giving a young player their opportunity.
“We want more, we want more players to come through the system and to get into the first team,” said Carrick. “For me, there’s no better feeling than giving younger players a chance. He’s [Mainoo] taken the chance over recent weeks and I am sure he will continue to do that.
“Obviously, with Munich and the kind of the foundation of the football club, everything feeds off that. I’m not putting everything on Kobbie’s shoulders, he’s doing terrific at the moment and I’m sure he’ll continue to be that way.”
United’s record of including an academy graduate in every matchday squad now extends into an 89th year, although there were times under Amorim when you did fear how much longer it would last and whether it would become a tick-box exercise.
That is no longer the case. Mainoo is in the team on merit and Shea Lacey has also become part of the first-team picture in recent weeks.
Lacey, 18, was handed six minutes of football under Amorim and was an unused substitute in seven of the eight occasions he was named on the bench. Darren Fletcher gave the winger minutes against Burnley and Brighton and he was back in the squad under Carrick last weekend.
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“I think from the club’s point of view, there’s an ideal scenario to bring players through the academy and have them in the team and have them go through their career at this club, staying in and around it,” said Carrick.
“I think I was fortunate enough to be with a lot of players that managed to do that, and I think it’s important.”
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Team USA, led by speedskater and flag bearer Erin Jackson, was among the final delegations to parade into Milan’s San Siro stadium on Friday.
While the crowd cheered for the athletes, jeers and whistles erupted as Vance and his wife, Usha Vance, appeared on stadium screens, waving American flags.
Commentators highlighted this distinct shift in the crowd’s reception.
Team USA, led by speedskater and flag bearer Erin Jackson, was among the final delegations to parade into Milan’s San Siro stadium on Friday. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)
“There’s the vice president and his wife, Usha; those are not, oh, those are a lot of boos for him,” one commentator said on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation’s coverage.
The Independent’s Flo Clifford reported from inside San Siro stadium, “A largely positive reception for the U.S. contingent. There are thousands of American fans in the stadium – but very definite boos and jeers for vice president JD Vance and his wife, second lady Usha Vance, who the camera pans to waving American flags for a few brief seconds.”
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Support for the U.S. among its allies has been eroding as the Trump administration has taken an aggressive posture on foreign policy, including imposing tariffs, military action in Venezuela and threats to invade Greenland.
On social media, viewers at home noted hearing the boos as well. It comes after International Olympic Committee president Kirsty Coventry urged spectators to be “respectful” toward U.S. athletes after worldwide backlash over Trump’s immigration raids and the killing of two Americans by border officers in Minnesota.
Jeers also rang out when Israel’s delegation entered the stadium.
Besides Milan, athlete parades were held in three other locations: Cortina d’Ampezzo, Livigno and Predazzo. The Games are staged across a vast area of northern Italy, making them the most geographically dispersed Winter Olympics in history.
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